The sweet: one of my old favorites, The Hershey Co., reported higher earnings this morning - a sweet report for shareholders and a continuation of last quarter's gains.

The sweeter (for Rochester): Xerox today also had a better-than-expected report as their acquisition this past February of ACS has helped to power sales up 48%, though the net increase was about 2% (treating ACS as if they had been acquired last year). Better yet: profits were up 60% and profit margins increased, and management increased their forecast for the next 6 months. Not likely they would do that if they were not confident that they could deliver.

The stock market tumbled yesterday as investors were spooked by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's Senate testimony. Read his comments. They were not something you would hear from Dr. Pangloss, but Bernanke did say that a double-dip recession is unlikely and that the Fed would continue to help to spur economic growth.

These are signs of a recovering economy in general, great news for a Rochester employer.

GTC

(This article contains the current opinions of the author but not necessarily those of Brighton Securities Corp. The author's opinions are subject to change without notice. This blog post is for informational purposes only. Forecasts, estimates, and certain information contained herein should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation of any particular security, strategy or investment product. References to specific securities and their issuers are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended and should not be interpreted as recommendations to purchase or sell such securities).