Looking for a former billion-dollar company that has fallen off most investors' radar? Have a look at Verint Systems Inc. (OTC: VRNT). As part of the Comverse Technology, Inc. (OTC: CMVT) options backdating scandal, the company was delisted from the NASDAQ because of filing issues. Comverse was delisted as well, and its CEO fled to Africa after he was wanted by U.S. authorities. Verint is a leading provider of analytic software-based solutions for security and workforce-enterprise optimization. Their solution generates actionable intelligence through the collection, retention and analysis of various communication networks.

The company today received an upgrade from JP Morgan. The stock has gotten crushed over the last 2 years falling from a high of over $40 to today's price in the $17.40 range. Business is doing well, and as that they are in the security space, that should help valuation. There has been speculation that either the parent Comverse will get bought or they will sell off their divisions, Verint among them. This sale would fetch a hefty premium, and with a market cap in the $500 million dollar range, this could get juicy for investors. Another potential catalyst, would be for them to get current in their filing and potentially regain the NASDAQ listing, which would get them back on institutional investors radar screen.

If you are looking for an interesting turnaround story for '08, check out Verint.

Aaron Katsman is the lead Portfolio Manager and Managing Director of America Israel Investment Associates, LLC. and Senior Editor of IsraelNewsletter.com. Disclosure: Writer owns stock and is long both VRNT.pk and CMVT.pk. He has no position in any other stock mentioned as of 12/5/07.

Verint Systems: Turnaround story for '08 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 05 Dec 2007 17:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Citibank's take on Annapolis Peace Conference

Citibank's take on Annapolis Peace Conference originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 27 Nov 2007 09:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Banc of America resumed coverage of Comcast (NADAQ: CMCSA) and Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) with Buy ratings and $32 and $43 targets, respectively.

• Stanford started CNet (NASDAQ: CNET) with a Buy rating and $10 target, as the company is well positioned to benefit from its developing web properties.

• Bear Stearns expects shares of Covidien (NYSE: COV) to move up, starting shares with an Outperform rating, as the management transforms the company from a cash flow focused conglomerate division into a faster-growing, nimble competitor.

• Merriman said I.D. Systems (NASDAQ: IDSY) is uniquely positioned in the wireless asset tracking market given its focus on industrial machinery and material handling equipment, starting shares with a Buy rating...

• Comverse (OTC: CMVT) was initiated with a Neutral rating at Merriman.

• Lehman started Getty Images (NYSE: GYI) with a Equal Weight rating and ShoreTel (NASDAQ: SHOR) with an Overweight rating.

• Jefferies initiated Harmonic (NYSE: HLIT) with a Buy rating.

Analyst initiations: CMCSA, CMVT, CNET and TWC originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 16 Aug 2007 11:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Baird upgraded J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc (NASDAQ: JBHT) to Outperform from Market Perform based on strong trends in Intermodel, valuation, and a $500M share buyback.

• Pacific Growth upgraded shares of Nvidia Corp (NASDAQ: NVDA) to Buy from Neutral citing valuation.

• Buckingham upgraded International Flavors (NYSE: IFF) to Accumulate from Neutral following the company's Q1 report.

• RealNetworks Inc (NASDAQ: RNWK) was raised to Buy from Accumulate at ThinkEquity after its Q1 report.

• Susquehanna upgraded Marchex Inc (NASDAQ: MCHX) to Positive from Neutral. Susquehanna has increased confidence that Marchex will be able to increase monetization via Yahoo!'s (YHOO) Panama upgrade, improving 2008 TAC rates and increased value of owned sites following a major upgrade for 2H07.
  

• Jefferies raised Symantec Corp (NASDAQ: SYMC) shares to Buy from Hold with a $21 target.

• JP Morgan upgraded Comverse Technology Inc (NASDAQ: CMVT).

• Raytheon Co (NYSE: RTN) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Lehman Brothers.

• SPX Corp (NYSE: SPW) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at Needham.

• Wachovia upgraded IntercontinentalExchange, Inc (NYSE: ICE) to Outperform from Market Perform.

Analyst upgrades 5-03-07: CMVT, IFF, JBHT, RTN and SYMC originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 03 May 2007 11:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• UBS cut Palm, Inc (NASDAQ: PALM) to Reduce from Neutral citing valuation. Bank of America downgraded shares to Neutral from Buy with an $18 target and considers the risk/reward less favorable at these levels.

• Bank of America also downgraded Reliant Energy (NYSE: RRI) to Sell from Neutral on valuation.

• Hillard Lyons cut Take-Two Interactive Software (NASDAQ: TTWO) to Neutral from Outperform.

• CIBC downgraded Jabil Circuit, Inc (NYSE: JBL) to Sector Performer from Outperformer following the company's disappointing outlook. Bear Stearns cut Jabil to Peer Perform from Outperform. BMO cut the company to Market Perform from Outperform.

• Friedman, Billings, Ramsey downgraded shares of FormFactor, Inc (NASDAQ: FORM) to Market Perform from Outperform to reflect increased risks in the logic market and long-term growth concerns.

• Matrix USA downgraded Knight Transportation (NYSE: KNX) to Hold from Buy.

• American Technology downgraded shares of Comverse Technology, Inc (NASDAQ: CMVT) to Neutral from Buy as the firm believes a retreat to the $17 range is likely given the company's disappointing margin trends.

• CL King cut Claire's Stores, Inc (NYSE: CLE) to Neutral from Strong Buy following the buyout offer.

• Goldman downgraded Atmos Energy Corp (NYSE: ATO) to Sell from Neutral and Liz Claiborne, Inc (NYSE: LIZ) to Neutral from Buy.

Analyst downgrades 3-23-07: Palm & Take-Two Interactive downgraded today originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• The Coca-Cola Co (NYSE: KO) was upgraded to Buy from Hold with a $57 target at Deutsche Bank based on valuation.

• Merck & Co (NYSE: MRK) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Citigroup to reflect the firm's bullish outlook for the company's diabetes drug, Januvia. Citigroup believes the drug will help drive above-consensus earnings following its recent diabetes survey.

• National Semiconductor (NYSE: NSM) was upgraded to Strong Buy from Market Perform at Raymond James.

• Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Comverse Technology (NASDAQ: CMVT) to Outperform from Neutral based on valuation and potential catalysts that include a possible break-up of the company.

• RBC upgraded Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) to Outperform from Sector Perform with a $180 target, as checks indicate shipment and sub-momentum from the company's product cycle will be significantly greater than anticipated.

• Kellogg (NYSE: K) was added to Lehman Brothers' Favorites List.

• Stanford upgraded Brooks Automation (NASDAQ: BRKS) to Buy from Hold with a $20 target on improved industry conditions, cash generation and valuation.

• Cowen added Ericsson Telephone Co (NASDAQ: ERIC) and Oracle Corp (NASDAQ: ORCL) to its Focus List.

• Matrix USA upgraded J.C. Penney Co Inc (NYSE: JCP) to Strong buy from Buy with an intrinsic value of $115.

• Wedbush upgraded LSI Logic Corp (NYSE: LSI) to Buy from Hold with a $13 target.

Analyst upgrades 2-26-07: Raise your glass to Coca-Cola originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 26 Feb 2007 11:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

A war in wireless software is about to begin originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 13 Feb 2007 08:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Welcome to the first annual Blogging Stocks Turkey Awards. With this new feature, we'll take a look at executives at companies we follow who most deserve a basting -- not that they necessarily did anything illegal, but just something dumb, thoughtless, or ridiculously silly.

This year, our nominees for the six biggest turkeys of the business world include:

- Patricia Dunn, Hewlett Packard Company's (NYSE:HPQ) erstwhile board chairwoman, who apparently masterminded a corporate spying program against fellow board members -- or at least is taking the fall for it.

- Andrew Young, the former Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE:WMT) spokesman and long-time civil rights leader, who had to step down from the job after making prejudiced comments against ethnic groups that operate mom-and-pop stores in urban neighborhoods.

Continue reading The Blogging Stocks Turkey Awards: See who gets roasted

The Blogging Stocks Turkey Awards: See who gets roasted originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 20 Nov 2006 05:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Comverse Technology (CMVT) and Anadarko Petro (APC) top today's extensive list of downgrades.

• Comverse Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:CMVT) was downgraded at Goldman Sachs to Sell from Neutral following the announcement that additional errors were found in the company's accounting practices. Susquehanna also downgraded Comverse to Neutral from Positive on the news. (post from yesterday)
• Bernstein downgraded Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE:APC) to Underperform from Market Perform on concerns that Anadarko is divesting growth assets in order to pay down debt.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• JP Morgan downgraded Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc. (NASDAQ:BBBY) to Underweight from Neutral citing valuation, slowing cash flow growth and contracting margins. In addition, JP Morgan recommended investors to swap out of Bed Bath & Beyond and into Home Depot, Inc. (NYSE:HD) , which was upgraded to Overweight today.
• Prudential downgraded Spectrum Brands, Inc. (NYSE:SPC) to Neutral from Overweight following fourth-quarter results.
• Buckingham downgraded Timberland Co. (NYSE:TBL) to Neutral from Accumulate citing valuation following the company has put itself up for sale.

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

Analyst downgrades 11-15-06: Comverse downgraded to Sell originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 15 Nov 2006 11:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Israeli stock market has been reaching record highs as economic growth has been strong. Despite today's GDP report showing a sharp drop due to the summer war, the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange rebounded finishing the day on a positive note.

Some Israeli companies listed on the NASDAQ are having quite the day:

Orckit Communications Ltd. (NASDAQ:ORCT) is a manufacturer of telecommunications networking equipment. ORCT shares are up more than 9% today. Rumors in Israeli newspapers mention the company gaining a new important client in Asia. Market cap: $147.7 million. 52-week range: $6.75-$31.22. Afternoon price: $11.36.

NICE Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:NICE) shares are up more than 5.5%. NICE makes data recording products for financial institutions and other companies to monitor interactions with their customers. Market cap: $1.1 billion. 52-week range: $21.55-$32.80. Afternoon price: $32.45.

Continue reading Israeli market is strong: ORCT, NICE, RVSN

Israeli market is strong: ORCT, NICE, RVSN originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 14 Nov 2006 14:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I recently wrote a post for BloggingStocks.com about the former CEO of Comverse Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: CMVT), Kobi Alexander. Because of charges for backdating of stock options, Alexander fled the U.S. - until he was caught recently in Namibia.

Well, he must have a smart attorney as he was able to get bail for $1.3 million. But there are some conditions; that is, he must surrender his passport, report to Interpol two times a week and not flee.

Not flee? Isn't that what he already did - running from the FBI and Interpol?

But Alexander understands the power of money. According to an AP report, he has wired about $16 million to Namibia. He has invested in some businesses - even a low-cost housing project.

Oh, and he is living in a $500,000 house at a country club.

So, he better enjoy his freedom. Once he is extradited back to the U.S., prosecutors will have lots of juicy details for the jury to ponder.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and operates InvestorOffering.com.

Fugitive former CEO is free again originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 03 Oct 2006 11:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.