24/7 Wall St. » WTW

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (DTV, KMI, VZ, WTW, NVDA, CBK, SNX, FDO, JOSB, MOS, RHT, SN, BBY, SHAW, CMC, AMLN, VRML)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 20:04:46 +0000

Markets opened nearly flat this morning but took a dive early and have muddled along the rest of the day in negative territory. This morning’s report on falling durable goods orders got things off on the wrong foot (our coverage here). The US crude oil commercial inventory grew by a larger-than-expected amount, pushing crude prices down significantly (our coverage here). The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.12% at 79.140. Commodities were mostly lower on the stronger dollar. WTI crude oil closed down about -1.9% at $105.41/barrel, and Brent crude trades down -1.09% at $124.17/barrel. Gold settled down -1.6% today, at $1,657.90/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 72 points to 13,126.06 (-0.54%), the NASDAQ fell more than 15 points (-0.49%) to 3,104.96, and the S&P 500 fell -0.49% or nearly 7 points to 1,405.54.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including DirecTV Inc. (NASDAQ: DTV) raised to ‘buy’ at Citigroup and reiterated as ‘buy’ at Canaccord Genuity; Kinder Morgan Inc. (NYSE: KMI) started as ‘equal weight’ at Morgan Stanley; Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) cut to ‘sector perform’ at RBC; Weight Watchers International Inc. (NYSE: WTW) started as ‘outperform’ at Credit Suisse; and Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ: NVDA) raised to ‘market perform’ at JMP Securities.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Christopher & Banks Corp. (NYSE: CBK) is down -13% at $2.05 after posting a new 52-week low of $1.85 earlier today; Synnex Corp. (NYSE: SNX) is down -13% at $37.94 (more coverage here); Family Dollar Stores Inc. (NYSE: FDO) is up 0.6% at $58.58 (more coverage here); and Jos. A. Banks Clothiers Inc. (NASDAQ: JOSB) is down -8.7% at $49.77 (more coverage here). After markets close today the Mosaic Co. (NYSE: MOS), Red Hat Inc. (NYSE: RHT), and Sanchez Energy Corp. (NYSE: SN) will report earnings. Before the markets open in the morning, we’ll get earnings from Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) and Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE: SHAW).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Commercial Metals Corp. (NYSE: CMC) is up 0.49%. The steel and metal fabricator posted better-than-expected earnings this morning. More coverage here.

Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: AMLN) is up more than 53%. The drug maker rejected a takeover bid. More coverage here.

Vermillion Inc. (NASDAQ: VRML) is up 19%. The drug maker received a patent approval today. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart, Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser, and Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker are giving speeches. We have also noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – New unemployment benefits claims
8:30 a.m. – Corporate profits
10:30 a.m. – EIA natural gas storage report
11:00 a.m. – Kansas City Fed manufacturing index

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Analyst Calls, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AMLN, BBY, CBK, CMC, DTV, FDO, JOSB, KMI, MOS, NVDA, RHT, SHAW, SN, SNX, VRML, VZ, WTW

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ARNA, AONE, CIM, DTV, FSL, HTS, IACI, KMI, NVDA, PGR, CRM, VZ, WTW)

Administrator — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 12:21:13 +0000

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

Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARNA) Cut to Neutral at Piper Jaffray.

A123 Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: AONE) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

Chimera Investment Corporation (NYSE: CIM) Cut to Hold at Deutsche Bank.

DirecTV, Inc. (NASDAQ: DTV) Raised to Buy at Citigroup; Reiterated as Buy at Canaccord Genuity.

Freescale Semiconductor Holdings (NYSE: FSL) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Hatteras Financial Corporation (NYSE: HTS) Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank.

IAC/InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ: IACI) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

Kinder Morgan Inc. (NYSE: KMI) Started as Equal-weight at Morgan Stanley.

NVIDIA Corporation (NYSE: NVDA) Raised to Market Perform at JMP Securities.

Progressive Corporation (NYSE: PGR) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM) Reiterated as Buy and raised target to $180 at Canaccord Genuity.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) Cut to Sector Perform at RBC.

Weight Watchers International Inc. (NYSE: WTW) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.

If you enjoyed the top analyst upgrades and downgrades, you can join our free email newsletter that includes analyst summaries each morning sent right to your inbox. We also cover top issues such as IPOs, special financial exclusives, mergers and more. Sign up in the box below.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: AONE, ARNA, CIM, CRM, DTV, FSL, HTS, IACI, KMI, NVDA, PGR, VZ, WTW

Weight Watchers Manages Successful Tender Offer To Retire Shares (WTW)

Administrator — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 13:17:43 +0000

Weight Watchers International Inc. (NYSE: WTW) managed a success with its dutch tender offer to repurchase shares out of the public float. The company now is going to repurchase about 12% of its outstanding shares at a cost of about $720 million. Shares are up on the shareholder return of capital, but S&P has previously cut the rating due to this removing much liquidity that had been on the balance sheet.

This previously announced self-tender offer came to 8.78 million shares at a price of $82.00 per share against almost 73.6 million shares outstanding. When Weight Watchers announced its tender it was for share prices between $72.00 and $83.00 per share.

Shares have risen steadily but they are up from a level of only $55.01 at the end of 2011. Shares closed at $82.00 on Thursday and the 52-week trading range is $51.28 to $86.97.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Consumer Goods, Corporate Governance, Food, Stock Buybacks Tagged: WTW

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (JNJ, KSS, WTW, DHI, LEN, TOL, ACI, ALIM, ZUMZ, ARO, ANN, CCL, FGP, HALO, URRE, JVA, QSFT, ASTM, DYN, ZGNX, GMCR)

Paul Ausick — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 21:05:53 +0000

US equities opened higher this morning following the report on a US non-farm payroll gain of 227,000 jobs (more coverage here). In Europe, the Greek debt swap deal went off smoothly, but the declaration late this afternoon by the International Swaps and Derivatives Association (ISDA) that the swap was, in fact, a “credit event” sent stocks down sharply though the three major indexes remain in positive territory about half an hour before the markets close. The dollar opened up this morning and got stronger as the day went on, with the dollar index now up 1.07% at 79.987. Crude oil was up today, with WTI crude settling up 0.8% at $107.40/barrel and Brent crude trading up 0.29% at $125.80/barrel. Gold settled higher by 0.8% at $1,711.50/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up 14 points to 12,921.94 (0.11%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 18 points (0.6%) to 2,988.34, and the S&P 500 rose 0.36% or nearly 5 points to 1,370.87.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) started as ‘hold’ at Jefferies; Kohl’s Corp. (NYSE: KSS) raised to ‘buy’ at Jefferies; Weight Watchers International Inc. (NYSE: WTW) started as ‘overweight’ (!) at Barclays; D.R. Horton Inc. (NYSE: DHI), Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN), and Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) all raised to ‘outperform’ at Credit Suisse; and Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) cut to ‘market perform’ at BMO.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Alimera Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ALIM) is down -3.4% at $4.00; Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) is up 5.7% at $34.16 after posting a new 52-week high of $34.44 earlier today; Aeropostale Inc. (NYSE: ARO) is up 2.6% at $19.45; Ann Inc. (NYSE: ANN) is up 6% at $27.36; Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) is down -1.2% at $30.57 (more coverage here); Ferrellgas Partners LP (NYSE: FGP) is down -2.6% at $16.80; Halozyme Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: HALO) is down -1.8% at $11.30; and Uranium Resources Inc. (NASDAQ: URRE) is up 3.1% at $1.00.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Coffee Holding Co. Inc. (NASDAQ: JVA) is up nearly 38% at $10.81. The integrated coffee roaster and distributor posted better-than-expected quarterly results this morning.

Quest Software Inc. (NASDAQ: QSFT) is up more than 24% at $24.09. The firm has agreed to be acquired at $23/share. More coverage here.

Aastrom Biosciences Inc. (NASDAQ: ASTM) is up more than 21% at $2.21. The biotechnology company has completed a private placement of $40 million in Series B convertible preferred stock. More coverage here.

Dynegy Inc. (NYSE: DYN) is down more than -38% at $0.72 after posting a new 52-week low of $0.59 earlier today. A Delaware court ruled that the company had engaged in a “fraudulent transfer” of assets prior to its bankruptcy filing.

Zogenix Inc. (NASDAQ: ZGNX) is down nearly -18% at $2.05. The drug maker posted a wider than expected loss after the markets closed yesterday.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) is down nearly -16% at $52.61. The company is being hit hard by yesterday’s announcement from Starbucks Inc. (NASDAQ: SBUX) that it will launch a single-cup espresso and coffee machine to compete with the Keurig products from Green Mountain. More coverage here and here.

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

11:30 a.m. – 3- and 6-month Treasury bill auction
1:00 p.m. – 3-year Treasury note auction
2.00 p.m. – US Treasury budget report

Have a great weekend.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: ACI, ALIM, ANN, ARO, ASTM, CCL, DHI, DYN, FGP, GMCR, HALO, JNJ, JVA, KSS, LEN, QSFT, TOL, URRE, WTW, ZGNX, ZUMZ

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ACI, CAB, CHL, DKS, DHI, GFIG, GMCR, HLF, JNJ, KBH, KSS, LEN, LPNT, MDT, TOL, WTW)

Administrator — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 13:20:08 +0000

These are some of this Friday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen in Wall Street research calls.

Arch Coal, Inc. (NYSE: ACI) Cut to Market Perform at BMO.

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

China Mobile Limited (NYSE: CHL) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.

Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. (NYSE: DKS) Started as Buy at Argus.

D.R. Horton (NYSE: DHI) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

GFI Group (NASDAQ: GFIG) Raised to Outperform at Keefe Bruyette & Woods.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR) Cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE: HLF) Started as Overweight at Barclays.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) Started as Hold at Jefferies.

KB Home (NYSE: KBH) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Kohl’s Corporation (NYSE: KSS) Raised to Buy at Jefferies.

Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

LifePoint Hospitals, Inc. (NASDAQ: LPNT) Started as Buy at Cantor Fitzgerald.

Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT) Cut to Sell at Argus.

Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Weight Watchers International Inc. (NYSE: WTW) Started as Overweight at Barclays.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: ACI, CAB, CHL, DHI, DKS, GFIG, GMCR, HLF, JNJ, KBH, KSS, LEN, LPNT, MDT, TOL, WTW

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (BRK-A, KO, CCU, DD, EMC, EOG, GDI, AWAY, JBHT, KLAC, NTAP, PG, SBUX, HOT, TSRA, TXN, WTW, YUM)

Administrator — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 11:57:04 +0000

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

AECOM Technology Corp. (NYSE: ACM) Reiterated Buy with $33 target at Argus.
American International Group, Inc. (NYSE: AIG) Raised to Market Perform at KBW.
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A) Raised to Overweight at Barclays.
Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS) Raised to Buy with $31 target at Argus.
First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) Maintained Buy but cut target to $140 at Argus.
Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD) Raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.
Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) Raised to Buy at Jefferies.
Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE: PPG) Reiterated Buy as Value at Zacks.
StanCorp Financial Group (NYSE: SFG) Cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC) Raised to Buy at Goldman Sachs.
Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) Raised to Outperform at FBR.
Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN) Raised to Hold at Citigroup.

You are invited to join our free daily email distribution list to hear more about analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader and active trader alerts, dividend trends, news on Buffett and other investment gurus, IPOs, secondary offerings, private equity, and more.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AWAY, BRK-A, CCU, DD, EMC, EOG, GDI, HOT, JBHT, KLAC, KO, NTAP, PG, SBUX, TSRA, TXN, WTW, YUM

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (BRK-A, KO, CCU, DD, EMC, EOG, GDI, AWAY, JBHT, KLAC, NTAP, PG, SBUX, HOT, TSRA, TXN, WTW, YUM)

Administrator — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 12:09:21 +0000

You already know about the S&P U.S. credit rating downgrade, but these are some of the top equity analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Monday morning.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A) Raised to Outperform at KBW.
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO) Raised to Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.
Compania Cervecerias Unidas S.A. (NYSE: CCU) Cut to Underperform at Credit Suisse.
E.I. DuPont de Nemours (NYSE: DD) Maintained Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) Raised to Buy at Auriga.
EOG Resources, Inc. (NYSE: EOG) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.
Gardner Denver, Inc. (NYSE: GDI) Reiterated Buy as Value at Zacks.
HomeAway, Inc. (NASDAQ: AWAY) Started as Hold at Stifel Nicolaus; Started as Overweight at JPMorgan; Started as Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
JB Hunt Transport Services Inc. (NASDAQ: JBHT) Cut to Neutral at Robert W. Baird.
KLA-Tencor Corporation (NASDAQ: KLAC) Raised to Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
NetApp, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP) Raised to Buy at Auriga.
Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG) Raised to Outperform at Bernstein.
Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ: SBUX) Raised to Outperform at Robert W. Baird.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: HOT) Raised to Outperform at Bernstein.
Tessera Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: TSRA) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Texas Instruments Inc. (NYSE: TXN) Cut to Market Perform at FBR.
Weight Watchers International, Inc. (NYSE: WTW) Started as Overweight with $80 target at Credit Suisse.
Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM) Raised to Outperform at Robert W. Baird.

You can also see the top analyst calls of last week here, which have a much longer-term impact rather than just a day or two. Stocks noted: BAC, BRCD, DNDN, DG, LNKD, HK, POT, RSH, SNDK, SYMC, MCD, TEVA, TA, WMT, and YHOO.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AWAY, BRK-A, CCU, DD, EMC, EOG, GDI, HOT, JBHT, KLAC, KO, NTAP, PG, SBUX, TSRA, TXN, WTW, YUM

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (APD, AIXG, BRCD, CLF, JDSU, MCO, PEP, SPWRA, VOD, WTW)

Administrator — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 13:24:55 +0000

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

Air Products & Chemicals Inc. (NYSE: APD) Raised to Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Aixtron AG (NASDAQ: AIXG) Started as Sell at Citigroup.
Brocade Communications Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: BRCD) Raised to Buy at Wunderlich; Raised to Buy at ThinkEquity.
Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF) Raised to Buy at S&P Equity Research (late-Thursday call).
JDS Uniphase Corporation (NASDAQ: JDSU) Cut to Hold at Citigroup.
Moody’s Corp. (NYSE: MCO) Raised to Outperform at the Bull of the Day at Zacks.
PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) Cut to Neutral with $69 target at Credit Suisse.
SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ: SPWRA) Raised to Buy at Jefferies; Maintained Neutral but Raised target to $20 at Credit Suisse.
Vodafone Group plc (NYSE: VOD) Raised to Hold at RBS.
Weight Watchers International, Inc. (NYSE: WTW) Raised to Equal-weight at Morgan Stanley.

You can join our free daily email distribution list to hear more about analyst upgrades and downgrades, top day trader and active trader alerts, dividend trends, news on Buffett and other investment gurus, IPOs, secondary offerings, private equity, and more.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AIXG, APD, BRCD, CLF, JDSU, MCO, PEP, SPWRA, VOD, WTW

October’s Largest Buybacks (PPG, OKE, CY, EBAY, WTW, EMC, KO, VAL, WAG, IRM, FDO, CVX)

Administrator — Fri, 22 Oct 2010 15:37:15 +0000

Despite the rise of the stock market, many companies are continuing to repurchase their shares in the open market. Many investors prefer dividends over buybacks, but asking which is a better reward for shareholders depends solely upon whom you ask. While these are not all of the buybacks throughout October, we have tracked some key buybacks from the likes of PPG Industries Inc. (NYSE: PPG), ONEOK Inc. (NYSE: OKE), Cypress Semiconductor Corporation (NYSE: CY), eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY), Weight Watchers International, Inc. (NYSE: WTW), EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC), Coca-Cola Company (NYSE: KO), Valspar Corporation (NYSE: VAL), Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG), Iron Mountain Incorporated (NYSE: IRM), Family Dollar Stores, Inc. (NYSE: FDO), and Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX).

We have offered color on each with applicable data on how each compares to size and volume, along with other statistical reference.

PPG Industries Inc. (NYSE: PPG) approved an additional 10 million shares of outstanding common stock, effective immediately and without an expiration. Back in December 2009, PPG authorized 5 million shares in a buyback and approximately 3.1 million shares of that plan are still available for repurchase. Average volume here is 1.2 million shares and the market cap is $12.65 billion. This is large in dollar terms, but not a massive game-changer on its float if it buys shares back at roughly the same rate it has. At $76.60, the 52-week range is $55.89 to $77.95.

Natural gas distributor ONEOK Inc. (NYSE: OKE) has approved $750 million over a three year period. The market cap here is $5.33 billion and with shares at $50.05 the 52-week trading range is $29.56 to $50.85. This buyback is large in size and large in scope as the current share price would retire 14% of the stock based on today’s prices and the buyback represents over 22 days worth of trading volume.

Cypress Semiconductor Corporation (NYSE: CY) may have found an alternative to M&A. After announcing a buyback plan of up to $600 million, the market cap today is only about $2.15 billion. At $13.35, the 52-week trading range is $8.05 to $13.89. This won’t happen overnight as the cash and equivalents on the books come in at about $279 million.

eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) rose after earnings, but the buyback and leveraging of the books may have contributed more than anything here along with $300 million spent buying back stock in the last quarter. eBay said that the company authorized up to $2 billion for additional share buybacks. It also authorized a commercial paper program of up to $1 billion and has approved the sale of up to $1.5 billion in term-debt financing under an existing shelf registration.

Weight Watchers International, Inc. (NYSE: WTW) approved a buyback plan of up to $250 million, which is a combination and add-on to a prior share buyback plan. This represents 10% of the implied shares that could be bought back and at current prices it represents almost 29-days worth of volume.

Filed under: Dividend, Stock Buybacks Tagged: CVX, CY, EBAY, EMC, FDO, IRM, KO, OKE, PPG, VAL, WAG, WTW

Top 10 Pre-Market Analyst Calls (CMG, FLR, MSO, MU, SNH, SSS, VIA.B, WTW, WFMI)

247wallst — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 07:36:15 +0000

These are not the only calls out there from analysts, but these are the top analyst calls that 247WallSt.com is looking at this Friday morning:

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG) raised to Outperform at Robert W. Baird.
Fluor (NYSE: FLR) raised to Buy at UBS.
Martha Stewart (NYSE: MSO) started as Outperform at RBC Capital.
Micron Tech (NYSE: MU) initiated as Outperform at Oppenheimer.
Senior Housing (NYSE: SNH) raised to Buy at UBS.
Sovereign Self Storage (NYSE: SSS) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank.
Viacom (NYSE: VIA.B) raised to Buy at UBS.
Weight Watchers (NYSE: WTW) raised to Outperform at Oppenheimer.
Whole Foods (NASDAQ: WFMI) downgraded to Underweight at Lehman.

Jon C. Ogg
February 15, 2008