Losing streak hits three sessions in row with the S&P 500 unable to hold 1,100. The Dow ($INDU) lost 13.90 points to a level of 10,318.54, but was the only major market index to finish the week with gains. The S&P 500 ($SPX) fell 3.52 points to 1,091.38. The Nasdaq ($COMPQ) gave up 10.78 points to 2,146.04. Despite Friday being November option expiration, volume was light once again. The NYSE traded 1.13 billion shares and the Naz turning over 1.99 billion shares. Market breadth was negative by a 13-to-17 and 12-to-14 margin on the Big Board and Naz respectively.

The divergence between stocks and the value of the dollar continued Friday. Traders are looking at the dollar as a less risky play, especially ahead of a holiday shortened week next week. This also led to a decline in oil prices with crude closing at $76.72 a barrel. Commodity prices tend to move in the opposite direction as the dollar when they are dollar denominated like oil.

Dell (DELL) shares put downside pressure on tech stocks after the computer maker reported disappointing earnings. Earnings came in at 23-cents a share, 5-cents shy of estimates. Revenues also fell short and DELL shares took a hit as a result. The stock gave up 9.96 percent to $14.29. Dell stated that though some areas of their business are showing improvement, they do not expect major improvements until later in 2010.

Retail earnings continued to be a focus of traders with results from Ann Taylor (ANN) and Gap (GPS) released this morning. ANN shares lost 1.45 percent to a price of $13.61 after beating earnings expectations, but showing a 12.3 percent decline in sales. The retailer also stated that fourth quarter sales would likely be below the third quarter. GPS shares gained 0.46 percent after meeting earnings estimates and slightly exceeding revenue projections. The stock closed at $21.96 with a 52-week range from $9.41 to $23.36. Overall, the Retail HOLDRs (RTH) fell 15-cents to $93.89 Friday and lost 0.65 percent on the week.

The SPX fell 0.19 percent on the week and was unable to hold its break of 1,100 earlier in the week. J.P. Morgan raised its target on the SPX to 1,160, but like many analysts, expects sideways trading throughout the rest of 2009. Next week will see the release of several key economic reports, including reports on new and existing home sales, GD and durable goods orders.

Jody Osborne
Senior Writer & Options Strategist
Optionetics.com ~ Your Options Education Site