If you're feeling good about the market, you're not alone. Take my hand as we go over some of this week's more uplifting headlines.
1. Apple hears the call
Apple's
Apple's victorious press release, issued Monday morning, concedes that the company is still leaving money on the table. Thursday's long lines and a limited supply ate into what the revolutionary smartphone could have cleared.
2. Can you iPhone me now?
Speaking of Apple's revolutionary smartphone, Bloomberg is reporting that Verizon Wireless -- a partnership between Verizon
There is no official confirmation beyond the two unnamed sources "familiar with the plans" that Bloomberg leans on, but such a deal would make perfect sense.
Despite Apple's success through AT&T
Expanding to wireless darling Verizon's audience is inevitable. The January debut would also explain AT&T's seemingly charitable decision to let existing iPhone owners who weren't eligible for penalty-free upgrades through December hop on the iPhone 4 this summer. AT&T knows that it will lock those customers in with fresh two-year contracts, preventing many from fleeing to Verizon Wireless next year.
3. Electric cars are a gas
Tesla Motors
Tesla bumped its IPO to $17 a share, and it still wasn't enough. The stock opened at $19 and just kept motoring. It closed at $23.89 during its first day on the market.
I'm not cheering the stock, since I agree with my fellow Fools that the shares are severely overvalued. Profitability is still a couple of years away, at least. The market for electric cars or gas-aided hybrids is evolving quickly, and it's unclear how Tesla will fit in once its more affordable sedan hits showrooms in two years.
However, Tesla makes this week's "smart" list because the market finally found an IPO it can get excited about. New offerings have been drying up since the market rally fizzled, and it's encouraging to see the pipeline gushing again.
4. Ford tough
Tesla may have been the shiny debutante, but Ford
5. Big screen keeps getting bigger
IMAX
The deal with Russia's Formula Kino entails the opening of a pair of digital IMAX projection systems by year's end. It's a small deal, but minor wins like this one have been adding up in a hurry since the box-office success of Avatar during the holidays.
IMAX has now signed deals for 84 installations year to date, far more than the 35 screen signings it achieved through all of 2009.