Monday, July 25, 2005

Stocks Consolidating Recent Gains Mid-day

Indices
S&P 500 1,234.11 +.03%
DJIA 10,645.87 -.06%
NASDAQ 2,175.20 -.21%
Russell 2000 676.39 -.21%
DJ Wilshire 5000 12,312.16 +.01%
S&P Barra Growth 591.85 -.02%
S&P Barra Value 637.95 +.10%
Morgan Stanley Consumer 585.89 -.11%
Morgan Stanley Cyclical 760.58 +.28%
Morgan Stanley Technology 498.30 -.09%
Transports 3,765.39 -.39%
Utilities 394.62 +.44%
Put/Call .69 -13.75%
NYSE Arms .92 -8.98%
Volatility(VIX) 10.97 +4.28%
ISE Sentiment 162.00 +1.25%
US Dollar 89.61 -.03%
CRB 304.91 +.22%

Futures Spot Prices
Crude Oil 58.80 +.17%
Unleaded Gasoline 171.00 -1.04%
Natural Gas 7.25 -1.81%
Heating Oil 160.10 +1.27%
Gold 425.80 +.19
Base Metals 124.92 +.15%
Copper 161.70 +.84%
10-year US Treasury Yield 4.24% +.61%

Leading Sectors
Energy +1.54%
Oil Service +1.48%
Telecom +.51%

Lagging Sectors
Biotech -.98%
Homebuilders -.99%
Steel -1.27%
BOTTOM LINE: The Portfolio is unchanged mid-day as gains in my Software and Medical longs are offsetting losses in my Biotechnology longs. I have not traded today, thus leaving the Portfolio 100% net long. The tone of the market is slightly negative as the advance/decline line is modestly lower, most sectors are lower and volume is below average. Measures of investor anxiety are mostly lower. Today’s overall market action is neutral considering recent gains and the rise in energy prices and long-term rates from morning lows. In a recent Merrill Lynch survey, energy was the favorite industry among 273 global money managers. Portfolio managers who were "overweight," or held stakes above their benchmarks, outnumbered those "underweight" by 37 percentage points. The energy industry topped health care for the top ranking among all 11 industry groups. I expect stocks to trade mixed into the afternoon as stocks consolidate recent gains.

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