Posts for Ticker ‘ISRG’

Top 10 Analyst Upgrades, Downgrades, Initiations (ADI, ACI, ISRG, BTU, PHM, RIMM, STX, SPWRA, TGT, WDC)

These are this Wednesday’s top ten analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen in Wall Street research calls:

Analog Devices (NYSE: ADI) Raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.
Arch Coal (NYSE: ACI) Started as Overweight at HSBC.
Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG) Started as Market Perform at Morgan Keegan.
Peabody Energy (NYSE: BTU) Started as Overweight at HSBC.
Pulte Homes (NYSE: PHM) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Research-in-Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) Cut to Market Perform at BMO.
Seagate Technology (NASDAQ: STX) Cut to Underperform at BofA Merrill Lynch.
Sunpower Corporation (NASDAQ: SPWRA) Cut to Neutral at Janney Montgomery Scott.
Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) Cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
Western Digital Corp. (NYSE: WDC) Cut to Underperform at BofA Merrill Lynch.

You can join our open email distribution list to hear more news on key analyst calls, top day trader alerts, mergers and acquisitions, Buffett and other investment gurus, IPOs, secondary offerings, private equity, and more.

JON C. OGG

Posted on: November 18, 2009 – 7:53 am in Analyst Calls, Pre-Market Activity, Trading Alert, , , , , , , , , ,

Top Day Trader Alerts (YHOO, ISRG, PLCM, SNDK, FNM, FRE)

These are this morning’s top pre-market day trader alert stocks for Wednesday.  We have more detailed analysis and data on each stock linked through to VSInvestor.com:

Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) is trading up at 52-week highs after earnings.

Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG) is a huge point loser, but down 5% after earnings.

Polycom Inc. (NASDAQ: PLCM) is the biggest loser by percentages this morning after earnings.

SanDisk Corporation (NASDAQ: SNDK) is still up, but off its after-hours highs, after blowing out earnings.

Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) are trying to make it three in a row after that ZERO VALUE call from KBW on Monday.

You can join our open email distribution list to get updates on top analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader alerts, IPO’s, secondary offerings, Warren Buffett and other guru activity, M&A and more.

JON C. OGG
OCTOBER 21, 2009

Posted on: October 21, 2009 – 9:04 am in After-Hours Activity, Pre-Market Activity, Trading Alert, , , , , ,

Top Day Trader Alerts (MEDX, ISRG, OREX, CELG, EBAY, SNDK, PSUN, QCOM)

The following are some of the top stocks to watch for active trading today based on pre-market and after-hours volume activity. There are links through to more detailed coverage and volume analysis at VSInvestor.com:

Medarex Inc. (Nasdaq: MEDX) shares are up about 90 percent after Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY) said it plans to buy the company for $2.4 billion, or $16 a share.

Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. (Nasdaq: PSUN) shares are getting hit on a second-quarter warning.

Orexigen Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: OREX) shares are falling, and are among the most actively traded Nasdaq stocks after the company proposed a 9 million-share offering.

Celgene Corp. (Nasdaq: CELG) shares are up more than 10 percent on stronger-than-expected revenue and net procedure sales growth.

Intuitive Surgical Inc. (Nasdaq: ISRG) shares are up strongly on better-than-expected earnings and strong procedure growth guidance.

eBay Inc. (Nasdaq: EBAY) shares are up after beating quarterly expectations and guiding third-quarter revenue slightly higher.

SanDisk Corp. (Nasdaq: SNDK) shares are down after it beat Q2 expectations, but gave cautious guidance.

Qualcomm Inc. (Nasdaq: QCOM) shares are falling after it beat expectations, but only guided in-line, amid analyst concerns about average selling prices.

– The 24/7 Wall St. Team

Posted on: July 23, 2009 – 7:47 am in Pre-Market Activity, Trading Alert, , , , , , , ,

Top Analyst Downgrades (ARLP, BJS, CHKP, EP, FST, INFY, ISRG, STAR)

These are some of the top pre-market analyst downgrades and negative research calls from Wall Street we have seen early this Tuesday morning:

Alliance Resource (ARLP) Cut to Market Perform at Wachovia.
BJ Services (BJS) Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.
Checkpoint Software (CHKP) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.
El Paso (EP) Cut to Market Perform at Wachovia.
Forest Oil (FST) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
Infosys Tech (INFY) Cut to Hold at Societe Generale.
Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) Cut to Market Perfoirm at JMP Securities.
Starent Networks (STAR) Cut to Hold at Cantor Fitzgerald.

JON C. OGG

Posted on: April 28, 2009 – 6:44 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , ,

Top Analyst Upgrades (ARUN, CTV, DPS, ESRX, GENZ, ISRG, LRCX, MXIM, NUAN)

These are some of the top analyst upgrades and positive research calls we have seen this Tuesday morning from Wall Street:

Aruba Networks (ARUN) Raised to Neutral at JPMorgan.
CommScope (CTV) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
Dr Pepper Snapple (DPS) Raised to Neutral at JPMorgan.
Express Scripts (ESRX) Raised to Buy at UBS.
Genzyme (GENZ) Started as Buy at Collins Stewart.
Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) Raised to Buy at Lazard.
Lam Research (LRCX) Raised to Outperform at Oppenheimer.
Maxim (MXIM) Raised to Buy at Canaccord.
Nuance Communications (NUAN) Started as Buy at Canaccord.

JON C. OGG

Posted on: April 14, 2009 – 7:30 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , , ,

Top Analyst Downgrades (ANSS, CBT, ED, CFR, DUK, LLY, EL, GGP, HW, ISRG, OMTR, RBS)

These are some of the top analyst downgrades and cautious research calls we have seen from Wall Street early this Tuesday morning:

Ansys (ANSS) Cut to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan.
Cabot (CBT) Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.
Consolidated Edison (ED) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Cullen/Frost Bankers (CFR) Cut to Underperform at Oppenheimer.
Duke Energy (DUK) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Eli Lilly (LLY) Cut to Underperform at Leerink Swann.
Estee Lauder (EL) Cut to Sell at UBS.
General Growth Properties (GGP) Cut to Market Perform at Wachovia.
Headwater (HW) Cut to Hold at Canaccord Adams.
Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) Cut to Market Perform at Leerink Swann.
Omniture (OMTR) Cut to Hold at Citigroup.
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) Cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

JON C. OGG

Posted on: April 7, 2009 – 6:59 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , , , , , ,

52-Week Low Club (AXP, COF, NILE, CLX, RDEN, FDX, HOG, ISRG, KF, MSCC, PII, RAX, RNWK, STX)

Burning_money_pic_3Today’s market looked more like an advanced yo-yo session rather than a regular stock market trading day.  Since stocks gapped down so much, there were many new names on the list of 52-week lows.  What is interesting is that many other stocks hit 52-week lows but bounced back to being positive on the day.

  • American Express (NYSE: AXP) and Capital One (NYSE: COF) both graced the list of lows as GE’s consumer losses only added fuel to the fire.
  • Blue Nile Inc. (NASDAQ: NILE) tankola, again.  Forget Valentine’s Day this year.
  • Clorox Co. (NYSE: CLX) burns investors’ eyes as bad as it burns its client’s eyes.
  • Elizabeth Arden (NASDAQ: RDEN) keeps falling after the bad news from it and its peers over the last week and a half.  Brittney Spears can’t help.
  • FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) keeps dropping. 
  • Harley Davidson (NYSE: HOG) caught another case of HAGS and is believed to be in trouble all year after earnings.
  • Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG) keeps getting pounded.  Down close to 70% from highs now.  Leonardo DaVinci would now sue over the use of his name.
  • The Korea Fund (NYSE: KF) was down almost 7%.  We don’t like to put country funds or ETF’s today, but that Kim Chee from last night just didn’t sit well today.
  • Microsemi (NASDAQ: MSCC) on earnings warning.
  • Polaris Industries (NYSE: PII)… weak HOG sales from Harley, weak motorcycle and snowmobile relative?  Works every time.
  • Rackspace Hosting (NYSE: RAX)… Racking the Rackers, in the server room….
  • RealNetworks (NASDAQ: RNWK), a surprise but think of peers.  And when was the last time you bought anything from them?
  • Seagate Technology (NYSE: STX) again… with the earnings it put up this week, you can call it Floodgate.

Jon C. Ogg
January 23, 2009

Posted on: January 23, 2009 – 4:14 pm in HI/LOW, Trading Alert, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The 52-Week Low Club (HELE)(ISRG)(VAR)

Sunset_3Helen of Troy (HELE) Bad quarter. Sells off to $`12.01 from 52-week high of $24.70.

Intuitive Surgical  (ISRG) Weak sales numbers. Drops to $99.75 from 52-week low of $357.98.

Varian (VAR) Healthcare equipment companies get hurt on spending drop expectations. Falls to $30.04 from 52-week high of $65.84.

Douglas A. McIntyre

–

Posted on: January 8, 2009 – 4:04 pm in HI/LOW, , ,

Looking for the Next Intuitive Surgical After The Barron’s Pan (ISRG, HNSN, NUVA)

Intuitive_surgical_logoThis weekend and this last week has created a lot of buzz around the mighty medical robotics player Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG).  For starters, it did beat earnings and it raised 2008 guidance.  But this weekend there is an article as the cover story of Barron’s questioning its long-term valuations.  While the article isn’t 100% of a total panning of the company, it does show some discrepancies over what the company believes is the total market opportunity versus what some independents believe.

It seems that Intuitive has its believers and its critics, and to prove it the most recent short data (about to be old) showed that almost 4.1 million shares (over 10% of the float) is listed as being in the short interest.  This is what happens after stocks keep an interest and fascination after a rise of 20-times or more in the stock price in less than a decade.

We wanted to discuss two other stocks that are related to this stock to see if there are still opportunities out there in the sector.  The two we are reviewing here are Hansen Medical Inc. (NASDAQ: HNSN) and NuVasive Inc. (NASDAQ: NUVA).

Read More »

Posted on: July 27, 2008 – 10:52 am in Healthcare, Medical, , ,

The Week’s Top BioHealth Issues For Next Week (PFE, TEVA, CRA, IVGN, CMED, ANPI, ISRG, VVUS, CELG)

One key stock to watch next week is Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE). While it has been in the land of the boring forever, watchers are looking to see if it will put in a rival bid over the $4.6 Billion Daiichi Sankyo bid from Japan for a majority stake in India’s number one generic drug maker Ranbaxy.

Speaking of Generics, Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NASDAQ: TEVA) was weak all week after Mylan Inc. (NYSE: MYL) has signed a pact with India’s NATCO Pharma Ltd. to produce a generic version of Teva’s multiple sclerosis treatment called Copaxone.  As this  was an old favorite buy in generic investor hearts you can imagine this will be covered frequently this next week since the stock is now 15% off of its highs and closer to a 52-week low.

We know that Invitrogen (NASDAQ: IVGN) is buying Applera’s Applied Biosystems (NYSE: ABI) unit.  But what about Celera Group (NYSE: CRA)?  Traders may be looking for the "next merger candidate"and that might fit logically.

China Medical Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: CMED) went up big on earnings news this last week and continued to rise even by the end of the week further than the initial reaction.  Technicians may have this one on a momentum screen now.

Angiotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ANPI) may be of interest after it showed some positive stent data, and its launch of QUILL may all help the perceptions next week on this small molecule company.

It’s always good to know what short sellers are targeting.  The last short selling report showed a huge drop off in the short interest compared to prior reports in large cap biotech stocks like Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN), Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB), Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG), and others.  FULL SHORT INTEREST DETAILS HERE.

Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG) was defended by William Blair this last week and shares managed to rally during the week after that news was out.  After seeing a 3-month low traders may focus here next week as a short bottom fishing attempt.

Vivus Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS) is hanging tough after a huge gap up in its QNEXA treatment for obesity and for diabetics.  Shares barely closed down on the week, rather impressive for a small cap with a history of not holding gains.  Traders will definitely be keeping their radar eyes on this one for opportunities to buy it up or short it.

Lastly, there was a lot of news on the rheumatoid arthritis front with many companies delivering solid data for drug studies in the debilitating area from companies such as Abbott Laboratories, Array, Eli Lilly, Incyte, J&J, Schering-Plough, and Roche.  Much of the news seems overlooked by the end of a summer week, so watch these for next week.  Solid Developments for Rheumatoid Arthritis (ABT, ARRY, LLY, INCY, JNJ, SGP, RHHBY)

Jon C. Ogg
June 14, 2008

Posted on: June 14, 2008 – 7:31 am in Biotech, Drug companies, The Week, , , , , , , , ,

Top 10 Pre-Market Analyst Calls (AA, ACAS, NLY, ARRS, BYD, CCJ, INTU, ISRG, MCHP, PETM)

These are ten of the analyst calls we are focusing on this Wednesday morning in the early pre-market hours:

  • Alcoa (NYSE: AA) cut to Neutral at JP Morgan.
  • American Capital (NASDAQ: ACAS) started as Neutral at Robert W. Baird.
  • Annaly Mortgage (NYSE: NLY) cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
  • Arris (NASDAQ: ARRS) cut to Perform at Oppenheimer.
  • Boyd Gaming (NYSE: BYD) raised to Neutral at Banc of America.
  • Cameco (NYSE: CCJ) raised to Buy at UBS.
  • Intuit (NASDAQ: INTU) started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
  • Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG) started as Outperform at William Blair.
  • Microchip (NASDAQ: MCHP) cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
  • PETsMART (NASDAQ: PETM) raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.

Jon C. Ogg
June 11, 2008

Posted on: June 11, 2008 – 6:31 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , , , ,

Inuitive Surgical Earnings To Set Stock Status (ISRG)

After today’s close, we’ll see earnings out of Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG). The estimates for the DaVinci robotic surgical device maker from First Call are $0.98 EPS on $178.21 million in revenues.  Next quarter estimates are $1.19 EPS on $202.76 million in revenues. Estimates for fiscal Dec-2008 are $5.12 EPS on $857.30 million in revenues.

As this one has stayed strong and been up huge, this is well above key longer-term  moving average we like to use for trend establishments.  The 50-day moving average is $306.41 and the 200-day moving average is $267.04.  With shares flirting at $349.11, it’s a long way above those to determine key long-term support levels.  Options expire tomorrow, but traders appear to be braced for a move of $19.00 to $21.00 in either direction.

Analysts have an average price target north of $356.00.  Intuitive Surgical’s 52-week trading range is $120.54 to $359.59. 

This has been a major growth stock, and the earnings report here will either allow that status to prevail or it will seek a "market adjustment."  While that is stating the obvious, this earnings and guidance call could be a critical juncture for the stock.  As this stock has risen more than 20-fold over the last 5-years, you can imagine that this one will be closely watched.  Throw that in with charity hospitals and other quasi non-profit hospitals recently being under some tighter spending, and you’ve got a horse race. 

With 2.5 million shares short and with a fairly low open interest in current month stock options, the trading activity is likely to be the value and growth buyers forming their longer-term opinions after such a long stock run.

Jon C. Ogg
April 17, 2008

Jon Ogg produces the Special Situation Investing Newsletter.  He can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com and he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Posted on: April 17, 2008 – 1:12 pm in Earnings, Medical,

Top 10 Pre-Market Analyst Calls (ADCT, ABC, CAH, MCK, CRUS, LNG, HAIN, ISRG, NFS, PTR, VMED, WLK)

These are the top individual analyst calls we are focusing on this Thursday morning in pre-market trading:

  • ADC Telecom (NASDAQ: ADCT) raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank.
  • AmerisourceBergen (NYSE: ABC), Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH), and McKesson (NYSE: MCK) were all downgraded to Hold from Buy at Citigroup.
  • Cirrus Logic (NASDAQ: CRUS) Cut to Perform from Outperform at Oppenheimer.
  • Cheniere Energy (NYSE: LNG) cut to Equalweight from Overweight at Lehman.
  • Hain Celestial (NASDAQ: HAIN) Cut to Underweight at JP Morgan.
  • Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG) started as Buy at Lazard; started as Market Outperform at JMP Securities.
  • Nationwide Financial (NYSE: NFS) Raised to Buy from Neutral at UBS.
  • PetroChina (NYSE: PTR) cut to Sell at Citigroup.
  • Virgin Media (NASDAQ: VMED) cut to Neutral at Jefferies,
  • Westlake Chemical (NYSE: WLK) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.

Jon C. Ogg
April 10, 2008

Posted on: April 10, 2008 – 6:54 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Intuitive Surgical Braces For Earnings (ISRG)

Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ: ISRG) is set to report earnings after the close on Thursday.  Shares closed at $235.00 Wednesday, down from a 52-week high of $359.59 and down from a December 31 close of $323.00.

First Call has estimates at $1.04 EPS on $175.9 million in revenues.  As far as Q1-2008, estimates are $0.98 EPS on $172.6 million revenues. Its fiscal-2008 estimates are $4.70 EPS on $811.1 million in revenues, representing an estimated 34% earnings per share growth and 38% revenue growth for 2008.

While everyone will be focused on Google earnings, this is at a critical juncture as a stock.  Intuitive Surgical makes the da Vinci surgical system for urologic, cardiothoracic, gynecologic, and general surgeries.  The problem is that the stock is up  almost twenty-fold over the last five-years and we just saw another quasi-robotic medical products competitor get crushed last night. 

The short interest for mid-January fell slightly to 1.915 million shares.  If options are any accurate guide, this stock could easily see a move of $22 or more in either direction after earnings.  Analysts still have an average price target north of $320 on Intuitive Surgical.  The company closed out Wednesday with a 50 forward P/E ratio, so Wall Street is going to keep demands high for the company in an environment where investors want more safety.

Jon C. Ogg
January 30, 2008

Posted on: January 30, 2008 – 6:12 pm in Earnings, Medical, , ,

Top 10 Pre-Market Analyst Calls (BAX, BRK/A, BRK-A, EAT, GU, HTX, INFY, ISRG, SAT, SBUX, WIT)

These are not the only impact analyst calls this Tuesday, but these are the ones 247WallSt.com is focusing on in early pre-market trading:

  • Baxter (BAX) raised to Buy from Hold at Citigroup.
  • Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) started as HOLD at Citigroup.
  • Brinker (EAT) downgraded to Underweight from Hold at Keybanc.
  • Gushan Environmental Energy (GU) started as Buy at Soleil.
  • Hutchison Telecom (HTX) raised to Buy from Sell at Citigroup.
  • Infosys (INFY) raised to Overweight from Equal-Weight at Lehman.
  • Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Wachovia.
  • Satyam Computer (SAY) raised to Overweight from Underweight at Lehman.
  • Starbucks (SBUX) raised to Neutral from Sell at Banc of America.
  • Wipro (WIT) raised to Overweight from Underweight at Lehman.

Jon C. Ogg
January 8, 2008

Posted on: January 8, 2008 – 7:44 am in Analyst Calls, , , , , , , , , , ,

Cramer’s Cheap Expensive Stocks (GOOG, ISRG, BIDU)

On tonight’s MAD MONEY on CNBC, Jim Cramer was touting growth stocks he deems cheap, even though the prices sound high.

Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) is Cramer’s first cheap growth stock.  With 34% long-term growth, and some fund managers paying 50-times earnings for that growth rate, his assumption to get to $750 is only 37-times 2008 and he thinks it is cheap and headed higher.  Cramer thought he’d have seen $675 if the market wasn’t so bad Friday.  It’s also a window dressing stock, similar to the list we recently gave.  We also gave our recent  "How long until $1,000" question in relation to higher and higher analyst targets.

His second stock that is still cheap is Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) even at $285 per share.  We noted "Bionic Man Earnings" on this one last week. The stock held up on Friday and the momentum investors think it may be over, but they are wrong.  He loves the robotic surgery da Vinci device that allows for open heart procedures to be done with micro-incisions and that shortens hospital stays drastically.  He also likes the 40% recurring sales after the da Vinci system sales are made for disposable parts and only 17 systems sold overseas last quarter.  If you use forward earnings estimates its PEG ratio is about 1.5, and that is cheap for the growth here according to Cramer.

On a call-in, Cramer said that despite the multiples, Baidu.com (NASDAQ:BIDU) shares are heading higher.  You’ll have to chase that one on your own.  The Alibaba IPO may draw more attention to the Chinese web space, but we noted previous lessons from the dot.com bubble here previously and noted how the stock was fighting to hold $300 recently.  This company will have to do much more than just beat its forward earnings.

Jon C. Ogg
October 22, 2007

Posted on: October 22, 2007 – 5:41 pm in Cramer, , , , , , ,

Key Earnings Reactions (October 19, 2007)

(AMD) Advanced Micro Devices -$0.71 EPS vs -$0.62 est.
(BSX) Boston Scientific $0.20 EPS vs $0.07 guidance.
(CAT) Caterpillar $1.40 EPS vs $1.43 est.; narrows 2007 guidance.
(FITB) Fifth Third $0.71 EPS vs $0.68 est.
(GOOG) Google traded up 1% after beating earnings; added 2,100 jobs.
(HOG) Harley Davidson $1.07 EPS vs $1.05 est.; cautious near-term.
(HON) Honeywell $0.81 EPS vs $0.81 est.
(ISRG) Intuitive Surgical traded up almost 5% after beating earnings and raising guidance.
(MMM) 3M $1.29 EPS vs. $1.28 est.; guidance looks raised but that is on gains.
(PMCS) PMC-Sierra slightly beat estimates but CEO retiring; stock traded up marginally.
(SLB) Schlumberger $1.09 EPS vs $1.07 est.
(SNDK) SanDisk indicating down after beating earnings and seeing slight drop in pricing.
(WB) Wachovia $1.05 EPS vs $1.03 est.; was $0.90 after items.
(XLNX) Xilinx $0.30 EPS vs $0.29 est.
(XRX) Xerox $0.27 EPS vs. $0.26 est.

Jon C. Ogg
October 19, 2007

Posted on: October 19, 2007 – 6:44 am in Earnings, Pre-Market Activity, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Intuitive Surgical Earnings Stronger Than The Bionic Man (ISRG)

Intuitive Surgical Inc. (NASDAQ:ISRG) saw shares rise a monster 8.3% to $256.44 in active trading ahead of earnings.  After the earnings report, it appears shares are trading up another 4.9% in after-hours at $269.00 to new highs.  Cramer just covered this one positively in a call-in when he was touting the other medical stocks and this was also one of his fantasy stock picks.

The company posted $1.04 EPS on revenues $156.9 million.  Analysts were looking for $0.80 EPS and $144 million revenues.  This is robotic surgical operations under the da Vinci brand that is kicking you know what.  The company is also raising guidance to 55% to 58% sales growth rather than its prior 45% to 50% projections. 

This stock is now trading above almost all brokerage firm price targets, so analysts are going to have to hike targets to keep up with it if they dont want to do the "downgrade on valuations" calls.  The valuations on this are still astronomical, so its hard to imagine with close to a $10+ Billion market cap that this can run another 200% like it has over the last year. We’ll see.

Jon C. Ogg
October 18, 2007

Posted on: October 18, 2007 – 5:09 pm in Earnings, Medical,

Jim Cramer’s Fantasy Football Stock Picks (VMW, RIMM, AAPL, ISRG)

On tonight’s MAD MONEY, Jim Cramer continued his ‘fantasy football draft pick’ methodology in picking stocks for a portfolio that will withstand a recession.  Tonight after a strong market he said you need some Offensive players with scoring ability.  Here are his wide receiver picks that keep popping up in the media that make the biggest plays (capital growth):

  • Research-in-Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM), one of the ‘New Four Horsemen of Tech’ with subscribers rising rapidly and hardware sales going gangbusters.
  • Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), also one of CRAMER’S TOP PICKS FOR 2007.  iPhones and Macs are selling unbelievable well.
  • Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ:ISRG) is his pick in Medical Tech for the DaVinci robot.
  • VMware (NYSE:VMW) as the rookie of the year after an explosive IPO and leader in Virtualization.

Last night he gave his picks that were not defensive, but still the leaders as the quarterback.  But before that he gave his solid Defensive linemen picks that are defensive stock picks, and four of those were in our own LIST OF 17 DEFENSIVE STOCKS that we modified last Friday morning.  Sixteen of those seventeen stocks closed up today.

Jon C. Ogg
September 11, 2007

Jon Ogg produces the 24/7 Wall St. SPECIAL SITUATION INVESTING NEWSLETTER; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

Posted on: September 11, 2007 – 5:17 pm in Cramer, Defensive Stocks, , , , , , ,