24/7 Wall St. » MMM

After the Fall: Value and Upside in Conglomerate Stocks (GE, MMM, UTX, HON, TYC)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 23 May 2012 14:49:41 +0000

Searching for a value play in conglomerate stocks may resemble looking for a needle in a haystack. The companies are so large and diversified that anything short of a major shake-up barely moves the share price needle. Well, not counting a bad miss on quarterly estimates.

We’ve looked at five conglomerates that offer some upside: General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE), 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM), United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX), Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON), and Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC).

With one exception, implied upside for these companies wanders in the mid- to high-teens. The exception is United Technologies. The second-lowest of the five is Tyco, the de-conglomerated conglomerate.

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) traded at $19.06 and has a market value of $203 billion. The consensus target price from Thomson Reuters is $22.57 and the 52-week range is $14.02 to $21.00. GE has a dividend yield of 3.6%. The implied upside to the consensus target is 18%, but we would note that the target is above the 52-week high.

3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) traded at $83.38 and has a market value of around $58 billion. The consensus target price from Thomson Reuters is $95.47 and the 52-week range is $68.63 to $98.19. 3M has a dividend yield of 2.8%. The implied upside to the consensus target is 14.5%, but we would note that the target is also above the 52-week high.

United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) traded at $73.37 and has a market value of around $67 billion. The consensus target price from Thomson Reuters is $94.60 and the 52-week range is $66.87 to $91.83. UTX has a dividend yield of 2.6%. The implied upside to the consensus target is 29%, but we would note that the target is also above the 52-week high.

Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) traded at $56.72 and has a market value of around $44 billion. The consensus target price from Thomson Reuters is $67.56 and the 52-week range is $41.22 to $62.00. Honeywell has a dividend yield of 2.6%. The implied upside to the consensus target is 19%, but we would note that the target is also above the 52-week high.

Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC) traded at $53.59 and has a market value of around $24 billion. The consensus target price from Thomson Reuters is $62.20 and the 52-week range is $37.39 to $57.75. Tyco has a dividend yield of 1.9%. The implied upside to the consensus target is 16%, but we would note that the target is also above the 52-week high.

Based on these numbers, United Technologies offers the most potential upside, but the thing to keep in mind that its acquisition of Goodrich Corp. (NYSE: GR), which is set to close by mid-year, will leave the company with a large debt and not the brightest prospects for profit growth for another year or so.

Tyco, with the lowest implied gain at 16%, is splitting itself into three pieces. The company expects to complete the spin-off of its home security division into The ADT Corp. later this year as well as the spin-off of the fire and security division and the spin-off and merger of the flow control business with Pentair Inc. (NYSE: PNR). All these moves pushed the stock to a year-to-date gain of 20% in late March, which has since been ratcheted back to 15%. And over the past 12 months, only Tyco has shown an increase in share value, up more than 11%.

GE, with its 3.6% dividend yield, and implied upside of 18% is a safe choice here. 3M, with the lowest upside potential, and Honeywell are about equal otherwise. United Technologies has the most potential upside, but it may take a while to materialize. Overall, Tyco, which has withstood the fall in prices better than any of the others, may offer the best reward sooner than any of the others.

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Paul Ausick

Filed under: Conglomerates, Dividend, Economy, Value Investing Tagged: GE, HON, MMM, TYC, UTX

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (ORCL, NOV, MMM, TEVA, JDSU, AMCX, MT, HNR, KSS, WIN, DDS, JKS, PGR, SOL, URRE, MNST, WFR)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 10 May 2012 20:04:02 +0000

The major US stock indexes opened significantly higher this morning as investors were heartened by yesterday’s nationalization of Spain’s Bankia. The Bank of England also keps rates and asset purchases stable. This morning’s report on new US claims for unemployment benefits was in-line with expectations (our coverage here). US natural gas inventories rose last week, but the increase was also in-line with expectations (our coverage here).The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.01% at 80.077. The GSCI commodity index is down fractionally at 648.28, with commodities mostly higher on the small change in the dollar. WTI crude oil closed up 0.3% at $97.08/barrel and Brent crude trades down -0.37% at $112.78/barrel. Gold settled up 0.1% today, at $1,595.50/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly XX points to XXX (XX%), the NASDAQ rose more than XX points (XXX%) to XXX, and the S&P 500 rose XX% or nearly X points to XXX.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) cut to ‘hold’ at ThinkEquity; National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NYSE: NOV) maintained ‘buy’ with a lowered target price of $90 at Argus; 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) cut to ‘market perform’ at Bernstein; Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. (NASDAQ: TEVA) cut to ‘hold’ at Needham; and JDS Uniphase Corp. (NASDAQ: JDSU) raised to ‘buy’ at UBS.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: AMC Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: AMCX) is up 2.4% at $40.58; ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) is up 1.9% at $16.42; Harvest Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: HNR) is down -1.6% at $5.71 after posting a new 52-week low of $5.44 earlier today; Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS) is down -4.6% at $48.52; and Windstream Corp. (NASDAQ: WIN) is down -10.3% at $10.10 after posting a new 52-week low of $9.42 earlier today.

On Friday we are scheduled to get earnings from Dillard’s Inc. (NYSE: DDS), Jinkosolar Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: JKS), Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA), Progressive Corp. (NYSE: PGR), ReneSola Ltd. (NYSE: SOL), and Uranium Resources Inc. (NASDAQ: URRE).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Monster Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: MNST) is up 9.2% at $71.34 in a 52-week range of $32.35-$83.96. The energy drinks company posted strong results, but buyout rumors continue to lead the charge. More coverage here.

MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (NYSE: WFR) is down -24.3% at $2.46 after posting a new 52-week low of $2.41 earlier today. The solar component supplier posted bad results and a weak outlook. More coverage here.

We also took a detailed look today at short interest in a number of stocks — big names, volume leaders, and cult stocks.

Stay tuned for Friday. Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher is giving a speech. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Producer price index
9:55 a.m. – Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AMCX, DDS, HNR, JDSU, JKS, KSS, MMM, MNST, MT, NOV, ORCL, PGR, SOL, TEVA, URRE, WFR, WIN

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ARMH, BIG, CHKM, CSCO, CPWM, DLB, HGSI, JDSU, LINE, MMM, NOV, ORCL, RGP, TPX, TLLP, TEVA, VRTX)

Administrator — Thu, 10 May 2012 12:25:05 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen in Wall Street research calls this Thursday.

ARM Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: ARMH) Raised to Market Perform at Bernstein.

Big Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) Raised to Overweight at Barclays.

Chesapeake Midstream Partners, L.P. (NYSE: CHKM) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) Reiterated Buy with $24 target at Argus.

Cost Plus Inc. (NASDAQ: CPWM) Cut to Neutral at Wedbush.

Dolby Labs, Inc. (NYSE: DLB) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.

Human Genome Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: HGSI) Cut to Market Perform at Leerink Swann.

JDS Uniphase Corporation (NASDAQ: JDSU) Raised to Buy at UBS.

Linn Energy, LLC (NASDAQ: LINE) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.

3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) Cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NYSE: NOV) Maintained Buy but cut target to $90 at Argus.

Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ: ORCL) Cut to Hold at ThinkEquity.

Regency Energy Partners LP (NYSE: RGP) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Tempur-Pedic International Inc. (NYSE: TPX) Raised to Strong Buy at Raymond James.

Tesoro Logistics LP (NYSE: TLLP) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Limited (NASDAQ: TEVA) Cut to Hold at Needham.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ: VRTX) Cut to Outperform at RBC.

If you enjoyed the top analyst upgrades and downgrades, you can join our free email newsletter that includes analyst summaries each morning sent right to your inbox. We also cover top issues such as IPOs, special financial exclusives, mergers and more. Sign up in the box below.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: ARMH, BIG, CHKM, CPWM, CSCO, DLB, HGSI, JDSU, LINE, MMM, NOV, ORCL, RGP, TEVA, TLLP, TPX, VRTX

Dividend Hikes To Continue in 2012 (T, XOM, GE, PFE, CVX, JNJ, MSFT, PG, CSCO, JPM, WMT, KO, MMM)

Administrator — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 16:05:09 +0000

Dividends have continued to rise. Better yet, they are expected to keep rising for the rest of the year. A study from Dow Jones Indexes showed a rise of almost 2.2% so far this year from the 30 Dow Jones Industrial Average from the previous quarter, but this is expected to be up by 8.4% for the total year in 2012 over 2011. To show just how important and relevant the DJIA still is for investors, the DJIA’s 30 components account for 37% of the total U.S. stock market payouts with their $107 billion expected to be paid out.

The Dow Jones Survey noted that the DJIA companies expected to pay out over $6 billion in 2012 (annualized) are as follows:

AT&T, Inc. (NYSE: T) was expected to be at $10.5 billion in indicated annual dividends. It is the highest yield of about 5.7% in the DJIA.

Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) is expected to be $9.1 billion in indicated annual dividends. This is the largest market cap in the DJIA of over $400 billion, so even a 2.2% yield generates a lot in raw dollars.

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) is expected to pay out $7.2 billion in its indicated annual dividends. GE’s yield is now about 3.5%.

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) is expected to be at $6.8 billion in indicated annual dividends. Pfizer’s yield is about 3.9% today.

Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) is expected to be $6.5 billion in indicated annual dividends. Chevron is worth about half of Exxon in market capitalization but it offers a yield of about 3.2%.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is expected to be $6.2 billion in indicated annual dividends. J&J yields about 3.6%.

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) is expected to be $6.0 billion in indicated annual dividends. Microsoft yields about 2.5%, which is not great for a DJIA stock but still high for a tech stock considering its recent rally.

Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) is expected to be $5.8 billion in indicated annual dividends. P&G yields about 3.3%.

AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM), and General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) are considered to be the top three payers accounting for 9.2% of all dividends paid by stocks.

The six DJIA companies which have recently increased their payouts are as follows: Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) with a 33% hike but still with a low payout rate; J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) by 20% even if we were disappointed with its dividend hike; Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) by 10%; Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) by almost 9%; The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) by 8.5%; and 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) by almost 7.3%.

Speaking of high-yield and value, the utility sector is looking ripe in value after the shares have pulled back about 10% from their highs with dividend yields of 5% and more in the top four picks expected to still grow.

Dividend investors have had to be a bit more patient in 2012, but the trend for higher payouts appears to still be in place.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Dividend, Index, Shareholder Issues, Stock Buybacks Tagged: CSCO, CVX, GE, JNJ, JPM, KO, MMM, MSFT, PFE, PG, T, WMT, XOM

Top Earnings Previews For Early In The Week Ahead (COP, ILMN, NFLX, TXN, AMGN, AAPL, T, BIDU, COH, JNPR, MMM, RF, X, UTX)

Administrator — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 18:35:20 +0000

Earnings season is in full swing and we have many key reports due in the coming week. 24/7 Wall St. has provided some detailed previews for the key earnings reports we expect to show in detail on Monday and Tuesday.

We are monitoring earnings reports from the following companies for Monday and Tuesday: ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP); Illumina Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN); Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX); Texas Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: TXN); Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN); Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL); AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T); Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU); Coach Inc. (NYSE: COH); Juniper Networks Inc. (NYSE: JNPR); 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM); Regions Financial Corporation (NYSE: RF); United States Steel Corporation (NYSE: X); and United Technologies Corporation (NYSE: UTX).

More earnings report previews will come on Sunday or Monday for the reports due on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Consensus estimates and price targets are from Thomson Reuters. Color has been on added on each if applicable.

MONDAY, April 23

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) is set to report Monday morning and the break-up is going to make any real apples to apples comparison difficult to interpret. Thomson Reuters has estimates of $2.07 EPS. Shares are trading around $73.15 and the 52-week range is $58.65 to $81.50; Thomson Reuters had a consensus target as of Friday of $81.05.

Illumina Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN) is no market mover with a $5.4 billion market cap, but it is a recent merger candidate even if that appears to be off the table. Earnings estimates are $0.32 EPS and $263.6 million. Shares are trading around $44.00 and the 52-week range is $25.57 to $79.40; Thomson Reuters had a consensus target as of Friday of $52.71.

Filed under: Calendar, Earnings, The Week Tagged: AAPL, AMGN, BIDU, COH, COP, ILMN, JNPR, MMM, NFLX, RF, T, TXN, UTX, X

Conglomerates Bracing For GE & Honeywell Earnings… Higher Expectations (GE, HON, MMM, UTX, TYC)

Administrator — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 13:50:32 +0000

Conglomerates are soft so far on Wednesday but they have turned up ahead of the wave of earnings this week. A screen at Finviz showed that the conglomerate sector is leading the pack of sectors with a 5.1% gain just in the last week ahead of the gains industrial goods, services, and the financial sectors. Does this aim to imply that both General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) as the king of utilities and then Honeywell International Inc (NYSE: HON) will be turning in solid earnings reports this Friday morning?

What investors seem to be banking on is that General Electric is going to not just meet and guide in-line, and they may be hoping for the same from Honeywell. It is too soon to expect more dividend hikes from either company, so it may be a puzzle as to what investors really think they are going to hear this Friday.

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) closed out last Friday at $18.88 but Tuesday’s 2.3% to $19.34 gain seems to have created some new excitement. What investors are hoping for in specifics is a focus not on Europe and a continued improvement at GE Capital. The year high is $21.00 and the consensus is $22.29, implying upside of 15%. That is more expected upside than in most analyst targets to most DJIA components. Thomson Reuters has estimates of $0.33 EPS and $34.66 billion in revenue. Shares are indicated softer on Wednesday and everyone should be paying very close attention that 50-day moving average which is at $19.34 today.

Honeywell International Inc (NYSE: HON) is trading at $58.93 and is also close to its 50-day moving average up at $59.55. Suddenly the charts matter here. The Thomson Reuters consensus targets are $0.99 EPS and $9.16 billlion in revenue. Te $58.93 compares to a 52-week range of $41.22 to $62.28 and the consensus price target from Thomson Reuters is $67.95.

3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) and United Technologies Corporation (NYSE: UTX) are both set to turn in their respective conglomerate earnings reports next week on April 24. For 3M the pre-GE and pre-Honeywell report is $1.49 EPS from Thomson Reuters. The price this morning of $87.45 compares to a consensus price target of $95.17 and it is worth noting that 3M is trading under its 52-week high of $98.19.

United Tech is expected to report earnings of $1.20 EPS on sales of $12.76 billion. Its $81.00 share price compares to a 52-week high of $91.83 and compares to the Thomson Reuters consensus price target of $94.70. As it stands, this actually implies almost 17% upside expected in shares of United Tech and that makes it the most anticipated earnings report of the large-cap conglomerate stocks.

Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC) also reports next week on April 26. This is turning into more of a “deglomerate” and because of the restructuring and break-up with the ADT spin-off we are not sure how to rank this one other than what the ticker-tape has told you. At $54.57, the 52-week range is $37.39 to $56.66 and Thomson Reuters has a consensus price target of $60.00. Because of the restructuring here we are just going

If GE and Honeywell both manage to please Wall Street on Friday, investors are likely going to ratchet their expectations a tad higher for 3M and United Tech ahead of earnings next week.

Stay tuned.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Conglomerates, Corporate Governance, Earnings Tagged: GE, HON, MMM, TYC, UTX

24/7 Wall St. Top Analyst Calls of the Week (AONE, ALU, AMSC, NLY, AAPL, CSCO, COH, CSTR, COP, DLR, IBM, LF, MMM, M, OPEN, POST, SIRI, SOHU, TRLG, ZOLT)

Administrator — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 15:53:52 +0000

This last week was very busy, and Friday’s disappointing trading day skewed many research reports. Each morning we track analyst upgrades and downgrades and over the weekend we review each to see which stood out as highly insightful, or which were great money-makers for investors. Of course, there are some really bad calls that come about too. For better or worse, these make up the 24/7 Wall St. Top Analyst Calls of the Week.

This last weeks most featured reports were in shares of the following: A123 Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: AONE); Alcatel-Lucent S.A. (NYSE: ALU); American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: AMSC); Annaly Capital Management Inc. (NYSE: NLY); Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL); Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO); Coach, Inc. (NYSE: COH); Coinstar, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSTR); ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP); Digital Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: DLR); International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM); Leapfrog Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: LF); 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM); Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M); OpenTable Inc. (NASDAQ: OPEN); Post Holdings Inc. (NYSE: POST); Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI); Sohu.com Inc. (NASDAQ: SOHU); True Religion Apparel, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRLG); and Zoltek Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZOLT).

We have summarized each call and either added in trading color or provided a link to more data on each.

A123 Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: AONE) was a highly influential call from a firm not very well known. The battery maker was downgraded on fears that Fiskar will not be able to keep buying from them. This fell 23% after it was cut to Sell at Wunderlich, but the price target was the real kicker: $0.50. Ouch.

Alcatel-Lucent S.A. (NYSE: ALU) was sure a wrong-way call of the week. The perpetually turning-around communications equipment maker was downgraded to ‘Sell’ at S&P Equity Research ahead of earnings and the stock closed up almost 13% at $2.19 on Friday.

American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: AMSC) was inadvertently a really bad call because it got caught up in a weak stock market day and got caught on a day when alternative energy players took it on the chin. This one was raised to ‘Buy’ at Citigroup on Friday and closed don over 8% at $5.11 after opening at $5.36 on the day. Oops.

Annaly Capital Management Inc. (NYSE: NLY) had a rough week based in part on a mortgage foreclosure settlement. We expect the debate to continue over the real impact, but this high dividend yield mortgage REIT was downgraded to ‘Market Perform’ and the price target was cut to $16.00 from $17.50 by Friedman, Billings & Ramsey this last week.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) keeps hitting new all-time highs each day. Apparently it is going to keep doing that for quite some time if Canaccord Genuity gets its way. That firm listed many reasons to raise it price target to $665 this last week.

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) was better than what we feel the street gave it credit for on earnings. Credit Suisse only reiterated an ‘Outperform’ rating ahead of earnings, but what stood out was the $26.00 price target because that is about $4.50 higher than the consensus price target and that is also close to where the stock petered out in 2010.

Coach, Inc. (NYSE: COH) may be gutsy and may be an afterthought. It was recently given a strong tout by CNBC’s Jim Cramer as his luxury stock of choice, but on Friday it was raised started as ‘Buy’ with a target of $85 at Citigroup. This came on a day when the stock hit an all time high and closed at $74.54.

Coinstar, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSTR) is already up big over the last week, but we have never really considered it just as a value stock. Don’t tell that Zacks… On Friday it was named as Zacks’ Value Stock of the Day.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls, The Week Tagged: AAPL, ALU, AMSC, AONE, COH, COP, CSCO, CSTR, DLR, IBM, LF, M, MMM, NLY, OPEN, POST, SIRI, SOHU, TRLG, ZOLT

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (AONE, EXPE, RIMM, AMGN, MMM, AAPL, CSCO, AMSC, BG, DNKN, LO, PEP, PM, SIRI, TDC, IPSU, TSL, DMND, GRPN, TLEO, CZR)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 21:07:40 +0000

The three major US stock indexes opened a bit higher this morning, and after some volatility have managed to get to the final half hour of trading with a modest gain. Some news is leaking out about the Greek debt swap deal being done, but what’s being reported is not likely to be welcomed in by ordinary Greeks. The dollar has been down most of the day as everyone seemed to believe an announcement on the Greek debt deal was imminent. The dollar index is down -0.187% — a slight uptick from its lower level this morning — at 78.591. Crude oil is up strongly, with WTI crude up 1.15% at $99.85/barrel and Brent crude up 1.16% at $118.56/barrel. Gold settled up 0.6% at $1,741.20/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly 7 points to 12,890.61 (0.05%), the NASDAQ rose more than 11 points (0.39%) to 2,927.23, and the S&P 500 rose 0.15% or 2 points to 1,351.96.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including A123 Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: AONE) cut to ‘sell’ at Wunderlich; Expedia Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) cut to ‘hold’ at S&P Capital IQ; Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) reiterated as ‘hold’ with $15 target price at Cannacord Genuity; Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) cut to ‘perform’ at Oppenheimer and named ‘Bull of the Day’ at Zacks; and 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) cut to ‘hold’ at Deutsche Bank. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) got a lift from a target price increase to $665, which we cover here. We’ve also got a story on how Apple gets 80% of the operating profit among all the phone makers.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is down -2.1% at $20.00 (here’s our coverage); American Superconductor Corp. (NASDAQ: AMSC) is down -8.74% at $5.50; Bunge Ltd. (NYSE: BG) is up 5.9% at $63.25; Dunkin’ Brands Inc. (NASDAQ: DNKN) is down -2.35% at $28.33; Lorillard Inc. (NYSE: LO) is up 9.8% at $124.46 after posting a new 52-week high of $127.68 earlier today; Pepsico Inc. (NYSE: PEP) is down -3.6% at $64.37 (our coverage here); Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE: PM) is up 2.8% at $80.08 after setting a new 52-week high of $80.99 earlier today; Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) is nearly flat at $2.19 (additional coverage here); and Teradata Corp. (NYSE: TDC) is up 10% at $63.85 after posting a new 52-week high earlier today of $64.97.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Imperial Sugar Co. (NASDAQ: IPSU) is up more than 79% at $6.02. The sugar refiner and marketer said it is nearing a sale of one of its divisions.

Trina Solar Ltd. (NYSE: TSL) is up 20% at $11.08. The solar panel maker is getting a big boost from a report that China will add about 3,000 megawatts of solar PV generation this year, although some analysts think the total will be double that. Other Chinese solar panel makers are also getting a nice bump from the news. We have another view of the sudden rise here.

Diamond Foods Inc. (NASDAQ: DMND) is down more than -36% at $23.36 after posting a new 52-week low of $21.44 earlier today. The snack food maker will re-state accounting and that jeopardizes the deal to purchase the Pringles brand from Proctor & Gamble (NYSE: PG). See our coverage here.

Groupon Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN) is down more than -15% at $20.82. The Internet coupon company posted weak earnings last night. See our coverage here.

Taleo Corp. (NASDAQ: TLEO) is up more than 17% at $45.62 after posting a new 52-week high of $45.71. The maker of cloud-based software is being acquired by Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL). More coverage here and here.

Ceasars Entertainment Corp. (NASDAQ: CZR) is down about -3.8% at $14.80. The share price nearly doubled at yesterday’s IPO, to a high of $17.90, but the stock is coming back to earth today.

Stay tuned for Friday. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and Cleveland Fed president Sandra Pianalto are speakingWe have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – International trade report
9:55 a.m. – Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment report
2:00 p.m. – US Treasury budget report

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: AAPL, AMGN, AMSC, AONE, BG, CSCO, CZR, DMND, DNKN, EXPE, GRPN, IPSU, LO, MMM, PEP, PM, RIMM, SIRI, TDC, TLEO, TSL

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AMGN, AUO, AONE, ELN, EXPE, IR, MMM, MRH, NYX, POST, RIMM, SOHU, AAPL)

Administrator — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:29:44 +0000

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

Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) Cut to Perform at Oppenheimer; named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
AU Optronics Corporation (NYSE: AUO) targets raised by Nomura and also by Credit Suisse.
A123 Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: AONE) Cut to Sell at Wunderlich.
Elan Corp. (NYSE: ELN) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Expedia Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) Cut to Hold at S&P Capital IQ.
Ingersoll-Rand plc (NYSE: IR) Raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.
3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.
Montpelier Re Holdings (NYSE: MRH) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX) Resumed as Hold at Deutsche Bank.
Post Holdings Inc. (NYSE: POST) Started as Overweight at Barclays.
Research In Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) Reiterated Hold with $15 target at Canaccord Genuity.
Sohu.com Inc. (NASDAQ: SOHU) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

See the new high $665 price target on Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) from this morning.

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JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: AAPL, AMGN, AONE, AUO, ELN, EXPE, IR, MMM, MRH, NYX, POST, RIMM, SOHU

Full 360-Degree Earnings Preview For GE (GE, UTX, MMM)

Administrator — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 22:34:41 +0000

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) is set to report earnings on Friday morning of $0.38 EPS on revenues of almost $40.2 billion. If the stock’s performance is any barometer, let’s just say that expectations are high and GE probably cannot dribble out a so-so quarter to keep the investors happy. GE has been the best performing conglomerate of late, but in our year outlook analysis it was United Technologies Corporation (NYSE: UTX) which may offer the most upside of all conglomerates this year. We would be looking for close response in shares of 3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) based upon Friday morning’s earnings.

GE continues to improve its internal workings and continues to improve its customer credit metrics in the GE Capital operations faster than most expected. The company’s dividend hike came sooner than expected and this conglomerate is returning to normal sooner than expected even if the total portfolio changes is going to look like a decline in revenues on the surface. While United Tech might have been the cheapest conglomerate, it was still General Electric which we included in the 24/7 Wall St. 2012 Model Dividend Portfolio.

GE was also listed as one of Jim Cramer’s 4 Favorite DJIA Stocks For 2012.

After a 0.7% rise on Thursday to $19.15, GE shares are up 6.9% year to date. What is more impressive is that after you adjust for the dividend payment the stock of the conglomerate is up a massive 21.5% from the end of November and shares are up a massive 31.5% if you were lucky enough to buy shares on the day after Thanksgiving and hold them.

The manner in which GE is acting is that it wants to go well back over $20.00. That is what its chart action is indicating at any rate. At some point, it will take more continued good news of some sort from the company to make that sustainable.

In case GE manages to disappoint the street, the 50-day moving average is $16.89 and the 200-day moving average is $17.32. The first support level would come in around $18.00 if any serious disappointment comes up and then down in the $17.60 area if the news is somehow much worse than investors are expecting. Shares are now back up at levels not seen since last July and the historic 1-year chart shows that all sorts of resistance will come back into play in the $20.10 to $20.30 areas.

Thomson Reuters has a consensus (mean) price target objective of $21.21.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Conglomerates, Earnings, Infrastructure Tagged: GE, MMM, UTX