Analyst Upgrades

• Verisk (VRSK) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at Wells Fargo.
• Marriott (MAR) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at Bernstein.
• Jefferies upgraded Teekay (TK) and Tsakos Energy (TNP) to Buy from Hold.
• Cadence Design (CDNS) was upgraded to sector perform from underperform at RBC Capital.
• BofA/Merrill upgraded NV Energy (NVE) to buy from underperform and Education Realty Trust (EDR) to neutral from underperform.
• Men's Wearhouse (MW) was upgraded to buy from hold at Stifel.
• William Blair upgraded Atheros (ATHR) to outperform from market perform.
• Freeport McMoran (FCX) was upgraded to buy from hold at Argus.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: CTV, CVX, EAT, FCX, ICE, MAR, MW, TRV, WLP ...

Analyst Calls: CTV, CVX, EAT, FCX, ICE, MAR, MW, TRV, WLP ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 26 Oct 2010 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

From TheStreet.com Network

• Google Shares Rise on Strong Sales
• AMD Posts Narrower Quarterly Loss

Continue reading Cramer on BloggingStocks: The chips aren't down

Cramer on BloggingStocks: The chips aren't down originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades:

• Stanford raised Fluor (NYSE: FLR) to Hold from Sell primarily due to valuation.
• Citigroup upgraded Cadence Designs (NASDAQ: CDNS) to Buy from Hold because they think the company's cost restructuring initiative and its new CFO will be catalysts for the shares.

• Stephens dropped Ann Taylor (NYSE: ANN) to Equal Weight from Overweight because they no longer view LOFT as a compelling reason to invest in the company.
  
• Citigroup downgraded Hershey (NYSE: HSY) to Hold from Buy on valuation.
  
• KeyBanc dropped Lennox (NYSE: LII) to Hold from Buy on valuation.

• Coverage of Hershey was assumed with a Sell by Stifel, which cited valuation for its rating.
• FARO Technology (NASDAQ: FARO) was initiated by Needham with a Buy rating.
• Leerink Swann resumed coverage of Cardionet (NASDAQ: BEAT) with an Outperform, as the firm predicts that the company's technolgoy will enable it to grow substantially.

Analyst calls: FLR, ANN, HSY, BEAT ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 18 Aug 2008 11:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

For the most part, the Cadence Design Systems (NASDAQ: CDNS) unsolicited offer for Mentor Graphics (NASDAQ: MENT) was a smart move (both companies are leaders in semiconductor design software). This transaction would be a critical part of consolidation in the industry.

However, on Friday, Cadence decided to drop its $1.6 billion bid. As a result, the shares of Mentor plunged 25%.

What happened here? Well, according to Cadence, it looks like the board of Mentor didn't want to open its books (although, Mentor disputes this). Another issue is antitrust. Oh, and with the credit crunch, it's still pretty tough getting financing.

Perhaps the big problem is the slowing economy, which is putting pressure on the semiconductor industry. After all, Cadence posted weak Q2 results, and the outlook looks dismal.

Whatever the reasons, Wall Street likes the result. On the news, Cadence's share increased 6.7%.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

Cadence's $1.6 billion deal malfunctions originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 17 Aug 2008 13:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Cadence Design Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CDNS) is the largest player in developing platforms for building integrated circuits. The company generates about $1.6 billion in revenues and has 5,100 employees.

Now, Cadence wants to get even bigger. Today, the company announced an unsolicited $1.6 billion bid for Mentor Graphics Corp. (NASDAQ: MENT). The offer is $16 per share.

Mentor is a big player in testing semiconductors, which should be a nice compliment to Cadence. And over the past couple months, Cadence has been trying to court Mentor.

But all advances were rejected. So why not go hostile?

Continue reading Cadence entices Mentor with a $1.6 billion buyout proposal

Cadence entices Mentor with a $1.6 billion buyout proposal originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 17 Jun 2008 14:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Which stocks to buy ahead of earnings

Which stocks to buy ahead of earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 01 Feb 2008 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• The Wall Street Journal reported that Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is looking for buyers for its Jaguar and Land Rover brands, which are valued at a combined $1.3B to $1.5B, but any sale is expected to take a month or longer.
• Airbus is in the final stages of a deal with U.S. Airways Group Inc (NYSE: LCC), which is expected to purchase about 30 A350 jetliners worth about $7B at list price, according to the Wall Street Journal.

• According to the U.K. Times, Imperial Chemical Industries plc (NYSE: ICI) rejected an all-cash offer of GBP$7.2B from Dutch chemicals giant Akzo Nobel NV (NASDAQ: AKZOY), saying the proposal "significantly undervalues" the company; sources believe The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: DOW) and Germany's BASF AG (NYSE: BF) could launch competing bids.
• BHP Billiton Limited (NYSE: BHP) is again interested in a $40B acquisition of Alcoa Inc (NYSE: AA), an aluminum producer, reported the U.K. Times.
• The New York Times reported that negotiations on a buyout of Cadence Design System Inc (NASDAQ: CDNS) by private equity firms Blackstone Group and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts appear to have stalled over price.

Newspaper wrap-up 6-18-07: ICI rejects Akzo Nobel bid originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 18 Jun 2007 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Marriott International, Inc. (NYSE: MAR) -- rallies on takeover Chatter. MAR is recently up $0.59 to $47.25 on speculation a pension fund will make an offer for MAR. MAR has a market cap of $17.8 billion with long term debt of $2.3 billion. MAR call option volume of 5,079 contracts compares to put volume of 186 contracts. MAR June 50 calls are bid 35 cents above its theoretical value of 12 cents. MAR July option implied volatility of 30 is above its 26-week average of 24 according to Track Data, suggesting larger risk.

Rackable Systems (NASDAQ: RACK) -- volatility flat on heavy call volume on renewed Speculation. RACK, a provider of servers and storage products, is recently up $0.77 to $12.86 on renewed takeover speculation. RACK call option volume of 3,175 contracts compares to put volume of 62 contracts. RACK July option implied volatility of 57 is near its 26-week average of 55 according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price risk.

Cadence Design Systems (NASDAQ: CDNS) -- volatility & volume up on New York Times report. CDNS develops electronic design automation software and hardware. CDNS is recently up $1.52 to $24.52 after The New York Times reported CDNS is in talks for possible sale. CDNS call option volume of 2,099 contracts compares to put volume of 599 contracts. CDNS June 25 calls are bid 60 cents, above its theoretical value of 19 cents. CDNS July option implied volatility of 34 is above its 26-week average of 24 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price fluctuations.

Option volume leaders today are: Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) and Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT).

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

Option update 6-4-07: Marriott spikes on speculation originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 04 Jun 2007 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The Wall Street Journal reported that TPG Capital and Silver Lake are poised to buy telecommunications equipment company Avaya Inc (NYSE: AV) for about $17 a share; Nortel Networks Corporation (NYSE: NT) was also said to be interested.
• News Corporation's (NYSE: NWS) Rupert Murdoch said he is willing to go along with tighter editorial independence, but won't give in to a key demand from Dow Jones & Company Inc's (NYSE: DJ) controlling Bancroft family that they control an editorial oversight board that would protect this, the Wall Street Journal reported.
• Barron's Online's Trader section believes Service Corporation International's (NYSE: SCI) 90% surge since August is the result of funeral service companies' virtual immunity to a slowing economy or rising rates - the market's two biggest fears right now.

• The New York Times reported that software maker Cadence Design Systems Inc (NASDAQ: CDNS) is in talks with private-equity players that include Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and the Blackstone Group about a possible sale of the company.
• Technology Web sites have discovered that Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) embeds customers' personal data into files the company uses to distribute music from its online iTunes music store, creating fears about privacy, the UK Times reported.
• The UK Times also reported that Royal Bank of Scotland Group (OTC: RBSPY) may be looking to sell Southern Water for GBP4B, a move that could lead to many more deals in Britain's privatized water industry.

Newspaper wrap-up 6-04-07: TPG Capital, Silver Lake may buy Avaya originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 04 Jun 2007 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.