Eagle Eye Opener: HP Shares Swoon; Fed Chairman Cools Market with Comments; Watching Greek Tragedy

HP Shares Swoon as Company Absorbs $8.8 Billion Hit (Reuters)

Shares of Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) hit a 10-year low yesterday of $11.71, after the company announced it was taking an $8.8 billion write-down. The computer giant claims the enormous hit was the result of “serious accounting improprieties” by its England-based accounting group: Autonomy. Investors responded to the news by sending shares plummeting 12%. This latest decline leaves the company with an approximate market value of $20 billion, about 15% of its $155 billion value in 2000.

Meet Wall Street’s Version of “The Cooler” — Ben Bernanke (YahooFinance.com)

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke sucked all of the momentum out of the market’s previous two-day rally with comments on the country’s ability to soften the blow of the fiscal cliff. Investors took the Fed chairman at his word when he claimed the Fed alone does not have the ability to thwart the damage from the cliff; it needs politicians to strike a deal for a 1-2 punch. By day’s end, investors were able to push the S&P 500 and Nasdaq into positive territory, with the indexes up .07% and .02%, respectively. The Dow closed down .06%.

An Endless Greek Tragedy (Reuters)

The demise of Icharus seems almost heart-warming compared to today’s ongoing Greek economic tragedy. Even after another 12-hour round of talks, European Union (EU) leaders again failed to agree on a course of action to release emergency aid funds to Greece. Investors responded to the ongoing tale of woe by sending European shares lower: the FTSE 100 lost .2%, Germany’s DAX dipped .1% and France’s CAC 40 slid .2%, as well. The euro also lost ground, closing .3% down. EU leaders are set to reconvene Monday.