Archive for March 27th, 2012

That $3.7 trillion in cash still sitting on corporate America’s balance sheet could be the key to whether Wall Street can sustain its dramatic five-month surge.

Lennar Corp., which builds homes, pulled housing stocks up Wednesday after reporting earnings that beat Wall Street expectations. Lennar gained 4.7 percent, best among stocks in the Standard & Poor’s 500.

Major stock indexes dipped Tuesday as weak readings on consumer confidence gave investors little reason to extend the recent rally. Stocks opened higher, then pulled back after 10 a.m., when the Conference Board said its index of consumer confidence slipped in March.

Stocks fall as Wall Street offers a muted reaction to the day’s economic data and takes a break after the past months’ rally.

Coal shares track mostly lower on new EPA rules proposed for power plant emissions, as energy-sector stocks mainly drop.

U.S. stocks ended near session lows on Tuesday in what analysts characterized as a natural pullback from the past session’s and quarter’s steep gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 43.90 points, or 0.3%, to 13,197.73, with Chevron Corp. and Caterpillar Inc. contributed the most to the point loss.

Lennar’s better-than-expected earnings on Tuesday has reinforced one analyst’s positive view of the housing market’s recovery. In a CNBC interview, he detailed a few stocks that could rise alongside the climbing housing market.

U.S. housing stocks rise on Tuesday after Lennar Corp, one of the sector’s largest firms, said that it is seeing encouraging signs in new orders and improving margins.

Stocks are flipping between small gains and losses in afternoon trading Tuesday. The Dow Jones industrial average edged down 9 points to 13,232 as of 1:40 p.m. Bank of America fell 2.4 percent, the biggest drop in the Dow.

A look at New York Stock Exchange 10 most-active stocks at 1 p.m.: American International Group rose 4.4 percent to $30.35 with 16,563,600 shares traded.