BAE/EADS Defense Merger Under Fire
We previously warned that the BAE Systems and EADS proposed aerospace and defense merger could come under fire. That appears to be the case with the new objections. CNBC discussed this on Monday as looking…
All Work
Jon C. Ogg
Big Gain in August Consumer Credit Report
Consumer Credit posted a gain for the month of August according to a Federal Reserve report. Not only that, this $18.1 billion gain was the biggest jump in three months. Today’s report is not…
Alliant Tech Ammo Contract Is Potential Game Changer
Alliant Techsystems Inc. (NYSE: ATK) is in the somewhat troubled defense sector that faces challenges from the coming fiscal cliff that includes defense budget cuts. That might automatically create a situation where investors would just…
Apple Criticism Creates Chart Alert
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) has lost its mojo, even if it may just be temporary. Bearish comments from advisory and market pundit Doug Kass have met slightly lowered iPhone sales estimates from Piper Jaffray’s…
Week Ahead Earnings Calendar: Earnings Season Kicks Off! Banks, Alcoa, Retail
We have already seen waves of tempered guidance from many of America’s largest companies. Other companies have not said a word about their outlooks. What matters is that this coming week marks the official…
Social Gaming Demise, Huge 2013 Opportunity for Video Game Sector (ZNGA, FB, GME, ATVI, EA)
It is no secret that the traditional video game sector faced several crushing blows all at once. The rise of companies like Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA), Rovio and others came on the backside of a…
S&P Chart After Unemployment
Stocks are seeing a post-unemployment pop today now that the rate has dipped to 7.8% as the lowest since January 2009. Whether or not you trust the numbers is up to you, but one…
A Big Bank Merger in Greece?
National Bank of Greece S.A. (NYSE: NBG) is currently halted for trading, even the ADRs trading in New York. Shares were up about 4.5% in Athens before even the Greeks halted trading. The driving…
A Magic 7.8% Unemployment Rate in September
The Labor Department has released data on the September unemployment rate that is almost unbelievable. The official September unemployment rate is now magically put at 7.8%, versus a reading of 8.1% in August. Bloomberg…
Top Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades (AMAT, MT, AVY, BIIB, BRCD, COG, DG, DLTR, FDO, HIG, HPQ, HD, ILMN, LXU, RCI, SUP, WETF, ZNGA)
Jon OggThese are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations seen from Wall St. research calls this Friday. Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) maintained Buy with $16 target after layoffs and restructuring…
Dave & Buster’s Shelves Its IPO Ambition
Dave & Buster’s Entertainment, Inc. is not going to be coming public after all. The company issued a press release saying that it has chosen not to proceed with its planned initial public offering…
Zynga Warns of Losses Ahead
Zynga Inc. (NASDAQ: ZNGA) has gone from hot to cold, and then from cold to frozen. The social gaming company should have maybe stayed private. The company just issued preliminary quarterly projections that are…
Cisco Lines Up More Chambers CEO Replacements, Sort Of
Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) was a company we have had some thoughts that a CEO change might be in order. If Chairman and CEO John Chambers was accurate in the past couple of…
September FOMC Minutes Focus On Asset Purchases, Warning of the Fiscal Cliff
The FOMC Minutes from the September 12 to 13 meeting have been released. The one objection was from Lacker as you would have guessed. Most FOMC participants believed that the negative effects of QE3 could…
Berry Is Another Blast Against Apollo (APO, BERY, PSP)
The IPO market may have several winners that are up 50%, 100%, or more from their summer IPO prices, but the IPO game for Apollo Global Management, LLC (NYSE: APO) is not looking too…
Another Disappointment for LifeLock
LifeLockLifeLock, Inc. (NYSE: LOCK) is another example of where the market for initial public offerings is just not quite what some were hoping for. The identity theft and identity protection solutions provider seems to…
Sprint Rumor of MetroPCS Counterbid: A Silly Effort
MetroPCS Communications Inc. (NYSE: PCS) saw its shares recover handily and shares were halted briefly after Bloomberg reported that Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S) was likely to try to make a counterbid to acquire…
Dire Situation at H-P Threatens Dividend and Share Buybacks
Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) has turned into nothing short of a disaster. This is not a value stock even at 4-times earnings. H-P has become a value trap. As this is a value trap,…
Is Facebook Really Worth 40% More?
Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) has now been public for about four and a half months. It has been no secret that the social networking giant had a total failure of an initial public offering.…
S&P Chart Gains After Presidential Debate
Stocks are seeing a post-Obama/Romney debate rally this morning and the report on weekly jobless claims and August factory orders are having little impact. Perhaps the markets are trying to factor in a low-surprise factor…