Dividend.com: Midday Playbook

NEW YORK (TheStreet) - Today feels like a replay of Tuesday, as far as where the averages stand at this point of the day. China is the big factor today, as traders are seeing a drop in commodity plays, as I mentioned would be the case in this morning's post. Let's see what stands out at the moment as the afternoon gets into full swing.

Bullish

Earnings Winners: Massey Energy(MEE Quote), Life Technologies(LIFE Quote), DreamWorks Animation(DWA Quote), Jones Apparel(JNY Quote), and Wyndham Worldwide(WYN Quote).

Upgrade Winners: Fifth Third Bancorp(FITB Quote), Coach(COH Quote), Capella Education(CPLA Quote), Coventry Health(CVH Quote) and Bank of America(BAC Quote) are all being lifted by analyst moves.

Other notable winners: Intuitive Surgical(ISRG Quote) and Continental Airlines(CAL Quote) are seeing a bit of continued strength from Tuesday's action.

Bearish

Earnings Losers: WellPoint, Inc.(WLP Quote), ConocoPhillips(COP Quote), Royal Caribbean(RCL Quote) and ArcelorMittal(MT Quote) are all getting hit hard following disappointing results.

Analyst Downgrades: Aflac(AFL Quote), MGM Mirage(MGM Quote), Morgan Stanley(MS Quote), Genzyme Corp(GENZ Quote), Jacobs Engineering(JEC Quote), and Valero Energy(VLO Quote).

Commodity Plays: Shares of Transocean Offshore(RIG Quote), Freeport McMoran(FCX Quote), Agnico-Eagle Mines(AEM Quote) and U.S. Steel(X Quote) are seeing a big drop in today's session. Oil(USO Quote) and Gold(GLD Quote) prices are also getting hit hard.

What's the Trade?

The AEM and X short plays mentioned this morning are working according to plan, as is the GLD short idea. A new play to consider is a long position in the Ultrashort DUG, as a way to take advantage of the drop in oil and gas-related plays. I would watch this position closely this afternoon, and if can close near the highs, I'd hold onto the position into tomorrow.

If you're still sitting with a lot of long positions, be sure to leave your trailing stops and sell-stops firmly in place.

Be sure to visit our complete recommended list of the Best Dividend Stocks as well as a detailed explanation of our ratings system.