The market held up well today during the regular session but it’s taking another hit in the after-hours session. Yahoo!’s earnings report was the main culprit but there were were other contributors:
(from Briefing.com)
18:02 After Hours Summary: Earnings season begins, YHOO hit hard, peers fall in sympathyCompanies moving in after hours trading in reaction to news: Trading Up: ELOY +21.1% (raises Q2 estimates), OPTV +18.7% (settles patent litigation with DIS), DNA +2.8% (earnings, strong individual product revs), CHKR +2.4% (announces deal with WB), MW +1.2% (reports Jun same store sales), MO +0.7% (judge denies tobacco industry motion in govt RICO case)… Trading Down: SEBL -17.6% (warns for Q2), YHOO -12.6% (earnings report), SCHN -8.4% (earnings report), BMC -7.4% (warns for Q1), HOTT -5.1% (reports June same store sales), AA -3.5% (earnings report)… In Sympathy with Yahoo: ASKJ -7.6%, MAMA -6.2%, LOOK -6.2%, FWHT -5.6%, EBAY -5.4%, DCLK -4.5%, SINA -3.9%, IACI -2.1%
More software warnings… things aren’t looking good in that sector.
The QQQ is now trading at 35.6 which puts it back under its 200-day moving average and well below the June lows. It’s not looking good for the bulls right now.
The software warnings look like pages from the same script! I wonder whether it is the same set of companies that are delaying their purchases from all these hapless SW vendors, or whether the SW sales cycle has gone into a sudden and abrupt reversal. Do you remember any other earnings season in recent memory when so many bombs fell in such a concentrated matter from these guys? 2000? 2001?