More pain in the housing sector.

Housing starts came in at an annual rate of 1.42 million, which beat consensus, but were down 0.8 from 1.43 million in the prior month.  The good news is single family starts rose 2.7%, while multifamily declined 5.9%.

Housing permits declined to 1.43 million missing consensus and down from 1.55 million.

This is a huge week for earnings with some of the most important publicly traded names in the batter’s box.  Banks continue to hold the spotlight, but that changes after the close when Technology and Communication Services get in on the action.

Earnings estimates have come down 13% since last June, but the street thinks it’s not enough (ironically, the estimates come from the street).

After the Close

Netflix (NFLX), which has been feast or famine, has either a big up or down week after posting results over the past five quarters. The interesting thing is the stock rallied after a miss last time – for this, company subscriber growth matters more than the top or bottom lines.

Also, after the close Lam Research (LRCX) reports.  Investors did well in the last three quarters. This name is critical considering the 23% year to date rally in semiconductors.

All things considered the market is holding up well.  We must play it closer to the vest, which means taking off positions sooner than normal.