Before the bell: Dell, oil help futures riseMarvell Technology (NASDAQ: MRVL) reported late Thursday a first-quarter profit, beating analyst estimates. Revenue rose 27%. MRVL shares are up nearly 17% in premarket trading. J.P. Morgan upgraded Marvell from Neutral to Overweight and Oppenheimer from Perform to Outperform with a target price of $21.
J. Crew (NYSE: JCG) shares, on the other hand, are dropping over 18% after it said late Thursday it cut its full-year earnings outlook. Seems the high-flying retailer is not immune to weak U.S. consumer spending. Citigroup downgraded JCG from Hold to Sell and cut the target price from $42 to $34. Wachovia downgraded JCG from Outperform to Market Perform.
Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) shares are up over 1.3% this morning after Tracinda Corp., the investment arm of billionaire activist investor Kirk Kerkorian, said Friday it will waive a condition on its $170 million cash tender offer that the market price of Ford shares does not fall by 10% or more from its May 8 close of $8.20. Since the time of the offer to buy up to 20 million shares at $8.50 per share -- at the time a slight premium -- shares have fallen 18%. The offer expires June 9.
A Japanese newspaper reported that Toyota Motor (NYSE: TM) is considering whether to build its fuel-efficient hybrid Prius at a California plant it jointly operates with General Motors (NYSE: GM). Toyota said nothing had yet to be decided and denies the report. Meanwhile, with General Motors Corp. (NYSE: GM) 19,000 hourly workers signing a buyout, it may also be moving entire shifts of workers at some truck factories to nearby car plants as it restructures to adjust to a rapidly changing U.S. market brought on by $4 per gallon gasoline. The restructuring moves, however, were not confirmed and will be announced by CEO Wagoner on Tuesday at GM's annual meeting.
Novell Inc. (NASDAQ: NOVL) said late Thursday it swung to a profit of $5.87 million, or 2 cents a share. Meanwhile revenue rose to $235.67 million. Excluding special items, Novell said earnings from continuing operations for the quarter were 6 cents a share, inline with estimates.
The blogosphere has been abuzz after Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) said it is closing its 24-hour flagship 5th Avenue retail store in Manhattan for the night. Apparently, a commercial is being shot there and many wonder if its a commercial for the 3G iPhone.
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