· Boston Scientific (BSX) +6%: Medical device company announces that it has received final FDA approval for its Taxus drug-eluting stent; Company is ready to launch with over 225-250K units on hand; Management has said it hopes to end 2004 with 60% market share in the US versus rival Johnson & Johnson (JNJ, Cypher); See a Story Stock dated Feb 25 for more details.
· Intel (INTC) -2%: World's largest chip maker narrows its Q1 (Mar) revenue guidance to $8.0-8.2 bln from $7.9-8.5 bln in its mid-quarter update; The Reuters Research consensus estimate stood at $8.27 bln, and thus this has inspired some profit-taking; Gross margins are unchanged at ~ 60%; Chip equipment makers AMAT, KLAC, and NVLS are also lower
17:50 ET Thursday After Hours : prices levels vs. 4 pm ET: Intel's (INTC) move to narrow its Q1 (Mar) revenue guidance range to the low-end of estimates has knocked the market down in the after hours trade. Presently, the S&P futures, at 1154, are 1 point below fair value and the Nasdaq 100 futures, at 1476, are 6 points below fair value. Traders have reduced exposure to tech as many were banking on a nearly perfect update from Intel.
16:18 ET Intel narrows revenue range below consensus, narrows gross margin range (INTC) 29.65 +0.61: -- Update -- Co narrows its Q1 rev guidance to $8.0-$8.2 bln, vs its previous range of $7.9-$8.5 bln and consensus of $8.27 bln. The gross margin percentage is expected to be 60%, plus or minus a point, vs previous expectation of 60%, plus or minus a couple of points. "Demand for the company's Intel Architecture products is consistent with the lower end of normal seasonal patterns and significantly higher than in the same period last year. Demand for Intel's communications products is in line with the company's expectations at the beginning of the quarter. All other expectations are unchanged."
15:06 ET Treasury Market Summary : Treasuries made an effort to tick higher in the later part of the day, holding onto gains into the close on an uneventful day. With the BOE and ECB leaving rates unchanged, and little else to take traders' minds off of employment data, trading was range bound throughout the day, with the 10-year bouncing between 4.019% and 4.086%. Initial claims, productivity, and factory orders were all in-line, another excuse to stay-out in front of tomorrow's hyped numbers. The dollar strengthened slightly today with minimal, if any, effect on treasuries. In brief, nothing happened today. Tomorrow the ever-elusive PPI "may" be released while traders pick through the employment numbers at 8:30 ET and Consumer Credit at 10:00 ET. As per usual, the talk on non-farm payrolls has drifted higher, and expectations as well. The fact is, although the trend in jobs has been improving, the releases have been repeatedly disappointing (please see the recent Bond Column entitled "Payroll Risks"). The 10-year is currently +07/32nds; yielding 4.023%, 2-year is currently +01/32nds; yielding 1.705%, The 5-year is currently +04/32nds; yielding 2.996%, The 30-year is currently +11/32nds; yielding 4.880%.
11:11 ET EU may force Microsoft to disclose software code (MSFT) 26.27 -0.10: Bloomberg.com reports that European Union regulators are preparing to force Microsoft to disclose information to competitors and give computer makers the option to dispense with the Windows Media Player, people familiar with the matter said.
09:52 ET Hearing that GE -0.08 and MCD +0.26 being highlighted as short-ideas at tier-1 firm :
07:48 ET CEOs are back in a hiring mode -- WSJ : The Wall Street Journal reports that chief executives at some of the biggest U.S. companies say they are back in hiring mode, a new survey shows, but it isn't clear whether they will create jobs on a large scale anytime soon. The Business Roundtable, an association of CEOs at big
Guy Boscart,