Top 10 News Items 9/26-9/30: Euro Fears Cool Off; Buffett's Berkshire Authorizes Buyback; Ingersoll Slashes Guidance

FREE Breaking News Alerts from StreetInsider.com!

BRK-B Hot Sheet

Up)

Below is a recap of the top news items from this week on Wall Street:

1. Things appears to be improving in the European financial crisis. Germany and a number of other approved expansion of the EFSF program. Rumors earlier in the week that Europe is considering levering up the EFSF and creating an investment bank that would issue and buy sovereign debt are also adding to optimism.

2. Shares of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-B) rose 11 percent following news the Board has authorized a buyback of Class A and B Shares at prices no higher than a 10 percent premium over the then-current book value of the shares.

3. Ingersoll-Rand (NYSE: IR) shares fell more than 12 percent on Friday after cutting its Q3 and FY11 outlook. Lowers Q3 EPS from continuing operations outlook from $0.85 to $0.95 to a range of $0.77 to $0.80. Consensus sees EPS of $0.91. Revs move from $4.05-$4.15 billion to $3.90 to $3.95 billion. Consensus sees revs of $3.90 billion. FY11 EPS guidance moves from $2.90 - $3.10 to $2.70 - $2.80. Consensus sees EPS of $2.96. Revs from $15.30-$15.50 billion to a range of $14.85 to $15.00 billion. The Street sees $14.78 billion.

4. Amazon.com (Nasdaq: AMZN) unveiled its highly-anticipated Kindle Fire tablet this week. While the stock was mixed, sentiment on the Street and from prospective consumers seems to be moving in the right direction. The device boasts a 7" screen, dual-core processor and access to all of Amazon's services (save Prime). Click here to check out what analysts are saying about the device. The tablet will ship on November 15th.

5. Stocks rallied sharply to close Thursday's session following rumors Senator Chris Christie could be making a run for President.

6. Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) confirmed an October 4th presentation at the company's headquarters in Cupertino. The event invitation is entitled "Let's Talk iPhone." iPhone 5! Apple shares closed 6 percent lower.

7. Whispers China may be facing a slowdown got much louder this week as data backed up the fears. The country's purchasing managers index was unchanged at 49.9 from August to September. The 50 level generally shows activity; below 50 means contracting, with the opposite for anything above.

8. Analysts earlier in the week highlighted Apple as making iPad supply chain order cuts. Later, while the cuts were confirmed by many analyst, they noted it does not appear related to demand. Click here to see the analyst rundown on shares of Apple.

9. The final reading for Q2 GDP came in at 1.3% on Thursday, slightly better than the economist estimate of 1.2%. The prior reading of Q2 GDP initial came in at 1.0%. The Street is anticipating the Friday jobs report next week. Economists are looking for a 50,000 gain in nonfarm payrolls and a 90,000 gain in private sector payrolls.

10. Speaking of jobs Friday, initial jobless claims for last week came in notably lower than expectations Thursday, a somewhat relieving signal for a U.S. economy which has been pummeled by a plethora of negative data points recently. Applications for first-time jobless benefits fell 37,000 to 391,000, much better than an expected reading of 420,000.

Get immediate access to market moving news and alerts with StreetInsider.com Premium - FREE TRIAL!