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

• Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) shares surged after earnings easily topped Q4 expectations.
• AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) reported that its Q4 earnings fell while its revenue rose marginally.
• Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) posted a big loss and lower revenue due to strikes and design changes.
• Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) reported that Q4 profit fell despite higher revenue and lowered its guidance.
• Danaher Corp. (NYSE: DHR) lower Q4 profit topped analysts' estimates, sending shares higher.
• Eastman Kodak Co. (NYSE: EK) reported a Q4 net loss and announced additional job cuts.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Amazon, Boeing, Caterpillar, Hershey, AT&T and others

Earnings highlights: Amazon, Boeing, Caterpillar, Hershey, AT&T and others originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 31 Jan 2009 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Staples, Evergreen Solar and Genzyme were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded shares of Staples (NASDAQ: SPLS) to Buy from Hold following the company's raised bid for Corporate Express based on the increased chance the deal gets deal done and SPLS achieves meaningful EPS accretion.
  
• Jefferies also raised Evergreen Solar (NASDAQ: ESLR) to Buy from Hold on valuation, as they believe concerns regarding capital needs are now priced into the stock and that the company continues to take risk out of its growth story through execution.
  
• Bernstein upgraded Genzyme (NASDAQ: GENZ) to Outperform from Market Perform citing increased confidence in GENZ's product portfolio, geographic and therapeutic diversification, improved outlook, and valuation.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: JAVA) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wachovia.
  
• BearingPoint (NYSE: BE) was upgraded at Goldman to Neutral from Sell.
  
• Lehman upgraded Nexen (NYSE: NXY) to Overweight from Equal Weight.

Analyst upgrades: Staples, Evergreen Solar, Genzyme originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 14 May 2008 12:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) reported its fifth straight quarterly loss and lowered its outlook.
• Anadigics Inc. (NASDAQ: ANAD) beat Q1 expectations and raised its Q2 guidance.
• AuthenTec Inc. (NASDAQ: AUTH) Q1 revenues jumped 67% on new product offerings.
• CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS) posted better-than-expected Q1 results and raised its dividend.
• Cognex Corp. (NASDAQ: CGNX) beat Q1 expectations and lifted its outlook.
• Comcast Corp. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) posted soild Q1 results on high-speed internet/digital phone strength.
• DreamWorks Animation Inc. (NYSE: DWA) earnings and revenues soared in the first quarter.
• Eastman Kodak Co. (NYSE: EK) narrowed its Q1 loss but missed earnings estimates.
• IAC/InterActivCorp (NASDAQ: IACI) Q1 profits fell but met analsts' expectations.
• LSI Corp. (NYSE: LSI) beat Q1 expectations and raised its guidance for the next quarter.
• NetSuite Inc. (NASDAQ: N) narrowed its loss on a surge in Q1 revenue.
• Omniture Inc. (NASDAQ: OMTR) Q1 revenue jumped 136% on acquisitions.
• RadioShack Corp. (NYSE: RSH) just beat low Q1 expectations on lower demand and narrower margins.
• SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) earnings for the first quarter fell short of analysts' expectations.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Verizon, Comcast, CBS, DreamWorks, IAC, Kodak and others

Earnings highlights: Verizon, Comcast, CBS, DreamWorks, IAC, Kodak and others originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 04 May 2008 13:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Dynamic Materials (NASDAQ: BOOM) was downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at J.P. Morgan following the Q1 report based on margin risk from steel costs and availability.
  
• Allergan (NYSE: AGN) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies ahead of the Q1 report on May 7 based on potential deceleration in Botox and breast implants, which could result in multiple contractions.
• Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: JAVA) was downgraded to Peer Perform from Outperform at Bear, citing the disappointing earnings report for the downgrade.

• ManTech (NASDAQ: MANT) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform at Cowen based on valuation and expectations for decelerating growth in 2H08.
  
• Silver State Bancorp (NASDAQ: SSBX) was downgraded to Sell from Hold at Sandler O'Neil.

Analyst downgrades: BOOM, AGN and JAVA originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 02 May 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Sun Microsystems buys MySQL database developer

Sun Microsystems buys MySQL database developer originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 Jan 2008 10:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Sun Microsystems needs more than cost cutting in 2008 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 07 Jan 2008 15:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Goldman upgraded shares of Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) to Buy from Neutral and added the company to their pan-Europe Conviction Buy List, as they believe the factors that lead to the October earnings miss will be rectified and the company will report upside to Q4 estimates.
  
• Credit Suisse upgraded Total SA (NYSE: TOT) to Outperform from Neutral based on valuation and expectations for a return in upstream volume growth in 2008.
  
• Credit Suisse also upgraded Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) to Outperform from Neutral, citing RIMM's expanding international market share.
  
• MasterCard (NYSE: MA) was raised to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank, as they believe the company's margin potential is yet to be fully priced into shares or Street estimates.
  
• Citigroup raised shares of Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: JAVA) to Buy from Hold to reflect the company's improving product line, restructuring, and share buyback. They find the risk/reward attractive and expect solid Q2 results.

• Goldman added Oracle (NASDAQ: ORCL) to its Conviction Buy List.
  
• Citigroup upgraded American Eagle (NYSE: AEO) to Hold from Sell.
  
• KeyBanc raised its rating on Comstock Resources (NYSE: CRK) to Buy from Hold.
  
• Millennium Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ: MLNM) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Cowen.
  
• Roth Capital upgraded Gevity HR (NASDAQ: GVHR) to Hold from Sell.

Analyst upgrades: ERIC, TOT, RIMM, MA and JAVA originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 06 Nov 2007 11:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• With its reputation at stake, Countrywide Financial Corporation (NYSE: CFC) has launched an aggressive PR offensive beginning inside the firm, reported the Wall Street Journal (subscription required).
• Barron's Online's (subscription required) "Inside Scoop" section reported that on Friday, two days after the stock dipped to $12.07, a 6-year low, Borders Group Inc (NYSE: BGP) CEO George Jones bought 50K shares, his first open market purchase since joining the retailer.
• The Financial Times (subscription required) reported that Citigroup Inc (NYSE: C) CEO Chuck Prince is waiting for a review of the company's $3.3B in losses and writedowns in its banking business for Q3 before deciding whether to fire executives as a result of the poor performance, according to senior Citigroup executives.
• Yahoo Inc (NASDAQ: YHOO) said it was considering selling Kelkoo, the online shopping comparison service that it acquired in 2004, admitting the acquisition did not pan out as planned, reported the Financial Times.

• Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: JAVA) is going to combine its storage and server product teams to create a new converged group called the Systems team, Sun Microsystems CEO Jonathan Schwartz wrote in his blog.
• Henry Blodget made a case for Google's (NASDAQ: GOOG) stock going to $2,000 a share at AlleyInsider.com.

Newspaper wrap-up: Yahoo (YHOO) considering selling Kelkoo originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 03 Oct 2007 09:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Sun Microsystems (JAVA) sheds light on fiscal 2008 outlook

Sun Microsystems (JAVA) sheds light on fiscal 2008 outlook originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 05 Sep 2007 15:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• With his company's stock near a 52-week low, Robert Willett, CEO of Best Buy Incorporated's (NYSE: BBY) international operations, bought nearly $500K in stock, reported Barron's Online's "Inside Scoop" section.
• In a rare instance of a foreign company being allowed into the Chinese onshore oil and gas industry, Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) will develop a natural gas filed owned by PetroChina Company Limited (NYSE: PTR), reported the Wall Street Journal.
• The Wall Street Journal reported that Sun Microsystems Inc (NASDAQ: SUNW) is today expected to introduce a new microprocessor called UltraSparc T2, will be able to process up to 64 threads at one time -- most chips can handle up to four threads at a time.
• According to the Financial Times, citing a source familiar with his pay package, Robert Nardelli will college a salary of $1 a year in his new role as CEO of Chrysler, which is 20% owned by DaimlerChrysler (NYSE: DCX).

• The New York Mercantile Exchange (NYSE: NMX) is quietly selling its lower Manhattan headquarters, asking for between $600M and $700M, ahead of a deal to sell itself, reported the New York Post.

Newspaper wrap-up: Sun Micro introducing new, faster chip originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 07 Aug 2007 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Margins improving at Sun, but no real growth yet originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 31 Jul 2007 07:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Soleil upgraded shares of Staples, Inc (NASDAQ: SPLS) to Buy from Hold following the in-line Q1 results, as the firm believes management's initiatives will benefit the company for the remainder of the year.

• Matrix upgraded Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: SUNW) to Hold from Sell based on improved profitability and margins due to cost cuts.

• First Albany upgraded Forest Laboratories (NYSE: FRX) to Strong Buy from Neutral following positive preliminary results for Milnacipran in Fibromyalgia.

• AvalonBay Communities (NYSE: AVB) was raised to Market Perform from Underperform at BMO Capital based on valuation.

• Bernstein upgraded shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) to Outperform from Market Perform...

• Piper Jaffray upgraded Medtronic, Inc (NYSE: MDT) to Outperform from Market Perform.

• Advanced Analogic Technologies Incorp (NASDAQ: AATI) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Needham.

• CIBC raised Cypress Bioscience, Inc's (NASDAQ: CYPB) rating to Sector Outperformer from Sector Performer.

• HSBC upgraded Agnico-Eagle Mines Ltd (NYSE: AEM) and AngloGold Ashanti Ltd (NYSE: AU) to Overweight from Neutral.

Analyst upgrades 5-23-07: COP, FRX, SPLS and SUNW originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 23 May 2007 11:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Sun posts poor results, muted guidance originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 25 Apr 2007 14:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• FedEx Corp (NYSE: FDX) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Citigroup and lowered their target to $120 from $132 to reflect expectations for slower earnings growth in the next few quarters combined with ongoing uncertainty on the timing of an economic recovery. The broker recommends putting new money into United Parcel Service, Inc (UPS).

• AG Edwards cut National City Corp (NYSE: NCC) to Sell from Hold. The firm believes upside is limited at these levels and weak EPS growth trends are likely to put some pressure on National City's valuation.

• Bernstein downgraded Sun Microsystems Inc (NASDAQ: SUNW) to Underperform from Market Perform, as checks indicate Q3 may be weaker than prior quarters and could disappoint given investors' high expectations.

• Oppenheimer cut M&T Bank Corp (NYSE: MTB) to Sell from Neutral following the company's Q1 pre-announcement.

• Jefferies downgraded Blackbaud, Inc (NASDAQ: BLKB) to Hold from Buy with a $25 target due to channel checks that suggested the company has not launched its new product Bulls Eye in Q1 with any major effort.

• Stifel downgraded Deere & Co (NYSE: DE) to Hold from Buy, citing valuation, the potential overhang from the record corn crop/ethanol glut, seasonally normal crop prices and DE stock, sluggish construction and forestry results in the housing recession.

• JP Morgan downgraded Kronos Inc (NASDAQ: KRON) to Neutral from Overweight based on its pending acquisition.

• Stephens cut Sanderson Farms, Inc (NASDAQ: SAFM) to Equal Weight from Overweight based on valuation.

• Goldman Sachs downgraded Ethan Allen Interiors Inc (NYSE: ETH) to Sell from Neutral.

Analyst downgrades 4-02-07: FedEx Corp & Sun Microsystems downgraded today originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 02 Apr 2007 11:06:00 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.

Analysts not blinded by Sun at investor's day originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 08 Feb 2007 07:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Sun's results solid, does KKR convert mean acquisition on horizon? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 24 Jan 2007 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• First Albany upgraded shares of Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: SUNW) to Buy from Neutral with a $7 target and has increased confidence that Sun can deliver on its 10%-plus operating margin following KKR's appointment to the Board.

• Morgan Stanley upgraded the Telecom Services sector to In Line from Cautious, citing a positive view on AT&T Inc (NYSE: T) and industry trends.

• Goldman Sachs added Occidental Petroleum Corp (NYSE: OXY) to its America's Conviction Buy List and upgraded shares to Buy from Neutral, citing valuation.

• Bear Stearns upgraded EMC Corp (NYSE: EMC) to Outperform from Peer Perform following its fourth-quarter report citing improved execution and a favorable demand environment.

• Longbow upgraded AK Steel Holding Corp (NYSE: AKS) to Neutral from Sell.

• Raymond James upgraded Brinker International Inc (NYSE: EAT) to Outperform from Neutral.

Analyst upgrades 1-24-07: First Albany warms up to Sun Microsystems originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 24 Jan 2007 11:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Intel striking back against AMD with Sun alliance originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 22 Jan 2007 15:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
• Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) may be in talks to acquire the in-game advertising company AdScape Media.
• Home Depot (NYSE: HD) directors are expected to meet with activist investor Ralph Whitworth, who wants the company to spin-off its lower margin supply business to better concentrate on its main stores.
• Sun Microsystems (NASDAQ: SUNW) is expected to announce an agreement with Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) that would involve Sun buying Intel chips for its server systems.
• Barron's Magazine (subscription required)
• Shares of Under Armour (NASDAQ: UARM) may be set to take a tumble and some only believe shares should be trading no higher than $40.
• Shares of Alcoa (NYSE: AA) may be set for another run and John Buckingham of Al Frank Asset Management would buy shares up to $32.41.
• The "Technology Trader" says it may be too early to walk away from shares of Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO).
• The Financial Times (subscription required) reported that a private equity consortium may be after Dow Chemical (NYSE: DOW).

• The U.K. Times reported that Tata Steel and CSN are both expected to raise their bid for Corus (NYSE: CGA).
  
• The Telegraph reported that BP's (NYSE: BP) exiting CEO Browne, dreamed of merging with Shell (NYSE: RDS.A).

Newspaper wrap-up 1-22-07: Google in talks to acquire AdScape originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 22 Jan 2007 09:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.