24/7 Wall St. » PETS

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (COP, SIRI, GOOG, PG, AMGN, HAL, TWIN, PETS, MFN, GDP, CBRX, SR, RIMG)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 21:08:11 +0000

Equity markets opened slightly higher this morning but trailed off to negative territory in the late morning. By late afternoon, the NASDAQ composite and the S&P 500 were flirting with a positive result. Continuing talks between the Greek government and the country’s bondholders have not made any progress, and the imposition of an embargo on Iranian oil and other sanctions have been approved by the European Union. Some in Iran are making more threats to close the Strait of Hormuz, which has sent crude prices higher today. WTI crude is up 1.58% at $99.88/barrel and Brent crude is up 0.91% at $110.86/barrel. Gold has risen to $1,672.60/ounce, up 0.75% on the day.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 12 points to 12,708.82 (-0.09%), the NASDAQ fell more than 2 points (-0.09%) to 2,784.17, and the S&P 500 rose 0.05% or less than 1 point to 1,316.00.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) cut to ‘sell’ at UBS; Sirius XM Radion Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) cut to ‘equal weight at Morgan Stanely; Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) reiterated as ‘buy’ with a $730 target price at Argus; Proctor & Gamble (NYSE: PG) cut to ‘hold’ at Stifel Nicolaus; and Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) cut to ‘neutral’ at JPMorgan.

Earnings reports since markets closed on Friday have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL) is up XX% at $XX; Twin Disc Inc. (NASDAQ: TWIN) is down -XX% at $XX; and PetsMed Express Inc. (NASDAQ: PETS) is up XX% at $XX. We also have a rundown of the 11 stocks included in the DJIA that will be reporting earnings this week.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Minefinders Corp. Ltd. (AMEX: MFN) is up nearly 23% at $13.94. The Canadian silver miner is being acquired by Pan American Silver Corp. (NASDAQ: PAAS) for CDN$1.5 billion.

Goodrich Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: GDP) is up more than 12% at $15.76. The natural gas producer is the biggest gainer among natural gas drillers following an announcement from Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) that it was reducing production this year.

Columbia Laboratories Inc. (NASDAQ: CBRX) is down more than -54% at $0.72 after posting a new 52-week low of $0.64 earlier today. The drug company’s progesterone vaginal gel was not approved by a committee of the US FDA.

The Standard Register Co. (NYSE: SR) is down nearly -14% at $2.18, a new 52-week low. The printing and services company announced that it would reduce its workforce by 15% and take other measures in a restructuring of the company. Layoffs would affect about 390 workers.

Rimage Corp. (NASDAQ: RIMG) is down nearly -11% at $11.77. The digital publishing provider lowered its fourth-quarter earnings and revenue forecasts.

Stay tuned for Tuesday. The Federal Reserve’s open market committee meeting starts tomorrow, with a press conference with Fed chairman Ben Bernancke following at 2:30 p.m. ET. President Barack Obama delivers his state of the union address at 9:00 P.M ET. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

11:30 a.m. – 4-week Treasury bill auction
1:00 p.m. – 2-year Treasury note auction

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close, The Day Tagged: AMGN, CBRX, COP, GDP, GOOG, HAL, MFN, PETS, PG, RIMG, SIRI, SR, TWIN

Morning Movers (MFN, PETS, URG, CBRX, TWIN)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:06:47 +0000

There are several stocks trading more heavily than usual this morning, and also experiencing large gains or drops in share prices. These include Minefinders Corp. Ltd. (AMEX: MFN), PetMed Express Inc. (NASDAQ: PETS), Ur Energy Inc. (AMEX: URG), Columbia Laboratories Inc. (NASDAQ: CBRX), and Twin Disc Inc. (NASDAQ: TWIN).

After the first half-hour of trading, Minefinders is up nearly 26%. Volume is already more than double the daily average of about 700,000 shares traded. The Canadian silver miner is being acquired by Pan American Silver Corp. (NASDAQ: PAAS) for CDN$1.5 billion.

PetMed is up more than 14% at $12.87. Volume is already 3x the daily average of 222,000 shares traded. The pet supply company reported quarterly earnings that beat expectations.

Ur Energy is up more than 7% at $1.14. Volume is about one-third the average daily volume of 368,000 shares traded. The junior uranium miner has signed a multi-year contract to provide 200,000 pounds of uranium concentrate annually to a North American utility company. The contract sales begin in 2013.

Columbia Laboratories is down more than -55% at $0.70 after posting a new 52-week low of $0.65. Volume is more than 4x higher than the daily average of about 1.13 million shares traded. The drug company’s progesterone vaginal gel was not approved by a committee of the US FDA.

Twin Disc is down more than -17% at $32.61. Volume is already 3x the daily average of 136,000 shares traded. The machinery maker reported weak quarterly results and a lower backlog of orders.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Roundups, The Day Tagged: CBRX, MFN, PETS, TWIN, URG

Pets Are Recession-Proof! (PETM, PETS, WOOF)

Administrator — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 16:10:40 +0000

Whether or not the U.S. is truly going into another recession is still up for grabs. What is not up for grabs is that earnings are coming in less robust and companies are generally far less optimistic than they were at the beginning of this year. That is, except for the market around the household pets like cats, dogs, and other beasts of affection. PetSmart, Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) has raised guidance and this has the sector tied to pets under the magnifying glass today.

PetSmart runs about 1,200 retail locations throughout North America and its market valuation is over $5.1 billion. Its shares recently traded above $46.00 today after it raised guidance and the 52-week trading range is $35.27 to $46.60. It is not normal for retail companies to be trading within 1% or 2% of year highs in the current environment.

PetMed Express Inc. (NASDAQ: PETS) is surprisingly not in the gaining crowd today, yet it aims to help pet owners to save money by buying animal drugs online or over the phone rather than via the pharmacy, pet store, or vet’s office. Shares are down almost 1% at $9.30 and its 52-week trading range is $8.51 to $18.87. This company trades close to the market at about 13-times expected earnings.

Then there is the king of veterinarian centers at 11:50AM EDT: 16.94 0.03 (0.18%) VCA Antech Inc. (NASDAQ: WOOF). This one is down 0.2% so far at $16.94 and its 52-week range is $14.73 to $26.29.

What got things going was that PetSmart lifted its sales targets for the third quarter to 5.5% to 6% growth in same-store sales. It also raised guidance to $0.46 to $0.48 EPS from a prior target of $0.41 to $0.45 EPS. For the year, that range was raised to $2.46 to $2.52 EPS from a prior range of $2.40 to $2.48 EPS.

All of this only highlights the private equity acquisition of PetSmart’s main rival, which is Petco Animal Supplies. Petco agreed to be acquired in a $1.7 billion private equity buyout in 2006 by Leonard Green & Partners and affiliates of Texas Pacific Group.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Consumer Goods, Earnings, Entertainment, Retail Tagged: PETM, PETS, WOOF

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ALTR, MT, ADM, ARBA, BSX, CX, CSCO, FOSL, GOV, HON, KLAC, LRCX, M, PETS, TNK, TJX, WFM)

Administrator — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 12:11:39 +0000

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

Altera Corporation (NASDAQ: ALTR) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Arcelor Mittal (NYSE: MT) Raised to Buy at BofA/ML.
Archer Daniels Midland Inc. (NYSE: ADM) maintained Outperform but cut target to $35 at Credit Suisse.
Ariba Inc. (NASDAQ: ARBA) Started as Overweight at Barclays.
Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX) Reiterated Hold but cut estimates at Argus.
CEMEX, S.A.B. de C.V. (NYSE: CX) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.
Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) Reiterated Buy with $24 target at Argus.
Fossil, Inc. (NASDAQ: FOSL) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
Government Properties Income Trust (NYSE: GOV) Cut to Underperform at Wells Fargo.
Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) Reiterated Buy at BofA/ML.
KLA-Tencor Corporation (NASDAQ: KLAC) Raised to Hold at Citigroup.
Lam Research Corporation (NASDAQ: LRCX) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE: M) Reiterated Buy as Value at Zacks.
PetMed Express, Inc. (NASDAQ: PETS) Maintained Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Teekay Tankers Limited (NYSE: TNK) Cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.
The TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TJX) Raised to Overweight at Barclays.
Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ: WFM) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.

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: ADM, ALTR, ARBA, BSX, CSCO, CX, FOSL, GOV, HON, KLAC, LRCX, M, MT, PETS, TJX, TNK, WFM

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (BIDU, BG, CETV, CREE, GIS, IACI, MPC, MUR, MYGN, NTAP, PETS, SCHN, TRGP, NGLS)

Administrator — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 12:21:50 +0000

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

Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) Cut to Hold at S&P Equity Research (late Thursday call).
Bunge Limited (NYSE: BG) Reiterated Buy as Value at Zacks.
Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. (NASDAQ: CETV) Cut to Sell at Goldman Sachs.
Cree Inc. (NASDAQ: CREE) maintained as Hold with $37 target at Canaccord Genuity.
General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS) Cut to Hold at Argus.
IAC/InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ: IACI) Cut to Neutral with $41 target at BofA/ML.
Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE: MPC) Started as Outperform with $55 at Credit Suisse.
Murphy Oil Corporation (NYSE: MUR) Raised to Neutral at JPMorgan.
Myriad Genetics Inc. (NASDAQ: MYGN) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) Reiterated Buy with $68 target at Argus.
PetMed Express Inc. (NASDAQ: PETS) Maintained Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Schnitzer Steel Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: SCHN) Reiterated Buy with $80 target at Canaccord Genuity.
Targa Resources Corporation (NYSE: TRGP) Started as Neutral with $34 target at CRedit Suisse.
Targa Resources Partners LP (NYSE: NGLS) Started as Outperform with $40 target at Credit Suisse.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: BG, BIDU, CETV, CREE, GIS, IACI, MPC, MUR, MYGN, NGLS, NTAP, PETS, SCHN, TRGP

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AEO, AAPL, AMR, ENOC, F, INTC, JCOM, JBLU, MA, MGM, NIHD, PETS, SLE, TKC)

Administrator — Mon, 16 May 2011 12:19:32 +0000

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

American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NYSE: AEO) Raised to Positive at Susquehanna.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) Reiterated Outperform and $500 target at Credit Suisse.
AMR Corporation (NYSE: AMR) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
EnerNOC, Inc. (NASDAQ: ENOC) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) Reiterated Outperform on Focus List at Credit Suisse.
j2 Global Communications (NASDAQ: JCOM) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ: JBLU) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
Mastercard Inc. (NYSE: MA) Reiterated Buy and raised target to $325 at Argus.
MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) Raised to Buy at Jefferies.
NII Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: NIHD) Raised to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
PetMed Express (NASDAQ: PETS) Maintained Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Sara Lee Corp. (NYSE: SLE) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.
Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri AS (NYSE: TKC) Cut to Sell at Goldman Sachs.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AAPL, AEO, AMR, ENOC, F, INTC, JBLU, JCOM, MA, MGM, NIHD, PETS, SLE, TKC

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (APA, BRCM, BG, CIEN, HD, LOW, MEE, PETS, PWER, DGX, SAP, SBUX, RDS-A)

Administrator — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 13:35:42 +0000

These are some of this Monday’s top analyst calls with upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research firms.

Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA) Removed from Goldman Sachs Conviction Buy List.
Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM) Reiterated Buy with $55 target at Gleacher & Co.
Bunge Ltd. (NYSE: BG) Cut to Market Perform at BMO.
Ciena Corporation (NASDAQ: CIEN) Cut to Sell at UBS.
The Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE: HD) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Lowe’s Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) Cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
Massey Energy Co. (NYSE: MEE) Cut to Hold at Brean Murray.
PetMed Express Inc. (NASDAQ: PETS) Reiterated Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks Investment Research.
Power-One Inc. (NASDAQ: PWER) reiterated BUY with $14 target at Auriga.
Quest Diagnostics Inc. (NYSE: DGX) Raised to Equal-weight at Morgan Stanley.
SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX) Reiterated Buy with $39 target at Argus.
Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS-A) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse; Raised to Outperform and called the Bull of the Day at Zacks Investment Research.

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: APA, BG, BRCM, CIEN, DGX, HD, LOW, MEE, PETS, PWER, RDS-A, SAP, SBUX

Top Active Trader Alert Stocks (AGAM, AAPL, ABK, FLR, ISTA, LULU, PETS, STX, WDC)

Administrator — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 13:00:48 +0000

Active traders and day traders have many stocks to choose from this Wednesday morning. We are tracking news and moves in shares of Some of the most active stocks or largest moves seen in shares of AGA Medical Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: AGAM), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: ABK), Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR), ISTA Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ISTA), Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU), PetMed Express, Inc. (NASDAQ: PETS), Seagate Technology PLC (NYSE: STX) and Western Digital Corp. (NYSE: WDC).

AGA Medical Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: AGAM) is surging after St. Jude Medical acquired the company for $1.4 billion or $20.80 per share versus a $14.71 close Friday and 52-week range of $11.61 to $18.95. As with many deals, there is a premium to the premium merger in hopes of a better deal. Shares are up 41% at $20.75 this morning.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is up this morning before tonight’s earnings report. We have a full analyst outlay ahead of the numbers. Shares are up 1.5% at $319.60 or so this morning.

Ambac Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: ABK) is not seeing another big gap-up after last week’s mortgage/foreclosure-related win as the banks got hit. Shares are down 1% at $1.04 on 350,000 shares.

Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR) is taking a hit after a $163 million charge in part to a offshore wind project. Shares are down 5.1% at $49.21.

ISTA Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ISTA) received FDA approval for its BROMDAY eye drop for the treatment of postoperative inflammation and reduction of ocular pain in patients who have undergone cataract extraction. Shares are up 14% at $5.10 but the shares were up 20% earlier.

Lululemon Athletica Inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) is lower after Barron’s reported that the stock seemed to be overvalued. Shares are down 2.2% at $45.01.

PetMed Express, Inc. (NASDAQ: PETS) posted $0.22 EPS vs. $0.26 estimates as sales rose 4.1%. Shares are lower by over 12% at $13.93.

Seagate Technology PLC (NYSE: STX) is trading up again on word that Bain may join buyout talks over the pending Seagate acquisition that is reportedly coming. Shares are up another 7.5% at $16.70 pre-market and this was a $12.69 stock before the rumors surfaced last week.

Western Digital Corp. (NYSE: WDC) is up in Seagate-hype and after Barron’s noted it as a potential LBO candidate. Western was up Friday with Seagate as well. Shares are up 2% at $32.55 and Western Digital was at $29.49 before the rumors came on Seagate.

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

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Pre-Market Activity, Trading Alert Tagged: AAPL, ABK, AGAM, FLR, ISTA, LULU, PETS, STX, WDC

Top Day Trader Alerts (ATAC, BP, CYPB, GOOG, PETS, VVUS)

Administrator — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 13:00:50 +0000

There are many stocks on the move for day traders and active traders this Monday morning now that earnings season has launched. We are seeing key moves in shares of ATC Technology Corporation (NASDAQ: ATAC), BP plc (NYSE: BP), Cypress Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: CYPB), Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG), PetMed Express Inc. (NASDAQ: PETS), and VIVUS, Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS).

ATC Technology Corporation (NASDAQ: ATAC) is trading up after the firm announced a definitive merger to be acquired by GENCO Distribution System for $25.00 per share in cash in a deal worth more than $500 million. Shares are trading up 40% at $24.47 on under 100,000 shares.

BP plc (NYSE: BP) managed to hold the cap on the well and the firm has approval for another day of capped pressure tests, although government pressure has shares lower by over 2% this morning in early trading.

Cypress Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: CYPB) is soaring after Ramius offered to acquire Cypress Bio for $4.00 per share in cash. The market cap was only $96 million before this offer. Shares are up almost 40% but at $3.46 on active volume.

Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) was defended by Barron’s after a big drop Friday. Barron’s said in its cover story that shares are perhaps 35% undervalued. Shares are trading up almost 1% around the $463 handle.

PetMed Express Inc. (NASDAQ: PETS) did not make the grade on its earnings report. Shares are down 17% at $14.60 on only about 25,000 shares.

VIVUS, Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS) is weak again after a 55% drop on Friday. Shares are indicated down almost 1% at $5.36 on relatively thin volume.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Pre-Market Activity, Trading Alert Tagged: ATAC, BP, CYPB, GOOG, PETS, VVUS

Top 10 Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (BBBB, CTXS, EXPE, IP, NTAP, NOK, PKG, PETS, TNK, USB)

247wallst — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 12:08:33 +0000

These are this Tuesday morning’s top ten analyst calls with upgrades, downgrades, and initiations we have seen in early trading from Wall Street firms:

Blackboard (BBBB) Cut to Neutral at BofA/Merrill.
Citrix Systems (CTXS) Cut to Underperform at BofA/Merrill.
Expedia (EXPE) Started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.
International Paper (IP) Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank.
NetApp (NTAP) Raised to Accumulate at ThinkEquity.
Nokia (NOK) Cut to Hold from Buy at Jefferies.
Packaging Corp (PKG) Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank.
PetMed Express (PETS) Raised to Overweight at Piper Jaffray.
Teekay Tankers (TNK) Raised to Overweight at JP Morgan.
US Bancorp (USB) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.

JON C. OGG
JULY 21, 2009

Posted in Analyst Calls Tagged: BBBB, CTXS, EXPE, IP, NOK, NTAP, PETS, PKG, TNK, USB