Positive forecast lifts stock and helps the average, Nasdaq feels small pressure.
June 20, 2003: 10:21 AM EDT
NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - U.S. stock markets were mixed early Friday, with the Dow getting a lift from General Motors and General Electric, while the Nasdaq came under mild selling pressure.
At around 10:00 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones industrial average (up 48.67 to 9228.20, Charts) was about 0.5 percent higher and the S&P 500 index (up 1.79 to 996.49, Charts) was just barely in the black. The Nasdaq composite (down 6.87 to 1641.77, Charts) was down just a few points.
Friday is a quadruple witching day. Such days occur when the expiration of contracts for stock index futures, stock index options, individual stock futures and stock options all occur on the same day. This can lead to increased volume and volatility, especially around the closing bell.
With no economic reports to give investors direction, the focus fell on individual stocks. Dow component General Motors (GM: up $0.93 to $39.00, Research, Estimates) gained more than 2 percent after Prudential upgraded the stock to "buy" from "sell." The upgrade came a day after GM's CEO said overall 2003 U.S. auto sales are moving toward the higher end of earlier forecasts. Separately, the automaker said it would raise about $10 billion by selling debt and convertible securities.
Fellow Dow stock General Electric (GE: up $0.27 to $30.13, Research, Estimates) jumped more than 1 percent after losing 3 percent Thursday because of some negative brokerage notes. At a meeting with analysts Friday, the company affirmed its earnings guidance of a profit of 37 to 39 cents per share in the current quarter and $1.55 to $1.70 per share for the full year.
Only four of the industrial average's 30 stocks were down in the early going.
As had been expected, PeopleSoft (PSFT: down $0.11 to $17.50, Research, Estimates)'s board rejected the beefed up takeover offer from Oracle (ORCL: down $0.22 to $13.12, Research, Estimates) and said it would go ahead with its $1.8 billion purchase of another software provider, J.D. Edwards (JDEC: unchanged at $14.03, Research, Estimates). All three stocks were marginally lower in the morning.
Volume on the New York Stock Exchange was heavy, with 439 million shares changing hands, as advancers stood ahead of decliners by six to four. On the Nasdaq, some 405 million shares traded and more stocks rose than fell by a small margin.
Overseas, European stock markets were mixed and stocks in Asia closed mostly lower.
Bonds retreated too, with the 10-year Treasury losing 12/32 of a point in price and its yield rising to 3.38 percent. The dollar was slightly higher against the euro and lower against the yen.
Brent crude oil futures gained 31 cents to $26.60 a barrel in London. Gold tumbled $3.60 to $358.20 an ounce in New York.
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