Benchmark Electronics Inc. (NYSE: BHE), Celestica Inc. (NYSE: CLS), Flextronics (NASDAQ: FLEX), Jabil Circuit Inc. (NYSE: JBL), and Sanmina-SCI Corporation (NASDAQ: SANM) all hang in the balance.  Unfortunately, the consumer move to Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Apple’s use of Foxconn is another wildcard (even with its suicide problems) because much of the business goes in that direction.  Still, upside remains in some of these names as most of these companies get business from multiple sectors outside of technology manufacturing.

We have looked at the current share price along with recent share performance.  Also considered is the fundamental trends behind each, as well as the consensus price target from Thomson Reuters and current and forward price/earnings analysis.

Benchmark Electronics Inc. (NYSE: BHE) trades around $15.00 and the 52-week range is $12.01 to $20.24.  With an $870 million market value, this one trades at 17-times expected earnings and 15-times expected 2012 earnings.  Thomson Reuters has a mean price target objective of $14.90, indicating implied upside is non-existent.

Celestica Inc. (NYSE: CLS) trades around $8.00 and the 52-week range is $6.79 to $12.48, it is worth about $1.7 billion market value, this one trades at under 8-times expected earnings and slightly further under 8-times expected 2012 earnings. Thomson Reuters has a mean price target objective of $9.88, indicating implied upside of about 23%.

Flextronics (NASDAQ: FLEX) trades around $6.00, its 52-week range is $5.05 to $8.50, and it has a market cap of $4.3 billion, and .  With an $870 million market value.  Flextronics trades at 7-times expected earnings and about 5.6-times expected 2012 earnings. Thomson Reuters has a mean price target of $8.00, indicating implied upside of about 33%.

Jabil Circuit Inc. (NYSE: JBL) trades around $21.40 and the 52-week range is $13.94 to $23.09, so it is the least punished of the whole EMS lot.  Jabil has a market value of about $4.4 billion.  Its fiscal year is not until August, so its expected earnings multiple today is about 8.3-times expected earnings. Thomson Reuters has a mean price target of $23.73, indicating implied upside of about 10%.

Sanmina-SCI Corporation (NASDAQ: SANM) has a price of about $9.75 and the market value is just under $800 million.  Its 52-week range is $6.01 to $17.32.  Its fiscal year ends in September and it trades at a mere 6.7-times expected earnings. Thomson Reuters has a mean price target objective of $10.88, indicating implied upside of about 11%.

The achilles heel for these companies and their valuation is that all are international today and none of the group mentioned offer dividends to reward shareholders during the economic lull. 

The good news is that these companies add and contract with the global trends. A slower India and China are not helping, but Japan has been coming back on after last year’s earthquake and tsunami wiped out the Japanese growth story.  These companies are also tending to a poor European situation right now.  Most earnings estimates for the year have already come down in recent weeks, but the question is whether or not those have come down enough.

JON C. OGG

Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX) Reiterated Buy as Value at Zacks; Cut to Market Perform at Morgan Keegan.
CIGNA Corporation (NYSE: CI) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Computer Sciences Corp. (NYSE: CSC) Maintained Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Elan Corporation (NYSE: ELN) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) Started as Outperform at Baird.
NASDAQ OMX Group (NASDAQ: NDAQ) Raised to Buy at UBS.
Newmont Mining Corp. (NYSE: NEM) Raised to Sector Perform at RBC.
Nucor Corporation (NYSE: NUE) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) Cut to Hold at Argus.
Sanmina-SCI Corp. (NASDAQ: SANM) Cut to Underperform at RBC.
Saks Incorporated (NYSE: SKS) Raised to Neutral at Credit Suisse.
United States Steel Corp. (NYSE: X) Cut to Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley.
VIVIUS Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS) Reiterated Buy and $9 target at BofA/ML.

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JON C. OGG

Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Citrix Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTXS) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley
Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW) Reiterated Buy with $26 target at Argus.
Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. (NYSE: CTB) Maintained Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Dillard’s, Inc. (NYSE: DDS) Maintained Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: DOW) Raised to Buy at BofA/ML.
Emdeon Inc. (NYSE: EM) Cut to Market Perform at William Blair.
Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ: EQIX) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Gap, Inc. (NYSE: GPS) Raised to Buy at Jefferies.
Hess Corporation (NYSE: HES) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.
Intrepid Potash, Inc. (NYSE: IPI) Raised to Buy at BofA/ML.
ManTech International Corp. (NASDAQ: MANT) Cut to Underperform with $34 target at Credit Suisse.
Sanmina-SCI Corp. (NASDAQ: SANM) Reiterated Buy with $15 target at Argus.
Siemens AG (NYSE: SI) Cut to Hold at S&P Equity Research.
Sunoco Logistics Partners. L.P. (NYSE: SXL) Raised to Outperform with $93 target at Credit Suisse.
Wendy’s Company (NYSE: WEN) Started as Buy at Janney Capital.

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We have offered news summaries and reactions on each, with color if applicable.

Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) is again saying “valuation analysis be damned” because it is soaring after beating estimates.  Shares rose 1.6% today, but the stock is up another 5.4% at $164.90 at yet another all-time high.

Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM) is a winner despite a drop by more than one-third in earnings due to solid revenue growth and guidance being put at $1.9 to $2.0 billion for the current quarter versus $1.93 billion Thomson Reuters consensus.  Shares are actually up more than 8% at $37.98 in the after-hours.

Comverge, Inc. (NASDAQ: COMV) said that its preliminary revenues are expected to range from $31.5 million to $32.5 million versus $17.0 million in the second quarter 2010, sending shares up about 10% in thin volume after the close to $3.37.

Hexcel Corporation (NYSE: HXL) is soaring after beating earnings estimates.  Shares are up an unusually high 8% at $25.97 in the after-hours session above the $24.39 52-week high.

Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) is taking a serious breather after earnings rose more than 55% after disclosing the implications of its new pricing plan.  This has shares down 8.4% at $259.00 in the after-hours session.  Here is some of the scenario about how we think Netflix can get shares up to $400…

Rent-A-Center Inc. (NASDAQ: RCII) reported light earnings and guided earnings under expectations for the quarter ahead. Shares are down over 7% at $27.78 in the after-hours session.

Sanmina-SCI Corp. (NASDAQ: SANM) was down over 3% today but beating earnings and raising guidance for the quarter ahead may set a good tone for EMS companies on Tuesday.  Shares are up 8.5% at $10.00 in the after-hours session after the stock was actually close to 52-week lows.

SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ: SPWRA) gave a negative report that it tried to pass off as a mixed report.  It is now looking for a loss.  Shares were halted for news that it sees a loss due to Germany and Italy, but the stock is down 7% to $19.39 in the after-hours session after having fallen some 6.5% today in regular trading.

Texas Instruments Inc. (NYSE: TXN) is up marginally despite earnings disappointments and despite some weak segment guidance.  It appears that analog actually held up better than expected.  Shares closed down almost 1% but the stock is up 1.3% at $31.72 after the earnings report.

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JON C. OGG

AAR Corporation (NYSE: AIR) Maintained Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.
Buffalo Wild Wings, Inc. (NASDAQ: BWLD) Maintained Strong Buy at Zacks.
Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) Reiterated Outperform and target raised to $148 at Credit Suisse.
Corporate Office Properties (NYSE: OFC) Cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.
Dendreon Corporation (NASDAQ: DNDN) Started as Underperform at Credit Suisse.
EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) Raised to Buy with $35 target at BofA/ML.
Montpelier Re Holdings (NYSE: MRH) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Sanmina-SCI Corporation (NASDAQ: SANM) Raised to Buy at Argus.
Seattle Genetics Inc. (NASDAQ: SGEN) Started as Buy
Sprint-NexTel Corporation (NYSE: S) Reiterated Buy with $7 target at Argus.
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) Kept at Strong Buy and noted as Value at Zacks.
V.F. Corporation (NYSE: VFC) Cut to Hold at Citigroup.
Whole Foods Market, Inc. (NASDAQ: WFMI) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
Y M Biosciences Inc. (AMEX: YMI) Started as Neutral with $4 target at BofA/ML.
Zebra Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ: ZBRA) Raised to Overweight at JPMorgan.

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JON C. OGG

Aeropostale, Inc. (NYSE: ARO) Cut to Underweight at KeyBanc.
Arris Group Inc. (NASDAQ: ARRS) Started as Hold at Needham.
Biodel, Inc. (NASDAQ: BIOD) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan; Cut to Neutral at Ledanberg Thalmann.
EXCO Resources Inc. (NYSE: XCO) Cut to Market Perform at BMO.
Incyte Corp. (NASDAQ: INCY) Cut to Market Perform at Leerink Swann.
Leap Wireless International Inc. (NASDAQ: LEAP) Started as Market Perform at William Blair.
Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (NASDAQ: MPEL) Raised to Buy at CLSA (Asia).
MetroPCS Communications, Inc. (NYSE: PCS) Started as Market Perform at William Blair.
Sanmina-SCI Corp. (NASDAQ: SANM) Cut to Hold at Collins Stewart.
Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) Started as Underperform at William Blair.
Thompson Creek Metals Company Inc. (NYSE: TC) Raised to Outperform at RBC.
Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) Started as Market Perform at William Blair.

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JON C. OGG

Central European Distribution Corp. (NASDAQ: CEDC) Started as Buy at Citigroup.
ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) Cut to Sector Perform and $70 target at RBC (third cut in two days).
Gordmans Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ: GMAN) Started as Outperform at Baird; Started as Buy at Stifel Nicolaus; Started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.
Kulicke & Soffa Industries inc. (NASDAQ: KLIC) Cut to Underperform at Oppenheimer.
Research In Motion Limited (NASDAQ: RIMM) Cut target to $90 at TD.
Sanmina-SCI Corp. (NASDAQ: SANM) Reiterated Buy at Needham.
Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc. (NYSE: SKH) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
Teradyne Inc. (NYSE: TER) Cut to Perform at Oppenheimer.
Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates Inc. (NASDAQ: VSEA) Started as Overweight at JPMorgan.
Verigy, Ltd. (NASDAQ: VRGY) Cut to Underperform at Oppenheimer.

Eds Update

Central European Distribution Corp. (NASDAQ: CEDC) Started as Buy at Citigroup.
ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) Cut to Sector Perform and $70 target at RBC (third cut in two days).
Gordmans Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ: GMAN) Started as Outperform at Baird; Started as Buy at Stifel Nicolaus; Started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.
Kulicke & Soffa Industries inc. (NASDAQ: KLIC) Cut to Underperform at Oppenheimer.
Research In Motion Limited (NASDAQ: RIMM) Cut target to $90 at TD.
Sanmina-SCI Corp. (NASDAQ: SANM) Reiterated Buy at Needham.
Skilled Healthcare Group, Inc. (NYSE: SKH) Cut to Hold at Jefferies.
Teradyne Inc. (NYSE: TER) Cut to Perform at Oppenheimer.
Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates Inc. (NASDAQ: VSEA) Started as Overweight at JPMorgan.
Verigy, Ltd. (NASDAQ: VRGY) Cut to Underperform at Oppenheimer.

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JON C. OGG

BP plc (NYSE: BP) has literally been all over the place.  Its earnings came out with a huge loss after the spill charges.  Hayward is gone as CEO and Dudley is replacing him.  Shares were up $0.03 at $38.63 on over 1 million ADRs with more than 30 minutes to open.

Rambus Inc. (NASDAQ: RMBS) was already active in options yesterday ahead of the NVIDIA Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA) ruling, where the ITC ruled FOR Rambus and AGAINST NVIDIA.  Rambus is up almost 10% at $21.50 on over 100,000 shares; NVIDIA is actually up 0.1% at $10.56 on over 200,000 shares. The logic here is that NVIDIA will just pay a royalty.

Regions Financial Corp. (NYSE: RF) is up almost 5% at $7.43 on more than 1.2 million shares in the pre-market after its loss from operations was lower than expected.  Te 52-week trading range here is $3.69 to $9.33.

Sanmina-SCI Corporation (NASDAQ: SANM) closed up 4.6% at $15.86 but shares are down almosy 7% around $14.75 this morning on thin volume.  The EMS outfit posted a profit on a mixed fanfare in the quarter and its guidance is mostly in-line. Keep in mind that the 52-week range is $0.73 to $20.30.

Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) reported a $583 million profit, which appears to be the first real profit in more than a year.  Shares are up 4.25% at $18.31 on over 150,000 shares having traded in the pre-market.

Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: VECO) was up over 4% yesterday and is up 4.9% at $44.89 on about 30,000 shares.  The company beat earnings estimates and raised guidance, but keep in mind that the 52-week range is $14.06 to $54.50.

Volterra Semiconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: VLTR) reported a gain in Q2 profit and sales but said its Q3 projections are in-line.  Shares are down 6.55% at $25.84 on almost 20,000 shares.

Zoran Corporation (NASDAQ: ZRAN) Q2 was mixed, but Q3 guidance was short of expectations and it is becoming a serial-disappointment.  Shares are down 11.5% at $8.65 on more than 20,000 shares.

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JON C. OGG

Skyworks Solutions, Inc. (NASDAQ: SWKS) is not a price mover after the close but it was today after an IBD move.  Shares closed up 2% at $19.13, but the trading volume was over 3X at over 20 million shares.  We have seen prints for 7.3 million shares, some of which may be clean-up prints.  The price change is listed as only 0.1% at $19.15 but that takes the cake for a most active in hours trading.

Integrated Device Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ: IDTI) closed up 3.1% at $5.63 and shares are up almost 4% more at $5.85 on about 100,000 shares in the after-hours session after the company announced a new $255 million share buyback against a $914 million market cap.

Legg Mason, Inc. (NYSE: LM) was hit after earnings showed a 4% drop in net income.  Shares closed up 3.4% at $30.08, but the stock is lower by 3.3% at $29.10 on over 70,000 shares since the closing bell.

Mindspeed Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: MSPD) is getting drummed in the after-hours trading session.  Revenues grew 8% to $43.3 million and non-GAAP was $0.18 EPS versus $0.15 last quarter… It expects Q4 revenue growth of 1% to 6% to $43.7 to $45.9 million.   Shares are down almost 3.5% at $8.50 on over 20,000 shares in the after-hours.

Plantronics, Inc. (NYSE: PLT) beat its earnings estimates but guidance on revenue was light for next quarter.  This closed up 1.5% at $33.36 but shares are down 4.4% at $31.90 on more than 20,000 shares since the close.

Rambus Inc. (NASDAQ: RMBS) was already active in options today and shares closed up over 3% at $19.59.    There have been over 125,000 shares since the closing bell and the stock is up 6% at $20.70 ahead of the NVIDIA ruling.

Sanmina-SCI Corporation (NASDAQ: SANM) closed up 4.6% at $15.86 ahead of the EMS company’s earnings announcement: the company posted a profit on a mixed fanfare in the quarter and its guidance is mostly in-line.  Shares are selling off because this one recovered so much against its trading lows by exponential amounts.  Shares are down 6.3% at $14.85 on about 50,000 shares since the 4:00 PM Close.

Ultra Clean Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: UCTT) said that Q2 revenue was $105.9 million, up 7.5% from Q1 but up 355.4% from the same period a year ago.  This one is up 10.05% at $10.40 on more than 30,000 shares in the after-hours trading session.

Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: VECO) closed up 4.6% at $44.69 before earnings and after its halt was lifted the stock is up another 4% at $46.47 on over 250,000 shares.  The company beat earnings estimates and raised guidance, but keep in mind that the 52-week range is $14.06 to $54.50.

Zoran Corporation (NASDAQ: ZRAN) was down 0.1% before earnings but the stock is down 9.3% at $8.86 on almost 100,000 shares since it re-opened after a halt.  Q2 was mixed, but Q3 guidance is failing to live up to expectations.  This one is becoming a serial-disappointment.

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JON C. OGG