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Teco Energy awaits Florida's recovery

It goes without saying that I favor the power generation sector, and operators in Florida, in particular. The Sunshine State may be down but it's hardly out, and with above in mind Teco Energy (NYSE: TE) is worth a review.

Teco Energy is a holding company for several energy plays, including Tampa Electric, and Peoples Gas System.

Continue reading Teco Energy awaits Florida's recovery

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations

Analyst upgrades:
  • UBS upgraded Safeway (NYSE:SWY) to Buy from Neutral based on valuation.
  • AthroCare (NASDAQ:ARTC) was raised to Neutral from Negative at Susquehanna on valuation.
  • BT Group (NYSE:BT) was raised to Neutral from Underperform at Credit Suisse.
  • Leap Wireless (NASDAQ:LEAP) was upgraded at Goldman to Buy from Neutral.
  • China Mobile (NYSE:CHL) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Merrill Lynch.
Analyst downgrades:
  • Jefferies downgraded shares of Albany Molecular (NASDAQ:AMRI) to Underperform from Hold on concerns regarding the company's exposure to small biopharma as their checks suggest biopharmaceutical companies that rely on the capital markets to fund operations are cutting back significantly on R&D projects. The firm lowered their target to $8 from $10.
  • Baird downgraded Sirona Dental (NASDAQ:SIRO) to Neutral from Outperform and lowered their target to $15 from $21 due to lack of catalysts and better options in dental.
  • Stephens cut Hub Group (NASDAQ:HUBG) to Equal Weight from Overweight on the expectation that weaker volumes will lead to pricing pressure. The firm lowered their target to $24 from $36.
  • Teco Energy (NYSE:TE) was downgraded to Hold from Buy at KeyBanc.
  • RF Micro Devices (NASDAQ:RFMD) was lowered to Underperform from Buy at Merrill Lynch.
  • Energy Conversion (NASDAQ:ENER) was cut to Underweight from Equal Weight at Barclays.

Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations

The week in preview: Focus on oil and energy

While other earnings may have disappointed last week, the news was good for oil giant ConocoPhilips (NYSE: COP). In what some took as a good sign for big oil, the Houston-based company reported that third quarter net income surged 41% year over year to $3.39 per share, and that revenue also surged 52% to $70 billion. We'll see whether the good news extends to other petroleum giants scheduled to report quarterly results this week.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial are looking for BP (NYSE: BP) profits to have grown 43.2% in the most recent quarter to $2.34 per share on revenue of $109.7 billion, and Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) to post earnings up 39.4% to $3.25 per share on revenue of $86.8 billion. Marathon Oil Corp. (NYSE: MRO), ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), and Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A) likewise are expected to report higher net income of $2.33 per share (sales of $23.4 billion), $2.40 per share (sales of $131.4 billion), and $2.65 per share, respectively. Even Valero Energy Corp. (NYSE: VLO) is expected to post earnings slightly higher to $1.46 per share (sales of $36.4 billion), despite the effects of Hurricane Ike. Among these companies, only BP and Valero beat earnings expectations in the previous quarter. Not surprisingly, analysts on average recommend buying all except Valero, and shares of all of these companies have recently hit 52-week lows.

Continue reading The week in preview: Focus on oil and energy

Market highlights for next week: Tiffany, McCormick and CKE Restaurants to report

Monday March 26
  • Tiffany & Co (NYSE: TIF) to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 8:30am. Analysts will evaluate Tiffany's holiday performance, new products and note management's comments on global diamond and jewelry trends.
  • Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX) to hold analyst meeting at 8:30am.
  • Canon Inc ADR (NYSE: CAJ) to hold shareholder meeting at 10pm.
Tuesday March 27
  • Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE: GS) to hold shareholder meeting at 9:30am.
  • McCormick and Company Inc (NYSE: MKC) to report Q1 earnings; conference call at 10am. Analysts will focus on McCormick's consumer segment [largest business], but will also note industrial business line performance, new spices/ingredients and commodity costs.
Wednesday March 28
  • Teco Energy Inc (NYSE: TE) to provide 2007 outlook; webcast at 8am.
  • Media Telecommunications & Entertainment Conference 3/28-3/29
Thursday March 29
  • PDUFA date for Nastech Pharmaceutical Company Inc's (NASDAQ: NSTK) Calcitonin-Salmon Nasal Spray for Osteoporosis.
Friday March 30
  • Finish Line Inc (NASDAQ: FINL) to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 8:30am. Note that the company issued disappointing guidance earlier this month.
  • CKE Restaurants Inc (NYSE: CKR), the owner of Carl's Jr. and Hardee's restaurants, to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 9am. Analysts will review the company's same store sales by restaurant chain, average lunch/dinner checks, menu changes and margins. Analysts will also evaluate management's the performance of breakfast offerings, and the company's chain expansion plan.

Symbol Lookup
IndexesChangePrice
DJIA+20.0310,246.97
NASDAQ-2.982,151.08
S&P 500-0.071,093.01

Last updated: November 11, 2009: 04:23 AM

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