Continue reading Chasing Value: Ten stocks for 2010 -- Part 4

Chasing Value: Ten stocks for 2010 -- Part 4 originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Barnes & Noble (BKS) closed at $22.50. BKS is expected to report Q2 EPS on November 24. Ron Burkle, the private equity investor, doubled his stake in Barnes & Noble to 17% from 8%. BKS is expected to give its outlook of its digital book reader, Nook, during EPS conference call. December option implied volatility is at 54, January is at 51; versus its 26-week average of 48, according to Track Data, suggesting larger near term price movement.

Ford (F) closed at $8.98. Ford December option implied volatility is at 42, January is at 43; below its 26-week average of 63, according to Track Data, suggesting decreasing price movement.

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

Options Update: Barnes & Noble volatility up into EPS and Nook outlook originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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

• Activision Blizzard Inc. (NASDAQ: ATVI) said its Q3 profit declined despite the popularity of Guitar Hero.
• Blackboard Inc. (NASDAQ: BBBB) said Q3 revenue surged and its offered impressive cash flow numbers.
• Boston Beer Co. Inc. (NYSE: SAM) easily beat Q3 earnings estimates and raised its full-year guidance.
• Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO) lower Q1 results topped estimates and sent shares higher.
• Cognizant Technology Solutions Inc. (NASDAQ: CTSH) was upgraded following its strong Q3 results.
• Corporate Executive Board (NASDAQ: EXBD) received an analyst's upgrade following the Q3 results.

Continue reading Earnings highlights: Cisco, Ford, Humana, MasterCard, Starbucks, Toyota ...

Earnings highlights: Cisco, Ford, Humana, MasterCard, Starbucks, Toyota ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Serious Money: Jumpy stock market but Special 'K' doing fine

Serious Money: Jumpy stock market but Special 'K' doing fine originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Ford (F) posts surprising profit for its third quarter

Ford (F) posts surprising profit for its third quarter originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Before the bell: Stocks futures point to a solid start after CIT's failure, Ford's earnings

Before the bell: Stocks futures point to a solid start after CIT's failure, Ford's earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 07:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F), whose cost-cutting efforts encountered a setback this weekend, is scheduled to discuss its third quarter 2009 financial results in a conference call Monday at 9:00 AM ET, hosted by CEO Alan Mulally and CFO Lewis W. K. Booth. You can catch the live webcast of the call on the company's website.

During the three months that ended in September, Ford's Fusion saw record sales, it announced a boost in production, and it opened a plant in Thailand. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect this leading auto maker to report that it further narrowed its net loss to $0.12 per share. That compares to $0.21 per share in the previous quarter and $1.31 per share a year ago. Ford has offered up smaller-than-expected losses in the past two quarters, by as much as 48 cents per share.

Continue reading Ford earnings preview: Inching toward the black

Ford earnings preview: Inching toward the black originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Analyst upgrades:

• RBC Capital upgraded Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) to Outperform from Sector Perform and said the company has attractive franchise value and earnings power, and is nearing the start of a credit driven earnings recovery. The firm raised its target to $22 from $19.
• Oppenheimer assumed coverage of Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) and upgraded shares to Outperform from Perform. The firm expects Amazon's revenue growth to re-accelerate over the next several quarters, making consensus estimates too conservative. Opco set a $130 price target on the stock.
• Barclays upgraded Ford (NYSE: F) to Equal Weight from Underweight and believes the company will report Q3 results above the Street. The firm raised its Q3 EPS estimate to 7 cents from 16 cents, vs. consensus of 21 cents, and its price target to $8 from $7.
• Charles River Labs (NYSE: CRL) was upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Goldman.
• Briggs & Stratton (NYSE: BGG) was upgraded to Outperform from Neutral at Baird.
• Sealed Air (NYSE: SEE) was upgraded to Equal Weight from Underweight at Barclays.

Continue reading Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AMZN, BA, BAC, F, LUV, LYG T, WEN ...

Analyst upgrades, downgrades and initiations: AMZN, BA, BAC, F, LUV, LYG T, WEN ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 20 Oct 2009 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Closing Bell: The Yo-Yo market (ENER, ITT, F, GS, UNH, RA, FIG)

Closing Bell: The Yo-Yo market (ENER, ITT, F, GS, UNH, RA, FIG) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) has been looking to sell its beleaguered Volvo unit since last December and reportedly hopes to narrow the field of bidders this month.

One of the leading contenders is the Crown group, which is led by former Ford director Michael Dingman and former Ford labor executive Shamel Rushwin. Crown entered the talks about two months ago, and it hopes to attract former Volvo executives such as one-time CEO Roger Holtback as equity partners.

Continue reading Former Ford execs bid for Volvo

Former Ford execs bid for Volvo originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 06 Oct 2009 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Ford sales fall in September

Ford sales fall in September originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 16:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The markets opened lower this morning and have continued to slide all day, mostly due to poor reports on manufacturing and unemployment. Still, for the third quarter both the DJIA and the S&P 500 indexes gained about 15%. Now, it appears that faith in an economic recovery is wobbling, primarily as a result of expected growth in unemployment and continuing low consumer spending. The federal stimulus program has pumped about $86 billion into the economy so far, but that hasn't been enough to shake loose tight-fisted lenders or cash-conserving consumers.

Here are the numbers::

Dow 9,509.28 -203.00 (-2.09%)
S&P 500 1,029.84 -27.24 (-2.58%)
Nasdaq 2,057.48 -64.94 (-3.06%)

Continue reading Just about everything weighs on markets today (F, PAG, ETP, ASTI, CHTP)

Just about everything weighs on markets today (F, PAG, ETP, ASTI, CHTP) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

We're wrapping up the third quarter soon. Earnings will be out in October for most companies, certainly the largest names. They should look very good ... when compared to the third quarter of last year. And the fourth quarter will most likely look even better when comparisons are made.

There's the rub. The percentage increase in earnings will be strong for most companies as many of them wrote down assets, especially in the financials, last year at this time. Mortgages that weren't paying, loans that were way past due, they were losses. Every kind of asset a bank or thrift owned was under scrutiny. Many financials bit the bullet and wrote off large numbers, to get the bad news out of the way. Others nibbled at it, stretching out the pain over several quarters. By now many of those write offs have been taken, and those kinds of losses will be lighter, making earnings much better.

Continue reading Comfort Zone Investing: Earnings will look great but ...

Comfort Zone Investing: Earnings will look great but ... originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 27 Sep 2009 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The market was remarkably bored about most of what the Fed had to say about the results of the FOMC. A close reading of the minutes shows nothing new. The economy is very modestly better. The turn for the better will be slow and painful. Housing may be getting a tiny bit better. Rates will stay near zero. The only statement which may not have been expected by almost everyone is that the agency will continue buying mortgage-backed and federal debt into the first quarter of next year.

The lack of enthusiasm showed as the major indices traded fairly flat. Today's unofficial numbers:

Dow 9,749.31 -80.56 (-0.82%)
S&P 500 1,060.90 -10.76 (-1.00%)
Nasdaq 2,131.42 -14.88 (-0.69%)

Continue reading Closing bell: no one cares about the Fed

Closing bell: no one cares about the Fed originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 23 Sep 2009 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Alan Mulally, president and CEO of Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F), said Wednesday that he expects U.S. auto sales to rise during the next two years. Vehicle sales in 2009 are expected to range between 10.5 million and 11 million units, and Mulally predicts that number will increase to 12.5 million in 2010 and 14.5 million in 2011.

"It has started to pick up right now because we have had the stimulus packages," said Mulally, speaking before reporters in India. "So, it will be up a little now, then will go down. But overall in the long term, the sales will grow with the GDP number." The CEO added that Ford expects to be profitable by 2011.

Continue reading Ford Motor forecasts rebound in U.S. auto sales

Ford Motor forecasts rebound in U.S. auto sales originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 23 Sep 2009 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Ford gets $5.9 billion loan from Department of Energy

Ford gets $5.9 billion loan from Department of Energy originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 22 Sep 2009 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

From TheStreet.com Network

• Toyota Plans Big U.S. Marketing Push
• Chrysler Restarts Leasing via GMAC

Continue reading Cramer on BloggingStocks: Missing the big picture

Cramer on BloggingStocks: Missing the big picture originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 Sep 2009 09:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Reiterating favorable stocks: Freeport, Potash, Ford

Reiterating favorable stocks: Freeport, Potash, Ford originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 Sep 2009 16:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Ford's goal of lighter cars means biomaterials instead of petroleum materials

Ford's goal of lighter cars means biomaterials instead of petroleum materials originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 Sep 2009 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Ford sees new van production in Romania after spending millions in training costs

Ford sees new van production in Romania after spending millions in training costs originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 08 Sep 2009 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.