24/7 Wall St. » PIR

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — April 11, 2013: Markets Mostly Hold Early Gains (MSFT, ADBE, SLB, KRFT, UA, ADTN, BBBY, NG, PIR, LEDS, CRMB, RAD, ACAD, BBRY, HPQ)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 20:05:55 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened flat to lower this morning following yesterday’s record-setting session. Economic data was minimal today. In Asia, machinery orders rose more than expected in Japan, but the Shanghai market closed lower on bird flu worries. In Europe, the eurozone is expected to approve the Cypriot bailout plan tomorrow. Consumer price indexes in France and Germany came in pretty much as expected. In the U.S., the report on jobless benefit claims came in better than expected (more coverage here). U.S. March retail sales for many chain stores were reported today, and the results were perhaps a little better than expected (more coverage here). The Nasdaq trailed today following a report from IDC on lower PC sales in the first quarter of 2013.

The U.S. dollar index is trading down 0.33% today, now at 82.260. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.2% at 636.03. WTI crude oil closed down 1.2% today, at $93.51 a barrel, following a cut to its demand estimate by the IEA (more coverage here). Brent crude trades down 1.6% at $104.26 a barrel. Natural gas is up 1.5% today at about $4.14 per million BTUs, following a report today on natural gas inventories (more coverage here). Gold settled up 0.4% today at $1,564.90 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 62 points to 14,864.75 (0.42%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 3 points (0.09%) to 3,300.16, and the S&P 500 rose 0.35% or nearly 6 points to 1,593.36.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs and to ‘neutral’ at Nomura; Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE) raised to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs; Schlumberger Ltd. (NYSE: SLB) maintained as ‘buy’ with a $90 price target at Argus; Kraft Foods Inc. (NASDAQ: KRFT) started as ‘market perform’ at Wells Fargo; and Under Armour Inc. (NYSE: UA) reiterated as ‘outperform’ and price target raised to $64 at Credit Suisse.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: ADTRAN Inc. (NASDAQ: ADTN) is up 2.1% at $22.93; Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY) is down 1.9% at $64.23 (more coverage here); NovaGold Resources Inc. (NYSEMKT: NG) is up 2.3% at $3.03 after posting a new 52-week low of $3.01 earlier today; Pier 1 Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR) is down 0.2% at $23.29; and SemiLEDS Corp. (NASDAQ: LEDS) is down 18.2% at $1.17.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Crumbs Bake Shop Inc. (NASDAQ: CRMB).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD) is up 18.7% at $2.13 after posting a new 52-week high of $2.15 earlier today. The drug store chain beat earnings expectations last night. More coverage here.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ACAD) is up 67.4% at $13.34 after posting a new 52-week high of $13.92 earlier today. The clinical stage biopharmaceutical company said today that it will file for accelerated approval of an anti-psychosis drug for patients with Parkinson’s disease.

BlackBerry (NASDAQ: BBRY) is down 7.8% at $13.55. The mobile phone maker is reported to be seeing large numbers of returns for its Z10 touchscreen phone. More coverage here.

Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) is down 6.6% at $20.84. The PC and printer maker is getting battered on a report from IDC that PC sales are collapsing. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Friday. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is giving a speech. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Producer price index
8:30 a.m. – Retail sales
9:55 a.m. – Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index
10:00 a.m. – Business inventories

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ACAD, ADBE, ADTN, BBBY, BBRY, CRMB, HPQ, KRFT, LEDS, MSFT, NG, PIR, RAD, SLB, UA

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — April 10, 2013: Markets Set New Highs Again (ARO, HLF, IBM, IEP, THC, PSMT, KMX, STZ, FDO, JKS, TITN, ADTN, BBBY, NG, PIR, LEDS, FSLR, ABX, NOK)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 20:04:26 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning and both the DJIA and the S&P 500 climbed to new intra-day highs (more coverage here). The Fed mistakenly released FOMC minutes early to some Congressional staffers this morning, so the minutes were released to all before markets opened, helping to stoke today’s buying (more coverage here). In Asia, China posted a surprise trade deficit, entirely due to a 14% increase in imports. In Europe, industrial production increased in France, but dropped in Spain and Italy by more than expected. The “troika” has proposed to extend bailout loans to Ireland and Portugal by seven years. In the U.S., mortgage applications rose (more coverage here) and the Treasury’s auction of $21 billion in 10-year notes saw weaker demand as equities ruled today.

The U.S. dollar index is trading up 0.24% today, now at 82.513. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.8% at 637.09. WTI crude oil closed up 0.5% today, at $94.64 a barrel, following an inventory report that showed a smaller-than-forecast build in stockpiles (more coverage here). Brent crude trades down 0.5% at $105.87 a barrel. Natural gas is up 1.8% today at about $4.12 per million BTUs. Gold settled down 1.8% today at $1,558.80 an ounce, its largest one day drop since November.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 127 points to 14,800.78 (0.87%), the NASDAQ rose more than 59 points (1.83%) to 3,297.25, and the S&P 500 rose 1.22% or about 20 points to 1,587.71.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO) cut to ‘sell’ with price target of $10 at Goldman Sachs; Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE: HLF) cut to ‘neutral’ at D.A. Davidson; International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) raised to ‘buy’ at UBS; Icahn Enterprises LP (NASDAQ: IEP) started as ‘buy’ with a price target of $66 at Jefferies; and Tenet Healthcare Corp. (NYSE: THC) cut to ‘hold’ at Deutsche Bank.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: PriceSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PSMT) is up 5.7% at $84.77; Carmax Inc. (NYSE: KMX) is up 3.7% at $43.22 after posting a new 52-week high of $43.42 earlier today; Constellation Brands Inc. (NYSE: STZ) is up 0.4% at $48.83; Family Dollar Stores Inc. (NYSE: FDO) is up 1% at $60.40 (more coverage here); Jinkosolar Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: JKS) is down 9% at $5.28; and Titan Machinery Inc. (NASDAQ: TITN) is down 13.9% at $22.48.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from ADTRAN Inc. (NASDAQ: ADTN), Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY), NovaGold Resources Inc. (NYSEMKT: NG), Pier 1 Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR), and SemiLEDS Corp. (NASDAQ: LEDS).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) is down 7.3% at $36.49. The solar panel maker is giving back some of its 45%+ gain from yesterday. More coverage here.

Barrick Gold Corp. (NYSE: ABX) is down 8.7% at $24.38 after posting a new 52-week low of $24.30 earlier today. The gold miner is being slammed following a court decision that will suspend operations at its new Chilean mine.

Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) is up 4.5% at $3.52. The mobile phone maker had no news today, but the company said earlier this week that it is launching a new phone with T-Mobile USA in May.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Retailers will be reporting same-store sales for March throughout the day. Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser and St. Louis Fed President James Bullard are giving speeches. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
8:30 a.m. – Import and export prices
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
1:00 p.m. – 30-year note auction
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ABX, ADTN, ARO, BBBY, FDO, FSLR, HLF, IBM, IEP, JKS, KMX, LEDS, NG, NOK, PIR, PSMT, STZ, THC, TITN

Buy Rated Stocks Getting a Direct Boost From the US Housing Recovery (LEN, TOL, HD, LOW, BAC, GE, WY, HON, PIR, BAST, FLXS)

Lee Jackson — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 18:09:03 +0000

Last month we wrote about the huge rally in the homebuilding stocks since the lows of the stock market in March of 2009. Stocks that were written off for dead like Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) and Toll Brothers Inc (NYSE: TOL) have had spectacular rallies since then. If homebuilders are back in the business of building new homes then it just makes sense that there must be vendors that sell to those homebuilders that are doing much better as well.

In difficult times like we experienced in the fall of 2008 it’s not unusual for consumers to tighten their belts and close their wallets. Rather than buy a new home they will typically fix, maintain and upgrade their current residence which usually benefits companies like The Home Depot Co, Inc (NYSE: HD) and Lowe’s Companies Inc. (LOW). Both are buy rated stocks at Bank of America – Merrill Lynch (NYSE: BAC) and both are also big beneficiaries of new home construction.

When new homebuilding heats back up like we are experiencing now companies that supply in bulk to the homebuilders are often the big winners. Here are some buy rated stocks we located that are directly benefitting from the surge in new home construction.

Bank of America – Merrill Lynch also ranks General Electric Company as a buy. As one of the top suppliers of appliances to homebuilders it’s not uncommon for them to supply the refrigerator, oven, stove, microwave and dishwasher in a new home. Trading today at $22.40 the Bank of America price target is $25. The Wall Street consensus target is $24.50. Buy rated Weyerhaeuser (NYSE: WY) is one of the companies that provides the much needed lumber for construction. Trading at $30.64 the Bank of America target is $35 while the Wall Street consensus is higher at $36. They also like Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) and have a $77 price target. Trading today at $68.76, the Thomson/First call consensus is $72.

Mohawk Industries Inc. (NYSE: MHK) together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and sale of floor covering products for residential and commercial markets for remodeling and new construction primarily in the United States and Europe. Over the past 60 days all nine earnings estimates for Mohawk were revised upwards, which lifted the Zacks Consensus estimates by 1.1% to $3.71. This indicates year over year growth of 26.9%. The estimate for 2013 increased to $4.94 per share a 33.4% year over year increase. Trading today at $103.17 the Wall Street consensus price target is $104.50.

Furniture stores and makers also reap the rewards of new home construction. Buy rated Pier One Imports, Inc. (PIR) is at the top of Bank of Americas list. Trading today at $21.72 they have a $25 target and the Wall Street consensus is $24. Investors may also want to consider furniture makers like Bassett Furniture Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: BSET) and Flexsteel Industries Inc. (NASDAQ: FLXS).

The jump in new home construction not only bodes well for the companies we mentioned, but it also bodes well for the overall economy. The tremendous amount of job creation itself helps to provide an increase in consumer spending. With consumer spending being the largest component in gross domestic product, the industry that sent the economy into a tailspin five years ago might just be the one that helps lift it out.

Filed under: General Tagged: BAC, BAST, FLXS, GE, HD, HON, LEN, LOW, PIR, TOL, WY

Top Consumer Stock Picks and Pans from Jefferies (JEF, FIVE, PIR, ANFI, CMG, HAIN, DECK)

Lee Jackson — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 13:35:38 +0000

With ICR XChange, one of the world’s largest consumer symposiums, coming up this week in Miami, we thought it would be a good time to take a look at consumer stocks. There is a growing sense on Wall St. that recent tax hikes on many Americans for Social Security contributions might have a debilitating effect on consumer spending. If that is the case, we wanted to find which stocks may be able to sidestep the drop in spending.

The team at Jefferies Group Inc. (NYSE: JEF) believes retail sales growth will be choppy in 2013 but should still manage a 2% to 3% gain. One of their leading indicators is the banks’ willingness to lend index, which they view as a variable but sideways trend. While they acknowledge that slow job growth and tax increases will weigh on consumers, they also feel low mortgage rates and a friendly Fed should help keep some support under sales. Since there are multiple categories within the consumer stock sector we decided to present the stocks in each category that are the top Jefferies picks.

Broadline/Hardline Retail: The top small cap pick here is small-box retailer Five Below Inc. (NASDAQ: FIVE). Focusing on teen and preteen costumers, this recent IPO is trading today at $31.14. The consensus street target is $36.63. Jeffries also rates specialty home retailer Pier 1 Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR) as a Buy. Trading at $20.85, a wave of new and returning home buyers could be a positive for Pier 1, which analysts have placed a $23.80 target on.

Packaged Food: In an industry where margins are often very tight, the top pick is Amira Natural Foods Ltd. (NYSE: ANFI). This company based in Dubai is also a recent IPO. However, this name got crushed. Priced at $10 a share back in October, Amira Nature Foods focuses on processing, distributing and marketing packaged specialty rice and other food products in India, the Asia Pacific, North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Trading today at $6.79 and at a very reasonable 5.5 times earnings, this seems like an excellent entry point for a stock with a street target of $12.

Restaurants: Here, Jefferies takes a very cautious view on Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG). Long a favorite of the short sellers the fear is that comp trends, margins and earnings expectations will all come in below street views. Even though today’s level of $295.97 is way below the 52-week high of $442.40, it recently traded as low as $235. A complete miss at earnings could send it back there.

Retailing, Food and Drug Chains: The top name here is actually not a food or drug store chain, but the Hain Celestial Group Inc. (NASDAQ: HAIN). Hain Celestial, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, distributes and sells natural and organic products in approximately 50mcountries worldwide. With a growing consumer desire and willingness to pay for organic products, this may be a solid choice. Trading today at $52.53, with a street consensus of $69.29, investors could see a 30% gain.

Speciality Retail: In this final group. outdoor footwear and accessory manufacturer Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NASDAQ: DECK) is the top pick. This is another name short sellers went after and got destroyed in the process. The UGG brand has been a huge success and continues with strong sales trends. Trading at $38.151, below a street target of $42.69, Deckers may still hold solid gains for investors.

Even though retail was one of last year’s top performing sectors, a slow but surely improving economy may be just enough to squeeze out more solid gains in 2013.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls, Consumer Goods Tagged: ANFI, CMG, DECK, FIVE, HAIN, JEF, PIR

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — December 13, 2012: Markets Stumble to Loss (IRF, LLTC, LXK, UTHR, TSO, RH, CIEN, HOV, PIR, ADBE, ZQK, PAY, BBY, SCTY, CLWR, HRG)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 21:03:04 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened about flat this morning but fell into a swoon following remarks from House Speaker John Boehner indicated that there has been no change to the gridlock in negotiations on the federal deficit. In Europe, eurozone finance ministers approved the next tranche of aid to Greece and also reached an agreement on a banking supervisory mechanism. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei rose sharply as a weaker yen prompted equity investors. In the U.S., a load of data came out today: initial jobless claims fell by more than expected (more coverage here), retail sales were not quite as good as expected (more coverage here), and the producer price index fell (more coverage here). Still, none of this was strong enough to overcome the continuing drama related to the approaching fiscal cliff.

The U.S. dollar index rose today, now up 0.14% at 79.929. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.81% at 63705, with commodities prices mixed again today. WTI crude oil closed down 0.3% today, at $86.48 a barrel. Brent crude trades down 1.3% at $107.91 a barrel. Natural gas is down 1% today at about $3.35 per thousand cubic feet following a flat report on inventories (more coverage here). Gold settled down 1.2% today at $1,696.80 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down more than 71 points to 13,174.10 (-0.54%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 22 points (-0.72%) to 2,992.16, and the S&P 500 fell 0.62% or nearly 9 points to 1,419.58.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including International Rectifier (NYSE: IRF) cut to ‘sell’ with a target price of $15 at Goldman Sachs; Linear Technology Co. (NASDAQ: LLTC) cut to ‘sell’ with a target price of $32 at Citigroup; Lexmark International Inc. (NYSE: LXK) cut to ‘sell’ with a target price of $18 at Deutsche Bank; United Therapeutics Corp. (NASDAQ: UTHR) cut to ‘sell’ with a target price of $50 at Goldman Sachs; and Tesoro Corp. (NYSE: TSO) raised to ‘outperform’ with a target price of $60 at Credit Suisse.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have resulted in the following price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today: Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc. (NYSE: RH) is down 3.8% at 35.29, a new 52-week low; Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN) is up 1.2% at 15.76; Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: HOV) is down 4.5% at $5.25 after posting a new 52-week low of $5.38 earlier today; and Pier One Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR) is up 1% at $19.26 (more coverage here).

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE), Quicksilver Inc. (NYSE: ZQK), and VeriFone Systems Inc. (NYSE: PAY).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) is up 15.9X% at $14.12. The big box electronics retail is rumored to be in line for a takeover offer from founder Richard Schulze. More coverage here.

SolarCity Corp. (NASDAQ: SCTY) is up 46.5% at $11.72. The solar installation company held its IPO today, and shares popped following a lowered offering price of $8 a share. More coverage here.

Clearwire Corp. (NASDAQ: CLWR) is up 14.2% at $3.14 after posting a new 52-week high of $3.18 earlier today. The wireless carrier has been offered $2.90 a share by majority owner Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S) for the 49% of shares that Sprint doesn’t already own. Investors seem to think that a bidding war could start. More coverage here.

Harbinger Group Inc. (NYSE: HRG) is down 26.5% at $7.51. The private equity firm priced a secondary offering of 20 million shares at $7.50, a discount of more than 25% to last night’s closing price.

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

8:30 a.m. – Consumer price index
8:58 a.m. – Flash manufacturing PMI
9:15 a.m. – Industrial production

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ADBE, BBY, CIEN, CLWR, HOV, HRG, IRF, LLTC, LXK, PAY, PIR, RH, SCTY, TSO, UTHR, ZQK

Pier 1 Posts Strong Q3 Results

Paul Ausick — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 12:40:38 +0000

Pier 1 Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR) reported third-quarter fiscal 2013 results before the markets opened this morning. The home furnishing retailer reported adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.25 on revenues of $424.5 million. In the same period a year ago, Pier 1 reported EPS of $0.21 on revenue of $382.7 million. Third-quarter results compare to the Thomson Reuters consensus estimates for EPS of $0.24 and $418.49 million in revenue.

On a GAAP basis, Pier 1 reported EPS of $0.22, which excludes the estimated impact on net income of Hurricane Sandy. Same-store sales for the quarter rose 7.9% year-over-year.

Pier 1 also announced a 25% increase to the company’s quarterly dividend to $0.05 a share, and a third $100 million share buyback program.

The company’s CEO said:

This marks the Company’s first full quarter of e-Commerce sales and we’re pleased with the initial results, as the level of both new and existing customer visits indicates the long-term opportunity is significant. Indeed, we saw very strong traffic at both our stores and Pier1.com during the period, and trends have remained robust thus far in the holiday selling season.

The company guided fiscal fourth-quarter adjusted EPS at $0.57 to $0.61 ($0.55 to $0.59 on a GAAP basis) and expects same-store sales to rise in the mid single-digit range. The consensus estimate called for EPS of $0.58. The estimate is based on a comparable 13-week quarter, but the quarter has 14 weeks. The extra week will add about $0.02 to EPS according to the firm.

For the full 2013 fiscal year ending in February, Pier 1 expects adjusted EPS of $1.17 to $1.21. Same-store sales are expected to grow in the mid single-digit range. Actual EPS will get the same $0.02 bump from the 53-week fiscal year.

Gross profits rose 0.7% to 43.9% and operating income was up 9.1% in the third quarter. Net income fell slightly, however, by 0.4% to 5.6%. The rise in same-store sales is put down to an increase in store traffic and a higher average ticket. The CEO’s comments indicate that these trends have continued into the holiday shopping season, so perhaps the fourth quarter will be another pleasant surprise for shareholders.

Pier 1’s shares are up 1.5% in premarket trading this morning, at $19.30 in a 52-week range of $12.50 to $21.24. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $22.90 before today’s results were announced.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Consumer Goods, Earnings Tagged: PIR

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — December 12, 2012: Markets Open Higher, Bernanke Lets the Air Out (NKE, C, STX, UA, FDX, COST, JOY, RH, CIEN, HOV, PIR, RSOL, YMI, SOL, YGE, JKS, JASO, LDK, CSIQ, RIMM)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 21:05:05 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning following yesterday’s gains with another good start. In Asia, the North Korean rocket launch did not cause markets to run for cover and a very solid report on India’s industrial production pushed major indexes to decent gains. In Europe, Greece got agreement from bondholders to repurchase about €32 billion for about a third of the bonds’ face value. The U.K. unemployment rate was unchanged at 7.8% and German CPI was inline with expectations. In the U.S., mortgage applications rose again this week interest rates fell to a 22-year low (more coverage here). But all eyes were focused on the afternoon’s Fed open market committee announcement (more coverage here) and Ben Bernanke’s press conference, which promptly sent stocks on a steep downhill slide.

The U.S. dollar index fell today, now down 0.3% at 79.819. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.1% at 631.93, with commodities prices mixed again today. WTI crude oil closed up 1.1% today, at $86.77 a barrel, following a slight reported drop in crude inventories (more coverage here). Brent crude trades up 1.6% at $109.73 a barrel. Natural gas is down 0.9% today at about $3.38 per thousand cubic feet. Gold settled up 0.5% today at $1,717.90 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down about 3 points to 13,245.52 (-0.02%), the NASDAQ fell more than 8 points (-0.28%) to 3,013.81, and the S&P 500 rose 0.05% or less than 1 point to 1,428.50.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) started as ‘neutral’ at JPMorgan; Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) reiterated as ‘outperform’ with a target price of $48 at Credit Suisse; Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ: STX) cut to ‘underweight’ at JPMorgan; Under Armour Inc. (NYSE: UA) started as ‘underweight’ at JPMorgan; and FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) cut to ‘outperform’ at Raymond James.

We also covered last night’s release of short interest data on social media stocks, high-yield stocks, solar stocks, semiconductor stocks, and oil & gas stocks.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have resulted in the following price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today: Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST) is down 0.4% at $97.95 and Joy Global Inc. (NYSE: JOY) is up 4.1% at $60.24.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc. (NYSE: RH), Ciena Corp. (NASDAQ: CIEN), Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: HOV), and Pier One Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Real Goods Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: RSOL) is down 13.4% at $0.87. The solar PV installer is likely suffering from contamination due to SolarCity’s postponed and lower-priced IPO. More coverage of the Solarcity story here.

YM BioSciences Inc. (NYSEMKT: YMI) is up 75.8% at $2.87 after posting a new 52-week high of $2.92 earlier today. The Canadian cancer drug developer is being acquired by Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) for $2.95 a share, or a total of $510 million.

ReneSola Ltd. (NYSE: SOL) is up 19.1% at $1.69. The solar PV maker is among a handful of the Chinese makers who stand to benefit from a new round of Chinese government subsidies. Other big movers today include Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. (NYSE: YGE), up 18.2%; JinkoSolar Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: JKS), up 18.5%, JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: JASO), up 17.6%, LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK), up 13.5%, and Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ), up 12.5%.

Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) is up XX% at $XX. The smartphone maker continues to attract buzz and investors in advance of its January 30th launch of its new BlackBerry 10 operating system and handsets.

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

8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
8:30 a.m. – Producer price index
8:30 a.m. – Retail sales
10:00 a.m. – Business inventories
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
1:00 p.m. – 30-year bond auction
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: C, CIEN, COST, CSIQ, FDX, HOV, JASO, JKS, JOY, LDK, NKE, PIR, RH, RIMM, RSOL, SOL, STX, UA, YGE, YMI

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AAPL, BIDU, DTV, LLY, EPD, EVER, FB, ITW, JNJ, INTC, IPG, LAZ, NFLX, OPTR, PIR, RSH, TSM, VRTX)

Jon C. Ogg — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 12:07:50 +0000

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

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) reiterated Outperform with $750 target at Credit Suisse.

Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.

DirecTV Group Inc. (NASDAQ: DTV) cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.

Eli Lilly & Co. (NYSE: LLY) raised to Neutral at Goldman Sachs and maintained Neutral but raised target to $59 at Credit Suisse.

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. (NYSE: EPD) reiterated Buy with $61 target at Argus.

EverBank Financial Corp. (NYSE: EVER) started as Buy with $16 target at Goldman Sachs.

Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) maintained Hold and said that its discounted cash flow model points to a price in the high $20s according to Argus.

Illinois Tools Works Inc. (NYSE: ITW) cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) cut to Sell at Goldman Sachs.

Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) cut to Underperform at Bernstein.

The Interpublic Group of Companies Inc. (NYSE: IPG) raised to Buy at Citigroup.

Lazard Ltd. (NYSE: LAZ) started as Sell at UBS and cut to Market Perform at KBW.

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) cut to Underperform with $72 target at BofA/ML.

Optimer Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: OPTR) reiterated Underperform and lowered target to $11 from $15 at BofA/ML.

Pier One Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR) started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.

RadioShack Corp. (NYSE: RSH) raised to Buy at BofA/ML.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. ADR (NYSE: TSM) cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VRTX) started as Buy at Deutsche Bank.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: AAPL, BIDU, DTV, EPD, EVER, FB, INTC, IPG, ITW, JNJ, LAZ, LLY, NFLX, OPTR, PIR, RSH, TSM, VRTX

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AAP, CAB, CRUS, CME, CTSH, EQIX, LH, LVLT, MMM, PIR, DGX, SKYW, STFC, TGI, TSL, WERN)

Jon C. Ogg — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 12:28:47 +0000

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

Advance Auto Parts Inc. (NYSE: AAP) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Cabela’s Inc. (NYSE: CAB) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Cirrus Logic Inc. (NASDAQ: CRUS) reiterated Buy and raised target to $48 at Canaccord Genuity.

CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CME) cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (NASDAQ: CTSH) started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Equinix Inc. (NASDAQ: EQIX) reiterated Buy and raised target to $250 at Jefferies and reiterated Buy and raised target to $225 at Canaccord Genuity.

Lab Corporation of America (NYSE: LH) started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Level 3 Communications Inc. (NYSE: LVLT) cut to Underperform at Raymond James.

3M Co. (NYSE: MMM) started as Buy at BofA/ML.

Pier 1 Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR) maintained Hold but raised estimates at Argus.

Quest Diagnostics Inc. (NYSE: DGX) started as Neutral and removed from U.S. Focus List at Credit Suisse.

SkyWest Inc. (NASDAQ: SKYW) named value stock of the day at Zacks and raised to Strong Buy at Raymond James.

State Auto Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: STFC) reiterated Buy with $18 target at Argus.

Triumph Group Inc. (NYSE: TGI) added to U.S. Focus List and raised target to $79 at Credit Suisse.

Trina Solar (NYSE: TSL) cut to Underperform at Raymond James.

Werner Enterprises Inc. (NASDAQ: WERN) has seen downgrades after its warning: cut to Neutral at Citigroup, to Market Perform at Wells Fargo, to Market Perform at Raymond James and to Neutral at JPMorgan.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: AAP, CAB, CME, CRUS, CTSH, DGX, EQIX, LH, LVLT, MMM, PIR, SKYW, STFC, TGI, TSL, WERN

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — September 13, 2012: Markets Get Behind FOMC (ANF, MSFT, INTC, AAPL, AGN, PLL, LRN, PIR, KUTV, OPTT, BAC, ANR, BIOF, PSTI)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 20:04:45 +0000

The three major U.S. stock indexes opened flat this morning as world markets didn’t want to jump the gun on today’s announcement from the FOMC. The report on new claims for unemployment benefits came in higher than expected, adding even more weight to any possible rise in equity prices (more coverage here). The FOMC announcement that it would buy up to $40 billion a month in mortgage-backed securities and that it would maintain its very low interest rate policy at least through the first half of 2015 lit a fire under investors though (more coverage here). As you might expect, gold and silver jumped (more coverage here) and every sector posted gained.

The U.S. dollar index plunged today after the FOMC announcement, now down 0.67% at 79.199. The GSCI commodity index is up fractionally at 682.79, with commodities prices higher on the weaker dollar. WTI crude oil closed up 1.3% today, at $98.31 a barrel, following the Fed’s announcement as traders expect demand for crude to rise. Brent crude trades up 0.5% at $115.89 a barrel. Natural gas is down 0.8% today to $3.039 per thousand cubic feet. Gold closed at $1,772.10 an ounce, up 2.2%, its highest settlement since late February.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up nearly 207 points to 13,540.17 (1.55%), the NASDAQ rose more than 41 points (1.33%) to 3,155.83, and the S&P 500 rose 1.63% or more than 23 points to 1,459.99.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) cut to ‘sell’ at Citigroup; Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) started as ‘hold’ at Jefferies; Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) maintained as ‘hold’ with a target price of $29 at Jefferies; Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) reiterated as ‘buy’ and target price raised to $810 at Goldman Sachs, with similar announcements from other analysts; and Allergan Inc. (NYSE: AGN) reiterated as ‘buy’ with a target price of $104 at Argus.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have been scarce, but here are some price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today: Pall Corp. (NYSE: PLL) is up 8.4% at $63.08; K12 Inc. (NYSE: LRN) is up 6.6% at $22.79 and Pier 1 Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR) is up 0.9% at $19.72 after posting a new 52-week high of $20.25 earlier today.

Before markets open on Friday we are scheduled to hear from Ku6 Media Co. Ltd. (NASDAQ: KUTV) and Ocean Power Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: OPTT).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) is up 4.3% at $9.36. The big bank led other major financial institutions higher today following the FOMC statement.

Alpha Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: ANR) is up 11.7% at $8.20. The coal miner continues its upward run, adding the FOMC announcement to the reasons to believe that global demand for coal will rise again.

BioFuel Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: BIOF) is up 55.4% at $6.45. The biofuel maker jumped on news that hedge fund manager David Einhorn raised his stake in the company.

Pluristem Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: PSTI) is down 14.3% at $3.89 a new 52-week low. The cell therapy products maker priced a secondary offering of 8 million shares today.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) is up 2% at $682.86 after posting another new high of $685.50 earlier today. No news, it’s just another day at the office for Apple stock.

Stay tuned for Friday. Atlanta Fed president Dennis Lockhart is giving a speech. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Consumer price index
8:30 a.m. – Retail sales
9:15 a.m. – Industrial production
9:55 a.m. – University of Michigan/Thomson Reuters consumer sentiment index
10:00 a.m. – Business inventories

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AAPL, AGN, ANF, ANR, BAC, BIOF, INTC, KUTV, LRN, MSFT, OPTT, PIR, PLL, PSTI