24/7 Wall St. » WM

Closing Bell for Thursday on Wall Street: Markets Recoup from Low Open to Post Gain

Paul Ausick — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 20:05:23 +0000

U.S. equity markets opened lower this morning, but gathered steam following encouraging reports on new claims for jobless benefits (down) and retail sales (up). There was little economic data from either Europe or Asia today, although Germany did report a drop in wholesale prices. In Asia, markets reopened in Shanghai and Hong Kong today following a three-day holiday, and the markets closed down more than 2% in each city. Japan’s Nikkei lost 6.4% again today and is now down more than 20% from last month’s highs.

The U.S. dollar index is trading down 0.25% today, now at 80.9260. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.2% at 623.62. WTI crude oil closed up 0.8% today, at $96.69 a barrel. Brent crude trades up 0.7% at $104.26 a barrel. Natural gas is up 0.8% today at about $3.81 per million BTUs, following today’s inline inventory report. Gold settled up 1.1% today at $1,392.00.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up about 181 points to 15,176.24 (1.21%), the NASDAQ rose about 45 points (1.32%) to 3,445.37, and the S&P 500 rose 1.48% or nearly 24 points to 1,636.38.

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

AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (NYSE: AU) cut to ‘sell’ at SocGen;
Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) started as ‘overweight’ at Morgan Stanley;
Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) started as ‘buy’ with a price target of $73 at Sterne Agee;
International Paper Co. (NYSE: IP) raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs; and
Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) cut to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves in the last half hour of trading today:

H & R Block Inc. (NYSE: HRB) is up 1.1% at $28.95;
Men’s Wearhouse Inc. (NYSE: MW) is up 5.3% at $37.43; and
PVH Corp. (NYSE: PVH) is up 9.7% at $122.07.

Before markets open tomorrow morning we are scheduled to hear earnings from Capstone Turbine Corp. (NASDAQ: CPST), Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc. (NYSE: RH), American Superconductor Corp. (NASDAQ: AMSC), and Smithfield Foods Inc. (NYSE: SFD).

Some standouts among heavily traded stocks today include:

Coty Inc. (NYSE: COTY) is down 1.3% at $17.27. The beauty products maker held its IPO today. Because none of the proceeds went back to the company, perhaps it looked like the selling owners were just bailing out.

Belo Corp. (NYSE: BLC) is up 27.2% at $13.65 after posting a new 52-week high of $13.69 earlier today. The TV station owner is being acquired by Gannett Company Inc. (NYSE: GCI) for $2.2 billion including debt. Gannett’s shares are also up 33.6% at $26.52 after posting a new 52-week high of $26.67 earlier today.

Dynavax Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: DVAX) is down 11.2% at $1.22 after posting a new 52-week low of $1.18 earlier today. The biotechnology stock continues to get hammered over Monday’s announcement of request for more information on the company’s hepatitis B drug from the U.S. FDA.

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

8:30 a.m. – Producer price index
8:30 a.m. – Current account
9:15 a.m. – Industrial production
9:55 a.m. – Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index (we do not receive this report even 1 second early.)

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AMSC, AU, BA, BLC, COTY, CPST, DVAX, GCI, HRB, IP, MW, PVH, RH, SFD, TWX, WM

Top Analyst Downgrades and Stocks to Sell: Gold, DreamWorks, RBS and More

Jon C. Ogg — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 12:30:26 +0000

Investors get to see many upgrades and positive research calls from Wall Street firms, but it is very frequent that they do not get to see when analysts downgrade stocks to sell or tell their clients to avoid issues. 24/7 Wall St. reviews many fresh research calls each and every day to find great ideas from value stocks to growth stocks to dividend stocks, and we have broken out the negative analyst calls today. These are this Thursday’s top analyst downgrades and cautious research notes from Wall Street.

AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (NYSE: AU) was downgraded to Sell from Hold at Societe Generale.

Banco Santander S.A. (NYSE: SAN) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at J.P. Morgan.

DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. (NASDAQ: DWA) was started with an Underperform rating.

Rangold Resources Ltd. (NASDAQ: GOLD) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Societe General.

Republic Services Inc. (NYSE: RSG) was removed from the Conviction Buy List and downgraded to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (NYSE: RBS) was downgraded to Sell from Hold by Deutsche Bank.

Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup.

Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs.

Here is housing sector piece over whether rising rates will harm the home builders.

Here are the top upgrades and stocks to buy this morning.

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AU, DWA, gold, RBS, RSG, SAN, SWY, WM

Credit Suisse Increases Industrial Expectations

Jon C. Ogg — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 19:45:48 +0000

Credit Suisse has decided that some of the gains in the industrial segment are not over. Republic Services Group (NYSE: RSG) is rated Outperform and its target was raised to $38 from $34, while Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) was maintained a Neutral but its price target was lifted to $38 from $35. Credit Suisse maintained Neutral ratings but raised targets as follows: JB Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ: JBHT) target raised to $68 from $61 and Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE: OSK) saw its target lifted to $38 from $37. Teekay Corporation (NYSE: TK) was maintained Neutral but the commentary was positive.

The comments on each are as follows:

Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) “Raising target price based on a 7.5x multiple on our normalized EBITDA estimate of $3.6 billion. Our 7.5x multiple is a slight discount to what the sector trades in a normalized environment given choppy execution. raised target to $38 from $35.”
Republic Services (NYSE: RSG) “Raising TP based on an 8x multiple on our normalized EBITDA estimate of $2.6 billion; raising target to $38 from $34.”
JB Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ: JBHT) “reported 4Q12 EPS of $0.70. The company noted that it intends to focus on developing the LTL mode. That should put further pressure on revenue per load, but LTL freight carries higher margins. Our O.R. forecast in this division was largely unchanged.”
Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE: OSK) “reported F1Q13 EPS of $0.60 (vs cons $0.31) and management raised its 2013 EPS to $2.80-$3.05. While expectations were low for Oshkosh going into the print, execution was solid, driving increased confidence in the company’s ability to hit its longer-term 2015 EPS targets.”
Teekay Corporation (NYSE: TK) “remains well positioned to expand into both the LNG and Offshore Energy sectors. While Teekay has had its hands full with the construction of the FPSO Knarr nearing completion (early 2014) and the repair/upgrade of the FPSO Banff (restarting in Q4 2013) we expect Teekay to return to making project investments in the next few quarters.”

Filed under: Investing Tagged: JBHT, OSK, RSG, TK, WM

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (ADTN, ATI, AIG, BYD, CLF, G, HON, INTC, IBM, KMP, ONXX, P, RAX, RSG, SN, TIBX, TUP, UTX, PAY, WM, WWAV)

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 05 Dec 2012 13:45:47 +0000

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

ADTRAN Inc. (NASDAQ: ADTN) cut to Sell at Citigroup.

Allegheny Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ATI) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG) raised to Buy with $40 target at Argus.

Boyd Gaming Corp. (NYSE: BYD) started as Outperform with $7 target at Credit Suisse.

Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF) cut to Sector Perform at RBC.

Genpact Ltd. (NYSE: G) started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) started as Buy at Stifel Nicolaus.

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

International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) reiterated Buy with $235 target at Argus.

Kinder Morgan Energy Partners L.P. (NYSE: KMP) maintained Outperform but cut estimates and target to $92 at Credit Suisse.

Onyx Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ONXX) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P) maintained Neutral but cut target to $10 from $13 at Credit Suisse.

Rackspace Hosting Inc. (NYSE: RAX) started as Overweight at J.P. Morgan.

Republic Services Inc. (NYSE: RSG) raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.

Sanchez Energy Corp. (NYSE: SN) started as Sector Perform at RBC.

TIBCO Software Inc. (NASDAQ: TIBX) cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Tupperware Brands Corp. (NYSE: TUP) raised to Buy with $72 target at Argus.

United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

VeriFone Systems Inc. (NYSE: PAY) raised to Buy at UBS.

Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.

WhiteWave Foods Co. (NYSE: WWAV) started as Buy at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, started as Overweight at J.P. Morgan and started as Outperform at CLSA.

Want to see 2013 S&P 500 targets? Here are the price targets for up to more than 20% total market upside with projections from everyone.

Here is a gold pairing trade from Jefferies for 2013.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ADTN, AIG, ATI, BYD, CLF, G, HON, IBM, INTC, KMP, ONXX, P, PAY, RAX, RSG, SN, TIBX, TUP, UTX, WM, WWAV

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — October 31, 2012: Markets Open Higher Only to Flatten Out (RVBD, S, UBS, D, VLO, BUD, MT, CAM, CNH, COCO, CMI, ETN, H, MA, PSX, CLX, WM, ALL, CZR, HTZ, MUR, APA, CVC, EXC, XOM, HCA, RGLD, F, WRC, PVH, WU)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 20:42:39 +0000

U.S. equity markets re-opened for business in New York this morning after a two-day shutdown forced by Hurricane Sandy. Markets opened higher, but lost their energy by mid-morning. Asian markets were higher on some decent earnings reports out of China and other mixed data reports. In Europe, consumer confidence hit a six-month low in the U.K. and Europe’s unemployment ticked back up to 11.6% (more coverage here). Eurozone members continue to wrestle with the Greek debacle following worse-than-expected estimates on that country’s debt forecast. In the U.S., mortgage applications fell and interest rates ticked back up (more coverage here) and the quarterly report on U.S. employment costs was largely inline with expectations and mostly ignored (more coverage here).

The U.S. dollar index fell today, now down 0.04% at 79.901. The GSCI commodity index is down less than 0.1% at 635.79, with commodities prices mixed again today. WTI crude oil is up about xx% in electronic trading today, at $86.24 a barrel. Brent crude trades down 0.5% at $108.55 a barrel. Natural gas is up 0.2% today at about $3.70 per thousand cubic feet. Gold closed at $1,719.10 an ounce, up about 0.4% for the day, but down 3% for the month of October.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up about 10 points to 13,096.85 (-0.08%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 11 points (-0.36%) to 2,977.23, and the S&P 500 rose 0.01% or less than 1 point to 1,412.15.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Riverbed Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: RVBD) cut to ‘neutral’ at Baird; Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S) reiterated as ‘buy’ with a target price of $7.50 at Argus; UBS AG (NYSE: UBS) was added to the ‘Conviction Buy List’ at Goldman Sachs; Dominion Resources Inc. (NYSE: D) raised to ‘buy’ at Argus; and Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) reiterated as ‘buy’ with a target price of $39 at BofA/ML.

Earnings reports since last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: Anheuser Busch InBev SA (NYSE: BUD) is down 1.7% at $83.79; ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) is down 4.2% at $14.80; Cameron International Corp. (NYSE: CAM) is down 2.6% at $49.92; CNH Global NV (NYSE: CNH) is up 4.5% at $44.79; Corinthian Colleges Inc. (NASDAQ: COCO) is up 8.6% at $2.65; Cummins Inc. (NYSE: CMI) is down 0.3% at $93.56; Eaton Corp. (NYSE: ETN) is up 4.4% at $47.12; Hyatt Hotels Corp. (NYSE: H) is down 4.1% at $36.49; MasterCard Inc. (NYSE: MA) is up 2.1% at $462.65 (more coverage here); Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) is down 0.6% at $47.23 (more coverage here); The Clorox Co. (NYSE: CLX) is up 0.3% at $72.30; and Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) is up 0.9% at $32.83.

Before markets open tomorrow we are scheduled to hear from Allstate Corp. (NYSE: ALL), Ceasars Entertainment Corp. (NASDAQ: CZR), Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HTZ), Murphy Oil Corp. (NYSE: MUR), Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA), Cablevision Systems Corp. (NYSE: CVC), Exelon Corp. (NYSE: EXC), Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), HCA Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HCA), and Royal Gold Inc. (NYSE: RGLD).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) is up 7.9% at $11.13. The U.S. carmaker hammered third-quarter estimates this morning. More coverage here.

The Western Union Co. (NYSE: WU) is down 28.7% at $12.79 after posting a new 52-week low of $12.48 earlier today. The money and payment services company lowered its fiscal year outlook and investors hit the firm’s stock hard.

The Warnaco Group Inc. (NYSE: WRC) is up 38.5% at $70.48, after posting a new 52-week high of $71.41 earlier today. The apparel maker has agreed to a $2.9 billion acquisition by PVH Corp. (NYSE: PVH). More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren and Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart are scheduled to give speeches. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:30 a.m. – Challenger job cut report
8:15 a.m. – ADP employment report
8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
8:30 a.m. – Productivity and costs
8:58 a.m. – PMI manufacturing index
10:00 a.m. – Institute for Supply Management manufacturing index
10:00 a.m. – Conference Board consumer confidence
10:00 a.m. – Construction spending
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply.

Happy Halloween!

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ALL, APA, BUD, CAM, CLX, CMI, CNH, COCO, CVC, CZR, D, ETN, EXC, F, H, HCA, HTZ, MA, MT, MUR, PSX, PVH, RGLD, RVBD, S, UBS, VLO, WM, WRC, WU, XOM

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — October 30, 2012: Markets to Re-open Tomorrow (ACI, MPC, LAD, IDTI, BPL, AGN, ADM, CAR, AVP, BP, JCI, F, JDSU, STX, YNDX, BUD, MT, CNH, COCO, CMII, ETN, H, MA, PSX, CLX, WM, BP, BIDU, UBS)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 30 Oct 2012 20:00:42 +0000

U.S. stock markets were closed again today as New York City recovered from the damage brought on by Hurricane Sandy. In New York, both Nasdaq and the NYSE announced that the markets would be open tomorrow, which is good news for traders who want or need to close positions at month’s end (more coverage here). Bond trading will also resume a normal schedule tomorrow. In Asia, the Bank of Japan’s ninth easing operation lifted markets (more coverage here). European markets also traded higher today, following a not-as-bad-as-expected GDP report from Spain (more coverage here).

The U.S. dollar index fell today, now down 0.37% at 79.938. The GSCI commodity index is down less than 0.1% at 636.39, with commodities prices mixed today. WTI crude oil is up about 0.2% in electronic trading today, at $85.68 a barrel. Brent crude trades down 0.46% at $108.94 a barrel. Natural gas is down 2.8% today at about $3.70 per thousand cubic feet. Gold closed at $1,710.30 an ounce, up about 0.1% for the day.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) cut to ‘sell’ at CRT Capital; Marathon Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: MPC) maintained as ‘outperform’ and named ‘Bull of the Day’ at Zacks; Lithia Motors Inc. (NYSE: LAD) named ‘Value Stock of the Day’ at Zacks; Integrated Device Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: IDTI) maintained as ‘buy’ and target price cut to $6.50 at Canaccord Genuity; and Buckeye Partners L.P. (NYSE: BPL) cut to ‘neutral’ and named ‘Bear of the Day’ at Zacks.

There were several earnings reports today although, of course, there was no impact on share prices: Allergan Inc. (NYSE: AGN), Archer Daniels Midland Co. (NYSE: ADM), Avis Budget Group Inc. (NYSE: CAR), Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP), Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE: JCI), Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) (more coverage here), JDS Uniphase Corp. (NASDAQ: JDSU), Seagate Technology plc (NASDAQ: STX), and Yandex NV (NASDAQ: YNDX).

Before markets open tomorrow we are scheduled to hear from Anheuser-Busch InBev SA (NYSE: BUD), ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT), Cameron International Corp. (NYSE: CAM), CNH Global NV (NYSE: CNH), Corinthian Colleges Inc. (NASDAQ: COCO), Cummins Inc. (NYSE: CMI), Eaton Corp. (NYSE: ETN), Hyatt Hotels Corp. (NYSE: H), MasterCard Inc. (NYSE: MA), Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX), The Clorox Co. (NYSE: CLX), and Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM).

Major stories from today include:

BP plc (NYSE: BP) rose more than 4% in London trading today. The oil & gas giant increased its dividend today after reporting better-than-expected results. More coverage here.

Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) reported earnings that beat expectations, but revenues fell a bit short. More coverage here.

UBS AG (NYSE: UBS) officially announced a layoff of 10,000 workers today, primarily in its fixed income business. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. San Francisco Fed President John Williams is scheduled to give a speech in New York tomorrow. We have noted the following event on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
8:30 a.m. – Employment cost index
9:45 a.m. – Chicago PMI
3:00 p.m. – Farm prices

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ACI, ADM, AGN, AVP, BIDU, BP, BPL, BUD, CAR, CLX, CMII, CNH, COCO, ETN, F, H, IDTI, JCI, JDSU, LAD, MA, MPC, MT, PSX, STX, UBS, WM, YNDX

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AKRX, BRCM, CCL, CHK, CHA, EA, FB, GTAT, LLL, MKTX, MRVL, RSG, SNDK, TXN, RIG, WM, WNR)

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 12:33:06 +0000

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

Akorn Inc. (NASDAQ: AKRX) started as Buy with $18 target at BofA/ML.

Broadcom Corp. (NASDAQ: BRCM) reiterated Buy with $46 target at Argus.

Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) cut to Hold at Jefferies and raised to Buy at S&P Equity Research.

Chesapeake Energy Corp. (NYSE: CHK) cut to Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.

China Telecom Corp. Ltd. (NYSE: CHA) cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) reiterated Neutral with $23 target at BofA/ML.

GT Advanced Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: GTAT) cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity.

L-3 Communications Holdings Inc. (NYSE: LLL) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.

MarketAxess Holdings Inc.(NASDAQ: MKTX) cut to Underperform with $28 target at Credit Suisse.

Marvell Technology Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: MRVL) cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity.

Republic Services Inc. (NYSE: RSG) started as Hold at KeyBanc.

SanDisk Corp. (NASDAQ: SNDK) cut to Market Perform at JMP Securities.

Texas Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: TXN) cut to Perform at Oppenheimer.

Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG) raised to Neutral from Sell at Goldman Sachs.

Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) started as Hold at KeyBanc.

Western Refining Inc. (NYSE: WNR) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AKRX, BRCM, CCL, CHA, CHK, EA, FB, GTAT, LLL, MKTX, MRVL, RIG, RSG, SNDK, TXN, WM, WNR

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — September 19, 2012: Markets Get Lift from Housing News (MON, WM, BRCM, ACHN, CLNE, AZO, CRBL, GIS, ADBE, BBBY, JEF, RAD, QCOR, AET, PHM, GRPN)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 20:10:34 +0000

The three major U.S. stock indexes opened mixed this morning, taking until mid-morning to rise above the flat line and stay above it for the rest of the day. The initial response to Bank of Japan’s added $125 billion in asset purchase rallied Asian markets, but reality eventually settled in, at least in Europe, where the BoJ’s move was pretty much ignored. Data on existing home sales put some life into the market (more coverage here), but a sharp spike in crude oil inventories hammered the energy sector (more coverage here).

The U.S. dollar index fell today, now down 0.24% at 79.057. The GSCI commodity index is down 1.3% at 670.13, with commodities prices higher today on the weaker greenback. WTI crude oil closed down 3.5% today, at $91.98 a barrel. Brent crude trades down 3.5% at $108.07 a barrel. Natural gas is up 0.1% today to $2.775 per thousand cubic feet. Gold closed at $1,771.70 an ounce, up less than 0.1% for the day on the BoJ’s asset buying announcement.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 13 points to 13,577.96 (0.10%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 5 points (0.15%) to 3,182.62, and the S&P 500 rose 0.12% or nearly 2 points to 1,461.05.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) raised to ‘Conviction Buy List’ at Goldman Sachs; Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) cut to ‘underperform’ at JPMorgan; Broadcom Corp. (NASDAQ: BRCM) cut to ‘market perform’ at Wells Fargo; Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ACHN) raised to ‘buy’ with a target price of $13 at BofA/ML; and Clean Fuels Energy Corp. (NASDAQ: CLNE) started as ‘hold’ at KeyBanc.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have affected several stocks, including Autozone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) up 3.3% at $369.49 (more coverage here); Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc. (NASDAQ: CBRL) up 6.8% at $67.95 after posting a new 52-week high of $69.30 earlier today; and General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS) up 2.1% at $40.12 (more coverage here).

After markets close today and before they re-open in the morning we are scheduled to hear from Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE), Bed, Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY), ConAgra Foods Inc. (NYSE: CAG), Jefferies Group Inc. (NYSE: JEF), and Rite Aid Corp. (NYSE: RAD).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Questcor Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: QCOR) is down 45% at $27.80 after posting a new 52-week low of $22.29 earlier today. The drugmaker’s treatment for multiple sclerosis will no longer be accepted for payment by Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET). More coverage here.

PulteGroup Inc. (NYSE: PHM) is up 4.4% at $16.45 after posting a new 52-week high of $ 16.90 earlier in the day. The homebuilder is rising on today’s good report on new home starts. More coverage here.

Groupon Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN) is up 12.2% at $5.26. The daily deals company’s launched its mobile credit card payment offering today. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Boston Fed president Eric Rosengren, Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart, Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota, Cleveland Fed president Sandra Pianalto, and St. Louis Fed President James Bullard are giving speeches. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
9:00 a.m. – Flash PMI manufacturing index
10:00 a.m. – Philadelphia Fed survey
10:00 a.m. – Leading economic indicators
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
1:00 p.m. – 10-year TIPS auction
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ACHN, ADBE, AET, AZO, BBBY, BRCM, CLNE, CRBL, GIS, GRPN, JEF, MON, PHM, QCOR, RAD, WM

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (ACHN, ATI, AGN, AEO, BBT, BRCM, SCHW, CLNE, GLW, DOW, DD, GNRC, HBAN, IDIX, LRCX, MANU, MRO, MAT, MON, NTRS, SHW, STI, WM, WPRT)

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 12:27:29 +0000

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

Achillion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ACHN) raised to Buy from Underperform with $13 target at BofA/ML.

Allegheny Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ATI) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Allergan Inc. (NYSE: AGN) started as Hold at Canaccord Genuity.

American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

BB&T Corp. (NYSE: BBT) cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

Broadcom Corp. (NASDAQ: BRCM) cut to Market Perform at Wells Fargo.

The Charles Schwab Corp. (NYSE: SCHW) cut to Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (NASDAQ: CLNE) started as Hold at KeyBanc.

Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW) raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.

The Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE: DOW) started as Sector Perform at RBC.

E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (NYSE: DD) started as Sector Perform at RBC.

Generac Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GNRC) started as Buy at Canaccord Genuity.

Huntington Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ: HBAN) cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

Idenix Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: IDIX) cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Lam Research Corp. (NASDAQ: LRCX) cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

Manchester United PLC (NYSE: MANU) maintained Outperform but cut target to $17 at Credit Suisse.

Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO) raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Mattel Inc. (NASDAQ: MAT) cut to Hold at Needham.

Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.

Northern Trust Corp. (NASDAQ: NTRS) cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.

The Sherwin-Williams Co. (NYSE: SHW) started as Top Pick at RBC.

SunTrust Banks Inc. (NYSE: STI) cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

Waste Management Inc. (NYSE: WM) cut to Underweight at JPMorgan.

Westport Innovations Inc. (NASDAQ: WPRT) started as Hold at KeyBanc.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ACHN, AEO, AGN, ATI, BBT, BRCM, CLNE, DD, DOW, GLW, GNRC, HBAN, IDIX, LRCX, MANU, MAT, MON, MRO, NTRS, SCHW, SHW, STI, WM, WPRT

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AA, ALKS, AMZN, AAPL, BHP, CENX, CLF, CRK, DNDN, DUK, EMC, FST, HAL, IBM, MSFT, PAL, SAP, SPLS, WM)

Jon C. Ogg — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 12:24:10 +0000

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

Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) Cut to Underperform at BMO Capital Markets.

Alkermes, Plc (NASDAQ: ALKS) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) Started as Market Perform at BMO Capital Markets.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) Started as Buy at UBS.

BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ: CENX) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Cliffs Natural Resources (NYSE: CLF) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.

Comstock Resources, Inc. (NYSE: CRK) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Dendreon Corporation (NASDAQ: DNDN) Cut to Underperform with $6 target at BofA/ML.

Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE: DUK) Cut to Neutral at UBS.

EMC Corporation (NYSE: EMC) Started as Buy at UBS.

Forest Oil (NYSE: FST) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL) Maintained Buy but cut target to $43 at Argus.

International Business Machines Corporation (NYSE: IBM) Started as Neutral at UBS.

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) Reiterated Buy with $39 target at Argus.

North American Palladium Ltd. (NYSEMKT: PAL) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) Raised to Buy at ThinkEquity.

Staples, Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) Cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE: WM) Cut to Underweight at Morgan Stanley.

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JON C. OGG

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AA, AAPL, ALKS, AMZN, BHP, CENX, CLF, CRK, DNDN, DUK, EMC, FST, HAL, IBM, MSFT, PAL, SAP, SPLS, WM