24/7 Wall St. » RL

Closing Bell for Thursday on Wall Street: Markets Stall on Japan Losses

Paul Ausick — Thu, 23 May 2013 20:05:54 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened sharply lower this morning, taking a lead from Japan’s Nikkei, which fell more than 7% for the day. Japan’s government bond yields spiked until the Bank of Japan intervened. Japan-focused ETFs got clobbered today. Nearly missed in the flurry surrounding the Japanese debacle was the decline in China’s manufacturing PMI<>. Europe followed Japan’s lead as well, even though eurozone manufacturing PMI rose. The bad news is that the eurozone’s manufacturing PMI continues to contract. In the U.S., new claims for jobless benefits fell, while data on new home sales and house prices continued to improve. U.S. equities ended the day with a small loss after the dust settled.

The U.S. dollar index is trading down 0.73% today, now at 83.7360. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.8% at 625.96. WTI crude oil closed down fractionally, at $94.25 a barrel. Brent crude trades down 0.1% at $102.46 a barrel. Natural gas is up 1.7% today at about $4.26 per million BTUs following a relatively small addition to the nation’s inventories<>. Gold settled up 1.8% today at $1,391.80.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 13 points to 15,294.50 (-0.08%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 4 points (-0.11%) to 3,459.42, and the S&P 500 fell -0.29% or nearly 5 points to 1,650.53.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including:

Sanmina Corp. (NASDAQ: SANM) cut to ‘sell’ at Deutsche Bank;
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) started as ‘underperform’ at Credit Suisse;
Seagate Technology PLC (NASDAQ: STX) raised to ‘buy’ at Deutsche Bank;
VeriFone Systems Inc. (NYSE: PAY) raised to ‘buy’ at SunTrust; and
Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (NYSE: DO) raised to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have resulted in some price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today:

DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS) is down 6.2% at $1.96;
L Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD) is down 0.4% at $X51.25X;
PetSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) is up 1.9% at $70.35;
SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: SEAS) is down 1.3% at $37.24;
Workday Inc. (NYSE: WDAY) is up 0.9% at $66.34;
Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) is up 4% at $50.29;
GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME) is down 1.1% at $35.85;
Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) is down 2.5% at $183.46; and
Stein Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: SMRT) is up 4.8% at $12.28, a new 52-week high.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings from Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO), America’s Car-Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: CRMT), Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS), Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL), Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P), Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST), Salesforce.com Inc. (NYSE: CRM), Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ), Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF), and Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE: FL).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) is up 16.8% at $24.79 after posting a new 52-week high of $24.91 earlier today. The printer and computer maker posted better-than-expected earnings last night.

MannKind Corp. (NASDAQ: MNKD) is up 8.1% at $6.74 after posting a new 52-week high of $6.99 earlier today. The biopharmaceuticals firm continues to see shares rise following a report yesterday that the company is a likely takeover target.

Cirrus Logic Inc. (NASDAQ: CRUS) is down 19.8% at $17.70. The semiconductor maker lowered its outlook, this morning.

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

8:30 a.m. – Durable goods orders

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ANF, ARO, CRM, CRMT, CRUS, DLTR, DO, DRYS, FL, GME, GPS, HPQ, JNJ, LTD, MNKD, MRVL, P, PAY, PETM, RL, ROST, SANM, SEAS, SMRT, STX, WDAY, ZUMZ

Ralph Lauren Company Earnings Weighed Down by Margin Forecast

Paul Ausick — Thu, 23 May 2013 12:45:58 +0000

Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) reported fourth-quarter and fiscal-year 2013 company earnings before markets opened this morning.

For the quarter, the apparel company posted adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.41 on revenues of $1.64 billion. In the same period a year ago, Ralph Lauren reported EPS of $0.99 on revenues of $1.62 billion. Fourth-quarter results also compare to the Thomson Reuters consensus estimates for EPS of $1.30 and $1.7 billion in revenues.

For the full year, the clothing maker reported adjusted EPS of $8.13, compared with a consensus estimate of $8.03.

Retail sales grew 7% in the quarter, but wholesale sales dipped 4% and licensing revenues were flat compared with the fourth quarter of 2012. Gross margins rose 2.2% to 59.3%.

The company’s president and COO said:

Enhanced profit flow-through was achieved despite sustained macroeconomic challenges and strategic decisions that mitigated revenue growth during the year. We are excited about the Company’s diverse and compelling opportunities for future growth, and have planned Fiscal 2014 as a year of accelerated investment in our highest priority strategic initiatives.

The company’s fiscal year 2014 forecast calls for revenue growth of 4% to 7%, which includes a net negative impact of 1.5% related to currency translation effects. Operating margins are expected to slip by 25 to 75 basis points.

For the first quarter of 2014, Ralph Lauren expects a low-single digit increase in sales and operating margins to be 2% to 2.5% lower than the same period a year ago.

Lauren’s stock price is up about 33% over the past 12 months, while competitor Michael Kors Holdings Ltd. (NYSE: KORS) is up more than 60% in the same period. Ralph Lauren’s share price growth also trails PVH Corp. (NYSE: PVH), which saw its stock price rise by more than 60%.

Ralph Lauren’s shares are trading down about 3.8% this morning, at $181.00 in a 52-week range of $134.29 to $192.03. The consensus target price for the shares was around $193.15 before today’s report.

Filed under: Retail Tagged: KORS, PVH, RL

Closing Bell for Wednesday on Wall Street: Markets Blunted on Fed Comments, Minutes

Paul Ausick — Wed, 22 May 2013 20:06:21 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened barely higher this morning following a report that mortgage loan applications had fallen by 9.8% from the previous week, on top of a 7% decline for the prior period. In Asia, the Bank of Japan said it would maintain its key interest rate at 0.10% and would increase the country’s monetary base. The eurozone reported a current account surplus of €25.9 billion, far greater than the expected surplus of €15 billion. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke testified before a joint Congressional committee this morning, and that, coupled with a mid-afternoon release of the FOMC minutes sent stocks solidly lower for the last two hours of today’s session.

The U.S. dollar index is trading up 0.55% today, now at 84.3240. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.6% at 631.02. WTI crude oil closed down 2%, at $94.28 a barrel on the first day of trading the July contract and following another large rise in U.S. gasoline inventories. Brent crude trades down 1.4% at $102.51 a barrel. Natural gas is down 0.1% today at about $4.19 per million BTUs. Gold settled down 0.6% today at $1,370.10.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down about 80 points to 15,307.56 (-0.52%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 39 points (-1.11%) to 3,463.30, and the S&P 500 fell -0.83% or nearly 14 points to 1,655.35.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including:

SodaStream International Ltd (NASDAQ: SODA) cut to ‘neutral’ at J.P. Morgan;
Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) cut to ‘neutral’ at HSBC;
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY) raised to ‘buy’ at Citigroup;
Monster Beverage Corp. (NASDAQ: MNST) started as ‘outperform’ at BMO Capital Markets; and
Popular Inc. (NASDAQ: BPOP) started as ‘outperform’ at Wells Fargo.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have resulted in some price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today:

Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ: INTU) is up 0.4% at $58.14;
NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) is up 1.2% at $37.05;
American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) is up 1% at $20.51;
Lowe’s Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) is up 0.6% at $42.71 after posting a new 52-week high of $43.84 earlier today;
Staples Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) is up 2% at $15.05 after posting a new 52-week high of $15.50 earlier today;;
Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) is down 4.6% at $67.96; and
Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) is up 2.8% at $37.00 after posting a new 52-week high of $39.25 earlier today.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings from DryShips Inc. (NASDAQ: DRYS), Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ), L Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD), PetSmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM), SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: SEAS), Workday Inc. (NYSE: WDAY), Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR), GameStop Corp. (NYSE: GME), Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL), and Stein Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: SMRT).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

MannKind Corp. (NASDAQ: MNKD) is up 15.1% at $6.17 after posting a new 52-week high of $6.54 earlier today. The biopharmaceuticals firm was touted as a likely takeover target.

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) is up 1.7% at $29.26. The drugmaker said it plans to sell its majority holding in animal drug spinoff Zoetis Inc. (NYSE: ZTS).

Suntech Power Holdings Co. Ltd. (NYSE: STP) is down 22.9% at $0.99. The solar energy PV maker has sold one of its projects to another company at a steep discount, and the local government of Wuxi province, where Suntech has its main manufacturing plant, has filed a $2.5 billion claim against the company on behalf of more than 500 creditors.

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

8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
8:58 a.m. – Flash PMI manufacturing index
9:00 a.m. – FHFA house price index
10:00 a.m. – New home sales
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
11:00 a.m. – Kansas City Fed manufacturing index
1:00 p.m. – Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) auction
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AEO, BMY, BPOP, CCL, DLTR, DRYS, GME, HPQ, INTU, LOW, LTD, MNKD, MNST, NTAP, PETM, PFE, RL, SEAS, SMRT, SODA, SPLS, STP, TGT, TOL, WDAY, ZTS

UBS Likes Specialty Retail: Time to Sell Department Stores

Lee Jackson — Thu, 16 May 2013 12:10:31 +0000

The American consumer has remained pretty consistent in 2013, helping to push along a still very slow economic recovery. One place they have spent money is the department stores around the country. The department store group as a whole is up 15% year to date, excluding troubled J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP). The retail analysts at UBS A.G (NYSE: UBS) are ready to sell the department stores and look for stocks to buy in the specialty retail and apparel manufacturing space.

In a new report, the team at UBS note that with unfavorable weather and high inventories in the first quarter of this year, they see little upside ahead for department store guidance. Without improving fundamentals, they also see little reason for price-to-earnings ratios to expand further relative to the market to justify a more positive stock outlook. While the fundamentals may not look that exciting for the department stores, the prospects for specialty retail and specialty retail products remains solid.

Here are the specialty retail stores and products stocks to buy at UBS.

Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE) still dominates specialty athletic apparel and footwear sales. With global market share that could grow to 6.5%, sales have never been stronger. The UBS price target for the stock is $68. The Thomson/First Call estimate is $64. Investors receive a 1.30% dividend.

Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE: FL) is a retailer to buy at UBS. The company continued its expansion by buying German retailer Runners Point last week. The UBS target for the stock is $39, and the consensus is $40. Investors are paid a 2.20% dividend.

L Brands Inc. (NYSE: LTD) showed solid 2% comparable-store sales growth on Monday. The UBS target for the stock is $53. The consensus price target for the stock is also $53. Investors receive a 2.30% dividend.

Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) stock has been on fire. The company has continued to add popular merchandise to its vast portfolio of apparel and accessories. UBS has a target for the stock of $195. The consensus estimate is the same at $195. Investors receive a small 0.90% dividend.

TJX Companies Inc. (NYSE: TJX) is one of two specialty discount retailers that makes the list of stock to buy. The UBS target price is $53, but the consensus is lower at $50. Shareholders are paid a 1.10% dividend.

Ross Stores Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST) is another discount specialty retailer to buy. Ross Stores improved earnings per share by 25.9% in the most recent quarter, compared to the same quarter a year ago. UBS has a $75 target. The consensus is much lower at $68. Investors receive a 1.00% dividend.

V.F. Corp. (NYSE: VFC) is an apparel manufacturer with an impressive list of well-known names. In addition to the popular Lee Jeans brand, the company also designs and sells North Face, Timberland, Vans, Kipling, Napapijri, Reef, Eastpak, JanSport, SmartWool, Lucy and Eagle Creek brands, among others. The UBS target for this apparel giant is $191. The consensus is at $188. Investors are paid a 1.90% dividend.

ANN Inc. (NYSE: ANN) is a very popular destination for women shoppers. With a new Kate Hudson collection now available, sales have been strong. UBS has a $40 target for the stock. The consensus is lower at $35.

Express Inc. (NYSE: EXPR) wraps up the names to buy at UBS. Targeting men and women between 20 and 30, the company’s prudent customer-focused approach to merchandising sets it apart from its competitors. UBS has a $21 target, the same as the consensus estimate.

Clearly the economy will determine whether the retail sector continues to be a good buy for investors. If expected growth in the second half of the year does indeed materialize, then owning some of the UBS stocks to buy in the sector should prove to be a solid choice.

Filed under: Retail Tagged: ANN, EXPR, FL, JCP, LTD, NKE, RL, ROST, TJX, UBS, VFC

Is Martha Stewart Paid Too Much?

Paul Ausick — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 15:00:30 +0000

The highest paid person at Martha Stewart Omnimedia Inc. (NYSE: MSO) is — surprise! — Martha Stewart. Her base salary for 2012 was $2 million, and her total compensation for the year was $5.46 million. The CEO’s total compensation for 2012 was $1.51 million.

For a company with a market cap of around $182 million, one might argue that Martha Stewart is overpaid. Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) has a market cap of more than $15 billion and Mr. Lauren was paid a base salary of $1.25 million in fiscal year 2012, and he was eligible for bonus payments up to an additional $19.5 million. Lauren also serves as his company’s CEO and chairman, while Stewart is the nonexecutive chairman and chief editorial media and content officer at MSO.

Stewart’s compensation is virtually all guaranteed by an “Intangible Asset License Agreement” that treats Stewart as “talent,” in much the same way that a movie or TV actor is treated. Last year, MSO extended Stewart’s contract, which was set to expire last March, through June of 2017, although terms have not yet been finalized. According to an amended Form 10-K filing made last week, “Ms. Stewart’s base salary recognizes her incredible value to the company in providing her creativity and talent to the company’s businesses.”

In other words, without Martha Stewart there is no MSO. She is in the driver’s seat at contract time. And how does it pay off? Well, when MSO announced its controversial agreement with J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP), J.C. Penney was required to purchase 11 million shares at a cost of $38.5 million.

The current court fight between J.C. Penney and Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) turns on the value of Stewart’s name. Stewart’s value may not be “incredible” to either J.C. Penney or Macy’s, but it is definitely large enough to wage an expensive courtroom battle over.

While Stewart’s total compensation package appears to be out of line with the company’s market cap and sales, without her name MSO likely would be out of business.

Filed under: Investing Tagged: JCP, M, MSO, RL

Ralph Lauren Gets Off Cheap in Argentina Bribery Charges

Jon C. Ogg — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 15:30:47 +0000

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on Monday that it has entered into a what is a called a non-prosecution agreement (NPA) with Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL). What is interesting about this case is that the issue was uncovered from an internal review by the company and that the company reported this matter to the SEC. Under the agreement, Ralph Lauren Corp. will “disgorge more than $700,000 in illicit profits and interest obtained in connection with bribes paid by a subsidiary to government officials in Argentina from 2005 to 2009.”

A non-prosecution agreement means that there will be no criminal charges filed against the company. The SEC even said here that it has decided not to charge the company under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act because of its prompt reporting of the violations on its own initiative. Other reasons cited were the completeness of the information provided and the real-time cooperation with the SEC’s investigation, which saved the agency substantial time and resources.

The SEC went on to say that this NPA is the first that the SEC has entered involving Foreign Corrupt Practices Act misconduct. In parallel criminal proceedings, the Justice Department entered into an NPA with Ralph Lauren in which the company will pay an $882,000 penalty.

The bribe payments and gifts to Argentine officials were shown by the SEC to come to a total of $593,000 during a four-year period. Ralph Lauren agreed to pay $593,000 in disgorgement and $141,845.79 in prejudgment interest. It is almost surprising that shares are down even 1.7% at $166.25 on the day.

FULL SEC NOTE

Filed under: Retail Tagged: RL

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — February 6, 2013: Markets Waver With Little New Data to Chew On (FSLR, JCP, WFC, ACI, ITRI, CMG, EXPE, GNW, TTWO, DIS, ZNGA, CVS, MRO, NUS, RL, SYT, TWX, FMC, GMCR, IACI, TSO, V, YELP, ALU, BG, CI, MWW, NYT, PM, S, TEVA, BCC, GDP, VOCS)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 21:04:54 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened lower this morning before bouncing into positive territory briefly and then turning south again. As happened yesterday, the focus was on Europe, where Italy’s oldest bank was expected to reveal the extent of its derivatives losses, estimated by some to be as high as €1 billion. German factory orders came in slightly below estimates. In Asia, the early resignation of one governor from the Bank of Japan sent the Nikkei up nearly 4%. There was little data out in the U.S. today. Mortgage applications rose 3.4% from last week (more coverage here) and crude oil inventories also rose. But today has mostly been spent waiting for news from Italy. In the event, shares came close to a flat finish.

The U.S. dollar index rose 0.3% today, now at 79.721. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.4% at 676.70, with commodities prices lower today. WTI crude oil closed flat today, at $96.62 a barrel following today’s report on inventories (more coverage here). Brent crude trades up 0.2% at $116.80 a barrel. Natural gas is up 0.8% today at about $3.43 per million BTUs. Gold settled up 0.3% today at $1,678.80 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up less than 7 points to 13,985.98 (0.05%), the NASDAQ fell about 3 points (-0.10%) to 3,168.48, and the S&P 500 rose 0.05% or less than 1 point to 1,512.06.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) started as ‘buy’ at Citi; J.C. Penney Co. Inc. (NYSE: JCP) started as ‘sell’ at Maxim Group; Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) started as ‘buy’ at Nomura; Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) cut to ‘neutral’ at J.P. Morgan; and Itron Inc. (NASDAQ: ITRI) raised to ‘buy’ with a price target of $52 at Argus.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in several price moves today, including these: Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) is up 5.8% at $322.83; Expedia Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) is down 2.7% at $65.65; Genworth Financial Inc. (NYSE: GNW) is down 3.1% at $8.89; Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO) is up 14.9% at $14.54; Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) is up 0.4% at $54.53 after posting a new 52-week high of $55.50 earlier today (more coverage here); Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) is up 8.4% at $2.97 (more coverage here); CVS Caremark Corp. (NYSE: CVS) is down 1.3% at $51.06 (more coverage here); Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO) is down 1.4% at $34.23; Nu Skin Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: NUS) is down 3.3% at $41.56; Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) is up 5.8% at $174.43; Syngenta AG (NYSE: SYT) is down 2.3% at $85.10; and Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) is up 4.1% at $52.01 after posting a new 52-week high of $55.23 earlier today (more coverage here).

After markets close today and before they open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from FMC Corp. (NYSE: FMC), Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR), IAC/InterActivecorp (NASDAQ: IACI), Tesoro Corp. (NYSE: TSO), Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), Yelp Inc. (NYSE: YELP), Alcatel Lucent SA (NYSE: ALU), Bunge Ltd. (NYSE: BG), Cigna Corp. (NYSE: CI), Monster Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: MWW), New York Times Co. (NYSE: NYT), Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE: PM), Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S), and Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. (NYSE: TEVA).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Boise Cascade Co. (NYSE: BCC) is up 25.9% at $26.43. The wood products maker held its IPO today, and priced above the expected range. More coverage here.

Goodrich Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: GDP) is up 18.6% at $12.60. The oil & gas E&P firm announced rising production at one of its wells.

Vocus Inc. (NASDAQ: VOCS) is down 15.5% at $15.00. The cloud software company after guiding current quarter earnings and revenues lower.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Chicago Fed President Charles Evans and Fed Governor Jeremy Stein 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. – Productivity and costs
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
3:00 p.m. – Consumer credit
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ACI, ALU, BCC, BG, CI, CMG, CVS, DIS, EXPE, FMC, FSLR, GDP, GMCR, GNW, IACI, ITRI, JCP, MRO, MWW, NUS, NYT, PM, RL, S, SYT, TEVA, TSO, TTWO, TWX, V, VOCS, WFC, Yelp, ZNGA

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — February 5, 2013: Markets Recover from Yesterday’s Slump (CLWR, M, SWC, DRI, UNH, CYOU, GCI, HUM, GOLD, RCL, SPG, CLX, APC, BIDU, EW, YUM, AGCO, AGN, ACI, ADM, ARMH, BP, ETN, EL, SIRI, K, CMG, EXPE, GNW, TTWO, DIS, ZNGA, CVS, MRO, NUS, RL, SYT, TWX, DELL, OPXA, MHP)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 21:04:01 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning and maintained their upward momentum for essentially the whole day. Lacking any really bad news from Asia or Europe, U.S. markets shrugged off a weaker than expected ISM non-manufacturing PMI number (more coverage here) and focussed instead on a generally upbeat day in European markets. In Asia, China’s PMI came in better than expected and Australia’s central bank left its key interest rate unchanged. In Europe, eurozone non-manufacturing PMI came in slightly better than expected. After yesterday’s worst session of the year so far, today’s trading seems positively sprightly.

The U.S. dollar index fell 0.02% today, now at 79.536. The GSCI commodity index is down 0.8% at 673.87, with commodities prices mixed again today. WTI crude oil closed up 0.5% today, at $96.64 a barrel. Brent crude trades up 0.8% at $116.54 a barrel. Natural gas is up 2.7% today at about $3.40 per million BTUs. Gold settled down 0.2% today at $1,673.50 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 98 points to 13,978.53 (0.71%), the NASDAQ rose more than 40 points (1.29%) to 3,171.59, and the S&P 500 rose 1.04% or nearly 16 points to 1,511.26.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Clearwire Corp. (NASDAQ: CLWR) cut to ‘underperform’ at D.A. Davidson; Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) raised to ‘buy’ at Citigroup; Stillwater Mining Co. (NYSE: SWC) raised to ‘overweight’ at J.P. Morgan (more platinum coverage here); D.R. Horton Inc. (NYSE: DRI) raised to ‘overweight’ at Barclays; and UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH) raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in several price moves today, including these: Anadarko Petroleum Co. (NYSE: APC) is up 3.3% at $83.15; Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) is down 10.4% at $96.06; Edwards Lifesciences Corp. (NYSE: EW) is down 6.7% at $86.79; Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM) is down 2.8% at $62.15 (more coverage here); AGCO Corp. (NYSE: AGCO) is up 2.1% at $53.62; Allergan Inc. (NYSE: AGN) is up 1.6% at $106.75; Archer Daniels Midland Co. (NYSE: ADM) is up 3.4% at $29.42 (more coverage here); ARM Holdings plc (NASDAQ: ARMH) is up 4.3% at $43.76 after posting a new 52-week high of $44.00 earlier today (more coverage here); BP plc (NYSE: BP) is up 1.5% at $44.26 (more coverage here); Eaton Corp. (NYSE: ETN) is up 5.1% at $59.45 after posting a new 52-week high of $60.45 earlier today; Estee Lauder Companies Inc. (NYSE: EL) is up 6.1% at $64.79; Sirius XM Radio Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI) is down 0.5% at $3.15; and Kellogg Inc. (NYSE: K) is up 0.8% at $58.55 after posting a new 52-week high of $59.30 earlier today.

After markets close today and before they open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG), Expedia Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE), Genworth Financial Inc. (NYSE: GNW), Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS), Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA), CVS Caremark Corp. (NYSE: CVS), Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO), Nu Skin Enterprises Inc. (NYSE: NUS), Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL), Syngenta AG (NYSE: SYT), and Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) is up 1.3% at $13.45. The PC maker has agreed to be taken private in a deal worth more than $24 billion. More coverage here.

Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) is down 12.4% at $6.07. The coal miner badly missed estimates this morning and the outlook for the first half of this year is not encouraging. More coverage here.

Opexa Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: OPXA) is up 162.8% at $3.18. The biopharma company has struck a deal with Germany’s Merck related to Opexa’s treatment for multiple sclerosis. More coverage here.

The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is down 11.5% at $44.52. The financial information firm continued to get battered today as the U.S. Department of Justice announced charges against its S&P ratings agency for failure properly to let investors know the value of subprime mortgage bonds back in 2008.

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

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
3:00 p.m. – Treasury STRIPS

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ACI, ADM, AGCO, AGN, APC, ARMH, BIDU, BP, CLWR, CLX, CMG, CVS, CYOU, DELL, DIS, DRI, EL, ETN, EW, EXPE, GCI, GNW, gold, HUM, K, M, MHP, MRO, NUS, OPXA, RCL, RL, SIRI, SPG, SWC, SYT, TTWO, TWX, UNH, YUM, ZNGA

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — January 9, 2013: Markets Open Higher, Reverse Two-day Slide (AA, MON, DNKN, NFLX, RL, SYY, APOL, STZ, GBX, HELE, RT, TXI, SVU, CSIQ, NOK, CLWR, DISH, S, HLF)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 21:04:18 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened higher this morning following a better-than-expected quarterly earnings report from Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA). There was not a lot of economic data out today, so corporate earnings had to push share prices higher. In Europe, the data was decidedly mixed: German industrial production was lower than forecast; the U.K. trade deficit was a bit larger than expected; and ;the eurozone’s final third quarter GDP reading showed the expected 0.1% contraction. In Asia, the Bank of Japan is reportedly going to adopt a 2% inflation target and double its asset purchase program. South Korea’s unemployment rate is unchanged at 3%.

The U.S. dollar index rose 0.23% today, now at 80.538. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.2% at 650.18, with commodities prices mixed again today. WTI crude oil closed essentially unchanged today, at $93.10 a barrel, following today’s report of a 1.3 million barrel increase in crude stocks (more coverage here). Brent crude trades down about 0.3% at $111.67 a barrel. Natural gas is down 3.2% today at about $3.12 per million BTUs. Gold settled dow 0.4% today at $1,655.50 an ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up about 2 points to 13,390.90 (0.47%), the NASDAQ rose about 14 points (0.45%) to 3,105.81, and the S&P 500 rose 0.26% or nearly 4 points to 1,461.01.

There were a several analyst upgrades and downgrades of note today, including Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) raised to ‘buy’ with a price target of $114 at Argus; Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. (NASDAQ: DNKN) raised to ‘buy’ at Janney; Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) maintained as ‘underperform’ but price target raised to $68 at BofA/Merrill Lynch; Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) raised to ‘outperform’ at Macquarie; and Sysco Corp. (NYSE: SYY) cut to ‘underweight’ at Morgan Stanley.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) is unchanged at $9.10 (more coverage here); Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) is down 7.4% at $19.39 (more coverage here); Constellation Brands Inc. (NYSE: STZ) is down 0.6% at $35.84 (more coverage here); Greenbrier Companies Inc. (NYSE: GBX) is up 3.6% at $17.89 (more coverage here); and Helen of Troy Ltd. (NASDAQ: HELE) is up 2.7% at $34.44.

After markets close today and before they open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear from Ruby Tuesday Inc. (NYSE: RT), Texas Industries Inc. (NYSE: TXI), and Supervalu Inc. (NYSE: SVU).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) is up 18.6% at $4.39. The Chinese solar panel maker is leading solar stocks higher today, following a Chinese government announcement that the country will install 10,000 megawatts of solar power generation this year. More coverage here.

Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) is down 7.9% at $3.73. The mobile phone maker had no news today, but chatter about a cheap iPhone can’t be helping the stock price.

Clearwire Corp. (NASDAQ: CLWR) is up 7.7% at $3.15. The wireless carrier received a counter-bid from Dish Network Corp. (NASDAQ: DISH) to the offer from majority owner Sprint Nextel Inc. (NYSE: S). More coverage here.

Herbalife Inc. (NYSE: HLF) is up 3.8% at $39.82. The weight loss and nutritional supplement seller picked up a supporter today, with a large purchase of its stock by private equity firm Third Point LLC. Reuters reported late today that the SEC has opened an inquiry into the company. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Kansas City Fed President Esther George, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard, and Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota are giving speeches. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefit
10:00 a.m. – Wholesale trade
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: Investing Tagged: AA, APOL, CLWR, CSIQ, DISH, DNKN, GBX, HELE, HLF, MON, NFLX, NOK, RL, RT, S, STZ, SVU, SYY, TXI

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AFL, BAC, CMA, DNKN, JCP, KEY, LYG, M, MET, MON, NFLX, PCG, RL, RYAAY, SON, SYY, TTM, URBN, DG, FDO)

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 13:33:41 +0000

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

AFLAC Inc. (NYSE: AFL) started as Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse on valuation in favor of other top banks (FULL RESEARCH SUMMARY).

Comerica Inc. (NYSE: CMA) cut to Perform at Oppenheimer.

Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. (NASDAQ: DNKN) raised to Buy at Janney.

J.C. Penney Company Inc. (NYSE: JCP) cut to Neutral at Macquarie.

KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) raised to Outperform at Oppenheimer.

Lloyds Banking Group PLC (NYSE: LYG) raised to Buy at UBS.

Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M) cut to Neutral at Macquarie.

MetLife Inc. (NYSE: MET) started as Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) reiterated Buy and raised target to $114 at Argus.

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) maintained Underperform but raised target to $68 from $60 at BofA/Merrill Lynch.

PG&E Corp. (NYSE: PCG) raised to Buy at Jefferies.

Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) raised to Outperform at Macquarie.

Ryanair Holdings PLC (NASDAQ: RYAAY) reiterated Buy and raised target (to 6.50 euro local currency) at BofA/Merrill Lynch.

Sonoco Products Co. (NYSE: SON) cut to Underweight at J.P. Morgan.

Sysco Corp. (NYSE: SYY) cut to Underweight at Morgan Stanley.

Tata Motors Ltd. (NYSE: TTM) raised to Outperform with about 25% upside in local currency terms by Credit Suisse.

Urban Outfitters Inc. (NASDAQ: URBN) raised to Neutral at Macquarie.

Dividend (or payout) investors look out: Credit Suisse made major changes to its master limited partnership sector outlook for 2013 with key upgrades and downgrades (FULL RESEARCH SUMMARY).

RBC Downgrades the dollar stores: Dollar General Corp. (NYSE: DG) and Family Dollar Stores Inc. (NYSE: FDO) were both downgraded to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC.

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AFL, BAC, CMA, DG, DNKN, FDO, JCP, KEY, LYG, M, MET, MON, NFLX, PCG, RL, RYAAY, SON, SYY, TTM, URBN