24/7 Wall St. » CCL

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (FSLR, PEP, PG, ILMN, CCL, ANV, AWR, BBEP, CDE, DISH, LPX, TSN, HFC, CHTR, DMD, HL, OMX, THC, WEN, DIS, VRTX, CTSH, BSFT)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 07 May 2012 20:08:20 +0000

The major US stock indexes opened lower this morning following a weekend of elections in Europe. A new Socialist party president in France and a still very cloudy future in Greece have left investors in a quandry. We have more coverage here on the French election and here on the election in Greece. By the last hour of trading, shares had recovered nearly all of the early losses and the three major indexes are either slightly positive or on the way to positive territory. The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.09% at 79.573. The GSCI commodity index is down about -2.3% at 653.60, with commodities mixed on the slightly stronger dollar. WTI crude oil closed down -0.6% at $97.94/barrel and Brent crude trades down -0.08% at $113.09/barrel. Gold settled down -0.4% today, at $1,639.10/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 30 points to 13,008.53 (-0.23%), the NASDAQ rose less than 2 points (0.05%) to 2,957.76, and the S&P 500 rose 0.48% or less than 1 point to 1,369.58.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) cut to ‘neutral’ at Argus; Pepsico Inc. (NYSE: PEP) raised to ‘overweight’ at Morgan Stanley; Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) cut to ‘market perform’ at Wells Fargo; Illumina Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN) raised to ‘outperform’ with a price target of $55 at Credit Suisse; and Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) cut to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Allied Nevada Gold Corp. (AMEX: ANV) is down about -10% at $25.59 after posting a new 52-week low of $25.37 earlier today; American States Water Co. (NYSE: AWR) is up 3.6% at $37.09; Breitburn Energy Partners L.P. (NASDAQ: BBEP) is down -2.4% at $17.54; Coeur d’Alene Mines Corp. (NYSE: CDE) is down -4.1% at $18.99 after posting a new 52-week low of $18.71; Dish Network Corp. (NASDAQ: DISH) is down -0.93% at $31.02; Louisiana Pacific Corp. (NYSE: LPX) is up 5.9% at $9.49; Tyson Foods Inc. (NYSE: TSN) is up 3.4% at $18.65; and HollyFrontier Corp. (NYSE: HFC) is down -2.4% at $28.82 (more coverage here).

On Tuesday we are scheduled to get earnings from Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR), Demand Media Inc. (NYSE: DMD), Hecla Mining Co. (NYSE: HL), OfficeMax Inc. (NYSE: OMX), Tenet Healthcare Corp. (NYSE: THC), The Wendy’s Co. (NYSE: WEN), and Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VRTX) is up about 55% at $58.05. The company’s cystic fibrosis drug study showed significant positive results. More coverage here.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (NASDAQ: CTSH) is down more than -XX% at $XX. The IT-outsourcing firm showed good results, but guidance was weak. More coverage here.

BroadSoft Inc. (NASDAQ: BSFT) is down -17.6% at $33.68. The communications software maker posted good earnings, but followed that with soft guidance for the second quarter.

Stay tuned for Tuesday. Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker and Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher are giving speeches. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:30 a.m. – NFIB Small Business optimism index
11:30 a.m. – 4-week bill auction
1:00 p.m. – 3-year note auction

Paul Ausick

Filed under: General Tagged: ANV, AWR, BBEP, BSFT, CCL, CDE, CHTR, CTSH, DIS, DISH, DMD, FSLR, HFC, HL, ILMN, LPX, OMX, PEP, PG, THC, TSN, VRTX, WEN

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (BNNY, CAB, CCL, CTRN, DPS, FSLR, ILMN, LEAP, NWL, PEP, PG, TWX, WDC)

Administrator — Mon, 07 May 2012 12:32:52 +0000

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

Annie’s, Inc. (NYSE: BNNY) Started as Overweight at JPMorgan; Started as Outperform at William Blair.

Cabela’s, Inc. (NYSE: CAB) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) Cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Citi Trends, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTRN) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Dr. Pepper Snapple (NYSE: DPS) Raised to Equal-weight at Morgan Stanley.

First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) Cut to Hold at Argus.

Illumina Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN) Raised to Outperform and $55 target at Credit Suisse.

Leap Wireless International Inc. (NASDAQ: LEAP) Raised to Neutral at Piper Jaffray.

Newell Rubbermaid Inc. (NYSE: NWL) Raised to Outperform at Oppenheimer.

Pepsico (NYSE: PEP) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) Cut to Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) Reiterated Buy with $46 target at Argus.

Western Digital Corporation (NYSE: WDC) named Value stock of the day at Zacks.

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: BNNY, CAB, CCL, CTRN, DPS, FSLR, ILMN, LEAP, NWL, PEP, PG, TWX, WDC

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AAPL, CCL, CLNE, DFS, ESRX, GNC, GG, GRPN, KGC, NFLX, NEM, PM, SLB, TKR, URBN)

Administrator — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 12:03:02 +0000

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

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) Started as Buy at Auriga; target raised to $715 at JPMorgan

Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Clean Energy Fuels Corporation (NASDAQ: CLNE) Started as Neutral at Macquarie.

Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Express Scripts Inc. (NASDAQ: ESRX) Started as Overweight at JPMorgan.

GNC Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GNC) Raised to Outperform at BMO.

Goldcorp Inc. (NYSE: GG) Started as Neutral at Citigroup.

Groupon, Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN) Started as Neutral at Stern Agee.

Kinross Gold Corporation (NYSE: KGC) Started as Buy at Citigroup.

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) Cut to Equal-weight at Barclays.

Newmont Mining Corporation (NYSE: NEM) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

Philip Morris International, Inc. (NYSE: PM) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Schlumberger Limited (NYSE: SLB) Raised to Buy at Stern Agee.

The Timken Company (NYSE: TKR) named as Value stock of the day at Zacks.

Urban Outfitters Inc. (NASDAQ: URBN) Raised to Neutral at Citigroup.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AAPL, CCL, CLNE, DFS, ESRX, GG, GNC, GRPN, KGC, NEM, NFLX, PM, SLB, TKR, URBN

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (JNJ, KSS, WTW, DHI, LEN, TOL, ACI, ALIM, ZUMZ, ARO, ANN, CCL, FGP, HALO, URRE, JVA, QSFT, ASTM, DYN, ZGNX, GMCR)

Paul Ausick — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 21:05:53 +0000

US equities opened higher this morning following the report on a US non-farm payroll gain of 227,000 jobs (more coverage here). In Europe, the Greek debt swap deal went off smoothly, but the declaration late this afternoon by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) that the swap was, in fact, a “credit event” sent stocks down sharply though the three major indexes remain in positive territory about half an hour before the markets close. The dollar opened up this morning and got stronger as the day went on, with the dollar index now up 1.07% at 79.987. Crude oil was up today, with WTI crude settling up 0.8% at $107.40/barrel and Brent crude trading up 0.29% at $125.80/barrel. Gold settled higher by 0.8% at $1,711.50/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up 14 points to 12,921.94 (0.11%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 18 points (0.6%) to 2,988.34, and the S&P 500 rose 0.36% or nearly 5 points to 1,370.87.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) started as ‘hold’ at Jefferies; Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS) raised to ‘buy’ at Jefferies; Weight Watchers International Inc. (NYSE: WTW) started as ‘overweight’ (!) at Barclays; D.R. Horton Inc. (NYSE: DHI), Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN), and Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) all raised to ‘outperform’ at Credit Suisse; and Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) cut to ‘market perform’ at BMO.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Alimera Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ALIM) is down -3.4% at $4.00; Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) is up 5.7% at $34.16 after posting a new 52-week high of $34.44 earlier today; Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO) is up 2.6% at $19.45; Ann Inc. (NYSE: ANN) is up 6% at $27.36; Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) is down -1.2% at $30.57 (more coverage here); Ferrellgas Partners LP (NYSE: FGP) is down -2.6% at $16.80; Halozyme Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: HALO) is down -1.8% at $11.30; and Uranium Resources Inc. (NASDAQ: URRE) is up 3.1% at $1.00.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Coffee Holding Co. Inc. (NASDAQ: JVA) is up nearly 38% at $10.81. The integrated coffee roaster and distributor posted better-than-expected quarterly results this morning.

Quest Software Inc. (NASDAQ: QSFT) is up more than 24% at $24.09. The firm has agreed to be acquired at $23/share. More coverage here.

Aastrom Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTM) is up more than 21% at $2.21. The biotechnology company has completed a private placement of $40 million in Series B convertible preferred stock. More coverage here.

Dynegy Inc. (NYSE: DYN) is down more than -38% at $0.72 after posting a new 52-week low of $0.59 earlier today. A Delaware court ruled that the company had engaged in a “fraudulent transfer” of assets prior to its bankruptcy filing.

Zogenix Inc. (NASDAQ: ZGNX) is down nearly -18% at $2.05. The drug maker posted a wider than expected loss after the markets closed yesterday.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) is down nearly -16% at $52.61. The company is being hit hard by yesterday’s announcement from Starbucks Inc. (NASDAQ: SBUX) that it will launch a single-cup espresso and coffee machine to compete with the Keurig products from Green Mountain. More coverage here and here.

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

11:30 a.m. – 3- and 6-month Treasury bill auction
1:00 p.m. – 3-year Treasury note auction
2.00 p.m. – US Treasury budget report

Have a great weekend.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: ACI, ALIM, ANN, ARO, ASTM, CCL, DHI, DYN, FGP, GMCR, HALO, JNJ, JVA, KSS, LEN, QSFT, TOL, URRE, WTW, ZGNX, ZUMZ

Carnival Cruise Lines Slashes Earnings Guidance by 40% (CCL, RCL)

Paul Ausick — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 14:54:19 +0000

Following the disastrous wreck of its Costa Concordia liner, cruise operator Carnival Cruise Lines (NYSE: CCL) reported first quarter earnings this morning that were better than analysts expected, even though the company has cut its full-year guidance. Carnival, rival Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL), and others have experienced a sharp drop in new bookings following the disaster off the west coast of Italy that has claimed at least 25 lives.

Carnival reported adjusted EPS of $0.02 compared with a consensus estimate for an EPS loss of -$0.08. Revenue totaled $3.6 billion compared with an estimate of $3.57 billion.

In its revised outlook for 2012, the company said that new bookings “have shown improving trends but are still running high single digits behind the prior year at slightly lower prices.” Carnival forecasts a decline in net revenue yield for the year of -2% to -4%.

Fuel price increases are expected to cost the company $0.52/share in earnings. All things considered, Carnival now forecasts 2012 EPS of $1.40-$1.70, a drop of -40% from the company’s December forecast for EPS of $2.55-$2.85/share. The consensus estimate for full-year EPS had already been lowered to $1.85.

In the first few minutes of trading this morning, Carnival’s shares are up more than 3.5% at $32.07 in a 52-week range of $28.52-$41.95.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: CCL, RCL

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (BLK, EMC, GOOG, HUM, IBN, INTC, JDSU, JCI, NCIT, TNP, TXN, TSCO, VLO, WU, CCL, RCL)

Administrator — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:22:36 +0000

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

BlackRock Inc. (NYSE: BLK) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.
EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC) Reiterated Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) Maintained Buy but cut target to $700 at Canaccord Genuity.
Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) Cut to Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
ICICI Bank Ltd. (NYSE: IBN) Cut to Underperform and named Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) Cut to Hold at Kaufman; Reiterated Outperform and raised target to $35 at Credit Suisse; Maintained Hold with $24 target at Canaccord Genuity.
JDS Uniphase Corporation (NASDAQ: JDSU) Raised to Buy at Stifel Nicolaus.
Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE: JCI) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
NCI. Inc. (NASDAQ: NCIT) Cut to Underperform at Wells Fargo.
Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd. Co. (NYSE: TNP) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Texas Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: TXN) Cut to Hold at Needham.
Tractor Supply Co. (NASDAQ: TSCO) Reiterated Buy and raised target to $92 at Argus.
Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE: VLO) Reiterated Buy with $35 price target at Argus.
Western Union Co. (NYSE: WU) Reiterated Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) lowered targets and estimates by Credit Suisse.

If you enjoyed the top analyst calls, 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: Analyst Calls Tagged: BLK, CCL, EMC, GOOG, HUM, IBN, INTC, JCI, JDSU, NCIT, RCL, TNP, TSCO, TXN, VLO, WU

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (CHK, GOOG, KR, LNG, CCL, CREE, SCHW, FAST, GS, STT, CLWT, UEPS, COOL, KUTV, AAPL, MCD, NKE)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:08:22 +0000

Markets opened slightly lower in the US this morning, but picked up steam in the morning and continued to rise, if slowly, for the rest of the day. The tech sector showed the most strength, with semiconductor stocks rising sharply and pushing the NASDAQ Composite index up more than 1.4% about half an hour before the closing bell. Financial stocks also did well today, and the euro rose back above $1.28 following a report that the IMF wants to increase its lending capacity to around $885 billion. Crude is mixed today, with WTI up fractionally at $100.78/barrel and Brent down -0.65% at $110.81/barrel. Gold rose as well today to $1,658.90.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly 97 points to 12,578.95 (0.78%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 42 points (1.53%) to 2,769.71, and the S&P 500 rose 1.11% or more than 14 points to 1,308.04.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) cut to ‘hold’ at Brean Murray; Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) cut to ‘market perform’ at Wells Fargo; The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) cut to ‘market perform’ at BMO Capital; Cheniere Energy Inc. (AMEX: LNG) started as ‘outperform’ with a $13.50 target price at Credit Suisse; and Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) maintained as ‘hold’ but estimates cut at Argus.

Earnings reports since markets closed yesterday have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Cree Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) is up 4.3% at $24.33; The Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW) is down -1.3% at $12.00; Fastenal Co. (NASDAQ: FAST) is down -2.8% at $45.48; Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) is up 7.5% at $105.03; and State Street Corp. (NYSE: STT) is down -7% at $39.72.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Euro Tech Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: CLWT) is up nearly 53% at $3.91. The Hong Kong-based company has announced an 11-for-2 reverse stock split.

Net 1 UEPS Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: UEPS) is up more than 33% at $8.96. The South African software maker has announced a 5-year deal with the government’s social security agency.

Majesco Entertainment Co. (NASDAQ: COOL) is down more than -27% at $2.17. The video game maker forecast higher sales and marketing costs in 2012.

Ku6 Media Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: KUTV) is down nearly -18% at $2.71. The Chinese online video company rose more than 150% yesterday on the announcement of deal with Google. Today’s fall is likely due to profit-taking.

We also noted 10 stocks that posted new all-time highs today. These include Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD), and Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE). See our coverage here.

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

8:30 a.m. – Consumer price index
8:30 a.m. – Housing starts
8:30 a.m. – Initial unemployment benefits claims
10:00 a.m. – Philadelphia Federal Reserve business outlook survey
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas inventory report
11:00 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
4:30 p.m. – Federal Reserve balance sheet and money supply

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close, The Day Tagged: AAPL, CCL, CHK, CLWT, COOL, CREE, FAST, GOOG, GS, KR, KUTV, LNG, MCD, NKE, SCHW, STT, UEPS

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (CCL, CHK, LNG, CQP, CREE, EXPE, FTE, GOOG, JNS, KR, MGM, ODP, OMX, PVH, RL, TEF, TXT)

Administrator — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 13:28:25 +0000

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

Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) Maintained Hold but cut estimates at Argus.
Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE: CHK) Cut to Hold at Brean Murray.
Cheniere Energy Inc. (NYSE: LNG) Started as Outperform with $13.50 target at Credit Suisse
Cheniere Energy Partners, LP (NYSE: CQP) Started as Neutral with $20 target at Credit Suisse.
Cree Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) maintained Buy with $33 target at Canaccord Genuity; Raised to Buy at ThinkEquity; Cut to Neutral at Ticonderoga.
Expedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) Started as Underweight at JPMorgan.
France Telecom S.A. (NYSE: FTE) Cut to Sell at Deutsche Bank.
Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) Cut to Market Perform from Outperform at Wells Fargo.
Janus Capital Group, Inc. (NYSE: JNS) Cut to Sell at Citigroup.
The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) Cut to Market Perform at BMO Capital.
MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) Raised to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Office Depot, Inc. (NYSE: ODP) Raised to Equal-weight at Barclays.
OfficeMax Inc. (NYSE: OMX) Raised to Equal-weight at Barclays.
PVH Corporation (NYSE: PVH) Started as Neutral with $72 target at Credit Suisse.
Ralph Lauren Corporation (NYSE: RL) Started as Outperform with $168 target at Credit Suisse.
Telefonica SA (NYSE: TEF) Cut to Sell at UBS.
Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: CCL, CHK, CQP, CREE, EXPE, FTE, GOOG, JNS, KR, LNG, MGM, ODP, OMX, PVH, RL, TEF, TXT

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (FDX, BHP, INTC, TSLA, PNRA, MMR, AMTD, WFC, C, CHKP, KUTV, CNVO, VQ, RRD, CCL)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 21:09:27 +0000

The markets opened higher this morning and all three major indexes have managed to hold onto most of their gains of the early morning. The S&P 500 index topped 1,300 for the first time since last summer, but hasn’t been able to remain at that level. The US dollar is trading weaker against the euro, but stronger against both the British pound and the Japanese yen. The dollar index is down a bit more than -0.5% at 81.071. Energy companies have done well today, even though natural gas prices have fallen below $2.50/thousand cubic feet. WTI crude oil is up nearly 2% at $100.62/barrel, while Brent crude is up only fractionally at $111.38/barrel. Gold is up more than 1% at $1,650.70.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up about 60 points to 12,482.22 (0.48%), the NASDAQ rose more than 17 points (0.64%) to 2,728.08, and the S&P 500 rose 0.35% or nearly 5 points to 1,293.66.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) cut to ‘hold’ at Jefferies; BHP Billiton Ltd. (NYSE: BHP) started as ‘buy’ at Goldman Sachs; Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) cut to ‘neutral’ at JPMorgan; Tesla Motors Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) raised to ‘buy’ at Wunderlich; and Panera Bread Co. (NASDAQ: PNRA) raised to ‘overweight’ at Morgan Stanley.

Earnings reports since markets closed last Friday have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: McMoRan Exploration Co. (NYSE: MMR) is up 4.55% at $13.32; TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: AMTD) is down -1.72% at $16.02; Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) is up 0.67% at $29.81; Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) is down nearly -8% at $28.29; and Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP) is up nearly 8% at $54.93.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Ku6 Media Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ: KUTV) is up nearly 154% at $3.50. The Chinese online video company has signed an agreement with Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) to offer international viewers a Chinese video channel on YouTube.

Convio Inc. (NASDAQ: CNVO) is up nearly 48% at $15.89, after setting a new 52-week high earlier. The provider of software to non-profit organizations has agreed to be acquired by Blackbaud Inc. (NASDAQ: BLKB) for $16/share, or about $312 million.

Venoco Inc. (NYSE: VQ) is up nearly 31% at $10.05. The independent oil and gas company is being taken private by its CEO. We have more coverage here.

R.R. Donnelly & Sons Co. (NYSE: RRD) is down nearly -16% at $12.12 after posting a new 52-week low of $12.08 earlier. The business services company said revenues for 2011 are going to be lower than expected.

Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) is down nearly -14% at $29.57. The cruise ship operator is sinking following the disaster off the Italian coast that has left 11 dead and 29 missing. We have more coverage here.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. Federal Reserve Bank governor Daniel Tarullo is giving a speech. We have the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association mortgage applications
8:30 a.m. – Producer price index
9:15 a.m. – Federal Reserve report on industrial production
10:00 a.m. – Housing market index

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close, The Day Tagged: AMTD, BHP, C, CCL, CHKP, CNVO, FDX, INTC, KUTV, MMR, PNRA, RRD, TSLA, VQ, WFC

Morning Movers (KUTV, CNVO, PVX, KGC, CCL)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 15:13:49 +0000

There are several stocks trading more heavily than usual this morning, and also experiencing large gains or drops in share prices. These include Ku6 Media Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: KUTV), Convio Inc. (NASDAQ: CNVO), Provident Energy Ltd. (NYSE: PVX), Kinross Gold Corp. (NYSE: KGC), and Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL).

After the first half hour of trading, Ku6 Media is up nearly 98% at $2.73. Volume is already more than 15x the daily average. The Chinese online video company has signed an agreement with Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) to offer international viewers a Chinese video channel on YouTube.

Convio is up more than 48% at $15.90 after setting a 52-week high of $15.91. Volume is already 10x the daily average. The provider of software to non-profit organizations has agreed to be acquired by Blackbaud Inc. (NASDAQ: BLKB) for $16/share, or about $312 million.

Provident Energy is up nearly 22% at $11.35 after posting a new 52-week high of $15.42. Volume is double the daily average already. The processor of natural gas liquids (NGLs) is being acquired by Pembina Pipeline Corp. for about $3.1 billion in stock.

Kinross Gold is down more than -16% at $10.57 after posting a new 52-week low of $10.44 earlier. Volume is already nearly equal to the daily average. The gold mining company has said that it expects production to be flat in 2012, while costs will rise 12%-19%, and the company will also writedown goodwill at one of its mines.

Carnival is down nearly -14% at $29.53. Volume is already nearly triple the daily average. The cruise ship operator is sinking following the disaster off the Italian coast that has left 11 dead and 29 missing. We have more coverage here.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Open, The Day Tagged: CCL, CNVO, KGC, KUTV, PVX