Michael Sheldon Quotations

We're seeing a continuation of the trends that were generally in place through much of the first quarter. We continue to see a number of uncertainties below the surface, but investors have mostly focused on the positives.

The primary reasons behind the back-to-back triple digit losses for the Dow are fears of a U.S. policy of protectionism against China and rising oil prices.

Looks like the stock market has gotten off on positive footing after yesterday's broad-based decline. We're seeing gains in eight of 10 S&P sectors. The data that came out so far was pretty much in line with expectations. Looking ahead, investors will be keeping an eye on auto sales.

So far, we haven't seen a major increase in core inflation, all we've seen is a sharp rise in energy prices. It seems logical that higher energy prices should start to feed through to higher inflation.

So far the earnings season has gotten off to an underwhelming start. I think the positive news from Intel is just what the market needed and is likely to lead to a favorable opening on Wednesday.

So far the earnings season has gotten off to an underwhelming start, ... I think the positive news from Intel is just what the market needed and is likely to lead to a favorable opening on Wednesday.

Right now, I think the market needs a catalyst in order to get out of this difficult environment. Hopefully if oil prices continue to decline and move back into the mid $50s, that could turn sentiment more positive on Wall Street.

Pepsi's report looked pretty positive, in addition to Cisco, which is a bellwether in technology industry. Cisco's results last night were certainly a positive.

My sense is we continue to see this correction over the next few weeks, but I think once we get through this period and some of the March data starts to come out, stocks will move higher.

Given that tech companies are already trading at pretty high valuations, these companies' earnings are going to have to really deliver for the stock prices to show a substantial reaction.

Given the strong reports we've seen from many technology and industrial companies over the past several days, it's hard to make too much sense of today's GDP report.

If we see signs that the economy is in fact slowing, and inflation remains contained, then the pause is a positive for stocks. But if we see tightness in the labor market, pressure in commodity markets, that could suggest we will see further hikes.

Historically, the three-month period before the Fed goes on hold in the rate hiking cycle, stocks have performed well and that carries on for the next 12 months,

The rally the past few days shows investors are willing to look past this period of uncertainty toward a pickup in growth in early 2006. It's a pretty optimistic viewpoint and that could change when the data comes in.

Just under 30 percent of the S&P 500 report results this week. Among the different industry groups, we'll get a heavy dose of economically sensitive names, including several from the oil and gas, rail, coal and steel industries.

I think the last few weeks have probably been frustrating for investors. Earnings have been very positive, but the focus has been on interest rates. Over the next few sessions, it looks like the fear of higher interest rates will probably outweigh the earnings.

I think the number is likely to be below the median estimate.

I think the fact that Greenspan brought the issue of a declining dollar, global trade imbalances and protectionism to the forefront adds to the pressure today.

I think that next week, and in fact for the next few weeks, the markets are likely to remain in a trading range, with many of the same issues still in place.

I think the results from AMD and Apple after the close should help boost sentiment toward technology stocks, which have been on a bit of a roll for a few weeks,

Over the next few trading sessions, it will be important to watch whether the stock market sells off on rising volume. If that should happen, that could mean a spring correction is on the way.

Looking into the second quarter, what could move us higher is a decline in oil prices, lower bond yields, solid economic data that is non inflationary and stronger growth on the earnings front.

Looking ahead to next week, the more important question for investors will be: 'Will the market experience a holiday hangover as investors take profits?'.

Looking ahead to 2005, we are moderately optimistic and are looking for a stronger performance in the first half of the year followed by some weakness in the second half of the year.

Markets are in a trading range right now, consolidating gains after the last few months. A lot of investors were looking to this week's data as a way to break out of the range, but what we've seen has left enough doubt in the minds of the bulls that we aren't likely to break out of this range in the next few sessions.

When the central bank came out and said they're going to drain liquidity over a period of months, that was a catalyst for investors who have avoided the stock market to put some money back in.

With the fed continuing to raise rates and energy prices at very high levels, its hard to see the markets making much headway, ... certainly been guy shy about putting new money to work.

With the Dow and Nasdaq having moved up the way they have, it's only normal to see a bit of a pullback from time to time. But you still have a lot of seasonal factors to come into play. November through January has historically been great for stocks, and I think it will be almost a self-fulfilling prophecy as investors start trickling back into the market.

We're really seeing almost a stealth rally today. Some of the most beaten-down groups of the last few days -- like airlines and retailers -- are seeing gains. But it's not just them. Five out of 10 S&P 500 groups are up at least 1 percent.

Today, the markets once again pushed to new highs for the indices but the rally appears to have stalled. The likely culprit is that higher bond yields may finally be weighing on the minds of investors.

Today's weak market performance is the result of some worse-than-expected earnings reports and a decline in the consumer confidence report.

We're not seeing a lot of follow-through in the Nasdaq. You're not seeing a dramatic weakening in the index, but Apple created a bit of a drag for tech stocks, and we haven't seen buyers really step up to the plate.

We're not seeing a lot of conviction, either by buyers or sellers, so far this week.

We're likely to see a correction this year after the run we've had, as well. But the outlook for third and fourth quarter earnings has been good, and if the economic data continue to improve, we could see a slightly more narrow decline that what people have been expecting.

With equity markets closing at their lows of the day Tuesday, the likelihood is that trading may get off to weak start on Wednesday morning.

You can't blame it all on energy because the trade deficit excluding petroleum rose faster than the overall deficit. The main culprit once again continues to be that imports are growing faster than exports.

The optimist would say we're in the early stage of a broad rally, the pessimist would say this is a dead-cat bounce and markets are going to head lower as oil heads toward $50 a barrel.

When all was said and done, the market showed its resilience once again, ... The market performed well despite today's extremely weak consumer sentiment number. Investors seem to be looking over a softer economy for the next few months towards a stronger economy to start 2006.

As the day progresses, oil prices have started to dominate trading and lead to weakness in the market.

At the moment, I'm cautiously positive about the market, recognizing though that as we go through the year, the economy and corporate profits are likely to slow.

Earnings for the fourth quarter have generally met or exceeded expectations. We've seen solid reports from a number of different industries, with strength not just in energy, as in previous quarters in 2005.

February has historically been a lackluster month for the stock market. Despite many positive corporate earnings reports, investors should be prepared for some choppy or sideways trading over the near term.

February has historically been a lackluster month for the stock market.

The tone in the market is a little better. We saw strong gains in Japan as they move toward an end to quantitative easing.

The technical trends of the market and the sentiment has improved over the last few weeks, plus there are seasonal factors working in the market's favor.

Texas Instruments' numbers were broadly in line with estimates, but there may have been some disappointment that they didn't raise the high end of the range.

Temporarily, the market may have run out of gas. On a technical basis, we're looking overextended, so you're seeing a little profit taking,

Oil prices in the morning would've been the biggest story, but by the close the market's incredible resilience is what investors are left with, ... It's a contrast to how the markets ended yesterday. I think so far higher oil prices have not had a major impact. There are a lot of positives driving the consumer and the stock market.

The mood of the market has clearly improved in recent weeks and this most likely reflects optimism that the Fed is close to the end of its recent rate tightening cycle.

Despite the Democratic National Convention, the biggest story of the week has been energy prices. That's prevented the market from seeing a bigger rally off these oversold conditions.

Despite terrorist events around the world, rising oil prices and a lukewarm job market, consumer spending has remained fairly strong, much better than many would have thought. But if the economic data starts to slow and oil rises above $60 a barrel, that could eat into consumer spending.

That's likely to remain the case until we start to resolve a few of the issues overhanging the markets include interest rates, energy prices and the strength of the economy over the next several months.

This market is just extremely resilient, and if we don't get a major spike up in energy prices or interest rates from current levels, the strong earnings environment we find ourselves in could help carry the markets higher for several more weeks.

There's a major rise in oil prices, increased investor worry about the upcoming earnings season and you're also seeing some profit-taking after the market's six-week run-up.

Following the disappointing tech news after the close, it looks like the market could be in for rough sledding at the open.

It's going to be an interesting week for the markets with a slew of economic and corporate news on tap.

It's been a choppy few weeks. While the Dow and the S&P 500 have started to perform better, the Nasdaq is still below its 50-day moving average and its January highs.

The news from Cisco was disappointing for tech investors. The longer-term outlook was positive, but shorter term there were a few items in the report that unsettled.

The news from Cisco was disappointing for tech investors,

Everyone expects the Fed to raise (a quarter point) and everyone wants to see if there is a change in the outlook that gives hints about future meetings.

The bond market finally caught up with the stock market.

Stock prices moved lower for most of the day, but closed off their lows after oil prices retreated. All in all, there was a lot of hesitation before the earnings by the two tech bellwethers.

Once bond yields started moving higher again, investors reflected on the interest rate environment and decided to take profits off the recent highs.

A further rise in oil prices and a retreat in Treasury yields could also create more headwinds for the market,

The fall has traditionally caused anxiety for investors and produced some big declines, particularly in late August and early September.

If we can build on Tuesday's significant . . . turnaround, you could see buyers start coming back into the market and you could see a further push higher over the next several days.

If we can build on Tuesday's significant intraday turnaround, you could see buyers start coming back into the market and you could see a further push higher over the next several days.

Intel's numbers were clearly disappointing, as is reflected in the futures. The one thing is that you never know what will happen to the market given that the monthly jobs report comes out before the bell.

Intel's news is going to hurt techs tomorrow. I think if the payroll numbers are disappointing, too, you're going to see a broader sell-off.

Intel's news is going to hurt techs tomorrow, ... I think if the payroll numbers are disappointing, too, you're going to see a broader sell-off.

In terms of the broader market, it looks like we may have entered a short period of consolidation or profit taking following the strong advance at the start of this year.

If you take all those comments together, it implies the Fed is less worried about deflation and more about inflation, all of which sets the stage for higher rates.

Buying enthusiasm dried up as the day progressed. Lingering worries over rising energy prices and higher bond yields may have finally caught up with the market.

If Greenspan is more hawkish, implying that rates will rise faster than thought, that may bother investors, ... If Greenspan continues to stress that rates can rise at a 'measured' pace, that may impress the market.

The key for next week is that the economic data show strong growth and only moderate inflation.

All in all, I think investors are trying to put on a positive face and push stocks higher into the year-end. I think the market is going to try to build on yesterday's modest gains.

All three major tech stocks that reported after the bell yesterday beat estimates and raised guidance, and were certainly a positive shot in the arm for tech investors.

The economic data over the next several weeks are going to be difficult to interpret, and it'll be interesting to see how the market reacts,

The Dow is up and GM is certainly having an impact on that, (while) the Microsoft news is a bit of a psychological damper.

The market tone has improved over the last week or so,

The markets were able to build on yesterday's gains. Market breadth was encouraging.

The market's trying to stabilize. We're seeing some strength in a few of the beaten-down sectors, including technology and basic materials.

The markets so far have been unable to build on yesterday's gains, and right now are being held hostage by the bond market. But we are seeing some strength in semiconductors, energy stocks and some of the metals companies.

The markets remain overbought at current levels and could see some profit taking at any time. However, market internals remain very positive, so investors are reluctant to sell much into that. Given this scenario, we are likely to see more gains through the rest of the year, and some consolidation in early 2005.

The market is very oversold right now and I expect it to move higher over the next week or two. But beyond that, it's going to be very difficult for it to make much headway until we get a clearer sense of how much the Fed is going to move.

The market is trying to find its footing here, amid what has been a poor start to the year.

The markets are rebounding a little after several sessions of weakness that stemmed from rising oil prices, rising fears of terrorism and a sharp decline in the dollar. Those issues have somewhat abated today, but they are issues the market will continue to face over the next few weeks. As a result, you could see more profit taking.

The market's acting a bit better today after basically five weeks of selling, particularly in tech.