Posts for Ticker ‘JNJ’

Buffett & Berkshire Hathaway Q3-2009 Holdings (BRK-A, BRK-B, GCI, GE, GSK, HD, IR, IRM, JNJ, KFT, LOW, MCO, NLC, NKE, NSC, NRG)

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A)(BRK-B) has its Q3-2009 public equity holdings as of September 30, 2009.  In our group “A to F” we noted some interim changes in the lot.  Here are Warren Buffett’s holdings and accompanying notes for the group ‘G to O.’

  • Gannett Co. (NYSE: GCI) 3.447 million shares, same as before.
  • General Electric Corp. (NYSE: GE) 7.777 million shares is the same as before, but does not include the huge preferred investment from late 2008.
  • GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) 1.51 million shares, same as before.
  • Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) 2.757 million, same as last quarter.
  • Ingersoll-Rand (NYSE: IR) 636,600 shares; WAY DOWN from the 7.78 million listed last quarter.
  • Iron Mountain (NYSE: IRM) 3.3722 million shares, same as before.
  • Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) was just over 36.91 million shares; Same as last quarter and still well under the 62 million shares at one point in 2008.
  • Kraft Foods (NYSE: KFT) over 138 million; same as last quarter.
  • Lowe’s Companies (NYSE: LOW) 6.5 million shares, same as last quarter.
  • M&T Bank Corp. (NYSE: MTB) 6.71 million shares, same as before.
  • Moody’s (NYSE: MCO) was listed as over 39.2 million shares, but that is WAY DOWN from the 48 million last quarter.  Be advised that he has noted sales and hinted at more sales here.
  • Nalco Holding (NYSE: NLC) 9.0 million shares, same as last quarter.
  • Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) 7.641 million shares, same as before.
  • Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC) 1.933 million shares, same as before, but we already know Buffett has or is selling out of non-BNSF shares in rail companies.
  • NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG) 7.2 million, same as before.

BUFFETT HOLDINGS A to F

BUFFETT HOLDINGS P to Z

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

JON C. OGG

Posted on: November 16, 2009 – 4:48 pm in Activist Investor, Buffett, Conglomerates, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Applied Materials (AMAT): We Made Money But You’re Fired

bearApplied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) can be added to the long list of American companies that made a profit in the last quarter and then fired a significant part of their workforces. It is a disturbing trend that will make it harder for the US economy to recover.

Applied Materials said it expected its fiscal year sales to be 30% higher. It then let go nearly 1,500 people. Read More »

Posted on: November 12, 2009 – 5:48 am in Economy, Labor & Unions, , , ,

Media Digest 11/4/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

newspaperReuters:   Opel must now arrange for GM’s unexpected ownership

Reuters:   The Fed will probably keep its “easy money” program.

Reuters:   Toyota (NYSE:TM) will pull out of Formula 1 racing.

Reuters:   The IEA will cut its long-term oil demand outlook. Read More »

Posted on: November 4, 2009 – 5:34 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The Layoff Culture Lives On

bearEconomists still expect layoffs in the US and Europe to slow as the recovery gains momentum. Pessimists among experts on GDP growth and job losses believe that the major risk of a double-dip recession is that unemployment will keep rising well beyond the middle of next year. Read More »

Posted on: November 4, 2009 – 4:42 am in Editor's Picks, Mergers and Buy Outs, , , , , , , , ,

The 100 Hardest Working Brands In The World

hersheyThere are a number of ways to rank brand values. One of the most important is the level at which a brand contributes to the market value of a public company.

24/7 Wall St. asked Corebrand, the brand research and consulting firm, to look at the top 100 brands based their contribution to market capitalizaton. Using this method, the hardest working brand was Hershey (NYSE:HSY), followed  by Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) and Harley-Davidson (NYSE:HOG)

Corebrand described the process briefly to 24/7 Wall. St.

24/7 Wall St.: Corebard often refers to the brands on this list as the”hardest working brands”. How did you come to that description?

Corebrand: There are a lot of people measuring and examining the “strongest brands” or the “most valuable brands”.  Our opinion is that examining one without the other is somewhat meaningless.  How “strong” a brand is nice to know but not very relevant unless you understand how that strength benefits business.  Similarly, “value” is little more than a measure of corporate size unless you understand the drivers of that value and how to influence it. By examining the strength of the brand and it’s contribution to total market value, we can help companies and their leadership manage that strength and value over time.

24/7 Wall St.: Is there any advantage or disadvantage to having a brand value be a very large percentage of market cap in the present and as an indication of a company’s future performance?

Corebrand: The brand will need to be in balance with the rest of the company’s assets.  A company should strive to have it’s brand strong enough to fend off competitors or changing market conditions but not so strong that it becomes overly dependent on the brand as a single driver of value.  If a company can achieve and maintain its appropriate maximum strength without becoming over-dependent, it will see greater returns in bull markets and retain greater value in bear markets.

The list: Read More »

Posted on: October 20, 2009 – 5:06 pm in Research, Uncategorized, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Palomar Dumped by J&J (PMTI, JNJ)

Burning Money PicPalomar Medical Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: PMTI) is getting hit very hard.  The company issued a press release saying “Palomar to Commercialize FDA Cleared Over-The-Counter Home Use Wrinkle Treatment Laser Device Without Johnson & Johnson.”  It turns out that Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) dumped Palomar, just like a bride not showing up to an engagement party.
Read More »

Posted on: October 16, 2009 – 10:16 am in Medical, Trading Alert, ,

Top Day Trader Alert Stocks (CIT, C, GS, JNJ, NVAX, VNDA, VASC)

These are this morning’s top day trader alert stocks.  We have more detailed price and volume analysis on each stock link over at VSInvestor.com:

CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT) is getting crushed and is back under $1.00 on its news this morning.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) is down almost 2% on the Meredith Whitney downgrade.

Citigroup, Inc. (NYSE: C) is up marginally despite an analyst “BUY” recommendation.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is down 2.5% at $60.95 despite beating earnings because revenues were light and ‘raised guidance’ looks effectively in-line.

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ: NVAX) is rising over 7% on a small NIH grant.

Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VNDA) is one of this morning’s top gainers on a a Novartis pact.

Vascular Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: VASC) is another top percentage gainer on FDA marketing approval for its next-generation Guardian II Hemostasis valve.

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

JON C. OGG
OCTOBER 13, 2009

Posted on: October 13, 2009 – 9:15 am in After-Hours Activity, Pre-Market Activity, Trading Alert, , , , , , ,

The Path to DJIA 10,000 (C, AIG, JNJ, JPM, IBM, NWS, DIA)

Bull and Bear ImageThe Dow Jones Industrial Average is within sight of the psychological 10,000 mark.  Again. This is a price-weighted index rather than a market cap-weighted index, which makes the index not as representative of the overall market.  Yet when Joe Public asks “what did the market do today?” that almost always means what the Dow Jones Industrial Average did.  And today the DJIA came within 1% of hitting the DJIA 10,000 mark.  This level is a psychological event and not a key technical event, and its member constituency earnings this week could easily make that 10,000 mark come true.  What is funny (or sad) is that if the most recent changes to the index weren’t made, we would have already seen the DJIA hit the mark.
Read More »

Posted on: October 12, 2009 – 12:59 pm in ETF, Editor's Picks, Index, , , , , , ,

DJIA Component Earnings on Deck (AA, INTC, JNJ, JPM, IBM, BAC, GE, C)

NYSE Floor ImageThisis going to be a very key earnings week.  The only DJIA component to report its Q3 period report so far has been Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA).  But we have earnings this week coming from six DJIA components: Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), International Business Machines (NYSE: IBM), Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC), and General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE).  Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) is no longer a DJIA component, but that is still a recent change.
Read More »

Posted on: October 11, 2009 – 7:35 am in Calendar, Earnings, Index, , , , , , , ,

Next Week’s Top 11 Earnings (INTC, JNJ, ABT, JPM, C, GS, GOOG, IBM, BAC, GE, HAL)

Bull and Bear ImageWe may have had earnings season officially start with Alcoa this week, but next week will be the real week for the launch of earnings season.  We now have an index to track the top 500 companies by market cap on a real-time basis via the 24/7 Wall St. Real-Time 500, and these top 10 earnings next week are generally among the top market caps and/or trading volumes.  In technology we have to look forward to Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC), Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), and IBM (NYSE: IBM).  General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) is the conglomerate and Halliburton Company (NYSE: HAL) is the oil entrant.  Financial leaders JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C), Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE: GS), and Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC) are all due.  Tied to BioHealth are Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) and Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) on deck.

We have detailed the estimates on an earnings basis as far as estimates from Thomson Reuters, and we have also included how much these stocks have rallied since the start of the July quarter and how much these are up from the March 9 closing date that has been widely recognized as the last day of the mayhem before the rapid snap-back rally came into play.
Read More »

Posted on: October 9, 2009 – 12:33 pm in Banking, Calendar, Conglomerates, Drug companies, Earnings, Financial Stocks, Internet, Technology Companies, , , , , , , , , , ,

Major Market Movers (9/30/2009) (JNJ)(CIT)(HOKU)

Volume Spike Investor is watching some stocks which should move at the open.

These include Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) (details), CIT (CIT) (details), Hoku Scientific (HOKU) (details), China-Biotics (CHBT), and and TerreStar Networks (TSTR) (details).

Douglas A. McIntyre

Posted on: September 30, 2009 – 8:16 am in Pre-Market Activity, , , , , , ,

Media Digest 9/30/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NY Times, FT, Bloomberg

newspaperReuters:   China celebrated 60 years of communist rule as a capitalist economy.

Reuters:   The IMF cut global debt write-offs to $3.4 trillion.

Reuters:   CIT (CIT) is close to a deal to give the company to bondholders. Read More »

Posted on: September 30, 2009 – 4:04 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

News Digest 9/28/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

newspaperReuters:   Solvay sold its drug unit to Abbott (ABT) foe $6.6 billion.

Reuters:   Kraft (KFT) will launch a hostile bid for Cadbury.

Reuters:   The World Bank said not to take the dollar’s role in the global economy for granted.

Reuters:   Crucell got a $302 million investment from J&J (JNJ) Read More »

Posted on: September 28, 2009 – 4:04 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , ,

Media Digest 9/14/2009

newspaperReuters:   Obama is trying to push Wall St. reform.

Reuters:   German aid for Opel will go in part to Russia for operations there.

Reuters:   A global poll shows support for stimulus packages.

Reuters:   J&J (JNJ) is in talks to cut its $1.5 billion Elan investment. Read More »

Posted on: September 14, 2009 – 4:01 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The 100 Most Valuable Brands Of 2009?

bearSeveral consulting firms post annual figures for the world’s most valuable brands. The two best known are probably the Interbrand and BrandZ surveys. They are notably different, up until now at least. BrandZ includes a number of large brands from Asia. Interbrand does not.

24/7 Wall St. has put together a list of the most valuable brands of 2009 by looking at valuation calculations from a number of sources. Then a base valuation was taken from the 2008 Interbrand data to fix values for this year and changes from last.

Most methods take into account the future earnings of a brand for its parent company. This is fundamentally a guess particularly during a turbulent period in the global economy. Interbrand’s rule is that a brand most get at least a third of its revenue from outside its country-of-origin. That is arbitrary, particularly as it apply to brands in China.

24/7 Wall St. has made the assumption that the value of most brands have been hurt log-term by the deep recession.  Forward earnings estimates for many of the firms on this list show that. Those brands which post value improvements show much more modest increases than they would be in a stable economy.

Looking at the Interbrand list from last year, it is fair to ask why firms like Nissan, Wal-Mart (WMT) and Red Bull are not present.

Because the brands on this list are taken from names on the Interbrand survey, we have not made a calculation about which companies may be new to their list in 2009 or which may drop off.

Public firms which are part of this ranking include (KO)(IBM)(MSFT)(GOOG)(GE)(NOK)(TM)(INTC)(MCD)(DIS)(HPQ)(AXP)(C)(HMC)(ORCL)(AAPL)(SNE)(PEP)(HBC)(NKE)(UPS)(FDX)(SAP)(DELL)(JPM)(GS)(KL)(EBAY)(SI)(F)(AIG)(AMZN)(CAT)(AVP)(RIMM)(GPS)(TIF)(BP)(SBUX)(JNJ)(MAR)(V)

The 100:  Read More »

Posted on: September 13, 2009 – 9:01 pm in Research, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

M&A: America’s Top Companies Hold $335 Billion Cash (XOM, MSFT, JNJ, PG, BRK-A, IBM, T, AAPL, GOOG, CVX, CSCO, KO, INTC, ORCL, BAC, WFC, JPM, GE, PFE)

Money Stack ImageNow that we are out of the woods in the crash scenario, assuming this week is no ill omen, investors may want to know which of the big companies would start to deploy their billions and billions of dollars in cash for large mergers or strategic bolt-on acquisitions. In all of these companies, we are not taking the long-term or short-term debt obligations into account.  This is merely the cash, cash equivalents, and the long-term investments listed on the books.

But as these are the biggest companies in the world with what should be credible balance sheets (in most cases anyhow), we are also including a second combined figure for “receivables and inventories” for a few of these companies to show what the firms could use for additional sources of capital…. These figures do not include untapped credit lines and shelf registrations which could amount to untold billions more.  Because of this calculation, our figures may differ slightly from what companies have listed  as cash and equivalents.

Can all of this cash go for mergers?  What about for dividends?  No way.  But a large portion of it could be used for mergers and buyouts under the right circumstances.  We removed the companies which are either permanently out of the game of M&A or those which are temporarily out of it.  But of the fourteen mega-caps (over $100 billion in market cap) which we did cover, you would be shocked at the cash balance these companies are sitting on without even considering the total cumulative effect of credit lines, inventories, receivables, and open shelf registrations.  The first total cash figure comes to a whopping $335 billion.  This number is far more if you count the companies with exceptions.

These major companies broken down by cash balance and what sort of merger these could consider are Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG), Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A), International Business Machines (NYSE: IBM), AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX), Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO), Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC), Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL).  Even after a huge rally, $335 billion and then some could go a very long way.
Read More »

Posted on: September 2, 2009 – 5:05 pm in Buffett, Conglomerates, Dividend, Editor's Picks, Large Cap Stocks, Mergers and Buy Outs, Oil & Gas, Private Equity, Rumors, Stock Buybacks, Technology Companies, Value Investing, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Defensive Stocks Offering No Haven (WMT, PEP, KO, TAP, KFT, CAG, CPB, HRL, MCD, MO, VGR, RAI, PG, CL, MRK, JNJ, NVO)

Burning Money PicWasn’t it just last week that we were up eight days in a row on the DJIA?  And now we have a sell-the-news reaction to the recent growth numbers.  Maybe it is because we ran too far too fast and because we started pricing in robust growth rather than muted growth.  But generally when equities have stayed hot and then start to sell off in profit taking or in case things got too heated, you at least see a migration into some of the defensive stocks.  That is not the case.  In our normal 16 Defensive Go-To Stocks, only ONE was up.  If you throw in Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) as the ultimate defensive stock like we usually do, then you have only TWO of 17 trading up on the day….

PEPSICO INC (NYSE: PEP) $56.1805.. Down $0.4895; -0.86%
COCA COLA CO (NYSE: KO) $48.58.. Down $0.19; -0.39%
MOLSON COORS CO. (NYSE: TAP) $47.01.. Down $0.37; -0.78%
KRAFT FOODS INC. (NYSE: KFT) $28.08..  Down $0.27; -0.95%
CONAGRA FOOD INC. (NYSE: CAG) $20.13.. Down $0.40; -1.95%
CAMPBELL SOUP CO. (NYSE: CPB) $30.86.. Down $0.50; -1.59%
HORMEL FOODS CORP. (NYSE: HRL) $37.00..    Up 0.05; +0.14%
MCDONALDS CORP. (NYSE: MCD) $55.72.. Down $0.51; -0.92%
ALTRIA GROUP INC. (NYSE: MO) $18.13.. Down $0.16; -0.83%
VECTOR GROUP LTD. (NYSE: VGR) $15.71.. Down $0.07; -0.44%
REYNOLDS AMERICAN (NYSE: RAI) $45.17.. Down $0.54; -1.18%
PROCTER GAMBLE CO. (NYSE: PG) $53.05.. Down $1.06; -1.96%
COLGATE PALMOLIVE (NYSE: CL) $71.82.. Down $0.89; -1.21%
MERCK CO INC. (NYSE: MRK) $31.79.. Down $0.64; -1.97%
JOHNSON & JOHNSON (NYSE: JNJ) $59.88.. Down $0.56; -0.92%
NOVO NORDISK (NYSE: NVO) $60.024.. Down $0.986; -1.62%

Oddly enough, Wal-Mart is the ONLY one of the DJIA 30 components trading higher this afternoon.

JON C. OGG
SEPTEMBER 1, 2009

Posted on: September 1, 2009 – 2:31 pm in Defensive Stocks, Trading Alert, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Media Digest 8/20/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg

newspaperReuters:   UBS (UBS) shares may fall when the Swiss government sells out.

Reuters:   The US deficit estimate was trimmed to $1.59 trillion.

Reuters:   A homeowner sued Wells Fargo (WFC) over a credit line.

Reuters:   AIG (AIG) was sued by policyholders over the Madoff fraud. Read More »

Posted on: August 20, 2009 – 3:55 am in Press Digest, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Berkshire Hathaway & Buffett Q2-2009 Holdings G to O (BRK-A, GCI, GE, GSK, HD, IR, IRM, JNJ, KFT, LOW, MTB, MCO, NLC, NKE, NSC, NRG)

Buffett ImageBerkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A)(BRK-B) has released its Q2-2009  public equity holdings as of June 30, 2009.  There are some portfolio changes that have been seen here from the end of Q1 and we have broken these down into 3 groups of ‘A to F’ and  ‘G to O’ and ‘P to Z’ so these are easier to see on one page.  Here are Warren Buffett’s holdings and accompanying notes for the group ‘G to O.’

  • Gannett Co. (NYSE: GCI) 3.447 million shares, same as before.
  • General Electric Corp. (NYSE: GE) 7.777 million shares is the same as before, but does not include the preferred investment from late 2008.
  • GlaxoSmithkline (NYSE: GSK) 1.51 million shares, same as before.
  • Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) 2.757 million, actually less than the 3.7 million shares in Q1.
  • Ingersoll-Rand (NYSE: IR) 7.78 million, same as last quarter.
  • Iron Mountain (NYSE: IRM) 3.3722 million shares, same as before.
  • Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) was just over 36.91 million shares; ABOVE the 32.5 million last quarter and above the 28.6 million in Q4.  This is still well under the huge 62 million shares last year.
  • Kraft Foods (NYSE: KFT) over 138 million; looks roughly the same as before.
  • Lowe’s Companies (NYSE: LOW) 6.5 million shares, same as before unlike at Home Depot.
  • M&T Bank Corp. (NYSE: MTB) 6.71 million shares, same as before.
  • Moody’s (NYSE: MCO) 48 million shares are listed as the same as before, however we already know that Buffett CUT THIS SINCE JUNE 30 and may cut it further.
  • Nalco Holding (NYSE: NLC) 9.0 million shares, same as Q1 after the Q1 position had been raised.
  • Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) 7.641 million shares, same as before.
  • Norfolk Southern (NYSE: NSC) 1.933 million shares, same as before.
  • NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG) 7.2 million, same as before.

BUFFETT HOLDINGS ‘A to F’

BUFFETT HOLDINGS ‘P to Z’

JON C. OGG
AUGUST 14, 2009

Posted on: August 14, 2009 – 5:02 pm in Buffett, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Bristol-Myers Gets Key Assets With A Medarex Deal (BMY, MEDX, ABT, JNJ, AMGN, WYE)

biotech

Bristol Myers Inc. (NYSE: BMY) plans to spend $2.4 billion to buy partner Medarex Inc. (Nasdaq: MEDX). It will get a great deal beyond the cancer monoclonal antibody that developed together.

The Medarex pipeline has substantial value.

The monoclonal antibody ipilimumab is by far the main reason that Bristol pulled the trigger. It is currently in Phase III trials for both metastatic melanoma and hormone-refractory prostate cancer. Read More »

Posted on: July 23, 2009 – 9:12 am in Drug companies, Editor's Picks, Mergers and Buy Outs, Pharmaceuticals, , , , ,