24/7 Wall St. » ATPG

ATP Oil & Gas Raising Capital (ATPG)

Administrator — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 11:01:16 +0000

ATP Oil & Gas Corporation (NASDAQ: ATPG) has filed its paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission to raise capital. The oil and gas outfit’s filing will allow it to raise up to $500,000,000 via a sale of any combination of senior debt securities, subordinated debt securities, common stock, preferred stock, warrants and units. In addition, up to 8,800,000 shares of ATP’s common stock may be offered and sold by selling shareholders.

The company intends to use the net proceeds from the sale of securities for general corporate purposes, including working capital and capital expenditures. It seems rather broad because the firm noted, “our management will have broad discretion in the allocation of the net proceeds, and investors will be relying on the judgment of our management regarding the application of the proceeds of any sale of the securities.”

Shares of ATP closed at $7.81 and the 52-week trading range is $5.53 to $19.13. The market capitalization rate here is $399 million and Thomson Reuters lists a consensus price target objective of $9.83.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Oil & Gas, Secondary Offering Tagged: ATPG

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (SHLD, IPG, DNKN, AEP, URI, AES, BCPC, CHTR, CTB, EP, LOW, KWK, RIG, VRX, ATPG, CQP, DNDN, IMI, MVIS)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 21:07:45 +0000

Stocks opened down this morning following on weakness in Europe following the G20’s refusal to provide additional funding to the IMF. But at the end of the first hour of trading, a good report on pending US home sales seemed to tip traders to the buy side. With about half an hour to go today, all major indexes are higher and the DJIA looks set to close above 13,000. Crude oil was lower today with WTI crude finished lower by -1.1% at $108.56/barrel, and Brent crude is trading down -1.06% at $124.14/barrel. Gold settled down -0.1% at $1,774.90/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down about 1.5 points to 12,981.51 (-0.01%), the NASDAQ rose more than 2 points (0.08%) to 2,966.16 and the S&P 500 rose 0.14% or nearly 2 points to 1,367.59.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Sears Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD) maintained as ‘underperform’ at Credit Suisse; Interpublic Group of Companies Inc. (NYSE: IPG) raised to ‘buy’ at Deutsche Bank; Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. (NASDAQ: DNKN) started as ‘buy’ at Citgroup; American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) raised to ‘buy’ at Jefferies; and United Rentals Inc. (NYSE: URI) started as ‘buy’ at Citigroup.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: The AES Corp. (NYSE: AES) is down -0.51% at $13.73; Balchem Corp. (NASDAQ: BCPC) is down about -17% at $29.52 after posting a new 52-week low of $29.35 earlier; Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR) is up 0.2% at $63.55 after posting a new 52-week high of $64.39 earlier this morning; Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. (NYSE: CTB) is up nearly 14% at $17.81; El Paso Corp. (NYSE: EP) is up 1.8% at $27.65, a new 52-week high; Lowes Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) is up 0.83% at $27.39; Quicksilver Resources Inc. (NYSE: KWK) is down -5.8% at $5.73; Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG) is up 5.34% at $53.44; and Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. (NYSE: VRX) is up 5.6% at $50.62.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

ATP Oil & Gas Corp. (NASDAQ: ATPG) is up nearly 20% at $8.63. The independent oil & gas company reported a fourth successful well at its Telemark Hub project.

Cheniere Energy Partners L.P. (AMEX: CQP) is up about 14% at $23.80 after posting a new 52-week high of $24.21 earlier. The liquefied natural gas company announced an investment from Blackstone Group LP (NYSE: BX). More coverage here.

Dendreon Corp. (NASDAQ: DNDN) is down more than -20% at $11.83. The drug maker reported lower-than-expected revenues this morning. More coverage here.

Intermolecular Inc. (NASDAQ: IMI) is down more than -15% at $6.31 after posting a new 52-week low of $6.02. The semiconductor equipment and materials company’s stock is likely reacting to the bankruptcy filing by Japanese chipmaker Elpida.

Microvision Inc. (NASDAQ: MVIS) is down more than -16% at $3.28. The laser display company reported very poor earnings this morning.

Stay tuned for Tuesday. Federal Reserve governor Elizabeth Duke and Cleveland Fed president Sandra Pianalto are giving speeches. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Durable goods orders
9:00 a.m. – S&P Case-Shiller housing price index
10:00 a.m. – Conference Board consumer confidence index
10:00 a.m. – Richmond Fed manufacturing index
10:00 a.m. – State Street investor confidence index
11:30 a.m. – 4-week Treasury bill auction

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: AEP, AES, ATPG, BCPC, CHTR, CQP, CTB, DNDN, DNKN, EP, IMI, IPG, KWK, LOW, MVIS, RIG, SHLD, URI, VRX

Mid-day Movers (ATPG, PEIX, LNG, DNDN, BCPC)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:40:12 +0000

In the last half hour of the morning today, all three major US stock indexes pushed their way into positive territory, with the DJIA up nearly 4 points at about 13,987, the Nasdaq up more than 5 points at 2,969, and the S&P 500 up less than 1 point to 1,367. After opening sharply lower this morning, markets rebounded from an early dip following a better-than-expected report on pending home sales. The dollar is stronger today, with the dollar index up 0.19% at 78.548. The stronger dollar is pushing some commodities down, with grains losing the most.

Among the major movers at around noon today are ATP Oil & Gas Corp. (NASDAQ: ATPG), Pacific Ethanol Inc. (NASDAQ: PEIX), Cheniere Energy Inc. (AMEX: LNG), Dendreon Corp. (NASDAQ: DNDN), and Balchem Corp. (NASDAQ: BCPC).

ATP is up more than 21% at $8.63. Volume is already nearly 4x the daily average of about 1.7 million shares traded. The independent oil & gas company reported a fourth successful well at its Telemark Hub project.

Pacific Ethanol is up nearly 19% at $1.65. Volume is more than 3x the daily average of about 6 million shares traded. The ethanol maker is expected to report solid earnings and revenues after markets close today.

Cheniere is up about 12% at $15.72 after posting a new 52-week high of $16.25 earlier. Volume is already double the daily average of 5.6 million shares traded. The liquefied natural gas company announced an investment from Blackstone Group LP (NYSE: BX). More coverage here.

Dendreon is down nearly -18% at $12.20. Volume is already nearly triple the daily average of around 9 million shares traded. The drug maker reported lower-than-expected revenues this morning. More coverage here.

Balchem is down more than -11% at $31.67 after posting a new 52-week low of $31.24 earlier this morning. Volume is about 3x the daily average of around 130,000 shares traded. The chemical company reported weaker-than-expected earnings this morning.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: ATPG, BCPC, DNDN, LNG, PEIX

Morning Movers (ATPG, LNG, CTB, CASM, DNDN)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 15:30:27 +0000

The three major US equities indexes opened lower this morning following news from Europe that the G20 has refused to increase the IMF’s funding to deal with the Eurozone debt crisis. Crude oil prices are also falling as the outlook for a stronger global economic recovery fade a little. In the first 45 minutes of trading, the DJIA is down about 59 points at around 12,924, the Nasdaq Composite is down nearly 20 points at around 2,944, and the S&P 500 is down more than 7 points at around 1,359.

There are several stocks trading more heavily than usual this morning, and also experiencing large gains or drops in share prices. These include the ATP Oil & Gas Corp. (NASDAQ: ATPG), Cheniere Energy Inc. (AMEX: LNG), Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. (NYSE: CTB), CAS Medical Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CASM), and Dendreon Corp. (NASDAQ: DNDN).

ATP is up more than 15% at $8.19. Volume is already nearly 2.5x the daily average of about 1.7 million shares traded. The independent oil & gas company reported a fourth successful well at its Telemark Hub project.

Cheniere is up about 11% at $15.55 after posting a new 52-week high of $16.25 earlier. Volume is already higher the daily average of 5.6 million shares traded. The liquefied natural gas company announced an investment from Blackstone Group LP (NYSE: BX). More coverage here.

Cooper Tire is up more than 10% at $17.24. Volume is already nearly double the daily average of around 590,000 shares traded. The tire maker reported better-than-expected earnings and revenues this morning..

CAS Medical Systems is up nearly 5% at $2.40. Volume is already nearly 4x the daily average of around 14,000 shares traded. The medical device maker reported FDA approval for a neo-natal oxygen saturation device.

Dendreon is down more than -14% at $12.72. Volume is already nearly double the daily average of around 9 million shares traded. The drug maker reported lower-than-expected revenues this morning. More coverage here.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: ATPG, CASM, CTB, DNDN, LNG

Deepwater Drilling in Gulf of Mexico to Start Again (BP, APC, ATPG, BHP, CVX, CIE, E, HES, MRO, MUR, NBL, RDS-A, STO)

Administrator — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 16:18:44 +0000

The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement, BOEMRE, has notified 13 companies that they will be able to resume drilling in the Gulf of Mexico without needing to submit new environmental studies. The companies will, however, be required to comply with new rules and regulations since the explosion of the Macondo well operated by BP plc (NYSE: BP) last April that killed 11 workers.

Twelve of the thirteen companies or their subsidiaries are publicly traded: Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: APC), ATP Oil & Gas Corp. (NASDAQ: ATPG), BHP Billiton plc (NYSE: BHP), Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX), Cobalt International Energy, Inc. (NYSE: CIE), ENI SpA (NYSE: E), Hess Corp. (NYSE: HES), Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO), Murphy Oil Corp. (NYSE: MUR), Noble Energy Inc. (NYSE: NBL), Royal Dutch Shell plc (NYSE: RDS-A), and Statoil ASA (NYSE: STO).

There are 16 drilling projects covered by the agency’s ruling and drilling could resume within a few weeks. Any resumption would require the driller to comply with requirements issued in December that aim to ensure that drillers have a approved plan for containing the oil in the event of a blowout. It’s not clear that all 16 projects meet that requirement or how long it will take for the requirement to be met.

US crude production will lose about 220,000 barrels/day in 2011 as a result of the Gulf disaster, about 13% of offshore production. For the US economy, that means more imports at higher prices. For the economy of the Gulf coast states, the temporary loss of 8,000-12,000 jobs just goes on and on.

Drillers have been holding idle rigs in the Gulf, waiting for permits to go ahead with their projects. But that can’t continue indefinitely at costs of hundreds of thousands of dollars a day. Smaller companies, like ATP Oil & Gas, can afford to wait even less than the majors like Chevron and Shell. Permits that once took just days to get approved, can now take up to five months.

For its part, the BOEMRE says it has approved some permits for modifications to existing wells, but that the agency’s priority remains safe and environmentally responsible development.

While Gulf production is stalled, the missing 220,000 barrels/day add to the volatility of the crude market. If crude rises above $100/barrel this year, the federal government will take some serious heat for the increase. The heat will turn to flames if gasoline prices rise to $4/gallon.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Commodities, Oil & Gas, Politics Tagged: APC, ATPG, BHP, BP, CIE, CVX, E, HES, MRO, MUR, NBL, RDS-A, STO

Top Day Trader Alerts (ATVI, ATPG, APEI, CROX, GNVC)

Administrator — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 13:07:54 +0000

Day traders have a few big movers to choose from this Friday morning. While many stocks are moving after earnings, there are several percentage gainers and losers that stand out in the pack for day traders and active traders. We are seeing significant moves in shares of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI), ATP Oil & Gas Corp. (NASDAQ: ATPG), American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ: APEI), CROCS, Inc. (NASDAQ: CROX), and GenVec, Inc. (NASDAQ: GNVC).

Activision Blizzard, Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) is getting clipped this morning after its revenue for Q2 and outlook for Q3 failed to ignite any buying. Shares are trading down over 7% at $10.90 on almost 1 million shares.

ATP Oil & Gas Corp. (NASDAQ: ATPG) reported a wider loss than expected; shares are down 15% at $11.29 on about 400,000 shares.

American Public Education, Inc. (NASDAQ: APEI) is getting crushed after it guided lower due to military recruiting. A GAO report from yesterday also is pressuring the group on a continued basis as for-profit education is under fire in D.C. Shares are down over 35% and just under $27.50 on over 500,000 shares.

CROCS, Inc. (NASDAQ: CROX) is surging higher this morning after it beat earnings estimates and guided higher for next quarter. The ugly-shoe maker is seeing shares up almost 9% at $13.67 on over 130,000 shares.

GenVec, Inc. (NASDAQ: GNVC) is trading higher on news that it has a hearing loss development pact with Novartis. Shares are trading up 13%, but this is still a penny stock trading at $0.58.

You can join our free daily email distribution list to hear more about dividend trends, analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader and active trader alerts, news on Buffett and other investment gurus, IPOs, secondary offerings, private equity, and more.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Pre-Market Activity, Trading Alert Tagged: APEI, ATPG, ATVI, CROX, GNVC

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AET, ATPG, BAC, C, CVS, FITB, GS, HEW, JPM, MS, NTRS, STT, UNH, VIP, WFC, WLP)

Administrator — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 12:29:51 +0000

These are some of this Tuesday’s top analyst calls with upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street firms:

Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET) Started as Hold at Citigroup.
ATP Oil & Gas (NYSE: ATPG) Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.
Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) Started as Positive at Susquehanna.
Citigroup, Inc. (NYSE: C) Started as Neutral at Susquehanna.
CVS Caremark Corporation (NYSE: CVS) Started as Buy at Collins Stewart.
Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ: FITB) Started as Neutral at Susquehanna.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) Started as Positive at Susquehanna.
Hewitt Associates Inc. (NYSE: HEW) Cut to Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.
J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) Started as Positive at Susquehanna.
Morgan Staley (NYSE: MS) Started as Positive at Susquehanna.
Northern Trust Corporation (NASDAQ: NTRS) Started as Positive at Susquehanna.
State Street Corp. (NYSE: STT) Started as Positive at Susquehanna.
Unitedhealth Group, Inc. (NYSE: UNH) Started as Hold at Citigroup.
VimpelCom (NYSE: VIP) Started as Buy at Citigroup.
Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) Started as Positive at Susquehanna.
WellPoint Inc. (NYSE: WLP) Started as Buy at Citigroup.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AET, ATPG, BAC, C, CVS, FITB, GS, HEW, JPM, MS, NTRS, STT, UNH, VIP, WFC, WLP

Secondary Issuers Getting Hit (AMP, ATPG, ERIC, MI, VMC)

247wallst — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 15:24:45 +0000

We are seeing some active trading in the stocks which raised capital via secondary offerings today. These are all down except for one and today’s hopper has Ameriprise Financial Inc. (NYSE: AMP), ATP Oil & Gas Corp. (NASDAQ: ATPG), LM Ericsson Telephone Co. (NASDAQ: ERIC), Marshall & Ilsley Corporation (NYSE: MI), and Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE: VMC).

Ameriprise Financial Inc. (NYSE: AMP) priced a 36 million share secondary offering of common stock at $25.00 per share. That $900 million gross amount of proceeds compares to a market cap of roughly $5.4 billion before the offering. Shares are down about 4% at $24.65. Its 52-week trading range is $11.74 to $49.76, but this was a $30 stock just last week.

ATP Oil & Gas Corp. (NASDAQ: ATPG) priced its secondary offering of 8.75 million shares of common stock at $8.25 per share after closing at $8.64 yesterday and being north of $9.00 just two days ago.The size of this offering was increased from 7.25 million shares and it held up better than we might have guessed despite today’s drop. Shares are down by 4.5% at $8.25 and its 52-week range is $2.75 to $44.12. Before this offering, we show its market cap was around $300 million.

LM Ericsson Telephone Co. (NASDAQ: ERIC) is down 1% at $9.53, but the drop may be on the Barclays downgrade as this is a refinancing of a bilateral loan with the Swedish Export Credit Corporation and partially backed by the Swedish Export Credit Guarantee Board. It intends to use the proceeds of the offering to refinance bonds maturing within the current and next year and for general corporate purposes. We say the downgrade has more to do with this than anything.

Marshall & Ilsley Corporation (NYSE: MI) sold 87 million shares of common stock in a secondary offering at $5.75 per share. This is trading above the price of the offering but is off 2% at $6.00 this morning after closing at $6.14 yesterday. Its 52-week range is $2.98 to $29.97 and its market cap before this offering is listed as almost $1.6 billion.

Vulcan Materials Company (NYSE: VMC) is actually a standout stock from the group, odd considering the unusual dividend activity. Its shares are higher after pricing 11.5 million shares of common stock at $41.00 per share. Based on the trading, it is a safe bet that underwriters took the 1.725 million additional shares in the overallotment (Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, J.P.Morgan, and Wachovia). This was a deep discount, but the good news for Vulcan is that shares are up 7.5% at $45.90.

Jon C. Ogg
June 12, 2009

Posted in Secondary Offering, Trading Alert Tagged: AMP, ATPG, ERIC, MI, VMC

ATP: Buybacks, Sales & The Future (ATPG, APC)

247wallst — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 11:58:04 +0000

ATP Oil & Gas (NASDAQ:ATPG) is a small-cap E&P company that is desperately trying to improveits share price. It is trading today about 85% lower than its 52-week high.That stinks and the company knows it. This morning, the company announced a plan to buy back 3.5 million shares, or about 10% of shares outstanding, and it is taking on more shareholder-friendly initiatives.

About one-third of ATP’s net proved reserves are located in the NorthSea and the other two-thirds in the Gulf of Mexico. The company soldsome of its North Sea properties to a subsidiary of France’s EDF for$430 million in a move to cut the company’s debt. It has also reducedits cap-ex budget by $200 million for 2008 and 2009.

All this might help, and then again it might not. When chartedagainst a big-cap company like Anadarko (NYSE:APC), ATP’s overallweakness shows up dramatically. It’s fall is 30% greater thanAnadarko’s, mostly because it just doesn’t have the size to overcomefalling crude prices. Interestingly enough, ATP could find itself to bea takeover target before too long.

ATP Oil & Gas shares are down 7% at $8.68 today on rather thin trading volume.

Paul Ausick
October 28, 2008

Posted in Oil & Gas, Shareholder Issues, Stock Buybacks Tagged: APC, ATPG

Top Pre-Market Upgrades & Downgrades (APC, ATPG, BCS, CRZO, DNDN, EBAY, FPL, STM)

247wallst — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 06:42:06 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades and downgrades we are seeing from Wall Street analysts this Thursday morning:

Anadarko Petroleum (APC) Raised to Buy at Jefferies.
ATP Oil & Gas (ATPG) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
Barclays PLC (BCS) Raised to Hold from Sell at Citigroup.
Carrizo Oil & Gas (CRZO) raised to Buy at Jefferies.
Dendreon Corp. (DNDN) started as SELL at Merriman Curhan Ford.
eBay (EBAY) Cut to Neutral at piper Jaffray and cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
FPL Group (FPL) Cut to Hold at Citigroup.
STMicroelectronics (STM) Cut to Underperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Jon C. Ogg
October 16, 2008

Posted in Analyst Calls Tagged: APC, ATPG, BCS, CRZO, DNDN, EBAY, FPL, STM