Continue reading Investing in Canadian Tar Sands

Investing in Canadian Tar Sands originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 16 Jul 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The contributing editor to The Money Map Report explains, "The 'Sisters' owned pretty well all of the world's oil reserves. They had the world's best oil extraction and refining technology. They marketed the product to motorists, power stations, chemical companies, and all other users of the black gold. They made consistent profits, grew steadily as oil consumption increased, and paid good dividend."

Continue reading Suncor (SU): A 'Must-Have' Energy Holding

Suncor (SU): A 'Must-Have' Energy Holding originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 06 Apr 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"Canadian energy giants Suncor Energy (NYSE: SU) and PetroCanada (NYSE: PCZ) announced their intention to merge; Suncor, a holding in our 'Wildcatters Portfolio' will be the surviving entity," says Elliott Gue.

In his The Energy Strategist, he explains, "The combined firm will be the fifth-largest energy company in North America and the largest in Canada." Here, he explains why the new stock remains a buy.

"The combined firm will have more financial flexibility than Suncor did on its own. Debt ratios will be healthier, and the combined firm will also be able to redirect certain planned capital expenditures to higher return potential projects.

Continue reading Suncor (SU): A merger 'made in Canada'

Suncor (SU): A merger 'made in Canada' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 27 May 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades:

• Canaccord upgraded Rio Tinto (NYSE: RTP) to Buy from Hold citing valuation following the severe price decline following BHP Billiton's (NYSE: BHP) dropped bid.
• UBS upgraded Itron (NASDAQ: ITRI) to Buy from Neutral citing valuation and defensive business mix.
• Jefferies upgraded shares of HealthSouth (NYSE: HLS) to Buy from Hold on valuation and maintains a $13.50 target.
• Melco PBL Entertainment (NASDAQ: MPEL) was raised to buy from Neutral at Goldman.
• PG&E (NYSE: PCG) was upgraded at Merrill Lynch to Buy from Neutral.
• HSBC Holdings (NYSE: HBC) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS.

Analyst downgrades:

Continue reading Analyst calls: RTP, ITRI, HLS, BHP, BX, DT, UL, GPC, KND . . .

Analyst calls: RTP, ITRI, HLS, BHP, BX, DT, UL, GPC, KND . . . originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 11:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Keefe Bruyette upgraded the European Banks sector to Neutral from Underweight on valuation as they see limited downside from current levels. Included in the firm's top picks are HSBC Holdings Plc (NYSE: HBC) and Banco Santander SA (NYSE: STD).
• Credit Suisse upgraded the Paper and Forest Products sector to Overweight from Underweight citing valuations and expectations that fundamentals will bottom this fall. The firm raised shares of Temple-Inland Inc (NYSE: TIN) and Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation (NASDAQ: SSCC) to Outperform from Neutral.
• Friedman Billings upgraded shares of Kindred Healthcare Inc (NYSE: KND) to Outperform from Market Perform on valuation following the recent pullback and believes the company is well-positioned to beat modest expectations over the remainder of the year. The firm raised their target to $36 from $29.
• Oppenheimer raised Convergys Corporation (NYSE: CVG) to Outperform from Perform on valuation, as they believe investors should look at the company's business lines separately. Their sum of parts valuation yields an $18 target.

• Suncor Energy Inc (NYSE: SU) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan and to Outperform from Market Perform at Friedman Billings.
• UBS upgraded BT Group Plc (NYSE: BT) to Neutral from Sell.
• Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Piper.

Analyst upgrades: European Banks, Paper and Forest Products sectors, BRCM, KND and CVG originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 07 Jul 2008 11:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Suncor (NYSE: SU), Canadian oil sand operations, reported that first quarter net income rose 23% on higher oil prices.

CIBC World says: "The ramp up of coker expansion later this year should be a significant positive catalyst."

WTI Crude oil is recently up 0.42% to $116.55 according to Bloomberg.

SU May option implied volatility of 40 is near its 26-week average of 39 according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price risks.

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

Option Update: Suncor volatility flat into net income up 23% & $116 oil originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 25 Apr 2008 10:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Suncor (NASDAQ: SU) announced a two-for-one share split.

SU, an integrated energy company with Canadian oil sand operations, closed at $102.84 Wednesday. WTI Crude oil is recently up 0.30% to $100 according to Bloomberg.

SU March option implied volatility of 33 is below its 26-week average of 36 according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price risks.

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

Option update: Suncor (SU) volatility low into 2-for-1 stock split & $100 oil originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 28 Feb 2008 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Socially conscious investors may want to grab a copy of this week's (April 2, 2007) edition of FORTUNE magazine, which is all about the greening of corporate America. No longer can companies merely not pollute: The double bottom line of both economic profitability and social responsibility demands that companies re-engineer themselves and their products to be as environmentally friendly as possible.

Companies that are ahead of the game will prosper. Companies that lag behind in environmentalism will be punished by investors as well as the media. The article "Green is Good" summarizes the green activities of 10 well known companies that stand to reap rewards for their environmentally sensitive manufacturing and operational practices. Companies taking the lead towards a low-carbon economy are:

Continue reading Companies going green to make the green

Companies going green to make the green originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 04 Apr 2007 20:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Bank of America upgraded Citigroup Inc (NYSE: C) to Buy from Neutral with a $58 target to reflect the low valuation and the company's opportunities to increase earnings growth over the next year.

• Altria Group (NYSE: MO) was added to Goldman Sachs' Conviction Buy List. The firm believes shares, excluding Kraft (KFT), could reach $76 over the next 12 months. Goldman also thinks Altria may announce a spinoff of its Philip Morris International unit this summer.

• TreeHouse Foods Inc (NYSE: THS) was upgraded to Buy from Sell on valuation at Matrix.

• Suncor Energy Inc (NYSE: SU) was upgraded Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank.

• Melco PBL Entertainment (NASDAQ: MPEL) was upgraded to Hold from Sell at Citigroup.

• Prudential upped J.M. Smucker Co (NYSE: SJM) to Neutral from Underweight.

• BMO upgraded Smurfit-Stone Container Corp (NASDAQ: SSCC) to Outperform from Market Perform.

• Raymond James upgraded Cbeyond, Inc (NASDAQ: CBEY) to Outperform from Market Perform.

• Stifel upgraded Accenture Ltd (NYSE: ACN) to Buy from Hold with a $44 target.

Analyst upgrades 3-28-07: Citigroup Inc & Altria Group upgraded today originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 28 Mar 2007 10:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

"It may have been a rough and tumble year for natural gas, but the market is coming back with a vengeance," says Kevin Kerr in his Marketwatch Global Resources newsletter.

The natural gas market has had "an extremely volatile 12 months of trading," he recalls. Both the Amaranth hedge fund trading debacle and the lack of hurricanes over the past season drove the prices to extreme lows.

Now, he says, "All that may be changing as wholesale prices soar." Indeed, natural gas has rallied to a two-month high, coincident with the cold froze in the northern U.S.

According to Kerr, the "Perma-bears" in the natural gas market are discounting the cold weather, stating that it is hitting late in the season. They also are leery of gas inventories that are 21% higher than the average for the past five years.

Continue reading Cold freeze causes Suncor to shine

Cold freeze causes Suncor to shine originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 12 Feb 2007 10:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• HSBC Holdings Plc (NYSE: HBC) was downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JP Morgan, as the firm believes the loan loss from the U.S. mortgage business may be 20% worse than expected. They recommend investors to short HBC shares and use any rally to add short positions.
• Suncor Energy Inc (NYSE: SU) was downgraded to Underperform from Market Perform at Freidman Billings, citing fair valuation, higher capital costs and downside potential from crude oil prices.
• Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) was removed from Goldman Sachs' Conviction Buy List.

• Roche Holdings (OTC: RHHBY) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at UBS.
• Pacer Int'l Inc (NASDAQ: PACR) was downgraded to Neutral from Outperform with a $33 target at Baird after the company's disappointing fourth-quarter report.
• Baird downgraded Host Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: HST) to Neutral from Outperform on valuation.
• Sina Corp (NASDAQ: SINA) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Piper Jaffray due to valuation after the company's solid quarter.
• JP Morgan downgraded AK Steel Holding Corp (NYSE: AKS) to Neutral from Overweight as they believe an acquisition of the company is not likely imminent given recent insider selling.
• Raymond James downgraded Time Warner Telecom Inc (NASDAQ: TWTC) to Outperform from Strong Buy.
• Oppenheimer downgraded FMC Corp (NYSE: FMC) to Neutral from Buy.
• AG Edwards downgraded Simon Property Group Inc (NYSE: SPG) to Hold from Buy on valuation.

Analyst downgrades 2-08-07: Problems at HSBC Holdings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 08 Feb 2007 11:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.