Domino's Pizza (DPZ) rallied about 5% right out of the gate Tuesday morning, as Wall Street cheered the food firm's latest earnings report.

For the third quarter, DPZ earned $16.6 million, or 27 cents per share, while revenue climbed 14.8% to $347.4 million. Both figures topped analysts' consensus estimates, which called for a profit of 25 cents per share on $335.9 million in revenue.

Continue reading Domino's Pizza Delivers Solid Q3 Results

Domino's Pizza Delivers Solid Q3 Results originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Deutsche Bank upgraded Dr Pepper Snapple (DPS) to buy from hold based on valuation. The firm keeps a $39 target on the stock.
• Piper Jaffray upgraded Kenexa (KNXA) to overweight from neutral, citing a strengthening of trends for the company. The firm has a $29 price target on the stock.
• Janney Montgomery upgraded Gaylord Entertainment (GET) to buy from neutral on expectations the company will benefit from strong trends in 2011. The firm raised its target for shares to $35 from $32.50.
• MeadWestvaco (MWV) was upgraded to outperform from neutral at Credit Suisse.
• EADS (EADSY) was upgraded to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: BAC, CPB, CSX, DPS, GET, KMB, KNXA, MGA, MKGAY, UA ...

Analyst Calls: BAC, CPB, CSX, DPS, GET, KMB, KNXA, MGA, MKGAY, UA ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 24 Sep 2010 10:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

There is a decidedly global flavor to KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut restaurants lately. And no, we're not talking about the Chalupa Baja -- this is about a global sales for these franchises and their parent company.

In recent years, operator Yum! Brands (YUM) has been growing at a breakneck pace, now with more than 3,500 locations in China alone and plans to open another 900 restaurants outside the U.S. in 2010. And the next global market that is in its sights is the United Kingdom, with a Taco Bell in Essex set to peddle low-priced burritos by the end of June.

Continue reading Expansion in UK the Latest Way Yum! Spices Up Global Sales

Expansion in UK the Latest Way Yum! Spices Up Global Sales originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 28 May 2010 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) higher Q3 earnings topped expectations but revenue was in line.
• Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD) posted better-than-expected Q3 results, but shares sold off.
• Allegheny Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ATI) was downgraded on concerns about its Q4 guidance.
• Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) shares fell after it posted a deeper-than-expected quarterly loss.
• Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) fell victim to profit taking despite reporting better-than-expected earnings.
• CSX Corp. (NYSE: CSX) better-than-expected Q3 earnings sent shares higher, despite a decline in revenue.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: C, GE, GOOG, HOG, INTC, IBM, JNJ, JPM, MAT, NOK ...

Earnings highlights: C, GE, GOOG, HOG, INTC, IBM, JNJ, JPM, MAT, NOK ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 17 Oct 2009 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The shares of Domino's Pizza (NYSE: DPZ) gapped sharply lower this morning, despite a stronger-than-expected third-quarter profit. Ahead of the bell, Domino's reported net income of $17.8 million, or 31 cents per share, for the quarter ended Sept. 6. Excluding a $14.3 million pretax gain, Domino's profit of 17 cents per share was two cents better than analysts expected.

However, revenue for the period tumbled 6.5% to $302.7 million, falling well short of consensus estimates for $308.9 million. Same-restaurant sales were flat in the U.S., although they were up 2.7% internationally. With top-line results softer than expected, the pizza chain cited lower interest expense and tighter cost controls for the robust bottom-line results.

Continue reading Domino's Pizza drops, despite 3Q profit surprise

Domino's Pizza drops, despite 3Q profit surprise originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

From TheStreet.com Network

• Kass: Chase Value, Not Price
• Five Dumbest Things on Wall Street: May 15

Continue reading Cramer on BloggingStocks: Restaurants right for the taking

Cramer on BloggingStocks: Restaurants right for the taking originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 15 May 2009 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (NYSE: BMY) Q1 profit fell despite strong sales of Plavix and Abilify.
• Check Point Software Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: CHKP) was downgraded based on its guidance.
• Domino's Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ) strong Q1 results were boosted by early debt retirement.
• DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. (NYSE: DWA) strong Q1 results were driven by Madagascar 2.
• Endo Pharmaceuticals Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: ENDP) Q1 results led to an analyst's downgrade.
• E*Trade Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: ETFC) widened its Q1 loss, sending shares sharply lower.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: P&G, DreamWorks, E*Trade, Netflix, Under Armour, Humana and more

Earnings highlights: P&G, DreamWorks, E*Trade, Netflix, Under Armour, Humana and more originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 02 May 2009 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Domino's (NYSE: DPZ) first quarter earnings report showed that the company is weathering the recession to date better than analysts had expected. Net income was up 245% over fourth quarter 2008, and 168% over same quarter a year ago.

However, this and the earnings per share of 41 cents were inflated by $21.2 million realized from early debt retirement. Without this, EPS would have come in at 20 cents, still above analysts' expectations of 17 cents but down by a penny from the first quarter of 2008.

The company jumped at the chance to retire $43 million of 5.261% fixed-rate notes for $22.3 million of cash on-hand and very cheap money draw from its revolving bank account. Continuing on that course, Domino's has already retired an additional $25 million that will show as $12.9 million to the good in the next quarter's earnings.

Continue reading Domino's earnings report a nice slice

Domino's earnings report a nice slice originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 01 May 2009 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Corporations spend millions of dollars in advertising to carefully cultivate a brand and image, yet all that money can be for naught when a couple of trashy employees take it upon themselves to post a video on Youtube showing them deliberately sneezing and farting on the food they are about to serve.

Domino's (NYSE:DPZ), the nation's second largest pizza chain with over 8,700 locations in 60 countries, is suffering such an assault at the moment.

The video is narrated by a young lady who takes obvious delight in ridiculing the company and its customers. One has to wonder what goes through the mind of an employee who, despising the company, continues to take the paycheck rather than move on. It's not as though Domino's is the only low-wage job on the market, even in these hard times.

Continue reading Domino's gross-out video a business killer?

Domino's gross-out video a business killer? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 15 Apr 2009 12:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and check out other Battle of the Brands posts.

How to compare the two dominant pizza brands, Yum! Brands Inc.'s (NYSE: YUM) Pizza Hut vs. Domino's Pizza Inc. (NYSE: DPZ)?

Most annoying ads? The wing man series by Pizza Hut is a recent annoyance, but Domino's still, in my mind, has not lived down the ignominy of its Noid commercials in the 1980s.

Most obscene side-dishes? What in the hell are dipping strips? Like we don't realize they're just pizza dough with goo indistinguishable from the plaque clogging our arteries. Bad Pizza Hut! Bad!

Size? Pizza Hut -- 12,800 outlets in 90 countries. Domino's -- 8,624 outlets in 55 countries.

Continue reading Battle of the Brands: Pizza Hut vs. Domino's

Battle of the Brands: Pizza Hut vs. Domino's originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 07 May 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Morgan Stanley initiated Analog Semiconductors with an In Line rating. The firm assumed National Semiconductor Corp (NYSE: NSM) with an Overweight rating and $26 target and is the firm's top pick; Analog Devices (NYSE: ADI) and Linear Tech (NASDAQ: LLTC) were initiated with Equal Weight ratings and a $32 target and $34 target, respectively.
  
• Barrington believes OrthoVita (NASDAQ: VITA) is the market share and technological leader of the biomaterials market. The firm assumed shares with an Outperform rating and $4 target.
  
• Canaccord Adams believes First Solar's (NASDAQ: FSLR) management and business model are among the best of any PV company and that execution has led to strong profitability plus a successful aggressive capacity ramp. Shares were started with a Buy rating and $325 target.

• Morgan Stanley initiated Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) and Domino's Pizza (NYSE: DPZ) with Equal Weight ratings and targets of $40 and $15, and also initiated McDonald's (NYSE: MCD) and Burger King (NYSE: BKC) with Overweight ratings and targets of $65 and $34.
  
• Lehman initiated Alcoa (NYSE: AA) with an Overweight rating and $44 target.

Analyst initiations: Analog semiconductors, VITA and FSLR originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 28 Mar 2008 11:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Another earnings season crunch is under way, and here are a some highlights of this past week's earnings coverage here at BloggingStocks:

• Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE: AMD) reported losses 9 cents greater than Wall Street estimates.
• Altria Group Inc.'s (NYSE: MO) profits were down, but the company raised its full-year earnings guidance.
• Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) fell short of expectations, profits down 32%.
• Boston Scientific Corp. (NYSE: BSX) almost tripled Wall Street's earnings estimates.
• Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) had warned to expect a disappointing results, and earnings per share fell 57%.
• Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) beat estimates, sending the share price to a 52-week high.
• Domino's Pizza Inc. (NASDAQ: DPZ) fell short of expectations, profits falling 55%.
• eBay Inc.'s (NASDAQ: EBAY) otherwise good results were hurt by Skype-related losses.
• Gannett Inc.'s (NYSE: GCI), earnings beat expectations but revenue fell short.
• Genetech Inc. (NYSE: DNA) beat estimates by a penny, but analysts' concerns linger.
• Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) had a spectacular third quarter. See our live blog of the conference call.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Tech stocks strong, financials weak

Earnings highlights: Tech stocks strong, financials weak originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 20 Oct 2007 12:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Stock market plunges as bad news mounts

Stock market plunges as bad news mounts originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 19 Oct 2007 16:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Stock market's Manic Monday leads to Twisted Tuesday

Stock market's Manic Monday leads to Twisted Tuesday originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 16 Oct 2007 14:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Domino's Pizza (DPZ) Q3 profit plunges 55 percent originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 16 Oct 2007 10:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

More than ever, Wall Street cares about you. Not you personally but average folks who don't have multi-billion dollar bonuses, pay obscene rents to live in a refrigerator-box sized apartments or have to write essays to get their children admitted to nursery schools that are more selective than some universities.

Believe it or not, you with your 2.5 kids, house in the suburbs and job with your annoying boss are very much on the minds on Wall Street heading into the third quarter. Your pessimism about the economy perplexes pundits and politicians who continually argue that the economy is strong. A recent ABC News/Washington Post poll showed that 35% of Americans rate the economy as excellent or good.

So who's right, Wall Street or Main Street?

So far, it depends on the neighborhood where the consumer lives. Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ: COST), whose customers tend to be well-heeled, today reported fiscal fourth quarter results that while not great, beat Wall Street's expectations. Meanwhile, Petsmart Inc. (NASDAQ: PETM) shares are tanking after the pet supply retailer cut its third quarter and 2007 profit forecast, citing weak consumer spending. So, consumers are confident enough to buy huge bags of pet food but worried about buying regular sized bags of Alpo.

Continue reading The theme for this earnings season is consumer confidence

The theme for this earnings season is consumer confidence originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 10 Oct 2007 14:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Lululemon (NASDAQ: LULU) was initiated with a Neutral rating at Merrill Lynch. CIBC believes the company is well-positioned to replace its Canadian success in the U.S. market and started shares with a Sector Outperformer rating and $39 target. The stock was started at Wachovia with a Market Perform rating on valuation.
• Citigroup finds Domino's Pizza (NYSE: DPZ) compelling for long-term investors given the company's solid cash flows, above-average margins, and international growth opportunity. The firm initiated shares with a Buy rating and $22 target.
• RBC Capital started shares of Kenexa Corporation (NASDAQ: KNXA) with a Sector Perform rating and $32 target, citing lack of visibility into the company's product roadmap.
• RBC initiated shares of Omniture Inc (NASDAQ: OMTR) with an Outperform rating and $33 target. The firm believes Omniture is well-positioned given cross selling opportunities, best in class products, strong secular trends, and expanding client roster.
• News Corporation (NYSE: NWS) was initiated with a Buy rating and added to Stifel's Select List. The firm believes the FOX TV Network, stations and FOX News can garner an incremental recurring 100% margin retransmission and affiliate fees totaling $1B by 2010, adding that its sum-of-the-parts model for News Corp captures the value of $8B of "hidden" assets, yielding a fair market value of $30-$31.

• CRT Capital initiated shares of Navistar (NASDAQ: NAVZ) with a Buy rating and $75 target.
• JP Morgan started shares of Dice Holdings (NYSE: DHX) with an Overweight rating.
• Think Equity started shares of Whole Foods Market Inc (NASDAQ: WFMI) with an Accumulate rating and $51 target.

Analyst initiations 9-5-07: LULU, DPZ, KNXA, OMTR and NWS originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 05 Sep 2007 11:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY

• First Albany cut Netflix Inc (NASDAQ: NFLX) to Neutral from Buy to reflect weak industry subscriber additions.

• Blockbuster Inc (NYSE: BBI) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at Soleil.

• Citigroup cut The Mosaic Company (NYSE: MOS) to Sell from Hold on expectations for a sharp DAP price decline and valuation.

• Domino's Pizza Inc (NYSE: DPZ) was downgraded to Peer Perform from Outperform at Bear Stearns, citing valuation.

• Merrill Lynch downgrade BP Plc (NYSE: BP) to Neutral from Buy on valuation.

• Smith Micro Software, Inc (NASDAQ: SMSI) was cut to Hold from Buy with a $21 target.

• Pacific Crest downgraded Linear Technology Corp (NASDAQ: LLTC) to Sector Perform from Outperform based on secular headwinds and an increase in DOI to 82 days.

• Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd (NYSE: TNP) was downgraded to Sell from Hold at Citigroup on valuation.

• Piper Jaffray downgraded Compuware Corp (NASDAQ: CPWR) to Market Perform from Outperform following the disappointing Q4 guidance.

• Brean Murray downgraded Komag, Inc (NASDAQ: KOMG) to Hold from Buy.

Analyst downgrades 4-19-07: BBI, BP, CPWR, DPZ and NFLX downgraded today originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 19 Apr 2007 11:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Cramer talks telecom and gold originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 28 Mar 2007 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Suntrust initiated MasterCard Inc (NYSE: MA) with a Buy rating and $130 target, believing the company is the best positioned to benefit from the secular shift from cash to e-payments at the point of sales.

• Domino's Pizza Inc (NYSE: DPZ) was initiated with an Outperform rating and $38 target at Friedman Billings.

• AG Edwards initiated STEC Inc (NASDAQ: STEC) with a Buy rating and $12 target. The firm feels shares are undervalued and that the company's growth profile and profitability should dramatically improve post-consumer business sale and revenue recognition change.

• California Pizza Kitchen (NASDAQ: CPKI) was initiated with a Market Perform rating and $35 target at Friedman Billings.

• Stanford believes Watts Water Technologies, Inc (NYSE: WTS) is one of the more compelling names in the water infrastructure space and initiated shares with a Buy rating and $42 target.

• Morgan Keegan believes Horizon Lines Inc's (NYSE: HRZ) earnings potential has yet to be realized and initiated shares with an Outperform rating.

• Lazard initiated several solar power companies with Buy ratings: SunPower Corp (NASDAQ: SPWR), First Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: FSLR), Evergreen Solar, Inc (NASDAQ: ESLR) and Energy Conversion Devices, Inc (NASDAQ: ENER).

Analyst initiations 3-15-07: MasterCard & Domino's Pizza initiated today originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 15 Mar 2007 11:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.