24/7 Wall St. » PBY

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (WPI, AZN, ANF, SPWR, YGE, COST, MERU, ACI, VECO, PBY, ADM, CPO, AVP, DPZ, PFE, VLO, ABX, JDSU, MRO, FSLR, V, PFCB, DAL, CHK)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 01 May 2012 20:03:50 +0000

The major US stock indexes opened flat this morning but started to move higher following the better-than-expected ISM report on manufacturing (our coverage here). Construction spending in the US was a bit lower, but not enough to quell the enthusiasm over the manufacturing report. The US dollar index rose slightly today, now up 0.056% at 78.820. The GSCI commodity index is up fractionally at 684.88, with commodities mostly lower on the rising dollar. Cocoa put up a big gain today, while orange juice posted another sharp decline. WTI crude oil closed up 1.2% at $106.16/barrel, and Brent crude trades up 0.17% at $119.67/barrel. Gold settled up 0.1% today, at $1,662.40/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly 67 points to 13,280.31 (0.5%), the NASDAQ rose about 4 points (0.13%) to 3,050.44, and the S&P 500 rose 0.57% or nearly 8 points to 1,405.89.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NYSE: WPI) reiterated as ‘buy’ at Canaccord Genuity; AstraZeneca PLC (NYSE: AZN) raised to ‘neutral’ at BofA; Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) raised to ‘buy’ at UBS; SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) raised to ‘buy’ at Citigroup; Yingli Green Energy Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE) raised to ‘buy’ at Citigroup; Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) cut to ‘hold’ at Deutsche Bank; and Meru Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: MERU) cut to ‘neutral’ at RW Baird.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) is down -3.8% at $9.39 (more coverage here); Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: VECO) is up 14.8% at $34.67 (more coverage here); Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack (NYSE: PBY) is down -21.8% at $11.67 (more coverage here); Archer Daniels Midland Co. (NYSE: ADM) is up 7.9% at $33.25; Corn Products International Inc. (NYSE: CPO) is down -0.14% at $56.98; Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP) is down -7.6% at $19.95; Domino’s Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ) is down -9.6% at $34.18; Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) is down -0.14% at $22.87; and Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) is up 0.9% at $24.92.

Tomorrow we get earnings from Barrick Gold Corp. (NYSE: ABX), JDS Uniphase Corp. (NASDAQ: JDSU), Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO), First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR), and Visa Inc. (NYSE: V).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

P.F. Chang’s China Bistro Inc. (NASDAQ: PFCB) is up 29.7% at $51.46. The company is being taken private in a deal worth $1.1 billion. More coverage here.

Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE: DAL) is up 0.8% at $11.05. The airlines bought an oil refinery from newly-public Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX). More coverage here.

Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) is up 6.3% at $19.60. The company’s chairman will be replaced and the company reports earnings after markets close today. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. Fed Governor Daniel Tarullo and Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker are giving speeches. 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 job cut report
8:15 a.m. – ADP employment report
10:00 a.m. – Factory orders
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ABX, ACI, ADM, ANF, AVP, AZN, CHK, COST, CPO, DAL, DPZ, featured, FSLR, JDSU, MERU, MRO, PBY, PFCB, PFE, SPWR, V, VECO, VLO, WPI, YGE

Is Buyout of Pep Boys Going Bad? (PBY, AZO, ORLY)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 01 May 2012 18:19:39 +0000

On April 26th, Gores Group LLC asked Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack (NYSE: PBY) to delay a special shareholders meeting by 30 days in order to give the private equity firm time to figure out what has caused the auto parts dealer to turn in such awful numbers for the first quarter. Gores had likely seen the writing on the wall that Pep Boys revealed to the rest of us today.

In a preliminary report on first quarter results, Pep Boys projected revenues of $524-$526 million, sharply lower than the consensus estimate of $558.3 million and EPS in the range of flat to $0.04. In the same period a year ago, Pep Boys showed revenue of $5.135 million and EPS of $0.23. The company had only this to say this morning: “[F]irst quarter results were below expectations due to a variety of factors occurring in the ordinary course of business.”

Competitors Autozone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) and O’Reilly Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ: ORLY) had no such “factor” to report during the first quarter as both handily beat expectations. So what’s up with Pep Boys and the Gores takeover at $15/share?

One analyst told Bloomberg News that Gores was aware of the possible downturn in Pep Boys’ business in January when the acquisition was being discussed:

There is no way [Gores] can pretend that this wasn’t what was represented by management. They will have a tough time getting out of the deal because “they already revised the offer because of recent performance,” [the analyst] said.

But if Gores really has cold feet about the deal and can wangle a way out of it, even temporarily, Pep Boys’ shareholders may not like the results.

Shares of Pep Boys are down about -24% at $11.35 in mid-afternoon today, within a 52-week range of $8.18-$15.46.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Autos, Earnings, Mergers and Buy Outs Tagged: AZO, featured, ORLY, PBY

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ALSN, AZO, BIG, CHKP, CMG, CTRN, DWRE, GE, ILMN, LNKD, PBY, RMBS, TXN, UNH, XRX)

Administrator — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 12:04:35 +0000

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

Allison Transmission Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ALSN) Started as Neutral at Credit Suisse; Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs; Started as Neutral at Citigroup.

AutoZone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.

Big Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP) Maintained Hold at Argus.

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE: CMG) Cut to Neutral on valuation at Credit Suisse; Reiterated Buy with $480 target at Argus.

Citi Trends, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTRN) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Demandware, Inc. (NYSE: DWRE) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank; Started as Outperform at William Blair; Started as Outperform at Oppenheimer; Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) Reiterated Buy with $22 target at Argus.

Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN) Reiterated Buy with $54 target at BofA/ML.

LinkedIn Corporation (NYSE: LNKD) Started as Overweight at Piper Jaffray.

Pep Boys-Manny, Moe & Jack Inc. (NYSE: PBY) Cut to Sell at Argus.

Rambus Inc. (NASDAQ: RMBS) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.

Texas Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: TXN) Reiterated Buy with $36 target at BofA/ML.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) Reiterated Buy with $13 target at Argus.

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: ALSN, AZO, BIG, CHKP, CMG, CTRN, DWRE, GE, ILMN, LNKD, PBY, RMBS, TXN, UNH, XRX

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (GPS, BBY, LULU, MU, RIMM, MY, FINL, FES, DDMG, PBY, ENPH, ZAZA, LIZ)

Paul Ausick — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 20:06:22 +0000

Markets opened higher this morning and after a decline in mid-morning moved higher and wobbled around modest gain to the beginning of the last hour of trading today. This morning’s report on personal income and spending was mildly positive(our coverage here) and the consumer sentiment poll surprised investors by climbing higher than expected (our coverage here). Only the Chicago PMI reading was a disappointment (our coverage here). The US dollar index fell today, now down -0.26% at 78.980. Commodities were mixed on the weaker dollar, with corn and wheat rising the most. WTI crude oil closed up about 0.2% at $103.02/barrel, and Brent crude trades up 0.53% at $123.04/barrel. WTI crude gained 4.2% in the first quarter. Gold settled up 1% today, at $1,671.90/ounce, bringing the yellow metal to a gain of 6.7% for the quarter.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly 66 points to 13,211.74 (0.50%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 4 points (-0.12%) to 3,091.57, and the S&P 500 rose 0.37% or about 5 points to 1,408.46.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) raised to ‘buy’ at Janney; Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) maintained as ‘hold’ at Argus; Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) started as ‘buy’ at UBS; Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) reiterated ‘buy’ with an $11 target price at Jefferies; and Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) maintained as ‘underperform’ with a $12 target price at Jefferies.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: China Ming Yang Power Group Ltd. (NYSE: MY) is up 4.9% at $2.35; Research in Motion is up 6.8% at $14.67 (more coverage here); and Finish Line Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL) is down nearly -16% at $21.34 (more coverage here). After markets close today Forbes Energy Services Ltd. (NASDAQ: FES) will report earnings. Before markets open on Monday we’ll get earnings from Digital Domain Media Group Inc. (NYSE: DDMG) and Pep Boys – Manny Moe and Jack (NYSE: PBY), which is essentially meaningless now that the Pep Boys are being acquired by a private equity firm.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Enphase Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: ENPH) is up more than 19% at $7.16 after posting an intra-day on its IPO day of $8.24. More coverage here.

ZaZa Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: ZAZA) is up more than 21% at $4.74. The independent oil & gas driller acquired new acreage in a liquids-rich shale play in East Texas.

Liz Claiborne Inc. (NYSE: LIZ) is up about 12% at $13.26 after posting a new 52-week high of $15.39 earlier today. The Wall Street Journal reported that the company was in takeover talks with several private equity firms for about $20/share.

Stay tuned for Monday. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard and Cleveland Fed President Sandra Pianalto are giving speeches. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

10:00 a.m. – Institute for Supply Management manufacturing index
10:00 a.m. – Construction spending
11:30 a.m. – 3- and 6-month bill auction

Have a great weekend!

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: BBY, DDMG, ENPH, FES, FINL, GPS, LIZ, LULU, MU, MY, PBY, RIMM, ZAZA

Top Earnings Previews for the Week Ahead (APOL, GOL, LEN, PVH, WAG, CMC, FDO, MOS, PAYX, RHT, SN, TEA, BBY, PBY, RIMM)

Administrator — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 15:15:02 +0000

Earnings season is all but over and only the tail end of the quarterly and off-calendar reporting outfits are still reporting earnings. Still, the coming week does have several key earnings reports coming down the pipe.

We are offering previews and adding color if applicable on the following companies: Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL); GOL Linhas Aereas Inteligentes S.A. (NYSE: GOL); Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN); PVH Corporation (NYSE: PVH); Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG); Commercial Metals Co. (NYSE: CMC); Family Dollar Stores Inc. (NYSE: FDO); The Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS); Paychex Inc. (NASDAQ: PAYX); Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT); Sanchez Energy Corporation (NYSE: SN); Teavana Holdings Inc. (NYSE: TEA); Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY); Pep Boys-Manny Moe & Jack (NYSE: PBY); and Research In Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM).

Monday , March 26

Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL): Thomson Reuters has estimates of $0.37 EPS and $932.8 million in revenues. Shares of the online university at around $42.50 and the 52-week range is $37.08 to $58.29.

GOL Linhas Aereas Inteligentes S.A. (NYSE: GOL) is expected to report earnings of $0.07 EPS on a translated basis from Brazilian Reals for the Latin American airline outfit. A slowing Brazil story has not helped GOL out and at $7.50 the 52-week trading range is $5.03 to $14.35.

Tuesday, March 27

Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) was soft after weaker than expected new home sales data for February, but the homebuilder is up over 100% from the lows of 2011. At $25.75, the 52-week range is $12.14 to $27.07. Thomson Reuters has estimates of $0.04 EPS and $699.4 million in revenues.

PVH Corporation (NYSE: PVH): Thomson Reuters has estimates of $1.09 EPS and $1.5 billion in revenues. Ay $88.40, shares are very close to the highs with its 52-week range of $51.15 to $90.64.

Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG) has not been a big performer of late and the $33.50 handle today compares to a 52-week range of $30.34 to $45.34. Thomson Reuters has estimates of $0.77 EPS and $18.56 billion in revenues.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Calendar, Earnings, Economy, The Week Tagged: APOL, BBY, CMC, FDO, GOL, LEN, MOS, PAYX, PBY, PVH, RHT, RIMM, SN, TEA, WAG

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AON, AZN, CSCO, DLR, DRIV, HSIC, IBM, PBY, CRM, SNH, SSW, SIRI, SOHU, SXL, THO, URBN, ZOLT)

Administrator — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:12:21 +0000

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

AON Corporation (NYSE: AON) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.
AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) Cut to Underperform at BofA/ML.
Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) Reiterated Outperform with $26 target at Credit Suisse.
Digital Realty (NYSE: DLR) Started as Sell at Cantor Fitzgerald.
Digital River Inc. (NASDAQ: DRIV) Cut to Hold at Argus.
Henry Schein, Inc. (NASDAQ: HSIC) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) Started as Buy with $230 target at Stern Agee. (LINK: FULL DETAILS)
Pep Boys-Manny, Moe & Jack Inc. (NYSE: PBY) Cut to Hold at Argus.
Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Senior Housing Properties Trust (NYSE: SNH) Cut to Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.
Seaspan Corporation (NYSE: SSW) Cut to Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
Sirius Satellite Radio, Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) Started as Underweight at Barclays.
Sohu.com Inc. (NASDAQ: SOHU) downgraded to Hold at RBS and Cut to Neutral at Susquehanna.
Sunoco Logistics, LP (NYSE: SXL) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Thor Industries, Inc. (NYSE: THO) named Value stock of the day at Zacks.
Urban Outfitters Inc. (NASDAQ: URBN) Cut to Sell at Brean Murray.
Zoltek Companies, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZOLT) Cut to Underperform at Needham (LINK: FULL SUMMARY).

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.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: AON, AZN, CRM, CSCO, DLR, DRIV, HSIC, IBM, PBY, SIRI, SNH, SOHU, SSW, SXL, THO, URBN, ZOLT

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (K, SPLS, TWX, AAP, AZO, JPM, GCI, SIFY, WEN, ONB, GTXI, PBY, TNB, CTIC, PMC)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 21:04:30 +0000

All three major indexes opened lower again today on weak markets in both Europe and Asia. European markets continued to be weighed down by the lack of a firm agreement on the Greek debt swap. In Asia, the weak US markets on Friday held gains down, and in Shanghai, where the government was expected to ease reserves requirements, the lack of any such move kept the index in the red for its first trading day following the week-long new year holiday. Crude oil traded down today, with WTI crude oil down -0.66% at $98.90/barrel and Brent crude down -0.62% at $110.77/barrel. Gold closed down -0.19% at $1,732.10/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 7 points to 12,653.5 (-0.05%), the NASDAQ fell more than 4 points (-0.16%) to 2,811.94, and the S&P 500 fell -0.25% or more than 3 points to 1,313.02.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Kellogg Co. (NYSE: K) cut to ‘neutral’ at JP Morgan; Staples Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) cut to ‘equal-weight’ at Barclays; Advance Auto Parts Inc. (NYSE: AAP) and Autozone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) both raised to ‘buy’ at Goldman Sachs; and JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) maintained as ‘buy’ but removed from Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last Friday have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Gannett Co. Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is down -6.77% at $14.19; Sify Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: SIFY) is down -5.4% at $4.74; The Wendy’s Co. (NYSE: WEN) is down -3.03% at $5.05; and Old National Bancorp. (NYSE: ONB) is down -1.90% at $11.86.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

GTX Inc. (NASDAQ: GTXI) is up nearly 49% at $5.86. The drug maker’s shares have been given a new price target of $19/share from Citigroup. We have more coverage here.

Pep Boys – Manny, Joe and Jack (NYSE: PBY) is up more than 23.5% at $14.92 after posting a new 52-week high of $15 earlier in the day. The auto parts retailer has agreed to an acquisition at $15/share. See more of our coverage here.

Thomas & Betts Corp. (NYSE: TNB) is up 13.33% at $71.28 after posting a new 52-week high of $71.80 earlier today. The electrical components maker has agreed to an acquisition by ABB Ltd. for $3.9 billion.

Cell Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: CTIC) is down nearly -18% at $1.10. The drug maker has withdrawn its application with FDA for approval of its non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma treatment.

Pharmerica Corp. (NYSE: PMC) is down nearly -12% at $12.64. The pharmacy services provider has expressed its wish that a hostile takeover bid from Omnicare Inc. (NYSE: OCR) will be withdrawn, following a Federal Trade Commission suit to block the deal. More coverage here.

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

8:30 a.m. – Employment cost index

9:00 a.m. – Case-Shiller housing price index

9:45 a.m. – Chicago purchasing managers index (PMI)

10:00 a.m. – Consumer confidence index

3:00 p.m. – Farm prices report

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Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close, The Day Tagged: AAP, AZO, CTIC, GCI, GTXI, JPM, K, ONB, PBY, PMC, SIFY, SPLS, TNB, TWX, WEN

Mid-day Movers (TNB, PBY, AMLN, GTXI, GCI)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:45:34 +0000

Among the major movers at around noon today are Thomas & Betts Corp. (NYSE: TNB), Pep Boys — Manny, Joe & Jack (NYSE: PBY), Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: AMLN), GTX Inc. (NASDAQ: GTXI), and Gannett Co. Inc. (NYSE: GCI).

Shares of Thomas & Betts are up nearly 23% in early trading this morning on a $3.9 billion buyout offer from ABB Ltd. (NYSE: ABB). Nearly 12 million shares have been traded so far today, compared with a 3-month daily average of about 330,000.

Another big winner this morning has been Pep Boys, also up about 23% following a $1 billion buyout from private equity firm Gores Group. More than 11 million shares have traded this morning, compared with a 3-month daily average of around 500,000. More coverage here.

Amylin up about 19% on news that its new diabetes drug has gained regulatory approval. Nearly 12 million shares have traded this morning, compared with a 3-month daily average of about 2.3 million.

GTX is up about 38% at $5.15 on nearly 2.5 million shares traded compared with a daily average of about 188,000. The drug maker’s shares have been given a new price target of $19/share from Citigroup. We have more coverage here.

Gannett is down more than -7% at $14.14, with nearly 4.6 million shares traded this morning, compared with a 3-month daily average of about 4 million shares. The newspaper publisher reported a -33% drop in quarterly profit and newspaper ad revenue fell -7.1%.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Roundups, The Day Tagged: AMLN, GCI, GTXI, PBY, TNB

Morning Movers (GTXI, PBY, TNB, CTIC, PMC)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:30:48 +0000

There are several stocks trading more heavily than usual this morning, and also experiencing large gains or drops in share prices. These include GTX Inc. (NASDAQ: GTX), Pep Boys — Manny, Joe & Jack (NYSE: PBY), Thomas & Betts Corp. (NYSE: TNB), Cell Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: CTIC), and Pharmerica Corp. (NYSE: PMC)

After the first half-hour of trading, GTX Inc. is up more than 30% at $5.15. Volume is about 8x the daily average of about 188,000 shares traded. The drug maker’s shares have been given a new price target of $19/share from Citigroup.

Pep Boys is up nearly 23% at $14.85 after posting a new 52-week high of $15.00 earlier. Volume is already more than 13x the daily average of about 500,000 shares traded. The auto parts retailer has agreed to an acquisition at $15/share. See more of our coverage here.

Thomas & Betts is up more than 22% at $71.00 after posting a new 52-week high of $71.30 earlier. Volume is already 20x the daily average of about 330,000 shares traded. The electrical components maker has agreed to an acquisition by ABB Ltd. for $3.9 billion.

Cell Therapeutics is down nearly -17% at $1.11. Volume already more than double the daily average of 1.8 million shares traded. The drug maker has withdrawn its application with FDA for approval of its non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma treatment.

Pharmerica is down nearly -13% at $12.49. Volume is already more than double the daily average of nearly 400,000 shares traded. The pharmacy services provider has expressed its wish that a hostile takeover bid from Omnicare Inc. (NYSE: OCR) will be withdrawn, following a Federal Trade Commission suit to block the deal. More coverage here.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Roundups, The Day Tagged: CTIC, GTXI, PBY, PMC, TNB

Gores Group Acquires Pep Boys (PBY, AZO, AAP, ORLY)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:29:55 +0000

Auto parts retailer The Pep Boys – Manny, Joe & Jack (NYSE: PBY) has agreed to be acquired by private equity firm The Gores Group for $1 billion cash, or $15/share. The price is a 24% premium over the closing price of the shares last Friday.

Pep Boys has been the weakest performer in the auto parts retail business for the past year. It’s share price has fallen by more than -13% in the past 12 months, while competitors Autozone Inc. (NYSE: AZO), Advance Auto Parts Inc. (NYSE: AAP), and O’Reilly Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ: ORLY) have risen by 38%, 17%, and 46%, respectively.

Under terms of the agreement, Pep Boys has a 45-day period in which it is free to seek other offers. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter.

Pep Boys has suspended its quarterly dividend and will file a quarterly report with the SEC, but has cancelled its conference call.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Mergers and Buy Outs, Private Equity Tagged: AAP, AZO, ORLY, PBY