Continue reading Closing Bell: The Chase Continues (SNTS, PRX, VLO, WMT, SIRI, UPS, YUM)

Closing Bell: The Chase Continues (SNTS, PRX, VLO, WMT, SIRI, UPS, YUM) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 15 Apr 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Fortune 500 Loves Twitter, Especially the Insurance Business

Fortune 500 Loves Twitter, Especially the Insurance Business originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 26 Feb 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Who said big oil was a dying business? Fortune has released its Global 500, their "annual ranking of the world's largest corporations," and topping the charts is Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A), which, much like a Mariah Carey song, bumped up into the coveted number-one slot after some time at number three. The Netherlands-based oil company trumped its U.S. rival, Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) by $15 billion in sales and saw its revenue spike nearly 29% from 2007.

Speaking of Exxon, the company once again had a tiger in its tank, ranking number two in the world as oil futures bounced around in a nearly $100-dollar range, hitting $146 per barrel at its heights.

Continue reading Royal Dutch Shell crowned world's largest corporation

Royal Dutch Shell crowned world's largest corporation originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 08 Jul 2009 13:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Welcome to the era of the 'consumer's dilemma'

Welcome to the era of the 'consumer's dilemma' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 09 Jan 2009 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is one in a series on prominent company nicknames. See all 25, and share your thoughts and memories about The General below in the comments.

"The General" does not deserve its nickname any longer. Founded in 1908, General Motors (NYSE: GM) was the largest car company in the world for almost seven decades. It lost that distinction to Toyota (NYSE: TM) during the last year.

GM has 50% of the U.S. car market at one point. That is now down to 20%.

"The General" still maintains a number of the most successful brands in the world: Cadillac, Buick, Chevy, and Pontiac. Years of neglect have pushed the company into a position where it does not make competitive cars in its home market. It greatest current sales successes are in the Chinese market and Latin America.

In 1955, "The General" was the No.1 company in the Fortune 500. It held that position until 2000.

Alongside General Electric (NYSE: GE), GM is probably the most important American corporation of the last 100 years. That won't be true going forward.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Company nicknames: The General, no longer a commanding presence originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 13 Aug 2008 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading So you want to know what a 'growth-recession' looks like? Look around

So you want to know what a 'growth-recession' looks like? Look around originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 01 Aug 2008 16:21:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Wal-Mart again tops the Fortune 500 list of companies originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 21 Apr 2008 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Fortune's Global 500 list loaded with oil producers

Fortune's Global 500 list loaded with oil producers originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 11 Jul 2007 17:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Since its upside surprise when it reported last quarter, enterprise software giant Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) has continued with its philosophy of growth through acquisition by acquiring LODESTAR Corp., which supplies software solutions to utilities, as well as product lifecycle management leader Agile Software Corp. (NASDAQ: AGIL). And the share price has been trending upward the past three months.

But it hasn't all been peaches and cream. Billionaire George Soros recently shifted his focus away from Oracle and some other tech stocks in favor of Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT). BloggingStocks contributor Georges Yared thinks Oracle's glory days, in terms of growth, may be behind it, and even that it may be a stock for suckers.

Oracle's rivalry with Germany-based SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) continues, of course, not only in the courtroom -- Oracle recently added copyright infringement to its theft charges against SAP -- but also into small and medium-sized companies, where some early indicators suggest Oracle may have the edge. Oddly enough, there has been speculation that Oracle may try to acquire SAP, unlikely though that may be, after it was rumored that Oracle has been purchasing SAP stock.

But Oracle remains part of the Fortune 500, and BloggingStocks contributor Brent Archer thinks the stock might be a bargain. One analyst upgraded Oracle just last week. According to Thomson Financial, Wall Street consensus rates ORCL a buy (12 strong buy, 11 buy, 12 hold). When Oracle reports earnings on June 26, analysts expect earnings per share for this quarter to come in at 35 cents, compared to 25 cents actual from last quarter, and 25 cents a year ago. Its market cap is $96.8 billion, and its P/E ratio is 18.95 (the industry average is 23.49). The consensus price target is $21.25; the 52-week low was $13.77 in July of 2006 and $19.95 last week. It closed Tuesday at $19.88.

Oracle Q4 2007 earnings preview: A bargain or a sucker's bet? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 20 Jun 2007 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analysts, shareholders (and would-be shareholders), and many others no doubt will be keeping on eye on Memphis-based FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX), the global leader in express transport and delivery, when it reports Q4 2007 earnings next Wednesday, June 20. Many consider FedEx to be a bellwether for the economy.

Since FedEx reported a mild Q3 back in March, the trend of its share price hasn't been especially impressive these past three months. Blame it on the economy, fuel costs, the weather, or stiff competition from rivals United Parcel Service (NYSE: UPS) and DHL, a Deutsche Post (LSE: DPO) company, but FedEx has struggled of late, as reflected perhaps in the BloggingStocks Battle of the Brands match-up: FedEx vs. UPS. Analysts' feelings are mixed on FedEx as well, and the company does still face such troubles as discrimination lawsuits.

But it's no accident that FedEx is within the Fortune 500's top ranks. It continues to expand, both domestically and internationally, and stands to benefit from impending increased air traffic between China and the United States. General Motors (NYSE: GM) recently declared FedEx its 2006 Supplier of the Year, and the FAA has given FedEx a vote of confidence as well. And in May, FedEx announced a 10% boost in its cash dividend, to ten cents per share. The Motley Fool thinks FedEx may be a bargain, as well.

According to Thomson Financial, the brokers' consensus on FedEx is buy (6 buy, 7 strong buy, 7 hold). Its P/E is 15.89 (compared to 11.96 industry average), and its market cap is $33.16 billion. When FedEx reports earnings next week, Wall Street is expecting revenue of $9.14 billion, or earnings per share of $1.89, compared to $1.82 actual last quarter, and $1.35 a year ago. Its price target is $124.42; the 52-week low was $97.79 in August 2006 and the high was $121.42 near the end of this past February. FedEx closed Wednesday at $108.82.

Will FedEx deliver on Q4 earnings? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 14 Jun 2007 14:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Exxon Mobil gives up top slot on Fortune 500 list originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 07 Jun 2007 17:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

With $36.8 billion in revenues, Motorola (NYSE: MOT) made the 2006 Fortune Global 500 list at #152. Motorola beat out its competitors Cisco Systems #241, Ericsson #319, and Alcatel #411. Nokia Corporation #131 remains the world's largest communications equipment company with $42.5 billion in revenues.

There is more good news. Motorola in the US has issued a co-branded cell phone for the Product RED high profile fundraising campaign led by Bono, among others. Motorola will donate up to 50% of the profits from RED cell phone purchases to Global Fund to help fight the spread of AIDS in Africa. Such cause-related shopping campaigns have been very successful in England. Bono and Project RED wish to replicate that success during the holiday shopping season in the US.

Motorola recently announced plans to acquire Symbol Technologies, maker of bar code and inventory-scanning technology, in a deal valued at $15 per Symbol share for a total of $3.9 billion. The deal is supposed to close by early 2007. If the deal falls through under certain circumstances, Symbol Technologies could end up owing Motorola as much as $130 million. Motorola may need to hope that the deal does in fact fall apart. Motorola can then use that money to pay off part of the $3.7 billion plus interest Iridium creditors are demanding Motorola give back. Iridium LLC paid more than $5 billion to its parent company Motorola to build Iridium's satellite system. Creditors allege Motorola knew at the time that Iridium would not be financially viable, but took the money anyway. At issue is just how much Motorola's senior management knew about Iridium's financial problems prior to its bankruptcy in 1999.

Motorola's up and down week originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 29 Sep 2006 13:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

With $51.4 billion in revenues, Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) ranks #101 on 2006 Fortune's Global 500 list. Pfizer remains the world's largest drugmaker, ahead of its competitors Johnson & Johnson #104 with $50.5 billion in revenues; GlaxoSmithKline #143 with $39.4 billion in revenues; Sanofi-Aventis #159 with $35.4 billion in revenues; and Novartis Group #177 with $32.2 billion in revenues.

Also this week, Pfizer bought worldwide exclusive rights to human gene RTP-801 from Quark Biotech Inc., an Israeli biotech firm. Quark Biotech had recently acquired the license to this gene from Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. Details of Pfizer's deal with Quark Biotech were not made public but could be very lucrative if Pfizer can actually develop a treatment to modify mutations in gene RTP-801, the gene that controls for most cases of blindness in the developed world due to age-related macular degeneration (AMD). With an aging baby boomer population, age-related vision problems will increase exponentially. Currently about 15 million Americans age 50+ are affected with AMD. In AMD fluid accummulates behind the retina, eventually resulting in vision loss. There is presently no cure for AMD, but Pfizer currently owns the drug Macugen used to retard the effects of AMD. Pfizer will share with Quark ,and via Quark Alnylam, royalties on any products that actually make it to market to treat and/or cure AMD.

Pfizer is also involved in the eradication of another widespread disease, malaria. Pfizer has joined former President Clinton's Global Initiative to stamp out the leading cause of child mortality in Africa. With a donation of $15 million spread over 5 years, Pfizer is underwriting malaria treatment programs by UNICEF and WHO in Senegal, Ghana and Kenya. Pfizer's recent donation is a continuation of its malaria research program already underway in 10 countries around the world. In addition to anti-malarial drugs, Pfizer is also funding education programs for malaria patients and caregivers.

Pfizer trying to cure the world originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 29 Sep 2006 11:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading ExxonMobil tops this year's Fortune Global 500 list

ExxonMobil tops this year's Fortune Global 500 list originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 25 Sep 2006 12:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading ExxonMobil: NOT a gay-friendly workplace

ExxonMobil: NOT a gay-friendly workplace originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 20 Sep 2006 12:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.