Analyst Upgrades

• Disney (DIS) to buy from hold at Wunderlich.
• Pike Electric (PIKE) to outperform from market perform at FBR Capital.
• Kindred Healthcare (KND) to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.
• UBS (UBS) to hold from sell at Canaccord.
• Avery Dennison (AVY) and Take-Two (TTWO) to buy from neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• Mercer (MERC) to outperform from market perform at Raymond James.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: AVY, CSUN, DIS, INTU, KBH, KEY, LEN, NVTL, UBS, USNA ...

Analyst Calls: AVY, CSUN, DIS, INTU, KBH, KEY, LEN, NVTL, UBS, USNA ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 09 Feb 2011 11:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Exxon Mobil (XOM) and BB&T (BBT) to outperform from perform at Oppenheimer.
• D.R. Horton (DHI) upgraded to outperform from market perform at Wells Fargo.
• Meritage Homes (MTH), Old Dominion Freight (ODFL) and Heartland Payment (HPY) to outperform from market perform at Wells Fargo.
• Toll Brothers (TOL) to overweight from equal weight at Barclays.
• Hershey (HSY) to buy from neutral at Janney Capital.
• UnitedHealth (UNH), Cigna (CI) and Allscripts (MDRX) to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank.
• Nationwide Health (NHP) to outperform from market perform at JMP Securities.
• Reynolds American (RAI) to buy from neutral at UBS.
• Adtran (ADTN), PG&E (PCG) and Wisconsin Energy (WEC) to overweight from equal weight at Morgan Stanley.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: BBT, CI, DG, DHI, HSY, NFLX, RAI, TOL, UNH, WAT, XOM ...

Analyst Calls: BBT, CI, DG, DHI, HSY, NFLX, RAI, TOL, UNH, WAT, XOM ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 06 Jan 2011 11:40:00 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.

Bearish sentiment is nearly palpable as Toll Brothers (TOL) prepares to unveil its fiscal third-quarter results. Ahead of the open on Wednesday, Toll Brothers is expected to report a quarterly loss of 14 cents per share -- significantly improved from the homebuilder's year-ago deficit of $2.93 per share.

The company has a dismal track record in the earnings spotlight though, having fallen short of Wall Street's consensus expectations in three of the past four reporting periods. And, judging by recent increases in short interest and buy-to-open put volume, traders are bracing for another disappointing report from Toll Brothers.

Continue reading Low Expectations Ahead of Earnings from Toll Brothers

Low Expectations Ahead of Earnings from Toll Brothers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 24 Aug 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Options Update: Toll Brothers September Volatility Flat originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 19 Aug 2010 17:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Goldman Sachs Slashes Ratings Across Entire Homebuilder's Industry

Goldman Sachs Slashes Ratings Across Entire Homebuilder's Industry originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 14 Jul 2010 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Toll Brothers (TOL - option chain) stock is traded lower Thursday after the company said in an update that it expects total net signed contracts in the third quarter of this year to be less than those signed in the previous quarter due to seasonal trends. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on TOL.

Thursday, TOL opened at $18.49. In early trading, the stock hit a high of $18.70 and a low of $17.78. As of 12:20, TOL was trading at $17.99, down $0.79 (-4.2%). The chart for TOL looks bullish and S&P gives TOL a positive 4 STARS (out of 5) buy ranking.

Continue reading Toll Brothers Drops on Q3 Warning

Toll Brothers Drops on Q3 Warning originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 Jun 2010 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It looks like John Paulson wants to get ahead of the crowd. He and other large homebuilders are buying prime building lots in states like Arizona, Colorado and Nevada.

The big players like Lennar Corp (LEN), Standard Pacific Corp. (SPF), KB Home (KBH), DR Horton (DHI) and Toll Brothers (TOL) are all grabbing lots at bargain basement prices.

Continue reading Hedge Fund Manager John Paulson Is Buying Prime Building Lots

Hedge Fund Manager John Paulson Is Buying Prime Building Lots originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Aeropostale Inc. (ARO) strong Q3 results topped analysts expectations, and it offered Q4 earnings guidance.
• Cascade Corp. (CASC) reported a surprise Q3 profit but lower revenue fell short of expectations.
• Collective Brands Inc. (PSS) reported strong Q3 earnings as well as same-store sales growth.
• Cost Plus Inc. (CPWM) narrowed its net loss in Q3 but revenue and same-stores sales declined.
• Del Monte Foods Co. (DLM) posted strong Q2 results and raised its earnings outlook for the full year.
• Diamond Foods Inc. (DMND) posted better-than-expected Q1 earnings, but said that revenue declined.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Aeropostale, Del Monte, Guess, Shanda, Staples, Toll Bros. ...

Earnings highlights: Aeropostale, Del Monte, Guess, Shanda, Staples, Toll Bros. ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 05 Dec 2009 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Cost Plus Inc. (CPWM) reported Thursday that its net loss from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2009 came to $22.3 million, or $1.01 per share, compared to a net loss of $24.0 million, or $1.09 per share, last year. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected a loss of $1.10 per share. Cost Plus also said net sales for the quarter totaled $181.9 million, a 10.4% decrease from the year-ago period. Same store sales for the quarter decreased 9.1% due in part to lower furniture sales and a relatively flat customer count.

Diamond Foods Inc. (DMND) reported a record profit of $0.88 per share for the first quarter of fiscal 2010. That was 38% higher than a year ago and topped the analysts' consensus forecast of $0.81 per share. Net sales for the quarter came to $180.6 million, 8% lower than in the prior year, due in part to a late walnut crop harvest. Diamond's forecast for the fiscal year are EPS of $1.72 to $1.82 and revenue of $585 million to $605 million, which is in line with analysts' expectations.

Continue reading Earnings roundup: Cost Plus, Diamond Foods, Marvell Tech, Toll Brothers

Earnings roundup: Cost Plus, Diamond Foods, Marvell Tech, Toll Brothers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 04 Dec 2009 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF) lower Q3 results still topped expectations and sent shares higher.
• Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) posted much better-than-expected Q4 earnings, the first profit in a year.
• AstraZeneca (AZN) received an analyst's downgrade due to concerns over its earnings prospects.
• Blackstone Group (BX) received an analyst's upgrade following the company's Q3 results.
• Blockbuster Inc. (BBI) widened its net loss in Q3 and revenue and same-stores sales declined.
• Clean Energy Fuels Corp. (CLNE) shares declined after its Q3 numbers fell short of expectations.
• Consolidated Water Co. Inc. (CWCO) earnings prospects for 2010 earned it an analyst upgrade.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Abercrombie, Blockbuster, Disney, Macy's, Walmart ...

Earnings highlights: Abercrombie, Blockbuster, Disney, Macy's, Walmart ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 14 Nov 2009 14:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Toll Brothers (TOL - option chain) shares are rising today after the company announced preliminary Q4 results last night. TOL said that its fourth-quarter homebuilding revenue dropped 30 percent but its fourth quarter net signed contracts rose 42 percent, well above analysts' forecasts. TOL is expected to report full Q4 earnings on December 3 before the market opens. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on TOL.

Continue reading Toll Brothers (TOL) announces positive preliminary Q4 results

Toll Brothers (TOL) announces positive preliminary Q4 results originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

From TheStreet.com Network

• Bearish on Banks: TheStreet Says
• Citigroup, Bank of America Smeared Again: Today's Outrage

TheStreet.com's Jim Cramer says stocks connected to the sector will take it on the chin if the housing index falls further.

A perusal of the charts this weekend shows something surprising: The weakest group out there has been the homebuilders for several weeks now. KB Home (NYSE: KBH) (Cramer's Take), D.R. Horton (NYSE: DHI) (Cramer's Take), Lennar (NYSE: LEN) (Cramer's Take), and Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) (Cramer's Take) have simply been a horror show. What's going on here? How can these stocks be so dangerous when mortgage rates have crashed through 5%, the level that every banker I talk to says mortgages jump off the table and refinancings rush to be done.

What's going on? This group's tracking more than just mortgage rates. It's tracking employment and news flow and both are terrible.

Continue reading Cramer on BloggingStocks: Housing stocks are key to this market

Cramer on BloggingStocks: Housing stocks are key to this market originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 10:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (NYSE: AEO) Q2 profit fell short of estimates as same-store sales declined.
• Ann Taylor Stores Corp. (NYSE: ANN) Q2 earnings beat very low expectations and same-store sales fell.
• Big Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) reported better-than-expected numbers for Q2, sending shares upward.
• Burger King Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BKC) posted a better-than-expected Q4 profit though revenue declined.
• China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. posted a record Q2 profit after restrictions on fuel prices were lifted.
• Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) said its Q2 earnings declined, but they still topped analysts' expectations.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Burger King, Dell, Dollar Tree, J. Crew, Staples, Toll Bros. ...

Earnings highlights: Burger King, Dell, Dollar Tree, J. Crew, Staples, Toll Bros. ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 29 Aug 2009 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Luxury homebuilder Toll Brothers Inc. (NYSE: TOL) is scheduled to discuss its fiscal third-quarter 2009 results tomorrow in a conference call at 2:00 PM ET hosted by CEO Robert I. Toll. You can catch the live webcast of the call on the company's website.

Recent good news about the housing sector ought to be good news for homebuilders such as Toll Brothers. Yet, for the three months that ended July 31, analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect the Pennsylvania-based company to report that its net loss widened to $1.74 per share from $0.18 per share a year ago. That largely due to the fact that revenue for the quarter is expected to have fallen 42.3% to $460.2 million, because of of falling home prices, tighter mortgage lending standards, and rising unemployment.

Continue reading Toll Brothers earnings preview: A big Q3 loss expected

Toll Brothers earnings preview: A big Q3 loss expected originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 26 Aug 2009 17:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades:

• Citigroup upgraded Advanced Micro (NYSE: AMD) to Buy from Hold and raised its target to $5.50 from $4.25 citing valuation and expectations for the company's competitive position and gross margins to improve.
• Barclays upgraded American Express (NYSE: AXP) to Overweight from Equal Weight citing long-term earnings growth as the company benefits from declining charge-offs and credit costs. The firm has a $38 target on the stock.
• JPMorgan upgraded Arch Coal (NYSE: ACI) to Overweight from Neutral and raised its target to $22 from $19 citing the FTC approval for the acquisition of Jacobs Ranch mine and valuation.
• Bebe Stores (NASDAQ: BEBE) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Stephens.
• Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ: CAKE) was upgraded to Neutral from Underweight at Piper Jaffray.
• Ashland (NYSE: ASH) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at KeyBanc.

Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AMD, AXP, ACI, NOK, NRP, SYK, WPCS

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AMD, AXP, ACI, NOK, NRP, SYK, WPCS originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 24 Aug 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters are looking for EPS for these banks to have fallen from 15% to 25% from a year ago. Their long-term EPS growth forecast is for between 10% and 12%, which is in the same range as U.S. rivals JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) and Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC), but better than Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) and Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C). Earnings multiples for these Canadian banks are 10x to 12x, but none of them have a First Call consensus recommendation is to buy. The Motley Fool, though, considers TD as a value stock and RY a stock poised to pop. All of them are trading much closer to their 52-week highs than lows, and shares of all are up more than 100% since March lows.

Continue reading The week in preview: Canadian banks in the earnings spotlight

The week in preview: Canadian banks in the earnings spotlight originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 23 Aug 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Most investors got slammed last year, down 50% or more in their investments. Didn't matter if they owned stocks or real estate, they got hammered. Many have to start over. And if they're near retirement, it's scary. Years of patient investing wiped out, gains that were made over a long time disappeared frighteningly fast.

But now it's time to begin fresh, to rebuild. What's the safest way to regain some or all of the losses without suffering another wipeout?

Continue reading Comfort Zone Investing: Starting over

Comfort Zone Investing: Starting over originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 22 Aug 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Lennar (NYSE: LEN), whose colleagues include Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) and D.R. Horton (NYSE: DHI), reported earnings for the second quarter on Thursday. Since it is a homebuilder, you can expect that it would be a tough one to look at in many respects. There was a revenue decline of over 20%. And there was no profit. Lennar said it lost 76 cents per diluted share.

According to Michael Fowlkes and his earnings preview, Lennar did not satisfy Wall Street's outlook. Analysts were expecting a loss somewhere closer to 63 cents per share. That didn't stop the stock from going up, though. Lennar closed higher yesterday by over 17%. Volume was likewise incredible. Apparently, the market was focusing on the revenue beat.

Continue reading Lennar's Q2 doesn't convince me to buy

Lennar's Q2 doesn't convince me to buy originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 26 Jun 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This week brings a small flurry of end-of-the-calendar-quarter earnings reports. And for the most part, the expectations of the analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters aren't very high. Companies expected to report declining earnings in the most recently concluded quarter include America's Car-Mart Inc. (NASDAQ: CRMT), Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBY), ConAgra Foods Inc. (NYSE: CAG), Jabil Circuit Inc. (NYSE: JBL), Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc. (NYSE: JTX), Monsanto Co. (NYSE: MON), and Sonic Corp. (NASDAQ: SONC).

Continue reading The week in preview: End-of-quarter earnings expectations: Nike, Oracle, Walgreen ...

The week in preview: End-of-quarter earnings expectations: Nike, Oracle, Walgreen ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 21 Jun 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.