The U.S. House of Representatives passed the tax bill that had already been approved by the Senate, but that did little, if anything, to put a charge into the market today. Better-than-expected earnings reported after markets closed yesterday from Oracle and Research in Motion didn't boost the opening today either. Later in the morning, the report on leading economic indicators from the Conference Board also showed improvement, rising 0.4% in October. The dollar rose slightly on the forex market following Moody's five-notch downgrade of Irish debt. All in all, a day of mixed news with mixed results.

Here are the numbers for late afternoon trading today:

Dow Jones 11,491.98 -7.27 (-0.06%)
S&P 500 1,243.91 +1.04 (0.08%)
Nasdaq 2,642.97 +5.66 (0.21%)

Continue reading Closing Bell: Markets Indecisive as Tax Bill Passes Congress (ITMN, BMO, FCEL, SAPX, DLR)

Closing Bell: Markets Indecisive as Tax Bill Passes Congress (ITMN, BMO, FCEL, SAPX, DLR) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 17 Dec 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Shorts hedge their bets ahead of FuelCell Energy's 4Q report

Shorts hedge their bets ahead of FuelCell Energy's 4Q report originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 09 Dec 2009 13:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Barnes Group Inc. (NYSE: B) withdrew its 2009 earnings guidance due to uncertainty in transportation.
• Brown-Forman Corp. (NYSE: BF.B) Q4 profit beat estimates and it offered guidance for next year.
• Del Monte Foods Co. (NYSE: DLM) posted strong Q4 results on price increases and a better tax situation.
• FuelCell Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: FCEL) posted lower Q2 sales but announced a big order from South Korea.
• Men's Wearhouse Inc. (NYSE: MW) lower Q1 profit topped estimates but the outlook was in line.
• National Semiconductor Corp. (NYSE: NSM) Q4 net loss and fiscal-year profit both beat estimates.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Del Monte, Men's Wearhouse, National Semiconductor, Talbots ...

Earnings highlights: Del Monte, Men's Wearhouse, National Semiconductor, Talbots ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 13 Jun 2009 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

When Charles Dickens wrote, "Bring in the bottled lightning, a clean tumbler and a corkscrew," it's safe to say the great English novelist wasn't referring to energy technology. But in the 21st century we know that a whole lot of bottled lightning can be uncorked using a variety of sophisticated devices -- and one of the most interesting types is fuel cells.

Today we got lightning news from one of the best companies in the fuel cell space, the aptly named FuelCell Energy (NASDAQ: FCEL). Although the company reported lower product sales and revenues for fiscal Q2 of $19.3 million compared to $26.4 million in fiscal Q2 a year ago, it did say that the prior year product sales and revenues were unusually high due to timing.

Continue reading FuelCell Energy: Bring on the bottled lightning

FuelCell Energy: Bring on the bottled lightning originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 09 Jun 2009 17:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

After the close last night, FuelCell Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: FCEL) reported that its fourth-quarter loss widened to $24.3 million, or 35 cents per share, compared to its year-ago loss of 25 cents per share. Ahead of the report, analysts were expecting FCEL to swallow a slightly more modest quarterly loss of 32 cents per share, according to First Call. Total revenues rose to $26.2 million for the quarter, outpacing the consensus estimate of $25.6 million. Product sales and revenues for the period ballooned by 113% year-over-year, arriving at $23.3 million.

FCEL's bottom line took a hit during the quarter as costs climbed, with total costs and expenses swelling to $48.9 million, up nearly 46% from last year. The company's backlog is also looking bloated, up to $87.6 million from $57.8 million in the fourth quarter of 2007.

For the full fiscal year, FuelCell recorded a net loss of $96.6 million, or $1.41 per share, while revenue arrived at $100.74 million. Analysts predicted an annual loss of $1.37 per share on $100.16 million.

Despite the mixed report, FCEL shares are fractionally higher this afternoon. Heading into the earnings release, option players aligned themselves bearishly. During the past 10 days, traders on the International Securities Exchange (ISE) bought to open 1.53 puts for every call on the stock. Looking back over the previous 20 trading days, FCEL garnered a buy-to-open put/call ratio of 4.86 on the ISE and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE).

In other words, investors purchased nearly five times more bearish bets than bullish in the four-week period leading up to the earnings report. This heavily pessimistic activity from speculators suggests that expectations were low for FuelCell's quarterly figures. The negative sentiment from investors has no doubt helped to cushion the blow of the company's fourth-quarter and full-year profit shortfalls.

Elizabeth Harrow is an analyst and financial writer in the research department at Schaeffer's Investment Research. She is featured in the video series Schaeffer's Daily Q&A on SchaeffersResearch.com.

FuelCell Energy shares hold steady, despite widened fourth-quarter loss originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 11 Dec 2008 13:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

FuelCell Energy (NASDAQ: FCEL) develops and markets Ultra-Clean stationary fuel cell power plants that generate electricity with up to twice the efficiency of conventional fossil fuel plants and with virtually no air pollution. The firm's fuel cells are generating power at over 60 installations worldwide, using such fuels as wastewater gas and biogas from food processing. The company receives funding from the U.S. Department of Energy and other government agencies for the development of such leading edge technologies as hybrid fuel cell/turbine generators and solid oxide fuel cells.

The firm pleased investors last week, when it reported a Q4 loss of 25 cents per share and revenues of $16.5 million. Street analysts had been looking for a 27 cent per share deficit and $13.1 million. The company also announced a 4.8 MW order from Posco (NYSE: PKX), its South Korean alliance partner. Lazard Capital subsequently reiterated its "buy" rating on the shares and boosted its price target from $11 to $15, noting that FuelCell's backlog of $57.8 million was more than double the $27.9 million year ago figure and was up 17% from the $49.6 million reported in 3Q07.

Continue reading FuelCell Energy (FCEL) share price defining bullish 'flag' consolidation

FuelCell Energy (FCEL) share price defining bullish 'flag' consolidation originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 18 Dec 2007 15:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Fuelcell Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ: FCEL): this fuel-cell power plant company narrowed its losses and beat revenue expectations. Shares rose to $11.85 against a 52-week low of $5.84.

Perrigo Company (NASDAQ: PRGO): The FDA cleared the company's over-the-counter heartburn drug. Shares traded up to a high of $34.19 compared to a 52-week low of $16.09.

McDonald's Corporation (NYSE: MCD): Strong same-store sales carried over to a second day of buying in the shares. Stock moved to a peak of $63.49 against a 52-week low of $42.31.

Incyte Corporation (NASDAQ: INCY): Early trials of new drug are promising. Shares moved up to $10.29 compared to 52-week low of $4.75.

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

The 52-week high club originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 11 Dec 2007 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Cramer says sell alt.energy names, buy CROX originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 25 Sep 2006 14:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.