Spring has officially begun, and now may be the time to consider some investments that could add a little "spring" to your portfolio.

Topping the list are companies like Lowe's (LOW) and Home Depot (HD). They stand to benefit from the nicer weather as people head outdoors to work on the garden, plant new beds, maintain the lawn, and take care of home improvements.

Continue reading Investments to Put Some 'Spring' into Your Step

Investments to Put Some 'Spring' into Your Step originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 23 Mar 2011 10:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

What did you think of Home Depot's (HD) earnings report? I rather enjoyed it. And I think the future may be bright for the retailer and arch enemy of Lowe's (LOW).

According to TheStreet.com, net income calculated out to 36 cents per share for the fourth quarter. This was five pennies better than the overall estimate. Same-store sales experienced an increase of 3.9%. And management's forecast for the full fiscal year was upgraded.

Continue reading Home Depot: Looking Good?

Home Depot: Looking Good? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Barnes & Noble, the Gap, RadioShack, and Sears -- that may sound like the lineup at the local mall, but in fact they are just a few of the retailers scheduled to step into the earnings spotlight this week. Following last week's disappointing January retail sales numbers from the Commerce Department but strong fourth-quarter reports from Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) and Nordstrom (JWN), the coming week will offer plenty more data on the sector for investors to mull over.

Walmart

Bentonville-based Walmart (WMT) offered free holiday shipping, closed its Moscow office and named a chief merchandising officer during its fourth quarter. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters forecast earnings for that period to come to $1.31 per share, up from $1.17 in the same quarter of last year. The world's largest retailer also is expected to post revenues of $117.7 billion for the three months that ended in January. That's 3.5% more than a year earlier.

Continue reading Week in Preview: Walmart, Home Depot and More Retail Earnings

Week in Preview: Walmart, Home Depot and More Retail Earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 20 Feb 2011 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The past week's data-point-of-consequence for investors had to be investment decisions by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A).

Buffett ended positions in several stocks in the fourth quarter, including the Bank of America (BAC), Nike (NKE), Fiserv (FISV), Becton Dickinson (BDX), Comcast Corp. (CMCSA), Lowe's Co.s (LOW), Nalco (NLC) and Nestle (NSRGY), according to a filing, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Berkshire added to a holding of only one stock in the fourth quarter: Wells Fargo (WFC).

Continue reading Tell-Tale Stat: Buffett's Berkshire Divests Bank of America, Nike Stakes

Tell-Tale Stat: Buffett's Berkshire Divests Bank of America, Nike Stakes originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 19 Feb 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Home Depot (HD) to buy from neutral at Goldman.
• Delta Air Lines (DAL) to buy from neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• Heico (HEI) to outperform from sector perform at RBC Capital.
• Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) to outperform from neutral at Credit Suisse.
• MB Financial (MBFI) to outperform from neutral at RW Baird.
• Quest Diagnostics (DGX) to equal weight from underweight at Morgan Stanley.
• Oshkosh (OSK) to neutral from underweight at JPMorgan.
• Volterra (VLTR) and Silicon Laboratories (SLAB) to buy from neutral at Roth Capital.
• Ascena Retail Group (ASNA) to overweight from neutral at Piper Jaffray.
• Cytec Industries (CYT) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: DAL, CIEN, DGX, HD, IMAX, LOW, OSK, PENN, RDS.A, SWK ...

Analyst Calls: DAL, CIEN, DGX, HD, IMAX, LOW, OSK, PENN, RDS.A, SWK ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 31 Jan 2011 12:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Dissecting a Long-Term Bullish Bet on Lowe's Companies

Dissecting a Long-Term Bullish Bet on Lowe's Companies originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Walgreen (WAG) and Triumph Group (TGI) to buy from neutral at UBS.
• Focus Media (FMCN) to buy from neutral at Goldman.
• Home Depot (HD) to outperform from market perform at FBR Capital.
• Arbitron (ARB) to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.
• Waddell & Reed (WDR) and Legg Mason (LM) to overweight from equal weight, and Janus Capital (JNS) to overweight from underweight, at Barclays.
• Central Euro Media (CETV) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
• GenOn Energy (GEN) and Ntelos (NTLS) to outperform from sector perform at RBC Capital.
• Cooper Tire (CTB) to buy from neutral and Goodyear Tire (GT) to buy from underperform at BofA/Merrill.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: AOL, FMCN, GT, HD, JNJ, JNS, LOW, QCOM, RY, UA, WAG ...

Analyst Calls: AOL, FMCN, GT, HD, JNJ, JNS, LOW, QCOM, RY, UA, WAG ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 09 Dec 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Options Update: Starbucks Volatility Flat Into Analyst Meeting; Shares Near 44-Month High originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 30 Nov 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Lowe's (LOW) reported Monday morning that its third-quarter profit was $404 million or 29 cents a share, an increase from $344 million or 23 cents a share a year earlier. Results included charges of two cents and one cent respectively. Revenue climbed 1.9% to $11.59 billion. Same-store sales were rose slightly.

The company had forecast earnings of 28 cents to 32 cents and revenue up 3% to 5%. A year earlier, revenue had declined 3%. Gross margins rose to 35% from 34.2%.

Continue reading Lowe's Profit Rises 17%, but It Lowers Its Forecast

Lowe's Profit Rises 17%, but It Lowers Its Forecast originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 15 Nov 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"Home Prices Are About to Bottom" was the headline for the Barron's cover story the week of July 14, 2008. The story explained that the housing market should level off in many areas of the country by the end of the year.

I have made some equally unfortunate prognostications in my tenure at BloggingStocks, so my purpose is not to poke fun at Barron's but to point out that here we are, over two years later, and it is still debatable whether the housing market has bottomed out.

Continue reading Chasing Value: "Home Prices Are About to Bottom"

Chasing Value: "Home Prices Are About to Bottom" originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 15 Nov 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Last week, Macy's (M) and JCPenney (JCP) kicked off the retail earnings season by posting better-than-expected earnings for the most recent quarter. Many more quarterly reports from retailers are due this week, and by and large expectations of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters are high.

Walmart (WMT), the king of retailers, is expected to buck the trend, though. Analysts anticipate that the Bentonville-based company will report that its third-quarter earnings grew only 6.7% year-over-year to 90 cents per share. During the three months that ended in October, Walmart announced an acquisition in South Africa and kicked-off the holiday shopping season, and revenue for that period is predicted to have risen 3.0% to $102.4 billion. Looking ahead to the fourth quarter, analysts so far expect sequential and year-over-year growth of both earnings and revenue. Walmart results have not fallen short of consensus estimates in the past five quarters.

Continue reading Week in Preview: Retailers Offer Up Earnings (WMT, ANF, LOW, TGT)

Week in Preview: Retailers Offer Up Earnings (WMT, ANF, LOW, TGT) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 14 Nov 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Standpoint Research upgraded Bank of America (BAC) to accumulate from hold based on valuation.
• UBS upgraded First Solar (FSLR) to buy from neutral and raised its price target to $150 from $136. The firm believes global solar demand will be higher than expected in 2010 and 2011.
• Goldman upgraded Lowe's (LOW) to buy from neutral and has a $24 target on the stock. The firm upgraded shares given the company's margin recovery which will drive EPS growth in 2H10.
• Zep Inc. (ZEP) was upgraded to buy from neutral at Janney Montgomery.
• Rosetta Resources (ROSE) was upgraded to buy from neutral at SunTrust.
• Matrixx Initiatives (MTXX) was upgraded to buy from hold at Roth Capital.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: BAC, BIDU, COCO, FSLR, GPC, LOW, ROSE, SHIP, UTA ...

Analyst Calls: BAC, BIDU, COCO, FSLR, GPC, LOW, ROSE, SHIP, UTA ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 23 Aug 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Home Depot (HD), the main rival of Lowe's (LOW), closed higher yesterday by 3.4%, finishing out the session at a price of $28.31. It has a ways to go before reaching the 52-week high of $37.03. Will investors push the stock to that level after the second-quarter report?

I'm not sure that will happen anytime soon, but the data wasn't so bad. Earnings per share grew 9% to 72 cents -- a penny ahead of expectations. Same-store sales expanded by 1.7%.

Continue reading Home Depot Earnings Show Increase in Q2 Income

Home Depot Earnings Show Increase in Q2 Income originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 18 Aug 2010 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Lowe's Companies Inc. (LOW), the nation's number two home improvement superstore chain, is scheduled to discuss its second-quarter 2010 financial results Monday, August 16, in a conference call beginning at 9:00 AM (ET) hosted by CEO Robert A. Niblock and CFO Robert F. Hull, Jr. You can catch a live webcast at the Lowe's website.

During the three months that ended in July, Lowe's increased its quarterly dividend. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect this Mooresville, N.C.-based company to report earnings of $0.59 per share, up from $0.54 per share in the year-ago period. Its revenue is expected to have risen 4.9% from a year ago to $14.5 billion.

Continue reading Lowe's Earnings Preview: Can Another Beat Lift Shares?

Lowe's Earnings Preview: Can Another Beat Lift Shares? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 15 Aug 2010 14:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

As the earnings season begins to wind down, retail earnings move into the spotlight. Already, JCPenney (JCP), Kohl's (KSS) and Macy's (M) have posted earnings that topped consensus estimates, though the former two also offered disappointing guidance, and Nordstrom (JWN) met earnings expectations.

Many more retailers are scheduled to post their second-quarter results this week, including Walmart (WMT), Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF), and Dollar Tree Stores (DLTR), whose earnings expectations we'll take a closer look at here.

Continue reading The Week in Preview: Earnings from Walmart, Abercrombie and Other Retailers

The Week in Preview: Earnings from Walmart, Abercrombie and Other Retailers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 15 Aug 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• UBS upgraded UPS (UPS) and FedEx (FDX) to buy from hold based on recent weakness and leverage to a recovery. The firm raised its price target on UPS to $74 from $72 and on FedEx to $100 from $97.
• Bernstein upgraded Medicis (MRX) to outperform from market perform based on valuation and said the company has been executing well over the past few months. The firm has a $28 price target on the stock.
• Citigroup upgraded Weingarten Realty (WRI) to buy from hold, citing valuation and the company's improved balance sheet. The firm maintains a $24 price target for shares.
• Home Depot (HD) and Lowe's (LOW) were upgraded to market perform from underperform at BMO Capital.
• NextEra Energy (NEE) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Baird.
• Nokia (NOK) was upgraded to neutral from reduce at WestLB.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: AMED, FDX, H, HD, HOT, LGF, LOW, MAR, MTB, MRX, NOK, UPS ...

Analyst Calls: AMED, FDX, H, HD, HOT, LGF, LOW, MAR, MTB, MRX, NOK, UPS ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 01 Jul 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Closing Bell: Bears Getting Closer to DJIA 10,000 (LOW, DFS, ADBE, AAPL, BP)

Closing Bell: Bears Getting Closer to DJIA 10,000 (LOW, DFS, ADBE, AAPL, BP) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Sterne Agee upgraded Wynn Resorts (WYNN) to buy from neutral and has a $115 price target on the stock. The firm believes Encore Macau will drive further share gains near-term.
• Deutsche Bank upgraded PPL Corp. (PPL) to buy from hold and said the equity offering and the the stipulation reached in the KY utilities' rate cases removes important overhangs. The firm has a $30 price target on the stock.
• UBS upgraded CarMax (KMX) to buy from neutral based on forecasts for higher consumer forecast income and positive used car trends. The firm has a $28 target on the stock.
• Aeropostale (ARO) was upgraded to outperform from underperform at Oppenheimer.
• Cardinal Financial (CFNL) was upgraded to neutral from underperform at Baird.
• Pinnacle West (PNW) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: AAPL, CP, CSCO, GENZ, HD, KMX, LOW, MSFT, PPL, SI, WTNY, WYNN ...

Analyst Calls: AAPL, CP, CSCO, GENZ, HD, KMX, LOW, MSFT, PPL, SI, WTNY, WYNN ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 24 Jun 2010 11:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Serious Money: Buffett Looking Beyond Our Borders

Serious Money: Buffett Looking Beyond Our Borders originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 Jun 2010 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Below are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage on BloggingStocks. Click through to the original posts for more details.

• Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF) shares sold off after it posted a narrower Q1 net loss, but same-store sales rose.
• Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) swung from a year-ago loss to a Q2 profit that was better than expected.
• Deere & Co. (DE) reported better-than-expected Q2 earnings and improved sales, and raised its full-year outlook.
• Dell Inc. (DELL) posted better-than-expected Q1 earnings, but the gross margin was disappointing, and shares fell.
• GameStop Corp. (GME) higher Q1 earnings beat consensus estimates but same-store sales declined.
• Gap Inc. (GPS) said its higher Q1 earnings beat expectations while revenue fell in line with estimates.

Continue reading Earnings Highlights: Dell, Gap, GM, Home Depot, HP, Sears, Target, Walmart ...

Earnings Highlights: Dell, Gap, GM, Home Depot, HP, Sears, Target, Walmart ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 22 May 2010 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.