Analyst Upgrades

• Deutsche Bank upgraded Southern Copper (SCCO) to buy from hold to reflect valuation and positive near-term catalysts. The firm raised its target for shares to $38 from $35.
• JMP Securities upgraded Ultimate Software (ULTI) to outperform from market perform. The firm cites the company's expanding employee base for the upgrade. The firm has a $40 target on the stock.
• Piper Jaffray upgraded Aeropostale (ARO) to neutral from underweight following the company's Q4 results and raised its target for shares to $31 from $24.
• Kennametal (KMT) was upgraded to sell from conviction sell at Goldman.
• Lifetime Brands (LCUT) was upgraded to outperform from market perform at Barrington.
• Volvo (VOLVY) was upgraded to overweight from underweight at JPMorgan.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: ABT, ARO, BMY, CELG, DNDN, FACT, GS, PSUN, SCCO, ULTI ...

Analyst Calls: ABT, ARO, BMY, CELG, DNDN, FACT, GS, PSUN, SCCO, ULTI ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

HSBC Holdings (HBC) closed at $55.23. HBC is expected to report Q4 EPS on March 2. March put option implied volatility is at 39, April and June puts are 34; above its 26-week average of 32, according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Petrobras (PBR) closed at $41.58. PBR is expected to report Q4 EPS in early March. Crude oil futures are recently down 0.58% to $79.54 a barrel according to Bloomberg. March put option implied volatility is at 37, July is at 38; versus its 26-week average of 39, according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price movement.

Update is by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

Options Update: HSBC Holdings March Put Volatility Elevated into EPS originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 25 Feb 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

HSBC Holdings (HBC) is recently trading at $57.40 in pre-open trading, below its close of $62.07, due the uncertainty of Dubai World; the government investment company sought to delay repayment on much of its debt. HSBC December and January option implied volatility of 29 is below its 26-week average of 36, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

Market Vector Gold Miners (GDX) is recently down $2.02 to $50.81 in pre-open trading. Gold is recently down 2.23% to $1162.10. GDX December and January option implied volatility of 43 is below its 26-week average of 49, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

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

Options Update: HSBC Holdings volatility low; uncertainty of Dubai exposure originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 27 Nov 2009 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading HSBC announces earnings and U.S. closings; more pain to come

HSBC announces earnings and U.S. closings; more pain to come originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 02 Mar 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades:

• Canaccord upgraded Rio Tinto (NYSE: RTP) to Buy from Hold citing valuation following the severe price decline following BHP Billiton's (NYSE: BHP) dropped bid.
• UBS upgraded Itron (NASDAQ: ITRI) to Buy from Neutral citing valuation and defensive business mix.
• Jefferies upgraded shares of HealthSouth (NYSE: HLS) to Buy from Hold on valuation and maintains a $13.50 target.
• Melco PBL Entertainment (NASDAQ: MPEL) was raised to buy from Neutral at Goldman.
• PG&E (NYSE: PCG) was upgraded at Merrill Lynch to Buy from Neutral.
• HSBC Holdings (NYSE: HBC) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at UBS.

Analyst downgrades:

Continue reading Analyst calls: RTP, ITRI, HLS, BHP, BX, DT, UL, GPC, KND . . .

Analyst calls: RTP, ITRI, HLS, BHP, BX, DT, UL, GPC, KND . . . originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 11:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

HSBC Holdings (NYSE: HBC), a United Kingdom-based banking and financial services company, rallied on the Hong Kong stock exchange; following a report it held talks with China's sovereign wealth fund about a potential investment in the bank.

HBC is expected to report Q2 EPS in late July.

HBC August option implied volatility of 32 is near its 26-week average of 30 according to Track Data, suggesting slightly larger price movement.

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

Option Update: HSBC Holdings volatility at 32; shares up on report of China fund investment originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 21 Jul 2008 10:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Keefe Bruyette upgraded the European Banks sector to Neutral from Underweight on valuation as they see limited downside from current levels. Included in the firm's top picks are HSBC Holdings Plc (NYSE: HBC) and Banco Santander SA (NYSE: STD).
• Credit Suisse upgraded the Paper and Forest Products sector to Overweight from Underweight citing valuations and expectations that fundamentals will bottom this fall. The firm raised shares of Temple-Inland Inc (NYSE: TIN) and Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation (NASDAQ: SSCC) to Outperform from Neutral.
• Friedman Billings upgraded shares of Kindred Healthcare Inc (NYSE: KND) to Outperform from Market Perform on valuation following the recent pullback and believes the company is well-positioned to beat modest expectations over the remainder of the year. The firm raised their target to $36 from $29.
• Oppenheimer raised Convergys Corporation (NYSE: CVG) to Outperform from Perform on valuation, as they believe investors should look at the company's business lines separately. Their sum of parts valuation yields an $18 target.

• Suncor Energy Inc (NYSE: SU) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan and to Outperform from Market Perform at Friedman Billings.
• UBS upgraded BT Group Plc (NYSE: BT) to Neutral from Sell.
• Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Piper.

Analyst upgrades: European Banks, Paper and Forest Products sectors, BRCM, KND and CVG originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 07 Jul 2008 11:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The Wall Street Journal reported that a federal judge said that the government had "sufficient evidence" for a jury to conclude that a conspiracy to fraudulently boost the financials of American International Group Inc (NYSE: AIG) began with former CEO Maurice R. "Hank" Greenberg. That led to a transaction that artificially inflated AIG's loss reserves.
• Citigroup Incorporated's (NYSE: C) Falcon Strategies fixed income hedge fund is down 75%, the Wall Street Journal reported, bad news for the three U.S. banks that invested in it to help increase returns on employee life insurance. One of the banks, Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ: FITB), is suing Transamerica Life and Smith Barney, both of whom helped to arrange the investment, and some are now questioning whether Citigroup will be forced to give back some of the investments as they have with individual investors.
• After it stopped offering some mortgages last month because it was swamped by volumes of new applications, the Financial Times reported that First Direct, a unit of HSBC Holdings Plc (NYSE: HBC), has resumed lending to new customers. The bank said it has continued to receive "significant interest" in its mortgages from existing customers.

• In an effort to raise capital from shareholders, the Telegraph reported that Barclays Plc (NYSE: BCS) is considering a takeover bid for a rival in the U.S. or UK. Sources believe Barclays may attempt to acquire an investment bank, a struggling bank or a deal in a fast-moving economy. Potential names mentioned include UBS AG (NYSE: UBS) and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc (NYSE: LEH).

Newspaper wrap-up: Citigroup may have to repay some hedge fund losses originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 20 May 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) is expected to beat out The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA) for an approximate $1.8B contract to from the U.S. Air Force to build a new generation of navigation satellites, the Wall Street Journal reported.
• According to the Wall Street Journal, former American International Group Inc (NYSE: AIG) CEO Maurice R. "Hank" Greenberg is pressing the troubled insurer to turn the company around. He says that he and other major shareholders have "deep concern about the persistent and seemingly endless destruction of value at AIG."
• Hybrid Capital Second, a Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) investment vehicle, increased its stake in internet start-up Livedoor to 18.15% from 12.76% in March, the Financial Times reported, superseding the company's founder, Takafumi Horie.

• After it incurred $3.2B of bad debts in the first three months of the year, the Telegraph reported that Knight Vinke, an HSBC Holdings Plc (NYSE: HBC) shareholder, has renewed calls for the bank to shed its U.S. consumer finance business.

Newspaper wrap-up: Lockheed expected to win $1.8B contract for navigation satellites originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 13 May 2008 08:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The Wall Street Journal reported that a spokesperson for New Corporation (NYSE: NWS) said the company has dropped out of the bidding for Tribune Co's (NYSE: TXA) Newsday. This leaves Cablevision Systems Corporation (NYSE: CVC) as the apparent winner of the auction.
• According to people familiar with the matter, the Wall Street Journal reported that American International Group Inc's (NYSE: AIG) airplane-leasing unit is considering a split from the company. The people said International Lease Finance Corp have grown "increasingly concerned" the company will be hurt by AIG's financial troubles.
• Royal Dutch Shell Plc (NYSE: RDS.A) and Spain's Repsol YPF SA (NYSE: REP) are pulling out of one of Iran's biggest gas projects, the $10B-plus development of phase 13 of South Pars, the world's largest gas field, the Financial Times reported.

• Bloomberg reported that HSBC Holdings Plc (NYSE: HBC) set aside a smaller-than-forecast $3.2B for bad loans in the U.S. The bank also said its Q1 profit was higher than Q107.

Newspaper wrap-up: HSBC's allowance for bad U.S. loans is lower than expected originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 12 May 2008 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Proposed Super SIV continues to evolve

Proposed Super SIV continues to evolve originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 10 Dec 2007 18:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Due to accelerating losses at its American consumer-lending unit, HSBC Holdings PLC (NYSE: HBC) said it would take $3.4B in charges during its Q3, the Wall Street Journal reported. Despite the charges, the company said its Q3 operating income was up compared with the prior year due to revenue growth in the group.
• NYSE Euronext Inc (NYSE: NYX) CEO John Thain is not on the first short list of candidates being considered for the Citigroup Incorporated (NYSE: C) CEO position, according to an inside source, the Financial Times reported.

• Lululemon Athletica Inc (NASDAQ: LULU), a standout performer on Wall Street, is reportedly under fire for potentially false claims of its VitaSea clothing line, which the company says is made from seaweed fiber supplied by SeaCell. According to lab tests, the New York Times reported there was no significant difference in the mineral levels between regular cotton T-shirts and Lululemon's VitaSea fabric.

Newspaper wrap-up: HSBC to take $3.4B in charges during Q3 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 14 Nov 2007 09:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: The U.S. banking sector, HSBC Holdings, Trans World and Mips Technologies were today's noteworthy downgrades:

• CIBC downgraded the U.S. Banks sector to Underweight from Market Weight as they see another leg down as investors shift focus away from write-downs to the impact the write-downs will have on risk-weighted assets and capital ratios.
• Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of HSBC Holdings Plc (NYSE: HBC) to Equal Weight from Underweight, as they believe the company may have to set aside more money for bad loans in the U.S.
• B. Riley downgraded shares of Trans World Entertainment Corporation (NASDAQ: TWMC) to Neutral from Buy, as they believe the downside risk should the Bob Higgins acquisition proposal fall through outweighs the potential upside should the bid be raised or should another bidder emerge.
  
• B. Riley also downgraded Mips Technologies Inc (NASDAQ: MIPS) to Neutral from Buy following the company's Q1 results to reflect the company's deteriorating balance sheet and licensing business softness.

• Lehman downgraded Federal National Mortgage Association (NYSE: FNM) and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (NYSE: FRE) to Equal Weight from Overweight.
• Bear Stearns downgraded Wyeth (NYSE: WYE) to Peer Perform from Outperform.
• Concur Technologies Inc (NASDAQ: CNQR) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Piper.
• Citigroup downgraded shares of E-Trade Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: ETFC) to Hold from Buy.

Analyst downgrades: U.S. banking sector, HBC, TWMC and MIPS originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 12 Nov 2007 09:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) volatility at nine-year highs on chatter of potential spin-offs:

Investor unhappiness with Citigroup's recent sell off has resulted in a larger chorus for Citigroup to consider spin-off options. Citigroup's Smith Barney unit has been frequently mentioned as a potential spin-off. Telegraph.co.uk said "banks including JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), HSBC Holdings plc (ADR) (NYSE: HBC), and Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) are being touted as possible buyers if Citigroup's management decides to offload assets." Citigroup was recently up 15 cents to $33.03. Citigroup call option volume of 135,047 contracts compares to put volume of 101,613 contracts. Citigroup November 32.5 straddle is priced at $2.55. Citigroup December option implied volatility of 56 is above its 26-week average of 29 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price risks.

International Business Machines Corp (NYSE: IBM) volatility elevated after Sharp two-day sell off after Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) outlook:

IBM was recently down $4.83 to $101.27. IBM call option volume of 20,665 contracts compared to put volume of 25,200 contracts. IBM November 100 straddle was priced at $4.90. IBM December option implied volatility of 33 was above its 26-week average of 24 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price risk.

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

Option update 11-9-07: Citigroup and IBM Volatility Up on sell off originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 09 Nov 2007 16:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

HSBC (HBC) closes subprime unit, takes $900 million charge originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 24 Sep 2007 12:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Boston Globe reports that credit card companies have been targeting subprime mortgage holders.

The evidence is stunning. Direct mail credit card offers to subprime customers in the US jumped 41% during 2007's first half, compared with the first half in 2006. By contrast, direct mail offers targeted at customers with the best credit fell 13%. During this same period, defaults on subprime mortgages rose significantly -- in June, nearly 20% of subprime mortgages were at least 60 days past due, and more than 1 in 20 were in foreclosure.

The leaders in selling higher interest rate credit cards to the financially vulnerable includes some subprime mortgage leaders. Here's a partial list:

Continue reading Are credit card companies preying on subprime borrowers?

Are credit card companies preying on subprime borrowers? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 04 Sep 2007 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

DOW JONES & COMPANY (NYSE: DJ)

Continue reading This week's rumor round-up: Will News Corp pull its offer for Dow Jones?

This week's rumor round-up: Will News Corp pull its offer for Dow Jones? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 15 Jun 2007 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Happiness increases with age, according to a study conducted for HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE: HBC) and reported by MarketWatch. What is happiness? Why does it increase with age?

This study implicitly defined happiness as a combination of health, freedom from financial worry, and control over one's life. According to the study, a majority of people in their 60s and 70s report being healthy and in control of their lives -- and as happy as many respondents in their 40s. This is the key finding of HSBC's survey of 21,000 people in 21 countries and spanning four age groups, each decade from age 40 to age 80.

Health is surprisingly good but varies by country. Overall, just 14% of those 60 to 79 in the U.S. said they're in poor or very poor health, while 86% say they're in fair, good or very good health. Poor health is lower in some countries -- Brazil (10%) and Mexico (10%) -- and higher in others -- Asia (18%), South Africa (32%), Russia (35%) and Turkey (35%).

Continue reading Why older people are happier

Why older people are happier originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 24 May 2007 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR) is one of the pioneers of leverage buyouts (LBOs), getting its start in the mid 1970s. During that time, LBOs were considered a niche, not a growth business.

Of course, things are a lot different today. Private equity firms are becoming a big power in finance. For the most part, however, the top firms have concentrated on U.S. targets.

That's changing. Today private equity firms are looking overseas for opportunities.

For example, today KKR announced that it has hired Sir John Bond, who recently retired as the group chairman of HSBC Holdings. He's hired on at KKR as a "senior adviser."

Translated, that means he will not get into the nitty-gritty of dealmaker; rather, his focus is likely to use his extensive network. His particular strength is in Asia, where buyout activity has been relatively light.

Seems like that is likely to change very soon.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook. He operates InvestorOffering.com.

KKR's Next Takeover? Asia originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 21 Nov 2006 16:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.