It's been a busy week in the equities market. Earnings reports are coming fast and furious. I thought I would catch up on a few companies with a brief look at their numbers.

First up is an entity from the consumer products sector. Kimberly-Clark (KMB), a colleague of Procter & Gamble (PG), issued fourth-quarter data on Friday. Sales increased over 8%, with a better currency environment helping things out. Organic sales powered up almost 3%, driven in part by higher prices. Per-share profit went up over 15% to $1.17.

Continue reading A Look at Three Quarterly Reports: Kimberly-Clark, Xerox, American Express

A Look at Three Quarterly Reports: Kimberly-Clark, Xerox, American Express originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 23 Jan 2010 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Some big names set new 52-week highs Tuesday: WAG, ACS, WYE ...

Some big names set new 52-week highs Tuesday: WAG, ACS, WYE ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

From TheStreet.com Network

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Continue reading Cramer on BloggingStocks: The need to be long is lifting us all

Cramer on BloggingStocks: The need to be long is lifting us all originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 29 Sep 2009 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Traders had on their rally caps today, and the DJIA moved as high as 9,823 as it renewed its ascent toward 10,000. The index moved back down a bit at the end of the day as traders got lazy during a session in which most of the news came before the bell.

Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) and Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) both announced deals today that pumped some air into the M&A business. Financial shares are mostly moving higher because increased M&A activity generally means more fees for financial services companies. Trading volume was light, mostly due to the Yom Kippur holiday today.

Today's numbers:

Dow 9,789.44 +124.25 (1.29%)
S&P 500 1,062.88 +18.50 (1.77%)
Nasdaq 2,130.74 +39.82 (1.90%)

Continue reading Closing bell: M&A gives market a boost; Coffee also provides stimulus (C, BAC, ACS, DDRX & GMCR)

Closing bell: M&A gives market a boost; Coffee also provides stimulus (C, BAC, ACS, DDRX & GMCR) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 28 Sep 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Goldman upgraded Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) to Buy from Neutral on expectations business in the U.S. and China will improve in the second half of 2009. Goldman raised its target price on shares to $40 from $36.
• Canaccord upgraded Exco Resources (NYSE: XCO) to Buy from Speculative Buy citing the company's financial transactions to reduce debt. The firm, which has a $17 target on the stock, says Exco now has a stronger balance sheet, a greater geographic focus, and the ability to expedite drilling programs.
• ThinkEquity upgraded Shanda (NASDAQ: SNDA) to Accumulate from Source of Funds and raised its target to $60 from $50. The firm believes recent weakness on regulatory concerns is overdone and that Q2 estimates are conservative.
• Mack-Cali Realty (NYSE: CLI) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays.
• Marvel Entertainment (NYSE: MVL) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan.
• France Telecom (NYSE: FTE) was upgraded to Outperform from Underperform at Credit Suisse.

Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: HOT, MVL, NDAQ, PALM, YUM ...

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: HOT, MVL, NDAQ, PALM, YUM ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades:

• William Blair upgraded Parexel (NASDAQ: PRXL) to Outperform from Market Perform on increased conviction in the company's earnings growth outlook following channel checks.
  
• Friedman Billings upgraded UDR Inc (NYSE: UDR) to Outperform from Market Perform and raised its target to $22 from $26 citing the company's approximate 8% implied cap rate on is vastly improved apartment portfolio.
  
• Citigroup upgraded Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) to Hold from Sell on valuation as they believe weak fundamentals are now priced into the stock.
• Goldman upgraded Portland General Electric (NYSE: POR) to Buy from Neutral and added shares to the Conviction Buy List.
  
• StellarOne (NASDAQ: STEL) and Union Bankshares (NASDAQ: UBSH) were upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at Baird.
  
• Bernstein upgraded DISH Network (NASDAQ: DISH) to Market Perform from Underperform.

• Deutsche Bank downgraded Align Tech (NASDAQ: ALGN) to Hold from Buy as they believe macroeconomic pressures will limit the company's ability to reach longer term growth expectations. Align's target was lowered to $8 from $14.
  
• Jefferies downgraded shares of Advanced Medical (NYSE: EYE) to Underperform from Buy and lowered its target to $9 from $28 following the company's lowered guidance as they believe macroeconomic pressures affecting LASIK volumes and the unanticipated slowdown in lens care should put continued pressure on the stock.
  
• ThinkPanmure expects the macro slowdown and credit crunch to slow Intel's (NASDAQ: INTC) growth and IT capex spending. The firm downgraded shares to Sell from Buy, lowered its 2009 EPS estimate to $1.01 from $1.35, vs. consensus of $1.46, and cut Intel's target to $12 from $24.
• MGM Mirage (NYSE: MGM) was lowered to Neutral from Positive at Susquehanna.
  
• Charles River Labs (NYSE: CRL) was downgraded at William Blair to Market Perform from Outperform.
  
• Deutsche Bank cut Heinz (NYSE: HNZ) and MasterCard (NYSE: MA) to Hold from Buy.

• Old Second Bancorp (NASDAQ: OSBC) was initiated with a Market Perform rating and $17 target at Keefe Bruyette. The firm believes the company's exposure to strong markets should generate above-average returns.
  
• Susquehanna assumed Affiliated Computer (NYSE: ACS) with a Positive rating and $55 target and is positive on the company's low levels of customer concentration and high levels of geographic diversification.
  
• Cowen resumed coverage of AnnTaylor (NYSE: ANN) with a Neutral rating, citing the company's share loss to competitors and top-line weakness..
• MetLife (NYSE: MET) was assumed with an Overweight rating at Morgan Stanley.
  
• JMP Securities initiated HFF Inc (NYSE: HF) with a Market Perform rating.
  
• Genpact (NYSE: G) was initiated at Susquehanna with a Neutral rating.

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: PRXL, ANF, DISH, INTC, HNZ, MA, MET ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 10 Oct 2008 11:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades:

• Baird upgraded Dicks Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS) to Outperform from Neutral based on valuation.
  
• Home Depot (NYSE: HD) was raised to Market Perform from Underperform by Morgan Keegan.
  
• Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform by Avondale.

• BMO Capital downgraded Hasbro (NYSE: HAS) to Underperform from Market Perform due to valuation and macro headwinds.
  
• UBS dropped Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) to Neutral from Buy because of slowing casual dining trends.
• Goldman Sachs dropped Affiliated Computer (NYSE: ACS) to Neutral from Buy.
  
• Goldman also downgraded Automatic Data Processing (NYSE: ADP) to Neutral from Buy.

• CIBC initiated Nortel Networks (NYSE: NT) with a Sector Performer rating based on what they see as the company's limited growth and margin prospects.
  
• Needham initiated Juniper (NASDAQ: JNPR) with a Hold rating, citing valuation.
  
• Blockbuster (NYSE: BBI) was initiated with a Hold by Needham, which would like to see if the company's turnaround is sustainable before becoming more constructive on the shares.

Analyst calls: HD, LUV, HAS, DRI, JNPR, BBI ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 19 Aug 2008 11:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• ComScore (NASDAQ: SCOR) was upgraded to Outperform from Perform at Oppenheimer to reflect the strong Q1 report and strong customer additions.
  
• Duke Realty (NYSE: DRE) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Wachovia upgraded based on valuation.
  
• Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.
  
• Sun Healthcare (NASDAQ: SUNH) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Friedman Billings based on valuation and notes the Medicare rate cuts will be as drastic as feared.

• MedAssets (NASDAQ: MDAS) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Piper, which thinks the company's acquisition of Accuro will strengthen its revenue cycle management offering, and the firm believes the tight credit markets make the company's MedAssets a compelling product in the short-term. In addition, Piper notes that the company has recently had success with large hospital systems.
  
• Jones Apparel (NYSE: JNY) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Merrill citing sales expectations for the l.e.i. brand at Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and margin improvements from leaner inventories.
  
• Affiliated Computer (NYSE: ACS) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Jefferies based on valuation and expectations for better bookings.

Analyst upgrades: SCOR, DRE, JWN and SUNH originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 02 May 2008 10:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Deutsche Bank upgraded Wachovia (NYSE: WB), citing valuation and recent capital actions.
  
• Bank of America upgraded American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), citing the new Ohio rate structure which will provide steady growth.
  
• Merrill upgraded Consol Energy (NYSE: CNX) based on higher coal prices.

• Goldman upgraded the Integrated Oils sector based on risk/reward relative to oil prices. ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) is the firm's favorite pick.
  
• Affiliated Computer Services (NYSE: ACS) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral. Goldman expects Affiliated to do well in the current slower macro backdrop and views shares as relatively insulated to government cutbacks.

Analyst upgrades: WB, COP, ACS, AEP and CNX originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 29 Apr 2008 11:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

With the market being propelled upward due to private equity and corporate acquisitions, investors should not stay on the sidelines. Rather, they should target private equity's next frontier -- IT services. Of the companies in this sector, Unisys Corp. (NYSE: UIS), Perot Systems Corp. (NYSE: PER) and Ingram Micro, Inc. (NYSE: IM) may be worth examining.

A few months ago, I suggested several sectors and companies that private equity could target next. On Friday, TheStreet.com reiterated one of those sectors -- IT services. Here's how much seven such companies have gone up or down since my March 29th post along with their market capitalizations ranked by their Price/Earnings to Earnings Growth (PEG) ratios:

Continue reading Investing in private equity's next frontier

Investing in private equity's next frontier originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 21 May 2007 10:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Back in 1988, Darwin Deason founded Affiliated Computer Services, Inc. (NYSE: ACS) to help build computer and software systems for major clients. It's turned out to be a successful business as the company generated $5.3 billion revenues last year. A big focus is on processing bank transactions and healthcare claims.

Now, Deason is taking ACS private in a $8.2 billion deal. The private equity buyer is Cerberus Capital Management.

Like many techs, ACS suffered from a stock options investigation. It was a managerial distraction (the CEO departed) and expensive.

So it's understandable why Deason wants to leave the public markets.

What's more, Deason will roll-over his major position in ACS stock in the deal. He certainly sees long-term potential here. And with voting control, he can basically call the shots.

However, he may have to bump the $59.25 offer up a bit. The current stock price is $60.10.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The EDGAR-Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.

ACS wants out for $8.2 billion originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 20 Mar 2007 13:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.