السبب خبر غير مجرى الشارت
INDICATIONS
Mad-cow report weighs on U.S. stocks
McDonald's slumps, while V.I. Tech soars; Micron bulls up
By Michael Baron, CBS.MarketWatch.com
Last Update: 8:53 AM ET Dec. 24, 2003
NEW YORK (CBS.MW) - U.S. stocks were looking slightly lower early Wednesday after a case of mad-cow disease surfaced in the state of Washington, overshadowing a better-than-expected quarterly report from Micron Technology.
Free! Sign up here to receive our Before the Bell e-Newsletter!
INFORMATION FOR VITX:
Create an alert for VITX
Add VITX to my portfolio
More cool charts on VITX
Discuss VITX
NEWS FOR VITX
U.S. stocks set to slide on mad-cow scare, weak data
Bio-Rad, McDonald's, Micron, and more
Before the Bell: McDonald's, GM, Micron Technology
More news for VITX
Quote & News Charts Financials Analysts Options SEC Filings
TRACK THESE TOPICS
My Portfolio Alerts
Company: DIAMONDS Trust 1 Add
Create
Column: Indications
Create
Company: Nasdaq-100 Trust 1 Add
Create
Company: McDonald's Corporation Add
Create
Get Breaking News sent directly to your inbox
Create A Portfolio | Create An Alert
A weaker-than-expected durable goods report for November also contributed to early losses.
The "Diamonds" (DIA: news, chart, profile), the tracking stock for the Dow industrials, were losing 35 cents to $103.11. The Nasdaq 100 tracker (QQQ: news, chart, profile) was 9 cents lower at $35.83 and the S&P 500 tracker eased 31 cents to $109.42.
The first reported instance of mad-cow disease on American soil sparked a rash of selling in shares of beef-related companies. Dow component McDonald's (MCD: news, chart, profile) was down $1.68, or 6.6 percent, to $23.60 in pre-open trading.
The news prompted Japan, South Korea, and Singapore to immediately ban U.S. beef imports. The European Union, which already had a pre-existing ban that covered most American products due to concerns about the use of growth hormones, plans no further measures at this time.
Among other stocks feeling the early heat, quick service restaurant operator Rare Hospitality (RARE: news, chart, profile) slumped $2.57 to $23 and beef distributor Tyson Foods (TSN: news, chart, profile) fell 42 cents to $13.56. Also, Wendy's (WEN: news, chart, profile) fell $2.15 to $37.51 while Smithfield Foods (SFD: news, chart, profile) was unchanged at $22.26.
Stocks benefiting from the news included Bio-Rad Laboratories (BIO: news, chart, profile) and V.I. Technologies (VITX: news, chart, profile), which develop diagnostic tools for mad-cow disease.
Bio-Rad shot up $11.62, or 23 percent, $61.40 and V.I. Tech soared 62 cents, or 74 percent, to $1.46.
Meanwhile, some Wall Street analysts said mad-cow could actually be a good thing for restaurant stocks. UBS's David Palmer said the resultant drop in beef prices could help those with exposure to rising prices, and the consumer response is likely to be minimal, give the likelihood that the negative publicity will be "fleeting."
The U.S. Commerce Department said orders for durable goods plunged 3.1 percent, the largest fall since September 2002, after rising in four of the past five months. See full story. Economists surveyed by CBS MarketWatch.com were expecting a 0.8-percent rise, on average.
Despite the buzz over beef, the most-active stock in Instinet was Micron Technology (MU: news, chart, profile), which gained 74 cents, or 5.6 percent, to $13.90.
The Boise, Idaho-based maker of memory chips reported earnings of $1 million, or break even on a per share basis, on sales of $1.1 billion, beating Wall Street's expectations for a loss of 6 cents per share. See full story.
Among other chip stocks, Intel (INTC: news, chart, profile) eased 6 cents to $31.05 and Applied Materials (AMAT: news, chart, profile) dipped 2 cents to $22.31.
On the analyst front, General Motors, a high-flyer of late, received an upgrade to "buy" from "neutral" by UBS, which cited its belief that GM has "better earnings quality than Ford (F: news, chart, profile), a better product pipeline, a leaner manufacturing base, a more effective procurement process, and a stronger management team."
Shares of GM (GM: news, chart, profile), a Dow component, rose 52 cents to $52.50.
Michael Baron is a reporter for CBS.MarketWatch.com based in New York.