24/7 Wall St. » RATE

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — Wednesday: Markets Cannot Shake-off Low Open and Sink to Close

Paul Ausick — Wed, 01 May 2013 20:08:40 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened lower this morning following a weaker-than-expected employment report from ADP and concern that Friday’s report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics will follow the ADP lead (more coverage here). In other U.S. data out today, the April ISM manufacturing index ready came in lower than expected and the March report on construction spending was substantially weaker than forecast (more coverage here). In Asia, China’s PMI was lower than expected and raised worries that the Asian growth is slowing down (more coverage here). Markets in China and Hong Kong were closed today for the May Day holiday. The FOMC announcement in mid-afternoon offered a slightly different view on how the Fed’s asset buying may proceed (more coverage here).

The U.S. dollar index is trading down 0.28% today, now at 81.521. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.9% at 624.44. WTI crude oil closed down 2.6%, at $91.03 a barrel, following a massive increase in commercial inventories (more coverage here). Brent crude trades down 2.4% at $99.89 a barrel, as the spread between WTI and Brent now falls below $10 a barrel (more coverage here). Natural gas is down 0.4% today at about $4.32 per million BTUs. Gold settled down 1.8% today at $1,446.20 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down about 139 points to 14,700.95 (-0.94%), the NASDAQ about 30 points (-0.89%) to 3,299.13, and the S&P 500 fell -0.93% or nearly 15 points to 1,582.70.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Biogen Idec Inc. (NASDAQ: BIIB) removed from “Conviction Buy” list and cut to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs; Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. (NYSE: FCX) raised to ‘buy’ at Nomura; Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A) raised to ‘buy’ at Nomura; Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) added to “Conviction Buy” list at Goldman Sachs; and Oil States International Inc. (NYSE: OIS) cut to ‘underperform’ at BMO Capital Markets and cut to ‘market perform’ at Raymond James.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: Affymetrix Inc. (NASDAQ: AFFX) is down 8% at $3.35; Bankrate Inc. (NYSE: RATE) is up 14.7% at $15.46; Leap Wireless International Inc. (NASDAQ: LEAP) is down 3.2% at $5.54; Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPB) is down 4.6% at $53.44; Trulia Inc. (NYSE: TRLA) is up 13.1% at $32.86; Vanguard Health Systems Inc. (NYSE: VHS) is down 8.3% at $13.41; ADT Corp. (NYSE: ADT) is down 6.9% at $40.65; Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) is down 2.1% at $19.14 (more coverage here); Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) is up 1.2% at $41.81 (more coverage here); Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) is up 4.4% at $77.38; James River Coal Co. (NASDAQ: JRCC) is up 32.8% at $2.19; Mastercard Inc. (NYSE: MA) is down 2.3% at $540.47; Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) is down 2.1% at $59.68 (more coverage here); and Viacom Corp. (NASDAQ: VIAB) is up 3.2% at $66.01 after posting a new 52-week high of $69.00 earlier today.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings reports from Archer Daniels Midland Co. (NYSE: ADM), Avis Budget Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CAR), CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS), Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB), JDS Uniphase Corp. (NASDAQ: JDSU), Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS), Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ: STX), Tesoro Corp. (NYSE: TSO), Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Alpha Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: ANR), Cigna Corp. (NYSE: CI), Goldcorp Inc. (NYSE: GG), and Monster Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: MWW).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD) is up 13.1% at $3.19. The chipmaker had no big news today, although it did introduce two new microprocessors and made some pricing changes that indicate that the company’s pricing may have stabilized.

Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) is up 3.4% at $3.36 after posting a new 52-week (and 5-year) high of $3.39 earlier today. The satellite radio company posted a second consecutive high today, continuing to feast off yesterday’s earnings report.

Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK) is down 2.8% at $45.67. The drug maker slid on its lackluster earnings results and took a slice out of its sales and earnings targets for the rest of the year.

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

7:30 a.m. – Challenger job-cut report
8:30 a.m. – International trade
8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
8:30 a.m. – Productivity and costs
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ADM, ADT, AFFX, AMD, AMGN, ANR, BIIB, BRK-A, CAR, CBS, CHK, CI, CMCSA, FB, FCX, GG, HUM, IOS, JDSU, JRCC, LEAP, LVS, MA, MRK, MWW, PSX, RATE, SIRI, SPB, STX, TRLA, TSO, V, VHS, VIA-B

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — Tuesday: Markets Mixed at Open, Closes Slightly Higher

Paul Ausick — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 20:06:01 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened mixed this morning as investors weighed conflicting data from the U.S., Europe, and Asia. In Europe, retail sales declined more than expected in Germany, Italy’s unemployment rate remained unchanged at 11.5%, and eurozone inflation moderated to 1.2%, below a forecast for inflation of 1.6%. In Asia, Japanese industrial production rose less than expected, retail unexpectedly fell, and unemployment came in below expectations. In the U.S., the S&P Case-Shiller housing price index rose more than expected (more coverage here), while the Chicago PMI came in well below expectations and chilled investors for a spell this morning (more coverage here). The latest U.S. consumer confidence index came in higher than expected, which put some heat back into the morning trading session (more coverage here).

The U.S. dollar index is trading down 0.47% today, now at 81.762. The GSCI commodity index is up 1.2% at 629.99. WTI crude oil closed down 1.1%, at $93.46 a barrel, down 3.9% for the month of April. Brent crude trades down 1.6% at $102.19 a barrel. Natural gas is down 0.4% today at about $4.15 per million BTUs. Gold settled up 0.3% today at $1,472.10 an ounce, but lost 7.8% for the month, the largest drop in 16 months.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 20 points to 14,839.18 (0.14%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 22 points (0.66%) to 3,328.79, and the S&P 500 rose 0.24% or nearly 4 points to 1,597.45.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P) initiated as ‘sector perform’ at RBC Capital Markets; Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. (NASDAQ: BWLD) cut to ‘hold’ at KeyBanc; Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) raised to ‘buy’ at Deutsche Bank (more coverage here); PulteGroup Inc. (NYSE: PHM) cut to ‘neutral’ at J.P. Morgan; and SINA Corp. (NASDAQ: SINA) raised to ‘buy’ at Jefferies.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: Embraer SA (NYSE: ERJ) is up 6.7% at $34.94; Express Scripts Holding Co. (NASDAQ: ESRX) is up 1.6% at $59.38; General Growth Properties Inc. (NYSE: GGP) is up 2.2% at $22.50 after posting a new 52-week high of $22.80 earlier today; Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE: HLF) is up 2.7% at $39.78 (more coverage here); Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HTZ) is up 0.2% at $24.03 after posting a new 52-week high of $24.79 earlier today; Newmont Mining Corp. (NYSE: NEM) is down 5% at $32.27 after posting a new 52-week low of $31.33 earlier today; Riverbed Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: RVBD) is up fractionally at $14.86; 3D Systems Corp. (NYSE: DDD) is up 7.3% at $38.39; Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET) is up 2.5% at $57.55 after posting a new 52-week high of $58.63 earlier today; Anheuser-Busch InBev SA (NYSE: BUD) is up 0.3% at $95.72; Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP) is up 4.5% at $23.23 after posting a new 52-week high of $24.30 earlier today; BP plc (NYSE: BP) is up 2.3% at $43.61 (more coverage here); Harvest Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: HNR) is down 5.5% at $3.25; Marathon Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: MPC) is down 4.9% at $78.39; Office Depot Inc. (NYSE: ODP) is up 4.9% at $3.88; United States Steel Corp. (NYSE: X) is up 0.3% at $17.59; and Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) is down 2.5% at $40.17 (more coverage here).

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings reports from Affymetrix Inc. (NASDAQ: AFFX), Bankrate Inc. (NYSE: RATE), Leap Wireless International Inc. (NASDAQ: LEAP), Spectrum Brands Holdings Inc. (NYSE: SPB), Trulia Inc. (NASDAQ: TRLA), Vanguard Health Systems Inc. (NYSE: VHS), ADT Corp. (NYSE: ADT), Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK), Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA), Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM), James River Coal Co. (NASDAQ: JRCC), Mastercard Inc. (NYSE: MA), and Viacom Corp. (NASDAQ: VIAB).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) is up 5.5% at $3.24 after posting a new 52-week high of $3.25 earlier today. The satellite radio company posted good numbers and made permanent the hire of interim CEO James Meyer.

Delcath Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: DCTH) is down 39.8% at $0.84. The pharmaceutical and medical device maker will have to repeat a clinical trial.

Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE: PBI) is down 16.6% at $13.52. The business equipment company had a 57% drop in profits and cut its dividend.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) concludes a two-day meeting. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
8:15 a.m. – ADP employment report
8:58 a.m. – PMI manufacturing index
10:00 a.m. – ISM manufacturing index
10:00 a.m. – Construction spending
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
2:00 p.m. – FOMC meeting announcement

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ADT, AET, AFFX, AVP, BBY, BP, BUD, BWLD, CHK, CMCSA, DCTH, DDD, ESRX, GGP, HLF, HNR, HTZ, HUM, JRCC, LEAP, MA, MPC, NEM, ODP, P, PBI, PHM, RATE, RVBD, SINA, SIRI, SPB, TRLA, VHS, VIA-B, VLO, X

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — April 23, 2013: Flash Crash Has No Impact on Rising Stocks

Paul Ausick — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 20:07:07 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning despite low flash PMI readings from the eurozone. Germany’s manufacturing PMI reading was especially notable, falling to 47.9 from 49, and the country’s services PMI fell as well (more coverage here). In Asia, China’s flash manufacturing PMI fell from 51.60 last month to 50.50, which was worse than expected (more coverage here). In the U.S., the flash PMI reading fell from 54.6 to 52, which is still positive, but barely (more coverage here). U.S. house prices rose in February (more coverage here) and new home sales were also up after a drop in January (more coverage here). An afternoon “flash crash” followed a false report of an explosion at the White House caused by a hacker attack on the AP Twitter feed.

The U.S. dollar index is trading up 0.43% today, now at 83.032. The GSCI commodity index is flat at 609.10. WTI crude oil closed flat today, at $89.18 a barrel on the June futures contract. Brent crude trades down 0.1% at $100.26 a barrel. Natural gas is down 0.8% today at about $4.23 per million BTUs. Gold settled down 0.9% today at $1,408.80 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 152 points to 14,719.53 (1.05%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 36 points (1.11%) to 3,269.33, and the S&P 500 rose 1.04% or more than 16 points to 1,578.78.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Bankrate Inc. (NYSE: RATE) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM) cut to ‘underperform’ at BofA/Merrill Lynch; Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) raised to ‘overweight’ with a price target of $100 at J.P. Morgan; Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) raised to ‘buy’ with a price target of $25 at SunTrust Robinson Humphreys; and General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) reiterated as ‘buy’ with a price target of $25 at Argus.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) is up 24.9% at $217.81 after posting a new 52-week high of $219.38 earlier today (more coverage here); Gilead Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD) is down 1.5% at $53.22; Stillwater Mining Co. (NYSE: SWC) is up 1.2% at $10.99; Texas Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: TXN) is up 2.5% at $35.67 after posting a new 52-week high of $36.23 earlier today (more coverage here); AK Steel Holding Corp. (NYSE: AKS) is up 0.5% at $2.94; Coach Inc. (NYSE: COH) is up 10.5% at $55.88; Gannett Co. Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is down 5.2% at $19.94; Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT) is up 1.5% at $97.24 after posting a new 52-week high of $99.49 earlier today (more coverage here); and RadioShack Corp. (NYSE: RSH) is up 2.1% at $3.21 (more coverage here).

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings reports from Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), Broadcom Corp. (NASDAQ: BRCM), Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (NYSE: EW), Juniper Networks Inc. (NYSE: JNPR), Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM), Barrick Gold Corp. (NYSE: ABX), Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW), Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F), Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG), and Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) is up 9.8% at $16.62. The air lines reported decent earnings today, but is forecasting lower fuel costs going forward. More coverage here.

American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG) is up 5.2% at $40.60. The insurer won a lawsuit dismissal in California today.

Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) is down 5.9% at $4.60. The coal miner’s quarterly report came in as poorly as expected and its outlook is now particularly strong. More coverage here.

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
8:30 a.m. – Durable goods orders
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
1:00 p.m. – 5-year note auction

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AAPL, ABX, ACI, AIG, AKS, BRCM, CAT, COH, DAL, EW, F, GCI, GE, GILD, GLW, JNPR, LMT, MS, PG, RATE, RSH, S, SWC, T, TXN, VMW, YUM

Top Analyst Downgrades and Cautious Views from Wall Street

Jon C. Ogg — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 12:25:26 +0000

Investors often get to see many Buy ratings from Wall St. analysts, but they often do not see when these analysts give lists of stocks to sell nor when the analysts have very cautious comments about companies. We review many fresh research calls each and every day to find great ideas from value stocks to growth stocks to dividend stocks.

These are this Tuesday’s top analyst downgrades and cautious research notes from Wall St.

Bankrate Inc. (NYSE: RATE) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) was reiterated as Sell as earnings trends were unsustainable according to Argus.

Compass Minerals International Inc. (NYSE: CMP) was downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital Markets.

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) was maintained as Hold but earnings estimates were cut in 2013 and 2014, based on lower Windows 8 sales, by Argus.

Rogers Communications Inc. (NYSE: RCI) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform but still called a core holding at Credit Suisse.

SLM Corp. (NASDAQ: SLM) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight by Evercore Partners.

Western Union Co. (NYSE: WU) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup.

Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM) was downgraded to Underperform from Buy at Bank of America/Merrill Lynch.

Filed under: Active Trader, Analyst Calls Tagged: C, CMP, MSFT, RATE, RCI, SLM, WU, YUM

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — February 13, 2013: Markets Get No Direction Today (CLWR, GE, GRPN, CLF, PM, RATE, BWLD, CLWR, RAX, CMCSA, DF, DE, TOT, AMAT, CAR, CTL, CSCO, CLD, IPI, KGC, MET, NTAP, PXD, TRIP, Z, ANR, ABX, DTV, PEP, RSOL, BBRY, PPHM)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 21:06:06 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning following a closely watched report on U.S. retail sales came in about as expected (more coverage here). U.S. business inventories rose less than expected in December (more coverage here), but the difference was not enough to move the markets. In Asia, the Shanghai and Hong Kong exchanges remain closed for the new year holiday and there was no news or data of note from the region. In Europe, the head of the Bank of England said he expects U.K. inflation to rise to 3% by summer, which caused the pound to sell off and hit a six-month low versus the dollar. Overall, though, today’s economic news had little impact on trading.

The U.S. dollar index rose 0.01% today, now at 80.115. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.2% at 678.90, with commodities prices mixed today. WTI crude oil closed down 0.5% today, at $97.01 a barrel after the U.S. EIA released its weekly inventory report (more coverage here). Brent crude trades up 0.1% at $117.90 a barrel. Natural gas is up 2.4% today at about $3.31 per million BTUs. Gold settled down 0.3% today at $1,645.10 an ounce, its lowest settlement since August.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down about 36 points to 13,982.60 (-0.26%), the NASDAQ rose more than 10 points (0.33%) to 3,196.88, and the S&P 500 rose 0.06% or less than 1 point to 1,520.32.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Clearwire Corp. (NASDAQ: CLWR) cut to ‘underperform’ at Raymond James; General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) reiterated as ‘outperform’ and price target raised to $25 at Credit Suisse; Groupon Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN) raised to ‘buy’ at Sterne Agee; Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF) cut to ‘hold’ at Deutsche Bank; and Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE: PM) raised to ‘neutral’ at Nomura.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in several price moves today, including these: Bankrate Inc. (NYSE: RATE) is down 16.9% at $10.29 after posting a new 52-week low of $9.90 earlier today (more coverage here); Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. (NASDAQ: BWLD) is down 5.7% at $76.44; Clearwire Corp. (NASDAQ: CLWR) is down 0.2% at $3.18 (more coverage here); Rackspace Hosting Inc. (NYSE: RAX) is down 20.1% at $59.91; Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) is up 2.4% at $39.91 after posting a new 52-week high of $42.00 earlier today (more coverage here); Dean Foods Inc. (NYSE: DF) is down 8.9% at $16.75 (more coverage here); Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) is down 3.3% at $90.88 (more coverage here); and Total SA (NYSE: TOT) is up 1% at $51.93 (more coverage here).

After markets close today and before they open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT), Avis Budget Group Inc. (NASDAQ: CAR), CenturyLink Inc. (NYSE: CTL), Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO), Cloud Peak Energy Inc. (NYSE: CLD), Intrepid Potash Inc. (NYSE: IPI), Kinross Gold Corp. (NYSE: KGC), Metlife Inc. (NYSE: MET), NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP), Pioneer Natural Resources Co. (NYSE: PXD), TripAdvisor Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP), Zillow Inc. (NASDAQ: Z), Alpha Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: ANR), Barrick Gold Corp. (NYSE: ABX), DirecTV (NASDAQ: DTV), and PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE: PEP).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Real Goods Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: RSOL) is up 58.9% at $2.40 after posting a new 52-week high of $2.83 earlier today. The solar installer has been selected by an unnamed homebuilder to install residential solar systems at new communities in California.

BlackBerry (NASDAQ: BBRY) is down 8.1% at $13.97. The smartphone maker said today that it would not release a low-cost phone this year.

Peregrine Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: PPHM) is down 18.5% at $1.72. The biopharmaceuticals maker announced “modest” results from a Phase II trial of its pancreatic cancer treatment.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Fed Governor Daniel Tarullo 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
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

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: ABX, AMAT, ANR, BBRY, BWLD, CAR, CLD, CLF, CLWR, CMCSA, CSCO, CTL, DE, DF, DTV, featured, GE, GRPN, IPI, KGC, MET, NTAP, PEP, PM, PPHM, PXD, RATE, RAX, RSOL, TOT, TRIP, Z

Huge Opportunity Coming in Bankrate Shares — for the Patient Investor

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 15:55:34 +0000

Bankrate Inc. (NYSE: RATE) was downgraded by analysts after the personal finance website had poor earnings and guidance. What 24/7 Wall St. wants to know is whether this is the sign of worse things to come or whether this fire-sale is creating a great opportunity as the stock challenges a new low.

Earnings tanked the stock on Wednesday after the night before brought the news that revenue came in at only $93.2 million. That is down from $113.8 million a year ago and was well less than the consensus of about $106.3 million. The reported earnings came to only $0.06 per share as well, and that was versus a consensus of $0.11 per share. To add insult to injury, Bankrate projected that 2013 would see flattish revenues over 2012′s $457.2 million. That is much less than the nearly $503 million expected by Wall St.

So here is where the dilemma comes into play. Bankrate hit a 52-week low of $10.00. This represents a post-IPO low since mid-2011. The company’s CEO said that this is the bottom of a transition curve in the insurance side of the business that will lead to higher quality and better margin leads. The CEO also said that credit card advertisers are starting to increase advertising as well. We wonder how much these gains will help since the company’s guidance is for flat revenues.

The chart has not yet confirmed the trend toward only lower and lower share prices. Generally one bad reaction like this (-18%) is followed by more drops, but the company is trying to signal a transition. Trust is hard to come by in companies, and it is amazing that this company still has a market cap of $1 billion.

Bankrate shares are down close to 19% at $10.05 on more than 2 million shares, and the stock hit a new 52-week low of $10.00 on Wednesday morning. The prior 52-week range was $10.01 to $25.95.

The chart from Stockcharts.com below is one that encourages patience rather than anything aggressive. Hitting a 52-week low when the DJIA and S&P are within striking distance of new highs is no great signal.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Banking & Finance, Earnings, Earnings Warning, Internet Tagged: featured, RATE

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AVP, BBVA, RATE, BPL, CLWR, CLF, CMCSA, CXO, DELL, FOSL, GE, GRPN, PM, PXD, SD, ZMH )

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 13 Feb 2013 13:35:27 +0000

These are some of this Wednesday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen from Wall St. research calls.

Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP) raised to Neutral at UBS.

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. (NYSE: BBVA) raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.

BankRate Inc. (NYSE: RATE) cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE: BPL) raised to Buy with target of $58 at Argus.

Clearwire Corp. (NASDAQ: CLWR) cut to Underperform at Raymond James.

Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF) cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Concho Resources Inc. (NYSE: CXO) started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

Fossil Inc. (NASDAQ: FOSL) cut to neutral at Macquarie, cut to Underperform at FBR and cut to Outperform at CLSA.

General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) reiterated Outperform and raised target by $1 to $25 at Credit Suisse.

Groupon Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN) raised to Buy at Stern Agee.

Phillip Morris International Inc. (NYSE: PM) raised to Neutral at Nomura.

Pioneer Natural Resources Co. (NYSE: PXD) started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.

SandRidge Energy Inc. (NYSE: SD) started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Zimmer Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ZMH) raised to Buy with $90 target at Argus.

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: AVP, BBVA, BPL, CLF, CLWR, CMCSA, CXO, DELL, FOSL, GE, GRPN, PM, PXD, RATE, SD, ZMH

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — February 12, 2013: Markets Close Mixed in Another Yawner (CHK, FB, LVS, RGLD, DD, LGF, AVP, CPLA, FOSL, HERO, LVLT, KORS, RAI, KO, MHP, TRP, RATE, BWLD, CLWR, RAX, CMCSA, DF, DE, TOT, ZNGA, LDK)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 21:03:47 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened about flat this morning on another day devoid of significant data releases. In Asia, markets in China and Hong Kong remain closed for the holiday, but Japan’s Nikkei closed higher. In Europe, U.K. CPI data was mixed and France reported a higher-than-expected current account deficit. In Italy, a new corruption scandal broke out related to the head of the country’s largest defense contractor. U.S. markets took their cue from earnings reports and from a speech by Apple Inc.’s (NASDAQ: AAPL) that weighed on tech stocks (more coverage here). The Treasury budget showed a surplus of $2.88 billion, but did little to sway markets.

The U.S. dollar index fell 0.26% today, now at 80.098. The GSCI commodity index is down fractionally at 677.66, with commodities prices mostly lower today. WTI crude oil closed up 0.5% today, at $97.51 a barrel after the U.S. EIA released its monthly outlook (more coverage here). Brent crude trades up 0.5% at $118.65 a barrel. Natural gas is down 1.3% today at about $3.24 per million BTUs. Gold settled down fractionally today at $1,649.60 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up about 48 points to 14,019.24 (0.34%), the NASDAQ fell more than 5 points (-0.17%) to 3,186.49, and the S&P 500 rose 0.16% or more than 2 points to 1,519.42.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) started as ‘equal weight’ at Barclays; Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) cut to ‘market perform’ at Bernstein; Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS) raised to ‘buy’ with a price target of $25 at Argus; Royal Gold Inc. (NASDAQ: RGLD) raised to ‘buy’ at UBS; and E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. (NYSE: DD) started as ‘equal weight’ at Barclays.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in several price moves today, including these: Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. (NYSE: LGF) is down 0.7% at $19.61 (more coverage here); Capella Education Co. (NASDAQ: CPLA) is down 1.2% at $31.63; Fossil Inc. (NASDAQ: FOSL) is up 3.1% at $110.83; Hercules Offshore Inc. (NASDAQ: HERO) is up 1.4% at $7.12 after posting a new 52-week high of $7.40 earlier today; Level 3 Communications Inc. (NYSE: LVLT) is down 13.5% at $21.34; Michael Kors Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: KORS) is up 8.4% at $61.79 after posting an all-time high of $64.55 earlier today (more coverage here); Reynolds American Inc. (NYSE: RAI) is down 0.8% at $43.87; The Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) is down 3% at $37.46 (more coverage here); The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is down 0.9% at $43.89 (more coverage here); and TransCanada Corp. (NYSE: TRP) is down 1.5% at $47.45.

After markets close today and before they open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Bankrate Inc. (NYSE: RATE), Buffalo Wild Wings Inc. (NASDAQ: BWLD), Clearwire Corp. (NASDAQ: CLWR), Rackspace Hosting Inc. (NYSE: RAX), Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA), Dean Foods Inc. (NYSE: DF), Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE), and Total SA (NYSE: TOT).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP) is up 20.8% at $20.87. The cosmetics firm posted results for the fourth quarter that looked outstanding compared with so many previous quarters. The company has begun to stabilize sales and expects to pay down some debt early this year.

Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) is down 10.9% at $3.27. The social games company is losing steam following a downgrade to Facebook stock after a couple of days of nice gains.

LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK) is up 14.3% at $1.84. The solar maker is getting a boost from reports that demand is catching up with supply and prices are strengthening. More coverage on solar short interest here.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard is giving a speech. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
8:30 a.m. – Retail sales
8:30 a.m. – Import and export prices
10:00 a.m. – Business inventories
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
1:00 p.m. – 10-year note auction

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AVP, BWLD, CHK, CLWR, CMCSA, CPLA, DD, DE, DF, FB, featured, FOSL, HERO, KO, KORS, LDK, LGF, LVLT, LVS, MHP, RAI, RATE, RAX, RGLD, TOT, TRP, ZNGA

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AAPL, BBD, BSBR, RATE, BSX, CNK, DECK, DELL, DUK, ELX, LULU, OXY, QLGC, RGC, RIMM, TEVA, VZ, WSM)

Jon C. Ogg — Mon, 03 Dec 2012 13:43:43 +0000

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

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) reiterated Buy with $800 target and raised estimates at Canaccord Genuity.

Banco Bradesco S.A. (NYSE: BBD) raised to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Banco Santander (Brasil) S.A. (NYSE: BSBR) cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.

Bankrate Inc. (NYSE: RATE) cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity.

Boston Scientific Corp. (NYSE: BSX) raised to Market Outperform at JMP Securities.

Cinemark Holdings Inc. (NYSE: CNK) cut to Neutral at J.P. Morgan.

Deckers Outdoor Corp. (NASDAQ: DECK) raised to Buy at Stern Agee.

Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) raised to Buy with $13 target at Goldman Sachs.

Duke Energy Corp. (NYSE: DUK) raised to Overweight at Barclays.

Emulex Corp. (NYSE: ELX) cut to Sell at Goldman Sachs.

lululemon athletica inc. (NASDAQ: LULU) started as Buy with $91 target at Canaccord Genuity.

Occidental Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: OXY) cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Qlogic Corp. (NASDAQ: QLGC) cut to Sell at Goldman Sachs.

Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE: RGC) cut to Neutral at J.P. Morgan.

Research In Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) cut to Sell with $10 target at Canaccord Genuity.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE: TEVA) cut to Neutral at UBS.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) raised to Buy at Nomura.

Williams-Sonoma Inc. (NYSE: WSM) raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: AAPL, BBD, BSBR, BSX, CNK, DECK, DELL, DUK, ELX, LULU, OXY, QLGC, RATE, RGC, RIMM, TEVA, VZ, WSM

Is Zillow Another Bad Precursor for the Financial Information Market?

Jon C. Ogg — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 18:04:59 +0000

Zillow, Inc. (NASDAQ: Z) is getting crushed today after the company said that revenues would be soft in the quarter ahead. Zillow is supposed to be a housing market winner and housing is supposed to still be recovering. The company operates a real estate information marketplace in the United States.

So how can this stock be down 19% at $27.80 on the day? Maybe this is really just the same issue that hit Bankrate, Inc. (NYSE: RATE). Bankrate aggregates rate information on approximately 300 financial products and other personal finance Websites. It seems counterintuitive, but it sure seems as though more consumers are going directly to information at the source rather than sites about information. Can this be any coincidence?

Move, Inc. (NASDAQ: MOVE) operates an online network of Websites for real estate search, finance, and moving and home enthusiasts. Its shares are down 1% at $7.70 against a 52-week range of $4.05 to $10.06. This one might seem at risk as well but its earnings and guidance were in-line.

Is it possible that readership of things tied to finance and money is suffering from election panic? Or is it information overload? It seems that reading about information, as counterintuitive as it seems, may be taking a holiday.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Internet Tagged: featured, MOVE, RATE, Z