1:15pm (EST)

The market has traded in a tight range after a slightly lower open but has moved higher throughout the morning and into the afternoon as the dip that some have been calling for has failed to materialize.  We mentioned this morning that there wasn’t any major economic news due out today but in 30 minutes the market will be listening to Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President, Richard Fisher, on his in-depth analysis of the current state of the economy and business environment.

As far as earnings, Toyota Motor (TM, $88.17, up $3.04) shares are up 3% although profits dropped 39% on a year-over-year basis but still beat estimates.  However, Wall Street liked what it heard going forward and shrugged-off the strong yen.

Toyota reported a profit of 29.85 yen per share, versus expectations for 29 yen.  Revenue came in at 4.67 trillion yen, compared to estimates for 4.59 trillion yen.  Looking forward, the company said it expects to earn 156.3 yen per share in 2011, versus forecasts for 142.4 yen.  

As far as its full-year sales forecast, Toyota expects to sell to 7.48 million cars from its prior forecast of 7.41 million as it sees strong growth in emerging markets.  Despite the recent safety concerns, which we will find out more about later today, Toyota has been the world’s largest car maker for three straight years.

There are a couple of earnings announcement we are watching after the bell, Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD, $47.42, up $0.03) and Walt Disney (DIS, $40.92, down $0.02), but we will probably stay on the sidelines as far as trading them.  We were thinking of a strangle option trade, or “chicken trade”, on Buffalo Wild Wings because the company has a history of beating and missing estimates.  Although we aren’t sure which way shares will move, we do feel they will move 8%-10% on Wednesday.

As we head to press, the Dow is up 40 points to 12,202 while the S&P 500 is higher by 3 points to 1,322.  The Nasdaq is showing a 4 point pop and is at 2,788.  As usual, we have a lot to cover in our Members Area so let’s get to it.  Subscribers, check for the updates.

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