Continue reading Closing Bell: Bull & Bears Still Fight For Show (GM, HPQ, SLXP, TM, TGT, UAL)

Closing Bell: Bull & Bears Still Fight For Show (GM, HPQ, SLXP, TM, TGT, UAL) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Closing Bell: When Markets Hold Up Better Than Expected (AAPL, GRMN, RIG, UAL, USO, GLD)

Closing Bell: When Markets Hold Up Better Than Expected (AAPL, GRMN, RIG, UAL, USO, GLD) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Barron's is forecasting a 10% rise in stock prices in 2011 led by big cap stocks. They argue that the big caps have lagged the market for the past decade and are now poised to take the lead, as reported by CNBC.com.

Here are their top ten picks for this year: Exxon Mobil (XOM), Walmart (WMT), Pfizer (PFE), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), General Motors (GM), Cisco Systems (CSCO), United Continental Holdings (UAL), Barrack Gold (ABX), Entergy (ETR), and PepsiCo (PEP).

Continue reading Barron's Forecasts 10% Higher Stock Market in 2011

Barron's Forecasts 10% Higher Stock Market in 2011 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 03 Jan 2011 16:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

United Continental Holdings (UAL - option chain) shares are rising today after Continental Airlines announced its fleet service employees ratified their collective bargaining agreement with the company. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on UAL.

UAL opened this morning at $23.60. So far today the stock has hit a low of $23.50 and a high of $23.99. As of 12:15, UAL is trading at $23.86 up 0.40 (1.7%). The chart for UAL looks bullish and S&P gives UAL a positive 4 STARS (out of 5) buy ranking.

Continue reading United Continental Lifted by Union Agreement

United Continental Lifted by Union Agreement originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading U.S. Stock Futures Down as China Lifts Key Rates

U.S. Stock Futures Down as China Lifts Key Rates originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Dec 2010 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• JPMorgan upgraded Smith Micro (SMSI) to overweight from neutral and raised its price target to $15 from $9, citing the release of a WiFi iPad with MiFi from Verizon and Apple.
• Jefferies upgraded Whole Foods (WFMI) to buy from hold and raised its price target to $45 from $36, citing checks that indicate sales are accelerating and the company has been focused on expense control.
• Wells Fargo upgraded Ensco (ESV) and raised its price target to $54 to $56 from $46 to $47, citing valuation, the lifted deepwater drilling ban and higher oil prices.
• Gran Tierra Energy (GTE) was upgraded to buy from hold at Wunderlich, citing the company's Moqueta oil discovery as well as other near-term exploration opportunities, and raised its price target to $12.50 from $7.00.
• Chico's FAS (CHS) was upgraded to buy from hold at KeyBanc and set a $13 price target.
• UR-Energy (URE) was upgraded to buy from hold at KeyBanc.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: AMSC, CBOE, ERTS, ESV, JCP, PDE, SMSI, TTWO, UAL, WFMI ...

Analyst Calls: AMSC, CBOE, ERTS, ESV, JCP, PDE, SMSI, TTWO, UAL, WFMI ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 15 Oct 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Merriman upgraded Penn National (PENN) to buy from neutral, citing the company's strong balance sheet and management team. The firm also raised its target range for shares to $34 to $37.60.
• BMO Capital upgraded Cooper Companies (COO) to outperform from market perform and raised its price target to $55 from $46. The firm sees upside to Street estimates and increased visibility.
• Argus upgraded Watson Pharma (WPI) to buy from hold based on valuation.
• Phillips-Van Heusen (PVH) was upgraded to conviction buy from neutral at Goldman.
• Allstate (ALL) was upgraded to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.
• Weingarten Realty (WRI) was upgraded to neutral from underperform at BofA/Merrill.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: AAPL, ALL, AOL, AVP, AZPN, BMY, COO, F, K, MSFT, PENN, UAL ...

Analyst Calls: AAPL, ALL, AOL, AVP, AZPN, BMY, COO, F, K, MSFT, PENN, UAL ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 04 Oct 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst Upgrades

• Wells Fargo upgraded Accenture (ACN) to outperform from market perform following the company's Q4 results, citing improved tone and increased visibility. The firm raised its target range for shares to $51 to $53 from $41 to $44.
• Macquarie upgraded FirstMerit (FMER) to outperform from neutral and has a $21 price target on the stock. The firm cites FirstMerit's strong fundamentals and competitive advantage for the upgrade.
• Macquarie transferred coverage on Marshall & Ilsley (MI) with a neutral from an underperform based on improved risk/reward.
• Eaton (ETN) was upgraded to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan.
• HSBC (HBC) was upgraded to conviction buy from buy at Goldman.
• Walgreen (WAG) was upgraded to overweight from equal weight at Morgan Stanley.

Continue reading Analyst Calls: ACN, ADM, BRCM, CAT, DE, FMER, GOOG, MI, NFLX, UAL, WAG ...

Analyst Calls: ACN, ADM, BRCM, CAT, DE, FMER, GOOG, MI, NFLX, UAL, WAG ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 01 Oct 2010 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

More Monday merger fun, this time from the airline sector. Reportedly, Southwest Airlines (LUV) announced that it will purchase AirTran Airlines for roughly $1.42 billion.

This move will be funded mainly with debt, and it will help Southwest establish a larger presence in cities like Boston and New York. What's more (as the article points out), Southwest will now be in "head-to-head competition with Delta Air Lines in Delta's home base of Atlanta."

Continue reading Southwest Airlines to Purchase AirTran

Southwest Airlines to Purchase AirTran originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 27 Sep 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Early this morning, United Airlines (UAUA) and Continental Airlines (CAL) announced that they will join forces to create the world's largest airline in a $3 billion deal.

The new airline will be bigger than Delta Air Lines (DAL) and will send flights as far as Shanghai and South America. The companies believe that the span of destinations should attract more business travelers and their higher fares. The deal, which will need approval from shareholders and antitrust regulators, is expected to close in the fourth quarter. The new company will be known as United Continental Holdings and will be based in Chicago. The airline's largest hub will be located in Houston.

Continue reading United Continental Merger a Sign of Things to Come?

United Continental Merger a Sign of Things to Come? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 03 May 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

By now, nearly every person in this country has heard or read about a second oil rig accident which has happened near Morgan City, Louisiana. Although it appears that only a small amount of environmental damage was done, how will the reaction to this news play out in the markets through the coming week?

I'm very thankful that this most recent oil rig accident happened late on a Friday. I certainly believe that if this accident had happened a few hours earlier in the day, I probably wouldn't have liked to witness the way the markets reacted. Now, we have two days to absorb the news of what has happened before full-scale trading resumes. Really, I'm very happy about that.

Continue reading Second Oil Rig Accident Signals a Fundamental Economic Shift?

Second Oil Rig Accident Signals a Fundamental Economic Shift? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 01 May 2010 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The silver lining to the travel slump last year was that fewer flights made it easier for airlines to hit their deadlines. In 2009, the airline sector had its best year for on-time arrivals since 2003, largely because many routes were cut as passenger traffic fell and companies looked for ways to cut costs. According to the Department of Transportation, airlines hit a 79.5% on-time rate last year (which includes flights that were within 15 minutes of their arrival time).

Hawaiian Airlines had the best record, but it's a small regional, lacking the challenges of the major carriers. Among the big guys, Southwest's (LUV) 83% on-time rate was best, and United's (UAUA) 81% was tops for traditional air carriers. Of course, these airlines and the rest of the sector were helped along by the fact that they pad their schedule, which makes it a hell of a lot easier to show up on time.

Continue reading United Airlines Buys On-Time Success

United Airlines Buys On-Time Success originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 14 Feb 2010 10:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Altria Group Inc. (NYSE: MO) Q3 earnings beat by a penny but sales fell short of expectations; shares fell.
• AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR) reported a Q3 net loss and plunging revenue but also raised $4 billion in cash.
• BB&T Corp. (NYSE: BBT) topped Q3 earnings expectations but said bad-loan provisions nearly doubled.
• Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) missed estimates and posted a Q3 loss due to delays for a couple of jet products.
• Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE: COF) shares rose after it reported better-than-expected Q3 numbers.
• Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) posted a better-than-expected Q3 profit but sales fell short, and shares fell.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Boeing, Coca-Cola, eBay, Microsoft, Pfizer, UAL, Yahoo! ...

Earnings highlights: Boeing, Coca-Cola, eBay, Microsoft, Pfizer, UAL, Yahoo! ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 24 Oct 2009 09:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The skies are starting to look a little friendlier to United Airlines (NASDAQ: UAUA). The airline reported a quarterly loss that was lower than expected. Third quarter traffic was off only 2.9%, but because United used discounts to fill seats, revenue fell 20.3% (to $4.43 billion). The key to a recovery will be getting passengers to shell out for more expensive seats. According to United's president, John Tague, "There's no opportunity here for a full revenue recovery until we get premium cabin pricing back." He doesn't know how long this is going to take, but does say that he's seen progress over the past few months.

Nonetheless, it's important not to confuse "not so bad" with "making money." UAL lost $57 million (39 cents a share) last quarter. If it hadn't had some good news on fuel hedges and accounting issues, the loss would have been 43 cents a share. Again, this is better than analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected: they were forecasting a loss of 94 cents per share. And, the third quarter loss was much better than last year's $792 million for the third quarter.

But, it all comes down to the bottom line, and a loss is a loss is a loss.

Continue reading UAL has almost good news for third quarter

UAL has almost good news for third quarter originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

If you think all those new airline fees were a temporary measure to help these beleaguered companies through an economic crisis, you're out of your mind. Now that they've had a taste of how much they can make by charging you for an extra bag or a little more leg room, they're hooked. More important, the fees are making up a meaningful portion of airline revenues and profits, so investors aren't likely to be satisfied with a return to normal - well, they can't. Extra fees are the new "normal."

Continue reading Extra airline fees to become the new 'normal'

Extra airline fees to become the new 'normal' originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 16 Oct 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades:

• FBR Capital upgraded McAfee (NYSE: MFE) to Outperform from Market Perform after channel checks indicated the company's September quarter deal flow has been stronger than expected. FBR raised its target on shares to $50 from $41.
• Thomas Weisel upgraded Adtran (NASDAQ: ADTN) to Overweight from Market Weight, citing increased wireless backhaul capex spending by Tier-1 carriers. The firm raised its target to $32 from $21.
• RBC Capital upgraded Brunswick (NYSE: BC) to Outperform from Sector Perform as the firm thinks the company no longer has liquidity risk and can generate significant profits by 2012. The firm set a $17 target on the stock.
• Bronco Drilling (NASDAQ: BRNC) was upgraded to Hold from Underperform at Jefferies.
• LSI Corp. (NYSE: LSI) was upgraded to Buy from Hold at Deutsche Bank.
• UBS upgraded U.S. Airways (NYSE: LCC) and UAL Corp. (NASDAQ: UAUA) to Buy from Neutral.

Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AXP, CL, DLTR, PG, RIMM, UAUA ...

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AXP, CL, DLTR, PG, RIMM, UAUA ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 25 Sep 2009 11:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

United Airlines (NASDAQ: UAUA), US Airways (NYSE: LCC) and American Airlines (NYSE: AMR), according to an influential analyst, have run out of options. Jamie Baker of JPMorgan said in a July 20, 2009 report that these companies couldn't do anything to prevent a cash crisis. They only savior available to them would have to be an outside investor. To call the position grim would be optimistic. Unfortunately, it couldn't have come at a worse time.

As Baker was walking the bear into the airline industry, United was starting to celebrate its change in direction. The carrier has improved its on-time rate, according to a USA Today report, and its operations are coming around. Despite the fact that the airline industry has been brutalized by the global recession, the airline has made some progress. Through August, the company's share price doubled, and its ascent has continued in September. So, the company is locked in an ongoing struggle to manage its identity, cope with its past and shape how the world sees it today.

The operational "makeover" has resulted in a reduction of its fleet from 601 jets in 2000 to 386 as of the summer of 2009. In terms of passenger traffic, it's in the #4 spot in the United States - trailing Delta (NYSE: DAL), Southwest (NYSE: LUV) and American. With Q2 revenues off 25.2% year-over-year, however, drastic measures are still necessary.

Continue reading United's battle over its identity

United's battle over its identity originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 Sep 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continental Airlines (NYSE: CAL) just got the relief it needs to compete. Despite resistance from the Department of Justice (which can only recommend), the Department of Transportation has granted the airline immunity from antitrust laws. This clears the way for Continental to work with United Airlines (NASDAQ: UAUA) -- and other carriers -- on international routes. Now, the airline can join Star Alliance, which already has antitrust immunity.

At the same time, DOT approved a joint venture among Continental, United, Lufthansa (OTC: DLAKY) and Air Canada. This new relationship would involve trans-Atlantic routes.

Continue reading DOT overrides Justice, Continental Airlines wins antitrust relief

DOT overrides Justice, Continental Airlines wins antitrust relief originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 13 Jul 2009 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (NYSE: AMD) reported dismal Q4 results due to lower demand.
• AMR Corp. (NYSE: AMR) reported a bigger-than-expected Q4 loss, sending shares lower.
• Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP) earnings prospects led to an upgrade.
• eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) posted Q4 and full-year results with increased revenue due to a stronger dollar.
• Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) reported strong Q4 numbers that beat analysts' expectations.
• International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) reported better-than-expected Q4 and 2008 earnings.
• Lockheed Martin Corp. (NYSE: LMT) posted strong Q4 results but lowered its 2009 guidance.
• Northern Trust Corp. (NASDAQ: NTRS) shares surged after posting better-than-expected earnings.
• Regions Financial Corp. (NYSE: RF) reported a huge loss due to write-downs and offered a bleak outlook.
• Societe Generale said that it expects to have broken even in the final quarter of 2008.
• Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) posted its second straight quarterly loss due to fuel hedging costs.
• UAL Corp. (NASDAQ: UAUA) reported a huge loss on the erosion in value of oil hedges as prices dropped.
• Usana Health Sciences Inc. (NASDAQ: USNA) posted record Q4 results despite one-time charges.

For more highlights from this week, see Apple, Microsoft, GE, Johnson & Johnson, Harley Davidson and others

Continue reading Earnings highlights: eBay, Google, IBM, Southwest, UAL, AMR, Northern Trust and others

Earnings highlights: eBay, Google, IBM, Southwest, UAL, AMR, Northern Trust and others originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 24 Jan 2009 14:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

I think it's fair to say that there's much trepidation about the earnings season that picks up steam this week. And for better or worse, numbers from the big financials have begun to roll in. Last week we saw profit sink for JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM) and significant losses from Bank of American Corp. (NYSE: BAC), Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C), and Deutsche Bank (NYSE: DB).

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect Bank of New York Mellon Corp. (NYSE: BK) to be among those financials reporting fourth-quarter earnings growth this week. They anticipate that Bank of New York will post a profit of $0.70 per share, compared to $0.67 per share a year ago and $0.72 in the previous quarter. Revenue is expected come to $3.8 billion, about the same as it was a year ago. Bank of New York has fallen short of earnings estimates in two of the past five quarters, by as much as 11.1%. For the full year, analysts are looking for $2.78 per share (+5.8%) on $14.8 billion (+4.2%). The consensus recommendation of analysts is to buy BK, and the long-term EPS growth rate forecast is 10.7%. Shares are 48.7% lower than a year ago. Other financials expected to report quarterly earnings growth this week include SunTrust Banks Inc. (NYSE: STI) and M&T Bank Corp. (NYSE: MTB).

Continue reading The week in preview: Financials, techs lead off earnings crunch

The week in preview: Financials, techs lead off earnings crunch originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 18 Jan 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.