U.S. exchanges are struggling for direction, as traders weigh a drop in crude, the latest economic data, and a pair of positive blue-chip earnings. Among the equities in focus are retail blue chip Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT), service review company Angie's List Inc (NASDAQ:ANGI), and nutritional supplement concern Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF).
HLF lost a major investor in Soros Fund Management, as the hedge fund pulled out of the nutrition company and took new positions in Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) and Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX), amongst others. Nevertheless, Herbalife Ltd. shares were last seen trading 0.5% higher at $55.54, and have added 47.2% so far this year. Still, skepticism prevails. HLF's SOIR of 1.85 is higher than three-fourths of all readings taken in the past year. And, with more than one-fourth of HLF's total float sold short -- accounting for nearly 23 days of trading, at the stock's typical daily pace -- a short-covering rally could help the shares extend their upward momentum.
