Tomorrow a Big Day for the Bull Market (WSM, HOTT, MW, JNJ, CAAS, SOL)

Stocks had another strong day, helping erase Tuesday’s big loss. The market was buoyed by the strong participation in the Greek bond swap. Tomorrow will be a big day for the market with tomorrow’s job report. The number could help dictate whether the bull market continues its run, or if equities take a breather.

The Chinese Auto Parts Stocks Index was the top performing tickerspy Index on the day, led by China Automotive Systems (CAAS) with a 10% gain. The Chinese Solar Stocks Index was the day’s worst performing tickerspy Index, with ReneSola (SOL) down -7%.

Stocks rose on the day, led by a 35-point, or 1.2%, climb in the Nasdaq to 2,970. The Dow advanced 71 points to 12,908, while the S&P jumped 13 points to 1,366. Oil edged up 42 cents to $106.58 a barrel, while gold rose $14.80 to $1,698.70 an ounce.

In economic news, initial claims for jobless benefits rose by 8,000 to 362,000 last week. Economists had expected a reading of 351,000 claims. Friday’s February jobs report is expected to show the addition of 210,000 new jobs.

In earnings news, shares of Williams-Sonoma (WSM) slid -5.8% despite the home goods retailer saying its fiscal fourth-quarter profit rose 8% to $122.6 million, or $1.17 per share, from $113.4 million, or $1.05 per share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 13% to $1.27 billion. Analysts had expected a profit of $1.13 a share on sales of $1.25 billion. The company expects a first-quarter profit of 29-32 cents on sales of $800-$820 million. Analysts were expecting a profit of 33 cents per share on revenue of $804.9 million. For the full year, Williams Sonoma forecast EPS of $2.37-$2.47 on revenue of $3.93-$4.02 billion. Analysts were expecting a full-year profit of $2.48 per share on revenue of $3.91 billion.

Shares of Hot Topic (HOTT) soared 12.2% after the tween apparel retailer forecast better-than-expect Q1 earnings. For its fiscal fourth-quarter, it posted a profit of $9 million, or 21 cents per share, compare to a year-earlier loss of -$578,000, or a penny per share. On an adjusted basis, the company earned 12 cents. Revenue fell to $209.9 million from $212.4 million. Analysts had expected an adjusted profit of 19 cents per share and $208.3 million in revenue. Hot Topic expects a first-quarter profit of 2-5 cents a share compared to the breakeven estimate of analysts. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to 8 cents from 7 cents.

Men’s Wearhouse (MW), the suit retailer, said its fiscal fourth-quarter loss narrowed to -$3.8 million, or 7- cents per share, from -$14.1 million, or 2-7 cents per share, a year earlier. On an adjusted basis, the company earned 5 cents compared with a year-earlier loss of -19 cents. Revenue rose to $562.2 million from $542.1 million. Analysts had expected an adjusted loss of -13 cents on sales of $563.2 million. For the first quarter, Men’s Warehouse expects to earn 53-54 cents, well below the 62 cents analysts were expecting. For the full year, the company forecast a profit of $2.70-$2.78. Analysts were expecting $2.64. Shares of Men’s Warehouse fell -3.0%. Six pros counted Men’s Warehouse among their top holdings at the end of Q4 and nearly 60 tickerspy members own the stock in their portfolios.

Shares of Dow component Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) edged up 0.9% after the company said its cancer pill Zytiga helped stop the progression of cancer in patients that had not participated in chemotherapy. Specific results from a study of over 1,000 patients were not divulged. Zytiga was approved in April as a treatment for men with prostate cancer who have already undergone chemotherapy. Nearly 740 pros held Johnson & Johnson in their portfolios at the end of Q4 and more than 3,500 tickerspy members own the stock in their portfolios.

Tags: CAAS, HOTT, JNJ, MW, SOL, WSM