Market players are fascinated by trading in Apple (AAPL) today, which bounced nicely after an early panic. Probably the most interesting thing is the debate over AAPL. True believers continue to feel the market just doesn't understand AAPL, while skeptics argue that AAPL's lifecycle has shifted and it is now a "mature" company like Microsoft (MSFT), Cisco (CSCO), Dell (DELL) and many others in the technology sector. While it may still be a good value, AAPL's hyper-growth stage is over and it is unlikely to regain the wild momentum it enjoyed earlier this year.
Outside of AAPL, the market continues to trade in chaotic and choppy fashion. Breadth is running about 1950 gainers to 2900 losers, but underlying support continues as hope of a fiscal-cliff deal keeps buyers interested.
What has been particularly challenging lately is that there is little sustained momentum. Banks lead one day and do nothing the next. If you are chasing momentum, you are seeing very little follow-through. And there is no hot theme or sector. Usually, a group or two attracts hot money looking for action. The hot money is out there, but it doesn't seem to be focused.
My inventory levels are extremely low, but I continue to have a difficult time finding much I want to accumulate. I have a few small trades and a couple of things I'm interested in longer term, like Fusion-io (FIO), but I'm not technically seeing any reason to do any aggressive buying. Lower prices would be nice, but underlying support in this market continues to be quite stubborn.
