• BorgWarner (NYSE: BWA) to give business update at 10am.
• Burger King (NYSE: BKC) to report Q1 earnings; conference call at 10am.

• Merrill Lynch to host conference call discussing Focus Media's (NASDAQ: FMCN) secondary offering at 11am.
• Yahoo (NASDAQ: YHOO) CEO Jerry Yang, Senior VP Michael Callahan & General Counsel to testify before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on how their company gave false information to Congress relating to their role in a human rights case in China which resulted in a journalist being sent to jail for 10 years.

• Symmetry Medical (NYSE: SMA) to give Q3 business update at 8am.
• Fluor (NYSE: FLR) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 9:30am.
• Hot Topic (NASDAQ: HOTT) to report October sales at 4pm, American Eagle (NASDAQ: AEO) to report Oct. sales at 5pm.

• Disney (NYSE: DIS) to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 4:30pm.
• CyberSource (NASDAQ: CYBS) to give 2007 guidance at 4:30pm.
• Gap (NYSE: GPS) and Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT) to report Oct. sales at 8am, Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) to report Oct. sales at 8:15am.

• Halozyme Therapeutics (NASDAQ: HALO) to give business update at 11am.
• Goldcorp (NYSE: GG) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 1pm.

Market highlights for next week: Yahoo CEO to testify before Congress originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 02 Nov 2007 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Before the bell 2-7-07: Cisco boosts techs -- futures are up originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 07 Feb 2007 07:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Gap's CEO gone originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 22 Jan 2007 21:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Markets closed for New Year's Day holiday
• PDUFA date for Amylin Pharmaceutical's (NASDAQ: AMLN) Byetta

• Markets closed in observance of President Ford's death

• Earnings conference calls for AngioDynamics (NASDAQ: ANGO), Landec Corporation (NASDAQ: LNDC) and the Topps Company (NASDAQ: TOPP)
• Sales conference call for American Eagle Outfitters (NASDAQ: AEOS)

• Earnings conference calls for Arrow International (NASDAQ: ARRO), Monsanto Company (NYSE: MON) and Sonic Corporation (NASDAQ: SONC)
• Sales conference calls for Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF), AnnTaylor Stores (NYSE: ANN) and bebe stores (NASDAQ: BEBE)

• Shareholder meeting for Serono S.A. (NYSE: SRA)

Market highlights for next week originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 29 Dec 2006 14:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Futures are positive in early morning trade, indicating a similar for stocks.

This morning, investors will be looking mostly at retail sales figures, which is especially important in light of the holiday shopping season, as well as some economic data.

At 8:30 this morning, weekly initial claims is due, but also October personal income and consumer spending, both expected to grow at a similar rate as last month, 0.5% and 0.1% respectively. This report could be interesting especially in light of latest comments that shifted worries somewhat from inflation to growth. Consumer spending and income can give an indication of future growth, while personal consumption expenditures is another measure of inflation. At 10, the Chicago PMI index, an index that gauges factory health in the upper Midwest is due.

According to early reports, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT), being the largest retailer in the U.S. dampened November sales as it already announced over the weekend that it expects November same store sales have slipped by 0.1%. With Wal-Mart, same-store sales in November probably rose 2.7%, below the 3.7% growth last year. Excluding Wal-Mart same-store sales probably rose 4.8% in November, compared to 3.3% last year.

Reporting sales this morning:

• Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) November same-store sales were up by 5%, while total sales rose 9% to $4.84 billion. Analysts consensus estimate of November same-store sales was 5.7%.
• Target Corp. (NYSE:TGT) is expected to post 5.7% growth in same-store sales, American Eagle (NASDAQ:AEOS) already reported a 14% same store gain, below the consensus estimate of 14.7%.
• Hot Topic Inc. (NASDAQ:HOTT) shares are up more than 10% in pre-market trading after it reported yesterday a smaller same store sales decline of 4.3% compared with 6.8% that analysts had expected.
• Pier 1 Imports, Inc. (NYSE:PIR) reported a November same store sales drop of 15.3%, a bigger decline than analysts expectation of a 13.6% same-store sales drop.

Meanwhile, in Europe, the European Commission is more optimistic about economic growth of the dozen euro nations and said they will start 2007 stronger than the commission had anticipated a month ago, strengthening the case for higher interest rates.

Before the bell 11-30-06: Retail sales and consumer spending data sending stock futures higher originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 30 Nov 2006 07:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Futures are positive in early morning trade, pointing to a higher start for stock.

Today investors will analyze the data from the retail sector, they will look at some economic indicators for an idea about employment, inflation and productivity. Strong retail sales could help the market rally, as are the falling oil prices of this morning.

This morning, some retailers have already reported same-stores sales and the market is now looking for a 3.4% rise in October for the industry, or a 4.9% increases ex-Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ:WMT). Wal-Mart said last week it is expecting a 0.5% gain in same-store sales (sales at stores that have been open at least a year). It had just reported as expected.

Already reporting sales data this morning are Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ:COST) with a 4% rise, Pier 1 Imports, Inc. (NYSE:PIR) with an over 13% decline in sales, and American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEOS) that reported an 8% jump in same-store sales last night. AEOS also raised third-quarter earnings guidance. The stock might still be under pressure as some were expecting a 10% rise in sales. Walgreen Co. (NYSE:WAG) Oct same-store sales rose 11.4% and J.C. Penney Co.'s (NYSE:JCP) sales rose 8.1%.

This morning, some economic data is also due out. First, weekly jobless claims will be released at 8:30, but investors are waiting the main job report tomorrow. Also at 8:30, third-quarter productivity and unit labor costs will be reported. Unit labor cost could give investors a better idea about inflation, so barring any surprises, this is the number to watch out for. Finally, at 10:00, September factory orders are due. The European Central Bank makes its decision on interest rate today.

Top news stories this morning:

According to the Wall Street Journal, Tribune Co. (NYSE:TRB) said that due to low bids, it is now prepared to sell parts of the business and will consider offers.

Unilever NV/PLC (NYSE:UN, UL) reported a third-quarter profit drop of 48% after one-time gains from asset sales. Sales rose 1.6%. The figures were at the top end of market forecasts. Unilever shares were up over 4% in Europe.

Reporting today:

• Caremark Rx Inc. (CMX) - 63 cents per share for Q3.
• CVS Corp. (CVS) - 32 cents per share for Q3.
• International Paper Co. (IP) - 43 cents per share for Q3.
• Whole Foods Market Inc. (WFMI) - 29 cents per share for Q4.

Other stories:

Electronic Data Systems Corp. (EDS) reported third-quarter after the bell yesterday with profit climbing sharply to 24 cents per share on a 9% increase in revenue of $5.29. However the company said contracts for future work declined. Analysts were expecting 20 cents per share.

Apple Computer, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:AAPL) new iPod Shuffle will arrives in stores this Friday, tomorrow.

Goldman Sachs upgraded Dell, Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL) to neutral from sell.

General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE) has signed a $300 million deal with a Chinese company to make jet engine parts for it.and French engine maker Snecma.

In the auto industry:

• New car registrations in Germany are expected to have risen in October with foreign automakers boosting their share of Europe's biggest car market to 36.1%.
• Advanced Auto Parts Inc. (NYSE:AAP) reported Q3 (ending Oct 7) net income dropped to $58.9 million, or 56 cents a share but it includes 3 cents a share in stock option expense. Revenue rose to $1.1 billion from $1 billion. Analysts expected earnings of 54 cents a share. The company also lowered Q4 guidance.

Following Baidu.com, Inc.'s (NASDAQ:BIDU) earning, yesterday I revisited rumors of Google, Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) or Yahoo!, Inc. (NASDAQ:YHOO) buying Baidu.

Google is releasing a new version of its mobile email today.

Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ) will have a fourth quarter earnings call on Thursday, Nov. 16, 5:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. PT here.

Wendy's (NYSE:WEN) is offering DVD movie kiosks at its restaurants.

In Pharma: Global pharmaceutical sales grew 5% in the 12 months to August in leading markets, the same rate as recorded a month earlier. Pfizer Inc's (NYSE:PFE) Lipitor cholesterol pill remained the top-selling drug with sales of $11.6 billion.

Russian oil output fell again in October partly because the country and Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) holding back the start up of full-scale production due to differences.

XM Satellite Radio (NASDAQ:XMSR) and Cingular Wireless (held by AT&T (NYSE:T)) announced a partnership to stream 25 XM music channels to Cingular handsets.

Before the bell 11-2-06: Retail sales could help stocks originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 02 Nov 2006 08:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Onyx Pharmaceuticals (ONXX) and CommVault (CVLT) top the list of today's initiations.

• Citigroup started Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:ONXX) with a Hold rating and $22 target as the broker expects shares to be range bound until clarity is given into the company's cancer indications. A bunch firms initiated recent IPO CommVault Systems this morning, including IPO managers First Boston and Goldman Sachs.
• Goldman started shares of CommVault Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CVLT) with a Buy and $21 target, and added shares to its prestigious Conviction Buy List, as they expect the company to benefit from relationships with DELL and HDS. First Boston is more lukewarm on the name, starting shares with a Neutral rating and the same target of $21. Other firms' imitating the stock this morning was Merrill Lynch with a Buy, and Thomas Weisel and RBC Capital with Outperform ratings.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Caris initiated three retail names this morning: American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEOS), Limited Brands, Inc. (NYSE:LTD) and Men's Wearhouse, Inc. (NYSE:MW). The broker favors Limited and Men's Wearhouse with Above Average ratings, thinking inventory and cost management can bring margin expansion. Caris is less excited about American Eagle, starting shares with an Average rating, believing shares are fairly valued at current levels.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).

Analyst initiations 11-1-06: CommVault initiated by four firms originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 01 Nov 2006 13:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Sears Holding (SHLD), Palm (PALM) and American Eagle (AEOS) top today's list of initiations.

• Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ:SHLD) was initiated with a Neutral and $188 target at Goldman Sachs on valuation.
• Palm, Inc. (NASDAQ:PALM) was initiated with a Neutral at Oppenheimer. The firm said competition will affect the company's near-term impact.
• American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEOS) was initiated at RBC Capital Markets with a Sector Perform and $48 on valuation.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Credit Suisse initiated WebMD Health Corp. (NASDAQ:WBMD) with an Outperform rating and $47 target. The firm said WebMD is well positioned for growth in online advertising.
• Finally, Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ:RIMM) was initiated with a Neutral at Oppenheimer. The firm said valuation assumes near-term growth rates will continue "well into the future."

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).

Analyst initiations 10-31-06: Palm, RIMM, American Eagle, initiated originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 31 Oct 2006 11:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Home Depot (HD), Amazon.com (AMZN) and General Electric (GE) top today's massive downgrade list.

• Goldman Sachs downgraded Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) to Neutral from Buy citing recent management departures and need for reinvestment for the downgrade. Target to $40 from $41.
• ThinkEquity downgraded Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) to Source of Funds from Accumulate. The firm cites disappointment in Amazon's Unbox and need for further investment in order to compete with competitors who appear to offer easier downloads. ThinkEquity also lowered their target of Amazon.com to $30 from $36.
• General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE) was downgraded by Merrill Lynch to Neutral from Buy on valuation.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• A.G. Edwards downgraded American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NASDAQ: AEOS) to Hold from Buy, citing relative valuation and expectations for decelerated earnings growth. Goldman Sachs downgraded Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B). Goldman lowered Viacom\'s long-term growth rate given the lack of visibility into Paramount\'s turnaround. The broker sees more upside in News Corp (NWS) shares. Robert W.
• Baird downgraded Oshkosh Truck Corp (NYSE: OSK) to Neutral from Outperform based on expectations that investors will react cautiously to the JLG acquisition due to increased financial risk.
• And finally, Merrill Lynch removed Adobe Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: ADBE) from their Focus 1 list.

Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).

Analyst downgrades 10-16-06: Home Depot, Amazon.com, GE, downgraded originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 16 Oct 2006 10:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.