Asia Market And Europe Open 4/7/2009
Markets in Asia were narrowly mixed. The Nikkei fell .2% to 8,833. The Hang Seng was off .5% to 14,917. The Shanghai Composite rose .8% to 2,435. At the open in Europe, the FTSE…
All Work
Douglas A. McIntyre
PetroQuest Energy Files To Raise Cash (PQ)
PetroQuest Energy Inc. (NYSE: PQ) has filed to raise up to $200 million million in securities in a mixed securities shelf. Technically, this filing is to replace an existing shelf registration that is expiring…
Junk Bonds To Get Their “Junk” Back
Three years when credit was plentiful and corporate earnings tended to be good because of a booming economy, junk bonds were considers a relatively safe investment. Over the next five years, investing in high-yield…
Another New Apple (AAPL) iPhone Sighting
The fate of Apple’s (AAPL) shares seems to rise and fall based on rumors that the company will release a new version of its iPhone. Apple’s shares are up 35% so far this year,…
The Political Risk of Toxic Assets
The administration’s plan is attractive, but are there too many strings attached? By Ian Bremmer and Sean West of The Big Money Last week, markets bounced 7 percent the day Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner…
Proxy Battle Begins in Fertilizer Deal (AGU, CF, TRA)
Canadian fertilizer giant Agrium Inc. (NYSE:AGU) today filed its definitive proxy materials with the SEC in its effort to acquire CF Industries Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:CF) Agrium is asking CF shareholders to withhold votes from…
Royal Gold Buys into Another Mine (RGLD, TCK)
Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ:RGLD) has agreed to purchase an interest in a Chilean gold mine owned by Teck Cominco Ltd. (NYSE:TCK) for $100 million in cash and about 4.5 million shares of Royal Gold…
Level 3 Secures More Cash (LVLT)
Level 3 Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: LVLT) is trading up marginally this morning on word that its subsidiary, Level 3 Financing, Inc., has received additional financing commitments. The additional financing is from lenders to increase…
Saudi Refinery Back on Track (COP, TOT)
Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco and ConocoPhillips Corporation (NYSE:COP) are expected to open the bidding for a Saudi-based refinery in Yanbu by the middle of 2009, according to Reuters. The bidding process…
Brean Murray Comments on Dendreon (DNDN) Following Friday’s Run-Up
Brean Murray comments on Dendreon (Nasdaq: DNDN) this morning, following Friday’s 38% run-up, which they said was related to competitor’s call with a physician in the field and word Provenge Phase 3 trial results…
Margin Squeeze & Contract Changes Up & Down Oil Patch? (TOT, BP, RDS-A, E, SLB, HAL)
Several of the big oil companies are putting the squeeze on oil field services providers to renegotiate contracts and lower costs for drilling services. BP plc (NYSE:BP), Total SA (NYSE:TOT), and Royal Dutch Shell…
Goldman Sachs Drops Cisco in Crisco (CSCO)
Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) is getting hit hard on an analyst downgrade this morning. Goldman Sachs has removed the routing and communications leader from its Conviction Buy List and has taken the official…
Well-Regarded Analyst Turns Very Negative On Banks
Maybe the market’s perception that bank stocks are out of the woods is premature. Many of the stocks in the sector have more than doubled from their early March lows. According to CNBC, “Michael…
Top Analyst Upgrades (ANF, AEP, BUCY, EXR, IFX, JOYG, LPL, TWX, UTHR, WYNN)
These are some of the top pre-market analyst upgrades and positive research calls we have seen from all Street this Monday morning: Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) Started as Buy at Brean Murray. American Electric…
Top Analyst Downgrades (AMT, AXA, NILE, CA, FDS, IBM, IBKR, ICE, NOVL, SBAC, VIA)
These are the top analyst downgrades and cautious calls we have seen from Wall Street analysts this Monday morning: American Tower (AMT) Cut to Sector Perform at RBC. AXA (AXA) Cut to Underweight at…
Greenspan Didn’t Cause the Housing Boom
By John Tamny of RealClearMarkets When economic problems reveal themselves, a great deal of finger-pointing inevitably ensues. For quite some time now economists and commentators have sought to place blame for the housing crisis,…
R&D, Which Holds Up In Fourth Quarter, May Dive In The First
According to The Wall Street Journal, large US companies held their R&D spending steady in the fourth quarter of last year even though in most cases their revenue fell. According to the paper, “Companies…
Five Company’s Earnings Could End The Rally (WMT)(TGT)(MSFT)(GOOG)(DOW)(C)
The assumption is that the earnings for the first quarter from most companies in the S&P 500 will be atrocious. That can be set side-by-side with the fact that the market now appears to…
HSBC (HBC) And The Great American Bank “Stress Test”
The rights offering made by HSBC (HBC) raised over $18 billion and the participation rate was over 96%. That should give banks which may need to raise capital in the near future some hope…
The Prospects Of The Stimulus Package And Bank Bailout Shattered, The Government Runs Low On Options
When Bob Schieffer of “Face The Nation” asked Secretary Geithner if the Administration would have to go back to Congress for more stimulus money because of rapidly rising unemployment, the bureaucrat refused to answer…