April 13, 2018 7:05pm

Along with the Dow (-0.49), NASDAQ (-0.47%) and the IBB (-0.71%)

As I had stated, it was due based on the advance/decline lines, volume and resistance hurdles with a bit of a recovery in the final hour to close barely negative

 

Another I told you so …

 

Pre-open indication results:  3 HITs and 3 MISS (2 by pennies)

 

End of day briefing; the “numbers” speak!


Henry’omics:

Today’s moves … Despite Friday's sector decline, the major averages posted strong gains for the week. The Dow and S&P 500 rose 1.8% and 2% this week while the NASDAQ advanced 2.8%.

The morning session started with minor gains in futures with IBB slippage, reaching a low of 24 decliners at 3 p.m. with a rebound with the “flats” reducing the downside!

The sector was overbought in many trader eyes as profit-taking was in vogue …

Also with all the turbulence in Washington, who would want to be long ...

 

The advance/decline line scenario of 40 covered companies:   

  • The open was negative with the A/DL to 11/25 and 4 flat;
  • The mid-day was negative with an A/DL of 12/22 and 6 flat;
  • The close concluded barely negative with an A/DL of 17/18 and 5 flat;

 

Recent gauges of sentiment, which have alternated, suggest that “things are as good as it gets and raises the question ‘how much better can it get from here.’”

Traders are trading to the downside while investor demand has been lackluster, with low volume on both up days and down days.

It’s a red flag going forward, as Q1/17 financial results i.e. earnings of loss-per-share “numbers” won’t act as a catalyst for sector equities to move higher; it’s all about spending versus development milestones.

From the pre-open’s newsletter, “What’s steering sector equities through the volatility as the algorithms are about to rule as if they never stopped? I believe a sell-off could be in the cards.”

 

Review the 10 sessions of March’s close (of 40 covered companies):

  • Friday closed barely NEGATIVE with 18 decliners, 17 advancers and 5 flats;
  • Thursday closed POSITIVE with 8 decliners, 30 advancers and 2 flats;
  • Wednesday closed NEUTRAL with 19 decliners, 19 advancers and 2 flats;
  • Tuesday closed POSITIVE with 7 decliners, 32 advancers and 1 flats;
  • Monday closed POSITIVE with 12 decliners, 23 advancers and 5 flats;
  • Friday closed NEGATIVE with 32 decliners, 7 advancers and 1 flats;
  • Thursday closed NEGATIVE with 25 decliners, 11 advancers and 4 flats;
  • Wednesday closed POSITIVE with 11 decliners, 28 advancers and 1 flat;
  • Last Tuesday closed POSITIVE with 19 decliners, 19 advancers and 2 flats;
  • The previous Monday closed NEGATIVE with 9 decliners, 31 advancers and 0 flats

 

Pre-open indications: 3 HITs and 3 MISS

  • Applied Genetic Technologies (AGTC) closed up +$0.45 – miss;
  • Bellicum Pharmaceuticals (BLCM) closed up +$0.74 – miss;
  • Biostage (BSTG) closed flat at $2.60 – hit;
  • bluebird bio (BLUE) closed down -$4.65 – hit;
  • Intrexon (XON) closed down -$0.25 – hit;
  • Verastem (VSTM) closed up +$0.07 – miss;

 

MY working five (5) trend lines:

The greatest volume to the downside:  IMUC, XON, NWBO, VCEL and ONVO

Upside volume was weighted to:  BLCM, SGMO, VSTM, MDXG and ATHX

Biggest $ downside:  BLUE (-$4.65), ONCE (-$1.47), AXGN (-$0.45), VCEL (-$0.38) and ADRO (-$0.35)

Best moves to the $ upside:  BLCM (-$0.74), AGTC (+0.45), CLLS (+$0.21), SGMO (+$0.20) and FATE (+$0.11)

… Flats: BSTG, ADVM, AST, RENE.L and BTX

 

Daily analytics:

U.S. stock benchmarks on Friday wrapped up a solid week on a down note as better-than-expected Q1 earnings failed to stir buying appetite, underlining concerns about lofty quarterly expectations for American corporations, high valuations and geopolitical anxiety.

  • The Dow fell 122.91 points, or 0.5%, to end at 24,360.14.
  • The S&P 500 index declined 7.69 points, or 0.3%, to finish at 2,656.30.
  • The NASDAQ closed off 33.60 points, or 0.5%, at 7,106.65.

 

The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market,

  • Friday traded at 17.41, down -5.84% …
  • Thursday traded at 18.49 , down -8.65 %
  • Wednesday traded at 20.24, down -1.12%
  • Tuesday traded at 20.47, down -5.97%
  • Monday traded at 21.98, up +2.28%
  • Last Friday traded at 21.49, up +13.46%

 

The iShares Russell 2000 (IWM) indicated:

  • Friday was down -0.52%
  • Thursday was up +0.67%
  • Wednesday was up +0.22%
  • Tuesday +1.86%
  • Monday +0.12%
  • Last Friday -2%

 

The iShares NASDAQ Biotechnology (IBB) indicated:

  • Friday was down -0.71%
  • Thursday +1.32%
  • Wednesday -0.35%
  • Tuesday +2.75%
  • Monday +1.82%
  • Last Friday -3.01%

 

The count - decliners versus gainers:

……. look at the differences in decliners:

  • Friday’s decliners ranged from -0.48% <NWBO -$0.0011> to -8.63% <IMUC -$0.02 > in 18 equities;
  • Thursday’s decliners ranged from -0.14% <MDXG -$0.01 > to -5.49% <RENE.L -$4.50 > in 8 equities;
  • Wednesday’s decliners ranged from -0.01% <ONCE -$0.01 > to -6.42% <RGNX -$2.40 > in 19 equities;
  • Tuesday’s decliners ranged from -0.38% <BSTG -$0.01 > to -6.67% < AST -$0.10> in 7 equities;
  • Monday’s decliners ranged from -0.02% <FCSC -$0.00 > to -12.65% <KOOL -$0.21 > in 12 equities;
  • Last Friday’s decliners ranged from -0.50% <IMUC -$0.0012 > to -9.68% <AST -$0.15 > in 32 equities;

Versus

… Look at the percentage’s (%) and spreads …

  • Friday’s gainers ranged from +0.14% <QURE +$0.04> to +9.78% <AGTC +$0.45> in 17 equities;
  • Thursday’s gainers ranged from +0.30% <BCLI +$0.01 > to +20.29% <BLCM +$1.39 > in 30 equities;
  • Wednesday’s gainers ranged from +0.26% <IMUC +$0.001 > to +13.82% <FATE +$1.39 > in 19 equities;
  • Tuesday’s gainers ranged from +0.62% <BCLI +$0.02 > to +18.92% <RGNX +$5.95> in 32 equities;
  • Monday’s gainers ranged from +0.78% <BLCM +$0.05 > to +16.44% <QURE +$3.61 > in 23 equities;
  • Last Friday’s gainers ranged from +0.61% <OSIR +$0.05 > to +4.06% <BLFS +$0.08 > in 7 equities;

                                                                                                                                                                               

Opinions expressed are those of the author and are subject to change, and not intended to be a forecast of future events, a guarantee of future results, nor investment advice.

Whether information or intelligence is good, bad or somewhere in between; I put into context what is relevant and useful for investors.  All investments are subject to risks. Investors should consider investment objectives.

Henry McCusker, the editor and publisher of RegMed Investors does not hold or have positions in securities referred to in this publication.