By Michael Kanellos

How do you count carbon?

Although various governments have already erected carbon accounting and abatement systems, the issue remains unsettled. The easiest plan to administer is a carbon tax tied to the fossil fuels consumed directly by an individual or company. Politically, however, taxes have proven a difficult sell. Cap-and-trade systems, meanwhile, can lead to vague credits with amorphous values.

Companies which service the Auto and E&C (Engineering and Construction) industries have had to bear the worst of the recession and Autodesk, Inc. (ADSK) has been no exception.

With the severe downturn that impacted Autodesk customers, the revenue decline has been expectedly sharp.

4:07 PM, Aug 14, 2009 --

• DJIA -76.7 or 0.8% to 9,321
• S&P 500 -8.6 or 0.9% to 1,004
• Nasdaq -23.8 or 1.2% to 1,986

GLOBAL SENTIMENT

• BoA to consumers: Feel free to sue... Bank of America (BAC) is dropping a requirement that forced consumers with disputes on credit cards or other accounts to enter into arbitration. The move, which comes as the government pushes for stronger consumer financial protection, is considered a win for consumers, as many faulted the arbitration process for being biased. Consumers will now be able to file lawsuits directly against the bank if they suspect unfair or illegal practices. American Express (AXP) and JPMorgan Chase (JPM) both say they're evaluating changes to their policies on resolving consumer disputes as well.
• ...and BoA does some suing of its own. Bank of America (BAC) won a restraining order preventing Colonial BancGroup (CNB) from selling or disposing of more than $1B in cash and loans held by Colonial. Following an announcement by Colonial that it may be put into receivership, Bank of America had filed suit earlier in the week, alleging the funds are being held in custodianship for Ocala Funding, the commercial-paper vehicle backed by Taylor, Bean & Whitaker. Bank of America also filed a lawsuit against Shelbourne Development Group, which has stopped construction on a 150-floor Chicago condominium tower, alleging the company has defaulted on a loan.
• Fed demands CIT plan. CIT Group (CIT) signed an agreement giving the Federal Reserve strong oversight over its operations, and pledging to submit a recapitalization plan and to strengthen its management and operational controls. CIT has 15 days to craft its plan for raising capital and meeting its debt obligations, and 60 days to review how it manages credit risk. CIT must also get permission from the Fed before paying dividends or pursuing other transactions. (Read the Fed agreement (.pdf))
• China opens its internet dam. China has given up its controversial plans to force filtering software to be installed on all computers produced or sold in the country. A government minister said "we will fully respect everyone’s freedom of choice and will absolutely not force the installation on all PCs sold," although the filter, called Green Dam/Youth Escort, will still be installed on computers in schools, internet cafes and other public spaces.
• That's all, Volks! After nearly a year of takeover attempts and negotiations, Volkswagen (VLKAY.PK) will pay around €3.3B ($4.7B) for a 42% stake in Porsche's core sports-car division, ahead of a full merger to take place in 2011. To help pay for the purchase, Volkswagen will issue new preferred shares in the first half of next year. The combined automaker's operating profit is expected to rise by €700M annually.
• Conflicting stories on Opel deal. Magna International (MGA) said it reached an agreement in principle with General Motors to buy 55% of Opel. Magna co-CEO Siegfried Wolf said some changes were made in the more than 600-page-long offer but "roughly speaking there are no unresolved issues with management any more." GM's top negotiator denied Magna's assertions and said no deal has yet been reached.
• Ford ups production on rising demand. Ford (F) plans to increase its Q3 production by 10,000 vehicles to 495,000 as cash-for-clunkers drives demand. Ford's production will be 18% higher than the same quarter in 2008, and the company set a Q4 production target of 570,000 vehicles, which would be a 33% increase on the previous year. Meanwhile, the White House loosened the cash-for-clunkers rules yesterday, allowing consumers to apply vouchers to cars that are out of stock.
• No new frontiers for Southwest. Southwest Airlines (LUV) lost its bankruptcy auction bid for Frontier Airlines to smaller company Republic Airways Holdings (RJET), losing an opportunity to operate flights outside the U.S. for the first time. Southwest said a 'key reason' it lost the bid was because it wouldn't drop its requirement that Frontier's pilot union reach an agreement with Southwest's pilots.
• Retail sales miss. July's retail sales came in at -0.1% vs. consensus of +0.8%. Excluding automotive, sales were down 0.6% vs. +0.1% consensus. Gas station sales were down 32.5% from a year ago (-2.1% M/M). Building material and garden equipment sales were 14.7% lower (-2.1% M/M). Health and personal sales (+4.1%) and restaurants (+1%) were the only retail components to post positive sales growth over the past year. Overall, sales are 8.3% lower than a year ago.
• Jobless claims rise. Initial jobless claims were 558K, up 4K from a week ago, and worse than the 545K consensus. Continuing claims fell 141K to 6.202M.
• Import prices drop. July's Import Price Index fell 0.7% vs. consensus of -0.5%, primarily due to a fall in petroleum prices. Import prices are down 19.3% vs. a year ago. Export prices fell 0.3%.

Earnings: Friday Before Open

• Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF): Q2 EPS of -$0.30 vs. consensus of -$0.07. Revenue of $648M (-23.3%) in-line. (PR)

Earnings: Thursday After Close

• American Apparel (APP): Q2 EPS of $0.06 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $136M (+2%) vs. $140M. Sees full-year revenue of $540M-555M vs. $568M and expects to open 25-30 new stores. (PR)
• Autodesk (ADSK): Q2 EPS of $0.24 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $415M (-33%) vs. $414M. (PR)
• Blockbuster (BBI): Q2 EPS of -$0.19 misses by $0.07. Revenue of $1B (-22%) vs. $1.1B. (PR)
• Darling International (DAR): Q2 EPS of $0.14 in-line. Revenue of $155M (-30%) vs. $160M. (PR)
• DeVry (DV): FQ4 EPS of $0.51 in-line. Revenue of $396M (+43%) vs. $377M. (PR)
• Elizabeth Arden (RDEN): FQ4 EPS of -$0.07 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $213M (-10%) in-line. Sees FY10 EPS of $0.50-0.65 vs. $0.72. (PR)
• Nordstrom (JWN): Q2 EPS of $0.48 in-line. Revenue of $2.1B (-6%) in-line. Same-store sales down 12.3%. Raises full-year EPS guidance to $1.50-1.65 from $1.25-1.50 vs. consensus of $1.48. Sees full-year same-store sales down 9-12%. (PR)
• Red Robin Gourmet Burgers (RRGB): Q2 EPS of $0.41 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $201M (-3%) vs. $206M. (PR)
• SatCon Technology (SATC): Q2 EPS of -$0.13 misses by $0.05. Revenue of $9M (-31%) vs. $15M. (PR)
• Ticketmaster (TKTM): Q2 EPS of $0.20 misses by $0.04. Revenue of $312M (-18%) vs. $396M. (PR)

Today's Markets

Overseas markets were mostly higher Friday, while U.S. futures have traded in a tight range.

F2Q10 Earnings Call

August 13, 2009 5:00 pm ET

As per my understanding, non-GAAP EPS values are supposed to provide a 'better' picture of a company's earnings power. While GAAP EPS might be skewed due to one-time charges, the non-GAAP EPS value was supposed to strip-out the effect on such one-time items and therefore provide the investor with a metric which can be compared across quarters. In case of most software companies, the non-GAAP numbers are not necessarily comparable and I would recommend that investors stick to the GAAP EPS numbers alone. Here's why:

Non-GAAP does not mean that 'simple' accounting should be overlooked

Adobe Systems (ADBE) is well known for its Creative Suite (CS) and Acrobat family of products but some promising new technologies from Adobe were viewed with burgeoning interest as having the potential to replicate the success stories of Acorbat and CS products. With this in mind, I was eagerly expecting Adobe's results for the May 09 (2Q09) quarter.

I just finished reading Adobe's 2Q09 earnings call transcript and was disappointed with the results, especially the top-line performance. But before the reason for the disappointment, a brief summary of the results.

by Thomas Rasmussen

Coming off a dealmaking binge fueled by cheap credit, private equity (PE) shops have been investing much more soberly since the debt market collapsed late last summer. Highly leveraged multibillion-dollar buyouts have gone the way of collateralized derivatives. As financing has become much more expensive, PE shops have in turn become more price sensitive. Deals are much smaller and generally done with equity these days. The heyday of the PE buyout boom saw dollars spent on deals balloon from $56bn in 2005 to $98bn in 2006 before peaking at $118bn in 2007. Last year saw a drastic ‘normalization,’ with disclosed spending by PE firms falling three-quarters to just $26bn. Spending on buyouts has plummeted this year, with just $3bn worth of deals through the first five months of 2009.

• Couldn't even wait until Friday: In the biggest bank collapse of 2009, regulators seized Florida thrift BankUnited yesterday afternoon, a failure which could cost the FDIC $4.9B. For the current crisis, only IndyMac's failure ($11B) has been bigger. The bust brings into focus recent rumblings that extending government stress test results to smaller banks could result in another $24B or even $100-200B in losses. (table: banks gone bust)
• Geithner pledges to shave deficit. Treasury chief Geithner said Thursday he's committed to trimming the bulging budget deficit and maintaining the U.S.'s pristine AAA sovereign rating: "It's very important that this Congress and this president put in place policies that will bring those deficits down to a sustainable level over the medium term." Treasurys and stocks came under heavy selling yesterday, which influential bond trader Bill Gross said was due to concerns over America's AAA rating, after S&P downgraded the U.K.'s outlook to Negative.
• So long fat profits. Taxpayers could be left to absorb a $10B loss on stock warrants being sold back to banks who are repaying their TARP loans. So far, 17 financial institutions have repaid TARP funds, but only one - Old National Bancorp (ONB) - has come to terms with the Treasury. ONB gave the Treasury $1.2M for warrants that may have been worth $5.81M. If other banks can finagle similar terms, they could walk away with 80% of the profits taxpayers were hoping for.
• Next sucker? AIG (AIG) Chairman and CEO Edward Liddy says he'll step down as soon as a replacement is found, noting the company has reached an 'inflection point' and needs a CEO who's ready to commit long term. Sources say a search could take 3-6 months, which seems optimistic considering the job description includes coming out of a comfortable retirement to put up with congressional buffoonery on an almost weekly basis for a $1 pre-tax salary. AIG also said it will split the two jobs, and proposed a 20:1 reverse stock split, which would bring shares back on to the radar screens of institutional investors. AIG -1.7% premarket to $1.77.
• Card companies brace for big losses. Analysts say companies that pitch credit cards to riskier customers and those that issue cards for retailers will be hardest hit by new legislation being signed into law today. Major players include Bank of America (BAC), Citigroup (C), Capital One (COF), HSBC (HBC), GE (GE), and Target (TGT). Some analysts estimate the new laws - which restrict fees, limit rate increases, and require more transparency - will lop $10B in revenue off the industry's top line.
• GM, union strike deal. UAW reached a tentative deal with GM (GM) and the Treasury to modify its labor agreement, including enabling GM to contribute shares instead of cash to a new, union-managed healthcare plan. On Tuesday, GM said it didn't envision reaching a deal with the UAW before May 26, when an offer to bondholders to exchange $27B in debt for a 10% stake expires. The deal, which must still be ratified by workers, will not necessarily allow GM to avoid bankruptcy. A story in the WaPo says the Obama administration is steering GM to file for bankruptcy protection as early as the end of next week, but Reuters sources say otherwise.
• Citi looks to slice IT costs. Citigroup (C) is ramping up efforts to slash IT costs, and sources say it believes it can save more than $1B 2009 through a massive systems integration.
• Opel draws another vulture. A Chinese automaker expressed interest in GM's (GM) Opel and Vauxhall operations in Europe, bringing potential bidders to four: unnamed Chinese firm, Fiat, Magna International (MGA) and RHJ International, a buyout firm with automotive assets.
• Leading indicators show signs of growth. The Conference Board's Leading Indicators rose 1% in April, in-line with consensus. It was the first increase in seven months, and indicates the recession will be less intense - at least in the near-term - and give hope for growth in H2. "The question is how long before declines in activity give way to small increases. If the indicators continue on the current track, that point might be reached in the second half of the year," Conference Board's Ken Goldstein said. (Conference Board's release)
• Factory sector still struggling. The Philly Fed's Business Outlook Survey edged up to -22.6 in May from -24.4 in April. The increase was substantially less than consensus estimates of -15. Although clearly indicating continued overall decline, the reading was the highest since last September. New orders remained negative, but shipments and the future activity index improved notably. "The survey does suggest that the rebound from the post-Lehman shock is not yet morphing into a sustained recovery story," Ian Shepherdson of High Frequency Economics says. (Philly Fed's release)
• U.S. still bleeding jobs. Initial Jobless Claims fell 12,000 from last week to 631,000 - just worse than the consensus of 625K. Continuing claims rose by 75,000 to 6,662,000. The report failed to satisfy bulls or bears, offering neither proof that job losses have topped, nor clarity that they're headed higher.

Earnings: Thursday After Close

• Aeropostale (ARO): Q1 EPS of $0.49 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $408M (+21.3%) vs. $405M. Issues upside EPS guidance for Q2 of $0.46-0.48. Same store sales for Q1 increased 11% vs. 10% a year ago. (PR)
• Alkermes (ALKS): FQ4 EPS of -$0.14 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $44M (-29.7%) vs. $45M. Issues downside guidance for FY '10, sees revenue $182-197M vs. $205.84M consensus. (PR)
• Aruba Networks (ARUN): FQ3 EPS of $0.01 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $46M (+7.5%) vs. $43M. (PR)
• Autodesk (ADSK): Q1 EPS of $0.18 beats by $0.10. Revenue of $426M (-28.9%) vs. $419M. (PR)
• Dress Barn (DBRN): FQ3 EPS of $0.39 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $376M (+6.6%) vs. $362M. Issues upside EPS guidance for FY '09 of $1.00-1.05 vs. $0.88 consensus. (PR)
• Excel Maritime Carriers (EXM): Q1 EPS of $2.42 beats by $1.73. Revenue of $222M (+218.2%) vs. $109M. (PR)
• Foot Locker (FL): Q1 EPS of $0.20 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $1.2B (-7.1%) in-line. (PR)
• Gap (GPS): Q1 EPS of $0.31 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $3.1B (-7.6%) in-line. (PR)
• LDK Solar (LDK): Q1 EPS of -$0.21 misses by $0.13. Revenue of $283M (-33.6%) vs. $240M. (PR)
• Pacific Sunwear of California (PSUN): Q1 EPS of -$0.13 beats by $0.16. Revenue of $223.5M (-16.3%) vs. $214.5M. (PR)
• Salesforce.com (CRM): Q1 EPS of $0.15 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $305M (+23.1%) in-line. (PR)
• Zumiez (ZUMZ): Q1 EPS of -$0.06 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $77M (-2.4%) vs. $76.5M. (PR)

Today's Markets

Asia was mostly lower following a difficult session in the U.S. Thursday, but Europe stocks have moved up from early lows. Futures are up.

F1Q10 Earnings Call

May 21, 2009 5:00 pm ET

Magic Formula Investing, invented by Joel Greenblatt in The Little Book that Beats the Market, is designed to find stocks with two attributes: A high earnings yield (indicating a cheap price), and high returns on capital (indicating a good business). However, if you look at the official screens regularly, it becomes apparent that often several stocks within an individual industry sector will all appear around the same time. This indicates that the sector, not necessarily the individual stocks, is out of favor with investors.

This is important for two reasons. First, buying into sectors out-of-favor is a good contrarian strategy for value investors. The market is one of cycles, and when one industry sector is up, others are down... but you can be sure they will reverse places in time. For example, oil and gas stocks were all the rage just a year ago as crude prices soared, but today sell for 40% or more less than they did at this point in 2008.

PowerShares Dynamic Software (PSJ) and iShares S&P North American Tech-Software (IGV) have jumped in the Sector Momentum Tracker’s ETF Sector Momentum Table in recent weeks, with PSJ moving from the No. 25 spot on February 3 to the No. 8 spot on April 28 and IGV moving from No. 53 to No. 16 during the same period. While the two funds share five of their top 10 components, ETF success is not measured by contents alone. PowerShares’ May 1 announcement that 19 ETFs would soon be shuttered reinforced the reality that investors should weigh multiple factors when choosing between similarly themed ETFs. PSJ and IGV both have experienced steady upward movement in our rankings, but it is the differences between the two funds that individual investors should consider before scooping up shares.

PSJ tracks the Software Intellidex, which includes 30 exclusively U.S. companies, while IGV’s iShares S&P North American Technology-Software Index Fund tracks 41 holdings that are headquartered in either the U.S. or Canada. While IGV has more components than PSJ, there are differences in the funds’ weightings. IGV’s top component, Symantec Corp (SYMC), composes 8.13% of the portfolio, while PSJ’s top component, Autodesk Inc. (ADSK), makes up only 5.93% of the total portfolio. Looking at the big picture, IGV’s top 10 components constitute 58.29% of the total portfolio, while PSJ’s top 10 make up 47.24%. Investing in any subsector ETF carries a higher risk of volatility, and although IGV’s assets are spread over more holdings than PSJ’s, there is a greater concentration of the portfolio in the top components.

Even with today's detailed asset allocation and performance reports, do portfolio managers really know what their common stock holdings delivered in terms of revenue, earnings, cash flow, and equity? By "delivered," I refer to the financial results attributed to the portfolio by virtue of its owning shares of common stock. The "Ownership View" digs deeper and identifies what the owner's share of the companies' results are---based on the portfolio's % of the company owned.

Here is a high-tech/internet portfolio of 10 companies with position values ranging from $5,000 - $14,000 and the related valuation ratios.

Autodesk’s (ADSK) stock has been tumbling since last year. The recently announced, better-than-expected Q4 results did not bring it any luck either. A pity because I am a huge fan of this company

Q4 revenues of $490 million were higher than the Street’s estimated $484 million but recorded a reduction of 18% over the year. EPS of $0.31 was also significantly higher than the expected $0.21 and recorded a fall of 40% over the year. For the fiscal year, they recorded revenues $2.3 billion and EPS of $1.95, growing by 5% and 4% respectively.

No Bullish Calls

F4Q09 (Qtr End 01/31/09) Earnings Call Transcript

February 26, 2009 5:00 pm ET

• Citi deal calls for investor participation. Sources say the U.S. is ready to take a major stake in Citigroup (C), and expect the deal to be announced this morning. In addition to substantially increasing its stake in the troubled institution, the government will also require Citigroup to overhaul its board of directors so that a majority of directors are independent. CEO Vikram Pandit is expected to keep his job. According to terms being finalized late last night, the Treasury will convert its stake only to the extent that Citi can persuade private investors to do so as well; the Treasury will match private investors' conversions dollar-for-dollar up to $25B. The Treasury's stake is expected to rise to up to 40% of Citigroup.
  Update: Citi confirmed the deal at 7:00 a.m. U.S. gov't to match private equity in exchanging up to $25B (for gov't and max. of $27.5B private) of its preferred stock to common shares at $3.25/share - increasing Citi's TCE (tangible common equity) to as much as $81B from $29.7B. Full conversion would result in gov't owning 36% of C and existing shareholders owning 26%. Any non-matched preferreds will convert to new preferreds at 8% coupon. Citi also announced a Q4 impairment charge of $9.6B (it had previously said this was under review).
• Aid for auto-parts suppliers. The White House is reportedly looking for ways to help struggling auto-parts suppliers, possibly by creating a lending facility to distribute aid to hundreds of companies. Sources say it would be difficult for the Treasury to administer loans directly because there are so many suppliers, so any aid plan would be contingent on finding a mechanism to streamline and centralize the process. Two groups, the Original Equipment Suppliers Association and the Motor Vehicle & Equipment Manufacturers Association, have already requested about $18.5B in aid.
• Yahoo hits refresh. CEO Carol Bartz unveiled her reorganization plan for Yahoo (YHOO). Trying to simplify Yahoo's management structure, various technology and product groups will be combined into one unit led by Chief Technology Officer Ari Balogh. The company will divide the world into two regions - North America and International - instead of four. The new organization, which aims to make speedier decisions and put a renewed focus on the customer, centralizes power and control around Bartz. Separately, CFO Blake Jorgensen became the latest executive to announce he is leaving Yahoo. (Read Bartz's blog post about the changes)
• FDIC poised to fatten fees. The FDIC is expected to more than double the fees it charges banks in an effort to refill the coffers of its deposit insurance fund. The move will protect consumers by bulking up the FDIC's reserves in the event of bank failures, but some government officials worry already-fragile banks won't be able to shoulder the extra costs and have urged the FDIC to explore other ways to replenish the fund. As of the end of Q4, the FDIC had $18.8B in its deposit-insurance fund to protect around $4.8T in insured deposits. Fourteen banks have already failed in 2009, bringing the total to 35 since July, while 252 banks were on the government's 'problem list' at the end of Q4 vs. 171 in Q3.
• Budget blues. Obama's budget will cost a whopping $3.6T over the next ten years. It projects a $1.75T deficit which, at 12.3% of GDP, is the highest level since World War II. Among the expenditures, $634B has been earmarked to expand healthcare, $750B of new money was set aside for bank bailouts, and $75B is for Iraq and Afghanistan through this fall. Obama called the budget "an honest accounting of where we are," and wants to "go through the books page by page, line by line" to cut unnecessary or inefficient programs. (Policy wonks who want to read all 146 pages of the budget overview can find it here.)
• NY AG demands Merrill bonus list. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has subpoenaed Bank of America (BAC) CEO Ken Lewis to provide the names of Merrill Lynch employees who received 2008 bonuses and how much they received. Lewis testified for around four hours yesterday, and said he had answered questions "to the best of my knowledge and hopefully brought some clarity." Cuomo's office said it was 'very disappointed' Lewis hasn't yet produced the list despite multiple requests.
• Massive losses hit Fannie. Fannie Mae (FNM) reported a Q4 loss of $25.23B, or $4.47/share, its sixth consecutive quarterly loss (see earnings details below). The mortgage giant's net worth fell below zero at the end of the quarter, forcing the company to request government funding. Fannie will draw more than $15B of assistance from the Treasury, and expects "the market conditions that contributed to our net loss for each quarter of 2008 to continue and possibly worsen in 2009, which is likely to cause further reductions in our net worth."
• Profits drop at Dell. Dell's (DELL) quarterly profit fell by nearly half to $351M from $679M the year before (see earnings details below). The company said it expects demand to remain weak in the coming months amid a 'very challenging' economy. Dell, which has experienced a prolonged slump, will raise its cost-cutting target by $1B to a total of $4B by 2011.
• Deutsche Telekom surprises with loss. Deutsche Telekom (DT) reported a surprise Q4 loss of €730M ($920M) on an impairment charge vs. consensus of a €763M profit. The dividend was held at €0.78, unchanged from last year. Revenue rose to €16.1B from €15.9B the year earlier. Europe’s biggest telephone company, Deutsche Telekom will overhaul its structure and management to cut costs and increase its market share. Its fixed-line and mobile-phone operations will be combined into one unit. Timotheus Hoettges will replace Karl-Gerhard Eick as finance chief; Eick said in December he plans to leave before his term ends.
• Durable goods decrease. Durable Goods Orders fell 5.2% ($9.0B) in January, markedly worse than consensus of -2.5%. Inventories decreased 0.8% ($2.8B) to $340.7B. Shipments were down 3.7% ($6.9B) to $183.1B following December's 1.5% dip.
• Jobless claims surge. Initial Jobless Claims surged to 667,000 this week from 631,000 (revised) last week - far more than the 625,000 economist consensus. Continuing claims jumped above 5M to 5,112,000 - up 114,000. This week's jobless claims is the highest since 695,000 Americans applied for unemployment assistance in October 1982. The insured unemployment rate of 3.8% (up from 3.7% last week) is the highest since July 1983.
• Home sales fall. New home sales in January fell 10.2% to 309,000 from December, short of the expected 330,000. Dec. was revised to 344,000 from 331,000. Median price was $201,100. At the current sales rate, there's 13.3 months of supply.

Earnings: Friday Before Open

• Interpublic Group (IPG): Q4 EPS of $0.39 beats by $0.10. Revenue of $1.9B (-4.1%) in-line. "While meeting our 2008 financial objectives is gratifying, the latter part of the fourth quarter and the early part of 2009 have begun to show the negative effect that the broader economic situation is having on the marketing services sector." (PR)

Earnings: Thursday After Close

• AES (AES): Q4 EPS of $0.18 misses by $0.06. Revenue of $3.54B (-3.1%) vs. $3.65B. Sees 2009 EPS of $0.97-1.07 vs. $1.10. (PR)
• Autodesk (ADSK): Q4 EPS of $0.31 beats by $0.10. Revenue of $490M (-18.2%) vs. $484M. Sees Q1 EPS of flat to $0.12 vs. $0.27 consensus and revenue of $400-440M vs. $472M. Shares -2.1% AH. (PR)
• CommScope (CTV): Q4 EPS of $0.55 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $862M (-18.9%) vs. $867M. Sees Q1 revenue of $720-770M vs. $823M. (PR)
• Covanta (CVA): Q4 EPS of $0.22 misses by $0.03. Revenue of $414M (+4.8%) vs. $410M. Sees 2009 EPS of $0.75-0.90 vs. $0.93. Shares -6.5% AH. (PR)
• Dell (DELL): Q4 EPS of $0.18 ($0.29 ex-items) vs. consensus of $0.26. Revenue of $13.43B vs. $14.18B. Raises 2011 cost-reduction goal to $4B from $3B. "Global IT end-user demand will continue to be uncertain and challenging." Shares +1.8% AH. (PR)
• Fannie Mae (FNM): Q4 loss of $25.23B ($4.47/share) on revenue of $5.64B. Results include $12.3B in net fair value losses, credit-related expenses of $12B, and a $4.6B writedown on the value of its mortgage-backed securities. Asks gov't for $15.2B in aid. "We expect the market conditions that contributed to our net loss for each quarter of 2008 to continue and possibly worsen in 2009, which is likely to cause further reductions in our net worth."(PR)
• Gap (GPS): Q4 EPS of $0.34 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $4.08B (-12.7%) in-line. Sees net square footage down 2% in 2009. Shares -2.5% AH. (PR)
• Geron (GERN): Q4 EPS of -$0.22 misses by $0.01. Revenue of $0.5M (+88.5%) vs. $0.7M. Shares +0.2% AH. (PR)
• Hansen Natural (HANS): Q4 EPS of -$0.25 vs. consensus of $0.42. Revenue of $254.4M (+3.2%) vs. $243.7M. (PR)
• Human Genome Sciences (HGSI): Q4 EPS of -$0.41 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $12.9M (+3.2%) vs. $12.3M. Sees 2009 revenue of $250M vs. $223M. Shares +3.6% AH. (PR)
• Kohl's (KSS): Q4 EPS of $1.10 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $5.2B in-line. Same-store sales fell 9.1%. Sees Q! EPS of $0.27-0.34 vs. $0.35 and full-year EPS of $2.00-2.30 vs. $2.40. Shares -4.1% AH. (PR)
• Leap Wireless (LEAP): Q4 EPS of -$0.81 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $519M (+20.7%) vs. $543M. Shares +0.9% AH. (PR)
• Novell (NOVL): FQ1 EPS of $0.07 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $215M (-6.9%) vs. $230M. Shares +3% AH. (PR)
• OmniVision Technologies (OVTI): FQ3 EPS of -$0.24 misses by $0.08. Revenue of $80M (-64.4%) vs. $89.8M. Shares -16.8% AH. (PR)
• Public Storage (PSA): Q4 FFO of $1.49 beats by $0.21. Revenue of $333M (+1.6%) vs. $415M. Shares -4.6%. (PR)
• Republic Services (RSG): Q4 EPS of $0.41 misses by $0.03. Revenue of $1.24B (+56.3%) vs. $1.81B. Sees 2009 EPS of $1.70-1.75 vs. $1.93. (PR)
• SandRidge Energy (SD): Q4 EPS of $0.06 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $201M (-7%) vs. $250M. Shares -0.5% AH. (PR)
• SBA Communications (SBAC): Q4 EPS of $0.02 beats by $0.13. Revenue of $134.4M (+23.4%) vs. $128.3M. (PR)
• Scientific Games (SGMS): Q4 EPS of $0.18 misses by $0.06. Revenue of $264M (-1.5%) vs. $280M. (PR)
• Senior Housing Properties Trust (SNH): Q4 FFO of $0.43 in-line. Revenue of $72.9M (+37.3%) vs. $63.7M. (PR)
• Sotheby's (BID): Q4 EPS of -$0.13 vs. consensus of $0.20. Revenue of $166.2M (-51.9%) vs. $177.9M. "For the first nine months of 2008, our aggregate auction sales were at record levels. But from October onwards, virtually every auction around the world experienced declines." (PR)
• Southwestern Energy (SWN): Q4 EPS of $0.30 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $500M (+24.2%) vs. $540M. Shares -1.9% AH. (PR)

Today's Markets

• Japan closed off the week with strength even as the rest of Asia saw red. Nikkei +1.48% to 7,568. Hang Seng -0.65% to 12,812. Shanghai -1.81% to 2,083. BSE -0.71% to 8,892.
• In Europe, stocks opened down and have traded in a range. At midday: London -1.9%. Paris -1.5%. Frankfurt -2%.
• U.S. stock futures have edged lower overnight in a light-volume session. Dow -0.4% to 7150. S&P -0.5% to 748.50. Nasdaq -0.5%. 30-year bond +0.14%. Crude -2.9% to $43.92. Gold +0.6% to $948.

Friday's Economic Calendar

• 8:30 GDP (preliminary)
  9:45 NAPM Chicago Business Barometer
  9:55 University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment
  10:15 Fed's Yellen and Bullard speak on oil and the economy
  1:30 PM Fed's Rosengren and Plosser speak on monetary policy during the crisis
  3:00 PM Farm Prices
• Notable earnings before Friday's open: BX, CDE, CSE, DRH, DT, ENDP, IPG, JRCC, MIR, PNX, WR, WTR

Seeking Alpha editor Eli Hoffmann contributed to this post.

This is the Fourth Quarter 2008 edition of our ongoing hedge fund portfolio tracking series. Before reading this update, make sure you check out the Hedge Fund 13F filings preface.

We've already covered:

Credit markets are still fairly frozen, making it difficult for companies to issue new debt. With earnings estimates seemingly in freefall, I thought it might be interesting to run a screen that identifies those companies who are expected to be well positioned to avoid problems related to carrying their current total debt load.

This screen is based on the Cash Flow to Debt Coverage Ratio. This compares a company's operating cash flow to its total debt, which, for purposes of this ratio, is defined as the sum of short-term borrowings, the current portion of long-term debt, and long-term debt. This ratio provides an indication of a company's ability to cover total debt with its yearly cash flow from operations. The higher the percentage ratio, the better the company's ability to carry its total debt.