24/7 Wall St. » ZZ

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — October 24, 2012: Markets Can’t Hold Morning Gains (BUD, NOK, CHKP, AAPL, DLTR, AMGN, BRCM, FB, JNPR, NFLX, T, BA, GLW, LLY, EMC, GD, LCC, ANGI, CLF, CROX, FFIV, RRC, RYL, AET, ZNGA, ALK, AN, BG, CL, DNKN, NOV, POT, UAL, RF, TPX, ZZ, ATI)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 20:05:03 +0000

The three major U.S. stock indexes opened higher this morning following a better-than-expected PMI reading from China (more coverage here) that was mostly untempered by lower-than-expected PMI readings from Europe (more coverage here). Index futures were higher going into the open and that sentiment was reinforced by several good earnings reports last night and before markets opened this morning. The report on new home sales came in a bit stronger than expected which also helped support equity prices this morning (more coverage here). This afternoon’s FOMC announcement held no surprises and lifted shares a bit as well (more coverage here). But lacking a big motivator, markets just slid into negative territory about an hour before closing.

The U.S. dollar index fell slightly today, now down 0.03% at 79.949. The GSCI commodity index is down about 1.4% at 639.30, with commodities prices mixed today. WTI crude oil closed down 1.1% today, at $85.73 a barrel following a larger-than-expected inventory build in the U.S. (more coverage here). Brent crude trades down 0.37% at $107.85 a barrel. Natural gas is down 2.5% today at about $3.45 per thousand cubic feet. Gold closed at $1,701.60 an ounce, down 0.5% for the day.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down about 25 points to 13,077.34 (-0.19%), the NASDAQ fell nearly 9 points (-0.29%) to 2,981.70, and the S&P 500 fell -0.31% or more than 4 points to 1,408.76.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Anheuser-Busch InBev S.A. (NYSE: BUD) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) maintained as ‘underweight’ at JPMorgan; Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP) raised to ‘buy’ at BofA/ML; Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) reiterated as ‘buy’ and target price raised to $800 at Canaccord Genuity; and Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) raised to ‘Conviction Buy List’ at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last half hour of trading: Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) is up 0.4% at $87.66; Broadcom Corp. (NASDAQ: BRCM) is down 3.8% at $32.09; Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) is up 18.8% at $23.17 (more coverage here); Juniper Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: JNPR) is down 9.3% at $15.93; Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) is down 11.8% at $60.20 (more coverage here); AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is down 0.8% at $34.71 (more coverage here); Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) is down 0.3% at $72.57 (more coverage here); Corning Inc. (NYSE: GLW) is down 10.7% at $11.98; Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE: DAL) is down 1.7% at $9.98 (more coverage here); Eli Lilly and Co. (NYSE: LLY) is down 2.6% at $50.58 (more coverage here); EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) is down 1.6% at $24.29 (more coverage here); General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD) is up 2.2% at $67.69 (more coverage here); and US Airways Group Inc. (NYSE: LCC) is up 1.9% at $12.32.

Before markets open tomorrow we are scheduled to hear from Angie’s List Inc. (NASDAQ: ANGI), Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLF), Crocs Inc. (NASDAQ: CROX), F5 Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: FFIV), Range Resources Corp. (NYSE: RRC), Ryland Group Inc. (NYSE: RYL), Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET), Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA), Alaska Air Group Inc. (NYSE: ALK), AutoNation Inc. (NYSE: AN), Bunge Ltd. (NYSE: BG), Colgate-Palmolive Co. (NYSE: CL), Dunkin’ Brands Group Inc. (NASDAQ: DNKN), National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NYSE: NOV), Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. (NYSE: POT), and United Continental Holdings Inc. (NYSE: UAL) among a host of others.

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

RF Micro Devices Inc. (NASDAQ: RFMD) is up 10.8% at $4.36. The RF components maker busted second quarter estimates and raised third quarter guidance on demand for 3G and 4G cellular phone components.

Tempur-Pedic International Inc. (NYSE: TPX) is down 19.7% at $25.60. The mattress maker posted poor quarterly results, lowered full-year guidance, and is being sued over its proposed merger with Sealy Corp. (NYSE: ZZ). More coverage here.

Allegheny Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ATI) is down 11.6% at $27.94. The specialty metals maker reported weak earnings this morning and warned that the fourth-quarter would be worse.

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

8:30 a.m. – Durable goods orders
8:30 a.m. – New claims for unemployment benefits
8:30 a.m. – Chicago Fed national activity index
10:00 a.m. – Pending home sales index
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
11:00 a.m. – Kansas City Fed manufacturing index
1:00 p.m. – 7-year Treasury note auction
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AAPL, AET, ALK, AMGN, AN, ANGI, ATI, BA, BG, BRCM, BUD, CHKP, CL, CLF, CROX, DLTR, DNKN, EMC, FB, FFIV, GD, GLW, JNPR, LCC, LLY, NFLX, NOK, NOV, POT, RF, RRC, RYL, T, TPX, UAL, ZNGA, ZZ

Mattress Maker Sags on Results, Outlook, Lawsuit (TPX, ZZ, SCSS, MFRM, LEG)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 14:03:19 +0000

Tempur-Pedic International Inc. (NYSE: TPX) reported disappointing earnings results after markets closed last night and the company’s shares are paying the price today. Shares were down more than 20% in the first 10 minutes of trading.

The company’s comments on the competitive landscape and on international sales are having an adverse effect on competitors Select Comfort Corp. (NASDAQ: SCSS) and Mattress Firm Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: MFRM). Leggett & Platt Inc. (NYSE: LEG), which makes bedding components, has so far escaped the downturn.

Tempur-Pedic’s adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.70 was a penny above the consensus estimate, but the company posted a GAAP EPS loss of $0.03. Sales were down 11% in the quarter and gross margins declined by more than 3%. Tempur-Pedic also lowered its EPS guidance to $2.55, well under the consensus estimate of $2.78.

The company’s $229 million merger with Sealy Corp. (NYSE: ZZ) is also under fire. Including assumed debt, the deal is valued at around $1.3 billion. Announced late last month, the deal has attracted investor lawsuits claiming that the deal is not in the interests of shareholders other than Sealy’s controlling shareholder, KKR & Co. (NYSE: KKR). KKR paid Bain Capital Partners LLC $1.6 billion for Sealy in 2004.

The deal for Sealy is not subject to Sealy shareholder approval because KKR reportedly has added enough votes to its 46% stake to push the total shares in favor of the acquisition above 50%. That does not mean, of course, that the lawsuits could not materially impact KKR, Sealy or Tempur-Pedic.

Shares of Tempur-Pedic are down 22.2% at $24.77 in a 52-week range of $20.70 to $87.43.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Consumer Products Tagged: LEG, MFRM, SCSS, TPX, ZZ

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — September 27, 2012: Market Gains Boosted by Spain (GM, IMGN, MT, MON, HON, PRGS, WOR, FUL, DFS, MKC, RIMM, NKE, ACN, AM, FINL, WAG, TPX, ZZ, PPHM, FSLR)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 20:03:15 +0000

The three major U.S. stock indexes opened higher this morning as markets shook off weak news from Europe in favor of better news from Asia. In Europe, German unemployment stayed at 8.6% (more coverage here), U.K. second-quarter GDP was revised upward (more coverage here), and European carmakers offered a bleak forecast (more coverage here). From China came the news of a new $58 billion reverse repurchase program by the Central bank, sparking hopes for more government intervention in the country’s faltering growth. In the U.S., new claims for jobless benefits fell, but news on durable goods orders and second-quarter GDP were disappointing (more coverage here). Pending home sales fell in August (more coverage here) and a couple of Federal Reserve districts — Chicago and Kansas City — reported weak manufacturing numbers. U.S. markets got a lift after Spain announced that it would make severe budget cuts and raise taxes to meet deficit goals for next year (more coverage here).

The U.S. dollar index fell today, now down 0.45% at 79.525. The GSCI commodity index is down 1 % at 651.87, with commodities prices generally higher on the weaker dollar. WTI crude oil closed up 2.1% today, at $91.85 a barrel. Brent crude trades up 2% at $112.23 a barrel. Natural gas is up 2.1% today to $3.283 per thousand cubic feet following an inline report on natural gas storage (more coverage here). Gold closed at $1,780.50 an ounce, up 1.5%.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up about 73 points to 13,486.51 (0.54%), the NASDAQ rose about 43 points (1.39%) to 3,136.60, and the S&P 500 rose 0.97% or nearly 14 points to 1,447.17.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) started as ‘hold’ at Stifel Nicolaus; Immunogen Inc. (NASDAQ: IMGN) started as ‘sell’ at UBS; ArcelorMittal (NYSE: MT) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs (related story here); Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) raised to ‘outperform’ at Wells Fargo; and Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) started as ‘buy’ at BofA/ML.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night resulted in some price moves today, including these as of the last hour of trading: Progress Software Corp. (NASDAQ: PRGS) is up 12% at $21.46; Worthington Industries Inc. (NYSE: WOR) is down 0.8% at $22.24; HB Fuller Co. (NYSE: FUL) is down 9.3% at $30.27; Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) is up 7.2% at $39.67 after posting a new 52-week high of $39.73 earlier today (more coverage here); and McCormick & Company Inc. (NYSE: MKC) is down 1.7% at $61.85.

Before markets open tomorrow we are scheduled to hear from Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM), Nike Inc. (NYSE: NKE), Accenture plc (NYSE: ACN), American Greetings Corp. (NYSE: AM), Finish Line Inc. (NASDAQ: FINL), and Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG).

Some standouts from today include the following stocks:

Tempur-Pedic International Inc. (NYSE: TPX) is up 15.3% at $30.88. The mattress maker acquired competitor Sealy Corp. (NYSE: ZZ) today. More coverage here.

Peregrine Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: PPHM) is down 30.7% at $1.15. The drugmaker reported that it paid off a defaulted $15 million loan.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) is up 12.5% at $23.50. The solar panel maker won a contract to build four solar farms in Mexico and is under consideration for a 1,000-megawatt solar plant in southern California.

Stay tuned for Friday. Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher is giving a speech. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Personal income and outlays
9:45 a.m. – Chicago PMI
9:55 a.m. – University of Michigan/Thomson Reuters consumer sentiment index

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: ACN, AM, DFS, FINL, FSLR, FUL, GM, HON, IMGN, MKC, MON, MT, NKE, PPHM, PRGS, RIMM, TPX, WAG, WOR, ZZ

Today’s Market Winners and Losers

247sam — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 14:42:28 +0000

The stock market rose Thursday early in trading, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.12%, the Nasdaq up 0.46% and the S&P 500 up 0.27%. Trading volumes were light, and today’s only winner was a company that is buying a rival firm. Meanwhile, today’s loser is a pharmaceutical company that has consistently been on the winners and losers list this past week and is currently experiencing funding issues.

This is Thursday’s biggest winner and loser.

Biggest Winner

Shares of Tempur-Pedic International Inc. (NYSE: TPX) are up 20.65% to $32.31 on trading volume of 4.1 million shares. The company agreed to purchase rival mattress maker Sealy Corp. (NYSE: ZZ) for $2.20 a share. The 52-week high is $87.43.

Biggest Loser

Shares of Peregrine Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: PPHM) are down 25.31% to $1.24 on trading volume of 11.5 million shares. In a regulatory filing, the company said its lenders demanded payment of $15 million but the company has less than $19 million in cash on hand, according to Reuters. The 52-week low is 39 cents.

Samuel Weigley

Follow him on Twitter: SWeigley

Filed under: Investing Tagged: PPHM, TPX, ZZ

Tempur-Pedic to Acquire Sealy

Paul Ausick — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 12:00:25 +0000

Mattress maker Tempur-Pedic International Inc. (NYSE: TPX) today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire competitor Sealy Corp. (NYSE: ZZ) for $2.23 per share. Including assumed debt, the deal is valued at about $1.3 billion.

Tempur-Pedic’s CEO said:

This is a transformational deal that brings together two great companies, each with globally recognized brands. Tempur-Pedic and Sealy together will have products for almost every consumer preference and price point, distribution through all key channels, in-house expertise on most key bedding technologies, and a world-class research and development team.

The boards of both companies have approved the offer and stockholders with about 51% of Sealy stock also have approved the deal. No additional stockholder agreement is required.

Tempur-Pedic said the deal represents a 23% premium to Sealy’s 30-day average closing price as of last night. Sealy’s shares closed at $2.14 yesterday.

Earlier this year the maker of Serta and Simmons mattresses was acquired by leveraged buyout firm Advent International Corp. for about $3 billion. The mattress business is popular with private equity and buyout firms because people are always buying new or replacing an old mattress, which generates a steady cash flow for investors.

Other mattress makers Select Comfort Corp. (NASDAQ: SCSS), Mattress Firm Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: MFRM) and Leggett & Platt Inc. (NYSE: LEG) have all outperformed both Tempur-Pedic and Sealy in share price performance in the past year. Today’s acquisition is likely aimed at beefing up revenues with the expectation that profits will follow.

Shares of Sealy are up 7.5% in premarket trading this morning at $2.30. The stock’s 52-week range is $1.09 to $2.45.

Tempu-Pedic’s stock is up about 5% at $28.10 in a 52-week range of $20.70 to $87.43.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Consumer Products Tagged: LEG, MFRM, SCSS, TPX, ZZ

Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (CYOU, EMN, ELN, EXPE, GSK, GRPN, KYAK, MCP, OMX, PANW, ZZ, SCSS, LUV, VALE, WEN)

Jon C. Ogg — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 12:21:26 +0000

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

Changyou.com Ltd. (NASDAQ: CYOU) started as Buy at Citigroup.

Eastman Chemical Co. (NYSE: EMN) named Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Elan PLC (NYSE: ELN) raised to Buy at UBS.

Expedia Inc. (NASDAQ: EXPE) cut to Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.

GlaxoSmithKline PLC (NYSE: GSK) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Groupon Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN) cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

Kayak Software Corp. (NASDAQ: KYAK) started as Buy at Deutsche Bank, started as Neutral at Piper Jaffray and started as Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.

Molycorp Inc. (NYSE: MCP) started as Overweight at Morgan Stanley. S&P downgraded the corporate credit rating late on Monday before the close.

OfficeMax Inc. (NYSE: OMX) named value stock of the day at Zacks.

Palo Alto Networks Inc. (NYSE: PANW) started as Outperform at Credit Suisse, started as Neutral at Citi, started as Buy at Goldman Sachs and started as Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley.

Sealy Corp. (NYSE: ZZ) started as Underweight at Barclays.

Select Comfort Corp. (NASDAQ: SCSS) started as Overweight at Barclays.

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) raised to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Vale S.A. (NYSE: VALE) cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

The Wendy’s Company (NASDAQ: WEN) cut to Underweight at KeyBanc Capital Markets.

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: Investing Tagged: CYOU, ELN, EMN, EXPE, GRPN, GSK, KYAK, LUV, MCP, OMX, PANW, SCSS, VALE, WEN, ZZ

Bedding Companies May Begin Sleeping a Little Better

Paul Ausick — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 16:19:54 +0000

Since hitting 52-week highs in mid-April, mattress and bedding companies have moved sharply lower. The highs followed solid first-quarter earnings reports, and the direction change followed a warning on earnings from Tempur Pedic International Inc. (NYSE: TPX) in early June. Today’s earnings report from Tempur Pedic may have turned things around yet again.

The company managed to beat a FactSet EPS estimate of $0.38, posting EPS of $0.45 on revenue of $329.5 million. Based on Tempur Pedic’s June warning, no one expected much, so the lower revenue and modest profit were a welcome surprise. Other mattress and bedding makers Select Comfort Corp. (NASDAQ: SCSS), Sealy Corp. (NYSE: ZZ), Mattress Firm Holding Corp. (NASDAQ: MFRM), and Leggett & Platt Inc. (NYSE: LEG) are all getting a boost as well today.

Sealy is up more than 7% following its own earnings beat a few weeks ago and Select Comfort is up more than 2% following on its big jump last week following its own earnings report.

Tempur Pedic’s gross margins fell -2.2% to 50.7%, and international sales growth rose 8% to offset a decline of -8% in the US. International sales grew by 17% on a constant currency basis. The company also stuck by its full-year EPS forecast of about $2.80/share on revenue of about $1.43 billion. The EPS forecast is above the Thomson Reuters estimate of $2.66.

Earnings estimates for both Select Comfort and Sealy were raised following their earnings reports. Mattress Firm Holding’s second quarter ends this month and the company is expected to post EPS of $0.28 on revenue of $246.5 million. Leggett & Platt, which makes bedsprings, is expected to report EPS of $0.36 on revenue of $978.9 million tomorrow.

Tempur Pedic’s stock is up 14.2% at $30.96 shortly after noon today, in a 52-week range of $20.70-$87.43. The stock’s consensus target price is $31.25, still a long way from the 52-week high.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Consumer Products Tagged: LEG, MFRM, SCSS, TPX, ZZ

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — June 27, 2012: Markets Finish Higher on Housing, Crude

Paul Ausick — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 20:09:07 +0000

The three major US stock indexes opened modestly higher this morning as investors appear to have high hopes that tomorrow’s summit meeting of European Union leaders will lead to a resolution of the continent’s financial crisis. US durable goods orders were about double expectations, although when transportation goods are excluded the reading was a bit behind (our coverage here). Pending home sales jumped 5.9%, far better than the expected 0.5% gain, which helped markets maintain previous gains.

The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.3% at 82.622. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.9% at 572.64, with commodities prices mostly higher today. WTI crude oil closed up 1.1% at $80.21/barrel, on a smaller than expected drop in crude inventories (our coverage here). Brent crude trades up 0.62% at $93.60/barrel. Natural gas rose about 0.25% today to $2.774/thousand cubic feet. Gold settled up 0.2%, at $1,578.40/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 92 points to 12,627.08 (0.74%), the NASDAQ rose more than 21 points (0.74%) to 2,875.32, and the S&P 500 rose 0.90% or nearly 12 points to 1,331.85.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK) cut to ‘sell’ at S&P Capital IQ and maintained ‘sell’ at Argus; News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWSA) raised to ‘buy’ at Needham; Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) maintained as ‘hold’ at Argus; American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG) reiterated as ‘hold’ at Stifel Nicolaus; and Yandex N.V. (NASDAQ: YNDX) raised to ‘buy’ at UGBS. We also have a list of ratings for Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) as it comes off its 40-day quiet period today.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have been scarce, but here are some price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today: Sealy Corp. (NYSE: ZZ) is up 8.2% at $1.84; Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN) is up 5% at $28.75 (more coverage here); General Mills Inc. (NYSE: GIS) is down -1.8% at $37.48 (more coverage here); and Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON) is up 3.8% at $80.81. After markets close today and before they re-open tomorrow we are scheduled to hear from Flow International Corp. (NASDAQ: FLOW), Paychex Inc. (NASDAQ: PAYX), American Greetings Corp. (NYSE: AM), Family Dollar Stores Inc. (NYSE: FDO), and Greenbrier Companies Inc. (NYSE: GBX).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ARNA) is up 28.5% at $11.37 after posting a new 52-week high of $13.50 earlier today. The drug maker’s anti-obesity treatment received FDA approval, boosting some competitors as well. More coverage here.

Gevo Inc. (NASDAQ: GEVO) is down -21.6% at $6.88. The biofuels maker said today that it would issue more stock and debt without specifying any amounts or dates. More coverage here.

O’Reilly Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ: ORLY) is down -14.6% at $82.40. The company lowered guidance today, citing more new car sales as compared to keeping the old jalopy running.

Stay tuned for Thursday. Cleveland Fed President Sandra Pianalto and Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher are giving speeches. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – GDP report
8:30 a.m. – Corporate profits
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly natural gas storage report
11:00 a.m. – Kansas City Fed manufacturing index
1:00 p.m. – 7-year note auction
3:00 p.m. – Farm prices
4:30 p.m. – Fed balance sheet and money supply

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AIG, AM, APOL, ARNA, FB, FDO, FLOW, GBX, GEVO, GIS, LDK, LEN, MON, NWSA, ORLY, PAYX, YNDX, ZZ

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — June 26, 2012: Housing News Warms Market Today

Paul Ausick — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 20:06:34 +0000

The three major US stock indexes opened slightly higher this morning as markets didn’t get any more bad news from Europe and got some good news on housing prices from the S&P Case-Shiller housing price index (our coverage here). But separate reports on a continuing decline in consumer confidence pushed equities into negative territory, which they were not able to escape until after noon. Following a mid-afternoon downgrade of German sovereign debt to ‘A+’ at Egan Jones (our coverage here), stocks moved down again, but remained in positive territory with every sector posting some gain.

The US dollar index fell today, now down -0.13% at 82.389. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.6% at 567.60, with commodities prices mixed today. Corn is up about 4.4% on a reduced crop outlook due to weather (more coverage here). WTI crude oil closed up 0.2% at $79.36/barrel. Brent crude trades up 2.19% at $93.00/barrel. Natural gas rose about 2.7% today to $2.77/thousand cubic feet. Gold settled down -0.9%, at $1,574.90/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up about 32 points to 12,534.67 (0.26%), the NASDAQ rose nearly 18 points (0.63%) to 2,854.06, and the S&P 500 rose 0.48% or more than 6 points to 1,319.99.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. Ltd. (NYSE: YGE) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (NASDAQ: CTSH) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG) started as ‘buy’ at Sterne Agee; JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) raised to ‘Conviction Buy List’ at Goldman Sachs; and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) cut to ‘neutral’ from ‘Conviction Buy List’ at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have been scarce, but here are some price changes for reporting companies as of the last half hour of trading today: Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) is up 11% at $36.04; Synnex Corp. (NYSE: SNX) is up 1.6% at $33.58; LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK) is down -6.4% at $1.89 (more coverage here). After markets close today and before they re-open tomorrow we are scheduled to hear from Sealy Corp. (NYSE: ZZ), Lennar Corp. (NYSE: LEN), Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON), and UniFirst Corp. (NYSE: UNF).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWS) is up 8.3% at $21.97 after posting a new 52-week high of $22.10 earlier today. The media giant is considering to split itself into two pieces.

Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) is down -5.2% at $5.75. The social networking game company introduced several new games this afternoon that were not what analysts were looking for.

Supernus Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: SUPN) is up 96.2% at $11.20 after posting a new 52-week high of $15.00 earlier today. The drug maker received tentative approval for the company’s once-a-day version of its epilepsy drug.

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

7:00 a.m. – Mortgage Bankers Association purchase applications
8:30 a.m. – Durable goods orders
10:00 a.m. – Pending home sales index
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
1:00 p.m. – 5-year note auction

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AIG, APOL, CTSH, JPM, LDK, LEN, MON, MS, NWS, SNX, SUPN, UNF, YGE, ZNGA, ZZ

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell — June 25, 2012: Markets Crushed Nearly 2%

Paul Ausick — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 20:04:27 +0000

The three major US stock indexes opened lower this morning as markets have begun to reach the conclusion that this week’s Eurozone summit is not likely to resolve the continent’s financial crisis. Spain has formally requested €100 billion to recapitalize the nation’s banks (more coverage here). US new home sales continue to rise, but the better news did not offer a lot of encouragement to investors (our coverage here). Cyprus has also formally requested a bailout from its Eurozone partners, and while the amount is small, the potential ramifications are anything but (our coverage here).

The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.29% at 82.494. The GSCI commodity index is up 0.8% at 563.72, with commodities prices mostly higher today. WTI crude oil closed down -0.7% at $79.21/barrel. Brent crude trades up 0.03% at $91.01/barrel. Natural gas rose about 2.6% today to $2.694/thousand cubic feet. Gold settled up 1.4%, at $1,588.40/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 138 points to 12,503.19 (-1.09%), the NASDAQ fell more than 56 points (-1.95%) to 2,836.16, and the S&P 500 fell -1.60% or more than 21 points to 1,313.71.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including AutoNation (NYSE: AN) cut to ‘sell’ at Deutsche Bank; Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) raised to ‘neutral’ at Janney; Merck & Co. (NYSE: MRK) reiterated ‘outperform’ and target price raised to $45 at Credit Suisse; Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) raised to ‘outperform’ at Oppenheimer; and Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) cut to ‘underweight’ at Morgan Stanley (more coverage here).

There have been no earnings reports of note since last Friday, but we’re scheduled to get earnings from Apollo Group Inc. (NASDAQ: APOL) and Synnex Corp. (NYSE: SNX), among others after markets close today. Earnings are due tomorrow from H and R Block Inc. (NYSE: HRB), LDK Solar Co. Ltd. (NYSE: LDK), and Sealy Corp. (NYSE: ZZ), among others.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

J. Alexander’s Corp. (NASDAQ: JAX) is up 16.2% at $11.50 after posting a new 52-week high of $11.76 earlier today. The restaurant firm is being acquired by Fidelity National Financial Inc. (NYSE: FNF) in a cash and stock deal worth $72 million.

Constellation Brands Inc. (NYSE: STZ) is up 13% at $21.88. The beer and alcoholic beverage maker is expected to benefit from the rumored acquisition by Anheuser-Busch InBev AB (NYSE: BUD) of the remaining shares it doesn’t own in Mexico’s Grupo Modelo. More coverage here.

Sonic Automotive Inc. (NYSE: SAH) is down -14.3% at $11.97. The automobile retailer has announced a private offering of up to $200 million of senior subordinated notes.

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

9:00 a.m. – S&P Case-Shiller housing price index
10:00 a.m. – Conference board consumer confidence index
10:00 a.m. – Richmond Fed manufacturing survey
10:00 a.m. – State Street investor confidence survey
11:30 a.m. – 4- and 52-week bill auctions
1:00 p.m. – 2-year note auction

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Investing Tagged: AN, APOL, BA, BUD, FNF, HRB, JAX, LDK, MRK, NFLX, RIMM, SAH, SNX, STZ, ZZ