The bulls appear charged this morning as stocks push their way higher into the green. The three benchmark indexes are up on news that Germany and France are willing to involve their private sectors to help restore Greece’s financial health. On Wednesday, the Greek parliament is expected to vote on a $111.4 billion austerity measure.
Domestically, the CaseShiller Home Price Index showed that, on a non-seasonally adjusted basis, housing prices increased 0.7% — the first rise in eight months. On this upbeat news, a number of diverse stocks are pushing 52-week highs, including manufacturing companies Elecsys Corp (NASDAQ: ESYS) and Friedman Industries (NYSE: FRD).
However, on heightened worries about domestic unemployment, consumer confidence fell to a seven-month low, sending some stocks to 52-week lows, including Startek (NYSE: SRT), Ocean Power Technologies (NASDAQ: OPTT), and Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NKTR).
A full synopsis is given below.
Stocks hitting 52-week highs
Elecsys Corp (Nasdaq: ESYS): The manufacturer of wireless and radio frequency communications technologies is up over 23% so far this morning. The stock appears to have broken an important technical resistance level around $5.50 and is surging higher.
Friedman Industries (NYSE: FRD): The Texas-based pipe manufacturer and distributor has gained over 10% in morning trading. On Monday, the company announced upbeat fourth-quarter and fiscal 2011 results.
Accenture Plc. (NYSE: ACN): The Irish management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company has lifted over 4% so far this morning on news that, as of next week, it will be listed on the S&P 500 index. Accenture will replacing Marshall & Ilsley (NYSE: MI) which is being acquired by the Bank of Montreal (NYSE: BMO).
Stocks hitting 52-week lows
Startek (NYSE: SRT): The international staffing and outsourcing service company has fallen over -4% so far this morning. The stock has been in a sharp downtrend since early May and seems to be succumbing to technical vulnerability.
Ocean Power Technologies (NASDAQ: OPTT): The developer of renewable energy systems that generate electricity through ocean waves has sunk over -2% so far in morning trading. Surprisingly, traders seem discouraged by news that the company is starting trials of its newest wave generating technology, the PowerBuoy (PB150) device.
Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NKTR): The biopharmaceutical company engaged in the development of various anti-infective, anti-viral and immunology drugs has lost nearly -1% so far this morning. The company announced this morning that it has started a Phase II clinical trial of NKTR-102 for platinum-resistance ovarian cancer. Surprisingly, traders seem discouraged by this news.
As of this writing, Deborah O’Malley did not own a position in any of the stocks named here.
