Stock Futures Fall, as Greek Bailout Faces Obstacles. Stocks to Watch: AAPL, BAC, EXPE, LNKD, NUAN, TDC

Published on Friday, 10 February 2012 07:47 Written by Christopher Lynn

New York, February 10^th (TradersHuddle.com) – Stock futures were under pressure after European finance ministers asked for further conditions to releasing the next tranche of bailout funds to Greece that include further cuts and parliamentary ratification of the austerity deal the country announced yesterday. Strikes and violent protests in Greece highlighted the difficulty of implementing the new austerity measures. Weak Chinese trade data also weighed on sentiment ahead of the release of U.S. trade data.

In Asia, stocks fell amid growing doubts over Greece austerity plan deal, as creditors need the plan to be ratify by parliament, additional cuts of 325 million euros, and political assurances that the plan in fact would be implemented amid harsh opposition in the streets. In Japan, the Nikkei fell 0.61%. And in China, the Shanghai Composite actually edged higher after seeing volatility in the session. The index gained 0.9% in the week. Trade data showed that Chinese trade surplus widened to the highest level in 6 months, seeing exports falling 0.5% and imports dropping more than 15%.

In Europe, equity markets were trading falling, with banks leading the markets lower. Concerns over China and the outcome of the Greek austerity plan and its impact in the euro zone debt crisis after finance ministers imposed further conditions for the bailout funds to be released, spurring risk aversion. Meanwhile, Alcatel Lucent (NYSE: ALU) was surging more than 14% in European trading after better than expected results, with the company reporting a strong cash position  

The euro was falling 0.28% against the Dollar, trading above the $1.32 level. Crude oil was falling 1.17% to $98.67 per barrel. Also in the energy complex, natural gas was losing 0.4%, trading below $2.50 per MMBtu. Gold was dropping 1.1% to $1722.2 an ounce and silver was sliding 0.65% to $33.695 an ounce. Meanwhile, copper was falling 0.84%.

On economic news, at 8:30 am, the Commerce Department will release its trade balance data, with economists expecting a deficit of $48.2 billion. At 9:55 am, the February Michigan Sentiment will be released. And at 12:30 Fed Chairman Bernanke will give a speech on housing.

Today’s Stocks to watch: Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Bank of America (NYSE: BAC), Expedia (NASDAQ: EXPE), LinkedIn (NYSE: LNKD), Nuance Communications (NASDAQ: NUAN), and Teradata (NYSE: TDC).

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), the maker of iPads and iPhones, was falling 0.42% to $491.12 in pre-market, giving back some of the gains from the prior session rally of 3.5%. The stock surged to a new all-time high of $496.75 after blog reports speculated that Apple will launch its new iPad 3 as soon as early March. According to the reports the new version of the popular device will have improved resolution and will likely incorporate Apple’s Siri. Also yesterday, Mizuho Securities initiated coverage on the tech giant with a Buy and a target price of $635 per share, citing the company’s current leadership in smartphones and tablets, driven primarily by innovation. And Needham raised its target price to $620 from $520, citing the push the company is doing in the business market with its iPad and the halo effect it could have on Mac sales, while Canaccord Genuity bumped its target price to $665 from $650 on strong iPhone sales momentum. On the Fast Money program, Karen Finerman said that it was time to have some discipline and take some profits on the name.

Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) was falling 1.6% to $8.05 in pre-market, as participants react to weakness in Europe over doubt over the Greek austerity plan. The stock is testing its 200day moving average, which it broke out to the upside earlier in the week. Yesterday, the stock traded higher despite the announcement of the biggest industry settlement since the deal with the tobacco industry in 1998. The $26 billion settlement on foreclosure malpractice, will impact BofA with $11.8 billion. Most likely the amount has been already taken in reserves, however U.S. banks still face other legal claims in addition to this landmark settlement.

Expedia (NASDAQ: EXPE), the owner of Expedia.com and Hotels.com, would be in focus during the session, following a drop of 3.7% to $32.90 in the after hours session. Participants reacted negatively to the company’s quarterly results. Expedia posted earnings that beat consensus by $0.03 per share but revenues fell short of estimates, climbing 67% year over year to $787.1 million. The report marked the first time that the company provided results after it spinoff its TripAdvisor business as a separate public entity. The stock 20day exponential moving average at $32.03 could be tested in the regular session.

LinkedIn (NYSE: LNKD), the social network site for Professionals, was rallying 8.3% to $82.70 in pre-market after the company posted better than expected earnings on revenues that were above consensus. LinkedIn provided upside guidance for the quarter and fiscal 2012. LinkedIn posted earnings of $0.12 per share, $0.05 better than consensus, on revenues that surged 105.3% year over year to $167.7 million. LinkedIn is trading 84% above its original IPO price of $45.

Nuance Communications (NASDAQ: NUAN) was tumbling 12.7% to $26.58, trading below calculated support at $27.39; with participants hitting the stock after the company disappointed investors with an earnings miss on revenues that fell short of estimates, while it provided inline guidance for the quarter and fiscal 2012. Many analysts and participants had been positive ahead of the company’s report and in fact shares rallied 3.8% in the prior session amid reports that the new iPad 3 would incorporate Siri, Apple’s voice recognition technology that it said to be based on Nuance software. The company has been receiving a lot of attention, particularly its mobile division amid the strong sales momentum for the iPhone 4S.

Teradata (NYSE: TDC) the stock will likely see additional upside after its big rally in the prior session. Mizuho bumped its target price to $71 from $64, with the firm citing that continued momentum underscores the shift in IT budgets toward analytics, and the company's ability to beat back competition with a superior product portfolio and extended sales territory coverage. Teadata surged in the prior session after better than expected earnings and news of M&A in the space, with Oracle offering to buy Taleo Corp.