Sharp Drop in Oil Sets Markets Adrift

Originally published: 02.01.15 by Margot Crabtree

The S&P 500 posted its best weekly showing in almost two months and the best day in 2014 as our session began; the Dow industrials had its best day in three years. The mood turned negative as the New Year began, however, and markets were mixed as our trading session closed Jan. 15, 2105. 

The upswing started when the Federal Reserve praised the strengthening U.S. economy, but said it was in no hurry to raise interest rates. The Consumer Price Index fell 0.3 percent, the largest drop since Dec. 2008, largely on oil’s fall. In the last days of December, the Dow industrials closed above 18,000 for the first time ever. 

The Commerce Department said that the economy grew at a brisk 5 percent in the third quarter, the fastest rate in 11 years. The University of Michigan’s December sentiment index rose sharply to 93.6, from a reading of 88.8 in November, making it the highest reading since January 2007, almost a year before the recession began. 

The Commerce Department reported that a 1.7 percent decline in government expenditures was a major factor in the slippage of construction spending in November, down 0.3 percent. The Institute for Supply Management said that manufacturing was hit by a downturn in orders and production, and its index slipped to 55.5 in December, from 58.7 in November. 

November factory orders fell for the fourth straight month; the Commerce Department reported numbers down 0.7 percent. 

Jack Ablin, the chief investment officer at BMO Private Bank, said that recent movement in the markets has been the economy versus the markets. “There’s a divergence,” he said. “The financial markets are worried about the impact of plunging oil prices, at the same time the economic backdrop in the U.S. is improving.”

Exchange	Symbol	Company Name	Price 7/15/14	Price 6/15/14	Net Change	PercentChange	52-Week High	52-Week Low	Shares Outstanding	Market Capitalization
NASD	AAON	AAON, Inc.	21.30	20.89	0.41	1.96%	23.09	16.78	54470	1160211
NYSE	ABB	ABB Ltd.	20.12	20.50	-0.38	-1.85%	27.25	19.26	2280000	45873600
NYSE	ARG	Airgas, Inc.	111.44	110.20	1.24	1.13%	118.75	99.32	74700	8324568
NYSE	AOS	AO Smith Corp.	54.23	53.46	0.77	1.44%	57.40	44.14	89540	4855754.2
NYSE	FIX	Comfort Systems USA, Inc.	16.16	15.56	0.60	3.86%	19.69	12.63	37640	608262.4
NYSE	DOV	Dover Corp.	68.59	67.76	0.83	1.22%	91.84	67.13	165360	11342042.4
NASD	ELON	Echelon Corp.	1.42	1.72	-0.30	-17.44%	4.18	1.38	43960	62423.2
NYSE	DD	E. I. DuPont de Nemours & Co.	73.15	69.27	3.88	5.60%	75.82	59.35	905950	66270242.5
NYSE	EME	EMCOR Group, Inc.	40.17	41.57	-1.40	-3.37%	48.00	38.68	64750	2601007.5
NYSE	EMR	Emerson Electric Co.	59.38	58.15	1.23	2.12%	70.29	57.76	693630	41187749.4
NYSE	FCAU	Fiat Chrysler	11.81	11.41	0.40	3.51%	13.76	8.54	1280000	15116800
NYSE	F	Ford Motor Co.	14.86	14.28	0.58	4.06%	18.12	13.26	3850000	57211000
NYSE	GM	General Motors Co.	33.43	31.00	2.43	7.84%	39.55	28.82	1610000	53822300
NYSE	HON	Honeywell International, Inc.	97.11	95.81	1.30	1.36%	102.39	82.89	782810	76018679.1
NASD	HDSN	Hudson Technologies, Inc.	3.50	3.71	-0.21	-5.66%	4.80	2.55	32030	112105
NYSE	IR	Ingersoll-Rand Plc	61.55	61.58	-0.03	-0.05%	65.07	52.47	265470	16339678.5
NYSE	JCI	Johnson Controls, Inc.	44.95	45.64	-0.69	-1.51%	51.91	38.60	666190	29945240.5
NYSE	LII	Lennox International Inc.	94.78	92.47	2.31	2.50%	98.96	72.61	48040	4553231.2
NYSE	LXU	LSB Industries, Inc.	30.43	29.29	1.14	3.89%	42.41	28.91	22610	688022.3
NYSE	MTW	Manitowoc Co., Inc.	17.69	16.95	0.74	4.37%	33.50	16.24	135520	2397348.8
NYSE	NWL	Newell Rubbermaid, Inc.	37.78	34.78	3.00	8.63%	38.73	28.27	271100	10242158
NYSE	MLI	Mueller Industries, Inc.	31.78	32.91	-1.13	-3.43%	34.72	27.10	56890	1807964.2
OTC	NSANY	Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.	16.80	17.31	-0.51	-2.95%	20.27	16.45	2100000	35280000
NASD	OFLX	OmegaFlex, Inc.	32.54	28.70	3.84	13.38%	39.46	15.93	10090	328328.6
NYSE	PH	Parker-Hannifin Corp.	119.93	121.92	-1.99	-1.63%	133.41	99.82	148640	17826395.2
NYSE	RBC	Regal-Beloit Corp.	69.45	70.42	-0.97	-1.38%	80.41	62.15	44690	3103720.5
NYSE	ROK	Rockwell Automation	104.80	103.38	1.42	1.37%	128.57	98.55	135770	14228696
OTC	SIEGY	Siemens Aktiengesellschaft	110.06	110.84	-0.78	-0.70%	137.06	103.20	835250	91927615
NYSE	SPW	SPX Corp.	81.96	78.54	3.42	4.35%	111.47	77.30	41070	3366097.2
NYSE	TXN	Texas Instruments	52.39	53.07	-0.68	-1.28%	56.00	40.33	1060000	55533400
NYSE	UTX	United Technologies Corp.	113.52	111.91	1.61	1.44%	120.66	97.30	911660	103491643.2
NYSE	WSO	Watsco, Inc.	105.61	103.14	2.47	2.39%	111.19	84.28	32330	3414371.3

 

The HVACR Business Stock Index pulled ahead of the national markets, adding 17.60 points, or 1.44 percent, and closing at 1238.73. Advancing issues outpaced declining issues by a 20-to-12 count.

DuPont had a lively session, and closed ahead 3.88 points, or 5.60 percent. In December, DuPont and Monsanto agreed to settle patent infringement lawsuits against each other that were unresolved in a St. Louis docket. Terms of the agreements were not disclosed. 

In January, control of the Board of Directors at DuPont became an issue following news that the hedge fund helmed by investor Nelson Peltz plans to nominate a slate of its own nominees to the board. DuPont closed at 73.15, and was the top dollar gainer.

Shares of Parker-Hannifin stumbled on a downgrade. JPMorgan cut its rating on PH to “underweight” from “neutral.” Analysts cut their price target range to $113-$116, from an earlier $124-127. PH lost 1.99 points, or 1.63 percent, and was the top dollar loser.

Omega Flex rose 3.84 points, or 13.38 percent. A U.S. District Court in Florida dismissed a class action suit, which alleged the company’s corrugated steel tubing was defective and posed a fire damage risk. The dismissal is the third consecutive win in court about the safety of this product. OFLX closed at 32.54, and was the top percentage gainer.   

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Margot Crabtree is president of Trade Trends, Inc., a financial data services provider. She has been offering market analysis with customized stock indices and financial commentaries since 1999. For additional information, visit  www.tradetrendsonline.com.