MARKET CURRENTS
real-time news and commentary for investors
MARKET CURRENTS
-
Today - Wednesday, June 19, 2013
-
4:41 PM Ashford Hospitality Trust (AHT) commences a secondary of 11M shares with proceeds to be used for the planned spinoff of Ashford Hospitality Prime announced Wednesday. Shares -0.75% AH. (PR) Comment!
-
4:41 PM Stratasys (SSYS) is acquiring desktop 3D printing upstart MakerBot in an all-stock deal that has an initial value of $403M (based on Stratasys' Wednesday close), but which could reach $604M via performance incentives. MakerBot, which has sold 22K+ printers since '09 (11K Replicator 2 units in the last 9 months) and had Q1 revenue of $11.5M, will operate as an independent unit. The deal is expected to be slightly dilutive to 2013 EPS, and accretive by the end of 2014. The companies estimate 35K-40K desktop 3D printers were sold in 2012, and see the market doubling this year. CC at 7AM ET tomorrow (webcast). SSYS +1.7% AH. (previous) Comment!
-
4:27 PM As previously tipped, Chimera Investment (CIM) holds it payout steady, declaring a Q2 dividend of $0.09/share for an annualized yield of 11.7%. It's possible at least some portion of that dividend is return of capital, rather than ordinary income or capital gain, says the company, which also estimates economic book value as of March 31 of $3.08/share vs. an estimated $3.04/share in Dec. 31 (the company is behind on its Qs, so these remain estimates). 2 Comments
-
4:22 PM Annaly Capital (NLY) cuts its payout 11.1%, declaring a Q2 dividend of $0.40/share for an annualized yield of 12.3%. Shares +0.5% AH. (PR) 2 Comments
-
4:14 PM Nokia (NOK) +2.6% AH after the WSJ reports Microsoft (MSFT) held advanced talks to buy Nokia's phone business, and was "close to an oral agreement" at one point, but that discussions broke down in part due to price and concerns about Nokia's competitive positioning. One source says the talks "took place as recently as this month, but aren't likely to be revived." 21 Comments
-
4:05 PM Micron (MU): Q1 EPS of $0.04 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $2.3B beats by $0.06B. Shares -1% AH. (PR) 2 Comments
-
2:41 PM Bernanke press conference: In a change to the Fed's exit policy (if it ever happens), the chairman says a majority on the FOMC expects the Fed will not sell MBS, and will instead let the paper mature or get paid off. He reiterates that the unemployment rate falling to 6.5% will not automatically trigger a rate hike. The Fed could begin tapering asset purchases later this year if its economic forecasts are correct. 4 Comments
-
2:30 PM More on the FOMC announcement: In addition to the now-customary dissent by the Kansas City Fed chief was a dissent by St. Louis' Jim Bullard. Whereas Esther George is concerned over too high a level of monetary accommodation, Bullard apparently feels just the opposite. He believes the FOMC "should signal more strongly its willingness to defend its inflation goal in light of recent low inflation readings." Bernanke's press conference is about to get underway. Comment!
-
2:06 PM FOMC Economic Projections: 2013 GDP growth estimate is cut a hair to 2.3-2.6% from 2.3-2.8%, but is boosted in 2014 to 3-3.5% from 2.9-3.4%. The unemployment rate forecast for 2013 is trimmed to 7.2-7.3% from 7.3-7.5% and in 2014 to 6.5-6.8% from 6.7-7%. Core CPI expectations are cut to 1.2-1.3% this year from 1.5-1.6% and in 2014 to 1.5-1.8% from 1.7-2%. 14 out of 19 FOMC members see rate hikes beginning in 2015 (4 see hikes before then). 2 Comments
-
2:01 PM FOMC Announcement: No changes to the $85B per month in asset purchases and the committee stands ready to increase or decrease the level as necessary. Downside risks to the economy and the labor market have diminished since the fall. 10 Comments
-
11:09 AM ReneSola (SOL +4.9%) spikes higher after SA contributor Sneha Shah argues a low cost structure and diminishing competition in the solar wafer and polysilicon markets will allow the company to keep gaining share (it recently passed LDK to be the world's #2 wafer vendor), and that shares are due to rally after underperforming Chinese peers with stronger Japanese exposure. Shah also sees gross margin bottoming - it's expected to rise to 3%-5% in Q2 after coming in at -2% in Q1 - and predicts ReneSola will become a top-10 module supplier in 2013, with a 4%-5% share. 12% of the float was shorted as of May 31. Comment!
-
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
-
4:27 PM Hatteras Financial (HTS) receives board authorization for a stock repurchase program of up to 10M shares (about 10% of the float). Shares +0.8% AH. Previous: Hatteras maintains its $0.70 dividend. Comment!
Latest Articles
