This morning, the market rallied to a new 52-week high today, as jobless claims fell. In addition, QCOM raise its 2nd quarter guidance, while BBY reported a strong quarter with solid forecast. QCOM shares added +4.98% to close at $42.19; it traded as high as $43.84! BBY gapped up to $44.79, but, came down to close at $42.66, up +3.59% for the day.
In the Trading Room, we were riding up the momentum stocks. We looked at both PCLN and AMZN early in the morning:
March 25, 2010 6:53 AM
PCLN
finally broke out...
March 25, 2010 7:18 AM
PCLN
gong to $260
March 25, 2010 7:19 AM
AMZN
squeeze to $135+
When SPX reached 1180, we started to lock in profits. Here are some of the closed trades for today:
March 25, 2010
12:34 | HappyTrading AMZN ($136.20) Sold to Close 04C130 Apr 130 calls, at $8.00 +60%
11:29 | HappyTrading GOOG ($565.80) Sold to Close 04C580 Apr 580 calls, at $11.10 +54%
10:50 | HappyTrading AAPL ($229.70) Sold to Close 04C230 Apr 230 calls, at $5.95 +27%
08:49 | HappyTrading AMZN ($136.70) Sold to Close 04C130 Apr 130 calls, at $8.60 +72%
The AMZN APR 130 calls were opened just this morning. Within 90 minutes, we had a profit of +72%! They went as high as $8.7 and closed at $6.9. We also took a nice profit on GOOG and closed up the rest of our AAPL trade.
Commodity sectors continue to feel the pressure of the rising dollar. Coal stocks finally saw profit-taking today, after being higher in the morning: CLF -3.8%, WLT -3.9%, BTU -4.95%, ACI -4.23%, MEE -4.93%.
The Dow ended up +5.06 points (was up more than +100 points intraday); SPX slid 1.99 points; Nasdaq slipped 1.35 points:
XME (metals and mining) sank 3.46%. OIH (oil services) lost 2.15%. XLE (energy) fell 1.68%. XLF (financials) stayed in the green. INX2 (internet) managed a small win. FXI (Chinese ADRs) lost 1.82%.
SPX
SPX slid 1.99 points to close at 1165.73, below the 1170 level. It went above 1180 intraday. Its MACD slipped.
Nasdaq
Nasdaq fell 1.35 points, closing below 2400 again. It reached above 2430 intraday. MACD went down slightly.
The market jumped on better economic data this morning. But, it can't just go straight up. SPX 1180 was a cue to take profits, so, we did. VIX jumped above 18, a reason to be more cautious. The market was getting toppy, and quick pullbacks like these can create room for the market to go higher. Tomorrow is Friday and we'll get the latest GDP data. If the GDP data is favorable, the market should stay strong. Closing above SPX 1170 can attract more buyers.
Good night and HappyTrading! ™
Disclosure: no positions