Analyst Upgrades

• Electronic Arts (ERTS) to overweight from neutral at Piper Jaffray.
• Helix Energy (HLX) to overweight from equal weight at Morgan Stanley.
• Quest Software (QSFT) to neutral from sell at Goldman.
• LTX-Credence (LTXC) to buy from hold at Needham.
• Anadarko (APC) to buy from hold at Canaccord.
• Walgreen (WAG) to hold from sell at Citigroup.
• Pericom (PSEM) to buy from hold at ThinkEquity.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: APC, DLTR, ENR, ERTS, KKR, NUAN, QSFT, WAG, WWW ...

Analyst Calls: APC, DLTR, ENR, ERTS, KKR, NUAN, QSFT, WAG, WWW ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 02 Feb 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Kimberly-Clark Earnings: Time to Buy or Sell?

Kimberly-Clark Earnings: Time to Buy or Sell? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 27 Oct 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Energizer Holdings, Inc.

Continue reading Energizer buys shaving cream and announces stock offering -- stock drops

Energizer buys shaving cream and announces stock offering -- stock drops originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 11 May 2009 12:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Baidu Inc. (NASDAQ: BIDU) reported better-than-expected Q1 earnings as revenues surged in the quarter.
• Burger King Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BKC) just beat Q3 expectations despite weak same-store sales growth.
• Corn Products International Inc. (NYSE: CPO) Q1 results were dragged down by higher corn costs.
• Dow Chemical Co. (NYSE: DOW) Q1 earnings sank on falling sales, job cuts and acquisition costs.
• Eastman Kodak Co. (NYSE: EK) reported a deeper-than-expected Q1 loss and suspended its dividend.
• Energizer Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ENR) posted better-than-expected Q2 earnings but revenue declined.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Starbucks, Kodak, Verizon, Visa, Office Depot, Baidu and more

Earnings highlights: Starbucks, Kodak, Verizon, Visa, Office Depot, Baidu and more originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 02 May 2009 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Revenues, however, didn't fare so well. They fell 7%. Not only did the economy affect sales, but the dreaded currency-translation phantom that has been haunting the top lines of all businesses that are exposed to international transactions made its dreaded appearance on Energizer's earnings report. A conservative stance on the part of retailers and their inventory levels was also mentioned as a negative driver for sales in the release.

Continue reading Energizer beats in Q2, but is the stock powerful enough for your portfolio?

Energizer beats in Q2, but is the stock powerful enough for your portfolio? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Apr 2009 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Consumer-products company Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NYSE: KMB), whose colleagues include The Procter & Gamble Compay (NYSE: PG) and Energizer Holdings (NYSE: ENR), reported earnings for the fourth quarter, and they weren't great, at least to me. Sales decreased over 3%, and earnings per share were $1.01 on an adjusted basis, which represented a dive of 9%. According to Stocks in the News, that missed estimates by the proverbial penny. Another weak showing was cash from operations, which fell by 1%. Not disastrous, maybe, and certainly understandable, but disappointing, nevertheless.

One thing to keep in mind is that the swings in the value of the dollar affected net sales. Organic growth actually expanded by 5% in the quarter. Kimberly-Clark doesn't expect much to happen in 2009. Management's headline in the release states that adjusted earnings should be between $4 and $4.20 per share next year. This year, earnings were $4.14 per share. Also to keep in mind is that management is watching pension expenses.

Continue reading Kimberly-Clark: No growth in Q4

Kimberly-Clark: No growth in Q4 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

It wasn't a super quarter for Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB). The consumer-products company only met expectations set for it by Wall Street. But, sometimes, that's pretty good, given the conditions the business is working in. As a matter of fact, I see that Brent Archer penned a recent post discussing how inflation is hurting Kimberly-Clark (and just about every other entity, as well). At that time, the company projected a $900 million increase in terms of inflationary pressures, double management's previous estimate. So, looking through this current earnings release, I can't help but feel that things could have been worse.

For the second quarter, net sales rose 11% to $5 billion. Earnings on an adjusted basis dropped a penny compared to the year-ago period, coming in at $1.03 per share. Like I said, that matched expectations, according to Briefing.com. Guidance for the future also appears to be in-line. Kimberly-Clark seems, to me at least, to be holding its own during a difficult time. And here's a couple cash-flow data points that should appeal to many investors. Operating cash flow for the quarter was up 16% to $753 million. Prudent management of the company's working capital benefited this metric. And on a six-month basis, cash from operations also increased, albeit not by much. That sum rose a little under 2% to almost $1.2 billion. I like to see good cash-flow numbers like that, especially for dividend-paying concerns.

And speaking of dividends, Kimberly-Clark's stock is trading at a great yield, over 4%. Of course, that means that investors buying today will need a lot of patience. You'll be paid to wait, but if you're into fast capital-appreciation rates, you probably won't get it here, not in this trading environment. Inflation will continue to be a concern for it, as well as consumer-product colleagues such as Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG), Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL), and Energizer (NYSE: ENR).

(See more of today's earnings news here.)

Disclosure: I don't own any company mentioned; positions can change at any time.

Kimberly-Clark meets Wall Street expectations, brings in the cash originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 24 Jul 2008 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: Invesco, Kimberly Clark and Crawford & Company were today's noteworthy initiations:

• Jefferies finds Invesco (NYSE: IVZ) compelling given the company's focus on expense control, strong cash flow characteristics, and attractive valuation. Shares were assumed with a Buy rating and $33 target.
  
• Caris started Kimberly Clark (NYSE: KMB) with a Below Average rating and $58 target. The firm believes consensus estimates may be too high given the high cost of commodities.
  
• Suntrust started Crawford & Company (NYSE: CRDB) with a Buy rating and $8 target, and believes the company is at the "front end" of a turnaround in operations.

OTHER INITIATIONS:

• Bernstein initiated Energizer Holdings (NYSE: ENR) with an Outperform rating and $100 target.
  
• BMO Capital assumed Range Resources (NYSE: RRC) with an Outperform rating and $85 target.
  
• Intrepid Potash (NYSE: IPI) was started with a Sell rating and $40 target at Soleil.

Analyst initiations: Invesco, Kimberly Clark, Crawford & Co. originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 14 May 2008 11:25:00 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.

When it comes to multi-bladed disposable razors, how many blades is enough? In the long-standing rivalry between the two biggest brands of disposable razors, the current answer seems to be five. For now.

The Gillette company, which in 2005 became part of Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG), invented the safety razor in 1895, as well as the first razor marketed to women in 1916. They started the current arms race in multi-bladed disposable razors by introducing a twin-blade razor in 1971, and then the triple-bladed Mach 3 in 1998. Schick responded with the four-blade Quattro in 2003, then in 2005, Gillette introduced the five-blade Fusion. Of course, each of these models includes a version for women, and versions with various bells and whistles.

St. Louis-based Energizer Holdings (NYSE: ENR), a U.S. manufacturer of batteries, purchased the Schick brand of razors from Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) in 2003. Outside the North America and Australia, the same products are sold under the Wilkinson Sword brand. Either way, Schick remains a distant second to Gillette in global sales, though some analysts saw patent infringement lawsuits filed against Schick by Gillette as evidence that Gillette recognized a potential threat. Combined, these two brands account for nearly all razor sales in America.

Continue reading Battle of the Brands: Gillette vs. Schick

Battle of the Brands: Gillette vs. Schick originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 06 May 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB) reported for the first quarter today. Net sales increased almost 10% to $4.8 billion. Adjusted earnings per share increased 5% to $1.08. That's a rather small jump, granted, but you know something, it was enough to keep the stock in the green (at the time of this writing, at least) instead of in the red on a day when the major market averages -- and just about all of the stocks in my personal portfolios -- are bathing in the evil crimson color of doom. And according to Briefing.com, Kimberly-Clark played the beat-the-expectations game and won by the proverbial penny! Shareholders should be pleased.

A non-pleasing item to be found in the release centers on cash from operations -- it decreased by about $100 million to $426 million due to changes in working capital. That doesn't concern me so much right now, though, since Kimberly-Clark will probably do well over the coming years in terms of cash generation. The company, by the way, has been repurchasing stock, so management seems pleased with the shares as a potential investment idea.

Kimberly-Clark, which is a consumer-products business in the league of entities such as Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG), Energizer (NYSE: ENR), Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL), and Unilever (NYSE: UL), could be a value right now based on its P/E ratio and dividend yield. Out of the stocks mentioned here, I like P&G the best, but I do respect Kimberly-Clark -- in fact, it was mentioned recently in an article by Steven Halpern that centered on an analyst's picks for quality and yield.

Disclosure: I don't own shares in any of the companies mentioned; positions can change at any time.

Kimberly-Clark's Q1 earnings: Perfect for defensive investing originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 22 Apr 2008 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Jefferies upgraded shares of RadiSys (NASDAQ: RSYS) to Buy from Hold following the Q3 upside to reflect the large ramp of new business expected in 2008.
  
• Lehman raised its rating on Diageo plc (NYSE: DEO) to Equal Weight from Underweight and has increased confidence that the group can increase margins.
  
• CIBC upgraded shares of Vitesse (NASDAQ: VTSS) to Sector Performer from Sector Underperformer following the company's business update, as they believe progress is being made on numerous fronts.
  
• Nollenberger upgraded shares of Big 5 Sporting Goods (NASDAQ: BGFV) to Buy from Neutral following the better-than-expected Q3 results and improved full-year outlook, as they believe visibility has improved significantly.
  
• Citigroup upgraded Coca-Cola Enterprises (NYSE: CCE) to Buy from Hold on valuation as they believe the stock is undervalued given Glaceau's expansion to European markets. The broker recommends taking profits in Pepsi Bottling Group (NYSE: PBG) and swapping into CCE.

• Baird upgraded Modine Manufacturing (NYSE: MOD) and Accuride (NYSE: ACW) to Neutral from Underperform.
  
• Deutsche Bank upgraded Energizer (NYSE: ENR) to buy from Hold.
  
• Goldman added Celanese (NYSE: CE) to its Conviction Buy List.

Analyst upgrades: RSYS, DEO, VTSS, BGFV and CCE originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 02 Nov 2007 11:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Friedman Billings upgraded Teva Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ: TEVA) to Outperform from Market Perform following Teva's better-than-expected Q3 report and guidance.
  
• Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Novavax (NASDAQ: NVAX) to Buy from Neutral based on positive expectations for Ph I/IIa pandemic influenza data, the start of clinical trials for seasonal influenza, and expected announcement of a vaccine product candidate in Q4.
  
• Corinthian Colleges (NASDAQ: COCO) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Merrill following its better-than-expected Q1 report and guidance.
  
• Citigroup upgraded of Fair Isaac (NYSE: FIC) to Buy from Hold shares to reflect the company's strong Q4 results and improved outlook.
  
• Tenneco (NYSE: TEN) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wachovia based on valuation and revenue opportunities in commercial truck market.

• Energizer Holdings (NYSE: ENR) was upgraded at Bear Stearns to Peer Perform from Underperform.
  
• Key Banc upgraded Post Properties (NYSE: PPS) to Hold from Underweight.
  
• Morgan Stanley upgraded MetroPCS (NYSE: PCS) to Overweight from Equal Weight.
  
• William Blair upgraded LECG Corporation (NASDAQ: XPRT) to Market Perform from Underperform.

Analyst upgrades: TEVA, NVAX, COCO, FIC and TEN originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 31 Oct 2007 10:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Energizer

Energizer (ENR) powers ahead originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 24 Oct 2007 17:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When I saw the headlines Energizer (NYSE: ENR) buys Playtex (NYSE: PYX), I immediately thought that the late night talk shows are going to have fun with this one. I could see Saturday Night Live writers really putting together an interesting skit involving a very moody bunny. But back to the news...

Energizer made an offer to buy Playtex, and shares of Playtex rose $2.79 (15.9%) to close at $17.97. But then I was curious to look at the option trading on Playtex. Insider trading has been running rampant recently and it is very easy to spot in the options market.

If you look at the option volume on the August 15 Calls (PYX HC) there is an interesting history. There were no options traded for three weeks, then on Tuesday, 51 traded. That is not unusual. Then on Wednesday, there were 5,488 options traded for a high price of $1.00 a piece. That is unusual. Today there were 4,649 options traded for a more than $2.95 a piece. This is just too good of timing to be coincidental. I mean I believe in good luck as much as the next guy, but this certainly appears that someone managed to beat the Friday the 13th curse today.

Now there is a small chance that when the Playtex president DeFeo canceled his speaking engagement on Wednesday, some observers got wind of something as the shares jumped mid-day; but it appears someone got wind that the buyout was coming and decided to make a little bet.

That bet proved to be profitable as $548,800 invested turned into $1,618,960 over the course of three days. Tripling your money over the course of three days is not a bad investment and the way the SEC has been laxly enforcing stuff recently, maybe they will get away with it.

Kevin Kersten is an Options Analyst with InvestorsObserver.com. Do you have any deadwood in your portfolio? Check out the 18 Warning Signs That Tell You To Dump A Stock.

Disclosure note: Mr. Kersten owns and or controls a diversified portfolio of long and short positions that may include holdings in companies he writes about.

Insider activity keeps going and going and going... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 13 Jul 2007 20:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Energizer (NYSE: ENR), the battery and razor company, is buying Playtex (NYSE: PYX), the sunscreen and feminine care product company, for a bit less than $1.2 billion plus debt. The purchase price is about 18% above where Playtex was trading.

Reuters quotes the head of Energizer as saying: "We see Playtex as an exceptionally great fit with Energizer, with similar customers and distribution channels in the U.S. and Canada, and the opportunity for geographic expansion."

M&A transactions are obviously on the rise, but what a battery company would want a feminine care products operation seems a bit hard to explain. Distribution channel duplication may save some money, but it would seem to end there.

Playtex also looks expensive. The company is at a 52-week high, almost $16 up from well under $10 last July. And Energizer is paying a substantial premium. Perhaps it can afford to -- its shares are up 90% over the last year.

No matter how investors look at the merger, it is an odd combination.

Douglas A. McIntyre is a partner at 24/7 Wall St.

Energizer buys Playtex originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 13 Jul 2007 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) July straddle in line with previous levels prior to EPS. MSFT is expected to report EPS of $0.31 according to Thomson Financial on July 19. MSFT announced a $1.15 billion charge last week related to an Xbox design flaw. MSFT July straddle is priced at $1.14. MSFT August option implied volatility of 23 is near its 26-week average according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional risk.

Playtex (NYSE: PYX) options active prior to ENR paying $18.30 per share cash. PYX agreed to be sold to Energizer (NYSE: ENR) for $18.30 a share in cash plus the assumption of PYX debt. The total enterprise value is $1.9 billion. PYX option volume was heavy prior to the announcement of ENR buying PYX. A total of 7,299 PYX contracts traded on 7/11, 4,208 contracts traded on 7/12; above its approximate one month average of 245 contracts a day. PYX overall option implied volatility of 37 was near its 26-week average of 35 according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional risk.

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

Option update 7-13-07: Options flat into 7/19 EPS & outlook originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 13 Jul 2007 08:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Prudential upgraded Energizer Holdings Inc (NYSE: ENR) to Neutral from Underweight. The firm said Energizer has been overly focused on the negative potential of cost inflation without fully appreciating the positive mix shift being generated by faster growth of high-margin specialty products and new products that indicate innovation and a competitive edge.

• Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: GILD) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Leerink Swann following Gilead's strong quarter.

• FTN Midwest upgraded shares of Advanced Micro Devices Inc (NYSE: AMD) and Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) to Buy from Neutral as the firm believes they are seeing the beginnings of a truce with between the two companies which could lead to higher ASPs.

• CNOOC Ltd (NYSE: CEO) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan to reflect the company's prospects for production growth.

• Stifel raised shares of Washington Real Estate Investment Trust (NYSE: WRE) to Buy from Hold with a $42 target.

• AG Edwards upgraded FARO Technologies, Inc (NASDAQ: FARO) to Buy from Hold.

• William Blair upgraded Illinois Tool Works, Inc (NYSE: ITW) to Outperform from Market Perform.

• JP Morgan added J.C. Penney Co (NYSE: JCP) to its Focus List.

• Matrix USA upgraded shares of Henry Schein, Inc (NASDAQ: HSIC) to Buy from Hold on valuation.

Analyst upgrades 4-19-07: AMD, GILD, INTC & JCP upgraded today originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 19 Apr 2007 11:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Stock screeners are tools that let investors filter through a large number of stocks according to chosen criteria. While helping investors pick stocks and narrow down options, it is important to remember that a stock screener is just a tool and every investment should be analyzed on its own merits to make sure it fits with your personal portfolio and risk characteristics. Welcome to my new weekly column that finds interesting investment opportunities with the help of our Stock Screener.

Continue reading Stock Screener: Generating power with solar and batteries -- Part II

Stock Screener: Generating power with solar and batteries -- Part II originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 03 Apr 2007 16:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.