Top Analyst Downgrades (BKC, JNJ, LVLT, NETL)
These are the few top pre-market analyst downgrades or cautious research calls from Wall Street firms this Friday morning with about two hours until the market opens: Burger King (BKC) Cut to Hold at…
All Work
Douglas A. McIntyre
Top Analyst Upgrades (CBS, LH, LXK, MS, ODP, PII, DGX, TLAB, WINN)
These are the few top pre-market analyst upgrades and positive research notes from Wall Street firms early this Friday morning with about two hours until the market opens: CBS (CBS) Raised to Buy at…
Dell (DELL) News Not Good For Intel (INTC), AMD (AMD), And Microsoft (MSFT)
It may be worth noting in passing that the comments of Dell’s (DELL) CFO during the company’s earnings call are bad news for any supplier of PC components and software. Brian Gladden said “Demand…
A Powerful Rise In Oil, Even By 2008 Standards
Oil will post its largest one-month rise since 1999 in May. That does not seem possible given that it rocketed up to $147 in the middle of last year. The news is a sign that…
Japan: Unemployment Still The Rub
Unemployment in Japan moved up to 5% in April. That may not seem like much to Americans, but in the world’s second largest economy it is like a 10% figure would be in the…
Verizon (VZ) Makes A Play To Be King Of All Wireless
Verizon Wireless (VZ)(VOD) plans to flank the AT&T (T) Apple (AAPL) iPhone marketing plan by any means available. It will launch versions of the Palm (PALM) Pre, which has to be a blow to…
What About Ford (F)?
Chrysler is well on its way through the Chapter 11 process. The media has pointed out that even if everything goes as planned Chrysler has a line of vehicles that desperately needs a face…
The Minimum, Minimum Wage
It is un-American to pay workers a pauper’s wage, and it is un-American to mandate that a company must pay an employee more than his work is worth. The debate about the minimum wage…
Media Digest 5/29/2009 Reuters, WSJ, NYTimes, FT, Bloomberg
Reuters: GM (GM) is close to bankruptcy after a deal with bondholders. Reuters: Banks are lobbying Washington on derivatives rules. Reuters: Dell’s (DELL) profits fell but beat estimates. Reuters: Iacocca will lose his car and…
Asia Markets 5/29/2009
Markets in Asia were higher with Shanghai closed. The Nikkei rose .8% to 9,523. The Hang Seng was up 1.7% to 18,196. At the open in Europe, the FTSE was up .6%. The Dax…
Dell Calls For Powerful Replacement Cycle (DELL)
Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) has just reported earnings of $0.24 EPS on $12.342 billion in revenue. Thomson Reuters had estimates at $0.23 EPS and $12.66 billion in sales. The main issue is on what…
GM Not Government Motors, Goner Motors (GM)
General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM) is getting closer and closer to what is an obvious bankruptcy with the June 1 deadline looming. This morning came the news that GM’s bondholders were now accepting a…
Leveraged ETF’s Weigh Bank Preferred Redemptions (FAS, FAZ, UYG, SKF, PGF, BAC, JPM, WFC, GS, C)
The triple-leverage financial ETFs of Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (NYSE: FAS) and Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (NYSE: FAZ) are getting to deal with yet another potential wrench in the machine:…
Oil Inventories Plummet, Regardless of OPEC Production Targets (USO)
OPEC had noted that it would keep production levels unchanged, but also argued for a $75 ideal oil price. Whether or not the cartel that does not want to be called a cartel cuts…
Kuwait, Sinopec Building New Refinery in China (SNP, RDS-A, DOW)
The Kuwaiti state oil company, Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, and China Petroleum and Chemical Company, known as Sinopec, (NYSE: SNP) are well along on plans to build a new 300,000 barrel per day refinery in…
Notions of Housing Recovery Only Seem Relative To Price (XHB)
The Commerce Department data for April’s new home sales looks good on the surface, but there are perhaps more problems than there are winners here. On an annualized basis, there were 352,000 new homes…
Battery Maker Rakes in $10 Million Funding (ABAT)
Chinese lithium-ion battery maker Advanced Battery Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: ABAT) will sell $10 million worth of preferred stock and warrants to three institutional investors. The warrants, which are 180-day Class B Warrants, are worth…
Trina, A Bit of Sunshine in the Solar Space (TSL)
Another Chinese integrated PV solar maker, Trina Solar Limited (NYSE:TSL) has reported less than was expected for its first quarter 2009. The net loss per fully diluted ADS was -$0.42, compared with a loss…
Ahead of E3, Microsoft Shows 30 Million Xbox 360 Users (MSFT)
Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) is making some strong projections and updates for its Xbox video gaming system. The company noted that global sales of the Xbox 360 unit have now crossed the 30 million…
There’s Still a Market for Ethanol (GPRE, VLO)
A (very) small cap ethanol producer, Green Plains Renewable Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: GPRE), has agreed to buy two ethanol plants formerly owned by now-bankrupt VeraSun Energy Corp. The owner of the plants is a…