At mid-morning, the DJIA is down more than -300 points on concern that the global economy is once again heading for a recession. There are few winners today, and most of those are ETFs that rise on a bearish market. Among today’s positive movers are the Direxion Daily Russia Bear 3X ETF (NYSE: RUSS), the ProShares UltraShort Russell MidCap Value Fund (NYSE: SJL), the Direxion Daily Basic Materials ETF (NYSE: MATS), PVF Capital Corp. (NASDAQ: PVFC), Goodrich Corp. (NYSE: GR), and Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHIP).

The Direxion Daily Russia Bear 3X ETF (NYSE: RUSS) is today’s biggest gainer so far, up nearly 18% at $64.93 after posting 52-week higher earlier this morning of $65.05. This 3x leveraged fund has recovered nicely since the downgrade of US debt in early August, which sent shares to a 52-week low. As with all triple leveraged funds, this one is not for the faint of heart.

The ProShares UltraShort Russell MidCap Value Fund (NYSE: SJL) is up nearly 15%, at $66.78, in a 52-week range of $47.31-$79.36. This fund is a 2x leveraged bet against the daily performance of the Russell MidCap Value Index. Another good bet today, but like other leveraged funds, tomorrow could be a different story.

The Direxion Daily Basic Materials Bear 3x Shares ETF (NYSE: MATS) is up more than 14.5%, at $58.06 in a 52-week range of $32.35-$61.24. We noted earlier this morning the collapse [https://a673b.bigscoots-temp.com/2011/09/22/gold-miners-outshine-copper-miners-rio-bhp-vale-fcx-scco-nem-abx-auy-slw-gld-gdx-slv-sil/] in metals and mining, and this 3x leveraged bear fund is reflecting that decline.

PVF Capital Corp. (NASDAQ: PVFC) is the leading equity gainer today, up more than 14%, at $1.75, in a 52-week range of $1.27-$2.23. Average daily volume on this stock is just over 13,000 shares. The company is bank holding company for a northeast-Ohio bank with 17 branches.

Goodrich Corp. (NYSE: GR) finally got the acquisition offer everyone expected from United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX). Goodrich shares posted a new 52-week high this morning of $120.93, following United’s $127.50/share all-cash offer. The deal is valued at $18.4 billion, including $1.9 billion of Goodrich debt that United will assume.

Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHIP) is up more than 13%, at $4.00, in a 52-week range of $2.71-$20.25. The company is a dry-bulk shipper and this move is counter-intuitive given the expected weakness in iron ore and coal demand. The recent purchase of OceanFreight, Inc. (NASDAQ: OCNFD) by DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) has pushed up speculation that other M&A activity might be coming in the shipping industry. Seanergy has a market cap of around $30 million and a decent-sized fleet, making it a prime suspect for a takeover.

Paul Ausick

 

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