Following are the day’s biggest winners and losers. Find out why shares of Fannie Mae and Darden Restaurants popped while PetroChina and Nokia dropped.
POPS (stocks that jumped higher)
Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE) both popped over 10%. The government reduced the amount of surplus capital the mortgage lenders need to hold to protect against losses which freed them up to buy more mortgage related securities. – I like it, says Tim Seymour.
Darden Restaurants (DRI) popped 7%. Profits at the Red Lobster/Olive Garden operator were up 18% for the quarter. – Interesting, says Jeff Macke.
Lindsay Corp. (LNN) popped 18%. The maker of irrigation systems benefited from the agriculture boom; quarterly profit tripled. – Outstanding, says Pete Najarian.
Ohio State. High school sports rising star Terrelle Pryor picked Ohio State over Michigan, Penn State and Oregon. Although he excelled at both basketball and football, posting one of the best athletic careers in Pennsylvania high school history, the quarterback will play football exclusively at Ohio.
DROPS (stocks that slid lower)
Discover Financial Services (DFS) dropped 13%. Profit at the credit card company was down 65%. – Get rid of this stock, says Guy Adami.
PetroChina (PTR) dropped 8%. The world's largest company by market cap posted profits short of expectations; refiner losses and drilling costs offset the gains from record crude prices. – I still like this stock, says Tim Seymour.
Freeport McMoRan (FCX) dropped 10%. Freeport was one of several miners down after gold's plummet on Wednesday. – It’s a buying opportunity, counsels Guy Adami.
Ericsson (ERIC) dropped 10%. Slower handset sales will hurt first quarter profits and revenues for the mobile phone maker. – No need to get long, says Jeff Macke.
Nokia (NOK) dropped 10%. Nokia was taken down by Ericsson's warning. – I own this stock, says Pete Najarian, and it’s killing me.
Nvidia (NVDA) dropped 7%. The graphics chip maker slid along with competitors Memc Electronics and Sandisk. – I think it has room on the downside, says Pete Najarian.
Cisco (CSCO) dropped 4%. The tech titan was sucked into Wednesday’s sell-off. – I like this stock as an infrastructure play, says Pete Najarian.
Monster Worldwide (MNST) dropped 9%. Marketing expenses led the online job site to warn that first quarter costs may exceed analyst estimates.- Hmmm, says Jeff Macke.
Petrobras (PBR) dropped 9%. Brazilian stocks fell the most in more than 2 months, part of an emerging markets slump around the world.
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Trader disclosure: On Mar.19, 2008, the following stocks and commodities mentioned or intended to be mentioned on CNBC’s Fast Money were owned by the Fast Money traders; Najarian Owns (AAPL), (BIIB), (CSCO), (MCD), (MS), (MSFT), (NOK), (XLF), (YHOO), (C), (IDCC); Najarian Owns (BSC) Calls, (TSO) Calls, (CCU) Calls; Najarian Owns (LEH) Puts; Macke Owns (YHOO), (INTC), (DIS), (EMC); Seymour Owns (AAPL), (CSCO), (INTC), (MER), (MSFT), (S), (SBUX), (TSO); Seygem Asset Management Owns (CHL), (EEM); Seygem Asset Management Owns Gazprom
