Continue reading KB Home third quarter earnings preview

KB Home third quarter earnings preview originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading KB Home posts better than expected quarterly earnings

KB Home posts better than expected quarterly earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 27 Mar 2009 11:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading KB Home first quarter earnings preview

KB Home first quarter earnings preview originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 26 Mar 2009 17:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

However, if history is any indication, there's a good chance KB Home's results will fall short of the Street's predictions. The company has disappointed analysts in each of the previous five quarters by reporting wider-than-expected losses.

On the plus side, it doesn't seem that many players on Wall Street are betting on an upside surprise. During the past 10 days, traders on the International Securities Exchange (ISE) have bought to open nearly 3 times more puts than calls on KBH. The stock's 10-day ISE put/call ratio of 2.78 ranks higher than 65% of comparable readings taken in the past year, which suggests that bearish sentiment is ramping up ahead of earnings.

Continue reading Expectations approach rock-bottom for KB Home's fourth-quarter earnings

Expectations approach rock-bottom for KB Home's fourth-quarter earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 07 Jan 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Mosaic (NYSE: MOS) plans to issue its Q2 earnings on January 5. MOS is hosting an analyst meeting on January 13, 2009. January option implied volatility of 96 is below a level of 121 in mid December and above its 26-week average of 90, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing movement compared to a two-weeks ago.

Chevron (NYSE: CVX) closed at $71.55 Monday. CVX is expected to report Q4 EPS on January 8. Crude oil futures are recently down 1.67% to $39.35 according to Bloomberg. CVX January option implied volatility of 44 is below a level of 60 from two-weeks ago and near its 26-week average according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement compared to two weeks ago.

KB Home (NYSE: KBH) is scheduled to report Q4 EPS before the open on January 9. KBH January option implied volatility of 105 is below a level of 131 from two weeks and near its 26-week average of 100 according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement compared to two weeks ago.

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

Options Update: Volatility decreasing into EPS reports; MOS, CVX, KBH originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 30 Dec 2008 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

KB Home (NYSE: KBH), whose colleagues include D.R. Horton, Inc. (NYSE: DHI) and Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN), reported earnings for the third quarter on Friday, and as one might have expected, they weren't the stuff of Wall Street dreams. This article gives a nice summary of the release. The loss per share worsened like crazy during the quarter compared to the year-ago data. The loss this year was $1.87 per share, and that was about four times the amount lost in the year-ago period. One thing to keep in mind, however, is that, on a non-GAAP basis in the previous year, the loss was $6.19 per share. The disparity here was caused by the addition of gains from discontinued operations in Q3 2007. No matter, expectations were for $1.22 per share for the current quarter, so KB Home nevertheless missed by a wide margin.

What fascinates me about KB Home is how the stock rebounded from its intraday low. I expected to see the shares in the dumps as I began to write this piece. Interestingly enough, as of this writing, shares are actually up over 1%! I wasn't the only one to notice this phenomenon. Dividend.com also mentioned how interesting the strong price action has been. In fact, at the time of this writing, AOL Finance says that KB Home's stock is up over 16% for the three-month period and up over 20% for the one-month period. What is this telling me? Does this mean I should buy the stock? I also should point out that the stock is not languishing at the 52-week low, either.

Well, it would have been pretty scary to buy KB Home at the 52-week low. But, I say it is kind of scary to buy KB Home now. If you think there is strength with this stock, then I say, at the very least, you've got to wait until it comes down before even thinking of buying. I just can't get myself to consider this homebuilder after seeing it miss estimates. Plus, we aren't out of the bad housing slump yet. The price action does give me pause, and I concede that you have to consider the effect of the discontinued operations on last year's earnings number. Still, it is my opinion that staying away from KB Home is best for now. The final decision, however, is yours.

Disclosure: I don't own any company mentioned; positions can change at any time.

KB Home: Is it a buy? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 26 Sep 2008 15:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Eddie Lampert buys into KB Home (KBH), Centex (CTX) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 12 Jun 2008 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

After hitting a one-year high of $48.67 in May, the stock hit a one-year low of $15.76 in January. KBH opened this morning at $26.74. So far today the stock has hit a low of $26.50 and a high of $28.86. As of 12:30, KBH is trading at $28.48, up $1.55 (5.8%). The chart for KBH looks bullish and steady, while S&P gives the stock a negative 2 STARS (out of 5) sell rating.

For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a May bull-put credit spread below the $17.50 range. A bull-put credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of put options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 4.2% return in just 7 weeks as long as KBH is above $17.50 at May expiration. KBH would have to fall by more than 38% before we would start to lose money. Learn more about this type of trade here.

Continue reading KB Home (KBH) rises in anticipation of mortgage help

KB Home (KBH) rises in anticipation of mortgage help originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 02 Apr 2008 15:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading KB Home (KBH) reports larger-than-expected quarterly loss

KB Home (KBH) reports larger-than-expected quarterly loss originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 28 Mar 2008 12:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Citigroup named Suntech Power Holding (NYSE: STP) their top pick for China solar due to its leading scale and technology roadmap for higher cell efficiency, initiating shares with a Buy rating and $55 target.
  
• Merriman believes Premier Exhibitions (NASDAQ: PRXI) can move to the $14.50-$17.00 through the continued monetization of the company's current tours, the launching of additional tours and the value of the Titanic artifacts on hand. The firm started shares with a Buy rating.
  
• Lehman initiated D.R. Horton (NYSE: DHI), Ryland Group (NYSE: RYL), Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) with Overweight ratings and an $18 target, $31 target and $27 target; KB Home (NYSE: KBH) with an Equal Weight rating and $24 target; and Hovnanian Enterprises (NYSE: HOV) with an Underweight rating and $8 target.

• Citigroup initiated Yingli Green Energy (NYSE: YGE) with a Hold rating and $24 target.
  
• UBS initiated Citrix Systems (NASDAQ: CTXS) with a Neutral rating and $38 target.
  
• JP Morgan initiated Biodel (NASDAQ: BIOD) with an Overweight rating.

Analyst initiations: Suntech Power, Premier Exhibitions, homebuilder sector originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 27 Feb 2008 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Economists are assuming the December housing numbers will be bad enough to make 2007 the worst year in the housing industry since 1980.

According to Bloomberg, "Builders in the U.S. broke ground on fewer houses in December, making the year's decline in homebuilding the worst in almost three decades, economists said before a report today."

Nothing new here, but the news will be more disturbing if early readings on January show the same thing. Some experts believe that housing prices could drop another 10% this year.

For investors this means that one or more of the weaker homebuilders may not make it to the end of the year. Firms like KB Home (NYSE: KBH) may have trouble with balance sheets. It is hard to imagine that everyone in the industry gets out alive.

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

Last year was housing's worst since 1980 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 Jan 2008 07:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading KB Home (KBH) falls on 'challenging market conditions'

KB Home (KBH) falls on 'challenging market conditions' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Jan 2008 15:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

No matter how one tries, there's virtually no way to sugar-coat KB Home's Q3 earnings report.

Los Angeles-based KB Home (NYSE: KBH) Thursday posted a Q3 EPS loss of $6.19 compared to the Reuters consensus estimate of a loss of 71 cents.

The company said Q3 revenue totaled $1.53B, down 33% from a year ago, and below the $1.59B Reuters consensus estimate.

Continue reading KB Home's gory Q3 report

KB Home's gory Q3 report originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 27 Sep 2007 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• Build-A-Bear Workshop Inc's (NYSE: BBW) stock has been in a nose dive for most of the year, failing to reach sales targets. If there's no bid soon, reported the Wall Street Journal, this holiday season will be a miserable one for same store sales. Mattel Inc (NYSE: MAT) and Children's Place Retail Stores Inc (NASDAQ: PLCE) are considered possible buyers, as well as private equity firms.
• Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ: CSCO) and Haier Group, China's largest manufacturer of appliances, have agreed to work together on home networking in China and international markets, according to the Wall Street Journal.
• "Disney (NYSE: DIS) inspired" homes will be offered by KB Home (NYSE: KBH) beginning in 2008, following their successful collaboration with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (NYSE: MSO) homes two years ago, reported the Wall Street Journal.

• Credit Suisse Group (NYSE: CS) is laying off about 150 workers from its mortgage-backed securities unit, a source told the New York Times.
• The EE Times reported that Chinese silicon foundry provider Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (NYSE: SMI) has delayed the opening of its 300-mm wafer fab in Wuhan, China, according to an analyst.
• India's Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT) has received a five year, $130M contract from British utility Thames Water to provide integrated IT services, reported the Economic Times.

Newspaper wrap-up: Credit Suisse laying off 150 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 26 Sep 2007 08:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Monday September 24

• Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) to report monthly sales at 4:30pm.
• PDUFA date for Anesiva Inc Com's (NASDAQ: ANSV) Zingo, a a fast-acting, local anesthetic.

Tuesday September 25

• Lennar Corporation (NYSE: LEN) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 11am.

Wednesday September 26

• Bed, Bath and Beyond Inc (NASDAQ: BBBY) to report Q2 earnings; conference call at 5pm.
• Paychex Inc (NASDAQ: PAYX) to report Q1 earnings after market close; conference call Thursday at 10:30am.

Thursday September 27

• Home Solutions of America Inc (NASDAQ: HSOA) to give business news update at 10am.
• Radian Group Inc (NYSE: RDN) to give update on the company's financial guarantee business at 11am.
• KB Home (NYSE: KBH) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 12pm.

Friday September 28

• Par Pharmaceutical Companies Inc (NYSE: PRX) to hold Analyst Meeting at 8am.
• Celebrate Express Inc (NASDAQ: BDAY) to report Q1 earnings; conference call at 8:30am.

Market highlights for next week: TGT to report monthly sales, BBBY to report Q2 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 21 Sep 2007 16:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"While others are waiting for the next shoe to drop in the stock markets, I believe that the bottom is in," says technical expert Yola Edwards. Meanwhile, in The Internet Wealth Builder she has found a stock that she likes within "the rubble of the U.S. housing market." The stock? KB Home (NYSE: KBH).

Edwards explains, "I'm not saying that the subprime issue isn't significant, but I do believe that it is now priced into the market. It appears that the worst is over for the Dow Jones Industrial Average as well."

A technician by trade, she points out that the market is drastically oversold and the index has traced out a multi-year inverted head and shoulders pattern. Based on this pattern, she notes, a minimum upside target of 14,500 should be expected.

Meanwhile, for those comfortable with an out-of-favor, contrarian play, she sees both fundamental and technical opportunity in the shares of KB Home, a Los Angeles-based builder of single-family homes.

She notes, "Given what's been happening in the U.S. housing market, it should come as no surprise that the current financials are poor. KB Home has seen domestic sales battered by the housing downturn, which has been exacerbated in recent months by tightened lending standards by banks."

Continue reading Technician sees KB Home (KBH) building value

Technician sees KB Home (KBH) building value originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 07 Sep 2007 09:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading A market with more on its mind than Toll Brothers (TOL)

A market with more on its mind than Toll Brothers (TOL) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 24 Aug 2007 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

There are times when Wall Street, to borrow a phrase, takes "two steps forward and one step back."

Then there are times when the Street simply stands, and waits for the events on the ground to clarify the financial landscape.

And that was the case Tuesday, as Monday's rally faded into Tuesday's 140-point Dow sell-off. And one reason was the subprime issue in general, which seems to offer a data point daily regarding the sector's health, and its impact on the housing sector, and the economy.

Tuesday's data point was American Home Mortgage (NYSE: AHM), which dropped more than 80% to about $1.00 per share from its recent $10.50 per share after the company indicated it is unable to borrow money under its banks lines and is looking at ways to raise money, including "the orderly liquidation of assets."

Continue reading AHM provides a data point, and Wall Street awaits more...

AHM provides a data point, and Wall Street awaits more... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 01 Aug 2007 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• BWS Financial cut Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) shares to Sell from Hold on valuation.

• YRC Worldwide (NASDAQ: YRCW) was assumed with an Underweight rating, down from Neutral, as JP Morgan is cautious on the industry's L-T-L pricing.

• UBS downgraded SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK) to Neutral from Buy on valuation.

• Gabelli downgraded shares of Activision (NASDAQ: ATVI) to Hold from Buy to reflect their expectation of increasing competition for some of the company's key titles.

• Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at HSBC on valuation.

• Matrix believes the prolonged weakness in the housing market is eliminating economic profits and cut KB Home (NYSE: KBH) to Strong Sell from Sell...

• Citigroup and ABN Amro cut Rio Tinto Group (NYSE: RTP) to Hold from Buy.

• Merrill Lynch downgraded J.M. Smucker (NYSE: SJM) to Sell from Neutral.

• First Albany downgraded shares of Travelzoo (NASDAQ: TZOO) to Neutral from Buy.

• Matrix downgraded Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ) to Hold from Buy.

• AG Edwards downgraded Aetna (NYSE: AET) to Hold from Buy.

Analyst downgrades 7-16-07: AMZN, ATVI, RTP, SNDK and YRCW originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 16 Jul 2007 10:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

News flash! Citigroup (finally) downgrades housing stocks originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 02 Jul 2007 13:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.