24/7 Wall St. » FINL

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (GPS, BBY, LULU, MU, RIMM, MY, FINL, FES, DDMG, PBY, ENPH, ZAZA, LIZ)

Paul Ausick — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 20:06:22 +0000

Markets opened higher this morning and after a decline in mid-morning moved higher and wobbled around modest gain to the beginning of the last hour of trading today. This morning’s report on personal income and spending was mildly positive(our coverage here) and the consumer sentiment poll surprised investors by climbing higher than expected (our coverage here). Only the Chicago PMI reading was a disappointment (our coverage here). The US dollar index fell today, now down -0.26% at 78.980. Commodities were mixed on the weaker dollar, with corn and wheat rising the most. WTI crude oil closed up about 0.2% at $103.02/barrel, and Brent crude trades up 0.53% at $123.04/barrel. WTI crude gained 4.2% in the first quarter. Gold settled up 1% today, at $1,671.90/ounce, bringing the yellow metal to a gain of 6.7% for the quarter.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly 66 points to 13,211.74 (0.50%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 4 points (-0.12%) to 3,091.57, and the S&P 500 rose 0.37% or about 5 points to 1,408.46.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) raised to ‘buy’ at Janney; Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) maintained as ‘hold’ at Argus; Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) started as ‘buy’ at UBS; Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) reiterated ‘buy’ with an $11 target price at Jefferies; and Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) maintained as ‘underperform’ with a $12 target price at Jefferies.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: China Ming Yang Power Group Ltd. (NYSE: MY) is up 4.9% at $2.35; Research in Motion is up 6.8% at $14.67 (more coverage here); and Finish Line Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL) is down nearly -16% at $21.34 (more coverage here). After markets close today Forbes Energy Services Ltd. (NASDAQ: FES) will report earnings. Before markets open on Monday we’ll get earnings from Digital Domain Media Group Inc. (NYSE: DDMG) and Pep Boys – Manny Moe and Jack (NYSE: PBY), which is essentially meaningless now that the Pep Boys are being acquired by a private equity firm.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Enphase Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: ENPH) is up more than 19% at $7.16 after posting an intra-day on its IPO day of $8.24. More coverage here.

ZaZa Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: ZAZA) is up more than 21% at $4.74. The independent oil & gas driller acquired new acreage in a liquids-rich shale play in East Texas.

Liz Claiborne Inc. (NYSE: LIZ) is up about 12% at $13.26 after posting a new 52-week high of $15.39 earlier today. The Wall Street Journal reported that the company was in takeover talks with several private equity firms for about $20/share.

Stay tuned for Monday. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard and Cleveland Fed President Sandra Pianalto are giving speeches. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

10:00 a.m. – Institute for Supply Management manufacturing index
10:00 a.m. – Construction spending
11:30 a.m. – 3- and 6-month bill auction

Have a great weekend!

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: BBY, DDMG, ENPH, FES, FINL, GPS, LIZ, LULU, MU, MY, PBY, RIMM, ZAZA

Finish Line Sinks on Forecast (FINL)

Paul Ausick — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 14:24:01 +0000

Athletic gear retailer Finish Line Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL) reported fourth quarter and full-year earnings this morning and the stock is getting punished on the company’s forecast for its first quarter of the 2013 fiscal year.

Finish Line posted fourth quarter adjusted EPS of $0.81, in-line with the consensus estimate, and revenue of $456.3 million, well ahead of the consensus estimate of $432.6 million. The store expects same-store sales for the current quarter to be 10% higher than the same period a year ago.

But in the what-have-you-done-for-me-lately category, Finish Line said first quarter earnings would be much lower:

Based on the planned level of strategic investments, combined with lower product margins due to a shift in the promotional calendar, and occupancy cost deleverage, the company expects first quarter earnings per share to be down approximately 30%.

Investors are fleeing in droves. The company’s share price is down nearly -14% at $21.83 in a 52-week range of $16.42-$26.16.

Filed under: Earnings, Retail Tagged: FINL

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (AMZN, APOL, HFC, LVS, VZ, MOS, RHT, SN, SHAW, BBY, MY, RIMM, FINL, PHM, CHTP, MM)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 20:05:55 +0000

Markets opened lower this morning but fought back on the day. This morning’s report new unemployment benefits claims tamped down enthusiasm among investors (our coverage here). US natural gas inventories rose much more than expected (our coverage here) and a promise from the IEA to be ready with another release from national strategic oil reserves hit energy stocks hard (more coverage here). The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.08% at 79.186. Commodities were virtually all lower on the stronger dollar. WTI crude oil closed down about -2.5% at $102.78/barrel, and Brent crude trades down -1.51% at $122.28/barrel. Gold settled down -0.3% today, at $1,652.20/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly 20 points to 13,145.51, the NASDAQ fell by 9.6 points to 3,095.36, and the S&P 500 fell 2.29 to 1,403.26.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) started as ‘buy’ at ThinkEquity; Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) cut to ‘hold’ at Argus; HollyFrontier Corp. (NYSE: HFC) cut to ‘neutral’ at Credit Suisse; Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) reiterated as ‘buy’ and price target raised to $65-$67 at BofA/ML; and Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) cut to ‘neutral’ at Baird.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS) is down -4.7% at $55.49; Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT) is up 18.7% at $61.02 after posting a new 52-week high of $61.37 earlier today (more coverage here); Sanchez Energy Corp. (NYSE: SN) is down -2.5% at $22.01; Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE: SHAW) is up 3.9% at 32.05; and Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) is down -6.6% at $24.86 (more coverage here). After markets close today China Ming Yang Power Group Ltd. (NYSE: MY), Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) (our coverage here), and Finish Line Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL) will report earnings.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

PulteGroup Inc. (NYSE: PHM) is down -2.5% at $9.24. The homebuilder was downgraded to ‘strong sell’ at S&P Capital IQ. More coverage here.

Chelsea Therapeutics International Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHTP) is down more than -28% at $2.63. The FDA rejected the company’s low blood pressure drug. More coverage here.

Millennial Media Inc. (NYSE: MM) concluded its IPO today at $24.74, up from the initial price of $13/share. Shares traded as high as $27.90 earlier in the day. More coverage of the recent IPO market here.

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

8:30 a.m. – Personal income and spending report
9:45 a.m. – Chicago purchasing managers’ index
9:55 a.m. – Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AMZN, APOL, BBY, CHTP, FINL, HFC, LVS, MM, MOS, MY, PHM, RHT, RIMM, SHAW, SN, VZ

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AEM, AVL, BRCD, CSTR, EV, ERTS, FINL, GILD, GOOG, GDOT, MRH, RIMM, SLXP, WEN, WYNN)

Administrator — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:21:05 +0000

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

Agnico-Eagle Mines Ltd. (NYSE: AEM) Cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity.
Avalon Rare Metals Inc. (AMEX: AVL) Started as Buy at Citigroup.
Brocade Communications Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: BRCD) Reiterated Hold at Argus.
Coinstar, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSTR) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
Eaton Vance Corporation (NYSE: EV) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.
Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
The Finish Line, Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL) named Value stock of the day at Zacks.
Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) Raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.
Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Green Dot Corporation (NYSE: GDOT) Started as Outperform at KBW.
Montpelier Re Holdings (NYSE: MRH) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) Cut to Neutral at Stern Agee.
Salix Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: SLXP) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
The Wendy’s Co. (NYSE: WEN) Reiterated Hold at Argus.
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN) Raised to Buy at KeyBanc.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AEM, AVL, BRCD, CSTR, ERTS, EV, FINL, GDOT, GILD, GOOG, MRH, RIMM, SLXP, WEN, WYNN

The Great Dividend Hikes Of 2011 Are Underway (CCL, OKE, FINL, JPM, WFC, BAC, CSCO, AAPL, GE, UTX, MMM, WPO)

Administrator — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 17:58:56 +0000

The rising dividend theme of 2010 is already continuing in 2011 and this looks to be another great year for investors seeking higher dividends. We have seen three fresh dividend hikes from Carnival Corporation plc (NYSE: CCL), Oneok Inc. (NYSE: OKE), and Finish Line Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL). While those are all good, the more important consideration is about the possible waves of newer and larger dividends from key market players ahead.

We already gave The Dogs of The Dow for 2011. We are looking at key dividend expectations in key sectors for investors in other sectors. In the money center banks, we are keeping a keen eye on J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC), and Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC). Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is overdue for its technology dividend and now Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) may be back in play in the dividend circles again after the Steve Jobs health news. In conglomerates we are expecting news from General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE), United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX), and 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) in 2011.

We have outlined the expectations and an outlook on each stock individually. That compares yields to projected dividend hikes ahead, and we have added additional historical data and additional color on each as well.

Filed under: Banking, Conglomerates, Dividend, Shareholder Issues, Stock Buybacks, Technology Companies, Value Investing Tagged: AAPL, BAC, CCL, CSCO, FINL, GE, JPM, MMM, OKE, UTX, WFC

Active Stock Trader Alerts 9/24/2010

247wallst — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 12:19:34 +0000

AMD (NYSE: AMD) is up 2% after lowering its earnings forecasts

Vical (NASDAQ: VICL) down 14% on late stage drug trial failure.

ARM Holdings (ARMH) up 7% on buyout rumors.

Sirius XM (NASDAQ: SIRI) is up 2% on positive analyst calls.

NetFlix (NASDAQ: NFLX) is up 3% on an expanded relationship with NBC.

Tibco (NASDAQ: TIBX) is up 6% on strong earnings and takeover rumors.

The Finish Line (NASDAQ: FINL) is down 11% on bad earnings.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Filed under: Most Actives Tagged: AMD, ARMH, FINL, NFLX, SIRI, TIBX, VICL

This Week’s Top Earnings on Deck (LEN, ADBE, AZO, CCL, DRI, BBBY, KMX, RHT, FINL, NKE, RAD, KBH)

Administrator — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 10:49:26 +0000

We have several large earnings reports this week. While none are DJIA components nor broad market movers, they can impact stocks in their related sectors. Some of the top earnings this week are from Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN), Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE), AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO), Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL), Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI), Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY), CarMax Inc. (NYSE: KMX), Red Hat, Inc. (NYSE: RHT), Finish Line Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL), Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE), Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD), and KB Home (NYSE: KBH). We have compiled Thomson Reuters estimates for earnings and revenues.

Monday, September 20
Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) $0.05 EPS and $765.19 million in revenues.

Tuesday, September 21
Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE) $0.49 EPS and $984.07 million in revenues.

AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) $5.42 EPS and $2.39 billion in revenues.
Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) $1.47 EPS and $4.42 billion in revenues.
Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS) $0.38 EPS and $914.95 million in revenues. Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) $0.77 EPS and $1.82 billion in revenues.

Wednesday, September 22
Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ: BBBY) $0.63 EPS and $2.10 billion in revenues.
CarMax Inc. (NYSE: KMX) $0.40 and $2.26 billion in revenues.
General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS) $0.63 EPS and $3.60 billion in revenues.
Jefferies Group Inc. (NYSE: JEF) $0.39 EPS and $573.92 million in revenues.
Red Hat, Inc. (NYSE: RHT) $0.18 EPS and $211.24 million in revenues.

Thursday, September 23
Finish Line Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL) $0.36 EPS and $316.00 million in revenues.

Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) $1.00 EPS and $5.22 billion in revenues.
Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD) -$0.17 EPS and $6.21 billion in revenues.

Friday, September 24
KB Home (NYSE: KBH) -$0.15 EPS and $491.21 million in revenues.

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: Calendar, Earnings Tagged: ADBE, AZO, BBBY, CCL, DRI, FINL, KBH, KMX, LEN, NKE, RAD, RHT

Select Retail Short Squeezes? (PSUN, FINL, TRLG)

247wallst — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 20:22:50 +0000

Short sellers could be on the run here in several retailers. Each day our software tracks stocks that have high short interest and are either short squeezes or potential short squeezes in a real time.

After the FOMC announcement, several stocks in the retail space are shaping up nicely as potential short squeezes. Noteworthy moves today include Pacific Sunwear (NASDAQ: PSUN) up 4.13%, Finish Line Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL) up 3.22% and True Religion Apparel Inc. (NASDAQ: TRLG) up 2.00%.

Pacific Sunwear (NASDAQ: PSUN) has 3,356,015 shares in the short interest with a short ratio of 2.62. Finish Line Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL) has 2,592,396 shares in the short interest with a short ratio of 3.58

True Religion has 5,413,732 shares short with a short ratio of 8.75. The stock has recently pulled back from $28.90 to $18.84. Estimates are for $1.88 this year and $2.10 for next year which hardly makes this an expensive name.

What are the short sellers thinking?

Geoffrey A. Garbacz, GoodMorningWallSt.com

Posted in Apparel, Retail, Short Interest Tagged: FINL, PSUN, TRLG

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (ANF, FRED, FDO, FINL, SEPR, VMED, WTNY, ZUMZ)

247wallst — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 12:32:19 +0000

It is looking pretty thin in analyst calls ahead of the 3-day weekend, but these are some of the top research upgrades, downgrades, and initiations we have seen this Friday morning:

Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) cut to Sell from Hold at Citi.
Fred’s Inc. (FRED) Cut to Market Perform at William Blair.
Family Dollar Stores (FDO) Cut to Market Perform at William Blair.

Finish Line (FINL) Started as Outperform at Wedbush Morgan.
Sepracor (SEPR) Raised to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
Virgin Media (VMED) Started as Outperform by Credit Suisse.
Whitney Holding (WTNY) Raised to Buy at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.
Zumiez (ZUMZ) Cut to Hold at KeyBanc.

JON C. OGG

Posted in Analyst Calls Tagged: ANF, FDO, FINL, FRED, SEPR, VMED, WTNY, ZUMZ

Mini Earnings Season on Deck Thursday (PALM, ACN, MU, LEN, CAG, FINL, JTX, TIBX)

247wallst — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 21:34:51 +0000

Thursday is shaping up to be a miniature one-day version earnings season this week. This is likely the last of the major earnings reports we’ll see for another three or four weeks until the real earnings season for Q2-2009 kicks off. On deck are the likes of Palm Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM), Accenture Ltd. (NYSE: ACN), Micron Tech Inc. (NYSE: MU), Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN), ConAgra Foods, Inc. (NYSE: CAG), Finish Line (NASDAQ: FINL), Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc. (NYSE: JTX), and TIBCO Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TIBX). Below are preview summaries for each company’s expectations and supporting notes.

Palm Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM) is perhaps the single largest standout stock of the group and this report will mark the end of its Fiscal 2009 year. Be advised that the Palm Pre launch is NOT going to be a part of the report for the past quarter as the launch date with Sprint was after the end of the reporting period. We do expect Palm to disclose how many units it has either sold or shipped to date. Analysts are looking for -$0.62 EPS on $80.6 million in revenue. If Palm offers guidance for the current quarter, those estimates are -$0.30 EPS and $279 million in revenue. The key may hinge on when Palm intends to get back to profitability as analysts are looking for losses through the end of Fiscal 2010 (May-end). With much more than a tenfold rise and a whopping short interest, Palm will be the ultimate trader battleground stock to watch.

Accenture Ltd. (NYSE: ACN), the IT and management consulting and outsourcing operation, is expected to post $0.64 EPS on $5.2 billion in revenue. While that will be close to a 20% drop in revenues, analysts are looking for growth to resume in 2010. With shares having closed at $31.43 and being in the middle of their 52-week trading range, this one has room to swing either way.

Micron Tech Inc. (NYSE: MU), the largest U.S. DRAM maker, is expected to post -$0.42 EPS on $1.18 billion in revenue. If the company gives guidance, it is expected to post -$0.29 EPS and $1.33 billion in revenues for the next quarter. Shares have recovered more than 200% from the lows, and they could rally another 50% before hitting a new 52-week high. This stock still has traders and investors alike stumped due to the serial disappointments from the company. As noted in the world of DRAM, it has all the same characteristics of all other commodities with the sole exception that prices never really goes up very much. Analysts are still looking for losses out through 2010.

Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) is on deck as another homebuilder reports earnings. Shares did close up over 4.5% as investors decided to take a dismal new home sales number for May as a positive because of hopes that the summer could be strong. Analysts are looking for -$0.64 EPS on $597.5 million in revenue. The next quarter is the most important as it includes the summer selling season and estimates are -$0.56 EPS and $700.6 million in revenue. At $7.82, its 52-week trading range is $3.42 to $16.90.

ConAgra Foods, Inc. (NYSE: CAG) is likely to have a large impact on other food distribution giants. Estimates are $0.42 EPS and $3.33 billion in revenue. With shares close to $20.00, its 52-week trading range is $13.52 to $23.12.

Finish Line (NASDAQ: FINL) continues to be a huge dilemma: a poor economy, yet everyone needs their athletic shoes. The question is the buyers go to the company or to co its mpetitors, or even to discounters. Analysts are expecting $0.01 EPS on $273.1 million in revenue. After a 4% drop to $7.36 on Wednesday, the 52-week range is $3.42 to $12.43.

Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc. (NYSE: JTX) has bounced over 100% from the lows, but many still consider it a troubled stock. We have estimates at $1.68 EPS and $144.5 million in revenue. Be advised that the coming quarter is the throwaway quarter because of the way the tax season falls. With shares at $5.96, its 52-week range is $2.80 to $17.83.

TIBCO Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TIBX), the infrastructure software player, is on deck to report and shares have been trading above-average trading volume in the last 5-day period into earnings. Estimates are $0.09 EPS and $139.35 million in revenues, and next quarter estimates are $0.10 EPS and $146.3 million in revenues. At $6.45, this stock is between its 52-week range of $3.45 to $8.78.

All estimates are from Thomson Reuters and may be slightly different by the time Thursday morning gets there due to last minute estimate changes from analysts.

Jon C. Ogg
June 24, 2009

Posted in Earnings, Housing, Technology Companies Tagged: ACN, CAG, FINL, JTX, LEN, MU, PALM, TIBX