24/7 Wall St. » BBBY

Retailer Earnings Up Most in Two Years (WMT, DKS, HIBB, BBBY, WSM, BWS, FL, BBY, GME, WTSLA, GPS, ANF)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 23 May 2012 11:36:11 +0000

With 80% of the 120 companies it tracks having reported first quarter 2012 results, research firm Retail Metrics says that retailers who beat earnings estimates are up 5% year-over-year for the period, considerably higher than the 12-year average gain of 3.2%. Of 97 retailers reporting to date, 71% have beat expectations, 14% have met expectations, and 15% have missed.

Earnings growth for the reporting retailers is up too, by 11.8%. Excluding Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) due to its size, Retail Metrics reckons that its 120 retailers will show profit growth of 12.2% in the first quarter. Including Walmart, profits will rise 13.8%.

The best profit growth is expected in the recreational sector, with Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS) and Hibbett Sports Inc. (NASDAQ: HIBB) leading the way a 40%+ earnings gain. Home furnishing retailers are expected to post 40% gains, led by Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) and Williams-Sonoma Inc. (NYSE: WSM). Footwear retailers are tabbed to grow profits 31%, following huge gains at Brown Shoe Co. (NYSE: BWS) and Footlocker Inc. (NYSE: FL).

The worst performing sector is projected to be consumer electronics, with teen apparel stores the only other retailing sector expected to post overall losses. Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) and GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) are the big players here. Teen apparel retailers like Wet Seal Inc. (NASDAQ: WTSLA), Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS), and Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) have struggled with same-store sales and revenues, as well as earnings.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Apparel, Consumer Goods, Economy, Research, Retail Tagged: ANF, BBBY, BBY, BWS, DKS, FL, GME, GPS, HIBB, WMT, WSM, WTSLA

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ADTN, AAPL, ARNA, T, BEAM, BBBY, BBY, BWLD, CVX, HEK, JPM, MYGN, PRA, RSH, RXN, RIMM, SLF, TXRH, VZ)

Administrator — Fri, 11 May 2012 12:46:18 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen in Wall Street research calls this Friday.

Adtran Inc. (NASDAQ: ADTN) Reiterated Buy and $39 target at Argus.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) Maintained Outperform but cut estimates at Credit Suisse (full details).

Arena Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ARNA) Raised to Buy at Jefferies; Raised to Outperform at Leerink Swann.

AT&T, Inc. (NYSE: T) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Beam Spirits Inc. (NYSE: BEAM) Maintained Hold at Argus.

Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) Cut to Neutral with $20 target at Credit Suisse.

Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ: BWLD) Started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.

Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) Reiterated Buy with $130 target at Argus.

Heckmann Corporation (NYSE: HEK) Started as Outperform with $5 target at Credit Suisse.

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) Maintained Outperform but cut estimates at Credit Suisse; Cut to Hold at Stifel Nicolaus; Cut to Market Perform at FBR.

Myriad Genetics Inc. (NASDAQ: MYGN) Started as Neutral at BofA/ML.

ProAssurance Corp. (NYSE: PRA) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

RadioShack Corp. (NYSE: RSH) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Rexnord Corporation (NYSE: RXN) Started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Research In Motion Limited (NASDAQ: RIMM) Maintained Neutral and cut estimates at Credit Suisse.

Sun Life Financial Inc. (NYSE: SLF) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Texas Roadhouse (NASDAQ: TXRH) Started as Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

Verizon Communications, Inc. (NYSE: VZ) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

If you enjoyed the top analyst upgrades and downgrades, you can join our free email newsletter that includes analyst summaries each morning sent right to your inbox. We also cover top issues such as IPOs, special financial exclusives, mergers and more. Sign up in the box below.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AAPL, ADTN, ARNA, BBBY, BBY, BEAM, BWLD, CVX, HEK, JPM, MYGN, PRA, RIMM, RSH, RXN, SLF, T, TXRH, VZ

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (AIG, COP, HSY, PSX, DMD, AOL, AGU, DTG, M, MPEL, TM, SODA, AMCX, MT, ESRX, MCP, JWN, NUAN, HNR, KSS, PEIX, CPWM, AMRS, ACI)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 09 May 2012 20:06:42 +0000

The major US stock indexes opened sharply lower again this morning as investors consider Greece’s commitment to the austerity measures it had previously agreed to. Renegotiating the deal seems out of the question (more coverage here) and there is even the threat that the EU will not pay the first tranche of the bailout deal when it is due tomorrow (more coverage here). US oil inventories rose last week, putting more pressure on prices today (more coverage here).The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.43% at 80.077. The GSCI commodity index is down -0.5% at 648.60, with commodities mixed on the stronger dollar. WTI crude oil closed down -0.5% at $96.71/barrel and Brent crude trades up 0.02% at $112.75/barrel. Gold settled down -0.6% today, at $1,594.20/ounce, the yellow metal’s first sub-$1,600/ounce closing since December.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 97 points to 12,835.44 (-0.75%), the NASDAQ fell more than11 points (-0.39%) to 2,934.71, and the S&P 500 fell 0.67% or more than 9 points to 1,354.61.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG) raised to ‘buy’ at Goldman Sachs; ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) resumed as ‘neutral’ at Credit Suisse; The Hershey Co. (NYSE: HSY) raised to ‘buy’ at Argus; Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) started as ‘outperform’ at Credit Suisse; and Demand Media Inc. (NYSE: DMD) raised to ‘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: AOL Inc. (NYSE: AOL) is up 3.8% at $26.55; Agrium Inc. (NYSE: AGU) is down -2.2% at $82.69 (more coverage here); Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. (NYSE: DTG) is up 0.2% at $80.68; Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) is down -3.6% at $38.07 (more coverage here); Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (NASDAQ: MPEL) is down -0.2% at $13.96; Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM) is up 3.1% at $80.58; and SodaStream International Ltd. (NASDAQ: SODA) is up 28% at $37.35.

On Wednesday we are scheduled to get earnings from AMC Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: AMCX), ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT), Express Scripts Holding Co. (NASDAQ: ESRX), Molycorp Inc. (NYSE: MCP); Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN); Nuance Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: NUAN); Harvest Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: HNR); Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS); and Pacific Ethanol Inc. (NASDAQ: PEIX).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Cost Plus Inc. (NASDAQ: CPWM) is up 21.9% at $21.92 after posting a new 52-week high earlier today. The company is being acquired by Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) for $495 million.

Amyris Inc. (NASDAQ: AMRS) is down -21.7% at $1.98 after posting a new 52-week low of $1.89 earlier today. The biofuels and biotech company posted much higher-than-expected shortfalls in both EPS and revenues.

Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) is up 10.1% at $8.37. The coal miner had no news today, but investors are piling in at a very low price. Volume today topped 25 million shares, more than double Arch’s daily average.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and Minneapolis Fed President Naryana Kocherlakota are giving speeches. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – International trade report
8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
1:00 p.m. – 30-year note auction
2:00 p.m. – Treasury budget
4:30 p.m. – Federal Reserve balance sheet and money supply

Paul Ausick

Filed under: General Tagged: ACI, AGU, AIG, AMCX, AMRS, AOL, BBBY, COP, CPWM, DMD, DTG, ESRX, HNR, HSY, JWN, KSS, M, MCP, MPEL, MT, NUAN, PEIX, PSX, SODA, TM

A Rare Downgrade For Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY, BBY, AMZN)

Administrator — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:14:48 +0000

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) is facing an unusual call this morning. Canaccord Genuity has downgraded the rating to “Hold” from “Buy.”

The team noted, “We calculate that BBBY’s market share declined in Q4 for the first time this decade, and we expect a deceleration of top- and bottom-line growth in FY12 and beyond. We believe the company is vulnerable to market share losses given its meager online presence at 1%-2% of total sales. The consolidation of the company’s ancillary support offices into its corporate headquarters presents a potential near-term disruption given headcount reduction within BBBY’s strong merchandising group.

The call also stems around valuation as well. The team here noted the belief that shares are fairly valued at 15-times the firm’s 2012 earnings estimate and 8-times expected enterprise value over EBITDA.

Lastly, the firm expects a slowing of sales growth. Canaccord’s team noted that its expected sales and earnings will increase at five-year consolidated growth rates of 6% and 13%, respectively. That is under the five-year average growth rates of 8% and 16%.

This is one of those downgrades which may seem more like a peaking of the model more than a problem inside the stores. Still, with the loss of market share it might make you wonder if Bed Bath & Beyond faces the same challenges that Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) and other online efforts pose against Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE: BBY). It may be a bit premature to make that call, but that is what it sounds like.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls, Consumer Goods, Retail Tagged: BBBY

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ACOR, MT, BBBY, CHK, CLF, CMCSA, DELL, EMN, EPD, LEAP, PBR, RL, VLO, WYNN, ZNGA)

Administrator — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 13:09:29 +0000

These are some of this Friday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen in Wall Street research calls.

Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: ACOR) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.
Arcelor Mittal (NYSE: MT) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) Reiterated Buy with $70 target at Argus.
Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE: CHK) Raised to Buy at Stifel Nicolaus.
Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF) Cut to Buy from Strong Buy at S&P Capital IQ.
Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA) Cut to Hold at Argus.
Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) Cut to Neutral at Baird.
Eastman Chemical Co. (NYSE: EMN) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Enterprise Products Partners LP (NYSE: EPD) Reiterated Buy and target set at $61 by Argus.
Leap Wireless International (NASDAQ: LEAP) Cut to Neutral at Collins Stewart.
Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. (NYSE: PBR), or Petrobras, Cut to Equalweight at Barclays.
Polo Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE: RL) Raised to Buy with $202 target at Argus.
Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE: VLO) Cut to Neutral at UBS.
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN) Reiterated Outperform with $145 target at Credit Suisse.
Zynga, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) named as Aggressive Growth stock of the day at Zacks.

If you enjoyed the top analyst upgrades and downgrades, you can sign up in the box below to join our morning email list to receive news directly in your inbox each morning. We include major analyst upgrades and downgrades, IPO and M&A news, special situation developments, observations on Warren Buffett and key market gurus, as well as special exclusive feature stories.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: ACOR, BBBY, CHK, CLF, CMCSA, DELL, EMN, EPD, LEAP, MT, PBR, RL, VLO, WYNN, ZNGA

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ACI, STD, BAC, BBBY, BIIB, BMRN, CPB, CBOE, EP, GPS, GDI, GIS, HNZ, KMI, KMP, KFT, NFLX, PRA, S)

Administrator — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 13:11:57 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street brokerage and research firms this Tuesday morning.

Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) Cut to Hold at Argus.
Banco Santander (NYSE: STD) Raised to Hold at Societe Generale.
Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.
Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.
Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) Reiterated Buy but raised target to $140 at Argus; Started as Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
BioMarin Pharmaceutical Inc. (NASDAQ: BRMN) Cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks. Campbell Soup Co. (NYSE: CPB) Started as Underweight at Morgan Stanley.
CBOE Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBOE) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
El Paso Corporation (NYSE: EP) Started as Hold at Deutsche Bank.
Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Gardner Denver, Inc. (NYSE: GDI) named as Value Stock of the Day at Zacks.
General Mills (NYSE: GIS) Started as Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
H.J. Heinz Company (NYSE: HNZ) Started as Underweight at Morgan Stanley.
Kinder Morgan, Inc. (NYSE: KMI) Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Kinder Morgan Energy Partners, L.P. (NYSE: KMP) Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Kraft Foods Inc. (NYSE: KFT) Started as Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) Reiterated Outperform and raised target to $140 at Credit Suisse.
ProAssurance Corporation (NYSE: PRA) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE: S) Reiterated Hold but widened out loss estimates by Argus.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: ACI, BAC, BBBY, BIIB, BMRN, CBOE, CPB, EP, GDI, GIS, GPS, HNZ, KFT, KMI, KMP, NFLX, PRA, S, STD

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (POT, AGU, SKS, VVUS, MU, AM, CPY, NEOG, TIBX, BBBY, RAM, WCAA, ABIO, PHH, LRE)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 21:07:33 +0000

A downward revision to third-quarter GDP did not hold down early trading this morning as markets got off to a good start and remained in positive territory throughout the day. A rise in consumer confidence and in leading economic indicators likely solidified the gains. Trading volume was light again today in the run-up to the holiday weekend. WTI crude traded at $99.46/barrel and Brent traded at $107.73. Gold continues to slide, down -$5.80, at $1,607.80/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 63 points to 12,170.86 (0.52%), the NASDAQ rose more than 21 points (0.83%) to 2,599.45, and the S&P 500 rose 0.83% or more than 10 points to 1,254.07.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (NYSE: POT) raised from ‘sector perform’ to ‘outperform’ at RBC Capital Markets. Other ratings actions today include Agrium Corp. (NYSE: AGU) cut from ‘outperform’ to ‘sector perform’ at RBC Capital Markets; Saks Inc. (NYSE: SKS) cut from ‘outperform’ to ‘neutral’ at Zack’s; Vivus Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS) cut from ‘buy’ to ‘neutral’ at Roth Capital and maintained ‘outperform’ at Credit Suisse; and Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) maintained as ‘buy’ with an $11 target price at Sterne Agee and maintained as ‘outperform’ at Credit Suisse.

Here are some of last night’s and today’s post-earnings news reactions with prices during the last half-hour of trading: Micron Technology is up nearly 18% at $6.54; American Greetings Inc. (NYSE: AM) is down more than -21% at $13.37, after posting a new 52-week low of $12.85 earlier in the day; CPI Corp. (NYSE: CPY) is down more than -62% at $2.00, after posting a new 52-week low of $1.96 earlier in the day; Neogen Corp. (NASDAQ: NEOG) is down nearly -3% at $31.15; Tibco Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TIBX) is up nearly 8% at $23.74; and Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) is down more than -6% at $57.70.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

RAM Energy Resources Inc. (NASDAQ: RAM) is up nearly 71% at $1.88. The independent oil & gas company has today relisted on the NASDAQ and has also announced a $550 million investment from a private equity firm headed by the former chairman and CEO of Petrohawk.

WCA Waste Corp. (NASDAQ: WCAA) is up nearly 31% at $6.43, after posting a new 52-week high of $6.44 earlier. The non-hazardous waste processor has approved a cash buyout offer for $526 million ($6.50/share) from a private investment fund.

ARCA biopharma Inc. (NASDAQ: ABIO) is down more than -24% at $1.02, after posting a new 52-week low of $0.97 earlier today. The biopharmaceutical firm announced a private placement of $1.75 million in stock and warrants.

PHH Corp. (NYSE: PHH) is down more than -15% at $11.01 after posting a new 52-week low of $8.75 earlier today. The mortgage servicer’s credit ratings were cut at S&P to ‘BB-’ on concern that the company would not be able to make a $423 million debt repayment scheduled for March 2013 out the its free cash flow.

Vivus Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS) is down more than -16% at $8.72 after posting a new 52-week low of $8.60 earlier. The biopharmaceutical firm announced that its weight-loss drug Qnexa led to a higher rate of birth defects in children whose mothers were taking the drug during pregnancy.

LRR Energy, L.P. (NYSE: LRR) is up more than 9% at $19.34. The independent oil & gas company has received positive ratings from several brokers following last week’s more than 9 million new common units.

Stay tuned for Friday. Here are the noteworthy events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Durable goods orders report
8:30 a.m. – Personal income and spending report
10:00 a.m. – New home sales

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ABIO, AGU, AM, BBBY, CPY, LRE, MU, NEOG, PHH, POT, RAM, SKS, TIBX, VVUS, WCAA

24/7 Wall St. Top Analyst Calls of the Week (AVP, BBBY, FSLR, KND, NFLX, POT, RSH, RGLD, SIRI, S, TLAB, WFM, CSCO, BIDU)

Administrator — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 11:01:56 +0000

Each morning 24/7 Wall St. issues its list of some of the key analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research firms. We review these calls and other calls made throughout the week to see which stand out the most. Some are great calls that were greatly insightful. Other calls may be relevant well into the future, and some calls turn out to be total duds that were very painful for the analysts who made them (and the traders that listened). After reviewing and filtering all of these research reports, we end up with the top analyst calls of the week.

This weeks top analyst calls were in the following stocks: Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP); Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY); First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR); Kindred Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE: KND); Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX); Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan (NYSE: POT); RadioShack Corp. (NYSE: RSH); Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ: RGLD); Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI); Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE: S); Tellabs Inc. (NASDAQ: TLAB); and Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ: WFM).

We have a runner up call in Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) and we also have a highlight on Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) despite some valuation concerns.

We have compiled the ratings news and relevant data around the reaction to each or around the implications on each. Color has also been provided if relevant on the name.

Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP) had an awful post-earnings week due to a drop and due to an SEC investigation. On Friday came news that Citigroup was reiterating a “Buy” rating as the worst is likely price in. The problem is that Citi highlighted more negative than positive and it cut the target to $22 from $29 in the call. Around $19.00, that is not really enough upside even if the stock is now getting “cheap.” Avon was cut to “Neutral” by UBS on Friday.

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) rarely pulls back very much, Shares were down over 3% on Friday because Morgan Stanley initiated coverage with a quite boring “Underweight” rating. Interesting considering that its client base never spends like there is a recession. On Wednesday Bed Bath & Beyond was reiterated at “Buy” and the target was raised to $70 at Argus.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) may have taken more downgrades after its CEO firing/resignation SNAFU, but at least one analyst is defending the position. Argus came out and lowered the price target to $90.00 but the firm is maintaining its “BUy” rating. This one has gotten so ugly that perhaps there is some value. We just hate trying to think about former high-flying stocks as “value” because it means things went really bad. Interestingly enough, shares bounced more than 20% from the lows of the week.

Kindred Healthcare, Inc. (NYSE: KND) may have been beaten up too much during the malaise around healthcare reimbursement rates. We would caution that earnings are due this coming Thursday (NOV 3). In July this was above $20.00 then the reimbursement rate woes came on at the time as a bad sell-off. Zacks has finally said enough is enough and named it the Value Stock of the Day this last Thursday as the research shop sees this trading well under ten-times next year’s earnings estimates.

Filed under: Analyst Calls, Research, The Week Tagged: AVP, BBBY, BIDU, CSCO, FSLR, KND, NFLX, P, POT, RGLD, RSH, S, SIRI, TLAB, WFM

24/7 Closing Bell (BA, GLW, AMZN, FSLR, MMM, BBBY, NYT, AEP, COP, EXC, CPX, LNG, FFCH, RTK, HGSI, DV, RSH)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 20:07:26 +0000

Markets opened higher this morning on renewed hope for a deal on Europe’s debt debacle. At a meeting of EU leaders, the group approved a 9% capital buffer to go into effect by June 2012. That’s a start, but hardly the end of the long-running disagreement on how the continent should deal with its banking problems. Stocks got a boost from solid earnings from Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) and Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW). Oil prices have dropped more than $2.50/barrel following the weekly EIA report that US crude inventories increased by 4.7 million barrels. New home sales were also up for the first time in five months, following price cuts averaging 3.1%.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly more than 162 points to 11,869.04 (1.39%), the NASDAQ rose more than 12 points (0.46%) to 2.650.67, and the S&P 500 rose 1.05% or nearly 13 points to 1,241.97.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including target price and estimate cuts on Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) at BofA/ML, but the firm maintained its ‘Buy’ rating on the stock. Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) was maintained at ‘buy’ with a raised target price of $70 at Argus; First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) was cut to ‘hold’ at both Kaufman and Jefferies, and cut to ‘sell’ at S&P Capital IQ; 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) was lowered to ‘market perform’ at William Blair; and The New York Times Co. (NYSE: NYT) was cut to ‘neutral’ by Citigroup.

Here are today’s big post-earnings news reactions with prices during the last half-hour of trading: Boeing is up more than 5% at $66.91; Corning is up 3.6% at $14.22; American Electric Power Co. Inc. (NYSE: AEP) is up 0.67%, at $38.91; ConocoPhillips Corp. (NYSE: COP) is up nearly 2%, at $72.03; Exelon Corp. (NYSE: EXC) is up 1%, at $42.75; and Complete Production Services, Inc. (NYSE: CPX) is up slightly, at $31.06, after trading lower for most of the day.

Several other standouts from today are as follows…

Cheniere Energy, Inc. (AMEX: LNG) is up about 70%, to $10.41. The company signed a 20-year agreement with BG Group plc to sell the British company 3.5 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas annually. The deal is worth about $8 billion, and deliveries are scheduled to begin in 2015.

First Financial Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: FFCH) is up more than 24%, at $6.76. The company has sold $198 million of some performing loans and other classified assets.

Rentech, Inc. (AMEX: RTK) is up more than 25%, to $1.51. The company successfully launched an IPO today of Rentech Nitrogen Partners, L.P. (NYSE: RNF) at an offering price of $15-$19/share. RTK owns about 61% of RNF and all of the general partner interests in the new company.

Human Genome Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: HGSI) is down about -21%, at $10.05, after posting anew 52-week low of $9.68 earlier in the day. The company reported weak earnings today, and its lupus drug failed to meet already low sales expectations.

DeVry Inc. (NYSE: DV) is down-17%, at $38.36. The company’s earnings failed to meet analysts’ estimates and enrollment also declined in its undergraduate degree programs.

Radioshack Corp. (NYSE: RSH) is down nearly -12%, at $11.80. The company missed earnings expectations as it transitions from being a T-Mobile reseller to a Verizon Wireless reseller.

Stay tuned for Thursday. We have noted the following events (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Third quarter GDP report
8:30 a.m. – Unemployment claims
10:00 a.m. – Pending home sales from National Association of Realtors
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas report
1:00 p.m. – Seven-year US Treasury note auction
4:30 p.m. – Federal Reserve balance sheet released

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Market Close Tagged: AEP, AMZN, BA, BBBY, COP, CPX, DV, EXC, FFCH, FSLR, GLW, HGSI, LNG, MMM, NYT, RSH, RTK

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ALB, AMZN, BBBY, BP, CELG, CHRW, FSLR, HAIN, HGSI, MMM, MIND, NYT, SKS, TLM, YGE, YOKU)

Administrator — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 12:06:12 +0000

These are some of this Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this morning.

Albemarle Corporation (NYSE: ALB) Raised to Neutral at BofA/ML.
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) Cut estimates and target to $200 at Credit Suisse; maintained Buy at BofA/ML.
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) Reiterated Buy and raised target to $70 at Argus.
BP PLC (NYSE: BP) Raised estimates at BofA/ML.
Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc. (NASDAQ: CHRW) Cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.
First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) Cut to Hold at Kaufman; Cut to Hold at Jefferies; Cut to Sell at S&P Capital IQ (late Tuesday).
The Hain Celestial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: HAIN) Raised to Hold at S&P Capital IQ (late Tuesday).
Human Genome Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: HGSI) Cut to Hold at Brean Murray.
3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) Cut to Market Perform at William Blair.
Mitcham Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: MIND) named the Value Stock of the Day at Zacks.
The New York Times Company (NYSE: NYT) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.
Saks, Inc. (NYSE: SKS) named Aggressive Growth stock of the day at Zacks.
Talisman Energy (NYSE: TLM) Cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE) Cu to Neutral at Collins Stewart.
Youku.com Inc. (NYSE: YOKU) Cut to Neutral at Susquehanna.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: ALB, AMZN, BBBY, BP, CELG, CHRW, FSLR, HAIN, HGSI, MIND, MMM, NYT, SKS, TLM, YGE, YOKU