24/7 Wall St. » HST

Value Hunting Among the Hardest Hit Large-Cap Dividend REITs

Jon C. Ogg — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 16:25:32 +0000

24/7 Wall St. has been analyzing and evaluating the real estate investment trust (REIT) sector during the past couple of weeks as the risk of rising interest rates is shaking out many of the REIT investors. The sector’s high dividends had reached what some were calling a bubble as the dividend yields had compressed to relative historic lows. Now that stocks, and REITs in particular, have been hit so hard, we wanted to take a look out there to see which REITs in the S&P 500 Index had sold off the most.

The good news is that it appears some investors are now starting to pick through the rubble to look for bargains. If the economy is going to keep improving, some of the battered stocks likely will recover handily, even if they do have interest rate risks attached to them.

We evaluated performance over the past week and month before today’s price changes, and then looked at today’s mid-day price performance. We evaluated the discounts to 52-week highs and the dividend, and also took a look at the market cap of each so that investors can understand how many billions of valuation have eroded in the past month out of the REIT sector.

Kimco Realty Corp. (NYSE: KIM) was off 7.8% in the past week alone and down a total of 11.6% in the past month, but shares so far on Thursday are up 0.9% at $21.55, against a 52-week trading range of $17.77 to $25.09. Kimco is a shopping center REIT with a market cap of $8.8 billion, and its dividend yield is 3.8%.

Weyerhaeuser Co. (NYSE: WY) was down by 7.2% in the past week and down a total of 8.2% over the past month, but shares so far on Thursday are up 0.5% at $28.46, against a 52-week trading range of $20.06 to $33.24. This is a forest-lands REIT with a dividend yield currently of 2.7%, and its market cap is $15.6 billion.

ProLogis Inc. (NYSE: PLD) was off by 7.2% in the past week and down 9.3% over the past month. Unfortunately, these losses are even worse as the shares are down 0.6% at $38.63 for this office warehouse REIT leader. Its 52-week trading range is $30.79 to $45.52, its dividend yield is currently 2.8% and its market cap is $19.2 billion.

Macerich Co. (NYSE: MAC) was off 6.4% in the past week but was down almost twice as much in the past month with a loss of 12.2%. Thursday’s mid-day performance is up about 1.4% at $62.48, against a 52-week trading range of $54.32 to $72.19. This shopping center REIT has a yield of 3.6% and its market cap is $8.6 billion.

Vornado Realty Trust (NYSE: VNO) was down by 6% in the past week and down 8.4% over the past month. Shares are by and large unchanged with the price down two cents at $79.19 so far on Thursday. Vornado is a commercial real estate REIT with a 52-week trading range of $72.64 to $88.73, a dividend yield of 3.7% and a market cap of $14.8 billion.

Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST) was down by 5.4% in the past week and down 7.8% over the past month. Thursday’s performance for this hotel REIT is down only three cents at $16.97, against a 52-week trading range of $13.58 to $18.87. Its dividend yield currently is only 2.2%, and its market cap is $12.6 billion.

Keep in mind that these are not the worst performing of all REITs. These are just the worst among those listed in the S&P 500, as we wanted to see how much money has come out of the sector’s leadership players. We used weekly and monthly performance metrics from Finviz.com and other valuation metrics came from Yahoo! Finance.

Filed under: Retail Tagged: HST, KIM, MAC, PLD, VNO, WY

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — October 11, 2012: Markets Fail to Hold Morning Gains (COST, ZNGA, PCS, EA, HST, ADTN, RT, SWY, DRWI, WGO, SCHW, JBHT, WFC, ICPT, KYTH, SSTK, RLGY, CLWR, S, ANR, THC, DLTR)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 20:02:50 +0000

The three major U.S. stock indexes opened higher this morning on traders initial reaction to a sharp drop in the weekly report on new claims for unemployment (more coverage here). In Asia, South Korea lowered its GDP growth forecast from 3.2% to 2.4% for 2012 and from 3.8% to 3.2% for 2013 and dropped interest rates by 0.25%. In Europe, Spanish stocks fell on a downgrade from S&P, but markets in other eurozone countries were up on little new data. The U.S. trade deficit rose more than expected in August, while export and import prices both rose (more coverage here). After a good start, equities closed the day mixed, right about where they started.

The U.S. dollar index rose today, now down 0.18% at 79.770. The GSCI commodity index is down fractionally at 664.76, with commodities prices mostly higher today. WTI crude oil closed up 0.9% today, at $92.07 a barrel, following today’s reported increase in crude supplies (more coverage here). Brent crude trades up 1.2% at $115.74 a barrel. Natural gas is up 3.8% today to nearly $3.61 per thousand cubic feet after the weekly storage report showed only a modest build in inventories (more coverage here). Gold closed at $1,770.60 an ounce, up 0.3%.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 17 points to 13,328.12 (-0.13%), the NASDAQ fell more than 2 points (-0.08%) to 3,049.38, and the S&P 500 rose 0.02% or less than 1 point to 1,432.88.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) reiterated as ‘buy’ and target price raised to $113 at Argus; Znyga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) started as ‘underperform’ with a $3.00 target price at Credit Suisse (more coverage here); MetroPCS Communications Inc. (NYSE: PCS) cut to ‘underperform’ at Oppenheimer; Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) started as ‘neutral’ at Credit Suisse; and Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST) cut to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: ADTRAN Inc. (NASDAQ: ADTN) is down 0.6% at $15.88; Ruby Tuesday Inc. (NYSE: RT) is up 0.5% at $7.06; Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY) is down 3.2% at $15.77 (more coverage here); Dragonwave Inc. (NASDAQ: DRWI) is up 15% at $2.53; and Winnebago Industries Inc. (NYSE: WGO) is down 1.2% at $12.05 (more coverage here).

Before markets open tomorrow we are scheduled to hear from The Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW), J.B. Hunt Transportation Services Inc. (NASDAQ: JBHT), and Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC).

There were four hugely successful IPOs today: Intercept Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ICPT) opened at $15 a share and is trading at $19.00 currently; Kythera Biopharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: KYTH) opened at $16.00 and current trades at $19.56; Shutterstock Inc. (NYSE: SSTK) opened at $17 a share and currently trades at $21.80; and Realogy Holdings Corp. (NYSE: RLGY) priced at $27 a share and trades currently at $34.01 (more coverage here).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Clearwire Corp. (NASDAQ: CLWR) is up 57.7% at $2.05. The wireless carrier is jumping on the news that Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S) is negotiating a sale of a stake in Sprint to Japan’s SoftBank. More coverage here.

Alpha Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: ANR) is up 15.6% at $8.47. The coal miner is leading other coal stocks in a sharp climb today on the continuing rise in natural gas prices and the prospects for a colder winter.

Tenet Healthcare Corp. (NYSE: THC) is up 305% at $24.18. The healthcare provider executed a 1-for-4 reverse stock split today.

Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) is down 8.2% at $43.07. The discount retailer cut its sales outlook today.

Stay tuned for Friday. Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker is giving a speech. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Producer price index
9:55 a.m. – University of Michigan/Thomson Reuters consumer sentiment index
2:00 p.m. – Treasury budget

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ADTN, ANR, CLWR, COST, DLTR, DRWI, EA, HST, ICPT, JBHT, KYTH, PCS, RLGY, RT, S, SCHW, SSTK, SWY, THC, WFC, WGO, ZNGA

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (ATVI, CELG, COST, EA, ECPG, HST, LEAP, MAR, PCS, PAL, SI, SPLS, TTWO, TCBI, TXN, ZNGA)

Jon C. Ogg — Thu, 11 Oct 2012 12:20:10 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations we have seen from Wall St. research calls this Thursday.

Activision Blizzard Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) started as Outperform with $16 target at Credit Suisse.

Celgene Corp. (NASDAQ: CELG) cut to Neutral at Piper Jaffray.

Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) reiterated Buy and raised target to $113 at Argus.

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Encore Capital Group Inc. (NASDAQ: ECPG) named value stock of the day at Zacks.

Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST) cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Leap Wireless International Inc. (NASDAQ: LEAP) raised to Outperform at Oppenheimer.

Marriott International Inc. (NYSE: MAR) cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

MetroPCS Communications Inc. (NYSE: PCS) cut to Underperform at Oppenheimer.

North American Palladium Ltd. (NYSEMKT: PAL) raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Siemens A.G. (NYSE: SI) cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Staples Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO) started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Texas Capital Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: TCBI) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Texas Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: TXN) cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Zynga Inc (NASDAQ: ZNGA) started as Underperform with $3 target at Credit Suisse.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ATVI, CELG, COST, EA, ECPG, HST, LEAP, MAR, PAL, PCS, SI, SPLS, TCBI, TTWO, TXN, ZNGA

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — October 10, 2012: Markets Slide Again (HD, QCOM, DLTR, ARMH, JCI, AA, YUM, COST, HELE, HST, RT, SWY, WGO, OCZ, AUG, TRLG, SIRI)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 20:05:34 +0000

The three major U.S. stock indexes opened about flat this morning following rather lackluster trading in Asia and Europe. There was little economic data out today, although both France and Italy turned in better-than-expected industrial production increases. In China, a report that the government would subsidize auto purchases among rural residents sent markets higher, while Japanese markets were lower on weaker auto sales in China. U.S. economic data got off to a somewhat slow start with a slight decline in mortgage applications (more coverage here). This afternoon’s auction of 10-year Treasurys (more coverage here) and the release of the Fed’s Beige Book, which noted a “modest” expansion in the U.S. economy (more coverage here), were not enough to light a fire under buyers.

The U.S. dollar index rose today, now down 0.06% at 79.904. The GSCI commodity index is up 1.6% at 667.25, with commodities prices mostly lower today. WTI crude oil closed down 1.2% today, at $91.25 a barrel. Brent crude trades down 0.2% at $114.31 a barrel. Natural gas is up 0.3% today to $3.476 per thousand cubic feet. Gold closed at $1,765.10 an ounce, up just $0.10 an ounce, but the first rise in three days.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down more than 128 points to 13,344.97 (-0.95%), the NASDAQ fell more than 13 points (-0.43%) to 3,051.78, and the S&P 500 fell -0.62% or nearly 9 points to 1,432.57.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) cut to ‘perform’ at Oppenheimer; Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) raised to ‘outperform’ at BNP Paribas; Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) raised to ‘outperform’ at Wells Fargo; ARM Holdings plc (NASDAQ: ARMH) started as ‘neutral’ at Credit Suisse; and Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE: JCI) cut to ‘neutral’ at BofA/ML.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) is down 4.7% at $8.70 (more coverage here); Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM) is up 7.7% at $70.79 (more coverage here); Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) is up 1.9% at $101.50 after posting a new 52-week high of $104.43 earlier today (more coverage here); Helen of Troy Ltd. (NASDAQ: HELE) is down 12.2% at $28.05 (more coverage here); and Host Hotels and Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST) is up 1.3% at $15.73.

Before markets open tomorrow we are scheduled to hear from Ruby Tuesday Inc. (NYSE: RT), Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY), and Winnebago Industries Inc. (NYSE: WGO).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

OCZ Technology Group Inc. (NASDAQ: OCZ) is down 40.6% at $1.87 after posting a new 52-week low of $1.79 earlier today. The solid-state drive company will file quarterly results late and revenues will be lower. More coverage here.

AuRico Gold Inc. (NYSE: AUQ) is up 20.2% at $7.72. The junior gold miner sold a Mexican mine and a stake in another property for $750 million in cash.

True Religion Apparel Inc. (NASDAQ: TRLG) is up 21.8% at $25.59. The clothing retailer said today that it is exploring strategic alternatives. More coverage here.

Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) is up 4.2% at $2.74 after posting a new 52-week high of $2.75 earlier today. The satellite radio company raised guidance on subscriber numbers today. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Fed Governor Jeremy Stein, Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser and St. Louis Fed President James Bullard are giving speeches. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – International trade
8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
8:30 a.m. – Import and export prices
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
11:00 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
1:00 p.m. – 30-year note auction
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AA, ARMH, AUG, COST, DLTR, HD, HELE, HST, JCI, OCZ, QCOM, RT, SIRI, SWY, TRLG, WGO, YUM

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — October 9, 2012: Markets Slide Continues as Earnings Season Kicks Off (AAPL, JNJ, LAZ, NFLX, RSH, AA, YUM, COST, HELE, HST, VRNG, GOOG, ANR, BSDM, EW)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 20:02:52 +0000

The three major U.S. stock indexes opened lower this morning following a lowered forecast on global economic growth from the International Monetary Fund (more coverage here). In Asia, Japanese markets are concerned over earnings at the country’s carmakers, while Chinese markets got a boost on the ever-present hope that the government would introduce another round of stimulus into the country’s economy. The energy sector, particularly oil prices, were higher over worries about the worsening relations between Turkey and Syria, which overrode the weaker economic news. Today’s auction of three-year U.S. Treasurys saw yields remain near record lows (more coverage here).

The U.S. dollar index rose today, now up 0.56% at 79.989. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.4% at 656.64, with commodities prices mostly higher today on the rising dollar. WTI crude oil closed up 3.4% today, at $92.39 a barrel. Brent crude trades 2.32% at $114.41 a barrel. Natural gas is up 2% today to $3.47 per thousand cubic feet. Gold closed at $1,765.00 an ounce, down 0.6%.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down about 109 points to 13,474.45 (-0.80%), the NASDAQ fell more than 47 points (-1.52%) to 3,065.02, and the S&P 500 fell 0.98% or more than 14 points to 1,441.49.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) reiterated as ‘outperform’ with a target price of $750 at Credit Suisse (more coverage here); Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; Lazard Ltd. (NYSE: LAZ) started as ‘sell’ at UBS and cut to ‘market perform’ at KBW; Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) cut to ‘underperform’ with a target price of $72 at BofA/ML (more coverage here); and RadioShack Corp. (NYSE: RSH) raised to ‘buy’ at BofA/ML (more coverage here).

There have been no earnings reports of note since the markets closed on last nigh. After the markets close today and before they open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) (more coverage here), Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM), Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST), Helen of Troy Ltd. (NASDAQ: HELE), and Host Hotels and Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Vringo Inc. (NYSEMKT: VRNG) is down 15.6% at $4.58. The intellectual property firm today commenced the hearing phase of its patent lawsuit against Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG).

Alpha Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: ANR) is up 7.2% at $7.27. Coal mining stocks got a boost in general today as cooler weather and rising natural gas prices combine to raise hopes for coal.

BSD Medical Corp. (NASDAQ: BSDM) is up 72% at $2.03. The medical equipment maker today announced that sales of a cancer treatment system increased by nearly 400% in September compared with September 2011.

Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (NYSE: EW) is down 20.4% at $85.55. The drugmaker reported that sales for the recent quarter would be lower than forecast. For a contrarian viewpoint, see our coverage here.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota and Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher are giving speeches in the afternoon. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
10:00 a.m. – Wholesale trade
11:30 a.m. – 4-week bill auction
1:00 p.m. – 10-year note auction
2:00 p.m. – Beige book
2:00 p.m. – Treasury budget

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AA, AAPL, ANR, BSDM, COST, EW, GOOG, HELE, HST, JNJ, LAZ, NFLX, RSH, VRNG, YUM

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — July 17, 2012: Markets Higher After Bernanke Speaks

Paul Ausick — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 20:03:53 +0000

The three major US stock indexes opened higher this morning in advance of Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s semi-annual report to Congress and following some data on inflation (more coverage here), industrial production, and the housing market (more coverage here). Bernanke’s comments were pretty much inline with expectations, but investors were hoping for a more upbeat presentation than they got (our coverage here).

The US dollar index fell slightly today, now down -0.03% at 83.075. The GSCI commodity index rose about 1.5% to 6121.19, with commodities prices mostly lower today. Even corn prices fell as drought news got worse (our coverage here). WTI crude oil rose 0.9% today, closing at $89.22/barrel. Brent crude trades up 0.5% at $103.85/barrel. Natural gas is down -0.11% today to $2.798/thousand cubic feet. Gold settled at $1,589.50/ounce, down -0.1%.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 77 points to 12,804.41 (0.61%), the NASDAQ rose more than 13 points (0.45%) to 2,910.04, and the S&P 500 rose 0.74% or 10 points to 1,363.64.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) cut to ‘underperform’ at Jefferies; The Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) cut to ‘neutral’ at Janney; Melco Crown PBL (NASDAQ: MPEL) started as ‘outperform’ at RBC Capital; Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) cut to ‘underweight’ at JPMorgan; and Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), started as ‘buy’ at Lazard.

Earnings reports since markets closed last Friday have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (NASDAQ: JBHT) is down -5.8% at $54.96; Comerica Inc. (NYSE: CMA) is up 3.4% at $31.87; Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) is up 0.7% at $98.36 (more coverage here); Forest Laboratories Inc. (NYSE: FRX) is up 1.7% at $35.79 (more coverage here); Host Hotels and Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST) is up 0.5% at $15.46; Kansas City Southern (NYSE: KSU) is down -0.3% at $68.65; Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is up 0.9% at $69.03 after posting a new 52-week high of $69.18 earlier today (more coverage here); Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS) is up 5.1% at $58.18 (more coverage here); The Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) is up 1.5% at $77.63 (more coverage here); and State Street Corp. (NYSE: STT) is down -6.5% at $41.28.

After markets close today we are set to hear from Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC), CSX Corp. (NYSE: CSX), United Rentals Inc. (NYSE: URI), and Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN).

Before markets open on Wednesday we are scheduled to get earnings results from Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT), Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC), BlackRock Inc. (NYSE: BLK), Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP), Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON), and W.W. Grainger Inc. (NYSE: GWW).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S) is up 5.2% at $3.64. The telecom company started its 4G LTE network this weekend in a number of cities. More coverage here.

CSR plc (NASDAQ: CSRE) is up 29.8% at $17.60 after posting a new 52-week high of $18.23 earlier today. The chip maker is being acquired by Samsung Electronics for $310 million.

Lime Energy Co. (NASDAQ: LIME) is down -46.3% at $1.09 after posting a new 52-week low of $0.83 earlier today. The clean energy company may have to cut reported revenue for the past two fiscal years by as much as $15 million.

New Oriental Education & Technology Group (NYSE: EDU) is down -37.2% at $13.98 after posting a new 52-week low of $13.86 earlier today. The language and test training company announced an SEC investigation into the company’s accounting practices.

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

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
8:30 a.m. – Housing starts
10:00 a.m. – Fed Chairman Bernanke appears before House Financial Services Committee
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
2:00 p.m. – Beige Book released

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ABT, AMZN, BAC, BLK, CHKP, CMA, CSRE, CSX, DE, EDU, FRX, GS, GWW, HD, HON, HST, INTC, JBHT, JNJ, KO, KSU, LIME, MOS, MPEL, NOK, S, STT, URI, WYNN

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — July 16, 2012: Market Takes Small Loss, Waits on Bernanke

Paul Ausick — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 20:05:35 +0000

The three major US stock indexes opened lower this morning following some lackluster data on the US economy. The Empire State manufacturing data improved, but retail sales posted an unexpected decline (our coverage here). Later in the morning data on business inventories also came in weak (our coverage here). Asian and European markets didn’t have much impact on US markets today, with both rather mixed. It appears that investors are waiting to hear what Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke has to say tomorrow in his report to Congress.

The US dollar index fell today, now down -0.30% at 83.103. The GSCI commodity index rose about 1% to 6121.19, with commodities prices mostly higher today as the US drought continues (our coverage here). WTI crude oil rose 1.5% today, closing at $88.43/barrel. Brent crude trades up 1.8% at $103.20/barrel. Natural gas is down -2.6% today to $2.798/thousand cubic feet. Gold settled at $1,591.60/ounce, down less than -0.1%.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 50 points to 12,727.21 (-0.39%), the NASDAQ fell more than 11 points (-0.40%) to 2,896.94, and the S&P 500 fell -0.23% or more than 3 points to 1,353.63.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) cut to ‘equal-weight’ at Morgan Stanley; Supervalu Inc. (NYSE: SVU) raised to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs; Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) started as ‘outperform’ at Oppenheimer; Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE: BUD) cut to ‘market perform’ at Bernstein; and Qualcomm Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) raised to ‘hold’ at SocGen.

Earnings reports since markets closed last Friday have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) is up 0.5% at $26.77 (more coverage here); and Gannett Co. Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is up 1.9% at $14.58. After markets close today we are scheduled to hear from J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (NASDAQ: JBHT), Robert Half International Inc. (NYSE: RHI), and Joe’s Jeans Inc. (NASDAQ: JOEZ).

Before markets open on Tuesday we are scheduled to get earnings results from Comerica Inc. (NYSE: CMA), Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS), Forest Laboratories Inc. (NYSE: FRX), Host Hotels and Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST), Kansas City Southern (NYSE: KSU), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS), The Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO), and State Street Corp. (NYSE: STT).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Par Pharmaceutical Companies Inc. (NYSE: PRX) is up 36.7% at $50.00 after posting a 52-week high of $52.22 earlier today. The drug company has agreed to be acquired by private equity firm TPG.

Human Genome Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: HGSI) is up 4.5% at $14.19. The drug maker is being acquired by GlaxoSmithKlein (NYSE: GSK). We have a report on other possible tie-ups in the drug business here.

BioFuel Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: BIOF) is up 20.1% at $2.99. The ethanol maker had no news today and the rise in ethanol stocks may seem counter-intuitive. More coverage here.

Alpha Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: ANR) is down -9.6% at $6.90 after posting a new 52-week low of $6.56 earlier today. The coal miner was the hardest hit stock in the industry today on comments from Wilbur Ross on the difficulties that lie ahead for the coal industry. More coverage here.

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

8:30 a.m. – Consumer price index
9:00 a.m. – TIC data
9:15 a.m. – Industrial production
10:00 a.m. – Housing market index
10:00 a.m. – Fed Chairman Bernanke appears before Senate Banking Committee
11:30 a.m. – 4-week bill auction

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ANR, BIOF, BUD, C, CMA, FRX, GCI, GE, GS, GSK, HGSI, HST, JBHT, JNJ, JOEZ, KO, KSU, MOS, PRX, PSX, QCOM, RHI, STT, SVU

Expedia Sails, Lifts All Boats (EXPE, HOT, HST, WYN, MAR, OWW, PCLN, TRIP)

Paul Ausick — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 18:00:35 +0000

Internet travel company Expedia Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) absolutely pasted revenue and EPS expectations last night, sending the stock on a 25%+ express ride. The company posted revenue of $816.5 million, significantly higher than the consensus estimate of $790.1 million. Adjusted EPS came in at $0.26 versus an estimate of $0.14.

The profit driver was the company’s hotels.com site, which should raise expectations for hotel and resort players like Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: HOT), Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST), Wyndham Worldwide Corp. (NYSE: WYN), and Marriott International Inc. (NYSE: MAR). All these companies have already reported March quarter results, so we have to wait until June.

Other online travel sites aren’t waiting to move though. Orbitz Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: OWW), priceline.com Inc. (NASDAQ: PCLN), and TripAdvisor Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP) have all posted nice gains today.

Orbitz reports results next Thursday and is expected to post an EPS loss of -$0.08 on revenue of $190.3 million. priceline.com reports the following week and is expected to deliver EPS of $3.94 on revenue of $1.04 billion. TripAdvisor is expected to post EPS of $0.34 when it reports next week.

The boost in travel and hotel stocks shouldn’t be too big a surprise, given the higher traffic numbers put up by many US airlines. All those people have to book those flights someplace and stay somewhere once they get to their destinations. These symbiotic relationships could be worth watching as we roll toward the next quarter.

Expedia’s shares are up 26.5% at $41.28 in a 52-week range of $27.28-$65.78. Orbitz is up 7.7% at $3.65 in a 52-week range of $1.57-$4.49, priceline.com is up 4.5% at $766.00 in a 52-week range of $411.26-$774.96, and TripAdvisor is up 8.8% at $37.39 after posting a new 52-week high earlier today of $37.85.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: EXPE, HOT, HST, MAR, OWW, PCLN, TRIP, WYN

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (APOL, CHTR, COST, DNDN, RAIL, GPC, GMCR, HST, INFY, NEM, NOK, PCLN, TTM, USG, WSH)

Jon C. Ogg — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 13:15:06 +0000

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

Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) Raised to Overweight at Barclays.
Charter Communications (NASDAQ: CHTR) Maintained Outperform but raised target to $74 from $60 at Credit Suisse.
Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) Started as Perform at Oppenheimer.
Dendreon Corporation (NASDAQ: DNDN) Maintained Neutral but cut target to $13 at Credit Suisse.
FreightCar America, Inc. (NASDAQ: RAIL) named as Value Stock of the Day at Zacks.
Genuine Parts Co. (NYSE: GPC) Cut to Hold at Argus.
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NASDAQ: GMCR) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST) Cut to Hold at Argus.
Infosys Limited (NASDAQ: INFY) Cut to Neutral at Janney.
Newmont Mining Corp. (NYSE: NEM) Cut to Hold at TD.
Nokia Corporation (NYSE: NOK) Cut to Underperform at Oppenheimer.
priceline.com Inc. (NASDAQ: PCLN) Reiterated Outperform and raised target to $790 from $710 at Credit Suisse.
Tata Motors Ltd. (NYSE: TTM) Started as Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
USG Corporation (NYSE: USG) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
Willis Group Holdings, Plc (NYSE: WSH) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.

If you enjoyed the top analyst calls of the week, 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: Investing Tagged: APOL, CHTR, COST, DNDN, GMCR, GPC, HST, INFY, NEM, NOK, PCLN, RAIL, TTM, USG, WSH

Earnings Season Arrives, Top Earnings Previews For The Week Ahead (NVLS, AA, ADTN, HST, PEP, GOOG, JBHT, JPM, SWY, MAT)

Jon C. Ogg — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 17:15:40 +0000

They’re Here! Next week will launch the corporate earnings season for the third quarter. The media is going to tell you that this is the most important earnings season in quite some time. The media always says that, but this time it is true because investors want to know whether to still model in growth or whether they need to dig in for a recessionary climate.

24/7 Wall St. has compiled detailed earnings previews for the following companies: Novellus Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: NVLS); Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA); ADTRAN Inc. (NASDAQ: ADTN); Host Hotels and Resorts Inc. (NYSE: HST); Pepsico Inc. (NYSE: PEP); Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG); J. B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (NASDAQ: JBHT); J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM); Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY); and Mattel Inc. (NASDAQ: MAT).

Some of these companies will not really seem on the surface to be sector-movers or market-moving companies, but these have been selected because they are the first ones of their peer groups to be reporting earnings.

We have created a detailed earnings preview for each with consensus estimates from Thomson Reuters and added color in on each for investors to see what exactly is worth consideration this earnings season. We have also added in recent price history and named where to look for additonal action (or fallout).

Monday, October 10

Novellus Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: NVLS) is the first chip equipment player to report for this earnings season. it has been a few weeks since we have had earnings reports or guidance in the sector so we will be paying close attention since so many companies that are chip equipment customers have talked down their numbers in recent weeks. Our belief is that expectations are very low for the quarter ahead. Estimates are $0.68 EPS and $311.9 million in revenue; next quarter estimates are $0.50 EPS and $278.5 million in revenue. With shares hovering around $30.00 on Friday, the 52-week range is $25.26 to $41.82 and shares were above $36 in early July. After Novellus reports, we would be watching the following: Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT), KLA-Tencor Corporation (NASDAQ: KLAC), and Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ: LRCX).

Tuesday, October 11

Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) has already talked down aluminum prices and we have already seen slowing demand out of China talked about by many sectors. Alcoa keeps maintaining that it can double its business by 2020 and we do not expect that to be changed by management even if it guides lower expectations ahead. Estimates are $0.23 EPS and $6.24 billion in revenue; next quarter estimates are $0.23 EPS and $6.11 billion in revenue. At $9.80 on Friday, the 52-week range is $8.45 to $19.47 and this one was above $16 at the start of July. There are many metals stocks to watch, some in aluminum and some in other metals: Century Aluminum Co. (NASDAQ: CENX), Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. (NYSE: RS); Kaiser Aluminum Corporation (NASDAQ: KALU); Titanium Metals Corporation (NYSE: TIE); and Nucor Corporation (NYSE: NUE).

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AA, ADTN, AMAT, BAC, C, CENX, CHH, CIEN, GOOG, HAS, HST, JBHT, JPM, KALU, KLAC, KO, KR, LRCX, LSTR, MAR, MAT, NUE, NVLS, PEP, RS, SWY, TIE, TLAB, WFC