Closing Bell: Forgetting All About Europe (ARO, JPM, KR, GAS, IACI, LINTA, TOL)

Filed under: JPMorgan Chase (JPM), IAC/InterActiveCorp (IACI), Kroger Co (KR), Toll Brothers (TOL)

Europe is suddenly almost an afterthought after two strong days in a row. A weaker jobs number was trumped by a higher market and commodities forecast from Goldman Sachs. Even a huge Madoff suit did not wreck the markets today. Here are today's unofficial closing bell levels:

DJIA: 11,362.41

NASDAQ: 2,579.35

S&P 500: 1,221.53

Top Analyst Upgrades/Downgrades

Aeropostale (ARO) had a disappointing same store sales figure reaction today and shares were down almost 14% at $23.07 right before the closing bell.

JPMorgan Chase (JPM) was sued by the Madoff trustee for $6.5 billion on the accusation that it should have known Madoff fraud was there and that it therefore aided in the crime. Shares reacted hardly at all after a sector upgrade from Goldman Sachs. JPMorgan shares were up 2.9% at $39.26 before the close.

Kroger (KR) met earnings expectations but some narrower guidance took a bite out of its food investment bias. Shares were down 9.4% at $21.61 right before the close.

Nicor, Inc. (GAS) was higher on word that the company is up for sale. Shares were up 7.6% at $46.85 shortly before the close.

IAC/Interactive (IACI) announced that Barry Diller would step down as CEO but remain chairman and it bought out Liberty Media (LINTA) stake as part of the deal. IAC shares were up 2.3% at $29.41 and Liberty shares were up 1.1% at $15.90.

Toll Brothers (TOL) rose today after reporting a profit, despite that profit being from tax gains and despite a large drop in orders. Shares were up 2.1% at $18.85 on the day.

JON C. OGG

Closing Bell: Forgetting All About Europe (ARO, JPM, KR, GAS, IACI, LINTA, TOL) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 02 Dec 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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