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C, JPM, DB, BBVA, CVX, PVA, TSO, XLF, BAC, FDX, AA, CAT, CMI, AMBA

Early Wednesday, the Federal Reserve released its September Beige Book. In its report, the twelve Federal Reserve Districts reported that economic activity “expanded modestly since the last report.”

Residential real estate conditions as well as the non financial services sector also showed some improvement.

The manufacturing sector was described as mixed but somewhat healthier than what was observed in the last report. Meanwhile, the industrial market was also described as mixed. The Philadelphia, New York, Cleveland, and Atlanta districts all showed strength, but conditions in Richmond declined a bit.

The Beige Book also commented on consumer spending, saying it was mostly unchanged since the previous report.

Financials registered the slimmest losses and the SPDR Financial Select Sector ETF (XLF) 15.94, -0.01 shed 0.1%.

Among the majors, Citigroup (NYSE:C) 35.14, +0.54 and JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) 41.77, +0.39 were the top performers. The 2 names registered respective gains of 1.6% and 0.9% after Bank of America/Merrill Lynch (NYSE:BAC)resumed coverage of the two stocks with a ‘buy’ rating. Note that JPMorgan Chase will report its Q-3 earnings before Friday’s open.

European financials saw mixed performance as Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) 41.17, +0.33 added 0.8% while Spanish Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (NYSE:BBVA) 7.59, -0.10 slipped 1.3%.

Energy stocks were the biggest laggard of the session.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) 112.45, -4.91 slid 4.2% after announcing that its Q-3 earnings are expected to be lower than results from the prior Quarter. Penn Virginia (NYSE:PVA) 5.10, -0.3 and Tesoro (NYSE:TSO) 38.70, -2.29 lost 7.1% and 5.6%, respectively.

The Dow Jones Transportation Average outperformed the broader market with a gain of 0.1%.

The strength was largely due to FedEx (NYSE:FDX) 89.52, +3.94. The bellwether stock gained 5.2% after announcing a program which targets $1.7-B in annual profit improvements by the end of F-Y 2016. In addition, the company reaffirmed its second quarter and full-year Y 2012 guidance which it had revised down on 18 September.

Elsewhere:

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) 8.71, -0.42 dipped 4.6% after beating on earnings and revenues. The company’s Q-3 revenue of $5.833% represents a 9.1% Y-Y decrease. In addition, AA lowered its Y 2012 global aluminum demand growth forecast from 7.0% to 6.0%.

Engine maker Cummins (NYSE:CMI) 87.79, -3.05 slid 3.4% after lowering its third quarter and full-year 2012 guidance due to weak demand. Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) 83.16, -1.59 slipped 1.9% in conjunction with CMI

Ambarella (NASDAQ:AMBA) 6.06, +0.06 made its public debut today. The producer of video processing semiconductors priced its initial public offering at 6, which was well below the expected price range of 9 to 11. The stock settled higher by 1.0% after shares began trading at 6.66.

August wholesale inventories increased by 0.5%, slightly lower than the increase of 0.6% which was forecast.

Weekly initial and continuing jobless claims, August trade balance, September export prices ex-agriculture, and September import prices ex-Crude Oil will all be reported at 8:30 EDT.

The US Treasury will look to make it three strong auctions for the week with tomorrow’s $13 billion, 30-yr reopening.

US stocks started mixed as the Key indices traded flat to unchanged during the 1st hr. Sellers took control after traders digested the wholesale inventories data, pushing the major averages to their worst levels.
Afternoon trade was quiet as the 3 averages stood around near session lows, the S&P 500 finished lower by 0.6%.

DJIA 13344.97-128.56 (-0.95%) NAS 3051.78-13.24 (-0.43%) S&P 500 1432.56-8.92 (-0.62%) 10-yr. T Note+9/32 1.690

NYSE Adv 1144 Dec 1890 Vol 590.8-M NAS Adv 1121 Dec 1337 Vol 1.73-B

Industry Watch
Strong: Consumer Staples, Financials
Weak: Energy, Materials, Health Care