Analyst upgrades:

• Deutsche Bank upgraded Cemex (NYSE: CX) to Buy from Hold on decreased dilution risk following the company's successful refinancing and raised its target on shares to $15 from $11.20.
• Rochdale upgraded Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) to Buy from Neutral and raised its target to $65. The firm is positive on Wal-Mart's defensive characteristics, cyclical upside, and competitive position.
• JPMorgan upgraded Gartner Group (NYSE: IT) to Overweight from Neutral to reflect stabilization in IT industry spending and the stock's attractive valuation. The firm has a $23 price target on the stock.
• Cavium Networks (NASDAQ: CAVM) was upgraded to Overweight from Equal Weight at Barclays.
• Borg-Warner (NYSE: BWA) was upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/Merrill.
• Nanometrics (NASDAQ: NANO) was upgraded to Outperform from Perform at Oppenheimer.

Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: BJ, CX, MRK, VLKAY, WMT ...

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: BJ, CX, MRK, VLKAY, WMT ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 17 Aug 2009 12:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Argus upgraded CBRL Group (NASDAQ: CBRL) to Buy from Hold as it believes increased efficiency at Cracker Barrel will help to boost restaurant traffic and same-store sales. The firm has a $33 target on shares.
  
• Citigroup upgraded shares of Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) to Buy from Hold on expectations the company's blood-thinning drug Effient is on track for a Q2 U.S. launch. The firm raised its price target on shares to $41 from $36.
  
• Needham upgraded Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) to Buy from Hold after recent channel checks suggested Intel's PC OEM orders are tracking better than expected. The firm expects Intel to keep prices and product mix stable, enabling margins to recover in Q2. Needham has an $18 target on INTC shares.
• SEI Investments (NASDAQ: SEIC) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Keefe Bruyette.
  
• Consolidated Edison (NYSE: ED) was raised at Jefferies to Buy from Hold.
  
• Taleo (NASDAQ: TLEO) was lifted to Outperform from Perform at Oppenheimer.

Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: CBRL, INTC, LLY, RDS.A, NTDOY ...

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: CBRL, INTC, LLY, RDS.A, NTDOY ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 18 Mar 2009 10:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Volkswagen aims to overtake Ford as third-largest automaker originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 21 Jul 2008 13:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Volkswagen: A rising competitor for Detroit?

Volkswagen: A rising competitor for Detroit? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 10 Jul 2008 11:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Susquehanna downgraded Priceline.com (NASDAQ: PCLN) to Neutral from Positive as they believe upside may be difficult given the macro environment, competition, and currency headwinds.
  
• JP Morgan lowered Monster (NASDAQ: MNST) to Neutral from Overweight following the company's expectations for higher 1Q08 operating expenses.
  
• Internap (NASDAQ: INAP) was downgraded by Merriman to Neutral from Buy as they believe upside will be limited until the company can complete its integration of the VitalStream CDN acquisition.

• JP Morgan cut Sara Lee (NYSE: SLE) and Kraft Foods (NYSE: KFT) to Neutral from Overweight.
  
• Volkswagen (OTC: VLKAY) was downgraded at WestLB to Add from Buy.
  
• Merrill downgraded Getty Realty (NYSE: GTY) to Sell from Neutral.

Analyst downgrades: Priceline.com, Monster, Internap originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY: New York Times, Finlay Enterprises and AXA were today's noteworthy downgrades:

• Banc of America downgraded shares of New York Times Co. (NYSE: NYT) to Sell from Neutral and lowered their target to $14 from $21, as they believe the luxury categories, which represent 28% of NYT's national ad revenue, are not recession proof and that the company is also vulnerable to a cyclical contraction in the financial services sector.
• B. Riley lowered its rating on Finlay Enterprises (NASDAQ: FNLY) to Sell from Neutral to reflect the weak consumer environment, higher gold prices, and lower sales expectations for Bailey.
• Goldman downgraded shares of AXA (NYSE: AXA) to Sell from Buy and added AXA to their Conviction Sell List on valuation and the company's exposure to the equity markets.

OTHER DOWNGRADES:

• Volkswagen AG (OTC: VLKAY) was downgraded to Sell from Hold at Societe Generale.
• Deutsche Bank cut Air France KLM (NYSE: AKH) and Ryanair (NASDAQ: RYAAY) to Hold from Buy.

Analyst downgrades: NYT, FNLY and AXA originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 28 Nov 2007 12:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• News Corp.'s (NYSE: NWS) MySpace is investing heavily in games to go along with its successful music and video offerings, and beginning in January, thanks to a deal with games distributor Oberon, will offer hundreds of free "casual" games, reported the Wall Street Journal (subscription required).
  
• The European Court of Justice in Luxembourg overturned a law that had been on the books in Germany since 1960 to prevent hostile foreign takeovers, reported the Wall Street Journal. The immediate result is expected to be a takeover attempt by Porsche, a 31% holder of Volkswagen (OTC: VLKAY) shares.

• Mobile Telecom company France Telecom (NYSE: FTE) is close to creating a joint venture for long distance operations in India with Indian optical storage manufacturer Moser Baer, reported the Economic Times.
• British financial services company HSBC Holdings (NYSE: HBC) is looking to sell Marbles, the online credit card business it acquired in 2003, reported the Independent.
• The first undersea telecommunications cable linking China and the U.S. -- called the Trans-Pacific Express -- has begun to be constructed, reports the Associated Press, and it's expected to be in place before the Beijing Olympics next July. Verizon Communications (NYSE: VZ) is involved and says the cable will be 11,000 miles long and cost about $500M.

Newspaper wrap-up: 'Volkswagen law' overturned originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 23 Oct 2007 09:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• Barron's Online's (subscription required) "Weekday Trader" is inclined to take profits in the disk-drive market while others are popping the champagne; specifically in Western Digital Corporation (NYSE: WDC), which Barron's wrote about positively four months ago and has appreciated 29.6%.
• Emerging markets are outperforming their U.S. and European counterparts this year, but investing in some countries -- including Turkey and Hungary -- is still risky, according to the "Heard on the Street" column in today's Wall Street Journal (subscription required).
• The Financial Times (subscription required) reported that Russian oil company Lukoil Holding (OTC: LUKOY), which is 20% owned by ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP), is planning a $9B European spending spree.

• The Los Angeles Times reported that Washington Mutual Inc (NYSE: WM), the largest U.S. savings and loan bank, will close two mortgage divisions, resulting in about 1,000 job cuts.
• Spanish telecommunications company Telefonica SA (NYSE: TEF) said it is in talks with Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) concerning the right to sell the company's new phone, the iPhone, in Spain, next summer, Telecom Paper (subscription required) reported.

• A rumored partnership between Apple and Volkswagen AG (OTC: VLKAY) to develop an "iCar" with iPod connectivity could benefit both companies but is unlikely to yield an actual automobile for three or four years, according to market intelligence firm iSuppli Corp., reported AppleInsider.com.

Newspaper wrap-up: Lukoil planning a $9B spending spree originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 13 Sep 2007 09:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• After less than a year in office, Shinzo Abe, the prime minister of Japan, resigned, reported the Wall Street Journal.
• With its sights set on Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE: TM), Volkswagen AG (OTC: VLKAY) CEO Stefan Jacoby says he'll nearly triple sales of vehicles in the U.S. over the next decade, reported the Wall Street Journal.
• Barron's Online's "Inside Scoop" column reported that director James Burke purchased $1.1M worth of AnnTaylor Stores Corporation (NYSE: ANN) stock on Friday, marking the first open-market purchase by an AnnTaylor insider in at least five years, according to InsiderScore.com.

• According to the U.K. Times, British bank Barclays (NYSE: BCS) has invested $1.5B in Golden Key, a fund that has gotten into trouble as a result of the global liquidity squeeze.
• Aluminum company Alcan Inc (NYSE: AL) is reportedly in talks to sell its packaging unit to India's Essel Group, reported the Economic Times.
• Music publishers have intensified their efforts to shut down popular Web sites that publish song lyrics without permission, reported the New York Post. The publishers are also demanding that Google Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) and Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) remove all references to the offending sites from their search engines.

Newspaper wrap-up: Barclays to bail out Golden Key originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 12 Sep 2007 09:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• Applix Inc (NASDAQ: APLX) was downgraded to Neutral from Buy at First Albany and SunTrust Robinson Humphrey following the acquisition by Cognos Inc (NASDAQ: COGN).
• Time Warner Inc (NYSE: TWX) was downgrade to Neutral from Buy at Pali Capital. The firm has lost faith in Time Warner's executive management team and Board of Directors and feels the outlook for AOL is concerning.
• Gabelli downgraded Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) shares to Hold from Buy on iPhone concerns and valuation as they view the iPhone price cut as an indication that sales are not living up to management's expectations.
• Buckingham Research downgraded shares of Level 3 Communications Inc (NASDAQ: LVLT) to Underperform from Neutral citing deterioration in demand for some key products.

• SL Green Realty (NYSE: SLG) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Lehman Brothers.
• Citigroup downgraded shares of Volkswagen AG (OTC: VLKAY) to Sell from Hold.
• Zumiez Inc (NASDAQ: ZUMZ) was downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Morgan Keegan.
  
• JP Morgan downgraded Northeast Utilities (NYSE: NU) to Neutral from Overweight.
• Goldman Sachs downgraded Radiation Therapy Services Inc (NASDAQ: RTSX) to Neutral from Buy.

Analyst downgrades 9-6-07: APLX, TWX, AAPL and LVLT originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 06 Sep 2007 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Chinese car manufacturers roll into Africa with a vengeance

Chinese car manufacturers roll into Africa with a vengeance originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 28 Aug 2007 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

BusinessWeek

Auto recall list for 2007 is suprising originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 20 Aug 2007 16:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Toyota (TM) hybrid stalled -- can Detroit capitalize? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 09 Aug 2007 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) reported that Highfields Capital Management LP, which owns an 8.5% stake in Wendy's International Inc (NYSE: WEN), has sent a "strongly worded letter" to Wendy's chairman James Pickett, urging the fast food chain to pursue a sale.
• Barron's Online's (subscription required) "Weekday Trader" column wrote that Western Digital Corporation (NYSE: WDC) shares could appreciate another 20% or more from a recent price of $18.06 per share, if investors can appreciate that the PC market is not permanently sluggish.
• The Financial Times (subscription required) reported that Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: DOW) and Saudi Aramco are close to signing a deal to build a petrochemical plant worth about $20B.
• German prosecutors and investigators are looking into allegations that a German paint supplier paid bribes to at least five Volkwagen AG (OTC: VLKAY) employees to gain contracts with the company, reported the Financial Times.

• The Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board is heading up a consortium that is in talks to possibly buyout the parent of Bell Canada, BCE Inc (NYSE: BCE), reported the New York Times.

• Paul McCartney reportedly told Billboard that a deal is "virtually settled" to make the Beatles catalog available for sale online.

Newspaper wrap-up 5-11-07: Wendy's urged to sell by shareholder originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 11 May 2007 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The Wall Street Journal reported that Telefonica SA ADS of Spain (NYSE: TEF), in a $5.6B deal, has won a stake in Telecom Italia (NYSE: TI), but not control.
• According to the Wall Street Journal, Jones Apparel Group Inc (NYSE: JNY) CEO Peter Boneparth may sell Barney's, which it purchased in 2004 for $400M and today may be worth $800M.
• The Wall Street Journal reported that Marathon Oil Corporation (NYSE: MRO) is constructing a $3.2B addition to its biggest refinery in Louisiana for diesel fuel.
• The Wall Street Journal reported that Deutsche Boerse is in talks to make a $2.6B offer for International Securities Exchange Holdings Inc (NYSE: ISE).
• Senior Citigroup Inc (NYSE: C) executives are afraid the company could become a target of activist hedge funds seeking to break the company up, reported the Financial Times.
• According to the Financial Times, a number of companies involved in options backdating scandals, including McAfee Incorporated (NYSE: MFE) and Novell Inc (NASDAQ: NOVL), could be vulnerable to takeover by activist investors.

• The New York Times "Dealbook" reported that Porsche has bid $48.9B for Volkswagen AG (OTC: VLKAY), and the bid will run for four weeks starting today.
• The News Journal reported that AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) has received a subpoena from the Delaware Attorney General, which seeks documents about the company's contracts with Delaware hospitals.

Newspaper wrap-up 4-30-07: Porsche bids for Volkswagen originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 30 Apr 2007 09:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Baird downgraded SanDisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK) to Neutral from Outperform with a $43 target, citing the company's reduced gross margin outlook.
• Morgan Stanley downgraded JetBlue Airways Corp. (NASDAQ:JBLU) to Equal Weight from Overweight.
• The Semiconductor Equipment sector was downgraded to Market Weight from Overweight at Credit Suisse, citing first quarter memory chip margins that are lower for the first time in three years.
• Credit Suisse also downgraded Lam Research Corp (NASDAQ:LRCX) to Neutral from Outperform, citing negative catalysts ahead, despite the cheap valuation, and Varian Semiconductor Equipment Associates, Inc. (NASDAQ:VSEA) to Underperform from Neutral, citing valuation.

• Soleil Securities downgraded AK Steel Holding Corp. (NYSE:AKS) to Sell from Hold on valuation.
  
• Merriman cut the Nautilus, Inc (NYSE:NLS) to Sell from Neutral. They believe shifts in spending patterns to "big box" retailers are hurting direct channel results. The firm also believes Nautilus lacks near-term catalysts.
• Citigroup downgraded Volkswagen (OTC:VLKAY) to Sell from Hold.
• Matrix USA downgraded Kulicke & Soffa Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:KLIC) to Strong Sell from Strong Buy, citing decreasing revenues and growing valuation.
• Wedbush downgraded LeapFrog Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE:LF) to Sell from Hold and expects a better entry point in the future.
• RBC cut Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) to Sector Perform from Outperform citing the lack of near-term catalysts.

Analyst downgrades 2-20-07: SanDisk, JetBlue, Abercrombie & Fitch originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 20 Feb 2007 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• Barron's Magazine (subscription required) highlighted a number of possible M&A targets, along with a few stocks it believes to be undervalued:
• M&A is expected to continue in Europe: possible large cap targets include Barclays (NYSE: BCS), Deutsche Telekom (NYSE: DT), Deutsche Bank (NYSE: DB), ABN Amro (NYSE: ABN), Volkswagen (OTC: VLKAY), Koninklljke (NYSE: KPN) and Swisscom (NYSE: SCM); possible small-mid cap targets include Hellenic Telecom (NYSE: OTE).
  
• There may still be upside in shares of Xerox (NYSE: XRX), says James Benson, a partner and securities analyst at Harris Associates.
• Shares of YRC Worldwide (NASDAQ: YRCW) may be undervalued by as much as 50%, says Barron's "Bottom Line," which writes that shares could climb above $60.
• The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) featured an article on Pfizer's new CEO and his strategic plan.
• Pfizer's (NYSE: PFE) new CEO, Jeffrey B. Kindler, is preparing to detail his strategic vision for the company that will likely involve more job cuts.
• Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) is claiming a nanotechnology research breakthrough that would bring big benefits in performance.
• According to a Nomura report, Sony Corp (NYSE: SNE) will reach only 75% of its global target for PlayStation 3 sales this fiscal year through March.
• The New York Times had an article highlighting the possibility of New York funding stem cell research.
• New York Governor Eliot Spitzer called for the passage of a $2B 10-year bond initiative for research and development, at least half of which would be set aside to pay for stem cell research.
• Citigroup (NYSE: C) may shorten its name to Citi and drop its umbrella logo.

• The UK Times wrote that Ford (NYSE: F) may have trouble selling its Aston Martin unit after potential buyers found problems in the divisions books while doing due diligence.
• El Pais wrote that Fidel Castro is in "very grave" condition after three failed operations and complications from an intestinal infection known as diverticulitis.

Newspaper wrap-up 1-16-07: Fidel Castro in "very grave" condition originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 16 Jan 2007 09:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.