24/7 Wall St. » MTL

Eight Countries With Credit Ratings Set to Rise Next Year

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:14:50 +0000

It seems that all of the nations around the world are facing sovereign credit ratings downgrades or warnings of downgrades. After the United States lost its prized “AAA” rating, the threat of downgrades hangs over all of Europe. Before assuming that the whole financial system is going down the drain with Europe, it is important to realize that some key developing nations are still growing strongly and have better credit metrics. More than 15 nations may even see one or more of the top three ratings agencies upgrade their sovereign credit ratings.

24/7 Wall St. has focused on the ratings with a “positive” outlook from Standard & Poor’s, Moody’s and/or Fitch with a bias towards nations that investors can easily invest in via ADR shares, closed-end funds, and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The featured nations that may be upgraded in 2012 are Brazil, Chile, China (with Hong Kong), Indonesia, Peru, Russia, South Korea, and Turkey.

Read: Nations Set For Credit Ratings Beyond Upgrades, Beyond The Euro Crisis

There is another slew of countries for which S&P has a “positive” outlook stance: Azerbaijan, Bolivia, Ecuador, Honduras, Latvia, Panama, and Sri Lanka. Unfortunately, these nations are almost impossible for Americans to invest in due to their size, the small number of public companies, and a lack of ETFs or mutual funds covering them.

The 24/7 Wall St. list is presented alphabetically and features relevant ratings. Also included are economic details and important developments to consider. Lastly, we have provided a list of the key closed-end funds, ETFs, and ADRs specific to each nation. Population estimates and purchasing power parity GDP for 2010 were taken from the CIA World Factbook.

Filed under: ADR, Austerity, Banking, Banking & Finance, Bonds, China, Commodities, Commodities & Metals, Currency, Economy, Editor's Picks, Emerging Markets, ETF, ETFs & Mutual Funds, International Markets, Labor, Labor & Unions Tagged: BAP, BBD, BCH, BRF, BRFS, BVN, BZF, CEE, CH, CHN, CZZ, ECH, EIDO, EPU, ERJ, ERUS, EWH, EWY, EWZ, FXI, GOL, GXC, IDX, IF, KEF, KEP, KF, LFL, MBT, MTL, PBR, PEK, PKX, RBL, RSX, RSXJ, SAN, SCCO, SKM, SKOR, SQM, TDF, TKC, TKF, TLK, TRF, TUR, VALE, VIP

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ATML, CMA, CBRL, DNDN, DV, EDMC, GIS, GFI, IPSU, JNS, LPS, MTL, MHS, MPEL, QLTY, SIG, SIRI, VG, ZUMZ)

Jon C. Ogg — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 12:07:27 +0000

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

Atmel Corporation (NASDAQ: ATML) Reiterated Buy and $17 target at Gleacher & Co.
Comerica Incorporated (NYSE: CMA) Reiterated Buy at BofA/ML.
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc. (NASDAQ: CBRL) Cut to Hold at Argus.
Dendreon Corporation (NASDAQ: DNDN) Started as Buy at Goldman Sachs.
DeVry, Inc. (NYSE: DV) Raised to Buy at BofA/ML.
Education Management Corporation (NASDAQ: EDMC) Raised to Neutral at BofA/ML.
General Mills, Inc. (NYSE: GIS) Cut to Neutral at UBS.
Gold Fields Ltd. (NYSE: GFI) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Imperial Sugar Co. (NASDAQ: IPSU) Raised to Buy with $30 target at Janney Capital.
Janus Capital Group Inc. (NYSE: JNS) Reiterated Underperform but cut target to $11 at BofA/ML.
Lender Processing Services, Inc. (NYSE: LPS) Cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Mechel OAO (NYSE: MTL) Started as Buy at UBS.
Medco Health Solutions Inc. (NYSE: MHS) Reiterated Buy with $69 target at Argus.
Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (NASDAQ: MPEL) Reiterated Buy and raised target to $13.30 at Citigroup.
Quality Distribution Inc. (NASDAQ: QLTY) Started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Signet Jewelers Limited (NYSE: SIG) Maintained Strong Buy as Value at Zacks.
SIRIUS XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Vonage Holdings Corporation (NYSE: VG) Started as Buy at Janco Partners (Wednesday).
Zumiez, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) Cut to Neutral at Janney Capital.

You are invited to join our free daily email distribution list to hear more about analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader and active trader alerts, dividend trends, news on Buffett and other investment gurus, IPOs, secondary offerings, private equity, and more.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: ATML, CBRL, CMA, DNDN, DV, EDMC, GFI, GIS, IPSU, JNS, LPS, MHS, MPEL, MTL, QLTY, SIG, SIRI, VG, ZUMZ

Can The US Dump AIG?

Douglas A. McIntyre — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 08:48:03 +0000

The media is full of stories about American International Group’s (NYSE: AIG) plan to bring the Treasury’s ownership in the company below 50%. The trustees of the firm and several federal agencies would need to vote in favor of the program. No matter what those votes are, the success of any change in ownership still depends on AIG management which has not proved adroit at running the company’s operations.

As was true with Citigroup (NYSE: C), the government, or rather the taxpayers, would need to covert their holdings in AIG into common stock which could be sold on the open market.

AIG management has tried to increase the company’s cash balance through several transactions. The most notable of these was a planned sale of its AIA Asian unit to Prudential plc for $35. 5 billion. Prudential could not raise the capital needed to complete the transaction on what its board considered reasonable terms. The AIG board refused to take less money. AIA may be taken public, but its value is uncertain.

AIG recently sold a majority of its consumer lending division to Fortress Investment Group and booked a $1.9 billion loss on the transaction. AIG also sold its health insurance unit to MetLife for $15.5 billion, but only $6.8 billion was in cash. The equity portion is at risk based on the future action of MetLife shares.

None of these transactions has done much to lighten AIG’s obligation’s to American taxpayers.

The real challenge to AIG’s plan to bring down the Treasury’s holdings is the price of AIG’s shares and the willingness of shareholders to face substantial dilution. Those shareholders may decide to abandon their positions, which could bring down the value of the AIG stock sharply from its current $37 price.

The AIG plan to reduce the Treasury’s holdings is not likely to work, given how poorly the company’s management has done with past transactions.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Filed under: Mergers & Acquisitions, Mergers and Buy Outs Tagged: AIG, MTL

Top 10 Analyst Upgrades, Downgrades, Initiations (AEP, ARRS, AGO, IRE, ESRX, KBH, MTL, MU, RFMD, SPG)

Douglas A. McIntyre — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:55:05 +0000

These are ten of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from early Wall Street research calls this Wednesday morning:

American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Arris Group Inc. (NASDAQ: ARRS) Raised to Buy at UBS.
Assured Guaranty Ltd. (NYSE: AGO) Raised to Outperform at KBW.
Bank of Ireland (NYSE: IRE) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Express Scripts (NASDAQ: ESRX) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
KB Home (NYSE: KBH) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Mechel OAO (NYSE: MTL) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.
Micron Technology Inc. (NYSE: MU) Reiterated Buy ($10 target) at Auriga.
RF Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: RFMD) Raised to Buy at UBS.
Simon Property Group Inc. (NYSE: SPG) Started as Outperform at KBW.

You can join our open email distribution list to receive daily emails with analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader alerts, market rumors, merger activity, IPOs and secondary offerings, Warren Buffett and guru activity and more.

Jon C. Ogg

Posted in Active Trader, Analyst Calls, Pre-Market Activity, Trading Alert Tagged: AEP, AGO, ARRS, ESRX, IRE, KBH, MTL, MU, RFMD, SPG

Russian ADRs Take Off (MTL)(LUKOY)

Douglas A. McIntyre — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:25:02 +0000

Tickerspy’s Russian Stock and ADR Index is up close to 5% as the market goes into its close. Among the biggest movers was LUKOIL (OTC: LUKOY), an oil and gas company that was up over 6.5% today. Mechel OAO (NYSE: MTL), a mining company, was also up over 6.5%.

Russian oil and mining stocks were up today largely due to the effects of this weekend’s G-20 meetings, where world leaders agreed to continue their fiscal and monetary stimulus until global economic recovery. This news gave investors confidence that there will be demand for industrial commodities in the coming quarters. This has had the effect of pushing up the value of Russia’s ruble again the dollar, along with Russia MICEX index, as oil and metals mining represent a significant portion of that country’s economy.

Garrett W. McIntyre

Posted in Commodities & Metals, Emerging Markets, ETF, ETFs & Mutual Funds, International Markets, Metals Tagged: CTCM, LUKOY, MBT, MTL, NILSY, OGZPY, ROS, SGTPY, VIP, WBD

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (BCSI, CSCO, CAL, DAL, DYN, HA, MTL, SRE, LUV, TTM)

Douglas A. McIntyre — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 11:31:01 +0000

These are the top pre-market analyst upgrades and downgrades we have seen this Thursday. There are going to be fewer and fewer research notes from now to what is most likely Tuesday morning as Friday is a holiday and Monday is being taken off by so many investment and research personnel.

Blue Coat Systems (BCSI) Started as Buy ar Auriga.
Cisco Systems (CSCO) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Continental Airlines (CAL) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Delta Airlines (DAL) Started as Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Dynegy (DYN) Cut to Sell at Deutsche Bank.
Hawaiian Airlines (HA) Cut to Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.
Mechel Steel (MTL) Raised to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Sempra (SRE) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.
Southwest Airlines (LUV) Cut to Underweight at Morgan Stanley.
Tata Motors (TTM) Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank.

Jon C. Ogg
July 1, 2009

Posted in Analyst Calls Tagged: BCSI, CAL, CSCO, DAL, DYN, HA, LUV, MTL, SRE, TTM

Top Analyst Downgrades (ASTI, RATE, CHL, JNPR, MTL, SNP, TOT)

Douglas A. McIntyre — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 11:33:12 +0000

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

Ascent Solar (ASTI) Cut to Neutral at Merriman Curhan Ford.
Bankrate (RATE) Cut to Hold at Citigroup.
China Mobile (CHL) Removed from Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.
Juniper Networks (JNPR) Cut to Neutral at UBS.
Mechel (MTL) Cut to Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.
Sinopec (SNP) Removed from Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.
Total (TOT) Cut to Hold at Citigroup.

JON C. OGG

Posted in Analyst Calls Tagged: ASTI, CHL, JNPR, MTL, RATE, SNP, TOT

Top Pre-Market Analyst Downgrades (ANF, ATVI, AA, CB, DELL, ERTS, FCX, MTL, STP)

Douglas A. McIntyre — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 07:35:51 +0000

These are the top research downgrades and negative analyst calls we are seeing this Monday morning with more than two hours to the open:

Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) Cut to Market Perform at FBR.
Activision Blizzard (ATVI) Cut to Neutral at Merrill Lynch.
Alcoa (AA) Cut to Neutral at UBS.
Chubb (CB) Cut to Equal Weight at Barclays.
Dell (DELL) Cut to Neutral at Merrill Lynch.
Electronic Arts (ERTS) Cut to Neutral at Merrill Lynch.
Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
Mechel Steel (MTL) Cut to Sell at Citigroup.
Suntech Power (STP) Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.

Jon C. Ogg
November 17, 2008

Posted in Analyst Calls Tagged: AA, ANF, ATVI, CB, DELL, ERTS, FCX, MTL, STP

The 52-Week Low Club (CCC)(MTL)(ARM)(TSN)(SVNT)

Douglas A. McIntyre — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 14:55:11 +0000

Calgon Carbon (CCC) Outstanding notes convert to common shares. Drives stock to $10.54 from 52-week high of $23.03.

Mechel (MTL) Russian coal miner may issue up to 138.8 million preferred shares. Dives to $3.77 from 52-week high of $58.66.

Arvinmeritor (ARM) JPMorgan cuts rating for auto suppliers. Falls to $4.54 from 52-week high of $18.11.

Tyson Foods (TSN) Stephens research analyst lowers earnings forecast. Drops to $8.14 from 52-week high of $19.50.

Savient Pharmaceuticals (SVNT) Plummets on safety concerns about one if its treatments and analyst downgrade. Sells off to $2.80 from 52-week high of $28.42.

Douglas A. McIntyre

Posted in Active Trader, HI/LOW Tagged: ARM, CCC, MTL, SVNT, TSN

Russian ADR’s, ETF’s, Funds Hit On Military Actions (TRF, CEE, RSX, MBT, MTL, ROS, VIP, WBD)

Douglas A. McIntyre — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 10:56:30 +0000

Russian shares in ETF’s, closed-end funds, and ADR’s are taking a little beating this morning after Russian forces have rolled in with tanks, troops, and air raids into Georgia’s breakaway South Ossetia region. Deciding who is responsible is up to you, particularly as Russia and its former Soviet Union states are known for information not coming out at all or not coming out in a timely and accurate manner. Here is a list of the reactions we are seeing in these stocks, funds, and ETF’s.

INDIVIDUAL RUSSIAN STOCK ADR’s:

Mobile Telesystems OJSC (NYSE: MBT) -6.8% at $66.29 on 1.88M shares
Mechel OAO Company (NYSE: MTL) -4.2% at $23.05 on 3.6M shares
Rostelecom OAO (NYSE: ROS) -3.75% at $68.35 on 64,000 shares
Vimpel-Communications (NYSE: VIP) -3.3% at $23.50 on 2.4M shares
Wimm-Bill-Dann Foods (NYSE: WBD) -6% at $76.10 on 164,000 shares

EXCHANGE TRADED FUND:

Market Vectors Russia ETF (NYSE: RSX) -5% at $40.15 on 946,000 shares

CLOSED-END FUNDS:

Templeton Russia and East European Fund Inc. (NYSE: TRF) -2.9% at $45.19 on 35,000 shares
Central Europe & Russia Fund Inc. (NYSE: CEE) -4% at $43.33 on 45,000 shares

The open ended mutual funds won’t really see any pricing changes untilthe net asset values update at the end of the day, so where thosereally trade at an end of day hypothetical net asset value might beguesswork. OPEN ENDED FUNDS:

ING Russia A Fund (LETRX)
JPMorgan Russia C Fund (JRUCX)
JPMorgan Russia Select Fund (JRUSX)
JPMorgan Russia R5 Fund (JRURX)
Third Millennium Russia Fund (TMRFX)
TEMPLETON RUSSIA AND EAST EUROPE Fund (XTRFX)
JPMorgan Russia A Fund (JRUAX)

Jon C. Ogg
August 8, 2008