itri posts
FeedPosted Oct 14th 2009 11:30AM by Eric Buscemi (RSS feed)
Filed under: Analyst reports, Analyst upgrades and downgrades, Analyst initiations
Analyst upgrades:
- JPMorgan upgraded Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX) and Goldcorp (NYSE: GG) to Overweight from Neutral following its gold valuation analysis. The firm set a $54 price target on Barrick shares and a $47 price target on Goldcorp shares.
- Thomas Weisel upgraded EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) to Overweight from Market Weight and raised its target to $24 from $15, citing the company's improving end market demand, competitive position, and valuation.
- Barclays upgraded AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR) to Overweight from Equal Weight, citing the company's improved liquidity position and what they believe to be the beginning of a multi-year profit cycle for the sector. Despite the upgrade, the firm lowered its target to $14 from $20.
- Harley-Davidson (NYSE: HOG) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
- Toshiba (OTC: TOSBF) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan.
- Sanofi-Aventis (NYSE: SNY) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at UBS.
Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AMR, DT, HOG, JBLU, LULU, VLO ...
Posted Jun 20th 2009 9:40AM by Trey Thoelcke (RSS feed)
Filed under: Earnings reports, Adobe Systems (ADBE), Best Buy (BBY), Carnival Corp (CCL), FedEx Corp (FDX), Research in Motion (RIMM), Liz Claiborne (LIZ)
Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:
Continue reading Earnings highlights: FedEx, Best Buy, RIM, Adobe, Smucker, Discover and more
Posted Jun 9th 2009 10:50AM by Steven Halpern (RSS feed)
Filed under: Newsletters, Commodities, Oil, Stocks to Buy, Green Stocks, Obama Picks
"Itron (NASDAQ: ITRI), which is involved in the build-out of smart grids -- has been our radar screen for awhile," says growth stock expert Toby Smith.
In his ChangeWave Investing, he suggests, "As the top supplier of smart meters and meter infrastructure for the electricity industry, Itron is by far the best-positioned company for the smart grid build-out."
"The build-out of smart grids employs technologies that deployed across an energy grid which allow greater efficiency and flexibility during energy distribution and transmission.
"The cool thing about smart grids is that they are capable of isolating and better managing power outages and disruptions, integrating local power generating equipment, and avoiding electricity congestion or bottlenecks.
Continue reading Itron (ITRI): Smart grids, smart meters
Posted Feb 2nd 2009 1:00PM by Eric Buscemi (RSS feed)
Filed under: Analyst reports, Analyst upgrades and downgrades, Pfizer (PFE), Charles Schwab Corp (SCHW), NYSE Euronext (NYX), Analyst initiations, Akamai Technologies (AKAM), SanDisk Corp (SNDK)
Analyst upgrades:
- Merriman upgraded shares of Akamai (NASDAQ:AKAM) to Buy from Neutral as they believe consensus expectations are now realistic and already reflect macro headwinds. Merriman also thinks the company's cost reductions could generate upside to EPS estimates.
- JP Morgan upgraded Novo Nordisk (NYSE:NVO) to Overweight from Neutral on expectations the company's diabetes drug will gain U.S. approval.
- Credit Suisse upgraded Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) to Outperform from Neutral and raised their target to $20 from $19 citing the merits of the Wyeth (WYE) deal and valuation.
- Quality Systems (NASDAQ:QSII) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Piper Jaffray.
- Parexel (NASDAQ:PRXL) was raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wachovia.
- Ferro (NYSE:FOE) was upgraded at KeyBanc to Hold from Underweight.
Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AKAM, PFE, NYX, SCHW, SNDK
Posted Jan 6th 2009 11:10AM by Eric Buscemi (RSS feed)
Filed under: Analyst reports, Analyst upgrades and downgrades, Analyst initiations
Analyst upgrades:
- Merriman upgraded shares of Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) to Neutral from Sell as they believe consensus estimates for Q4 and FY09 are no longer too high. In addition, the firm believes Google's slowing capex spend will improve margins and their recent channel checks indicate the company's ad coverage has increased significantly during Q4.
- Oppenheimer upgraded shares of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) to Outperform from Perform following yesterday's disclosures regarding Steve Jobs' health. The firm has a $135 price target on Apple shares.
- UBS upgraded BMC Software (NYSE: BMC) to Buy from Neutral and raised its target to $31 from $28 citing easier booking comps in the March quarter.
- YRC Worldwide (NASDAQ: YRCW) was raised to Market Perform from Underperform at Wachovia.
- Goldman removed Hewitt (NYSE: HEW) from its Conviction Sell List.
Analyst downgrades:
- Stephens downgraded Emergency Medical Services (NYSE: EMS) to Equal Weight from Overweight on valuation, as they believe the stock is fairly valued at current levels. The firm maintains a $39 price target.
- Merriman downgraded Super Micro Computer (NASDAQ: SMCI) to Neutral from Buy after Super Micro pre-announced a Q2 miss to reflect the company's "challenging" outlook.
- Baird downgraded Celgene (NASDAQ: CELG) to Neutral from Outperform citing Revlimid growth concerns following their most recent survey and potential pressures on the European business and on Thalomid.
- Medtronic (NYSE: MDT) was lowered to Market Perform from Outperform at Leerink.
- Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE) was cut at Goldman to Neutral from Buy.
- Devon Energy (NYSE: DVN) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays.
Analyst initiations:
- Merriman believes Itron (NASDAQ: ITRI) is well-positioned to benefit from the upgrade to Advanced Metering Infrastructure by tier one utilities and finds the stock attractively valued. Shares were initiated with a Neutral rating.
- Oppenheimer assumed Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE: JLL) with a Perform rating and expects the company's growth to slow in 2009 given global credit concerns and the economic slowdown.
- Citigroup started Telmex (NYSE: TMX) with a Sell rating and $15 target. The firm believes the company's inability to offer 3-play services could lead to accelerated market share loss in 2009.
- Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) was initiated at Janney Montgomery with a Neutral rating and $31 fair value estimate.
- Arthur J. Gallagher (NYSE: AJG) was initiated with a Neutral rating at Piper Jaffray.
- Jesup & Lamont assumed UTi Worldwide (NASDAQ: UTIW) with a Buy rating and $18 target.
Posted Nov 26th 2008 11:45AM by Laurie Pasternack (RSS feed)
Filed under: Analyst reports, Analyst upgrades and downgrades, Analyst initiations, BHP Billiton Ltd ADR (BHP), Rio Tinto plc ADS (RTP), Unilever ADR (UL), Blackstone Group L.P (BX)
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 . . .
Posted Nov 7th 2008 5:31PM by Mitch Tuchman (RSS feed)
One of Obama's top priorities is making our nation energy independent with alternative energy. A barrel of oil trades in the $60s and has been coming down for awhile. But over time, energy will probably rise. If our country can build energy independence, it creates jobs, helps our national security and stops the dramatic w

ealth transfer to potential enemies of our country.
If Obama does what he promises, there will be more investments in the alternative energy field. Instead of trying to pick the best stocks and learn all about these companies, you can own one stock, an ETF (exchange traded fund) that is a basket of the top companies in this sector.
The
Market Vectors Global Alternative Energy ETF (NYSE:
GEX) is a low cost way to play alternative energy. GEX is built around an index developed by
Ardour Global which includes companies that generate power through eco friendly and non-traditional sources. It started the year at $60.45 and has corrected down to $23.27 today.
Continue reading ETF Portfolios: Obama Trade -- Alternative energy stocks with GEX
Posted Aug 7th 2007 11:20AM by Kevin Kelly (RSS feed)
Filed under: Columns, Technical Analysis, Stocks to Buy
Many investors, especially "momentum investors" are passionately obsessed with owning the hot stocks of the market. Momentum stocks tend to be fast-growing, high-margin companies in popular industries. Understandably, these stocks tend to fetch incredible multiples on their earnings.
I don't cover many momentum stocks for BloggingStocks, however here are some that I've spoken about:
- Skyworks Solutions (NASDAQ: SWKS) -- I argued that the company has more upside in its operations which should lead to further upside in the stock.
- DryShips (NASDAQ: DRYS) -- I explained why I think the stock had further upside due to the tremendous strength in drybulk shipping rates recently.
- Dawson Geophysical (NASDAQ: DWSN) -- I rationalized a buy at current levels due to a variety of fundamental and technical factors.
Similarly, I think the fundamental and technical backdrop in
Itron (NASDAQ:
ITRI) is very interesting and the stock could be a worthy buy presently.
Anyone who hasn't been stuck under a rock in recent years is well aware of the shortage in energy and water resources throughout the world. Itron makes power and water meters alongside analytical software which allows utility companies and other resource providers to find inefficiencies in distribution and consumption. Understandably, these services allow for more efficient consumption and, therefore, waste reduction.
In today's day and age it should be easy to see the value of these products. As the company states on its website, "With that type of detailed information for decision-making, everyone benefits: utilities, customers, regulators, shareholders and, of course, the environment."
Continue reading Itron (ITRI): The epitome of a breakout stock
Posted Jun 28th 2007 11:13AM by Kevin Shult (RSS feed)
Filed under: Before the bell, Bad news, Analyst initiations
MOST NOTEWORTHY: AstraZeneca (AZN), Ametek (AME), InterNAP Network Services (INAP) and Rosetta Genomics (ROSG) were today's noteworthy initiations:
- Cowen believes AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) faces challenges from patent expirations, patent challenges, high-risk pipeline and value creation from deals, and initiated shares with a Neutral rating.
- Ametek (NYSE: AME) was initiated at Friedman Billings with an Outperform rating and $44 target, as the firm believes AME has turned into a collection of niche-oriented high-value-added manufacturers of precision instrumentation, resulting in a high-margin, high-return business with above average growth.
- InterNAP (NASDAQ: INAP) was initiated at Thomas Weisel with an Overweight rating, as the firm is positive on INAP's unique service offerings, VitalSteam acquisition opportunities, high growth customers, and improving collocation and bandwidth demand fundamentals.
- Cantor expects Rosetta Genomics (NASDAQ: ROSG) to launch the world's first microRNA-based cancer diagnostic in the second-half of 2008 with a market of $200 million, and initiated shares with a Buy rating and $15 target.
OTHER INITIATIONS:
- Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK) was initiated with a Market Perform rating at BMO Capital.
- Merrill Lynch initiated shares of JMP Group (NYSE: JMP) with a Buy rating.
- UBS initiated shares of Itron (NASDAQ: ITRI) with a Neutral rating and $82 target.
Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).Posted May 14th 2007 11:10AM by Kevin Shult (RSS feed)
Filed under: Before the bell, Analyst initiations
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Ballard Power Systems Inc (BLDP), GSI Technology, Inc (GSIT), eTelecare Global Solutions (ETEL) and JA Solar Holdings Co, Ltd (JASO) were the most noteworthy initiations in today's modest-sized list:
- GSI Technology (NASDAQ: GIST) is gaining shares at key customers while ramp-up of its next-generation product should act as a strong catalyst to revenue starting in 2H07; Baird started shares with an Outperform rating.
- Baird also initiated eTelecare Global (NASDAQ: ETEL) with an Outperform rating citing consistent above-industry growth rates.
- American Technology initiated JA Solar Holdings Co (NASDAQ: JASO) with a Buy rating, pointing to the company's long-term customer agreements and solid silicon position...
OTHER INITIATIONS:
Analyst summaries provided by TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).Posted May 10th 2007 11:22AM by Kevin Shult (RSS feed)
Filed under: Before the bell, Analyst initiations, Marvell Technology Group (MRVL)
MOST NOTEWORTHY: Xilinx, Inc (XLNX), Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc (RRGB), Ingram Micro Inc (IM), Silicon Laboratories (SLAB) and Comtech Group, Inc (COGO) were today's more noteworthy initiations:
- Deutsche Bank believes upside remains on Xilinx Inc's (NASDQ: XLNX) margins and tax rates, initiating shares with a Buy rating and $38 target.
- JP Morgan waits for improved new unit volumes and better earnings visibility before getting more constructive on Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc (NASDAQ: RRGB) and initiated shares with a Neutral rating.
- Given the lack of catalysts to improve margins above their peers, JP Morgan doesn't expect multiple expansions from Ingram Micro (NYSE: IM) in the near-term, assuming shares with a Neutral rating.
- Deutsche Bank expects Silicon Labratories (NASDAQ:: SLAB) multiples to expand with operating margins, starting shares with a Buy rating and $40 target.
- Needham believes Comtech Group Inc (NASDAQ: COGO) is uniquely leveraged to benefit from the growth of manufacturing in China and started shares with a Buy rating and $21 target...
OTHER INITIATIONS:
- Citigroup started GTx, Inc (NASDAQ: GTXI) with a Buy rating.
Analyst summaries provided by
TheFlyOnTheWall.com (subscription required).