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Media Digest (3/28/2012) Reuters, WSJ, NYT, FT, Bloomberg

247wallst — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 09:18:07 +0000

A Reuters/Ipsos poll shows that two-thirds of Americans disapprove of the way President Obama has handled the gasoline crisis. (Reuters)

Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) will offer refunds for iPads sold in Australia as local government said some of its ads were misleading. (Reuters)

The roles of chairman and CEO may be split at Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS). (Reuters)

Potential investors are concerned that Mark Zuckerberg, who controls Facebook, has not been a visible part of the firm’s IPO. (Reuters)

Network security companies, in demand, increase M&A. (Reuters)

IHS (NYSE: IHS) reports that the Volcker rule could increase energy prices because it curtails trading in some commodities. (Reuters)

An EPA clean air act will hurt many coal factories. (Reuters)

Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) sets up an advisory board to help its overseas expansion. (WSJ)

Shareholder pressure prompts changes in the Goldman Sachs board. (WSJ)

The head of BATS Global Markets will give up his role as chairman. (WSJ)

U.S. airlines strive to cut the EU carbon tax. (WSJ)

Greek political parties that are not part of mainstream government won seats in a recent election, threatening the adherence to new austerity laws. (WSJ)

Fed Chairman Bernanke defends actions of the central bank during the start of the credit crisis. (WSJ)

Lead directors may become more of a challenge to CEO power. (WSJ)

Many U.S. refineries are in trouble because they cannot pass along oil prices to buyers of gas. (WSJ)

A senior FBI official says the U.S. is well behind in the war with hackers. (WSJ)

A Simmons School of Management survey shows few women join female support groups. (WSJ)

Former Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) CEO John Mack joins KKR (NYSE: KKR). (WSJ)

Some experts say a foreclosure deal with the government may help banks more than homeowners. (NYT)

President Obama will sign a bill that allows for easier access to capital for start-ups. (NYT)

The FDA approves a new anemia drug called Omontys for dialysis patients. (NYT)

High spot-oil prices used by futures traders may drop in value. (FT)

EU leaders claim that their credit crisis is near its end. (Bloomberg)

Douglas A. McIntyre

Filed under: Press Digest Tagged: AAPL, BAC, GS, IHS, KKR, MS

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (XOM, WDC, RAX, NLY, EMR, BBX, CAG, GME, IHS, LULU, PERY, SONC, NCTY, DG, DISCA, RGR, SWHC, BTFG, DMND)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 20:06:33 +0000

Markets opened sharply this morning and remained in negative territory all day. Purchasing managers’ indexes in the eurozone and in China came in lower than expected this morning, weighing European and Asian shares. The US dollar index rose slightly today, now up 0.10% at 79.733. Commodities were mixed on the dollar strength, with grains and sugar higher, and most other commodities lower. The US EIA weekly natural gas storage report showed a gain of 11 billion cubic feet in US inventories, sending natural gas prices tumbling nearly -4%. (our coverage here). WTI crude oil closed down -1.8% at $105.35/barrel, and Brent crude trades down -0.88% at $123.11/barrel. Gold settled down -0.5% today, at $1,642.50/ounce, a nine-week low.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down more than 78 points to 13,046.14 (-0.60%), the NASDAQ fell 12 points (-0.39%) to 3,063,32, and the S&P 500 fell -0.72% or about 10 points to 1,392,79.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) raised to ‘neutral’ with a $92 target price at JPMorgan; Western Digital Corp. (NYSE: WDC) raised to ‘strong buy’ at Needham; Rackspace Hosting Inc. (NYSE: RAX) cut to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs; Annaly Capital Management Inc. (NYSE: NLY) cut to ‘underperform’ at Sterne Agee; and Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE: EMR) raised to ‘buy’ at Nomura.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: BankAtlantic Bancorp Inc. (NYSE: BBX) is down -1.7% at $3.97; ConAgra Foods Inc. (NYSE: CAG) is down -0.6% at $26.21; Gamestop Corp. (NYSE: GME) is down -6% at $23.17; IHS Inc. (NYSE: IHS) is down -4.9% at $92.89; Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) is up 2.9% at $76.20 after posting a new 52-week high of $76.66 earlier today; Perry Ellis International Inc. (NASDAQ: PERY) is up 3% at $18.42; Sonic Corp. (NASDAQ: SONC) is down -6.8% at $7.50; and The9 Ltd. (NASDAQ: NCTY) is down -5% at $7.01.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Dollar General Corp. (NYSE: DG) is up 3.33% at $46.24 after posting a new 52-week high of $46.95 earlier today. The discount retailer posted better than expected earnings results. More coverage here.

Discovery Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: DISCA) is down -0.35% at $48.16. The cable network may take a big loss its investment in the Oprah Winfrey Network. More coverage here.

Sturm, Ruger & Co. (NYSE: RGR) is up 13.4% at $47.95 after posting a new 52-week high today of $48.24. Smith & Wesson Holdings Co. (NASDAQ: SWHC) is up nearly 14% at $7.84 after posting a new 52-week high of $8.00. The gunmakers are rising on Ruger’s announcement that it will not be accepting any new orders until May because it is fully booked. More coverage here.

Banc Trust Financial Group Inc. (NASDAQ: BTFG) is down more than -18% at $1.22. The bank holding company warned on earnings this morning. More coverage here.

Diamond Foods Inc. (NASDAQ: DMND) is down -8% at $23.59. The snack food maker is suspending its dividend. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Friday. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart, and St. Louis Fed President James Bullard are giving speeches. We have also noted the following event on the schedule (all times Eastern):

10:00 a.m. – New home sales

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close, The Day Tagged: BBX, BTFG, CAG, DG, DISCA, DMND, EMR, GME, IHS, LULU, NCTY, NLY, PERY, RAX, RGR, SONC, SWHC, WDC, XOM

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (UHAL, ATML, BBBY, EXH, FORM, IHS, LEAP, NKE, QCOM, RDN, S, TGT, TGB, TXM, RIG)

Administrator — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 12:22:33 +0000

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

AMERCO Inc. (NASDAQ: UHAL) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Atmel Corporation (NASDAQ: ATML) Raised to Buy at Gleacher & Co.
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) Raised to Market Perform at FBR.
Exterran Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: EXH) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.
FormFactor Inc. (NASDAQ: FORM) Added to Top Pick List at Citigroup.
IHS Inc. (NYSE: IHS) Reiterated Buy and raised target to $100 at Argus.
Leap Wireless International Inc. (NASDAQ: LEAP) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) Reiterated Hold at Argus.
QUALCOMM Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOM) Raised to Buy at Stern Agee.
Radian Group Inc. (NYSE: RDN) Reiterated Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE: S) Maintained Outperform and $8 target at Credit Suisse.
Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) Raised to Outperform at BMO.
Taseko Mines Ltd. (AMEX: TGB) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.
Texas Instruments Inc. (NYSE: TXN) Cut estimates on Japan at Argus.
Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG) Reiterated Hold at Argus.

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

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: ATML, BBBY, EXH, FORM, IHS, LEAP, NKE, QCOM, RDN, RIG, S, TGB, TGT, TXM, UHAL

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (GENZ, IHS, KSU, MXIM, PBR, RIMM, SLRC, TUP, TKC, VOD)

Administrator — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 12:37:12 +0000

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

Genzyme Corporation (NASDAQ: GENZ) Cut to Market Perform at Leerink Swann.
IHS Inc. (NYSE: IHS) Started as Buy at Needham & Co.
Kansas City Southern (NYSE: KSU) Started as Overweight at JPMorgan.
Maxim Integrated Products Inc. (NASDAQ: MXIM) Raised to Strong Buy at Needham.
Petroleo Brasileiro (NYSE: PBR) Cut to Hold from Buy at S&P Equity (late yesterday).
Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) Cut to Neutral at Baird; target cut to $70 at Raymond James; target cut to $90 at RBC; target cut to $65 at UBS; target cut to $100 at TD
Solar Capital Ltd. (NASDAQ: SLRC) Started as Outperform at BMO Capital
Tupperware Brands Corporation (NYSE: TUP) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
Turkcell (NYSE: TKC) Raised to Neutral from Sell at UBS.
Vodafone Group plc (NYSE: VOD) Raised to Buy at Collins Stewart.

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

Go through the list of the 20 least and most productive and give my take on what they have in common.

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Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: GENZ, IHS, KSU, MXIM, PBR, RIMM, SLRC, TKC, TUP, VOD

Top Analyst Upgrades (CAR, BAC, BCSI, CLRT, IHS, MA, PLXS, QTWW, SLB)

247wallst — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 11:28:07 +0000

These are some of the top early bird analyst upgrades and positive research calls we are seeing from Wall Street this Thursday morning with more than two hours until the market opens:

Avis Budget (CAR) Raised to Equal Weight at Barclays.
Bank of America (BAC) Raised to Outperform at KBW.
Blue Coat Systems (BCSI) Raised to Buy at Merriman Curhan Ford.
Clarient (CLRT) Started as Outperform at Baird.
IHS (IHS) Started as Buy at Jefferies.
Mastercard (MA) Started as Buy at Piper Jaffray.
Plexus (PLXS) Raised to Outperform at Baird.
Quantum Fuel (QTWW) Started as Overweight at Thomas Weisel.
Schlumberger (SLB) Started as Buy at Societe Generale.

JON C. OGG

Posted in Analyst Calls Tagged: BAC, BCSI, CAR, CLRT, IHS, MA, PLXS, QTWW, SLB

The 52-Week Low Club 9/19/2008 (IHS)(DM)(OTTR)

247wallst — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 14:49:29 +0000

Bad day for the 52-week low club.

IHS (IHS) Decision to buy Global Insight for $200 million drives shares down. Bottom at $45.66 from 52-week high of $72.19.

Dolan Media (DM) No news, just a sell-off. Drops to $11.22 from 52-week high of $31.15.

Otter Tail Power (OTTR) Market unhappy with company’s plan to sell stock and with new guidance. Sells off to $29.71 from 52-week high of $46.15.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Posted in HI/LOW Tagged: DM, IHS, OTTR