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Closing Bell for Friday on Wall Street: Markets Open Lower, Fail to Break Out

Paul Ausick — Fri, 24 May 2013 20:07:20 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened sharply lower again this morning, but this time reacting to yesterday’s comments by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke that the Fed could slow its bond purchases in the next few months. In the U.S., orders for durable goods made a strong showing and propelled stocks off their morning lows. In Europe, the second estimate on German GDP showed first-quarter growth of 0.1%, as expected, and the country’s business climate index rose more than expected. There was no economic data of note in Asia today, but Japan’s Nikkei made a modest comeback after yesterday’s collapse. By the closing bell, only the DJIA managed to cross break-even line.

U.S. markets are closed Monday in observance of Memorial Day.

The U.S. dollar index is trading down 0.27% today, now at 83.5710. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.2% at 624.86. WTI crude oil closed down 0.1%, at $94.15 a barrel, to close the week down about 2%. Brent crude trades up 0.2% at $102.59 a barrel. Natural gas is down 0.6% today at about $4.24 per million BTUs. Gold settled down 0.4% today at $1,387.50, about 1.6% higher than last week’s close.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up about 9 points to 15,303.33(0.06%), the NASDAQ fell less than 1 point1 (-0.01%) to 3,459.14, and the S&P 500fell -0.06% or less than 1 point to 1,649.60.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including:

Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG) raised to ‘buy’ at UBS;
The Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ: WEN) raised to ‘buy’ at Janney;
Cubist Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: CBST) cut to ‘neutral’ at Janney;
Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (NASDAQ: MPEL) cut to ‘neutral’ at Macquarie; and
Aixtron SE (NASDAQ: AIXG) cut to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have resulted in some price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today:

Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO) is down 10.9% at $14.68;
America’s Car-Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: CRMT) is up 1.2% at $46.59;
Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) is down 1.9% at $40.56;
Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL) is down 0.1% at $11.30;
Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P) is down 3.9% at $16.50 after posting a new 52-week high of $19.37 earlier today;
Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST) is up 0.7% at $65.55;
Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE: CRM) is down 5.5% at $43.23;
Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) is down 1.2% at $X31.63X;
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) is down 7.9% at $50.05; and
Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE: FL) is down 5.2% at $33.82.

Before markets open Tuesday morning we are scheduled to hear earnings from Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) and Tiffany & Co. (NYSE: TIF).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Ziopharm Oncology Inc. (NASDAQ: ZIOP) is up 29.2% at $2.61. The cancer drug company had no news, which is often interpreted to be good news. Perhaps its investors looking for another biopharma company to match the price runup in MannKind Corp (NASDAQ: MNKD) earlier this week.

Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) is down 3.7% at $24.12. The social media company appears about to do battle with Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) over an Israeli company that makes a smartphone traffic app.

Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD) is down 13.6% at $50.33. The department store owner posted another big net loss in the first quarter.

Stay tuned for Tuesday. U.S. markets are closed on Monday. We have noted the following events on Tuesday’s schedule (all times Eastern):

9:00 a.m. – S&P Case-Shiller house price index
10:00 a.m. – Conference Board consumer sentiment index
10:00 a.m. – Richmond Fed manufacturing index
10:30 a.m. – Dallas Fed manufacturing survey
11:30 a.m. – 3- and 6-month bill auction
1:00 p.m. – 2-year note auction

Have a great holiday weekend!

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AIXG, ANF, ARO, CBST, CRM, CRMT, CSIQ, FB, FL, GOOG, GPS, MNKD, MPEL, MRVL, P, PG, ROST, SHLD, TIF, WEN, ZIOP, ZUMZ

Abercrombie & Fitch Stock Sinks on Company Earnings, Outlook

Paul Ausick — Fri, 24 May 2013 12:00:28 +0000

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) reported first-quarter fiscal 2013 results before markets opened this morning. The specialty retailer posted a diluted earnings per share (EPS) loss of $0.09 on revenues of $838.8 million. In the same period a year ago, the company reported a net loss of $0.25 per share on revenues of $921.2 million. First-quarter results also compare to the Thomson Reuters consensus estimates for a net loss of $0.05 per share and $941.66 million in revenues.

Same-store sales fell 17% and direct-to-consumer sales fell 6% for a combined decline of 15%. Gross margin rose 7.2 points year-over-year to 65.9%

A&F revised its fiscal year guidance from an expected EPS range of $3.35 to $3.45 to a new range of $3.15 to $3.25. For the second quarter the company expects EPS in the range of $0.28 to $0.33.

The consensus estimate for full-year EPS was $3.49 and the second-quarter estimate was $0.31. The lower guidance coupled with the bad miss on revenues foreshadows a beating on A&F’s stock today.

The company’s CEO said:

The first quarter proved to be more difficult than expected on the top-line due to more significant inventory shortage issues than anticipated, added to by external pressures. However, comparable sales trends progressively improved during the quarter and with the inventory headwinds largely behind us, we expect to see continued sequential improvement in the second quarter.

A&F needs to get its story straight. The CEO says comparable sales will improve. In the company’s outlook, the drop in expected full-year EPS “assumes comparable sales, including direct-to-consumer to be slightly down for the balance of the year.” Sales will not get better and worse at the same time, no matter how hard A&F tries to make it happen.

Shares are trading down nearly 11%, at $48.59 in a 52-week range of $28.64 to $55.23. The consensus target price for the shares was around $54.00 before today’s report.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Earnings, Retail, Services Tagged: ANF

Closing Bell for Thursday on Wall Street: Markets Stall on Japan Losses

Paul Ausick — Thu, 23 May 2013 20:05:54 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened sharply lower this morning, taking a lead from Japan’s Nikkei, which fell more than 7% for the day. Japan’s government bond yields spiked until the Bank of Japan intervened. Japan-focused ETFs got clobbered today. Nearly missed in the flurry surrounding the Japanese debacle was the decline in China’s manufacturing PMI<>. Europe followed Japan’s lead as well, even though eurozone manufacturing PMI rose. The bad news is that the eurozone’s manufacturing PMI continues to contract. In the U.S., new claims for jobless benefits fell, while data on new home sales and house prices continued to improve. U.S. equities ended the day with a small loss after the dust settled.

The U.S. dollar index is trading down 0.73% today, now at 83.7360. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.8% at 625.96. WTI crude oil closed down fractionally, at $94.25 a barrel. Brent crude trades down 0.1% at $102.46 a barrel. Natural gas is up 1.7% today at about $4.26 per million BTUs following a relatively small addition to the nation’s inventories<>. Gold settled up 1.8% today at $1,391.80.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 13 points to 15,294.50 (-0.08%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 4 points (-0.11%) to 3,459.42, and the S&P 500 fell -0.29% or nearly 5 points to 1,650.53.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including:

Sanmina Corp. (NASDAQ: SANM) cut to ‘sell’ at Deutsche Bank;
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) started as ‘underperform’ at Credit Suisse;
Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ: STX) raised to ‘buy’ at Deutsche Bank;
VeriFone Systems Inc. (NYSE: PAY) raised to ‘buy’ at SunTrust; and
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (NYSE: DO) raised to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have resulted in some price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today:

DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) is down 6.2% at $1.96;
L Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD) is down 0.4% at $X51.25X;
PetSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) is up 1.9% at $70.35;
SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: SEAS) is down 1.3% at $37.24;
Workday Inc. (NYSE: WDAY) is up 0.9% at $66.34;
Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) is up 4% at $50.29;
GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) is down 1.1% at $35.85;
Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) is down 2.5% at $183.46; and
Stein Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: SMRT) is up 4.8% at $12.28, a new 52-week high.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings from Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO), America’s Car-Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: CRMT), Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS), Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL), Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P), Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST), Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE: CRM), Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ), Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF), and Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE: FL).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) is up 16.8% at $24.79 after posting a new 52-week high of $24.91 earlier today. The printer and computer maker posted better-than-expected earnings last night.

MannKind Corp. (NASDAQ: MNKD) is up 8.1% at $6.74 after posting a new 52-week high of $6.99 earlier today. The biopharmaceuticals firm continues to see shares rise following a report yesterday that the company is a likely takeover target.

Cirrus Logic Inc. (NASDAQ: CRUS) is down 19.8% at $17.70. The semiconductor maker lowered its outlook, this morning.

Stay tuned for Friday. We have noted the following event on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Durable goods orders

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ANF, ARO, CRM, CRMT, CRUS, DLTR, DO, DRYS, FL, GME, GPS, HPQ, JNJ, LTD, MNKD, MRVL, P, PAY, PETM, RL, ROST, SANM, SEAS, SMRT, STX, WDAY, ZUMZ

L Brands, Zumiez Lead Rise in April Retail Sales

Paul Ausick — Thu, 09 May 2013 12:50:07 +0000

Retailers are announcing April same-store sales figures today. Research firm Retail Metrics projected an overall gain of 3.5% year-over-year, compared with a 2% gain in February and a 1.4% gain in March.

In general, April sales benefited from lower prices for gasoline, an extra shopping day, and generally better news on the U.S. economy. Late snow and cold temperatures in parts of the country, the payroll tax increase and the effects of the sequester acted as drags on sales.

Several retailers no longer report monthly same-store sales. These include Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT), Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M), Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS), Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT), Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) and American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO).

Here’s a rundown:

Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) reported that same-store sales for April rose 4% compared with the same month in 2012. That is below the Retail Metrics estimate for a gain of 4.9%, excluding gasoline sales.

L Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD) said same-store sales for April rose 2% compared with the same period last year and a Retail Metrics estimate for a rise of 4.8%. The company also said that it expects to report EPS for the first quarter of $0.46, which is higher than previous guidance of $0.40 to $0.45, but in line with the consensus estimate. L Brands noted that first-quarter earnings took a hit of $0.03 per share due to severance and a higher tax rate.

The Buckle Inc. (NYSE: BKE) reported same-store sales for April rose 6.2% compared with the same period a year ago. The Retail Metrics estimate called for a rise of 1.8%.

Stein Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: SMRT) yesterday reported an 8% jump in same-store sales for April, well above the 3% estimate from Retail Metrics.

PriceSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PSMT) reported same-store sales for April rose 10.7%, higher than the 10.2% rise estimated by Retail Metrics.

Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) posted a same-stores sales rise of 4.6% for April, better than the 4.1% increase expected by Retail Metrics.

The TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX) reported same-store sales rose 8% in April. The Retail Metrics estimate called for a rise of 6.8%.

Costco shares are inactive in the pr-market, having closed last night at $109.61 in a 52-week range of $82.10 to $110.41.

Limited’s shares are down 1.8%, at $52.25 in a 52-week range of $40.32 to $53.33.

Stein Mart’s shares are inactive this morning, and closed last night at $10.90 in a 52-week range of $6.15 to $11.10.

PriceSmart’s shares are also inactive this morning, and closed last night at $88.52 in a 52-week range of $59.00 to $90.94.

Zumiez’s shares are inactive and closed at $30.41 last night in a 52-week range of $17.93 to $41.96.

The Buckle’s shares are trading up 1.4% at $50.31 in a 52-week range of $36.33 to $51.74.

TJX’s shares are inactive and closed at $50.40 last night in a 52-week range of $39.46 to $50.61.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Retail, Services Tagged: AEO, ANF, BKE, COST, featured, KSS, LTD, M, PSMT, SMRT, TGT, TJX, WMT, ZUMZ

Closing Bell for Tuesday on Wall Street: Share Prices Push Indexes to All-Time Highs

Paul Ausick — Tue, 07 May 2013 20:05:18 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning following an unexpected 0.25% cut in Australia’s key interest rate to a new level of 2.75%. Japan’s Nikkei reopened today after a two-day holiday and buyers were in abundance (more coverage here). In Europe, industrial production in France fell 0.9%, which was more than the expected drop of 0.3%. France’s trade deficit came in higher than expected as well today. In the U.S., the Fed reported this afternoon that consumer debt rose by just $8 billion in March, half the amount expected by economists (more coverage here). The U.S. Treasury also auctioned 4-week bills today at a zero interest rate (more coverage here). Both the DJIA and the S&P 500 indexes posted new all-time highs today.

The U.S. dollar index is trading down 0.06% today, now at 82.265. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.3% at 632.74. WTI crude oil closed down 0.6%, at $95.62 a barrel, following a report that Saudi Arabian production rose in April and that demand in the U.S. will be lower this year (more coverage here). Brent crude trades down 1% at $104.39 a barrel. Natural gas is down 2.1% today at about $3.93 per million BTUs. Gold settled down 1.3% today at $1,448.80.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 87 points to 15,056.28 (0.58%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 4 points (0.11%) to 3,396.63, and the S&P 500 rose 0.52% or more than 8 points to 1,625.96.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including:

Alpha Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: ANR) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs;
J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) started as ‘underperform’ at Wells Fargo;
Incyte Corp. (NASDAQ: INCY) resumed as ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs;
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) raised to ‘outperform’ at Wells Fargo; and
Sanchez Energy Corp. (NYSE: SN) started as ‘buy’ at SunTrust.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading:

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC) is down 1% at $86.79 after posting a new 52-week high of $89.72 earlier today;
First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) is down 8.9% at $43.43 (more coverage here);
Plains All American Pipeline L.P. (NYSE: PAA) is up 1.9% at $58.32 after posting a new 52-week high of $58.51 earlier today;
Vornado Realty Trust (NYSE: VNO) is down 1.3% at $86.72;
Carrizo Oil & Gas Inc. (NASDAQ: CRZO) is up 1.8% at $26.42;
Checkpoint Systems Inc. (NYSE: CKP) is up 4.1% at $12.10;
DirecTV (NASDAQ: DTV) is up 6.6% at $61.80 after posting a new 52-week high of $62.06 earlier today (more coverage here);and
Fossil Inc. (NASDAQ: FOSL) is up 9.1% at $107.93.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings reports from American Water Works Co. Inc. (NYSE: AWK), Demand Media Inc. (NYSE: DMD), Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA), Fuel Tech Inc. (NASDAQ: FTEK), Kinross Gold Corp. (NYSE: KGC), Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO), SandRidge Energy Inc. (NYSE: SD), Zillow Inc. (NASDAQ: Z), AOL Inc. (NYSE: AOL), Enbridge Inc. (NYSE: ENB), Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ: WEN) and Vivus Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Aruba Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: ARUN) is down 23% at $16.99. The network equipment maker warned on earnings this morning.

Alcatel-Lucent S.A. (NYSE: ALU) is up 9.5% at $1.44. The networking company held its annual meeting today and shareholders are willing to be patient. More coverage here.

Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) is down 3.5% at $3.52. The mobile phone maker’s shareholders are not as patient as Alcatel Lucent’s.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. Fed Governor Jeremy Stein is giving a speech. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
1:00 p.m. – 10-year note auction

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ANF, ANR, AOL, APC, AWK, CKP, CRZO, DMD, DTV, EA, ENB, FOSL, FSLR, FTEK, INCY, JCP, KGC, MRO, PAA, SD, SN, VNO, VVUS, WEN, Z

Top Wall Street Analyst Upgrades: Arch Coal, Gap, BioMarin and More

Jon C. Ogg — Tue, 07 May 2013 12:30:27 +0000

Investors and traders seem to be constantly looking for fresh research ideas that will lead to higher income or more profits. 24/7 Wall St. reviews many research calls each day to find great ideas from value stocks to growth stocks to dividend stocks. We are breaking out the positive analyst calls as far as stocks to buy and positive research calls today and these are some of Tuesday’s top analyst upgrades, initiations and positive analyst research calls seen from Wall Street today.

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) was raised to Neutral from Sell at Goldman Sachs.

BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ: BMRN) was started as Buy at Goldman Sachs.

CBOE Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: CBOE) was named Bull of the Day at Zacks Investment Research.

Chico’s FAS Inc. (NYSE: CHS) was started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.

EVERTEC Inc. (NYSE: EVTC) saw its quiet period come to an end and analysts have initiated coverage on the international transaction processing service provider as follows: started as Buy at UBS, started as Buy at Deutsche Bank, started as Outperform at Credit Suisse and started as Overweight at J.P. Morgan.

Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) was raised to Outperform from market Perform at Wells Fargo.

Medivation Inc. (NASDAQ: MDVN) was started as Buy at Goldman Sachs.

Michael Kors Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: KORS) was started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.

Pinnacle Foods Inc. (NYSE: PF) was started as Outperform at Credit Suisse and started as Outperform at BMO Capital Markets.

Rally Software Development Corp. (NYSE: RALY) was started as Buy at Deutsche Bank and started as Outperform at JMP Securities.

Sanchez Energy Corp. (NYSE: SN) was started as Buy at SunTrust.

Urban Oufitters Inc. (NASDAQ: URBN) was raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.

Deutsche Bank gave a list of picks in its call for it being time to rotate from industrial stocks into banks and technology stocks.

Filed under: Active Trader, Analyst Calls, Retail, Value Investing Tagged: ACI, ANF, BMRN, CBOE, CHS, EVTC, featured, GPS, KORS, MDVN, PF, RALY, SN, URBN

Top CEOs Paid More Than 1,000 Times Average Employees

Paul Ausick — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:22:21 +0000

The highest paid executive in the U.S. last year was Ron Johnson, CEO of J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP), who hauled in a total of $53.3 million in total compensation. The average worker at Penney’s earned $29,688. Johnson’s pay was 1,795 times greater than an average Penney’s employee last year.

According to a new look at pay differences completed by Bloomberg News, there are seven other CEOs who earned more than 1,000 times the salary and benefits of an average employee at his firm. And yes, the top eight are all men. The first woman on the list comes in at number 24, Irene Rosenfeld, CEO of Mondelez International Inc. (NASDAQ: MDLZ), whose $21.9 million in 2011 pay was 565 times the average employee’s $38,810 earnings in salary and benefits.

As part of the Dodd-Frank legislation, Congress ordered the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to disclose the ratio of CEO pay to the median of all other company employees. The SEC has not yet produced such a rule, and the lobbying effort against a rule could delay a decision for some time to come.

It is true that a lot of a CEO’s compensation comes from options on stock that vest over several years and that the change in accounting rules now requires companies to report the stock grants fully in the year they are awarded. Former Penney’s CEO Johnson told Bloomberg that his majestic 2012 pay was due to Penney’s desire to have him begin work before he fully vested some $80 million in shares of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL). Had Johnson lasted through 2013, his pay would have been $1.9 million in salary, period.

The second-widest differential on the Bloomberg list occurs at Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF), where CEO Michael Jefferies raked in $48.1 million in 2012, some 1,640 times more than the average worker’s pay of $29,310. Of that total, $43.2 million were stock options that were underwater as of April 25, 2013.

Bloomberg’s list is available here.

Filed under: Corporate Governance, Economy, Shareholder Issues Tagged: AAPL, ANF, featured, JCP, MDLZ

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — Monday: Markets Open Higher, S&P Closes on New High

Paul Ausick — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 20:07:42 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning after the U.S. Department of Commerce reported that personal income and spending both rose by 0.2%, which was slightly higher than expected for spending and slightly lower than expectations for income (more coverage here). We also noted the sharp drop in spending on energy and the impact that could have on oil and gasoline prices for the rest of this year (more coverage here). In Europe, new data was limited to Italian business confidence (down), Spanish retail sales (also down, but not as much as expected), and eurozone business and consumer survey (more coverage here). Italian government borrowing costs posted a two-year low (more coverage here). In Asia, both Japanese and Chinese markets were closed for a holiday. U.S. pending home sales rose in March, reversing a drop in February sales (more coverage here).

The U.S. dollar index is trading down 0.42% today, now at 82.159. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.5% at 622.29. WTI crude oil closed up 1.6%, at $94.50 a barrel. Brent crude trades up 0.5% at $103.72 a barrel. Natural gas is up 4% today at about $4.39 per million BTUs. Gold settled up 1% today at $1,467.40 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 106 points to 14,818.83 (0.72%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 28 points (0.85%) to 3,307.02, and the S&P 500 rose 0.72% or more than 11 points to 1,593.59, a new high.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) raised to ‘buy’ at UBS; Petroleo Brasileiro SA (NYSE: PBR), aka Petrobras, raised to ‘buy’ at BofA/Merrill Lynch; Union Pacific Co. (NYSE: UNP) cut to ‘hold’ at TD Securities; Gold Fields Inc. (NYSE: GFI) cut to ‘neutral’ at HSBC; and Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) raised to ‘outperform’ at Macquarie.

Earnings reports since markets closed last Friday resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: Eaton Corp. (NYSE: ETN) is up 3.6% at $60.76; Loews Corp. (NYSE: L) is up 0.4% at $44.63 (more coverage here); Senior Housing Properties Trust (NYSE: SNH) is down 1.4% at $28.18; and Sohu.com Inc. (NASDAQ: SOHU) is down 0.2% at $50.66.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings reports from Embraer SA (NYSE: ERJ), Express Scripts Holding Co. (NASDAQ: ESRX), General Growth Properties Inc. (NYSE: GGP), Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE: HLF), Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HTZ), Newmont Mining Corp. (NYSE: NEM), Riverbed Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: RVBD), 3D Systems Corp. (NYSE: DDD), Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET), Anheuser-Busch InBev SA (NYSE: BUD), Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP), BP plc (NYSE: BP), Harvest Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: HNR), Marathon Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: MPC), Office Depot Inc. (NYSE: ODP), Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI), United States Steel Corp. (NYSE: X), and Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Petroleo Brasileiro SA (NYSE: PBR) is up 6.6% at $19.23. Petrobras, as it’s known, reported lousy earnings, but it forecast growth going forward, added to a possible restart of drilling by Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) in the Frade field following a year of inactivity due to a spill.

Conceptus Inc. (NASDAQ: CPTS) is up 19.5% at $30.95. The medical device maker is being acquired by Germany’s Bayer AG $1.1 billion.

Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) is down 3.6% at $3.23. The social games maker had no news today, but is giving back some of Friday’s gains, which followed losses earlier last week on a weak earnings report.

Stay tuned for Tuesday. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) begins a two-day meeting. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Employment cost index
9:00 a.m. – S&P Case-Shiller house price index
9:45 a.m. – Chicago purchasing manager’s index
10:00 a.m. – Conference Board consumer confidence index
11:30 a.m. – 4- and 52-week bill auctions
3:00 p.m. – Farm prices

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AET, ANF, AVP, BP, BUD, CPTS, CVX, DDD, DIS, ERJ, ESRX, ETN, GFI, GGP, HLF, HNR, HTZ, L, MPC, NEM, ODP, PBR, RVBD, SIRI, SNH, SOHU, UNP, VLO, X, ZNGA

Top Wall Street Analyst Upgrades: Disney, Petrobras, Others

Jon C. Ogg — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 12:30:55 +0000

Investors and traders are always on the lookout for fresh research ideas that will lead to higher income or more profits. 24/7 Wall St. reviews many fresh research calls to find great ideas from value stocks to growth stocks to dividend stocks. We are breaking out the positive analyst calls as far as stocks to buy and positive research calls today.

These are some of this Monday’s top analyst upgrades, initiations and positive analyst research calls seen from Wall Street today.

Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Macquarie.

FLIR Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: FLIR) was raised to Neutral from Underweight at J.P. Morgan.

Lifepoint Hospitals Inc. (NASDAQ: LPNT) was raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS.

Madison Square Garden Inc. (NASDAQ: MSG) was initiated as an Outperform with a $68 price target at Credit Suisse.

Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (NYSE: PBR) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Bank of America/Merrill Lynch.

PVH Corp. (NYSE: PVH) was maintained as Outperform but added to the Focus List at Credit Suisse.

SunTrust Banks Inc. (NYSE: STI) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at FBR Capital Markets.

Tenet Healthcare Corp. (NYSE: THC) was raised to Outperform from Neutral at Baird.

Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) was raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS.

Here are six stock picks from Merrill Lynch expected to avoid the Sell in May and Go Away trend.

Filed under: Active Trader, Analyst Calls, Value Investing Tagged: ANF, DIS, FLIR, LPNT, MSG, PBR, PVH, STI, THC

Not Much Expected from March Retail Sales, Not Much Delivered

Paul Ausick — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 13:55:24 +0000

Retailers are announcing March same-store sales figures today. Research firm Retail Metrics projected an overall gain of 1.5% year-over-year, compared with a 2% gain in February and a 3.9% gain in March of 2012.

In general, March comparable sales were hit by cold, snowy weather that put a crimp in sales of spring merchandise. Other factors contributing the low forecast and results were a later Easter holiday, weaker jobs data and federal budget cuts. Lower gasoline prices, tax refunds and record equity prices were among the positives for the month.

March 2013 is a five-week period for most retailers, ending at April 6 or 7.

Here’s a rundown:

Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) reported that same-store sales for March rose 4%, compared with the similar period in 2012. That is well below the Retail Metrics estimate for a gain of 5.6%, excluding gasoline sales.

Limited Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD) said same-store sales for March rose 3%, compared with the same period last year and a Retail Metrics estimate for a rise of 0.4%. The company, though still named Limited Brands, now wants to be known as “L Brands.”

The Buckle Inc. (NYSE: BKE) reported same-store sales for March were flat, compared with the same period a year ago. The Retail Metrics estimate called for a rise of 0.1%.

Stein Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: SMRT) reported same-store sales for March down 2.8%. Retail Metrics estimated a same-store sales decrease of 1.3%% for Stein Mart.

PriceSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PSMT) reported same-store sales for the four weeks ended March 31 rose 7.9%, below the 8.8% rise estimated by Retail Metrics.

Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) posted a same-stores sales rise of 2.1% for March, much better than the 8% decline expected by Retail Metrics.

The TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX) reported same-store sales fell 2% in March. The Retail Metrics estimate called for a drop of 1.4%.

TJX’s shares are up 0.6% at $47.79 in a 52-week range of $39.38 to $48.20.

Limited’s shares are up 3.1%, at $49.68 in a 52-week range of $40.32 to $52.50.

Costco shares are up 0.2% at $105.92 in a 52-week range of $81.98 to $107.75.

Stein Mart’s shares are down 0.4% at $8.13 in a 52-week range of $6.02 to $9.34.

PriceSmart’s shares are down fractionally at $84.81 in a 52-week range of $59.00 to $86.00.

Zumiez’s shares are up 10.4% at $27.50 in a 52-week range of $17.93 to $41.96.

The Buckle’s shares are trading up 3% at $48.99 in a 52-week range of $36.33 to $51.74.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Retail, Services Tagged: AEO, ANF, BKE, COST, KSS, LTD, M, PSMT, SMRT, TGT, TJX, WMT, ZUMZ