Lennar (NYSE: LEN) has had one of the most impressive rebounds of all the home builders. The stock has been up as much as 340% since bottoming last November.

Wall Street's current consensus for Lennar's earnings this year is a loss of $2.88. In my opinion, that's too low. I think Lennar will have little trouble surprising Wall Street analysts later this year.

Lennar is a good momentum buy.

Continue reading Home builder stock #4: Lennar (LEN)

Home builder stock #4: Lennar (LEN) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 30 Aug 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

KB Home (NYSE: KBH) was hit incredibly hard by the housing bust. The stock fell from $82 to just $7 per share. We haven't seen shakeouts like that since the tech bust.

Unlike some of the other home builders, KBH probably hit bottom early. The company's loss from last year wasn't as bad as its loss from 2007, and that's a good sign.

What I also like about KB Home is that the stock's volatility has calmed down, which is often the result of heavy institutional buying.

Continue reading Home builder stock #3: KB Home (KBH)

Home builder stock #3: KB Home (KBH) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 30 Aug 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

D.R. Horton (NYSE: DHI) saw its earnings-per-share plunge from a profit of $3.90 in 2006 to a staggering loss of $8.34 last year. Fortunately, the worst is behind us. This year D.R. Horton will probably lose about $1 per share.

I don't like to see any loss, but this is a huge improvement. In fact, I think there's even a good chance D.R. Horton could start posting some earnings gains by next year.

D.R. Horton is also a buy.

Next: Home builder stock #3

Home builder stock #2: D.R. Horton (DHI) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 29 Aug 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

NVR (NYSE: NVR) is probably the healthiest of all the major home builders. In fact, the company hasn't taken a single annual loss yet. The company reported a quarterly loss for the fourth quarter of 2008, but all of the other quarters have recorded a profit.

Even though NVR is a fairly small company (market value of nearly $4 billion), the stock carries a very high price. The shares are currently over $660 a piece, which is even higher than Google.

Continue reading Home builder stock #1: NVR (NVR)

Home builder stock #1: NVR (NVR) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 29 Aug 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The past few years haven't been what you might call a happy time for shares of home building stocks. Consider that the Homebuilders Exchange-Traded Fund (NYSE: XHB) plunged from $40 per share in early 2007 to just $8 per share earlier this year.

Since March, however, things have improved. There are signs that the housing market is getting back on its feet -- or at least, declining less slowly. Existing home sales recently registered their biggest gain in more than a decade. Seasonally-adjusted single-family building permits are up 27% since bottoming in March, while single-family housing starts have increased five straight months and are up 36% since March.

Continue reading Is it safe to buy home builders?

Is it safe to buy home builders? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 29 Aug 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

On Tuesday, July 21, brewing behemoth Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX) bested Wall Street earnings estimates for the second quarter. The Seattle-based coffee giant reported earnings of $151.5 million in the period, driven by cost-cutting efforts and the downsizing of underperforming stores. Starbucks has now closed at 676 U.S. locations and almost 100 abroad.

For years, Starbucks was the darling of Wall Street. It seemed to do no wrong. The shares vaulted from less than 70 cents a piece in 1992 to $40 by 2006. But Starbucks wasn't managing its growth very well, and they opened too many stores far too quickly. As a result, shareholders paid the price.

Continue reading Coffee stock #5: Starbucks (SBUX)

Coffee stock #5: Starbucks (SBUX) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 09 Aug 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

On Tuesday, July 28, the Northern California-based Peet's Coffee & Tea (NASDAQ: PEET) reported a quarterly profit that beat Wall Street estimates.

The company cited a combination of tighter cost controls and higher sales at its specialty business as chief reasons for the better-than-expected results.

For the second quarter ended June 28, net income rose to $3.4 million, or 26 cents per share, from $3 million, or 21 cents per share, one year ago. Revenue rose 5% to $73.6 million.

Continue reading Coffee stock #4: Peet's Coffee & Tea (PEET)

Coffee stock #4: Peet's Coffee & Tea (PEET) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 09 Aug 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

As the name suggests, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NASDAQ: GMCR) is based in the pastoral state of Vermont. The company offers about 180 varieties of coffee, cocoa, and tea, which it sells to wholesale customers including supermarkets, convenience stores, resorts, and office delivery services.

Some of its biggest customers are ExxonMobil's convenience stores and McDonald's restaurants. In September, Green Mountain acquired Tully's Coffee, which has been chipping away at Starbucks' dominance in the Pacific Northwest.

Continue reading Coffee stock #3: Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR)

Coffee stock #3: Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 09 Aug 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Talk about piping hot, how about Diedrich Coffee Inc. (NASDAQ: DDRX)? The company's shares have been steaming higher for quite awhile now, and recently received an extra shot of potential buyers.

On June 26, the roaster and wholesaler of fine coffees was added to the small-cap Russell 2000 Index. Making it into the Russell 2000 means many indexed ETFs and mutual funds had to put DDRX shares in their portfolio.

Continue reading Coffee stock #2: Diedrich Coffee (DDRX)

Coffee stock #2: Diedrich Coffee (DDRX) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 08 Aug 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Caribou Coffee Company Inc. (NASDAQ: CBOU) is perhaps the least well known of the coffee stocks, but that shouldn't deter you from taking a sip from their cup. The Minneapolis-based company is the second largest company-owned gourmet coffeehouse operator in the United States, based on the number of coffeehouses.

At the end of Q1, Caribou Coffee had 515 coffeehouses, including 101 franchised locations. The company offers high-quality gourmet coffee and espresso-based beverages, as well as specialty teas, baked goods, whole bean coffee, branded merchandise, and related products.

Continue reading Coffee stock #1: Caribou Coffee Company (CBOU)

Coffee stock #1: Caribou Coffee Company (CBOU) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 08 Aug 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

For millions of Americans, and indeed for millions around the globe, there's nothing like a piping hot cup of coffee to help kick start the day. It's the beverage of choice for the hordes on Wall Street, many of whom rely on a strong cup of java to help propel them through a stressful trading day.

But Wall Street pros don't just relegate their relationship with coffee to what's inside their mugs.

Continue reading Five piping hot coffee stocks

Five piping hot coffee stocks originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 08 Aug 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Internet search firm Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) recently reported that its second-quarter net income rose to $143 million, or 10 cents per share, from $132.4 million, or 9 cents per share in the same period a year earlier. Net revenue in the period ended in June fell to $1.14 billion from $1.35 billion.

Wall Street analysts on average had been expecting Yahoo! (whose options value is increasing) to post second-quarter earnings of 8 cents per share, and the company beat that estimate by a few pennies.

But those earnings came on revenues that were just in line with revenue expectations of $1.14 billion.

Continue reading Bellwether stock #10: Yahoo! (YHOO)

Bellwether stock #10: Yahoo! (YHOO) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 02 Aug 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Another Dow component, United Technologies (NYSE: UTX), beat its bottom-line forecasts, but like most of the companies we've seen, they did so as a result of cost-cutting.

Revenues of $13.2 billion were below the consensus forecast for revenue of $13.92 billion. The diversified manufacturer also cut its revenue guidance for the year, and lowered the high-end of its profit forecast range.

Continue reading Bellwether stock #9: United Technologies (UTX)

Bellwether stock #9: United Technologies (UTX) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 02 Aug 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Although earnings for Merck (NYSE: MRK) were down in the last quarter, the stock is gaining momentum.

The pharmaceutical giant reported a 3% decrease in sales to $5.9 billion from $6.05 billion in the year-earlier period. Earnings were $1.56 billion or 74 cents per share, compared with $1.77 billion or 82 cents per share in the same quarter a year ago.

A strong dollar and lower sales for cholesterol and vaccine drugs contributed to Merck's decline this quarter. But investors were cheered by the fact that Merck reaffirmed its annual earnings forecast of $2.84 to $3.09 per share.

Continue reading Bellwether stock #8: Merck (MRK)

Bellwether stock #8: Merck (MRK) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 02 Aug 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Fast-food behemoth McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) came in with earnings that were in line with consensus Street estimates; however, revenues for the restaurant stock fell slightly short of expectations for the quarter.

The restaurant said it earned $1.09 billion, or 98 cents per share, compared with $1.19 billion, or $1.04, in the year-earlier quarter.

Revenue, including results from franchised outlets, fell to $5.65 billion, which was below the Street's estimate of $5.7 billion.

Continue reading Bellwether stock #7: McDonald's (MCD)

Bellwether stock #7: McDonald's (MCD) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 02 Aug 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

As an all-around barometer of the tech sector, as well as a chipmaker, Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) is one of the cases where revenue and earnings both managed to best expectations.

Excluding the effects of a European Commission fine, Intel earned $1 billion or 18 cents per share in the second quarter.

Although the numbers handily beat analysts' estimates of 8 cents per share, they were still 36% lower than the profit of 28 cents per share the same period last year.

Continue reading Bellwether stock #6: Intel (INTC)

Bellwether stock #6: Intel (INTC) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 02 Aug 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Ford (NYSE: F) is the most fiscally-sound U.S. automaker, and the company also managed to post better-than-expected earnings, despite a very rough economic climate for car manufacturers.

For the second quarter, Ford earned $2.3 billion, or 69 cents per share, versus a loss of $8.7 billion, or $3.89 per share, in the year-ago period. The increase was largely due to lightening its debt load, but it tells me that Ford is on the track to profitability.

Continue reading Bellwether stock #5: Ford (F)

Bellwether stock #5: Ford (F) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 01 Aug 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Excluding a 15-cent-per-share hit from restructuring charges, chemicals giant DuPont (NYSE: DD), yet another Dow component, said it would have earned 61 cents per share. That number bested consensus estimates for a 53-cent per share profit, but once again, the top-line number is cause for concern.

DuPont said its second-quarter profit dropped 61% to $417 million, or 46 cents per share, with revenue falling 24% to $7.09 billion. Analysts had expected the company to bring in $7.14 billion in revenue.

Continue reading Bellwether stock #4: DuPont (DD)

Bellwether stock #4: DuPont (DD) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 01 Aug 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The world's largest soft-drink maker, Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), also is a Dow component. Like so many of the companies in the Dow, Coca-Cola has managed to beat its bottom-line earnings number. Profits for the recent quarter came in at 92 cents per share, topping analysts' forecast of 89 cents per share.

When it came to top-line revenues, Coca-Cola was flat. Operating revenue fell 9% to $8.27 billion, missing the consensus expectation of $8.57 billion. But the reason for the drag was due to the strong dollar.

Continue reading Bellwether stock #3: Coca-Cola (KO)

Bellwether stock #3: Coca-Cola (KO) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 01 Aug 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Construction manufacturer and Dow component Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) reported earnings of 72 cents per share, well ahead of expectations of a 22-cent per share profit.

Top-line revenue came in at $7.25 billion, which is a lot of money. Unfortunately, it was nearly a billion-and-a-half dollars below expectations of $8.86 billion.

How did Caterpillar manage to achieve its earnings beat on lower-than-anticipated revenue?

Continue reading Bellwether stock #2: Caterpillar (CAT)

Bellwether stock #2: Caterpillar (CAT) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 01 Aug 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.