* Target gives reassuring same-store sales forecast
* CBOE VIX down 3 pct but swings to continue: analyst
* Stocks up: Dow 0.4 pct, S&P 0.5 pct, Nasdaq 0.6 pct
* For up-to-the-minute market news see []
(Updates to late afternoon, changes byline)
By Angela Moon
NEW YORK, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Wall Street rose on Wednesday,
led by gains in consumer stocks after a reassuring sales
forecast from discounter Target Corp <TGT.N> fueled optimism
about the retail industry.
The Target same-store sales forecast came a day after
retail companies Wal-Mart Stores <WMT.N> and Home Depot <HD.N>
reported higher-than-expected earnings.
Shares of Target gained 3 percent to $52.51 after the
discounter forecast a continuous growth in same-store sales,
signaling that it may even beat larger rival Wal-Mart.
"Deflation worries are what's been really pressuring the
market. But the news from Target today, on top of Wal-Mart and
Home Depot, is saying that we may not be in such a bad
situation," said Marc Pado, U.S. market strategist at Cantor
Fitzgerald & Co in San Francisco.
The consumer discretionary sector <.GSPD> gained 1.3
percent, the biggest gainer among the S&P 500 sectors.
But volume continued to be low as economic uncertainty
discouraged investors from adding to stock positions. With less
than one hour left in trading, volume was about 1 billion
shares below the year's lightest day so far.
The Dow Jones industrial average <> was up 39.81
points, or 0.38 percent, at 10,445.66. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> was up 5.11 points, or 0.47 percent, at
1,097.65. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> was up 14.13
points, or 0.64 percent, at 2,223.57.
CBOE Volatility index <.VIX>, Wall Street's favorite
yardstick for investor anxiety, was down 2.7 percent at 23.68,
but options analysts said the market remains unstable.
Randy Frederic, director of trading and derivatives for
Charles Schwab, said in a note that the intraday volatility
pattern "is still very much alive."
"Until we get a clear sentiment shift, the markets are
still catering mostly to those with a very short-term trading
bias, or a very long-term perspective. For everyone in between,
the gut-wrenching could continue for awhile," he said.
But warehouse club operator BJ's <BJ.N> cut its earnings
forecast for the year, sending shares down 2.8 percent at
$42.11. []
Farm equipment maker Deere & Co <DE.N> fell 2.6 percent to
$65.51 after it beat estimates but said sales were "far below
normal levels". []
On the Nasdaq, Cisco Systems <CSCO.O> rose 2 percent to
$22.48, helping the tech heavy index.
Analog Devices Inc <ADI.N> rose 4.9 percent to $30.22 a day
after the microchip maker posted a quarterly profit that topped
estimates and issued a better-than-expected fourth-quarter
outlook. []
(Reporting by Angela Moon, Editing by Kenneth Barry)
