Apparently in 2012 the stock market can also go down. After a torrid start to the year, the markets posted a slight drop over the past week. In the U.S., investors cheered some better-than-expected economic data, including another drop in initial unemployment claims. However, by week's end, most eyes were fixed on the situation in Greece, where riots rocked the capital as the prime minister pushed another round of austerity measures aimed at securing the next slug of bailout funding. If Greece doesn't meet the demands of other Eurozone leaders, the country may be left to default next month, when its bonds come due.
By the time the dust had settled, the Dow Jones Industrial Average
Top 3 Performing Sectors
Russell 3000 Sector |
Weekly Price Change |
Month-to-Date Price Change |
---|---|---|
Information Technology | 1% | 4.2% |
Energy | 0.5% | 3.3% |
Consumer Staples | 0.2% | 1.8% |
Source: S&P Capital IQ. Weekly price change is Feb. 3-Feb. 10. Monthly price change is Jan. 31-Feb. 10.
Representing the energy sector during the past week was the high-flying Cobalt International Energy
SureWest Communications, meanwhile, saw its shares spike after a hefty buyout offer from Consolidated Communications
Top 3 Performing Russell 3000 Companies
Company |
Weekly Price Change |
---|---|
Cobalt | 52% |
SureWest | 43.7% |
Guidance Software | 35.6% |
Source: S&P Capital IQ. Weekly price change is Feb. 3-Feb. 10. Includes only companies with a market cap of $250 million or higher.
Also among the week's top performers were Pharmacyclics
Meanwhile, Buffalo Wild Wings' earnings were so hot, they were bringing tears of joy to investors. For the fourth quarter, revenue jumped 35% while the bottom line increased 33%. Both the top and bottom line easily topped analysts' expectations. While it's hard to keep up growth that smokin' hot, management sees a none-too-shabby 20% earnings boost ahead for 2012. For the week, B-Wild's shares shot up 22%.
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