Michael Kors and Other Big Movers In Consumer Cyclical on November 8, 2012

The Nasdaq is down 0.5%, the S&P 500 has slipped 0.2% and the Dow is trading down 0.2% on a bad morning for the market. The consumer cyclical sector is a category of stocks that relies heavily on the business cycle and economic conditions. Consumer cyclicals include industries such as automotive, housing, entertainment and retail. The category can be further divided into durable and non-durable sections. Durable cyclicals include physical goods such as hardware or vehicles, while non-durables represent items like movies or hotel services. The performance of consumer cyclicals is highly related to the state of the economy. They represent goods and services that are not considered necessities, but luxurious purchases. During contractions or recessions, people have less disposable income to spend on consumer cyclicals. When the economy is expanding or booming, the sales of these goods rise as retail and leisure spending increase.

The Consumer Cyclical sector (XLY) is down 0.3%, outperforming the market overall. Currently, the biggest movers in the sector are:

Company	Market Cap	Percentage Change
Tata Motors Limited (NYSE:TTM)	$2.36 billion	+5.7%
Sturm, Ruger (NYSE:RGR)	$913.6 million	+4.8%
Michael Kors (NYSE:KORS)	$10.77 billion	-4.5%
Harman International Industries (NYSE:HAR)	$2.76 billion	-3.9%
Smith (Nasdaq:SWHC)	$679.2 million	+3.5%
BorgWarner (NYSE:BWA)	$7.62 billion	-2.7%
Westport Innovations Inc (Nasdaq:WPRT)	$1.29 billion	+2.7%

Software Summary: Finviz.com Stock Screener

After an increase of 5.7%, Tata Motors Limited (NYSE:TTM) has reached a current price of $25.89. The company's volume for the day so far is 881,060 shares, 0.7 times its current three-month average.

Sturm, Ruger (NYSE:RGR) has increased to a share price of $49.97, a 4.8% rise. So far today, the company's volume is one million shares.

After a decline of 4.5%, Michael Kors (NYSE:KORS) has hit a share price of $52.16. The company's volume is currently two million shares for the day, 0.9 times the average daily volume.

Harman International Industries (NYSE:HAR) has fallen 3.9% and is currently trading at $39.08 per share. The company's volume for the day so far is 1.2 million shares. Yesterday's volume was only 668,313 shares.

Rising 3.5%, Smith (Nasdaq:SWHC) is currently trading at $10.73 per share. The company's volume is currently 3.9 million shares for the day, 1.6 times its average over the past three months.

BorgWarner (NYSE:BWA) is down 2.7% to reach $63.35 per share. So far today, 741,033 shares have changed hands.

Westport Innovations Inc (Nasdaq:WPRT) is up 2.7% to reach a current price of $24.00 per share. At 447,014 shares, the company's volume so far today is 0.4 times the average daily volume.

The Bottom Line No matter the economic climate, Wall Street will always have stocks that make major moves each week. Paying close attention to the previous ratios will help you identify key times to adjust your strategy. Tools like valuation ratios and profit margins, however, are only as useful as the context you put them in; remember to take historical data and competitor performance into account.