AOL Money & Finance

FDO posts

Options Update: Family Dollar July volatility at 54 into EPS & outlook

Family Dollar (NYSE: FDO) is scheduled to report Q3 EPS on July 8. FDO closed at $27.95. FDO July 27.5 straddle is priced at $2.30, August 27.5 straddle is priced at $3.50. FDO July option implied volatility is at 54, August is at 43; verses its 26-week average of 48; according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement after EPS.

Pepsi Bottling (NYSE: PBG) closed at $33.80. PBG is scheduled to report Q2 EPS on July 8. PBG rejected PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP) offer of the equivalent of $29.50 per share for two-thirds of PBG stock it doesn't already own in PBG on May 4. PBG July option implied volatility is at 32; August is at 34; below its 26-week average of 42, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

The week in preview: Focus returns to earnings: Alcoa, Chevron, Family Dollar

The second half of the calendar year has begun, and earnings return to the spotlight this week. As usual, Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) is among the first of the S&P 500 to report quarterly results. For the second quarter in which Alcoa agreed to sell its wire harness and electrical distribution business and its fastening systems business expanded into Morocco, analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect the New York-based aluminum producer to report swinging to a net loss of $0.34 per share from a profit of $0.66 per share in the year-ago period. Second quarter revenue is expected to have fallen 48.3% to $3.9 billion. The full-year forecast is currently for a loss of $1.04 per share and revenue of $16.7 billion (-38.0%). Alcoa has missed expectations in the past three quarters, by as much as 17 cents per share. The long-term EPS growth forecast is 10.0%, which is better than the sector average. Alcoa slashed its dividend earlier this year, and the First Call consensus recommendation remains to hold AA. However, TheStreet.com recommends it as an against-the-grain pick. At $9.86, shares are down 12.4% since the beginning of the year, and recently have been bumping up against the 200-day moving average.

Continue reading The week in preview: Focus returns to earnings: Alcoa, Chevron, Family Dollar

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: ANF, FDX, IBM, RBS, SNDK, T

Analyst upgrades
  • Baird upgraded Con-Way (NYSE: CNW) and Old Dominion (NASDAQ: ODFL) to Outperform from Neutral due to the benefits of a likely bankruptcy of YRC Worldwide (NASDAQ: YRCW). Old Dominion's target was raised to $40 from $26 and Con-Way's was raised to $42 from $22.
  • Citigroup upgraded Pride International (NYSE: PDE) to Hold from Sell as it believes higher valuation levels are warranted with the upcoming spin-off of Seahawk Drilling. Citi raised its target on shares to $25 from $18.
  • Jesup & Lamont upgraded FedEx (NYSE: FDX) to Buy from Hold with a $63 target as it believes the worst is largely behind the company.
  • Hewitt Associates (NYSE: HEW) was upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at JPMorgan.
  • ArvinMeritor (NYSE: ARM) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Goldman.
  • Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at SunTrust.

Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: ANF, FDX, IBM, RBS, SNDK, T

Dollar Tree sells cheap items, but it has rich quarter

Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR) saw a nice increase in its bottom-line profit. The retailer, which reported earnings for the first quarter earlier this week, said it made 66 cents per share, good for an increase of more than 37%. Revenues increased 14%, and same-store sales went up a whopping 9%. So many retailers would absolutely kill to have that same-store number.

It's no secret why Dollar Tree is thriving. Bad economy plus items-that-sell-for-a-dollar-each equals retail success. Brand equity is important. So is convenience. But a cheap price point oftentimes trumps all.

Continue reading Dollar Tree sells cheap items, but it has rich quarter

Family Dollar (FDO) jumps on strong earnings

Family Dollar Second Quarter EarningsShares of thrift retailer Family Dollar (NYSE: FDO) have been trading strongly higher this morning after the company announced strong second quarter earnings this morning.

We mentioned in our earnings preview yesterday that analysts were expecting to see earnings of $0.60 per share, and that is exactly what Family Dollar delivered.

Continue reading Family Dollar (FDO) jumps on strong earnings

Before the bell: Stocks poised to drop following Alcoa's disappointing earnings

U.S. stocks may be poised to drop for a third day following yesterday's disappointing results from Alcoa Inc. (AA), the first major Dow component to report this earnings season.

According to Bloomberg News, futures on the S&P 500 expiring in June decreased 0.9 percent to 806.60 at 10:50 a.m. in London, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slid 1% to 7,683 and Nasdaq-100 Index futures fell 0.6% to 1,273.75. Markets in Europe and Asia were also down.

Continue reading Before the bell: Stocks poised to drop following Alcoa's disappointing earnings

Family Dollar: Cheap stock for beating Wall Street?

Family Dollar (NYSE: FDO) has had quite a run. Over the year shares in the super discount store chain have risen by roughly 65%, rising from just under $20 on April 7, 2008 to a closing price of just over $33 on April 6, 2008. The obvious reason is the awful economy.

Earnings later this morning are hotly anticipated. Our Piqqem Sentiment for Family Dollar is positive but beginning to trend down. Will cheap keep beating the Street?

Continue reading Family Dollar: Cheap stock for beating Wall Street?

The week in preview: Alcoa kicks off a new earnings season

A new earnings reporting season kicks off this coming week with the quarterly report from Alcoa, the first Dow Jones industrial to report. But investors looking for early signs about the first quarter will be disappointed in what they see from the aluminum producer, assuming that analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters are neither too optimistic or too pessimistic about those results.

Continue reading The week in preview: Alcoa kicks off a new earnings season

Dick's Sporting Goods beats the estimates game

Dicks Sporting GoodsDick's Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS) competed on Tuesday in a contest that no company really wants to play: the Expectations Game. Things turned out pretty well for the famous seller of sports stuff (being that I'm no athlete, I can't say I've purchased anything from the place). For the fourth quarter, Dick's posted adjusted income of 55 cents per diluted share. Analysts surveyed by Reuters believed that the chain might do 53 cents per share.

Very cool. In fact, Dick's stock closed yesterday at $12.84. The shares gained over 17% on excellent volume. So, one might expect that the earnings were great and that the stock is a buy. Not so fast.

Continue reading Dick's Sporting Goods beats the estimates game

Earnings preview: Shareholders are bracing for J. Crew's Q4 report

It is tough to be a retailer in this climate. It's especially tough to be a retailer like J. Crew Group, Inc. (NYSE: JCG). After all, if you're a Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT) or a Family Dollar Stores (NYSE: FDO), at least you can entice consumers with your low prices, and at least you stock things that people need. Not so with J. Crew. It's a fashion retailer that you don't have to visit during the recession. Apparently, many people indeed haven't been visiting lately. That's why shareholders will most likely be nervous when fourth-quarter numbers are issued after the bell on Tuesday, March 10.

According to this source, J. Crew should report an earnings loss of $0.27 per share. How ugly! This compares to a profit of $0.41 per share in the year-ago period. I expect to hear the same stuff that we've been hearing from retailers such as Urban Outfitters (NASDAQ: URBN) and Kohl's (NYSE: KSS): things are tough, the rest of the year is going to be a huge challenge, we're doing everything we can to navigate the business through the treacherous times, etc. Such rhetoric probably won't be comforting to shareholders, especially considering that J. Crew's stock isn't too far from a 52-week low.

Continue reading Earnings preview: Shareholders are bracing for J. Crew's Q4 report

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: TASR, M, FDO, NVDA, DGX ...

Analyst upgrades:
  • Merriman upgraded Taser (NASDAQ: TASR) to Buy from Neutral as it believes current valuation levels do not reflect the company's market opportunities and that the law enforcement funding in President Obama's stimulus plan will boost sales in Q4 and FY10.
  • Goldman upgraded Macy's (NYSE: M) to Buy from Neutral and added shares to its Conviction Buy List based on reduced balance sheet concerns and improved risk/reward. The firm also raised their target to $8.25 from $8.
  • JP Morgan upgraded Family Dollar (NYSE: FDO) to Neutral from Underweight and raised its target to $29 from $19 following the better-than-expected Q2 report. The analyst continues to prefer Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR) and Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT).
  • Goldman removed Universal Am (NYSE: UAM) from the Conviction Sell List.
  • McDermott (NYSE: MDR) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Jefferies.
  • Canadian Natural (NYSE: CNQ) was upgraded to Sector Outperformer from Sector Performer at CIBC.

Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: TASR, M, FDO, NVDA, DGX ...

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: VZ, CHS, DLTR, RGC ...

Analyst upgrades:
  • Jefferies upgraded Ansys (NASDAQ: ANSS) shares to Buy from Hold following the company's reduced guidance as it now believes estimates are much more achievable. Despite the upgrade, the firm lowered its target price to $25 from $29.
  • Deutsche Bank upgraded shares of Signet Jewelers (NYSE: SIG) to Buy from Hold on expectations the company will benefit from a capacity reduction in U.S. jewelry retailing.
  • Thomas Weisel upgraded Omnicare (NYSE: OCR) to Overweight from Market Weight citing improving fundamentals and misunderstandings regarding Obama's healthcare proposal.
  • Verizon (VZ) was lifted to Outperform from Sector Perform at RBC Capital.
  • The Inventure Group (NYSE: SNAK) was raised to Buy from Hold at Roth Capital.
  • Chico's FAS (NYSE: CHS) was upgraded at Friedman Billings to Outperform from Market Perform.
Analyst downgrades:
  • Stephens downgraded Wilbros Group (NYSE: WG) to Equal Weight from Overweight to reflect a lack of visibility into earnings and deterioration in the company's end markets. The firm lowered its target price to $9.
  • Jefferies downgraded Limelight Networks (NASDAQ: LLNW) to Hold from Buy as it believes the company can not sustain profits or cash flow this year given its capex requirements. The firm lowered its target price to $3 from $4.
  • Barclays cut SLM Corp (NYSE: SLM) to Equal Weight from Overweight following President Obama's proposal to eliminate Federal Family Education Loan Program.
  • Synta Pharma (NASDAQ: SNTA) was lowered to Hold from Buy at Roth Capital and to Sector Perform from Outperform at RBC Capital.
  • U.S. Cellular (NYSE: USM) was downgraded at Baird to Underperform from Neutral.
  • Paychex (NASDAQ: PAYX) was downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Goldman.
Analyst initiations:
  • ThinkEquity expects Emulex (NYSE: ELX) to generate positive FCF in 2010 and views valuation as attractive. Shares were initiated with a Buy rating and $7 target.
  • Lazard Capital initiated Constant Contact (NASDAQ: CTCT) with a Buy rating and $19 target. The firm believes the company is well positioned in the Software as a Service category of E-mail Marketing.
  • Morgan Stanley assumed Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR) with an Overweight rating and $45 target and Family Dollar (NYSE: FDO) with an Equal Weight rating.
  • Regal Entertainment (NYSE: RGC) was started at Barclays with an Overweight rating and $14 target.

Earnings highlights: Intel, Walmart, Chevron, Family Dollar, Monsanto and others

Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

For more earnings highlights, see Time Warner, Satyam, Google, KB Home, Mosaic and others

Upcoming earnings releases include Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA), Infosys (NASDAQ: INFY), Linear Technologies (NASDAQ: LLTC) , Xilinx (NASDAQ: XLNX), Genentech (NYSE: DNA), Intel (NASDAQ: INTC), Marshall & Ilsley (NYSE: MI), Sealy (NYSE: ZZ), Johnson Controls (NYSE: JCI).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

Stock picks and pans for troubled times: BWLD, BMY, UPS, FDO, MOS, DVN...

This week, the short-term rally of the last few days of the holiday season was over. While many hope the economy would start rebounding toward the end of the year, more voices are now heard saying the recession will be longer and deeper than estimates. The only thing that could help is a proper stimulus plan.

Indeed, President-elect Obama's transition team and his chosen staff have already been working on a plan, trying to push legislators to act swiftly. As investors received news of one dismal economic report after another -- from retail sales, auto sales, housing, manufacturing and employment -- the corporate side also continued to show considerable weakness with earnings warnings coming nearly daily.

The real question is whether the stimulus plan and the Federal Reserve actions, alongside similar moves taken around the world, could give the boost the economy so desperately needs. It seems several BloggingStocks contributors believe this might be the case as they looked at long-term investment ideas. Here are some of their picks from the past week:

Buffalo Wild Wings (NASDAQ: BWLD) actually saw an increase in value of 62.3% during the quarter. It has a strong capital position and is nearly debt free. It has actually seen a third-quarter same-store sales growth of 8.3%. There has been some pressure on the stock following an earnings miss due to growth, creating an opportunity for astute investors, says Jamie Dlugosch.

Continue reading Stock picks and pans for troubled times: BWLD, BMY, UPS, FDO, MOS, DVN...

Next Page >

Symbol Lookup
IndexesChangePrice
DJIA+44.138,324.87
NASDAQ-9.121,787.40
S&P 500+2.30898.72

Last updated: July 06, 2009: 04:21 PM

BloggingStocks Exclusives

Hot Stocks

DailyFinance Headlines

Latest from BloggingBuyouts

WalletPop Headlines

AOL Business News

BioHealth Investor Headlines

Sponsored Links

My Portfolios

Track your stocks here!

Find out why more people track their portfolios on AOL Money & Finance then anywhere else.

BloggingStocks Partners

More from AOL Money & Finance