Hormel Foods (NYSE: HRL) closed at $28.44 Tuesday. HRL is scheduled to report Q4 EPS on November 25. HRL overall option implied volatility of 41 is above its 26-week average of 30 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.
Sanderson Farms (NYSE: SAFM) closed at $27.49 Tuesday. SAFM filed a $1 billion shelf registration for common and preferred shares on October 9 on the anticipation of using the proceeds to fund acquisitions. SAFM November option implied volatility of 91 is above its 26-week average of 58 according Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.
Pilgrim's Pride (NYSE: PPC), the largest chicken company in the U.S., closed at $1.40 Tuesday. PPC announced on October 27 lenders have agreed to provide continued liquidity under credit facilities. PPC December option implied volatility is at 239 according to Track Data, suggesting large price fluctuations.
Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD), a processor of packaged meats, closed at $9.49 Tuesday. SFD November option implied volatility of 166 is above its 26-week average of 88 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.
Tyson (NYSE: TSN) closed $8.05 Tuesday. TSN is scheduled to report Q4 EPS on November 11. TSN November option implied volatility is at 133, December is at 124; above its 26-week average of 54 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price fluctuations.
Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com
So the earnings crunch continues, and here's a look at some companies scheduled to report results this week that are anticipated to be big winners and losers in terms of earnings growth.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expect the following to report strong earnings growth when compared to the same period of the previous year.
Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA): $4.10 EPS (+53.9%) on revenue of $3.8 billion (+54.6%)
EOG Resources Inc. (NYSE: EOG): $2.34 EPS (+50.0%) on revenue of $1.7 billion (+62.2%)
Avon Products Inc. (NYSE: AVP): $0.47 EPS (+44.7%) on revenue of $2.6 billion (+11.5%)
This post is part of our Big Company, Small Town series, featuring large companies and the small towns in which they are headquartered.
Pilgrim's Pride's home roots in the small town of Pittsburg, Texas, perhaps explain why it is the largest chicken producer in the U.S., even ahead of competitor Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE: TSN) in Arkansas. In 1946, Lonnie "Bo" Pilgrim dressed like a standard Pilgrim and tucked a small chicken under his arm when completing orders for customers. He gave away free chicks when he sold chicken feed as a way to expand his market for chicken feed. As of today, Pilgrim's Pride operates chicken processing plants in 13 states and Mexico and processes 44 million chickens per week, resulting in 9 billion pounds of chickens per year and over 528 million chicken eggs per year.
Pilgrim's Pride's operations are almost exclusively located in the U.S. close to its farms, and it has become the second-largest chicken supplier to Mexico as well. It does have processing plants in Mexico and Puerto Rico. Along with such huge chicken-producing numbers come a few problems, as a huge product recall in 2002 due to Lysteria contamination killed seven people and made over 40 customers sick. In 2004, more than 24,000 hens were destroyed after a strain of avian flu was found in Hopkins County, Texas.
Pilgrim's Pride is still based in the same location where it was founded over 60 years ago, but today stands as a completely vertically-integrated company: it owns every process and facility from egg to table, as it says. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT), Publix Super Markets (OTC: PUSH) and KFC, a division of Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) ,can be counted as some of Pilgrim's Pride's largest customers.
This post is part of our Big Company, Small Town series, featuring large companies and the small towns in which they are headquartered.
Like most big companies located in small towns, Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) has a delightfully quirky origin. John Tyson, owner of a battered truck and 500 chickens, opportunist, and debtor in the Depression-era 1930s struck an idea that probably seemed like folly to his neighbors: he'd deliver chickens to Chicago and Kansas City, where they'd get more money.
I'm sure for every story like Tyson's, there were 100 that didn't turn out so auspiciously. But in this tale, the hero comes back to his little Arkansas hometown with a profit and pays off his debts. He keeps on raising and selling birds in points north, eventually devising a plan to keep more of the profits by "vertically integrating" (I'll bet dollars-to-doughnuts he didn't call it that) and incubating his own chicks instead of buying them from a hatchery, as well as milling his own feed instead of buying it from a feed store.
This wasn't the end of Tyson's forethought. He bought a broiler farm in Springdale, Arkansas (beginning the company's history in that town) and started to cross-breed birds designed for meat production, instead of using heritage (or "pedigree") breeds.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Goldman Sachs, Alexza Pharma and SAP AG were today's noteworthy upgrades:
Wachovia upgraded Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) to Outperform from Market Perform, as they believe Goldman has a superior capital position relative to competitors and will likely benefit more than any firm from Bear Stearns' (NYSE: BSC) collapse. They have a $180-$185 target range for the stock.
Following Alexza Pharma's (NASDAQ: ALXA) Q4 report, JMP Securities said they have reduced concerns regarding Loxapine timelines and risks. The firm raised Alexza to Outperform from Market Perform.
SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Bernstein on valuation and a positive view on fundamentals.
OTHER UPGRADES:
Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) was raised to Overweight from Equal Weight at Stephens.
Citigroup upgraded Teekay Shipping (NYSE: TK) and General Maritime (GMR) to Buy from Hold.
RiskMetrics (NYSE: RMG) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Banc of America.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Fluor, Forward Air and McDermott were today's noteworthy upgrades:
Citigroup upgraded shares of Fluor (NYSE: FLR) to Buy from Hold to reflect the company's strong performance and backlog in Q4 and raised their target to $190.50 from $158.
Baird upgraded Forward Air (NASDAQ: FWRD) to Outperform from Neutral citing near-term growth initiatives that are gaining traction.
Citigroup also upgraded shares of McDermott (NYSE: MDR) to Buy from Hold to reflect the company's strong Q4 performance and rising commodity prices.
Verizon reported fourth-quarter earnings that were in line with expectations of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial. The company earned $1.07 billion, or 37 cents per share, in the period ending in December, compared to $1.03 billion, or 35 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier. Excluding charges for severance costs related to layoffs and a loss on the sale of Verizon's operations in the Dominican Republic, the latest earnings were 62 cents per share.
Revenue for the fourth quarter was $23.8 billion, up 5.5% from $22.6 billion a year ago. The average analyst forecast had been $23.96 billion. For all of 2007, Verizon earned $5.5 billion, or $1.90 a share, on $93.5 billion in revenue, compared to a profit of $6.2 billion, or $2.12 a share, on $88.2 billion in revenue the year before.
Shares were up almost 1% on Monday, to close at $38.11. Shares were at 52-week low of $35.40 last week.
Proxy Governance Inc. has recommended that shareholders withhold their support for the board of directors at Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE: TSN), in light of excessive executive compensation in the face of operational underperformance.
Tyson has underperformed its peer group over the past few years, and Proxy argues that the company's management has not done enough to respond to industry challenges including increased feed costs and export restrictions on beef.
In 2007, Tyson stock declined in value while Richard Bond was paid $24.6 million. Tyson says that "it's apparent they haven't done all their homework." But I think that a CEO getting paid $24.6 million while presiding over the destruction of shareholder value is indicative of a compensation committee that hasn't done its homework: Proxy estimated that Tyson chief executives have been paid 82% more than CEOs at other companies in the peer group.
Executive pay is, as a whole, so out of touch with reality that any company that is overpaying so egregiously that it gets the attention of a proxy advisory firm really doesn't have a leg to stand on. Hopefully Tyson shareholder will send a message to the board.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Tyson Foods, Unilever, Brooks Automation, Akzo Nobel and Yahoo! were today's noteworthy upgrades:
Deutsche Bank upgraded shares of Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) to Buy from Hold on valuation and the potential for protein complex improvement.
Goldman upgraded shares of Unilever (NYSE: UN) to Neutral from Sell to reflect the company's diversified product range and growing exposure to developing and emerging markets.
Bear Stearns raised its rating on Brooks Automation (NASDAQ: BRKS) to Outperform from Peer Perform. The firm cited the company's compelling valuation and growth drivers.
Akzo Nobel (OTC: AKZOY) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at SNS Securities, as they see absolute total return greater than 20%.
CIBC upgraded Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) to Sector Outperformer from Sector Performer on valuation following the recent pullback and their analysis of Yahoo's non-operating assets. They believe Yahoo's stake in Alibaba Group is now worth about $4/share and raised their target to $31 from $28.
OTHER UPGRADES:
First Analysis upgraded Spss Inc (NASDAQ: SPSS) to Overweight from Equal Weight.
UBS upgraded Yamana Gold (NYSE: AUY) to Buy from Neutral.
Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) to report Q4 earnings. They are holding a conference call at 9am and a business update later at 10:45am.
Tuesday, November 13
Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT) to report Q3 earnings; pre-recorded conference call at 7am.
Home Depot (NYSE: HD) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 9am.
Fed Reserve Governor Randall Kroszner is the Keynote Speaker at Standard & Poor's Banking Conference in New York at 1pm.
Wednesday, November 14
Fed Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is the Keynote Speaker at Cato Institute Annual Monetary Conference at 9:10am.
Macy's (NYSE: M) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 10:30am.
Thursday, November 15
Charles Schwab (NASDAQ: SCHW) to hold business update conference call at 10:30am.
Nevada District Court: Bayer (NYSE: BAY) vs. Watson Pharmaceuticals (NYSE: WPI) on Patent Infringement Lawsuit over the generic birth control drug YAZ.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Total SA, HLTH Corp, Aflac First Solar and Town Sports were today's noteworthy upgrades:
Citigroup upgraded Total SA (NYSE: TOT) to Buy from Hold following the company's Q3 results. JP Morgan upgraded shares to Overweight from Neutral, as they believe the company's Q3 results underlined the strength of exploration and production growth prospects versus peers.
Friedman Billings raised its rating on HLTH Corporation (NASDAQ: HLTH) to Outperform from Market Perform following the company's proposal to merge into WebMD Health Corp (NASDAQ: WBMD) for a combination of cash and stock.
The firm also added shares of Aflac (NYSE: AFL) to its Top Picks List, as they believe Aflac is the only high quality, defensive growth story in the Life Insurance sector.
CIBC upgraded shares of First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR) to Sector Outperformer from Sector Performer following the Q3 upside and set a $230 target on the stock.
Banc of America upgraded shares of Town Sports (NASDAQ: CLUB) to Neutral from Sell on valuation as they believe the downside risk is now priced into the stock.
OTHER UPGRADES:
Credit Suisse upgraded Nortel Networks (NYSE: NT) to Neutral from Underperform.
With its recent acquisition of GoldKist, Pilgrim's Pride Corporation (NYSE: PPC) is now the largest chicken company in the United States. This acquisition was part of a larger consolidation of the chicken industry, a development that has given large companies like PPC and its rival Tyson Foods, Inc. (NYSE: TSN) a great deal of pricing power, especially with the industry-wide production cuts that have limited supply and helped sustain higher prices.
This pricing power has been especially important with the rising price of corn, which has increased feed costs to a substantial degree. Fortunately for PPC, it's been able to offset these costs with higher prices, and its most recent quarterly report announced net income of $62 million, compared with a $20 million loss in the same quarter of 2006. For the nine months of fiscal year 2007, PPC's revenues are up nearly 65%.
It's no surprise, then, that PPC's stock price has benefited, and it is now trading near its 52-week high. It's not clear whether its margins will be sustainable, given the potential for corn prices to keep rising and the cyclical nature of poultry prices. But a recent report from Bank of Montreal's food analyst argued that corn prices have been self-correcting (they were down 25% over the summer), and it also pointed to the rise of Blue Ear disease in China, which could mean a rise in demand for protein-rich food like chicken; meanwhile the consolidation and production cuts should stabilize price volatility for the foreseeable future. At the right price, this one could well be a nice meal for your portfolio.
Type of Stock: The largest chicken company in America, with a newfound return to profitability.
Price Target: The Bank of Montreal report predicted a 12-month price target of $47. With the stock near $40, that would be a nice gain of more than 10%. But this stock tends to go up and down a bit, and you might be able to make your purchase closer to $35.
Hilary Kramer is a financial editor and money coach for AOL and an authority on investing. Visit her at www.hilarykramer.com.
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Countrywide Financial (CFC), Toll Brothers (TOL), United Parcel Service (UPS) and OSI Pharma (OSIP) were today's noteworthy upgrades:
Both Friedman Billings and Wachovia upgraded Countrywide Financial (NYSE: CFC) to Market Perform from Underperform following the $2 billion investment by the Bank of America (BAC).
JMP Securities upgraded Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) to Market Perform from Underperform and believes the worst news on housing is reflected and that fears over a disappearing jumbo loan market are overblown.
Matrix upgraded United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) to Buy from Hold to reflect strong demand from overseas shipping.
Wachovia raised OSI Pharma (NASDAQ: OSIP) to Market Perform from Underperform on valuation...
OTHER UPGRADES:
UBS raised Joy Global (NASDAQ: JOYG) to Buy from Neutral.
China Netcom (NYSE: CN) was raised to Neutral from Sell at UBS.
Roth Capital upgraded IMAX Corp (NASDAQ: IMAX) to Buy from Hold.
WedBush raised InfoSpace (NASDAQ: INSP) to Buy from Hold.
Tyson Foods Inc (NYSE: TSN) said last week that it would produce all of its retail chickens without antibiotics, and that could be good for profitability, reported the Wall Street Journal's "Heard on the Street" column.
A rebel Vodafone Group plc (NYSE: VOD) shareholder will describe how the company's stake in U.S. mobile phone operator Verizon Wireless is a "cash drain" on Vodafone, reported the Financial Times (subscription required).
The replacement for NZ Telecom Corporation (NYSE: NZT) CEO Theresa Gattung, who is retiring after eight years on the job, is not yet known but expected to be announced before the end of the week, reported the New Zealand Herald.
This post is part of our 
This post is part of our .gif){kind=logo}
.gif){kind=logo}
With its recent acquisition of GoldKist, 
.gif){kind=logo}
Stock picks and pans for troubled times: RIMM, ED, ISRG, GLW, LEA, SLB, GOOG ...
Is Berkshire Hathaway better than S&P Index?
Closing Bell: Torch Passing on a Friday Rally
