Thursday, September 2, 2010

Daily Markets - Earnings Scorecard: BHP Billiton

Daily Markets - Earnings Scorecard: BHP Billiton

Earnings Scorecard: BHP Billiton

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 12:05 PM PDT

BHP Billiton Ltd. (NYSE:BHP) reported better-than-expected results for fiscal 2010 with an EPADR of $4.47, much above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $3.54. The gradual recovery in market demand as well as increase in the prices of commodities attributable to the new pricing system was the prime factor behind the encouraging results.
 
Analysts are optimistic about the market improvement and the recent proposed acquisition of Canada’s Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. (NYSE:POT), the world’s … [visit site to read more]

Enterprise Inks EOG Deals

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 12:05 PM PDT

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. (NYSE:EPD), through its operating subsidiaries, entered into long-term agreements with EOG Resources Inc. (NYSE:EOG) to provide diverse midstream energy services in South Texas Eagle Ford Shale. The contracts are mainly intended to accommodate EOG's mounting crude oil and associated liquids-rich natural gas production in the region.
The company signed a 10-year firm transport agreement to build a new 140-mile, 350,000 barrel per day (BPD) capacity pipeline for … [visit site to read more]

Waste Mgmt. Adds To Recycling Biz

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 12:05 PM PDT

Integrated waste management company Waste Management Inc. (NYSE:WM) increased its presence in the organics recycling business through the acquisition of a majority equity interest in Garick LLC. The acquisition will boost the processing capacity of Waste Management's organic recycling business by one million ton.
 
Based in North America, Garick LLC is a distributor, processor and recycler of sustainable natural resource products. Garick diverts and beneficially reuses organic waste … [visit site to read more]

Tampa Electric To Lower 2011 Rates

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 11:35 AM PDT

Tampa Electric Company, a subsidiary of TECO Energy Inc. (NYSE:TE), has requested permission from Florida Public Service Commission (FPSC) to trim the fuel portion of all customers' bills beginning January 2011.
 
If approved, Tampa Electric estimates that the new rates will lower the monthly bill for a residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity to $107.51 effective January 2011. This represents a saving of roughly $5.22 for residential customers. The company also … [visit site to read more]

Starwood Debuts Aloft Hotel Europe

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 11:05 AM PDT

Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc. (NYSE:HOT) with its new lifestyle brand Aloft is finally opening its first hotel Aloft Brussels Schuman in Europe, as per the deal in 2007 with Thornsett Group Ltd, an Irish property development company.
The hotel is located at Brussels, the capital of Belgium and the administrative center of the European Union. Thus, the hotel enjoys one of the most strategic locations and will drive corporate traffic from all over the world.
Aloft Brussels Schuman is … [visit site to read more]

Will The US Stock Market Break Above August’s Highs?

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 10:59 AM PDT

I have been expecting the daily cycle to bottom on last Friday’s revision to GDP or possibly with Friday’s jobs report. Yesterday’s big rally more than likely confirmed the daily cycle low did come last Friday.

Now we have a test coming. If the market can break above the August highs it will complete a 1-2-3 reversal. That will confirm the trend change from down to up and the odds will be good that we will test the April highs.

Actually I expect we will probably test and at … [visit site to read more]

Gold Poised For A Bullish Breakout

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 10:56 AM PDT

Welcome to a brand new month of trading! In today’s feature is the monthly chart of gold.

The month of August was a good one for the gold bulls as the price of gold was able to rebound after if fell to a low of $1,157.15 per ounce after tapping a new all-time high of $,1265.05 back in June. As you can see, the price of gold sprung back after finding some support at its 19-month uptrend line (black trend line). Presently, it seems that gold is poised for a bullish breakout since it has … [visit site to read more]

Hain Celestial In Neutral Lane

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 10:05 AM PDT

A leader in natural food and personal care products categories with an extensive portfolio of well-known brands, The Hain Celestial Group Inc. (NASDAQ:HAIN) offers investors one of the strongest growth profiles in the industry. The stock is poised to surge once the economy rebounds and demand for healthier and natural food improves.
 
Acquisitions have been a key part of the company's strategy to increase its market share. Acquisitions have not only expanded the company's geographical … [visit site to read more]

Apple’s New Pie, Old Recipe

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 10:05 AM PDT

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) refreshed its iPod line, introducing new features to the iPod Touch, iPod Nano and iPod Shuffle at its event held in San Francisco yesterday.

Apple also introduced iTunes 10 with Ping (quite unexpectedly), a social networking feature that enables users to follow, comment and recommend songs and albums. Most importantly, Apple launched a new version of Apple TV.

The new Apple TV will be available next month. The iPod products will be available next week.

Here are some of … [visit site to read more]

BSDM Tissue Device Safety Compliant

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 10:05 AM PDT

Cancer treatment systems maker BSD Medical Corp (BSDM) has secured a certification which establishes that its recently approved MicroThermX Microwave Ablation System (MTX-180) for soft tissue ablation (destruction) is compliant with the "IEC 60601-1" safety standard.
 
IEC 60601-1 is an international standard for safety of medical devices and is a vital tool for demonstrating compliance with regulatory requirements globally, including the requirements for CE Marking and the U.S. Food … [visit site to read more]

Duke Realty Acquires Asset

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:40 AM PDT

Duke Realty Corp. (NYSE:DRE), a real estate investment trust (REIT), has recently completed the acquisition of Royal Palm at Southpointe, an office park spanning 465,492 square feet in South Florida, for $100.4 million or approximately $216 per square foot. The property comprised of two buildings built in 2001 and 2007.
 
The acquisition was in line with the long-term strategy of the company to own high quality Class A assets in South Florida. The property is currently 90% leased and has … [visit site to read more]

2Q Productivity Falls 1.8%

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:40 AM PDT

Non-Farm Business Productivity in the second quarter was revised down to a decline of 1.8% from the previous estimate of a 0.9% drop (seasonally adjusted annual rate). This is a very significant slowdown from the 3.9% rate in the first quarter. That, in turn, was down from a 6.0% growth rate in the fourth quarter.

In fact, the rate of productivity growth has slowed in each quarter since the second quarter of 2009, when it was running at 8.4%. The string of increases from the second quarter of … [visit site to read more]

Regency Centers Acquires Mall

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:40 AM PDT

Regency Centers Corporation (NYSE:REG), a leading operator and developer of grocery-anchored and community shopping centers across the U.S., recently purchased Glen Oak Plaza, a 62,443 square feet retail center in Chicago, for $18 million. The mall is currently 97% leased and is anchored by drugstore chain Walgreen Co. (NYSE:WAG) and specialty grocer store Trader Joe.
 
The acquisition was in line with the long-term strategy of the company to own assets in high-income in-fill markets that are … [visit site to read more]

Heinz Reports In Line (revised)

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

H.J. Heinz Co. (NYSE:HNZ) posted robust earnings of 75 cents per share for the first quarter of fiscal 2011. The result was in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate but came in ahead of the 68 cents per share recorded in the year-ago quarter. Profits were driven by strong performances in Emerging Markets and North American Consumer Products segments.

Quarterly Sales Details

During the quarter, Heinz recorded total sales growth of 1.6% to $2.48 billion from $2.44 billion in the prior-year … [visit site to read more]

Accuray Beats, Outlook Disappoints

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Accuray Inc. (NASDAQ:ARAY), a global leader in the field of radiosurgery, reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2010 (ended June 30) earnings per share of 8 cents, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 5 cent and the year-ago earnings of 2 cents.

Net income for the quarter quadrupled year-over-year to $5 million on the back of higher product sales and the company’s cost-cutting initiatives. For fiscal 2010, net income surged to $2.8 million from $0.6 million a year-ago with earnings per share of 5 … [visit site to read more]

Mixed Signals At Accenture

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Technology, outsourcing and consulting major Accenture Inc. (NYSE:ACN), recently secured a contract extension worth $160.0 million for 7 years from Educational Testing Service (ETS), which is an organization involved in education assessment and psychometric research. This contract extension empowers Accenture to manage the supply chain process of the company.

As per the terms of the agreement, Accenture will continue to manage all aspects of the supply chain, including printing, publishing, … [visit site to read more]

BMC Software Wins Telecom Deal

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Leading large enterprise software company BMC Software Inc. (NYSE:BMC) recently announced that the Swiss utility provider Wasserwerke Zug (”WWZ”) will deploy its Remedy Service Desk solutions.

Wasserwerke Zug will integrate BMC Software’s solution into its telecom business to provide improved customer support to its growing customer base in central Switzerland.

Strong customer service is a prerequisite in the intensely competitive Swiss telecom market. Wasserwerke’s customer service has been … [visit site to read more]

Construction Spending Falls In July

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Total Construction Spending fell in July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $805.2 billion, down 1.0% from June, and down 11.7% from a year ago. The decline was greater than the 0.7% decline that was expected. In addition, June was revised down to be 0.8% below May rather than the 0.1% increase originally reported.

The downward revision to June's figures means that when we get the final look at the second quarter GDP numbers, it will show even less growth than the 1.6% currently … [visit site to read more]

Dominion Issues $250M Debt

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Energy utility Dominion Resources Inc. (NYSE:D) announced that it will sell $250 million in debentures. The debentures will mature on Sep 1, 2015, and will have an interest rate of 2.25%.

Dominion Resources offered the debentures at 99.854% of face value and will yield 2.281% when held till maturity. The company intends to use the net proceeds from the issue for general corporate purposes. Dominion will also utilize the proceed to fund its projected fourth-quarter capital requirement, and redeem … [visit site to read more]

Manulife’s C$10B Offering

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Manulife Financial Corporation (NYSE:MFC) has filed for a securities offering of $9.4 billion (C$10 billion) with the Canadian and U.S. regulators. In the latest instance, securities worth $3.8 billion (C$4 billion) were filed with the U.S. regulators.

Previous Debt Offering

Recently, Manulife Financial completed its offering of $871 million (C$900 million) in medium-term notes. The notes will bear an interest of 4.079% maturing on Aug 20, 2015. The notes were issued under its medium-term note … [visit site to read more]

Comcast Expands 4G Networks

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Based on the mammoth success of High-Speed 2go 4G offering introduced in May 2010, Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) has now launched 4G high-speed 2go wireless data service in the Boston area.
 
High-Speed 2go is a mobile Internet solution that provides the fastest available wireless Internet speeds in the nation via wireless data cards and comes in three different data cards and service plans; 1) Comcast High-Speed 2go Metro (4G), 2) Comcast High-Speed 2go Nationwide (3G) and 3) High-Speed 2go … [visit site to read more]

FDIC List Slows, More Banks Go Bust

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

According to a government report released on Tuesday, the number of banks on the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's (FDIC) list of problem institutions in the second quarter grew to 829 from 775 in the previous quarter and 416 in the year-ago quarter. This is the highest since the savings and loan crisis in the early 1990s.

Banks that feature on the problem list are most likely to fail, though some may still scrape through. As of now, only about 13% of banks on the FDIC’s problem list … [visit site to read more]

Brown-Forman Misses Expectations

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Brown-Forman Corp. (BF.B), a leading global producer and distributor of premium alcoholic beverages, reported fiscal 2011 first-quarter earnings that declined 8.2% to $111.4 million or 76 cents per share, from $121.4 million or 81 cents in the prior-year quarter. The quarterly result also came in behind the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 84 cents per share.

Quarterly Details

Brown-Forman's net sales during the quarter rose 0.9% to $744.9 million, but missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of … [visit site to read more]

Aegon’s Dutch Payment

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

As agreed with the European Commission, Aegon NV (AEG) yesterday repaid €563 million — part of the €3 billion it received in support during the credit crisis in 2008 — to the Dutch government. Aegon has now paid back half of the loan money, the first repayment of €1 billion having been made in November 2009.

The total payment of €563 million includes a repayment of €500 million to repurchase 125 million convertible core capital securities at 10.3% premium or €52 million, besides … [visit site to read more]

Valspar Downgraded

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

We are downgrading Valspar Corporation (VAL) to Neutral from our previous Outperform recommendation. Valspar's net income of 70 cents in the third quarter of fiscal 2010 missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny. Higher raw material costs and pricing pressures hurt profits in the Paint segment. The Coatings business has experienced some momentum recently with improving sales of Industrial and packaging products outside the US.
 
However, we believe that the company would post modest … [visit site to read more]

Monsanto Trims Guidance

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Monsanto Company (MON) reduced the higher-end of its EPS guidance for fiscal 2010 to $2.40-$2.45 from $2.40-$2.60 based on the restructuring expense that the company is expected to incur in relation to its Roundup business.
 
Earlier this year, Monsanto reduced the prices of Roundup herbicides to make them a more economical option for the farmers. The company now plans to begin some restructuring program for its Roundup brand to enhance its multiple uses of weed control.
 
The … [visit site to read more]

Jacobs Wins Engineering Contract

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. (JEC) has won a contract from Valley Metro Rail, Inc. (METRO) for the Central Mesa Light Rail extension project worth $12.5 million. For the initial two years, Jacobs will be assisting with its engineering services, which will be followed by the construction of the project. The entire project is expected to be completed by 2016.
 
Jacobs received a total of 12 contracts in the month of August 2010. This continuous inflow of contracts will definitely pull … [visit site to read more]

AWS Acquisition Upgrades AAR

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

We have upgraded our recommendation on AAR Corp. (AIR) from Underperform to Neutral based on the Aviation Worldwide Services (AWS) acquisition, which is expected to be accretive to earnings and margins in fiscal 2011 and beyond.
 
The new acquisition has already started laying eggs with the increase in the total aircraft backlog, which increased to approximately $597,700 compared with $492,500 at the end of the previous year.
 
Aviation Worldwide Services (AWS), a leading provider of … [visit site to read more]

Forest Labs Presents Mixed Data

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Recently, Forest Laboratories Inc. (NYSE:FRX) announced preliminary top-line data from an 8-week mid-stage study (n=233) of its candidate cariprazine (RGH-188). The study, designed to be exploratory, evaluated the efficacy, safety and tolerability of cariprazine versus placebo in patients suffering from bipolar depression. All 233 patients were enrolled from US clinical sites and were between 18 and 65 years old.

Cariprazine is being developed in collaboration with Gedeon Richter Plc. The … [visit site to read more]

Vicor Tech Q2 Disappoints

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

Second Quarter Earnings

Vicor Technologies, Inc. (VCRT) reported earnings for the second quarter ending June 30, 2010 on August 16, 2010. Results were disappointing with revenue and system placements both well below our forecast.

Vicor generated $8k in total revenue compared to our $202k forecast. The company did not break out instrument and testing revenue. However, based on the 75% gross margin, we suspect that all of the quarterly revenue was generated from testing with no system … [visit site to read more]

Bull Of The Day: DST Systems, Inc. (DST)

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:06 AM PDT

DST Systems Inc. (NYSE:DST) reported good second quarter results, with earnings per share (EPS) exceeding our expectations. The company has supplemented internal growth with strategic acquisitions.
We remain encouraged with the quarter’s revenue outperformance and solid cost structure. We believe that DST Systems leadership and scale in Financial Services will attract new customers based on the increasing popularity of mutual funds.
Moreover, the company is winning new customers at regular … [visit site to read more]

Bear Of The Day: PPL Corporation (PPL)

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

PPL Corporation’s (NYSE:PPL) earnings of $0.62 per share in the second quarter of 2010 came in below the Zacks Consensus Estimate, impacted by weak performances at the Pennsylvania Delivery and International Delivery businesses.
Going forward, we are apprehensive about the company given management’s lowered 2010 earnings guidance, due to the recent dilution in the company’s shares outstanding. Additionally, expectations for continued pressure on PPL’s hedges and projections for higher coal … [visit site to read more]

Momentum Stock: JinkoSolar Holding Co. Ltd.

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

JinkoSolar Holding Co. Ltd. (JKS) is off to a hot start as a publicly traded company, with its share price up more than 200% since its May IPO. With a 41% Q2 earnings surprise driving shares, this Zacks #1 rank stock has plenty of upward momentum.
Company Description
JinkoSolar Co. Ltd. operates as a solar energy company that specializes in manufacturing mono-crystaline and multi-crystalline silicon wafers. The company was founded in 2006, is based out of China and has a market cap of $548 … [visit site to read more]

Growth & Income Stock: The Gorman-Rupp Company

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

The Gorman-Rupp Company (GRC) is expected to grow sales by an average of 19.3% over the next 5 years, well ahead of the industry average of 16.5%.
The Gorman-Rupp Company is one of the leading manufacturer of pumps.
It produces all kinds of pumps and pump related equipment such as pump and motor controls for use in water, wastewater, construction, industrial, petroleum, original equipment, agriculture, HVAC, heating, and the military.
The company has customers in 100 countries. In 2009, … [visit site to read more]

Aggressive Growth Stock: Albany International Corp

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

Albany International Corp (NYSE:AIN) analysts are feeling bullish after the latest earnings report. Estimates are up and the stock is a great entry point.
Company Description
Albany International is a textile and materials processing company. The company produces custom-designed fabrics and belts for the making paper and paperboard. Other areas include aerospace composites, building products, synthetics for outerwear markets and much more.
Beat the Street
On Aug 4 Albany International reported … [visit site to read more]

Cisco Planning To Acquire Skype

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

Networking gear maker Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) has offered $5 billion for the Internet telephony company Skype, TechCrunch, a leading Silicon Valley blog, reported recently. The deal, if successful, would derail a planned initial public offering from Skype and redraw the battle lines in the lucrative market of video communications. Skype is reportedly looking for a valuation of $5 billion.

Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) was also rumored to have considered making a bid for Skype, but antitrust concerns … [visit site to read more]

Mixed Results At Teen Retailers

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

In a season of steep discounting to lure shoppers, two teen retailers, Hot Topic Inc. (NASDAQ:HOTT) and Zumiez Inc. (NASDAQ:ZUMZ), posted improved same-store sales for the month of August 2010, helped by back-to-school buying and state sales-tax holidays. Tax free shopping days boosted mid-month sales though the lift was short-lived.
 
Zumiez
 
Zumiez remained the bright spot with positive same-store sales of 9.1% for August, handily surpassing a negative 12.1% in the same period last year. The … [visit site to read more]

ALU Acquires OpenPlug

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

OpenPlug, a software developer specializing in tools for mobile applications, has been acquired by Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE:ALU). The acquisition strengthens Alcatel-Lucent's portfolio of software development tools, increases the usage of OpenPlug's mobile applications on different operating systems and boosts its availability in additional service provider stores. The companies did not disclose the term of the transaction.
 
With this acquisition, Alcatel-Lucent will build a podium for … [visit site to read more]

Shutterfly Stays At Neutral

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

We maintain our Neutral recommendation on California-based Shutterfly Inc. (NASDAQ:SFLY), a leading provider of social expression and personal publishing services through the Internet.
 
Second Quarter Flashback
 
Shutterfly reported adjusted second quarter 2010 loss of 12 cents per share compared with the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 30 cents loss. Results reflected higher-than-expected demand for Photo Books. Contribution from the cards and stationery collection was also solid. … [visit site to read more]

BP Offloads Malaysian Stakes

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

BP plc (NYSE:BP) is well on track to complete its $30 billion assets sale by end-2011 in order to meet the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) spill costs. Yesterday, the company said that it will sell the Malaysian petrochemical assets for $363 million. The assets include 15% stake in Ethylene Malaysia and 60% interest in Polyethylene Malaysia.
 
The distressed European oil major is presently seeking cash. It has already sold oil and gas fields in North America and Egypt to Apache Corp. (NYSE:APA) for $7 … [visit site to read more]

Stock Market News Briefs: Citigroup, Deutsche Bank AG, Hewlett-Packard Company, Moody’s, Open Joint Stock Company Vimpel-Communications”", Piper Jaffray Companies, PPL, Red Hat, Rio Tinto Plc, Texas Instruments Incorporated, Allscripts Healthcare Solutions Inc, Canadian Solar

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

 Canadian Solar (NASDAQ:CSIQ) reported worse-than-expected second-quarter earnings of 7 cents a share, below estimates of 15 cents, on better-than-estimated revenues of $328.7 million, versus estimates of $306 million

 VimpelCom (NYSE:VIP) posted worse-than-anticipated second quarter results of 28 cents, below estimates of 40 cents, on inline revenues of $2.64 billion

 JMP upgraded Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ) to “outperform” from “market perform”

 Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) reinstated … [visit site to read more]

Unilife TB Syringe Gets FDA OK

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

Medical devices company Unilife Corporation (UNIS) recently obtained 510 (k) clearance from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for its Unitract Tuberculin (TB) Syringe, a variant of the Unitract 1mL Insulin Syringe for which the company received FDA clearance earlier in 2010. 
 
While insulin syringes are mainly used by diabetic patients, TB syringes, on the other hand, are used to deliver a wide range of therapeutic drugs as well as vaccines within acute-care hospitals … [visit site to read more]

Citrix Penetrates Indian Market

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

Indian market is abuzz with the immense potential and scope of information technology (IT). The new cloud computing platform, a offering of IT with huge prospects, is gaining enormous popularity in India as it makes using software and application programs considerably easy and hassle free, given that these programs are available on Internet; thereby, the cost of owning them gets minimal.
 
In order to ensure full utilization of this emerging cloud computing market, Citrix Systems Inc. … [visit site to read more]

Waddell & Reed Upgraded By S&P

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

On Wednesday, Waddell & Reed Financial Inc.'s (NYSE:WDR) long-term counterparty credit rating was raised by the rating agency Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services to 'BBB+' from 'BBB'. The outlook for the company remains 'Stable'.
 
The upgrade is primarily based on the Waddell & Reed's improved financial position and  strong second quarter results. The company's financial strength is measured by its short interest coverage, ample liquidity and modest debt … [visit site to read more]

Omnicare Acquires CCRx

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

Leading pharmaceutical care provider Omnicare Inc (NYSE:OCR) has reportedly acquired Pennsylvania-based, privately-held institutional pharmacy provider Continuing Care Rx (CCRx) for an undisclosed price. This represents one of the major acquisitions by the omnipresent Kentucky-based company over the past few years.
 
CCRx (founded in 1996) is a leading provider of pharmacy services to the long-term care market with revenues of roughly $170 million for the 12 months ended June 30, 2010. The … [visit site to read more]

Initial And Total Jobless Claims Fall

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance fell to 472,000, a drop of 6,000 from last week. That is good news, but only in terms of the direction. After several weeks in a row of new claims shooting higher, the upward momentum has been stalled with two straight weeks of declines, but initial claims remain far too high.

The four-week moving average fell by 2,500 to 485,500. That is just below the highest level for the moving average since last November. After falling sharply in the second half … [visit site to read more]

AT&T Divests Japanese Operations

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) completed the divestiture of its domestic Japanese outsourcing services operations for ¥9.2 billion (US$109 million using exchange rate on August 31) to Internet Initiative Japan Inc. (NASDAQ:IIJI), according to plans announced in June 2010. The transaction involved the transfer of 1,600 domestic Japanese business customers and 245 employees.
 
The sale excludes AT&T's infrastructure in Japan, inclusive of four global network service nodes, remote access … [visit site to read more]

Skechers-Olivet In Licensing Deal

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

Skechers USA Inc. (NYSE:SKX), the designer, marketer and distributor of footwear, recently entered into a licensing deal with the luggage maker, Olivet International, whereby the latter will design, produce and distribute suitcases, wheeled totes, duffle bags and garment bags bearing the Skechers logo.
 
The new luggage collection, which is slated to be launched in the fall of 2011 in the U.S. and Canada, marks an addition of yet another product to Skechers' brand portfolio.
 
In … [visit site to read more]

Norfolk Initiated At Neutral

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

We are initiating coverage on Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC) with a Neutral recommendation. Currently, the stock has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
 
In the reviving economy, we believe Norfolk is favorably positioned for the near term. Volume gains are also likely across most of the business segments as the economy continues to gain traction. The company is hiring back the employees it had furloughed during the recession and remains committed to shareholders in the form of higher dividend and … [visit site to read more]

Neutral On Overseas Shipholding

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

We initiate coverage on Overseas Shipholding Group Inc. (NYSE:OSG) with a Neutral recommendation, which means the stock will perform mostly in line with the broader market. The company reported mixed financial results for the second quarter 2010. Revenue beats the Zacks Consensus Estimate but earnings per share significantly fell below it.
 
As a market leader in global energy transportation services segment, Overseas Shipholding maintains a state-of-the-art fleet of vessels with major … [visit site to read more]

NTT Pursuing Global Ambitions

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 09:05 AM PDT

Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp. (NYSE:NTT), the largest integrated telecom operator in Japan, has taken a major strategic move to boost its cloud computing and integrated communications services businesses throughout the world. NTT's strategy is to maintain its leadership position in the domestic telecom market and siege selected international opportunities to drive long-term growth. However, in last one year, the company is desperately trying to establish its NTT Communications division … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: Eurozone Support For A Weaker Yen Not Discussed

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 08:43 AM PDT

This came over on the newswires attributed to a "Eurozone Official" who is not part of the policy board.
The source  said "Do not pee into the wind only with it".   I didn't say it. The Eurozone source said it.
What I say, is it is funny and breaks up a difficult trading day, but nothing to base a trade on  ; … [visit site to read more]

Australian Dollar: Caution

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 08:18 AM PDT

Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

Canadian Dollar: Bullish Bias Above 1035

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 08:18 AM PDT

Update on supports and resistances. … [visit site to read more]

Price Levels To Watch In Google Shares

Posted: 02 Sep 2010 08:15 AM PDT

It’s often helpful to pull the timeframe back to see what the weekly and sometimes monthly chart are showing about popular or volatile stocks.

That’s especially the case right now in Google (NASDAQ:GOOG). Have you seen its monthly chart lately?

Let’s take a quick look:

A quick glance shows us a double chart confluence at the $440 price level - that’s your reference level going forward.

The 50 week EMA rests at $443.35 - but that’s not as important perhaps as the 61.8% Fibonacci … [visit site to read more]
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