As I sit in the Istanbul Airport watching the snow fall outside, I'm reminded of the song by the great Willie Nelson. Some of the best memories of my childhood include singing that song with my father, as we traveled on holiday from campsite to campsite. Today, those words have a much different meaning.

I just drained the last few electrons of my BlackBerry's battery, as I told my family the bad news. My flight has been canceled, and it will be another day before I get home, and another weekend lost in the air.

Continue reading Road Warrior: 'On the Road Again, Just Can't Wait to Get on the Road Again'

Road Warrior: 'On the Road Again, Just Can't Wait to Get on the Road Again' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 06 Feb 2010 12:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Activision Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) beat Q4 expectations and raised its fiscal 2009 guidance.
• Air France-KLM swung to a loss in the fourth quarter and warned of tough times ahead.
• BJ's Wholesale Club (NYSE: BJ) Q1 earnings soared, beating expectations, and it raised its forecast.
• Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) beat Q1 estimates on robust demand and favorable exchange rates.
• Foot Locker Inc. (NYSE: FL) Q1 profit declined, hurt by an impairment charge and nearly flat sales.
• Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) beat Q1 earnings estimates by managing costs and inventory.
• Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) Q1 earnings tumbled on a one-time charge and the housing slump.
• Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ: INTU) beat Q3 expectations and announced a share buyback program.
• Lenovo Group Ltd. (OTC: LNVGY) Q4 earnings more than doubled on strong global distribution.
• Lowe's Companies Inc. (NYSE: LOW) reported a so-so first quater in line with Wall Street expectations.
• NetEase.com Inc. (NASDAQ: NTES) Q1 earnings declined due to increased tax burden.
• Saks Inc. (NYSE: SKS) missed Q1 earnings estimates but beat revenue expectations.
• Solarfun Power Holdings Co. (NASDAQ: SOLF) Q1 revenue surged 529% from the previous quarter.
• Suntech Power Holdings Co. (NYSE: STP) Q1 revenues soared and earnings more than doubled.

Additional earnings highlights:
Hewlett-Packard, Target, Barnes & Noble, Campbell, Staples and others
Ford, Hormel, Limited Brands, Intuitive Surgical, PetSmart and others

Upcoming results to watch for include Borders (NYSE: BGP), Polo Ralph Lauren (NYSE: RL), TiVo (NASDAQ: TIVO), Big Lots (NYSE: BIG), Costco (NASDAQ: COST), Dell (NASDAQ: DELL), HJ Heinz (NYSE: HNZ), Sears (NASDAQ: SHLD), Lions Gate (NYSE: LGF), and Tiffany (NYSE: TIF).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

Earnings highlights: Home Depot, Gap, Lenovo, Air France, Activision, Suntech and others originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 24 May 2008 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Air France-KLM joins the list of hurting airlines

Air France-KLM joins the list of hurting airlines originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 22 May 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• Although Delta Air Lines Inc (NYSE: DAL) would like to merge with either UAL Corporation's (NASDAQ: UAUA) United Airlines or Northwest Airlines Corporation (NYSE: NWA), the company is close to Air France-KLM (NYSE: AKH), and together the two may be able to better shape a deal, the Wall Street Journal's "Heard on the Street" reported.
• The Wall Street Journal also reported that recent acquisitions by Sun Microsystems Inc (NASDAQ: JAVA) and Oracle Corporation (NASDAQ: ORCL) have suggested factors like a slowing economy could kick the high-tech deals into a "higher gear".
• Following a risk/reward reassessment, UBS AG (NYSE: UBS) decided to wind down its Switzerland-based private banking business for rich U.S. clients; the decision was announced internally in late December, but confirmed publicly this week, the Financial Times reported.

• According to the Economic Times, after the dissolution of a proposed joint venture with Rajesh Exports, Fossil Incorporated (NASDAQ: FOSL), the U.S. fashion accessories giant, is set to enter India on its own.

Newspaper wrap-up: Delta, Air France may be able to shape a deal originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 Jan 2008 08:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• JMP Securities said checks indicate Oracle's (NASDAQ:ORCL) business is slowing along with enterprise software spending. The firm downgraded shares to Market Outperform from Strong Buy.
  
• VeriFone (NYSE:PAY) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Merrill Lynch following its announcement it would restate 2007 financials due to errors.
  
• Goldman lowered its rating on Air France (NYSE:AKH) to Neutral from Buy to reflect lower revenue and higher fuel cost assumptions.

• Punk Ziegel downgraded Lehman (NYSE:LEH), Goldman (NYSE:GS) and Bear Stearns(NYSE:BSC) to Sell from Market Perform. Banc of America lowered Tiffany (NYSE:TIF) To Neutral from Buy.
  

Analyst downgrades: ORCL, PAY and AKH originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 04 Dec 2007 11:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Air France-KLM (NYSE: AKH) nearly doubled Q2 profits, and may make offers for some European rivals.
• Blue Coat Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: BCSI) beat expectations and raised its guidance.
• Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) posted strong results and announced approval of a stock split.
• Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) reported a $2 billion loss for the third quarter.
• Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ) beat expectations for the eleventh straight quarter.
• Lowe's Cos. (NYSE: LOW) sales and profits declined due to the housing slump.
• Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE: JWN) easily beat estimates, signaling strength among luxury retailers.
• Office Depot Inc. (NYSE: ODP) beat estimates but lowered its Q4 outlook.
• Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) fell short of expectations and announced a share buyback.
• Whole Foods Market Inc. (NASDAQ: WFMI) reported weak earnings but raised its dividend.

Douglas McIntyre ponders whether HP's results put pressure on Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) ahead of Dell's impending report, and he also examines Qualcomm Inc.'s (NASDAQ: QCOM) future earnings difficulties.

Upcoming results to watch for include: Dell Inc. and Sears Holdings (NASDAQ: SHLD).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

Earnings highlights: HP, Freddie Mac, Deere, Target, and others originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 24 Nov 2007 08:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Goldman removed shares of Air France (NYSE: AKH) from its Conviction Buy List due to the increase in the price of fuel and the possibility of an economic slowdown.
  
• The firm also removed Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) from the list after the company suspended two studies of its anti-clotting drug. The company was also downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley.
  
• UBS downgraded shares of Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER) to Neutral from Buy as it believes the company's exposure to problem asset classes will remain under pressure and possibly lead to further write-downs. UBS lowered its Q4 estimate to $1.12 from $1.18 and 2008 estimate to $7.00 from $7.85. Shares were also downgraded at Wachovia to Market Perform from Outperform. The firm sees increased risk to the MER story given expected pressure on compensation to keep people, speculation around turnover in senior ranks, and the ability to retain and motivate people. Additionally, the firm sees further risk to MER's exposure to ABS, CDOs and sub-prime asset declines.
  
• Rochdale downgraded shares of Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT) to Hold from Buy citing lack of catalysts from the company's two-day analyst meeting.
  
• WestLB downgraded shares of GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) to Sell from Add to reflect the company's growth prospects in Q4 and 2008.

• Sirenza Microdevices (NASDAQ: SMDI) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Jefferies.
  
• Piper Jaffray lowered its rating on Talbots (NYSE: TLB) to Market Perform from Outperform.
  
• Bear Stearns downgraded Palm (NASDAQ: PALM) to Underperform from Peer Perform.

Analyst downgrades: AKH, LLY, MER, WMT and GSK originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 25 Oct 2007 11:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Goldman removed shares of Air France (NYSE: AKH) from its Conviction Buy List due to the increase in the price of fuel and the possibility of an economic slowdown.
  
• Goldman downgraded BHP Billiton (NYSE: BHP) to Neutral from Buy and removed the stock from its Pan-Europe Buy List due to valuation.
  
• Merrill Lynch downgraded shares of AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) to Sell from Neutral to reflect increased competition from generic-drug makers, a poor pipeline and slow earnings growth.
  
• Wachovia downgraded shares of Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM) to Hold from Buy to reflect valuation and the company's lower than expected Q3 results. Shares were also lowered to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank.
  
• Stanford lowered Savvis (NASDAQ: SVVS) to Hold from Buy and notes that the company's Q3 results and Q4 revenue guidance brings the company's 2007 revenue outlook $15M below the consensus, and advises investors to remain on the sidelines. The firm believes the company's strategy is sound, but that its execution has been slow.

• Blockbuster (NYSE: BBI) and Akzo Nobel (OTC: AKZOY) were downgraded to Neutral from Overweight at JP Morgan.
  
• Friedman Billings downgraded the E&P sector, including Brigham Exploration Company (NASDAQ: BEXP), Mariner Energy (NYSE: ME) and Nobel Energy (NYSE: NBL) to Market Perform from Outperform.
  
• Baird downgraded Plantronics (NYSE: PLT) to Neutral from Outperform.
  
• Goldman downgraded Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) to Neutral from Buy.

Analyst downgrades: AKH, BHP, AZN, BRCM and SVVS originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 24 Oct 2007 11:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• NutriSystem (NASDAQ: NTRI) was upgraded to Strong Buy from Buy at Broadpoint on valuation, as they believe all concerns are overdone.
  
• Think Equities upgraded Under Armour (NYSE: UA) to Buy from Accumulate on valuation.
  
• Wachovia upgraded CME Group (NYSE: CME) to Overweight from Market weight, as they expect fed income volumes to benefit from a more active Federal Reserve.
  
• Goldman added Air France (NYSE: AKH) to its Pan-European Conviction Buy List citing valuation following the recent sell-off.
  
• Citigroup upgraded shares of Kilroy Realty (NYSE: KRC) to Buy from Hold on valuation, as they believe concerns are overblown and the company's underleveraged balance sheet can drive growth.

• UBS raised SXC Health Solutions (NASDAQ: SXCI) to Buy from Neutral.
  
• Think Equities upgraded Symantec Corporation (NASDAQ: SYMC) to Accumulate from Source of Funds.
  
• DA Davidson & Co upgraded Texas Industries (NYSE: TXI) to Buy from Hold.
  
• Lehman upgraded Intersil Corporation (NASDAQ: ISIL) to Equal Weight from Underweight.
  
• Keefe Bruyette upgraded SEI Investments (NASDAQ: SEIC) to Outperform from Market Perform.

Analyst upgrades: NTRI, UA, CME, AKH and KRC originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 01 Oct 2007 11:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Limited Brands Inc (NYSE: LTD) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Banc of America, to Neutral from Accumulate at Buckingham, to Hold from Buy at Citigroup and to Market Perform from Outperform at Wachovia following the news of selling a majority interest in its Express brand and announcing the intent to explore strategic options for the company.

• Elsewhere, Cowen downgraded shares of Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT) to Neutral from Outperform due to Q3 order guidance and limited visibility. American Technology removed Applied Materials from its Focus List.

• Williams-Sonoma (NYSE: WSM) was cut to Market Perform from Outperform at Piper Jaffray on concerns about mall traffic trends at the end of Q1 for both Pottery Barn and Williams-Sonoma brands.

• Texas Instruments (NYSE: TXN) was cut to Sector Performer from Outperformer at CIBC on valuation...

• Merriman downgraded Lam Research Corp (NASDAQ: LRCX) to Neutral from Buy.

• UBS cut Air France-KLM (NYSE: AKH) to Neutral from Buy.

• ThinkEquity downgraded Jazz Technologies, Inc (AMEX: JAZ) to Source of Funds from Buy.

• Nordstrom, Inc (NYSE: JWN) was taken down to Market Weight from Overweight at Thomas Wiesel.

• Longbow downgraded Ingersoll-Rand Co Ltd (NYSE: IR) to Neutral from Buy on valuation.

Analyst downgrades 5-16-07: AMAT, JWN, LTD, TXN and WSM originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 May 2007 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.