The Simple Acco...'s  Instablog

Alcoa (AA) kicked off earnings season with solid numbers and a generally good outlook, but the headlines were about the top line "miss," and the stock sold off after hours. We'll have to watch how this goes in the coming days. Sometimes at the end of a long run, the market starts reacting badly to news that isn't bad, but isn't a home run. That is because it's priced for near perfection.

Quite a number of blue chips are acting rather poorly, most notably our number one bellwether for this bull market, Apple (AAPL), which looks like it is starting to roll over. Yes, there is the matter of re-balancing the QQQ, but selling is selling. A break below the mid 320s would be troubling. It's too early to hit the panic button; the bull has earned our respect as each pullback has been a buying opportunity, but the probabilities get a little less favorable each time. Be alert and watch the leading stocks.