EB Watch List Update Report

MARKET NOTE: Dear Members: The market got off to a positive start but the overbought conditions got traders thinking about taking some profits. As a result all of the major indexes turned red earlier in the session. The NASDAQ in particular has gotten very extended. Stochastics got to 98; they really can't go much higher. Plus the RSI was closing in on 70; also showing technically stretched. So how much has this spooked traders? In looking at the VIX apparently not that much. In fact the VIX remains below all key technical levels; fear remains mostly non-existent. This bit of weakness today comes one day before the Fed rate announcement where the consensus shows that the Fed will leave rates alone. So on the surface this would appear to be a positive for stocks. However its coming with stocks stretched, so how much upside in the very near term remains? It should be noted that oil has pulled back to the $42+ level this morning after having cleared $50+ not so long ago. This could be putting some pressure on stocks as well but lately equities have pretty much ignored the fall in oil prices. It should be noted that the S&P came up short of the recent highs earlier in the session; that 2175 could prove to be tough to climb above at the moment. It's been as low as 2160 today, a level that has served as near term support lately. So we've got a big battle going on here with the bulls not wanting to give up the momentum and the bears seeing an opportunity to move the market lower. Of course the picture could change completely once the Fed makes its rate announcement at 2:00 pm eastern tomorrow. But to me the reward to risk in the very near term remains to the downside with a range on the S&P of 2175 to the upside and 2140 to the downside. However, should that 2140 level go, we could see 2100 pretty quickly. Bottom line: we need to err on the side of caution at the moment, certainly until the Fed has spoken. KEY EARNINGS REPORTS Companies reporting earnings today (July 26) include: AKS, AKAM, ALLY, AMP, APC, AAPL, AIZ, BAX, BXP, BWLD, CHRW, CSL, CAT, CHKP, CB, CTXS, DTE, DD, LLY, FCX, ILMN, JBLU, JNPR, KEY, MAS, MCD, NCR, NLSN, NUVA, PCAR, PNRA, RGC, RHI, SIRI, HOT, TROW, TRU, TWTR, UA, UIS, UTX, UHS, VLO, VZ, WAT and ZION Companies reporting earnings tomorrow (July 27) include: MO, AMGN, BAS.DE, BAYN.DE, BA, BAH, CBT, CG, CRUS, KO, CMCSA, GLW, DLB, DPS, DX, EFX, EXC, FB, FDML, FLIR, FORR, GCI, GRMN, GD< GSK.L, G.TO, GT, GPRO, GRPN, HES, HLT, IR, I, LH, LRCX, LM, LVLT, LL, MAR, MRVL, MCK, MUR, NDAQ, NTGR, NSC, NOC, NTRI, ORLY, OC, OI, PSA, R, SLAB, SO, SU.TO, TMUS, TER, WM, WFM WYN, WYNN and XLNK ADDITIONS TO WATCH LISTS: A reminder that we've added a new batch of stocks to our Candidate Tracker that members now have access to. Some of these could become trading alerts but we're continuing to hold off at least until the Fed rate announcement is over. BRIEF COMMENTS ON SELECT WATCH LIST STOCKS: SHORTS: There are no shorts on the Watch List at this time LONGS: Large Cap Watch List NWL - Stock is bucking the trend and is higher by over 1%. A close above $49.46 would be very bullish. Mid Cap Watch List There are no Mid Cap stocks on the Watch List at this time. Small Cap Watch List PLAY - Stock is down 4% today on heavy volume. Please note that we are changing our stop to a close below $47, so if the stock closes below this level it will be removed from the Watch List. DELETIONS FROM OUR WATCH LISTS: There are no other deletions from the Watch list today unless a Watch List stock closes below or above the stop loss provided. At your service, John Hopkins, EarningsBeats