One reason Walmart suddenly has taken the action is First Lady Michelle Obama, the poster child for the new initiative. Walmart went so far as to get a quote from her for its press release about Great for You. She said:

 Today’s announcement by Walmart is yet another step toward ensuring that our kids are given the chance to grow up healthy. Just over a year ago, Walmart committed to save shoppers a billion dollars in their cost of fruits and vegetables and the fact that Walmart exceeded this number is a real accomplishment and a milestone in our efforts to support families eating better. In addition, the healthy seal will be another tool for parents to identify the best products for their kids. Giving parents the information they need to make healthy choices is a key piece of solving childhood obesity.

The quality of Walmart food products probably was never an issue for her and her family. Mrs. Obama did not mention it, but she likely was never a regular patron of Walmart. She almost certainly is not now, either.

The Walmart decision matches ones made by other huge American companies that sell food, either fast food or food that people take home to cook. McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD) is the best example. Last summer, the largest fast-food chain said it would offer low-calorie options for children’s meals. McDonald’s also said it would reduce sodium content in some of its food by 15% by 2015.

Stores and fast-food companies have tried to create the illusion that they have only recently gotten the FDA list of food content by product and studies about which food ingredients undermine healthy eating habits. What actually happened is that pressure from the government and public to cut back on the fatty foods that people love most became overwhelming. Some of the blame for unhealthy foods does fall with the customers. But to turn what should have been done some time ago into a press event masks a lack of actions — ones not taken by these companies for years.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Read the Ten Cheap Products Making American Companies Billions

All of the companies that make the most money from selling inexpensive items have exceptionally strong brands. They are highly recognizable and held in high regard. Coca-Cola, which makes billions of dollars off its trademark drink Coke, is the most valuable brand in the world, according to brand valuation company Interbrand. According to Brand Z, McDonald’s, producer of the world’s favorite french fries, is the most valuable brand. Other brands, such as Cheerios, Campbell’s, and Starbucks, are also instantly recognizable.

These products have such strong brands partly because their parent companies spend huge sums of money on advertising. In 2011, Procter & Gamble, maker of Gillette razors, spent $9.3 billion on ads for all products — 11.3% of its total sales. This amount increases substantially each year, reflecting the lengths companies must go to preserve market share. Ian Cook, chief executive of Colgate-Palmolive, recently promised “increased advertising support behind many new and existing Colgate products” in 2012 to protect its global standing. The company said it had increased advertising spending in the fourth quarter to $428 million, up 5% from one year ago.

Additionally, these brands benefit from having been around for years and having existed in the public conscious a very long time. Products such as Coke, Colgate toothpaste, and Dole bananas have been around since the 19th century. Campbell’s soup and Cheerios have been household staples since the middle of the 20th century. Consumers have grown to trust the brands and expect a certain level of quality.

24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 500 largest companies by sales to identify the ones that focus on inexpensive consumer goods and low-priced food products. We then looked at the most inexpensive products sold for less than $5 and hold the highest market share. These are the cheapest products making American companies billions.

The 24/7 Wall St. Top Analyst Calls of the Week were in shares of the following: AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T); Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NYSE: ADP); Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE: BBY); Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE: CHK); Dendreon Corporation (NASDAQ: DNDN); E*TRADE Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: ETFC); J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE: JCP); J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM); Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS); Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS); Jefferies Group, Inc. (NYSE: JEF); KLA-Tencor Corporation (NASDAQ: KLAC); Life Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: LIFE); McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD); Michael Kors Holdings Limited (NYSE: KORS); Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX); Vistaprint NV (NASDAQ: VPRT); and Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA).

We have covered these in more detailed summaries below and some of these will have links to broader coverage calls.  

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) has been a bit under pressure and frankly its earnings did not help the situation for the bulls despite some positive metrics.  Now there is a bit more caution as the stock was reinstated in coverage on Friday at Credit Suisse: with a NEUTRAL and a mere $30.00 price target. This was one of Jim Cramer’s 4 FAVORITE DJIA PICKS FOR 2012 and it is the highest yield of the DJIA. 

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NYSE: ADP) met its second quarter earnings estimates this last week but apparently there are some valuation concerns despite the CFO seeing some continued positive trends in the economy.  On Thursday there were two downgrades: Cut to NEUTRAL at Citigroup and Cut to MARKET PERFORM at Wells Fargo.  Shares were around $57.oo pre-earnings and ended the week down at $55.34 and that may be another failed break-out attempt on the chart as the year high is $57.10.

Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE: BBY) is supposed to be down and out with absolutely nothing going for it.  In fact, its real risk is that no one under 30 or so may ever go there again.  Not so fast, according to Credit Suisse as the firm reinstated coverage with an OUTPERFORM rating and with a call of almost 30% upside to its $32.00 price target (versus $28.21 target from Thomson Reuters. This drove shares up 1.7% on Friday when the broad market was down.

Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE: CHK) is the pure-play when it comes to investing in natural gas.  It is no secret that nat-gas is in the tank.  Apparently J.P.Morgan just couldn’t take the pressure any longer.  The analyst team there cut Chesapeake to UNDERWEIGHT on Thursday… That is just a “Sell” masqueraded by vocabulary.

Dendreon Corporation (NASDAQ: DNDN) was given two calls of caution or at least calls with no enthusiasm despite its shares having more than doubled from the lows.  Zacks maintained a NEUTRAL rating with a $14.00 target, while the team at Cantor Fitzgerald started it with only a HOLD rating.  Both calls came on Wednesday and Wednesday’s was Dendreon’s highest price of the week.

E*TRADE Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: ETFC) is still supposed to be a buyout target according to the great analyst predictions of 2012, even though the company’s review ended with nothing.  Earnings stank up the joint and the promise (or forecast) of exceptionally low rates through 2014 offers no comfort for earnings at online brokers.  The stock was cut to NEUTRAL at Goldman Sachs this week.  Keep in mind that Goldman Sachs was the firm hired to go find a buyer for E*TRADE.  Not promising at all.

DaVita, Inc. (NYSE: DVA) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Dendreon Corporation (NASDAQ: DNDN) maintained Neutral with $14.00 target at Zacks; Started as Hold at Cantor Fitzgerald.
Energy Partners Limited (NYSE: EPL) named as value stock of the day at Zacks.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
hhgregg, Inc. (NYSE: HGG) maintained Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) Cut to Underperform at Keefe Bruyette & Woods.
McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) Cut to Perform from Outperform at Oppenheimer (valuation call).
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ: ORCL) Cut to Neutral at Macquarie.
Regions Financial (NYSE: RF) Raised to Outperform at RBC Capital; Cut to Neutral at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX) Raised to Outperform at Oppenheimer.
Zynga, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) Started as Overweight at Barclays; Started as Overweight at JPMorgan; Started as Neutral at Bank of America Merrill Lynch; Started as Buy at Goldman Sachs.

If you enjoyed the top analyst calls, you can sign up in the box below to join our morning email list to receive news directly in your inbox each morning. We include major analyst upgrades and downgrades, IPO and M&A news, special situation developments, observations on Warren Buffett and key market gurus, as well as special exclusive feature stories.

Your email address

subscribe

terms and conditions

JON C. OGG

Japan has its first trade deficit since 1980. (Reuters)

Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) posts weak earnings on a revenue drop. (Reuters)

International Monetary Fund’s Lagarde says that if Europe combined the ESFS and ESM rescue funds, it would raise confidence in the chance that a bailout of weak economies would work. (Reuters)

A PricewaterhouseCoopers study shows CEOs are concerned about a negative reaction to the  situation in Europe. (Reuters)

More cracks are found in the wings of Airbus A380 super jumbos. (Reuters)

Roche offers $5.7 billion to buy gene map firm Illumina (NASDAQ: ILMN). (Reuters)

The Baltic Exchange’s measure of the cost of shipping commodities plunges, an indication of a slow economy. (Reuters)

Ericsson’s (NASDAQ: ERIC) shares plunge after it said profit for Q4 dropped sharply. (Reuters)

Facebook will suspend trading in its shares for three days, but does not explain why. (Reuters)

EU executives will block an NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX) merger with Deutsche Borse. (Reuters)

Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) to combine information on users, which will make it harder for them to keep private. (WSJ)

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) presses to lead the Facebook IPO. (WSJ)

The parent company of British Air may be part of an AMR buyout. (WSJ)

The IMF cuts its forecasts for most nations around the world. (WSJ)

AMD (NYSE: AMD) shows a loss on large write-downs. (WSJ)

The Defense Department to reveal its plans for budget cuts. (WSJ)

The PMI of many parts of Europe rises. (WSJ)

EU finance ministers press Greece and its private creditors to settle differences on refinancing. (WSJ)

General Motors (NYSE: GM) is accused of using the government bailout as the means to make the Chevy Volt. (WSJ)

McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD) quarter is driven in part by late-night food sales. (WSJ)

Del Frisco’s Restaurant Group plans to go public to raise $100 million. (WSJ)

Olympus is in talks with Sony (NYSE: SNE) to raise $1.3 billion. (WSJ)

The Avenue Capital Group will take over Quiznos as part of a debt restructure. (WSJ)

Gannett (NYSE: GCI) buys Fantasy Sports Ventures so that it can focus more on sports news. (WSJ)

Daniel Mudd, CEO of Fortress (NYSE: FIG), leaves after charges of securities fraud. (WSJ)

Morgan Stanley makes only a small number of its executives new managing directors. (WSJ)

European banks restructure to improve balance sheets, but some moves may be blocked by regulators worried the changes could hurt the financial system. (NYT)

The European Central Bank faces losses on Greek bonds that could reach 55 billion euro. (NYT)

Oil imports helped drive Japan’s rare trade deficit. (NYT)

The IMF presses the ECB to take larger losses on Greek bonds. (FT)

Citigroup (NYSE: C) may make more spending cuts in its securities group. (Bloomberg)

Douglas A. McIntyre

Fourth quarter global comparable sales rose by about 7.5%, and that s-s-s report for the United States came to 7.1% in the quarter.  Europe somehow managed growth of 7.3%, indicating that perhaps default stress sell hamburgers and fires.  The sales in Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa were up 6.9%.

U.S. was the driving force somehow, another move at least somewhat tied to dollar strength and international uncertainty with annual comparable sales performance coming in the best since 2006.

The company is signaling that January sales are expected to remain strong at +5.5 to +6.5%.

McDonald’s stock is up only about 0.5% at $101.45 on not very active early trading volume against a 52-week range of $72.89 to $102.22.  Keep in mind that the new high that recently put in was an all-time high.

JON C. OGG

Tuesday: E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. (NYSE: DD); Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ); McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD); Travelers Cos. Inc. (NYSE: TRV); and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ)

Wednesday: Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) and United Technologies Corporation (NYSE: UTX)

Thursday: AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT)

Friday: Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) and Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG).

We have compiled Thomson Reuters estimates, when the earnings are due, and what the share pricing has been on each, and added in additional color if applicable.

TUESDAY

E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. (NYSE: DD), or just DuPont, just declared its normal dividend but it reports on Tuesday morning.  The chemicals giant is expected to have earnings of $0.33 EPS and $8.53 billion in revenues. Shares are just under $50.00 and the 52-week range is $37.10 to $57.00.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) has news of a patent loss ahead of its earnings report due Tuesday morning.  The drug, medical products, and consumer products giant is expected to report earnings of $1.10 EPS and $16.28 billion in sales.  With shares close to $65.00, the 52-week range is $57.50 to $68.05.

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) reports on Tuesday morning and the Golden Arches’ estimates for the fast food giant are $1.29 EPS and $6.80 billion in sales.  Shares are within yet another hair of another all-time high and it has recently talked up sales and has already raised its dividend.

Travelers Cos. Inc. (NYSE: TRV) is still probably the most forgotten financial stock of the DJIA components.  The insurer is expected to report earnings of $1.52 EPS and $5.47 billion in sales.  With shares above $61.00, the 52-week trading range is $45.97 to $64.17.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) is due to lead of the telecom sector on Tuesday morning and earnings are expected to be $0.53 EPS on $28.4 billion in revenues.  With shares around $39.00, the 52-week range is $32.28 to $40.48.

WEDNESDAY

Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) may have a boost from the rival A380 having cracks in its wings, if the rationale is not one that “all super-jumbos ar scary.”  Boeing reports Wednesday morning and the aerospace and defense giant is expected to report $1.00 EPS and $19.4 billion in revenues. With shares around $75.50, the 52-week range is $56.01 to $80.65.

United Technologies Corporation (NYSE: UTX) still appears to be the conglomerate with the most upside in 2012 according to analysts and GE’s recent earnings reaction has not done much to really amp-up expectations.  The earnings are due Wednesday morning and the consensus targets are $1.46 EPS and $15.07 billion in revenues.  With shares under $77.00, the 52-week range is $66.87 to $91.83 and the consensus price target is $89.44.

THURSDAY

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is due on Thursday morning and estimates are $0.45 EPS and $31.94 billion in sales.  Shares are back above $30 around $30.40 and the 52-week range is $27.20 to $31.94.

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) is expected to report Thursday morning and estimates are $1.73 EPS and $16.04 billion in sales.  With shares back above $105.00, the 52-week range is $67.54 to $116.55 and the consensus price target is now $115.28.

FRIDAY

Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) is due with earnings Friday morning and the oil giant’s consensus estimates are $2.93 EPS and $71.08 billion in sales.  With shares around $106.40, the 52-week range is $86.68 to $110.99 and the consensus price target is $124.95.  Keep in mind that Chevron is the second highest weighting in the DJIA due to its high share price.

Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG) is due to post the consumer product giant earnings report Friday morning.  The consensus estimates are $1.08 EPS and $22.2 billion in sales.  Shares are trading around $66.10 and the 52-week range is $57.56 to $67.72 and the consensus target is $72.37.

We will be releasing more detailed previews on each of these the day ahead of each earnings report this week.  Additional data will be around forward earnings estimates for guidance, what the implied valuations are, color on what to look for in addition to earnings, as well as opinions from analysts, what the charts are showing, and what the options traders are expecting for a price move.

JON C. OGG

We have compiled Thomson Reuters estimates, when the earnings are due, and what the share pricing has been on each, and added in additional color if applicable.  There are a few additional themes we would watch: dividend coverage, how a strong dollar is impacting earnings and competitiveness, making earnings on cost monitoring while revenues may be soft, and exposure to Europe.

TUESDAY

E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. (NYSE: DD), or just DuPont, reports on Tuesday morning.  The chemicals giant is expected to have earnings of $0.33 EPS and $8.53 billion in revenues. Shares are just under $50.00 and the 52-week range is $37.10 to $57.00.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is due Tuesday morning.  The drug, medical products, and consumer products giant is expected to report earnings of $1.10 EPS and $16.28 billion in sales.  With shares close to $65.00, the 52-week range is $57.50 to $68.05.

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) is due to report on Tuesday morning and estimates for the fast food giant are $1.29 EPS and $6.80 billion in sales.  Shares are within yet another hair of another all-time high and it has recently talked up sales and has already raised its dividend.

Travelers Cos. Inc. (NYSE: TRV), the most forgotten financial stock of the DJIA, is expected to report earnings of $1.52 EPS and $5.47 billion in sales.  With shares above $61.00, the 52-week trading range is $45.97 to $64.17.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) is due to lead of the telecom sector on Tuesday morning and earnings are expected to be $0.53 EPS on $28.4 billion in revenues.  With shares around $39.00, the 52-week range is $32.28 to $40.48.

WEDNESDAY

Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) is due Wednesday morning and the aerospace and defense giant is expected to report $1.00 EPS and $19.4 billion in revenues. With shares around $75.50, the 52-week range is $56.01 to $80.65.

United Technologies Corporation (NYSE: UTX) may be the conglomerate with the most upside in 2012 according to analysts.  The earnings are due Wednesday morning and the consensus targets are $1.46 EPS and $15.07 billion in revenues.  With shares under $77.00, the 52-week range is $66.87 to $91.83 and the consensus price target is $89.44.

Read Also: Why The DJIA Could Peak Up 12% at 13,678 in 2012

THURSDAY

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is due on Thursday morning and estimates are $0.45 EPS and $31.94 billion in sales.  Shares are back above $30 around $30.40 and the 52-week range is $27.20 to $31.94.

Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) is expected to report Thursday morning and estimates are $1.73 EPS and $16.04 billion in sales.  With shares back above $105.00, the 52-week range is $67.54 to $116.55 and the consensus price target is now $115.28.

FRIDAY

Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) is due with earnings Friday morning and the oil giant’s consensus estimates are $2.93 EPS and $71.08 billion in sales.  With shares around $106.40, the 52-week range is $86.68 to $110.99 and the consensus price target is $124.95.  Keep in mind that Chevron is the second highest weighting in the DJIA due to its high share price.

Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG) is due to post the consumer product giant earnings report Friday morning.  The consensus estimates are $1.08 EPS and $22.2 billion in sales.  Shares are trading around $66.10 and the 52-week range is $57.56 to $67.72 and the consensus target is $72.37.

We will be releasing more detailed previews the day ahead of each DJIA earnings report this coming week.  Additional data will be around forward earnings estimates for guidance, what the implied valuations are, color on what to look for in addition to earnings, as well as opinions from analysts, what the charts are showing, and what the options traders are expecting for a price move.

Your email address

subscribe

terms and conditions

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly 97 points to 12,578.95 (0.78%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 42 points (1.53%) to 2,769.71, and the S&P 500 rose 1.11% or more than 14 points to 1,308.04.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) cut to ‘hold’ at Brean Murray; Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) cut to ‘market perform’ at Wells Fargo; The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) cut to ‘market perform’ at BMO Capital; Cheniere Energy Inc. (AMEX: LNG) started as ‘outperform’ with a $13.50 target price at Credit Suisse; and Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) maintained as ‘hold’ but estimates cut at Argus.

Earnings reports since markets closed yesterday have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Cree Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) is up 4.3% at $24.33; The Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW) is down -1.3% at $12.00; Fastenal Co. (NASDAQ: FAST) is down -2.8% at $45.48; Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) is up 7.5% at $105.03; and State Street Corp. (NYSE: STT) is down -7% at $39.72.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Euro Tech Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: CLWT) is up nearly 53% at $3.91. The Hong Kong-based company has announced an 11-for-2 reverse stock split.

Net 1 UEPS Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: UEPS) is up more than 33% at $8.96. The South African software maker has announced a 5-year deal with the government’s social security agency.

Majesco Entertainment Co. (NASDAQ: COOL) is down more than -27% at $2.17. The video game maker forecast higher sales and marketing costs in 2012.

Ku6 Media Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: KUTV) is down nearly -18% at $2.71. The Chinese online video company rose more than 150% yesterday on the announcement of deal with Google. Today’s fall is likely due to profit-taking.

We also noted 10 stocks that posted new all-time highs today. These include Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD), and Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE). See our coverage here.

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

• 8:30 a.m. – Consumer price index
• 8:30 a.m. – Housing starts
• 8:30 a.m. – Initial unemployment benefits claims
• 10:00 a.m. – Philadelphia Federal Reserve business outlook survey
• 10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas inventory report
• 11:00 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
• 4:30 p.m. – Federal Reserve balance sheet and money supply

Your email address

subscribe

terms and conditions

Paul Ausick

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) hit a new high this morning ahead of next week’s earnings.  The new value is almost at $400 billion.  The new high is $428.50 for now and the consensus price target from Thomson Reuters is now above $509.00.

Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) is continuing with the trade-down economy and the secular growth of the dollar store (actually sub-$10) stores.  The new high is $85.58 and the consensus price target is $86.27 from Thomson Reuters.  Dollar Tree is now worth more than $10 billion in market capitalization.

Ecolab Inc. (NYSE: ECL) is worth almost $14 billion now, and the new high today of $60.45 compares to a Thomson Reuters consensus price target of $61.56.

Read Also: Top 2012 Stock Picks From Major Gurus

McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) gave solid same-store sales forecast and recently juiced up its dividend.  The new high is $101.87 and the market cap is nearing $104 billion.

Monster Beverage Corporation (NASDAQ: MNST) recently announced a stock split and shares hit a new high this morning but have promptly backed off by close to 2%.  The new high is $101.67 and the consensus analyst target is close to $105.00.  It is hard to imagine, but Monster now has a market value of almost $8.7 billion.

Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) keeps doing it.  A new high of $100.75 was put in today after a prior 52-week high of $99.44.  Its market value now eclipses $46 billion.

Panera Bread Company (NASDAQ: PNRA) is up at stratosphere levels now for its healthier sandwich and destination approach.  The new high is $151.93 and the consensus price target from Thomson Reuters is $146.68.  Its market cap is now almost $4.5 billion.

Read Also: DJIA Projected 12% Gains to 13,678 in 2012

Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX) has proven us very wrong on how high the valuation can go back up to.  The new high is $48.15 and the consensus price target from Thomson Reuters is just under $48.00 and the market cap is now more than $35 billion.

Advance Auto Parts Inc. (NYSE: AAP) worth over $5 billion, AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE: AZO) worth over $13 billion, and O’Reilly Automotive, Inc. (NASDAQ: ORLY) worth over $10 billion… These all hit record high prices in their stocks on Wednesday. With a record age car fleet in America of more than 10 years, car parts stores and suppliers sure are going to have a lot of car owners to sell parts to that are long past the warranty and insurance coverage.

Your email address

subscribe

terms and conditions

JON C. OGG