This post is part of a special report, Global advisors look to China.

"Asian markets now trade at valuations below those of other recession periods, yet investors remain extremely negative and unwilling to buy growth," says Asian stock specialist Yiannis Mostrous.

The editor of The Silk Road Investor explains, "This combination will allow prudent bargain-hunters to position themselves for the next cycle." Here, he looks at one Asian favorite -- Taiwan Semiconductor (NYSE: TSM).

Continue reading Taiwan Semi (TSM): A buy for bargain hunters

Taiwan Semi (TSM): A buy for bargain hunters originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 29 Mar 2009 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

With its own economic stimulus program in place, a relatively stable banking system, and a stock market that has been resilient in recent months, numerous leading global investment advisors are looking bullishly towards China.

From technology to power, and from individual stocks to ETFs, and from Hong Kong to Taiwan to mainland China, we turn to seven leading advisors for their favorite ways for US investors to take a stake in Asia.

Continue reading Global advisors look to China: 10 picks from seven pros

Global advisors look to China: 10 picks from seven pros originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 27 Mar 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Kindred Healthcare, Five Star Quality, Corporate Executive Board, Deckers Outdoor and Discover were today's noteworthy upgrades:

• Jefferies upgraded shares of Kindred Healthcare Inc (NYSE: KND) to Buy from Hold on valuation as they believe the risk/reward is attractive given good near-term earnings visibility and reasonable prospects for legislation to remove a significant reimbursement overhang.
• The firm also upgraded Five Star Quality Inc (AMEX: FVE) to Buy from Hold following a meeting with management, to reflect the company's improving occupancy and better cost controls.
• Deutsche Bank upgraded shares of The Corporate Executive Board Company (NASDAQ: EXBD) to Buy from Hold as they believe the company is positioned for strong growth in 2008.
• Nollenberger upgraded shares of Deckers Outdoor Corporation (NASDAQ: DECK) to Buy from Neutral, as they believe the UGG brand will continue to outperform expectations both domestically and internationally.
• Discover Financial Services LLC (NYSE: DFS) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Calyon on valuation.

• HSBC raised Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Ltd (NYSE: TSM) to Overweight from Neutral.
• Banc of America upgraded Hess Corporation (NYSE: HES) to Buy from Neutral.
• Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE: WMT) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Merrill Lynch.
• Deutsche Bank upped General Mills Inc (NYSE: GIS) to Buy from Hold.

Analyst upgrades: KND, FVE, EXBD, DECK and DFS originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 26 Oct 2007 10:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• In an interview with the Financial Times (subscription required), Carl Icahn said of Motorola (NYSE: MOT): "There is value there, and if that value doesn't manifest itself, I as an activist, would think very seriously about coming back."

• Universal Music is in talks with Sony Corporation's (NYSE: SNE) Sony BMG and Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG) over launching a music subscription service to be called Total Music, which would be free on certain devices, reported the Telegraph.
• While Emerging Memory Technologies CEO Sreedhar Natarajan would not confirm the deal, stating "I'm under a non-disclosure agreement," it is clear that EMT has been acquired by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (NYSE: TSM), the Ottawa Citizen reported.
• Lehman Brothers analyst Douglas Anmuth believes Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) will launch a mobile phone similar to that of Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone in February, reported the Independent.
• The Associated Press reported that Nomura Holdings (NYSE: NMR) announced that it will close its mortgage-backed securities business in the U.S., and expects a group pretax loss of between $240M and $510M for the quarter ended in September.

• According to Unstrung.com's sources in the finance community, Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO) is expected to enter the WiMax arena before the end of the month, and Navini Networks is Cisco's preferred target.

Newspaper wrap-up: Icahn looking at Motorola originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 15 Oct 2007 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Citigroup cut Statoil (NYSE: STO), BG Group (NYSE: BRG) and Repsol SA (NYSE: REP) to Sell from Hold due to valuation and the difficult operating environment.

• Matrix USA downgraded Flow International (NASDAQ: FLOW) to Strong Sell from Hold, citing weak demand from Asian customers that led to slowing sales growth.

• Bernstein downgraded the refining sector to Underperform and refiners Sunoco (NYSE: SUN) and Valero Energy (NYSE: VLO) to Underperform from Market Perform...

• Canadian Pacific (NYSE: CP) was cut to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse; RBC Capital downgraded CP shares to Sector Perform from Outperform.

• Goldman downgraded Taiwan Semi (NYSE: TSM) to Neutral from Buy.

• Buckingham lowered Johnson Controls (NYSE: JCI) to Accumulate from Buy.

• Credit Suisse downgraded Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH) to Neutral from Outperform.

Analyst downgrades 7-19-07: CAH, JCI, SUN, TSM and VLO originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 19 Jul 2007 11:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• According to people familiar with the matter, at least three groups of private-equity companies have formed to attempt to purchase wireless carrier Alltel Corporation (NYSE: AT), reported the Wall Street Journal (subscription required).
• The Wall Street Journal's "Heard in Asia" column reported that in order for Sony Corporation's (NYSE: SNE) stock to rise when it reports next week, it is going to have to convince investors that its PlayStation unit is showing improvement.
• The Financial Times (subscription required) reported that almost half of the senior management at Citigroup Inc's (NYSE: C) consumer operations have quit in the last 18 months, as criticism of CEO Chuck Prince has grown.

• According to the Telegraph, Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A) and BP plc ADS's (NYSE: BP) Russian joint venture, TNK-BP, are expected to join the auction for the 537-petrol station network belonging to Yukos. The bidding is expected to start at GBP150M.
• GlaxoSmithKline plc ADR (NYSE: GSK) has begun to promote Alli, the first weight-loss drug to be approved by the FDA for over-the-counter sale, reported the New York Times.

• According to DigiTimes.com, citing industry insiders, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (NYSE: TSM) is looking to up production of Intel Corporation's (NADSAQ: INTC) 802.11n Wi-Fi chips at 0.13-micron in Q3, a sign of closer collaboration between the two companies.

Newspaper wrap-up 5-9-07: Private equity looking at Alltel originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 09 May 2007 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Dell Inc (NASDAQ: DELL) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse, with a $28 target. The firm expects Dell to augment its existing technology with targeted acquisitions, reduce its cost structure and tweak its distribution philosophy.

• American Technology upgraded Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co ADS (NYSE: TSM) to Neutral From Sell.

• Level 3 Communications Inc (NASDAQ: LVLT) was upgraded to Market Perform from Sell at Janco; the firm doesn't recommend being short on the stock which is going into earnings on February 9th.

• Dominion Resources Inc (NYSE: D) was upgraded to Hold from Sell, with an $81 target, at Deutsche Bank.

Analyst upgrades 2-05-07: Credit Suisse has big expectations for Dell originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 05 Feb 2007 10:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.