24/7 Wall St. » LEN

Existing Home Sales Rise Slightly, Inventories Still Low

Paul Ausick — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 15:10:49 +0000

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports that the seasonally adjusted annual rate of existing home sales in February rose 0.8% to 4.98 million from an upwardly revised total of 4.94 million in January. Sales are up 10.2% year-over-year for the month of February. Last month’s sales are the highest since the tax credit period of November 2009.

Housing inventory reversed its January decline, increasing by 9.6%, a supply of 4.7 months compared with January’s 4.3 month supply. Listed inventory is down 19.2% year-over-year, when there was a 6.4 month supply available.

NAR’s chief economist said:

Job growth in the improving economy and pent-up demand are causing both home sales and rental leasing to rise. Though home prices are rising much faster than rents, historically low mortgage rates are still making home purchases affordable,” he said. “The only headwinds are limited housing inventory, which varies greatly around the country, and credit conditions that remain too restrictive.

According to the NAR, the national median existing home price in February was $173,600, up 11.6% compared with February 2012 and the twelfth consecutive month to see a price gain.

Foreclosed and short sales accounted for 25% of February sales, up from 23% in January and below the 34% share in February 2012. Foreclosures sold at an average 18% discount to the February median price, while short sales sold at a discount of 15%.

The low inventory offers more hope for home builders like Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) and KB Home (NYSE: KBH), both of which reported stronger earnings in the last quarter and strong order backlogs going forward. One cautionary note comes from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), which has noted that supply chain problems in the housing industry have not recovered fully from the collapse.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Housing, Research Tagged: KBH, LEN

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — March 20, 2013: Markets Open Higher, Hold Gains on FOMC Statement (ZNGA, DE, BBY, AAPL, BBRY, ADBE, CTAS, FTEK, WSM, FDX, GIS, LEN, ORCL, JBL, TUMI, KBH, LULU, MOV, ROST, OMPI, VRX, AFFY)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 20:10:43 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning and maintained the upside, anticipating that today’s FOMC statement would not provoke any surprises. And the markets were not surprised (more coverage here). In Europe, the Cypriot parliament’s rejection of the levy on deposits led to another flurry of reports, leaks, and opinions on what it all means. In his budget message, the U.K.’s Chancellor of the Exchequer said the British economy is getting better, but the government has cut the GDP growth forecast from 1.2% to 0.6% for 2013. No major data or news from Asia today.

The U.S. dollar index fell 0.34% today, now at 82.729. The GSCI commodity index is down 1.1% at 643.16, with commodities prices mostly higher today. WTI crude oil closed up 0.9% today, at $92.96 a barrel to close the April contract, after the EIA reported a surprise drop in crude supplies (more coverage here). May futures were up 1.1% at $93.50 a barrel. Brent crude trades up 1.3% at $108.79 a barrel. Natural gas is down 0.5% today at about $3.95 per million BTUs. Gold settled up 0.4% today at $1,611.30 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up about 56 points to 14,511.73 (0.39%), the NASDAQ rose about 25 points (0.78%) to 3,254.19, and the S&P 500 rose 0.67% or more than 10 points to 1,558.71.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) cut to ‘neutral’ at BofA/Merrill Lynch; Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) cut to ‘underperform’ at Wells Fargo; Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) reinstated as ‘outperform’ with a price target of $30 at Credit Suisse; Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) reiterated as ‘outperform’ with a price target of $600 at Credit Suisse; and BlackBerry (NASDAQ: BBRY) raised to ‘overweight’ at Morgan Stanley (more coverage here).

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in several price moves today, including these: Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE) is up 4.1% at $42.40 after posting a new 52-week high of $43.23 earlier today; Cintas Corp. (NASDAQ: CTAS)is down 5.6% at $43.37; Fuel Tech Inc. (NASDAQ: FTEK) is down 5.2% at $4.24; Williams-Sonoma Inc. (NYSE: WSM) is up 10.5% at $49.94 after posting a new 52-week high of $50.49 earlier today; FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) is down 7% at $99.05 (more coverage here); General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS) is up 2.8% at $47.72 after posting a new 52-week high of $48.02 earlier today (more coverage here); and Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) is up 5.8% at $43.81 after posting a new 52-week high of $43.89 earlier today (more coverage here).

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL), Jabil Circuit Inc. (NYSE: JBL), Tumi Holdings Inc. (NYSE: TUMI), KB Home (NYSE: KBH), Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU), Movado Group Inc. (NYSE: MOV), and Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

BlackBerry (NASDAQ: BBRY) is up 7.9% at $16.22. The smartphone maker got a big upgrade today, just before the new phone becomes available in the U.S. More coverage here.

Obagi Medical Products Inc. (NASDAQ: OMPI) is up 28.1% at $19.72 a new 52-week high. The specialty drug firm is being acquired by Canada’s Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. (NYSE: VRX) for $344 million in cash.

Affymax Inc. (NASDAQ: AFFY) is up 20% at $1.26. The drugmaker’s stock was pounded earlier this week when it cut 75% of its workforce. Today’s rise is likely just an adjustment to a 60%+ loss in response to that announcement.

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

8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
8:58 a.m. – Flash PMI manufacturing index
9:00 a.m. – FHFA house price index
10:00 a.m. – Existing home sales
10:00 a.m. – Philadelphia Fed survey
10:00 a.m. – Leading indicators
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
1:00 p.m. – Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) auction
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AAPL, ADBE, AFFY, BBRY, BBY, CTAS, DE, FDX, FTEK, GIS, JBL, KBH, LEN, LULU, MOV, OMPI, ORCL, ROST, TUMI, VRX, WSM, ZNGA

Home Builder Lennar Posts Another Profit

Paul Ausick — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 12:35:19 +0000

Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) reported fiscal first-quarter results before markets opened this morning. The home builder reported quarterly diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.26 on revenues of $989.9 million. In the same period a year ago, Lennar reported EPS of $0.08 on revenue of $724.9 million. This morning’s results also compare to the consensus estimates for EPS of $0.15 and $898 million in revenue.

The company improved its results on virtually every metric: deliveries were up 28% year-over-year for the quarter, new orders rose 34%, backlog is up 82%, gross margin rose 1.2% and operating margin rose 4.1%.

The company’s CEO said:

Our first quarter results clearly reflect continued improvement in the marketplace. Current market conditions are driven by strong demand resulting from low interest rates and attractive home prices, which have led to very affordable monthly payments, compared to increasing rental rates. Supply continues to be limited by low home inventories and fewer competing homebuilders. Accordingly, pricing trends have been positive, as shown by a 13% increase in the average sales price of homes in our backlog at quarter-end, compared to last year.

The company offered no guidance, but reported that its backlog of new homes at the end of the first quarter totaled 4,922, with a dollar value of the backlog at $1.5 billion, more than double in the same period a year ago. The consensus estimates for the second quarter call for EPS of $0.35 on revenues of $1.27 billion.

Shares are up 1.2% in premarket trading, at $41.91 in a 52-week range of $23.48 to $43.22. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $40.60 before today’s results were announced.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Earnings, Housing Tagged: LEN

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — March 19, 2013: Market Closes Mixed Without Solution in Cyprus (JNPR, RIO, CHK, EBAY, EA, FF, SBLK, FDS, WAG, ADBE, CTAS, FTEK, WSM, FDX, GIS, LEN, AFFY, S, HAL, SLB)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 20:05:06 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning but worries about a resolution to the banking crisis in Cyprus soon took over and pushed shares down. In other parts of Europe, Spain’s bad loan ratio rose to 10.78% in January and eurozone economic sentiment came in far below expectations. German 10-year bond yields fell on a rising dollar. In Asia, China’s central bank will drain 39 billion yuan in liquidity with a short-term repurchase agreement after foreign direct investment fell less than expected in the month. In the U.S., the report on housing starts was somewhat better than last month, with an annualized 917,000 new homes being built (more coverage here). The Cypriot parliament rejected a revised tax proposal on bank deposits (more coverage here), so it’s anyone’s guess what tomorrow may bring.

The U.S. dollar index rose 0.35% today, now at 82.983. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.3% at 650.30, with commodities prices mixed today. WTI crude oil closed down 1.7% today, at $92.16 a barrel. Brent crude trades down 1.8% at $107.50 a barrel. Natural gas is up 2.1% today at about $3.96 per million BTUs. Gold settled up 0.4% today at $1,611.30 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up about 4 points to 14,455.90 (0.03%), the NASDAQ fell more than 8 points (-0.26%) to 3,229.10, and the S&P 500 fell -0.24% or nearly 4 points to 1,548.35.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Juniper Networks Inc. (NYSE: JNPR) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; Rio Tinto plc (NYSE: RIO) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) cut to ‘underperform’ at Sterne Agee (more coverage here); eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) raised to ‘buy’ with a price target of $56 at Cantor Fitzgerald; and Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) cut to ‘hold’ at Needham.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in several price moves today, including these: FutureFuel Corp. (NYSE: FF) is down 9.2% at $12.40; Star Bulk Carriers Corp. (NASDAQ: SBLK) is up 5.7% at $6.50; FactSet Research Systems Inc. (NYSE: FDS) is down 5.6% at $92.52; and Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG) is up 5.2% at $44.65 (more coverage here).

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE), Cintas Corp. (NASDAQ: CTAS), Fuel Tech Inc. (NASDAQ: FTEK), Williams-Sonoma Inc. (NYSE: WSM), FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX), General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS), and Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Affymax Inc. (NASDAQ: AFFY) is down 62.6% at $1.09 after posting a new 52-week low of $1.02 earlier today. The drugmaker fired 75% of its workforce today and will begin exploring “strategic alternatives” including bankruptcy. More coverage here.

Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S) is up 2.9% at $6.05 after posting a new 52-week high of $6.09 earlier today. The telecom company had no big news today, but led a sector that was up on a down day.

Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL) is down 3.4% at $39.36. The oil field services company fell on comments from competitor Schlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB) that North American drilling activity was weaker in the first calendar quarter of the year. Halliburton depends far more heavily on North American drilling than does Schlumberger, hence the downturn.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) concludes its two-day meeting this afternoon. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:30 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
2:00 p.m. – FOMC meeting announcement and forecast
2:30 p.m. – Ben Bernanke press conference

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ADBE, AFFY, CHK, CTAS, EA, EBAY, FDS, FDX, FF, FTEK, GIS, HAL, JNPR, LEN, RIO, S, SBLK, SLB, WAG, WSM

Analyst Upgrades Housing Stocks — the Big Chase Marches On (KBH, LEN, TOL, WY, XHB, ITB)

Jon C. Ogg — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 14:50:45 +0000

By now you are likely well aware that the housing crisis is not just over. The housing market is undersupplied and many markets are experiencing huge booms in their pricing. Many economists preach that housing has to be strong for the much broader U.S. economy to be strong. If so, then Raymond James is signaling that housing (and therefore the broader economy) is going to get a boost again in 2013.

Today’s research upgrade was before the report on February housing starts showed an increase of 0.8% for the month. Housing starts tie directly into the home builders because its is a measurement of new construction projects.

Raymond James raised its ratings to Outperform from Market Perform on K.B. Home (NYSE: KBH), Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) and Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL). The firm also raised estimates due to strong housing market pricing trends around the nation. Even Weyerhaeuser Co. (NYSE: WY) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform for its timber gains coming down the road.

We would at least caution investors and traders that today’s upgrade is not just with many of these approaching or at 52-week highs. Most of these are at highs not seen since before the recession took hold. Lennar did not hit a high, and it is now only up six cents at $41.64. Toll Brothers is up 1.4% to $34.64 and is about 10% under its 52-week high, while K.B. Home is up more than 3% at $21.10m and shares reached a new high of $21.44 today.

The Commerce Department on Tuesday morning reported that single-family starts were up by 0.5% to a rate of 618,000 units, and that is the highest reading back to mid-2008. The total housing starts, including multifamily starts, was a rate of 917,000 annually. The number of permits is another indication of housing starts to continue rising, as this was up 4.6% to an annualized reading of 946,000 in February.

The move has shares of SPDR S&P Homebuilders (NYSEMKT: XHB) up 0.4% at $29.90, but the exchange traded fund hit a 52-week high of $30.13 this morning. Actually, go ahead and make that a five-year high! The iShares Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction (NYSEMKT: ITB) also reached a 52-week high of $24.35 this morning.

Filed under: Active Trader, Analyst Calls, Economy, Housing Tagged: featured, ITB, KBH, LEN, TOL, WY, XHB

Homebuilder Stocks Sagging

Paul Ausick — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 19:30:50 +0000

Following about 10 months of mostly steady improvement in share prices, growth has flattened out a little in the homebuilders’ stocks. Upbeat reports on the state of the housing market, historically low interest rates, and the improvement in the overall U.S. economy sent more buyers into the market.

A recent seasonal slowdown has manifested itself, though, and the question for investors is whether or not the market will pick-up or continue its slow pace. Today’s report from the National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) did not sound encouraging, and stocks of Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN), Ryland Group Inc. (NYSE: RYL), Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL), KB Home (NYSE: KBH), Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: HOV), NVR Corp. (NYSE: NVR), and D.R. Horton Inc. (NYSE: DHI) are all down anywhere from about 0.4% (Toll Brothers) to about 4.3% (Hovnanian).

Inventories are low and they are not growing at pre-housing crisis rates. Not even close really. The NAHB attributes that partly to more costly materials, lack of workers, and fewer lots for sale. It’s kind of a vicious circle: new home inventory is low but demand — as measured by foot traffic in the NAHB’s February index — ticked down last month. If it ever picks up again, there won’t be enough inventory to entice buyers over the peak summer selling season, and the whole slow-growth period could keep up for another cycle.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Housing Tagged: DHI, featured, HOV, KBH, LEN, NVR, RYL, TOL

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AMZN, MT, CSCO, GLNG, HOG, JBLU, KBH, LEN, OPEN, PLD, PFE, RMD, SAP, TPX, USB, WBSN, YUM)

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 13:31:45 +0000

These are this Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen from Wall St. research calls.

Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) cut to Outperform at CLSA and maintained Outperform and target raised to $334 from $301 at Credit Suisse.

ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) cut to Underweight at HSBC.

Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) raised to Outperform at Baird.

Golar LNG Ltd. (NASDAQ: GLNG) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks Investment Research.

Harley-Davidson Inc. (NYSE: HOG) cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

JetBlue Airways Corp. (NASDAQ: JBLU) cut to Underperform at Raymond James.

KB Home (NYSE: KBH) raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

OpenTable Inc. (NASDAQ: OPEN) cut to Perform at Oppenheimer.

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) reiterated Buy and raised target to $32 from $28 at Argus.

Prologis Inc. (NYSE: PLD) cut to Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

ResMed Inc. (NYSE: RMD) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

SAP A.G. (NYSE: SAP) reiterated Buy but raised target by $15 to $99 at Argus.

Tempur-Pedic International Inc. (NYSE: TPX) raised to Buy at KeyBanc.

U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB) cut to Neutral at J.P. Morgan.

Websense Inc. (NASDAQ: WBSN) cut to Sell at Topeka Capital.

Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM) cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

Well-known analyst Dick Bove is calling for 30% upside in the major bank stocks.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: AMZN, CSCO, featured, GLNG, HOG, JBLU, KBH, LEN, MT, OPEN, PFE, PLD, RMD, SAP, TPX, USB, WBSN, YUM

Compass Point Boldly Upgrades Homebuilders to Buy (KBH, LEN, SPF, RYL, BZH, PHM)

Lee Jackson — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 14:45:10 +0000

We have written at great length about the resurgence of homebuilding in the United States. Like any other sector, if you go long enough without production, demand catches up with supply. Doomsday scenario forecasters in recent years were saying that the American dream of owning a home is over. Yet, demand has caught up with the lack of supply and the homebuilding sector is on fire.

Based in Washington, D.C., boutique broker-dealer Compass Point specializes in mortgage finance, real estate and real estate investment trusts (REITs), homebuilders and specialty finance. For most firms on Wall St., homebuilding is just another sector they follow. At Compass Point it is the main focus. Today the firm upgraded three names to Buy and raised price targets on three others. Here are the three raised to Buy:

KB Home Inc. (NYSE: KBH) was raised to Buy after an impressive common equity and convertible notes offering. Compass Point does not believe its prior concerns regarding KB Homes liquidity position are warranted. Furthermore, while issues with homebuilding margin still exist, the dramatic rise in fourth-quarter 2012 average selling price (ASP) suggests that KB is successfully executing on its mix shift strategy and selling more expensive homes to move-up buyers and high-quality first-time buyers. The upgrade rating and price target increase reflects belief that KB Home will continue to improve its earnings power and reduce leverage, though the company still has work to do to fully shift its product offering up the price point scale and away from first-time home buyers. KB Home is trading near $18.60, and the Wall St. consensus price target is only $15.

Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Compass Point, which also raised its target to $49.50. The firm notes it is increasingly bullish on Lennar’s homebuilding prospects, and while it does not believe the company’s newly announced multifamily initiatives will add material value to the stock in the near term, the analyst views management’s efforts on this front as further attempts by the company to diversify the income stream, hedge its housing bets and capitalize on what likely will be a side-by-side housing recovery with multifamily. Compass Point thinks the current stock price represents one of the better buying opportunities in the space, particularly given current high valuation levels. Lennar is trading near $42, compared to a consensus target of $41.

Standard Pacific Corp. (NYSE: SPF) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral, and the price target was raised to $10.25 from $7.25. The firm noted that the past several quarters have provided increased clarity into Standard Pacific’s earnings power, the extent of the housing recovery and the high expectations for growth embedded in current valuation levels. Compass Point stated that the firm operates in markets that have been the primary beneficiaries of the housing rebound in 2012, and it caters to higher average selling prices and buyers that are less affected by tight mortgage credit, rather than lower price-point buyers and first-time home buyers. Standard Pacific is above $8 a share, which is above the Wall St. consensus of $7.23.

Compass Point also raised their price target on Ryland Group Inc. (NYSE: RYL) from $38 to $46.50. The Thomson/First Call estimate is $40. Beazer Homes USA Inc. (NYSE: BZH) was raised from $11 to $15, which is below Beazer’s $19 per share. The Wall St. consensus is $15.63. Compass Point also increased its target on PulteGroup Inc. (NYSE: PHM) from $21 to $27. The consensus target is $20.

One key thing for investors to note here is that Compass Point’s price targets are now at or above almost all the consensus numbers. The firm is truly making a call and saying we are still in the early stages of the homebuilding rebound. This is the kind of call people looking to invest in homebuilding stocks may want to heed.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls, Housing Tagged: BZH, KBH, LEN, PHM, RYL, SPF

Buy Rated Stocks Getting a Direct Boost From the US Housing Recovery (LEN, TOL, HD, LOW, BAC, GE, WY, HON, PIR, BAST, FLXS)

Lee Jackson — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 18:09:03 +0000

Last month we wrote about the huge rally in the homebuilding stocks since the lows of the stock market in March of 2009. Stocks that were written off for dead like Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) and Toll Brothers Inc (NYSE: TOL) have had spectacular rallies since then. If homebuilders are back in the business of building new homes then it just makes sense that there must be vendors that sell to those homebuilders that are doing much better as well.

In difficult times like we experienced in the fall of 2008 it’s not unusual for consumers to tighten their belts and close their wallets. Rather than buy a new home they will typically fix, maintain and upgrade their current residence which usually benefits companies like The Home Depot Co, Inc (NYSE: HD) and Lowe’s Companies Inc. (LOW). Both are buy rated stocks at Bank of America – Merrill Lynch (NYSE: BAC) and both are also big beneficiaries of new home construction.

When new homebuilding heats back up like we are experiencing now companies that supply in bulk to the homebuilders are often the big winners. Here are some buy rated stocks we located that are directly benefitting from the surge in new home construction.

Bank of America – Merrill Lynch also ranks General Electric Company as a buy. As one of the top suppliers of appliances to homebuilders it’s not uncommon for them to supply the refrigerator, oven, stove, microwave and dishwasher in a new home. Trading today at $22.40 the Bank of America price target is $25. The Wall Street consensus target is $24.50. Buy rated Weyerhaeuser (NYSE: WY) is one of the companies that provides the much needed lumber for construction. Trading at $30.64 the Bank of America target is $35 while the Wall Street consensus is higher at $36. They also like Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) and have a $77 price target. Trading today at $68.76, the Thomson/First call consensus is $72.

Mohawk Industries Inc. (NYSE: MHK) together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and sale of floor covering products for residential and commercial markets for remodeling and new construction primarily in the United States and Europe. Over the past 60 days all nine earnings estimates for Mohawk were revised upwards, which lifted the Zacks Consensus estimates by 1.1% to $3.71. This indicates year over year growth of 26.9%. The estimate for 2013 increased to $4.94 per share a 33.4% year over year increase. Trading today at $103.17 the Wall Street consensus price target is $104.50.

Furniture stores and makers also reap the rewards of new home construction. Buy rated Pier One Imports, Inc. (PIR) is at the top of Bank of Americas list. Trading today at $21.72 they have a $25 target and the Wall Street consensus is $24. Investors may also want to consider furniture makers like Bassett Furniture Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: BSET) and Flexsteel Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: FLXS).

The jump in new home construction not only bodes well for the companies we mentioned, but it also bodes well for the overall economy. The tremendous amount of job creation itself helps to provide an increase in consumer spending. With consumer spending being the largest component in gross domestic product, the industry that sent the economy into a tailspin five years ago might just be the one that helps lift it out.

Filed under: General Tagged: BAC, BAST, FLXS, GE, HD, HON, LEN, LOW, PIR, TOL, WY

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — January 15, 2013: Markets Open Lower, Eke Out Mixed Close (AXP, GMCR, DELL, ARMH, LOGI, ED, FRX, LEN, BK, CMA, JPM, WEN, USB, EXPR, COOL, BGFV)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 21:04:27 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened lower this morning following an announcement from Germany that its economy had contracted by 0.5% in the fourth quarter (more coverage here). U.S. data was released on producer prices and retail sales along with the Empire State manufacturing index (more coverage here). In Asia, investors are waiting for more data from China due out later this week, and the Japanese yen weakened by nearly a full percent against the dollar before coming back following comments that the yen is fundamentally in line with expectations. Pre-market earnings results didn’t bolster the opening either.

The U.S. dollar index rose 0.35% today, now at 79.763. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.9% at 655.19, with commodities prices mixed today. WTI crude oil closed down 0.9% today, at $93.28 a barrel. Brent crude trades down about 1.4% at $110.32 a barrel. Natural gas is up 2.1% today at about $3.44 per million BTUs. Gold settled up 0.9% today at $1,683.90 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 27 points to 13,534.43 (0.20%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 7 points (-0.22%) to 3,110.78, and the S&P 500 rose 0.11% or nearly 2 points to 1,472.34.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including American Express Co. (NYSE: AXP) cut to ‘underweight’ at J.P. Morgan; Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) raised to ‘buy’ with a price target of $50 at Argus; Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) cut to ‘neutral’ at boutique firm Monnes Crespi Hardt; ARM Holdings plc (NASDAQ: ARMH) cut to ‘equal weight’ at Morgan Stanley; and Logitech International SA (NASDAQ: LOGI) cut to ‘underperform’ at Credit Suisse.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in several price moves today, including these: Consolidated Edison Inc. (NYSE: ED) is down 0.8% at $55.28; Forest Laboratories Inc. (NYSE: FRX) is up 0.5% at $37.77 (more coverage here); and Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) is down 0.7% at $40.76 (more coverage here).

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (NYSE: BK), Comerica Inc. (NYSE: CMA), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), The Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ: WEN), and U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Express Inc. (NYSE: EXPR) is up 23.5% today at $17.37. The specialty retail raised its fourth quarter and full fiscal year forecasts this morning well above earlier estimates.

Majesco Entertainment Co. (NASDAQ: COOL) is down 29.7% at $0.74 after posting a new 52-week low of $0.67 earlier today. The video game maker posted dismal quarterly results last night and guided for more to come.

Big Five Sporting Goods Corp. (NASDAQ: BGFV)) is up 11.8% at $14.57 after posting a new 52-week high of $14.74 earlier today. The sporting goods retailer posted very good fourth quarter and fiscal year results and boosted earnings projections for both.

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

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
8:30 a.m. – Consumer price index
9:00 a.m. – Treasury International Capital (TIC) data
9:15 a.m. – Industrial production
10:00 a.m. – Housing market index
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
2:00 p.m. – Federal Reserve Beige Book

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ARMH, AXP, BGFV, BK, CMA, COOL, DELL, ED, EXPR, FRX, GMCR, JPM, LEN, LOGI, USB, WEN