American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings (AXL) is prepping for its turn in the earnings spotlight. The auto parts issue is slated to confess its second-quarter results ahead of Friday's opening bell, and at least one speculator is looking for a major post-event move from the shares. Bright and early Thursday morning, an ambivalent options trader opened an at-the-money straddle on AXL.

Specifically, the trader simultaneously purchased several matching blocks of August 9 puts and calls. With AXL trading just pennies above $9, both of these options are at the money. By scooping up equal numbers of puts and calls at the same strike, the trader is hoping to capitalize on a drastic move higher or lower from the security.

Continue reading American Axle Targeted by a Pre-earnings Straddle

American Axle Targeted by a Pre-earnings Straddle originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 29 Jul 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

American Axle (NYSE: AXL) closed at $2.01. AXL entered into a waiver and amendment to the company's credit, facility, which provides the company a waiver of its financial covenants through July 30, 2009. AXL options were active on July 29 with 30,608 contracts trading. AXL August 2.5 straddle is priced at 1.40, October 2.5 straddle is priced at $2.35 suggesting large price movement.

Patterson-UTI Energy (NYSE: PTEN) closed at $14.23. PTEN, an operator of 60 drilling rigs, is expected to report Q2 EPS today. PTEN August option implied volatility is at 55, September is at 49; below its 26-week average of 64. PTEN options were active on July 29 with 6,452 contracts, trading according to Track Data.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

Options Update: American Axle option volume and prices elevated on expectations originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 30 Jul 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: American Axle, Knight Transportation and Newfield Exploration were today's noteworthy upgrades.

• Citigroup upgraded shares of American Axle and Manufacturing Holdings Inc (NYSE: AXL) to Buy from Hold on valuation following the recent sell-off and recommends switching out of General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM) and into AXL; the firm downgraded GM to Hold from Buy.
• Wachovia upgraded Knight Transportation Inc (NYSE: KNX) to Outperform from Market Perform as they expect the company to benefit earlier from capacity leaving the TL market.
• KeyBanc raised Newfield Exploration Company (NYSE: NFX) to Buy from Hold based on production growth visibility, Rockies value, and increased estimates.

OTHER UPGRADES:

• LCA Vision Incorporated (NASDAQ: LCAV) was upgraded to Sector Perform from Underperform at RBC Capital.
• Deutsche Bank raised Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico SA (NYSE: PAC) to Buy from Hold
Baker Hughes Incorporated (NYSE: BHI) to Buy from Neutral.

Analyst upgrades: American Axle, Knight Transportation, Newfield Exploration originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 27 May 2008 13:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: General Motors, Anheuser-Busch and GlaxoSmithKline were today's noteworthy downgrades.

• Citigroup downgraded shares of General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM) to Hold from Buy to reflect reduced earnings power and cash burn risks and recommends swapping into American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc (NYSE: AXL).
• Deutsche Bank cut Anheuser-Busch Companies Inc (NYSE: BUD) to Hold from Buy on valuation following the recent rally spurred by takeover speculation. The firm believes the reported $65/share cash takeover offer by Inbev requires aggressive cost reduction and could harm the brands.
• Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of GlaxoSmithKline Plc (NYSE: GSK) to Underweight from Equal Weight as they see risk to Street expectations for a U.S. Cervarix approval in 2009.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• Wachovia downgraded Old Dominion Freight Line Inc (NASDAQ: ODFL) to Market Perform from Outperform.
• Lehman downgraded Yara International (OTC: YARIY) to Equal Weight from Overweight.
• Goldman downgraded China Mobile Limited (NYSE: CHL) to Sell from Neutral and added shares to the Conviction Sell List.

Analyst downgrades: General Motors, Anheuser-Busch, GlaxoSmithKline originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 27 May 2008 12:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

General Motors (GM) discloses implications of AXL strike originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 23 May 2008 13:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS

• General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM) plants that were idled during the American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc (NYSE: AXL) strike are set to resume production mow that the strike has been settled, the Wall Street Journal reported.

• The Telegraph reported that Halliburton Company (NYSE: HAL) is expected to determine this week whether it will make a GBP1.8B counter bid for its British competitor, Expro International Group (OTC: EXPRF).
• The Telegraph also reported that U.K.-based Imperial Tobacco Group Plc (NYSE: ITY) could conduct a GBP5B rights issue this week. The company has suggested that it needs the funds in order to retain its investment-grade credit rating following its acquisition of Altadis.

• According to Bloomberg, regulatory filings show that banks such as Citigroup Incorporated (NYSE: C) are failing to acknowledge at $35B of additional writedowns in their income statements.

Newspaper wrap-up: GM plants to start production after strike settled originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 19 May 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. (NYSE: AXL) reported a strike-related Q1 loss.
• Arch Coal Inc. (NYSE: ACI) Q1 profit tripled on increased demand and higher prices.
• Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) posted better-than-expected earnings despite Dreamliner delays.
• Coach Inc. (NYSE: COH) better-than-expected quarter didn't impress Jim Cramer.
• ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) reported Q1 earnings and revenue above analysts' forecasts.
• Delta Air Lines Inc. (NYSE: DAL) reported a big loss on a one-time charge and fuel costs.
• Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE: DOW) posted a smaller-than-forecast profit drop and predicted a good Q2.
• EI DuPont de Nemours & Co. (NYSE: DD) Q1 earnings rose 26% but missed expectations.
• Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) surprised Wall Street by swinging to a profit in the first quarter.
• Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. (NYSE: GT) easily surpassed analyst estimates for the first quarter.
• Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL) Q1 earnings and revenue rose due to international growth.
• Hershey Co. (NYSE: HSY) profit fell but was in line with analysts' expectations.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Ford, Boeing, McDonald's, PepsiCo, JetBlue and others

Earnings highlights: Ford, Boeing, McDonald's, PepsiCo, JetBlue and others originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 27 Apr 2008 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The Wall Street Journal reported that Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) CEO Alan Mulally isn't done cost-cutting. According to people close to the situation, Mulally is considering more job cuts, selling its Volvo brand and closing the troubled Mercury brand.
• BHP Billiton Limited (NYSE: BHP) CEO Marius Kloppers strongly criticized Rio Tinto Plc (NYSE: RTP) and its CEO yesterday, the Financial Times reported. BHP Billiton has outperformed Rio Tinto in several areas, including share price appreciation and EPS growth, said Kloppers, adding, "On every metric I can envisage they [Rio] have been beaten."

• According to the Economic Times, AT&T Inc (NYSE: T) is reportedly in preliminary talks with Malaysia's Maxis Communications about buying its 74% stake in Indian cellular phone company Aircel, sources said.
• The United Auto Workers union has rejected several "generous" benefit and wage proposals, according to American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc (NYSE: AXL). In a statement yesterday, the Detroit News reported that American Axle said while tentative agreements had been reached on several issues, the UAW "repeatedly rejected" other proposals that were "considerably higher than the market rate."

Newspaper wrap-up: BHP CEO lashes out at Rio Tinto originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 23 Apr 2008 08:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• If Yahoo! Inc (NASDAQ: YHOO) accepts a buyout offer from Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT), it will have to be at the software maker's original offer of $44.6B. Microsoft won't raise the price, the Wall Street Journal reported, and the state of the economy might work in their favor.
• The FAA said that landing gear made by Illinois-based AAR Corporation (NYSE: AIR), and used on hundreds of Boeing Company (NYSE: BA)-built aircraft, includes "unapproved" parts, the Wall Street Journal also reported.
• Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc (NYSE: LEH) is thinking of not allowing its two British subprime mortgage units to provide any new loans. The Financial Times reported that the company may also order the units to put additional pressure on borrowers with a spotty credit history whose mortgages are coming to the end of fixed-rate terms.

• According to the Detroit News, people familiar with the matter said that the strike at American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc (NYSE: AXL) could threaten production of General Motors Corporation's (NYSE: GM) Chevrolet Malibu sedan.

Newspaper wrap-up: Microsoft will wait out Yahoo, and not raise its offer originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 01 Apr 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Cramer on BloggingStocks: This market is rough

Cramer on BloggingStocks: This market is rough originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 31 Mar 2008 09:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• What Countrywide Financial Corporation (NYSE: CFC) knew about its mortgage borrowers, and how it handled that information, is under review by Federal investigators, according to the Wall Street Journal. Some of their findings reveal that Countrywide had questionable information, which it then put together many of those mortgages into securities, and sold them to investors.
• The Air Force's award of a $40B contract for aerial refueling tankers to Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) and European Aeronautical Defense & Space, will be protested by The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA), reported the Wall Street Journal.
• The Financial Times reported that News Corporation (NYSE: NWS) CEO Rupert Murdoch dashed the hopes of Yahoo! Inc (NASDAQ: YHOO) executives seeking an alternative to Microsoft Corporation's (NASDAQ: MSFT) $40B offer after Murdoch endorsed the view of analysts and investors that it could not match the value offered by Microsoft.

• According to General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM) president and COO Frederick A. Henderson, the New York Times reported that the auto maker will not intervene in the dispute between parts supplier American Axle and Manufacturing Holdings Inc (NYSE: AXL) and the United Auto Workers union. Given that the strike has not yet hurt the company's ability to sell vehicles, Henderson said company officials "just have to keep to our own knitting."

Newspaper wrap-up: Countrywide's knowledge of borrowers under scrutiny originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 11 Mar 2008 08:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• A potential $90B deal between mining companies Companhia Vale Do Rio Doce (NYSE: RIO) and Xstrata has hit a number of snags that could possibly end talks, reported the Wall Street Journal, including that Xstrata shareholder Glencore International, which has agreements to market a large part of what Xstrata's mines, wants to expand that to include Vale products besides iron ore.
• According to people familiar with the matter, bids for Australian retail-property giant Centro Properties are expected from The Blackstone Group LP (NYSE: BX) and General Electric Company's (NYSE: GE) GE Real Estate, among others, the Wall Street Journal reported.

• Montreal-based Gildan Activewear Inc (NYSE: GIL) recently paid $135M for V.I. Prewett & Son, a supplier of private label socks to large retailers such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE: WMT). Gildan expects socks to add about $200M in annual revenue, equal to about 20c a share, according to "The New America" column in Investor's Business Daily's.
• A strike at a key auto parts supplier has forced General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM) to shut down a pickup plant in Pontiac, the Associated Press reported. The plant will stop production today due to the strike against the parts supplier, American Axle and Manufacturing Holdings Inc (NYSE: AXL), over a contract dispute.

Newspaper wrap-up: Vale, Xstrata talks at an impasse originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 28 Feb 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Banc of America downgraded shares of Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) to Sell from Neutral, citing expected deterioration in luxury sales due to mortgage distress in the marketplace.

• COTT Corp (NYSE: COT) was cut to Hold from Buy at Stifel, citing the difficult macro environment and continued profit declines.

• Tim Hortons (NYSE: THI) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman, citing valuation, and notes that fundamentals remain favorable.

• Montgomery cut Linktone (NASDAQ: LTON) to Hold from Buy, citing the sudden decline in its wireless VAS revenues following Q2 results...

• Banc of America downgraded Hovnanian (NYSE: HOV) and Standard Pacific (NYSE: SPF) to Neutral from Buy.
  

• Merrill Lynch cut AutoNation (NYSE: AN) and American Axle (NYSE: AXL) to Sell from Neutral.

Analyst downgrades: AN, COT, HOV and TOL originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 21 Aug 2007 10:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• JP Morgan downgraded Kellogg Co (NYSE: K) to Neutral from Outperform, citing reduced earnings growth.

• Baird downgraded the Auto & Truck Supplier Sector to Market Underweight citing valuation and lower estimates; the firm downgraded American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc (NYSE: AXL), Autoliv Inc (NYSE: ALV) and Modine Manufacturing Co (NYSE: MOD) to Underperform from Neutral.

• JP Morgan downgraded Juniper Networks Inc (NASDAQ: JNPR) to Market Perform from Outperform with a $22 target, explaining that although Juniper's December quarter showed improved revenue results, earnings guidance was disappointing given investment plans for 2007.

• Sanders Morris downgraded Benihana Inc (NASDAQ: BNHNA) to Buy from Strong Buy with a $38 target, noting that they cannot find enough catalysts that would push shares another 20% in the next six months; however, the firm is still bullish on Benihana's short-term and long-term outlooks.

• Credit Suisse downgraded Office Depot Inc (NYSE: ODP) to Neutral from Outperform, with a $41 target and believes that expectations to be overly optimistic.

Analyst downgrades 1-31-07: The Auto & Truck Suppliers broke an axle originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 31 Jan 2007 11:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.