Market players were excited by good news from Apple (AAPL) this morning, but it fizzled quickly. That the very bullish Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster cut his target on the stock is making the bears smile, even though Munster still expects AAPL to hit $875.
The quick reverse in Apple has tainted the action and weakness in small-caps for the first time in a while is adding to the pressure. Breadth is slightly positive, but what is most notable is that pockets of momentum have dried up. There isn't much aggressive action.
As I discussed in my opening post, I'm not in a big rush to find reasons to dislike the market. I've been taking gains into strength and my cash levels are high, but I'm searching for more buys and I continue to ride recent picks like Security National Financial Corp. (SNFCA) and Perion Network (PERI).
One stock I added this morning is the thinly traded China Lodging Group (HTHT), which operates and franchises hotels in 100 cities throughout China. It is expected to earn $0.74 this year and has been growing at a 50% rate. Technically, the stock has seen a good increase in volume lately and is working on taking out overhead resistance around $17. The market is not being very cooperative, but that is on my radar.
