Analyst Upgrades

• Interpublic Group (IPG) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
• Radware (RDWR) to outperform from perform at Oppenheimer.
• Fluor (FLR) and Waddell & Reed (WDR) to buy from hold, as well as AllianceBernstein (AB) to hold from sell, at Citigroup.
• MetroCorp (MCBI) and American Capital (AGNC) to outperform from market perform at Keefe Bruyette.
• International Flavors (IFF) to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.
• BioCryst (BCRX) and Southern Company (SO) to buy from neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• Bunge (BG) to overweight from neutral at HSBC.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: AB, BG, CMG, CSCO, DF, EXPE, JLL, MU, NLSN, S, SO ...

Analyst Calls: AB, BG, CMG, CSCO, DF, EXPE, JLL, MU, NLSN, S, SO ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 11 Feb 2011 11:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• BP (BP) to buy from hold at RBS.
• Symantec (SYMC) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
• GenOn Energy (GEN) and Nationwide Health Properties (NHP) to buy from hold at Citigroup.
• Logitech (LOGI) and Patriot Coal (PCX) to neutral from sell, as well as ARM Holdings (ARMH) to buy from neutral, at Goldman.
• Silvercorp Metals (SVM) to outperform from market perform at BMO Capital.
• Cinemark (CNK) to equal weight from underweight at Morgan Stanley.
• Smith & Nephew (SNN) to market perform from underperform at Bernstein.
• Molex (MOLX) to overweight from underweight at JPMorgan.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: AB, ARMH, BP, DANG, JNS, LOGI, PCX, SYMC, YHOO, YOKU ...

Analyst Calls: AB, ARMH, BP, DANG, JNS, LOGI, PCX, SYMC, YHOO, YOKU ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 18 Jan 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"Justified or not, in recent years few industries have managed to scare away investors like financial firms have; nevertheless, we believe investors can cash in on AllianceBernstein (AB), a high-yielding asset management firm uniquely lucrative business structure," says Jonas Elmerraji.

The editor of Rhino Stock Report explains, "While investors continue to treat financial stocks with equal reluctance, some financial firms are better on better footing than others.

"One example is the asset managers. Asset management firms, the companies that professionally manage mutual funds, private accounts, and the like, took their knocks in the latest financial crisis.

Continue reading AllianceBernstein (AB): High-Yielding 'Asset' Play

AllianceBernstein (AB): High-Yielding 'Asset' Play originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The editor of The Dividend Detective explains, "However, we continue to advise caution. Invest only money that you can commit for at least six-months to give you time to ride out unexpected market dips. Meanwhile, we have added four income issues to our various portfolios.

Continue reading Dividend Detective's Favorite Income Ideas

Dividend Detective's Favorite Income Ideas originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 16 Feb 2010 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"A few stocks have really grabbed my attention; they have core assets that generate lots of cash, and serve their investors a good cut of the profits with regular streams of big dividends," says income specialist Neil George.

In his Stocks That Pay You, the advisor reviews three income issues that he calls, "fabulous finds."

He explains, "I'll start with a company, Compass Diversified Holdings (CODI), that as its name implies -- holds stuff. Specifically, it holds ownership in small set of operating companies in varied but basically solid businesses.

Continue reading Income trio: Neil George's 'fabulous finds'

Income trio: Neil George's 'fabulous finds' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 30 Nov 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Citigroup upgraded Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) to Buy from Hold on expectations the company's top-line growth rate could be more sustainable than expected and its operating margins could recover given due to less retail discounting. The firm raised its price target on shares to $97 from $65.
  
• UBS upgraded King Pharmaceuticals (NYSE: KG) to Buy from Sell based on expectations that Sandoz will settle patent litigation regarding Skelaxin after last weeks settlement of Clarinex with Schering-Plough (SGP).
  
• Jefferies upgraded Reliance Steel (NYSE: RS) to Buy from Hold as it believes steel prices and demand are close to near-term bottoms. The firm raised its target on the stock to $44 from $25.
• Palm (NASDAQ: PALM) was raised to Buy from Neutral at Banc of America/Merrill.
  
• Nestle (OTC: NSRGY) was lifted to Neutral from Underweight at JP Morgan.
• Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) was upgraded at Wachovia to Outperform from Market Perform.

Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AMZN, RS, JNJ, NFLX ...

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AMZN, RS, JNJ, NFLX ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 20 Apr 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Just when you thought that the trend of sacrificing financial CEOs due to poor earnings was over, one of the most widely known people on Wall Street got kicked to the curb. Lew Sanders, CEO of huge money management firm Alliance Bernstein (NYSE: AB) is gone, and a guy who was about to be without a job replaced him.

According to the company's press release, "Alliance Bernstein Holding L.P. (NYSE: AB) today announced that its Board of Directors has named Peter S. Kraus Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Kraus, 56, succeeds Lewis A. Sanders, 62, who is retiring from the firm after 40 years of service."

That is not the whole story. The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) writes that Kraus was not likely to keep his job at Merrill Lynch as it was merged into Bank of America (NYSE: BAC). "Mr. Kraus drew some resentment for terms in his contract that triggered a payment of as much as $25 million with the takeover."

AB's assets have been falling. At the end of September, they were $590 billion. By the end of October, the number had dropped to $482 billion. The fact of the matter is that almost every investment management firm has been losing assets due to the falling markets and redemptions. That does not appear to be enough of an excuse to keep Sanders in place after 40 years at the company.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.

Alliance Berstein: Another huge financial firm pushes out CEO originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 20 Dec 2008 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades:

• Keefe Bruyette upgraded shares of AllianceBernstein (NYSE: AB) to Outperform from Market Perform as they find AB's risk/reward attractive given its attractive long-term business model. Wachovia upgraded Watson Pharma (NYSE: WPI) and Teva Pharma (NASDAQ: TEVA) to Outperform from Market Perform citing valuations and positive drivers for generics that include patent expirations and market share expansion.
• UBS raised Lloyds TSB Group (NYSE: LYG) to Neutral from Sell on expected pricing power following the HBOS (OTC: HBOOY) acquisition.
• Otter Tail (NASDAQ: OTTR) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird.
• GFI Group (NASDAQ: GFIG) was upgraded at Citigroup to Hold from Sell.
• Merrill upgraded Logitech (NASDAQ: LOGI) to Neutral from Underperform.

• JP Morgan downgraded shares of Lloyds TSB Group to Underweight from Neutral on capital concerns and believes the HBOS acquisition is not in the best interest of shareholders.
• Stephens downgraded Universal Truckload (NASDAQ: UACL) to Equal Weight from Overweight on valuation and concerns about a slowdown in the flatbed sector. The firm's target remains $28.

Continue reading Analyst calls: AB, WPI, TEVA, LYG, UACL, NTAP, SIMO, BRCM ...

Analyst calls: AB, WPI, TEVA, LYG, UACL, NTAP, SIMO, BRCM ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 22 Sep 2008 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Someone lost a lost of money as the prices of Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) hit multiyear lows on news that several analysts believed the federal government would have to take the two companies over. In all likelihood, the move would wipe out common shareholder.

Famous stock-picker Bill Miller of Legg Mason (NYSE: LM) may have been one of the casualties. According to work done by Reuters, Legg Mason, Capital Group, AllianceBerstein (NYSE: AB) and Fidelity lost a total of $4 billion on the mortgage company stocks over the course of last week's trading.

While all fund companies may have been hit equally, which no one can know exactly at this point, Miller's reputation as a leading fund manager is being devastated. After years as one of the most successful portfolio managers in the country, his fund has underperformed the S&P for two years.

It looks like Miller is going for a third.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Four fund companies may have lost $4 billion in Freddie Mac (FRE) and Fannie Mae (FNM) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 12 Jul 2008 06:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Microsoft Won Facebook Bid ... Suckers
• Merrill Leaves Lingering Fears

Cramer on BloggingStocks: BofA's miss hurts the most originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 25 Oct 2007 09:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Genesis Energy (AMEX: GEL) was initiated with a Buy rating and $40 target at Stanford, as the firm believes the company's affiliation with Denbury Resources and pending acquisition of petroleum products, terminals, and transportation businesses from the Davison family will drive rapid growth.

• EnerNoc Inc (NASDAQ: ENOC) was initiated with a Hold rating and $42 target at Jefferies, due to valuation. EnerNoc was also initiated at Morgan Stanley with an Equal Weight rating and $40 target.

• Stifel expects Comcast (OTC: CMCSA) to benefit from higher penetration levels of DVR and HDTV set-top boxes over the next several years and initiated shares with a Buy rating and $34 target.

• Select asset managers were initiated at Credit Suisse:

• AllianceBernstein (NYSE: AB), Affiliated Managers (NYSE: AMG), Fortress Investment (NYSE: FIG), Invesco (NYSE: IVZ), Franklin Resources (NYSE: BEN) and T Rowe Price (NASDAQ: TROW) were initiated with Outperform ratings.

• Blackrock (NYSE: BLK), Calamos Asset Mgmt (NADAQ: CLMS), Eaton Vance Corp (NYSE: EV), Federated Investors (NYSE: FII), Janus Capital (NYSE: JNS), Legg Mason Inc (NYSE: LM) and Waddell & Reed (NYSE: WDR) were initiated with Neutral ratings.

• Deutsche Bank initiated Ryland Group (NYSE: RYL) with a Buy rating and $52 target, as well as Pulte Homes (NYSE: PHM) and Meritage Homes Corp (NYSE: MTH) with Hold ratings and a $23 target and $29 target, respectively.

Analyst initiations 6-27-07: BEN, BLK, CMCSA, PHM and RYL originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 27 Jun 2007 10:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Goldman Sachs added Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ:SBUX) and Federated Investors (NYSE:FLL) to its conviction buy list, while removing McDonald's Corp. (NYSE:MCD) and Alliance Bernstein (NYSE:AB).
• Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) was upgraded to buy from hold at Citigroup.
• Bear Stearns upgraded beer companies Anheuser-Busch Co. (NYSE:BUD) and Molson Coors Brewing (NYSE:TAP) from Peer Perform to Outperform and from Underperform to Peer Perform
• Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE:HPQ) was upgraded by Matrix Research from Hold to Buy.
• On the other hand, Matrix Research downgraded Altria Group Inc. (NYSE:MO) from Strong Buy to Buy.

Before the bell 3-16-07: YHOO, SBUX, MCD, KO ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 16 Mar 2007 08:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.