24/7 Wall St. » MTN

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (GOOG, YNDX, LULU, AMGN, NLY, BDE, FTEK, HK, PAY, DKS, IRDM, SSI, MTN, VRML, EBTX, XOMA, ONTY, ZLTQ)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 21:05:54 +0000

The three major US equities indexes opened sharply lower this morning and the slide continued pretty much without interruption all day. About half an hour before closing, all three indexes are down more than -1.5% and today looks headed for the worst day for the markets so far this year. A projected -0.3% contraction in eurozone GDP coupled with a slowdown of GDP growth in China to its lowest level in eight years got equities off on the wrong foot this morning, and there was simply no news good enough to turn things around. The dollar opened stronger today, and has continue to gain strength with the dollar index currently up 0.66% at 79.821. The stronger dollar weighed on crude prices, pushing WTI down -1.9% to $104.70/barrel and Brent down -1.51% at $121.93/barrel. Gold settled down -1.9% at $1,672.10, its lowest finish in six weeks.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 204points to 12,759.15 (-1.57%), the NASDAQ fell more than 40 points (-1.36%) to 2,910.32, and the S&P 500 fell -1.54% or nearly 21 points to 1,343.36.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) started as ‘buy’ at Nomura; Yandex N.V. (NASDAQ: YNDX) started as ‘neutral’ at UBS; lululemon athletica inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) cut to ‘hold’ at Argus; Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) cut to ‘market perform’ at Bernstein; and Annaly Capital Management Inc. (NYSE: NLY) cut to ‘market perform’ at Wells Fargo.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Black Diamond Inc. (NASDAQ: BDE) is down -2.1% at $8.74; Fuel Tech Inc. (NASDAQ: FTEK) is up 0.18% at $5.61; Halcon Resources Corp. (NASDAQ: HK) is down -4.6% at $10.27; Verifone Systems, Inc. (NYSE: PAY) is up 7.5% at $50.03; Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS) is up 2.7% at $46.79 after posting a new 52-week high of $47.42 earlier today; Iridium Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: IRDM) is up 10.8% at $8.20; Stage Stores Inc. (NYSE: SSI) is down -4.6% at $13.69; and Vail Resorts Inc. (NYSE: MTN) is up 4.7% at $43.43.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Vermillion Inc. (NASDAQ: VRML) is up more than 111% at $2.81. The medical device maker received a code-change approval from the American Medical Association that incorporates one of the company’s devices. More coverage here.

Encore Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: EBTX) is up more than 35% at $20.23 after posting a new 52-week high of $20.61 earlier this morning. The bank holding company has been acquired by privately held Cadence Bancorp for about $250 million ($20.62/share).

XOMA Corp. (NASDAQ: XOMA) is up about 30% at $1.89. The biopharmaceutical firm has announced pricing on a share offer of around 29.7 million shares and warrants.

Oncothyreon Inc. (NASDAQ: ONTY) is down nearly -41% at $4.98. The biopharma company reported a significant fourth-quarter EPS miss this morning, along with available cash that will keep the company in operation for about another 12 months.

Zeltiq Aesthetics Inc. (NASDAQ: ZLTQ) is down more than -32% at $7.50 after posting a new 52-week low of $7.46 earlier. The medical technology company posted a dismal fourth-quarter earnings report this morning.

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

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
7:30 a.m. – Challenger Gray & Christmas job-cut report
8:15 a.m. – ADP employment report
8:30 a.m. – Non-farm business productivity and unit labor costs report
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
3:00 p.m. – Consumer credit

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: AMGN, BDE, DKS, EBTX, FTEK, GOOG, HK, IRDM, LULU, MTN, NLY, ONTY, PAY, SSI, VRML, XOMA, YNDX, ZLTQ

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (TEVA, AKS, AU, MTN, GGP, SHLO, EBF, RHT, WINN, SHIP, ZNGA, JAKK, BAC)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 21:08:34 +0000

US equity markets opened a bit higher this morning, after futures trading pared early morning gains. Early optimism, however, was not to pan out, following some rather downbeat remarks from the president of the European Central Bank. Then investors started pounding on financial stocks absorbing finally the Federal Reserve’s intention to accept the Basel III raise to bank capital requirements. Crude oil has risen slightly in trading today, with WTI crude at $93.78/barrel and Brent crude at $103.58. Gold has finished slightly down, at $1,592.90.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down more than 99 points to 11,766.79 (-0.84%), the NASDAQ fell more than 32 points (-1.28%) to 2,523.14, and the S&P 500 fell -1.18X% or more than 14 points to 1,205.32.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. (NASDAQ: TEVA) reiterated as ‘buy’ with a $52 price target at Canaccord Genuity. Other ratings actions today include AK Steel Holding Corp. (NYSE: AKS) raised from ‘market perform’ to ‘outperform’ at Wells Fargo; AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (NYSE: AU) cut from ‘neutral’ to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; Vail Resorts Inc. (NYSE: MTN) started as ‘outperform’ at Credit Suisse; and General Growth Properties Inc. (NYSE: GGP) cut from ‘outperform’ to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs.

Here are today’s post-earnings news reactions with prices during the last half-hour of trading: Shiloh Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: SHLO) is up 0.35% at $8.52; and Ennis, Inc. (NYSE: EBF) is down more than -4% at $12.89. After markets close today, Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT) is scheduled to report third-quarter EPS of $0.26 on revenue of $289.6 million.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Winn-Dixie Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: WINN) is up nearly 71% at $9.27. The regional grocery chain has agreed to a buyout offer worth about $560 million from Bi-Lo, another regional chain in the southeastern US. The offer of $9.50/share represents a premium of about 75% to Winn-Dixie’s Friday closing price.

Seanergy Maritime Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHIP) is up more than 17% at $2.60, after posting a new 52-week low earlier today. The dry bulk shipper has received a time charter for one of its four Capesize vessels for a period of 11-13 months.

Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ) is down more than -5% at $9.00. The social game maker held its IPO last Friday, but shares have not been able to hold the $10/share offering price. More coverage here.

JAKKS Pacific, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAKK) is down more than -19% at $14.00, after posting a new 52-week low of $13.45 earlier today. The toy and consumer products maker lowered full-year earnings and sales guidance this morning.

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) is down nearly -4.5% at $4.97, after posting a new 52-week low of $4.93 earlier today. The bank has been hit with concerns over new capital reserve requirements and the effect that will have on profits.

Stay tuned for Tuesday. Here are other noteworthy events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – November housing starts report
1:00 p.m. – Five-year Treasury note auction

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AKS, AU, BAC, EBF, GGP, JAKK, MTN, RHT, SHIP, SHLO, TEVA, WINN, ZNGA

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AKS, AU, FTE, GGP, HON, LAZ, PNW, GOLD, TEF, TEVA, TMK, UNFI, URI, MTN, WCG)

Administrator — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 13:23:47 +0000

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

AK Steel Holding Corporation (NYSE: AKS) Raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (NYSE: AU) Cut to Sell from Neutral by Goldman Sachs.

France Telecom S.A. (NYSE: FTE) Cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks Investment Research.
General Growth Properties Inc. (NYSE: GGP) Cut to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks Investment Research.

Lazard Ltd. (NYSE: LAZ) Raised to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Pinnacle West Capital Corporation (NYSE: PNW) Cut to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Randgold Resources Limited (NASDAQ: GOLD) Cut to Sell from Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
Telefonica, S.A. (NYSE: TEF) Cut to Neutral from Overweight at HSBC.
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NASDAQ: TEVA) Reiterated Buy with $52 target at Canaccord Genuity.
Torchmark Corp. (NYSE: TMK) Raised to Neutral from Underperform at Credit Suisse.
United Natural Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ: UNFI) Raised to Buy from Hold at Canaccord Genuity.
United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE: URI) Raised to Top Pick at RBC.
Vail Resorts Inc. (NYSE: MTN) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE: WCG) named as value stock of the day at Zacks Investment Research.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AKS, AU, FTE, GGP, gold, HON, LAZ, MTN, PNW, TEF, TEVA, TMK, UNFI, URI, WCG

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (GOOG, JDSU, DRI, CB, LNKD, SAI, VRA, MTN, VLGEA, MW, TLB, MNI, MSO, FSLR, JAG, GBG)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 21:06:59 +0000

Equities fell sharply after this morning’s opening. Futures were soft prior to the opening bell due largely to continue to worry about Europe and a forecast cut to the European Central Bank’s lending rate from 1.25% to 1%. The mid-morning report on US crude oil stocks put a halt to any thought of a crude price rise, with US inventories growing by 1.3 million barrels following a 3.9 million barrel increase the week before. WTI is trading down almost $1, at $100.30/barrel late in the day, and Brent is trading at $109.45/barrel, down more than $1.35. Gold is up nearly 0.75%, at $1,744.60.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 45 points to 12,195.61 (0.37%), the NASDAQ fell less than 1 point (-0.01%) to 2,649.21, and the S&P 500 rose 0.20% or more than 2 points to 1,261.02.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) started as ‘buy’ with a $725 target price at Canaccord Genuity. Other ratings actions today include JDS Uniphase Corp. (NASDAQ: JDSU) started as ‘buy’ with a $14.75 target price at Jefferies; Darden Restaurants Inc. (NYSE: DRI) cut to ‘hold’ from ‘buy’ at Argus; Chubb Corp. (NYSE: CB) started as ‘outperform’ at Credit Suisse; and LinkedIn Corp. (NASDAQ: LNKD) started as ‘buy’ with an $85 target price at Canaccord Genuity.

Here are today’s post-earnings news reactions with prices during the last half-hour of trading: SAIC Inc. (NYSE: SAI) is up 6.5% at $12.95; Vera Bradley Inc. (NASDAQ: VRA) is down about -1.5% at $36.62; Vail Resorts Inc. (NYSE: MTN) is up slightly less than -1% at $45.48; Village Super Market Inc. (NASDAQ: VLGEA) is down more than -3.8% at $30.49; and The Men’s Wearhouse, Inc. (NYSE: MW) is up more than 20% at $32.68.

Several other standouts from today are as follows…

The Talbots Inc. (NYSE: TLB) is up about 65% at $2.58. The women’s clothing store has received a takeover offer from private equity firm Sycamore Partners for $3.00/share, a 92% premium to the stock’s closing price yesterday.

The McClatchy Co. (NYSE: MNI) is up more than 52%, at $1.80. The newspaper company said that advertising rates have not fallen as badly in the first two months of the current quarter. For the first nine months of this year ad revenue declined -10%, compared with a decline of -5.6% in October and November.

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. (NYSE: MSO) is up more than 32%, to $4.12. Retailer J.C. Penney Co. (NYSE: JCP) acquired a 16.6% stake in the lifestyle and media company today for $3.50/share, or $38.5 million. More coverage here.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) is up more than 4.6%, at 48.26. The company sold its 550-megawatt Topaz solar PV plant to a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A) for an undisclosed sum. The plant had previously been valued at more than $2 billion. More coverage here.

Jaguar Mining Inc. (NYSE: JAG) is down -9.6%, at $6.55. The junior gold miner said yesterday that its founding CEO had resigned.

Great Basin Gold Ltd. (AMEX: GBG) is up about 17.8%, at $1.19. Another junior gold miner, Great Basin has finalized a $150 million term credit facility for 5 years at a rate 4% above LIBOR.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Here are some noteworthy events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – New US unemployment claims report
10:00 a.m. – Wholesale trade report
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas status report
4:30 p.m. – Federal Reserve balance sheet
4:30 p.m. – Money supply report

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: CB, DRI, FSLR, GBG, GOOG, JAG, JDSU, LNKD, MNI, MSO, MTN, MW, SAI, TLB, VLGEA, VRA

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AEO, ADI, MT, BCS, CSCO, DMND, FSLR, FWLT, FITB, HSY, PLCM, ROST, STX, SYMC, TWGP, MTN, WDC)

Administrator — Thu, 12 May 2011 12:28:14 +0000

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

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE: AEO) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
Analog Devices Inc. (NYSE: ADI) Reiterated Buy and $50 target at Gleacher & Co.
ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) Raised to Hold at S&P Equity Research.
Barclays plc (NYSE: BCS) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) Cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity; Cut to Neutral at Baird.
Diamond Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ: DMND) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.
First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) Reiterated Buy and $160 target at Auriga.
Foster Wheeler AG (NASDAQ: FWLT) Reiterated Outperform and raised target to $47 at Credit Suisse.
Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ: FITB) Started as Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Hershey Co. (NYSE: HSY) Raised to Buy at Argus.
Polycom, Inc. (NASDAQ: PLCM) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST) Started as Buy at UBS; Raised to Hold at Jefferies.
Seagate Technology PLC (NYSE: STX) Started as Buy at Auriga.
Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ: SYMC) Raised to Neutral at BofA/ML.
Tower Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: TWGP) Maintained Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Vail Resorts Inc. (NYSE: MTN) Cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.
Western Digital Corp. (NYSE: WDC) Started as Buy at Auriga.

You can 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: ADI, AEO, BCS, CSCO, DMND, FITB, FSLR, FWLT, HSY, MT, MTN, PLCM, ROST, STX, SYMC, TWGP, WDC

Top 10 Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ATI, APOL, AUO, ABX, BWLD, EXPD, HAL, JCOM, NOK, MTN)

247wallst — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 11:51:15 +0000

These are the ten top analyst calls we have seen early this Tuesday morning with about two hours until the open:

Allegheny Tech (ATI) Cut to Sell at Citigroup.
Apollo Group (APOL) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.
AU Optronics (AUO) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Barrick Gold (ABX) Raised to Overweight at Thomas Weisel.
Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD) Started as Outperform at Oppenheimer.
Expeditors International (EXPD) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
Halliburton (HAL) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
j2 Global (JCOM) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
Nokia (NOK) Started as Buy at Jefferies.
Vail Resorts (MTN) Cut to Market Perform at Wachovia.

Jon C. Ogg
April 21, 2009

Posted in Analyst Calls Tagged: ABX, APOL, ATI, AUO, BWLD, EXPD, HAL, JCOM, MTN, NOK

Top Pre-Market Analyst Upgrades (MO, BBY, CFL, CEPH, GILD, LMT, TNDM, NOC, TLAB, MTN)

247wallst — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 07:52:50 +0000

These are the top pre-market upgrades and positive analyst calls we have seen from Wall Street this Monday morning:

Altria (NYSE: MO) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) Raised to Buy at Piper Jaffray.
Brink’s Home Security (NYSE: CFL) Started as Outperform at Oppenheimer.
Cephalon (NASDAQ: CEPH) Started as Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Gilead (NASDAQ: GILD) Started as Buy at Merriman Curhan Ford.
Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) Started as Buy at Societe Generale.
Neutral Tandem (NASDAQ: TNDM) Raised to Outperform at Baird.
Northrup Grumman (NYSE: NOC) Started as Buy at Societe Generale.
Tellabs (NASDAQ: TLAB) Raised to Overweight at Barclays.
Vail Resorts (NYSE: MTN) Raised to Outperform at Wachovia.

Jon C. Ogg
December 15, 2008

Posted in Analyst Calls Tagged: BBY, CEPH, CFL, GILD, LMT, MO, MTN, NOC, TLAB, TNDM

Top 10 Pre-Market Analyst Calls (BMY, MAR, MS, NRG, OMRI, SNCR, TRMB, TSN, MTN, XNPT)

247wallst — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 06:53:20 +0000

These are ten of the analyst calls we are focusing on this Wednesday morning in pre-market trading:

Bristol-Myers (NYSE: BMY) cut to Neutral at Cowen.
Marriott (NYSE: MAR) cut to Perform at Oppenheimer.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) Raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wachovia.
NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Omrix (NASDAQ: OMRI) Cut to Neutral from Buy at UBS.
Synchronoss Tech (NASDAQ: SNCR) started as Buy at Brean Murray.
Trimble Navigation (NASDAQ: TRMB) Cut to Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan.
Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) Raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wachovia.
Vail Resorts (NYSE: MTN) started as Buy at Banc of America.
XenoPort (NASDAQ: XNPT) Started as Buy at Goldman Sachs

Jon C. Ogg
June 4, 2008