EQR - News and Analysis from Seeking Alpha 'EQR' Tag RSS Syndication from SeekingAlpha.com SeekingAlpha.com http://seekingalpha.com/symbol/eqr Fannie, Freddie Get Blank Taxpayer Check http://seekingalpha.com/article/180077-fannie-freddie-get-blank-taxpayer-check?source=feed 180077 A queer holiday update from Hussman here.

It was about a sneaky Christmas eve decision the US Treasury made regarding the largest buyer of mortgages (after the Fed) - and as the WSJ notes, the timing wasn't a coincidence.

]]> Tue, 29 Dec 2009 02:44:21 -0500 Vega Vega submits:

A queer holiday update from Hussman here.

It was about a sneaky Christmas eve decision the US Treasury made regarding the largest buyer of mortgages (after the Fed) - and as the WSJ notes, the timing wasn't a coincidence.


Complete Story »]]> EQR FNM FRE Vega 14 Stocks and 2 Strategies for High Yield Dividends http://seekingalpha.com/article/176826-14-stocks-and-2-strategies-for-high-yield-dividends?source=feed 176826 Approximately once per month I will be running a high-yield momentum screen and post the results. Last month's results are here.

The first screen looks for high yielding high momentum stocks. I screened the S&P 500 for stocks yielding greater than 4% and then ranked them by 6 month returns. There were 55 results and per a previous article, the highest momentum, high yield stocks have historically been the best performing so I have listed the top 20% (based on 6 month returns) of results, or 11 stocks:

]]> Mon, 07 Dec 2009 05:00:39 -0500 Scott's Investments Scott's Investments submits:

Approximately once per month I will be running a high-yield momentum screen and post the results. Last month's results are here.

The first screen looks for high yielding high momentum stocks. I screened the S&P 500 for stocks yielding greater than 4% and then ranked them by 6 month returns. There were 55 results and per a previous article, the highest momentum, high yield stocks have historically been the best performing so I have listed the top 20% (based on 6 month returns) of results, or 11 stocks:


Complete Story »]]> RRD PLD TEG VTR MRK HCP RAI CNP NI DTE EQR EXC PEG Scott's Investments 17 ETFs to Play the Return to Real Estate http://seekingalpha.com/article/175207-17-etfs-to-play-the-return-to-real-estate?source=feed 175207 Once considered a vital “return enhancer” in almost every portfolio, real estate as an asset class has fallen out of favor with investors following its spectacular collapse during (and role in causing) the recent global economic downturn. Real estate was historically embraced because of its potential for delivering excess returns in bull property markets and low correlation with traditional stock and bond investments. But as default rates skyrocketed, values plummeted, and correlations went to 1.0, asset managers have sold off real property and reallocated investor portfolios to equities and fixed income.

Despite its fall from grace, real estate is beginning to creep back into portfolios, as investors regain their appetite for risky assets. Real estate ETFs have seen cash inflows of more than $3 billion year-to-date, reflecting perhaps a preference for achieving diversified exposure within this asset class instead of concentrating assets in a few REITs. For investors looking to make a play on real estate through ETFs, there are several options offering different levels of risk, current income, and exposure to sectors of the market.

]]> Wed, 25 Nov 2009 04:26:29 -0500 Michael Johnston Michael Johnston submits:

Once considered a vital “return enhancer” in almost every portfolio, real estate as an asset class has fallen out of favor with investors following its spectacular collapse during (and role in causing) the recent global economic downturn. Real estate was historically embraced because of its potential for delivering excess returns in bull property markets and low correlation with traditional stock and bond investments. But as default rates skyrocketed, values plummeted, and correlations went to 1.0, asset managers have sold off real property and reallocated investor portfolios to equities and fixed income.

Despite its fall from grace, real estate is beginning to creep back into portfolios, as investors regain their appetite for risky assets. Real estate ETFs have seen cash inflows of more than $3 billion year-to-date, reflecting perhaps a preference for achieving diversified exposure within this asset class instead of concentrating assets in a few REITs. For investors looking to make a play on real estate through ETFs, there are several options offering different levels of risk, current income, and exposure to sectors of the market.


Complete Story »]]> IYR RWR VNQ REZ FIO RTL EQR SPG KIM RWX DRW TAO PSR MBB URE SRS DRN DRV UMM DMM Michael Johnston Key Points from NYU Commercial Real Estate Capital Markets Conference http://seekingalpha.com/article/175044-key-points-from-nyu-commercial-real-estate-capital-markets-conference?source=feed 175044 Courtesy of some CRE Analyst readers….

General themes

  • Unlike most other recessions, we are in a “demand” recession – when the economy recovers, absorption should occur relatively quickly; however at 30% lower rents
  • Full buildings will have debt in excess of value, but very little motivation for owners to sell – deleveraging is inevitable
  • Result – fewer foreclosures; most owners will seek new infusion of capital with heavy dilution to existing equity (“Hope certificates”)
  • Current owners are unlikely to realize much value
  • Portfolio lenders such as pension funds/life companies are lending cautiously at low LTVs – 50-60%
  • 2010-2012 – an estimated $1.3 to 1.8 trillion of mortgage debt is expected to mature; where will the debt come from?

Sam Zell – Keynote Speaker

]]> Tue, 24 Nov 2009 08:56:47 -0500 Todd Sullivan Todd Sullivan submits:

Courtesy of some CRE Analyst readers….

General themes

  • Unlike most other recessions, we are in a “demand” recession – when the economy recovers, absorption should occur relatively quickly; however at 30% lower rents
  • Full buildings will have debt in excess of value, but very little motivation for owners to sell – deleveraging is inevitable
  • Result – fewer foreclosures; most owners will seek new infusion of capital with heavy dilution to existing equity (“Hope certificates”)
  • Current owners are unlikely to realize much value
  • Portfolio lenders such as pension funds/life companies are lending cautiously at low LTVs – 50-60%
  • 2010-2012 – an estimated $1.3 to 1.8 trillion of mortgage debt is expected to mature; where will the debt come from?

Sam Zell – Keynote Speaker


Complete Story »]]> EQR VNO IGR IIA CLI Todd Sullivan 19 High Yield Stocks that Historically Outperform http://seekingalpha.com/article/172117-19-high-yield-stocks-that-historically-outperform?source=feed 172117 In early October I detailed 2 high yield investment strategies (part 1 and 2) that have had a history of outperformance. Below is the list of stocks meeting the two strategies criteria as of the close on November 6th. Obviously, past performance does not mean these strategies will continue to outperform in the future. However, a variety of momentum strategies (part 1) have been detailed extensively on Scott's Investments and the high yield momentum strategy is similar in nature to other successful momentum strategies.

The first screen looks for high yielding high momentum stocks. I screened the S&P 500 for stocks yielding greater then 4% and then ranked them by 6 month returns. There were 59 results and per article 1, the highest momentum, high yield stocks have historically been the best performing so I have listed the top 20% (based on 6 month returns) of results, or 12 stocks. I have also included the percent each stock is above the 200 day moving average for informational purposes:
Ticker Company Free Trend Analysis Dividend Yield Performance (Half Year) 200-Day SMA Price
RRD R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company Here 4.96% 62.64% 56.30% 20.98
PLD ProLogis Here 5.18% 41.74% 30.86% 11.58
VTR Ventas Inc. Here 5.24% 39.60% 27.39% 39.13
MRK Merck & Co. Inc. Here 4.66% 37.05% 16.79% 32.59
LEG Leggett & Platt, Incorporated Here 5.35% 32.52% 26.41% 19.44
HCP HCP, Inc. Here 6.63% 32.08% 21.15% 27.75
EQR Equity Residential Here 4.68% 30.54% 22.54% 28.85
HCN Health Care REIT Inc. Here 6.45% 29.82% 17.89% 42.14
DTE DTE Energy Co. Here 5.53% 27.29% 22.12% 38.34
TEG Integrys Energy Group, Inc. Here 7.61% 27.13% 15.73% 35.75
POM Pepco Holdings, Inc. Here 7.08% 27.06% 12.71% 15.26
SE Spectra Energy Corp. Here 5.17% 26.74% 18.48% 19.34
Align Right
The second screen looks for stocks in the S&P 500 yielding greater than 3.5%, with a payout ratio less then 50%. An explanation of the reasons behind the strategy is here. I have included some additional momentum columns for information purposes:
]]> Mon, 09 Nov 2009 02:32:36 -0500 Scott's Investments Scott's Investments submits:

In early October I detailed 2 high yield investment strategies (part 1 and 2) that have had a history of outperformance. Below is the list of stocks meeting the two strategies criteria as of the close on November 6th. Obviously, past performance does not mean these strategies will continue to outperform in the future. However, a variety of momentum strategies (part 1) have been detailed extensively on Scott's Investments and the high yield momentum strategy is similar in nature to other successful momentum strategies.

The first screen looks for high yielding high momentum stocks. I screened the S&P 500 for stocks yielding greater then 4% and then ranked them by 6 month returns. There were 59 results and per article 1, the highest momentum, high yield stocks have historically been the best performing so I have listed the top 20% (based on 6 month returns) of results, or 12 stocks. I have also included the percent each stock is above the 200 day moving average for informational purposes:
Ticker Company Free Trend Analysis Dividend Yield Performance (Half Year) 200-Day SMA Price
RRD R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company Here 4.96% 62.64% 56.30% 20.98
PLD ProLogis Here 5.18% 41.74% 30.86% 11.58
VTR Ventas Inc. Here 5.24% 39.60% 27.39% 39.13
MRK Merck & Co. Inc. Here 4.66% 37.05% 16.79% 32.59
LEG Leggett & Platt, Incorporated Here 5.35% 32.52% 26.41% 19.44
HCP HCP, Inc. Here 6.63% 32.08% 21.15% 27.75
EQR Equity Residential Here 4.68% 30.54% 22.54% 28.85
HCN Health Care REIT Inc. Here 6.45% 29.82% 17.89% 42.14
DTE DTE Energy Co. Here 5.53% 27.29% 22.12% 38.34
TEG Integrys Energy Group, Inc. Here 7.61% 27.13% 15.73% 35.75
POM Pepco Holdings, Inc. Here 7.08% 27.06% 12.71% 15.26
SE Spectra Energy Corp. Here 5.17% 26.74% 18.48% 19.34
Align Right
The second screen looks for stocks in the S&P 500 yielding greater than 3.5%, with a payout ratio less then 50%. An explanation of the reasons behind the strategy is here. I have included some additional momentum columns for information purposes:

Complete Story »]]> RRD PLD VTR MRK LEG HCP EQR HCN DTE TEG POM SE EXC SUN NU FPL CAG EIX CMS Scott's Investments Are We Becoming a Nation of Renters? Investing for the New Housing Dynamic http://seekingalpha.com/article/171733-are-we-becoming-a-nation-of-renters-investing-for-the-new-housing-dynamic?source=feed 171733 “And your inheritance is…You get to take over payments on the family homestead when we go!”

For those thinking today of their kids’ inheritance, or indeed of their own future, there is a new dynamic that must be taken into account: so many people bought much more house than they would have or could have or maybe even should have because (a) the financing was cheap, (b) the qualifying was easy to non-existent, and (c) because “real estate always goes up, at least in our (choose one: town, state, city, region, whatever.)”

]]> Fri, 06 Nov 2009 03:06:44 -0500 Joseph L. Shaefer Joseph L. Shaefer submits:

“And your inheritance is…You get to take over payments on the family homestead when we go!”

For those thinking today of their kids’ inheritance, or indeed of their own future, there is a new dynamic that must be taken into account: so many people bought much more house than they would have or could have or maybe even should have because (a) the financing was cheap, (b) the qualifying was easy to non-existent, and (c) because “real estate always goes up, at least in our (choose one: town, state, city, region, whatever.)”


Complete Story »]]> MAA AVB ESS BRE EQR PPS CLNY CXS Joseph L. Shaefer Equity Residential Q3 2009 Earnings Call Transcript http://seekingalpha.com/article/169995-equity-residential-q3-2009-earnings-call-transcript?source=feed 169995 Equity Residential (EQR)

Q3 2009 Earnings Call

October 29, 2008 11:00 AM ET

]]> Thu, 29 Oct 2009 19:40:22 -0400 Equity Residential (EQR)

Q3 2009 Earnings Call

October 29, 2008 11:00 AM ET


Complete Story »]]> EQR Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News http://seekingalpha.com/article/169784-wall-street-breakfast-must-know-news?source=feed 169784

  • CIT snags $4.5B lifeline. A group of hedge funds including many of its bondholders offered to lend CIT Group (CIT) $4.5B to build creditor support for a controversial debt exchange, pitting them against activist investor Carl Icahn, who wants the swap voted down. The lifeline comes as CIT's lenders must decide by midnight tonight whether to support its proposed debt exchange, a pre-packaged bankruptcy plan, or neither. Sources say the funds bought up CIT debt last summer on a bet the government would bail out the troubled lender, and stand to lose from a freefall bankruptcy, which Icahn is pushing for.
  • Mutual funds use Fed bucks to buy bonds. Mutual funds - including those run by T. Rowe Price (TROW) and BlackRock (BLK) - are using Fed financing to reap 15%-plus returns with limited risk. The Fed's TALF (Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility) offers low-cost financing to buy AAA-rated bonds backed by consumer and business loans, as well as commercial mortgages. Investors can borrow up to 95% of the bonds' value by pledging the securities and some additional collateral, and have no obligation to repay the loan beyond the collateral - in essence shifting most of the potential losses to the government. In the words of one fund manager: "This is one of those opportunities that, as an investor, we have to take advantage of."
  • IMF boosts Asia growth outlook. The IMF raised its 2009-2010 growth forecast for Asia's economy, but warned that a fragile recovery in advanced economies and lingering problems in the global financial system still pose risks. IMF now sees Asia growth of 2.8% and 5.8% this year and next, up from previous estimates of 1.2% and 4.3% - far higher than the 1.25% growth expected from G-7 economies, but well short of the region's 6.66% average. The report says the region is outpacing other parts of the world, with 'green shoots' of recovery appearing earlier and taking firmer root than elsewhere. (IMF Asia Outlook)
  • U.S.-China trade talks open on sour note. China/U.S. trade talks opened on a discordant note Thursday as fresh frictions surfaced after China announced plans to investigate dumping allegations against Detroit's Big Three automakers. Punitive measures are unlikely to cause much harm since most of the vehicles they sell are made in China, but another row - on top of disputes over steel pipes, chicken, movies and music - could further stress their tenuous relationship ahead of Obama's Nov. 15 visit.
  • Economists shave GDP estimates after weak orders. Durable goods orders rose 1% in September, short of the 1.5% gain economists expected, but a reverse of August's 2.4% drop. Following the weaker-than-expected gain, Goldman Sachs economist Ed McKelvey dropped his Q3 GDP growth estimate - due out this morning - to 2.7% from a previous 3%. "The headline gain in orders was in line with expectations but not as firm as we had thought," he said. Later, Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch followed suit, with Morgan shaving its outlook to 3.8% from 3.9%, and Merrill to 2.3% from 2.5%.
  • AIG recoups CDS losses. AIG (AIG) is seeing billions of dollars in inflows from recovering credit-default swaps - the very securities that helped level the insurer. Q2 inflows may have topped $3B, including at least $1B from Goldman Sachs (GS). Credit-default swaps - a type of insurance policy on securities backed by assets such as mortgages - required AIG to put up huge amounts of collateral when the investments they backed fell in value. Many of the sour trades were closed out last year by the government, a move that saved AIG, but may have deprived it of billions of dollars.
  • Homebuyer credit extension nears approval. Key senators voiced support for extending and expanding the soon-to-expire homebuyer tax credit, and a vote on the measure could come next week. The current plan would see the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit, set to expire at the end of November, extended through April 2010, and would allow for people who have been in their home for at least five years to receive a $6,500 tax credit if they purchase a new primary residence. The income limit on the credit would also rise to $125,000 from $75,000.
  • House panel approves credit rating rules. The House Financial Services Committee signed off (49-14) on legislation aimed at ratings agencies, including barring them from consulting for companies they're also rating, and requiring raters to have outsiders on their boards. The bill also enables investors to sue firms for failing to carry out their duties.
  • Fed: To grow or to shrink? A draft bill of new financial-regulation legislation moving through Congress would give the Fed substantial new powers, including the authority to force large firms to shrink if their size threatens the broader economy. The view is likely to conflict with the Senate's, where financial regulation is moving at a much slower pace, and members of both parties remain wary of offering the Fed - seen by many as partially responsible for the collapse - any new authority.
  • New home sales flatline. New home sales fell 3.6% in September to an annual rate of 402K, well short of economist consensus of 440K and last month's downward-revised 417K. Months' supply rose to 7.5 from 7.3 in August. Sales were down 7.8% year-over year, and, from the peak of the residential construction boom back in mid-2005, sales are down 71.1%. After adjusting for population growth since the pre-2009 all-time low in 1981, sales are now 15% below previous records. (Census Bureau's New Home Sales (.pdf))
  • Norway tightens rates. Norway became the first European country to hike interest rates post-crisis, lifting its key rate by 25 bps to 1.5%. Governor Svein Gjedrem noted inflation is higher than expected, while unemployment was "considerably lower than previously projected," and indicated rates would rise gradually. On Oct. 6, Australia became the first G-20 nation to tighten. (Norges Bank statement)

Earnings: Thur. Before Open

  • ABB Ltd. (ABB): Net income of $1.03B (+12%). Sales $7.9B (-10%). Orders $7.06B (-21%). "It remains unclear when and how quickly capital investments by customers will recover from the downturn. In addition, the volatility of raw material prices and the limited availability of project funding continue to influence the timing of many power and industrial investment decision." ABB preannounced on Oct. 19. Shares -2.1% premarket. (PR)
  • Aetna (AET): Q3 EPS of $0.69 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $8.72B (+14.4%) in-line. Sees full-year EPS of $2.75 vs. $2.86 consensus. (PR)
  • Allegheny Energy (AYE): Q3 EPS of $0.59 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $794M (-6.6%) vs. $952M. (PR)
  • Allergan (AGN): Q3 EPS of $0.70 in-line. Revenue of $1.13B (+4.2%) vs. $1.08B. Shares +0.8% premarket. (PR)
  • American Electric Power Company (AEP): Q3 EPS of $0.93 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $3.5B (-16.7%) vs. $3.97B. (PR)
  • AstraZeneca (AZN): Q3 EPS of $1.46 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $8.2B (+5.5%) vs. $7.9B. Sees full-year core EPS of $6.20-6.40 vs. consensus of $5.99. Shares +0.7% premarket. (PR)
  • AutoNation (AN): Q3 EPS of $0.36 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $2.92B (-13.2%) vs. $3.13B. "Cash for Clunkers was a highly effective stimulus program that provided a much needed lift in auto sales and has set the stage going forward for a gradual recovery of new vehicle sales." Says CARS boosted Q3 EPS by $0.07. Approves $250M buyback. (PR)
  • Avon (AVP): Q3 EPS of $0.42 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $2.55B (-3.5%) in-line. (PR)
  • Barrick Gold (ABX): Q3 EPS of $0.54 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $2.1B (+11.6%) in-line. Significantly reduced gold hedges, and will eliminate within 12 months. (PR)
  • BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (BCRX): Q3 EPS of -$0.28 misses by $0.06. Revenue of $10.5M (+18%) vs. $4.6M. BioCryst recently received FDA approval to use its flu I.V. drug peramivir as an emergency treatment against H1N1. (PR)
  • Brookfield Properties (BPO): Q3 FFO of $0.34 in-line. Revenue of $657M (-7.1%) vs. $580M. (PR)
  • Burger King (BKC): FQ1 EPS of $0.34 misses by $0.03. Revenue of $637M (-5.4%) vs. $653M. Expects the unpredictable consumer environment will persist in fiscal 2010. (PR)
  • Brunswick (BC): Q3 EPS of -$1.53 misses by $0.19. Revenue of $666M (-35.9%) vs. $701M. Shares -5.1% premarket. (PR)
  • CME Group (CME): Q3 EPS of $3.35 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $650M (-17.4%) in-line. "As the economy continues to stabilize, there is room for further organic growth in our core business. At the same time, we are actively working to ensure that the benefits our business model brings to the financial system are communicated to the legislators and regulators who are charged with regulatory reform." (PR)
  • CNOOC (CEO): Q3 revenue of 23.8B yuan ($3.47B, -23.1%) vs. estimate of 21.6B. Avg. selling price -36.6% to $67.83/barrel. Net daily production +18.4% to 647K. Capital expenditure +10.3% to 11.24B yuan. Shares -0.9% premarket. (Bloomberg, PR)
  • Colgate-Palmolive (CL): Q3 EPS of $1.12 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $4B (+0.3%) in-line. (PR)
  • Corinthian Colleges (COCO): FQ1 EPS of $0.37 beats by $0.09. Revenue of $388M (+34.2%) vs. $378M. Total student population +25% to 93.5K. Sees full-year EPS of $1.55-1.60 vs. $1.35. Shares +5% premarket. (PR)
  • Cott (COT): Q3 EPS of $0.18 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $405M (-3.7%) in-line. To sell $200M in senior notes due in 2017, and use proceeds to fund a previously announced tender offer for notes due in 2011. (PR)
  • Deutsche Bank (DB): Q3 net profit €1.4B from €414M a year ago. Pre-tax profit of €1.3B from €93M. Net writedowns of €300M. Risk provision of €544M, up from €236M a year ago, but down from €1B in Q2. Return on equity 15% vs. 1% last year. Says it reduced levels of trading risk, "even at the expense of short-term revenue gains." DB released preliminary results last week. Shares -2.6% premarket. (PR)
  • Digital Realty Trust (DLR): Q3 FFO of $0.74 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $163M (+14.9%) in-line. Shares (PR)
  • Eastman Kodak (EK): Q3 EPS of -$0.23 misses by $0.04. Revenue of $1.78B (-25.9%) vs. $1.89B. Sees revenue decline at high-end of previous 12-18% range. (PR)
  • Expedia (EXPE): Q3 EPS of $0.48 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $852M (+2.3%) vs. $829M. "Travelers are clearly responding to our improving value proposition, as we broaden our fee cuts and increase the depth and breadth of our global supply." Shares +6.8% premarket. (PR)
  • ExxonMobil (XOM): Q3 EPS of $0.98 misses by $0.05. Revenue of $82.3B (-40.3) vs. $85.2B. Shares -1.5% premarket. (PR)
  • France Telecom (FTE): Q3 Ebitda of €4.56B (-8%), in line with consensus. Revenue of €12.69B (-6.4%) vs. €12.85B. Expects Q4 to be similar to Q3, and will thus continue to implement cost savings plans to prevent its Ebitda margin from declining further. Shares -0.5% in Paris. (PR, WSJ)
  • GrafTech International (GTI): Q3 EPS of $0.15 beats by $0.09. Revenue of $165M (-47.8%) vs. $162M. (PR)
  • Kellogg Company (K): Q3 EPS of $0.94 beats by $0.10. Revenue of $3.28B (-0.3%) in-line. "The current economic environment has placed significant pressure on our consumers." (PR)
  • KBR Inc. (KBR): Q3 EPS of $0.45 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $2.84B (-5.9%) in-line. (PR)
  • Mack-Cali Realty (CLI): Q3 FFO of $0.81 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $194M (-5.3%) vs. $175M. (PR)
  • Monster Worldwide (MWW): Q3 EPS of $0.01 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $215M (-35.2%) vs. $223M. (PR)
  • Moody's (MCO): Q3 EPS of $0.43 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $452M (+4.2%) vs. $417M. Declares quarterly dividend of $0.10. (PR I, II)
  • Motorola (MOT): Q3 EPS of $0.01 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $5.45B vs. $5.54B. Appoints Edward Fitzpatrick as CFO. Sees Q4 continuing operations EPS of $0.07-0.09 vs. $0.06. Shares +4.3% premarket. (PR)
  • MPS Group (MPS): Q3 EPS of $0.06 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $408B (-29.4%) vs. $403B. MPS is being acquired by Adecco. (PR)
  • Mylan Laboratories (MYL): Q3 EPS of $0.32 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $1.26B (-23.7%) in-line. Sees 2010 EPS of $1.24-1.28 vs. $1.17. (PR)
  • Newmont Mining (NEM): Q3 EPS of $0.79 beats by $0.24. Revenue of $2.05B (+49.5%) vs. $1.72B. (PR)
  • Nintendo (NTDOY.PK): H1 net profit of ¥69.5B ($768M, -52%). Sales of ¥548B (-34.5%). Cuts H1 dividend by 37% to ¥270. Sold 5.75M Wii consoles (-43%) and 11.7M DS hand-held player sales (vs. 13.7M last year). Sees full-year net income of ¥230B vs. ¥270B consensus, full operating profit of ¥370B (-33%), sales of ¥1.5T (-18%), and Wii sales of 20M (vs. previous 26M). (PR I, II, III, Bloomberg)
  • Noble Energy (NBL): Q3 EPS of $1.10 beats by $0.28. Revenue of $621M (-43.4%) vs. $657M. (PR)
  • NRG Energy (NRG): Q3 EPS of $1.02 misses by $0.12. Revenue of $2.92B vs. $2.18B. (PR)
  • Office Depot (ODP): Q3 EPS of -$0.08 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $3.03B (-17.2%) in-line. (PR)
  • OfficeMax (OMX): Q3 EPS of $0.08 misses by $0.06. Revenue of $1.83B (-12.6%) in-line. Same-store sales -11.5%. Continues to anticipate macro employment trends will not turn positive until well into 2010. (PR)
  • Patterson-UTI Energy (PTEN): Q3 EPS of -$0.12 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $176M (-71%) vs. $163M. (PR)
  • PG&E (PCG): Q3 EPS of $0.93 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $3.23B (+12.3%) vs. $3.48B. (PR)
  • PPL Corp. (PPL): Q3 EPS of $0.52 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $1.8B vs. $3B. (PR)
  • Procter & Gamble (PG): FQ1 EPS of $1.06 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $19.8B (-6%) in-line. (PR)
  • Shell (RDS.A): Adjusted net income of $2.62B vs. consensus of $2.5B. Revenue of $75B, down from $131.6B a year ago. "Q3 results were affected by the weak global economy. Upstream and downstream profitability has been sharply reduced compared to year-ago levels. We see some indications that energy demand and pricing are improving, but the outlook remains very uncertain, and we are not expecting a quick recovery." Shares -3.5% in London. (PR)
  • Smith International (SII): Q3 EPS of $0.07 misses by $0.08. Revenue of $1.88B (-34.1%) in-line. (PR)
  • Sprint Nextel (S): Q3 EPS of -$0.17 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $8.04B (-8.8%) in-line. Net subscribers -135K. Post-paid churn 2.17% vs. 2.05% in Q2, due to seasonality and heightened competition. Pre-paid churn 6.65% vs. 6.38% in Q2. (PR)
  • Taiwan Semi (TSM): Q3 EPS of $0.18 in-line. Revenue of $2.74B (-8.1%) in-line. Gross margin +1.5 points from Q2 to 47.7%. Sees Q4 revenue of NT$90-92B vs. consensus of NT$85.8B. (PR)
  • Ventas (VTR): Q3 EPS of $0.66 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $236M (+0.3%) vs. $230M. (PR)
  • Virgin Media (VMED): Q3 operating cash flow of £348M (+7%) vs. consensus of £337M. Ebitda of £348M. Revenue of £953M (+1.3%) vs. £942M. Net additions of 8,100 vs. 8,000. (PR)
  • Williams Companies (WMB): Q3 EPS of $0.24 beats by $0.05. Shares +2.2% premarket. (PR)
  • Xcel Energy (XEL): Q3 EPS of $0.48 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $2.31B (-18.8%) vs. $3.01B. (PR)

Earnings: Wed. After Close

  • AFLAC (AFL): Q3 EPS of $1.25 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $4.5B (+23%) vs. $4.7B. Shares -0.2% AH. (PR)
  • Agnico-Eagle Mines (AEM): Q3 EPS of -$0.11 vs. estimate of $0.20; results include foreign exchange loss and other items accounting for cost of $0.14/share. Revenue of $159M (+91%) vs. $183M. Shares -8.3% AH. (PR)
  • Akamai Technologies (AKAM): Q3 EPS of $0.38 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $207M (+5%) vs. $199M. Shares +9.6% AH. (PR)
  • Annaly Mortgage Management (NLY): Q3 EPS of $0.75 beats by $0.03. Net interest income of $436M (+24%). Shares +2.3% AH. (PR)
  • AvalonBay Communities (AVB): Q3 FFO of $1.09 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $224M (+0.3%). Sees Q4 FFO of $0.61-0.64 vs. $0.97 and full-year FFO of $3.86-3.90 vs. $4.19. (PR)
  • Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN): Q3 FFO of $0.44 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $147M (+2%) vs. $141M. Raises full-year FFO guidance to $1.82-1.85 from $1.75-1.80, vs. $1.78. Sees fiscal 2010 FFO of $1.23-1.34 vs. $1.38. Shares -1.9% AH. (PR)
  • Cadence (CDNS): Q3 EPS of $0.03 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $216M (-7%) vs. $215M. Sees Q4 EPS of $0.02-0.04 vs. $0.01, and full-year EPS of -$0.08 to -$0.10 vs. -$0.14. (PR)
  • Cerner (CERN): Q3 EPS of $0.61 in-line. Revenue of $409M (-3%) vs. $421M. Sees Q4 EPS of $0.68-0.74 vs. $0.74. Shares -1.9% AH. (PR)
  • CB Richard Ellis Group (CBG): Q3 EPS of $0.08 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $1B (-23%) in-line. Shares -4% AH. (PR)
  • Duke Realty (DRE): Q3 FFO of $0.32 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $224M (+4.1%) vs. $219M. (PR)
  • Equity Residential (EQR): Q3 FFO of $0.53 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $493M (-4%) vs. $487M. Sees Q4 FFO of $0.49-0.53 vs. $0.49. (PR)
  • Express Scripts (ESRX): Q3 EPS ex-items of $0.99 beats by $0.19. Revenue of $5.6B (+3%) vs. $5.5B. Sees full-year EPS of $3.76-3.82 vs. $3.49. Shares +0.8% AH. (PR)
  • First Solar (FSLR): Q3 EPS of $1.79 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $481M (+38%) vs. $529M. Shares -15.9% AH. (PR)
  • Genco Shipping & Trading (GNK): Q3 EPS of $1.09 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $93M (-14%) vs. $91M. Shares -2.9% AH. (PR)
  • Helix Energy Solutions Group (HLX): Q3 EPS of $0.04 misses by $0.01. Revenue of $216M (-65%) vs. $249M. Shares -0.3% AH. (PR)
  • LSI Logic (LSI): Q3 EPS of $0.18 beats by $0.14. Revenue of $578M (-19%) vs. $556M. Sees Q4 EPS of $0.07-0.13 vs. $0.06 and Q4 revenue of $605M-645M vs. $587M. Shares +7% AH. (PR)
  • Lincoln National (LNC): Q3 EPS of $0.84 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $2.1B (-8%) vs. $2.4B. Shares +9.2% AH. (PR)
  • O'Reilly Automotive (ORLY): Q3 EPS of $0.63 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $1.26B (+13%) vs. $1.23B. Comparable store sales up 5.3%; "Continued improvement in our gross margin results fueled by improved acquisition costs as the result of our increased purchasing power." Shares -0.2% AH. (PR)
  • Owens-Illinois (OI): Q3 EPS of $0.74 misses by $0.19. Revenue of $1.9B (-7%) in-line. Shares -6% AH. (PR)
  • Questar (STR): Q3 EPS of $0.60 beats by $0.09. Revenue of $600M (-21%) vs. $542M. Raises full-year EPS guidance to $2.45-2.55 from $2.35-2.45, vs. $2.57. (PR)
  • Realty Income (O): Q3 FFO of $0.47 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $82M (flat) in-line. Sees full-year FFO of $1.86-1.92 vs. $1.83. Shares +2.3% AH. (PR)
  • Ryland Group (RYL): Q3 EPS of -$1.20 misses by $0.31. Revenue of $328M (-40%) vs. $352M. Shares -0.5% AH. (PR)
  • Symantec (SYMC): FQ2 EPS of $0.36 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $1.48B (-3%) vs. $1.43B. Shares +6.1% AH. (PR)
  • Teck Resources (TCK): Q3 EPS of $0.59 beats by $0.09. Revenue of $2.1B in-line. Sees 2009 coal sales of 19.5-20.5M tons, slightly higher than previous guidance. Shares +4.1% AH. (PR)
  • Teradyne (TER): Q3 EPS of $0.14 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $262M (-12%) vs. $256M. Sees Q4 EPS of $0.12-0.17 vs. $0.12 on Q4 revenue of $255M-270M vs. $252M. Shares +2.2% AH. (PR)
  • Trinity Industries (TRN): Q3 EPS of $0.29 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $557M (-52%) vs. $564M. Sees Q4 EPS of $0.08-0.13 vs. $0.06. Shares -1.3% AH. (PR)
  • XL Capital (XL): Q3 EPS of $0.89 beats by $0.26. Revenue of $1.5B (-15%) vs. $1.7B. Shares +5.2% AH. (PR)

Today's Markets

Asia markets moved sharply lower Thursday, but losses in Europe were mild and U.S. futures have moved higher overnight following Wednesday's losses.

]]> Thu, 29 Oct 2009 07:19:37 -0400 SA Editor Eli Hoffmann SA Editor Eli Hoffmann submits:

  • CIT snags $4.5B lifeline. A group of hedge funds including many of its bondholders offered to lend CIT Group (CIT) $4.5B to build creditor support for a controversial debt exchange, pitting them against activist investor Carl Icahn, who wants the swap voted down. The lifeline comes as CIT's lenders must decide by midnight tonight whether to support its proposed debt exchange, a pre-packaged bankruptcy plan, or neither. Sources say the funds bought up CIT debt last summer on a bet the government would bail out the troubled lender, and stand to lose from a freefall bankruptcy, which Icahn is pushing for.
  • Mutual funds use Fed bucks to buy bonds. Mutual funds - including those run by T. Rowe Price (TROW) and BlackRock (BLK) - are using Fed financing to reap 15%-plus returns with limited risk. The Fed's TALF (Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility) offers low-cost financing to buy AAA-rated bonds backed by consumer and business loans, as well as commercial mortgages. Investors can borrow up to 95% of the bonds' value by pledging the securities and some additional collateral, and have no obligation to repay the loan beyond the collateral - in essence shifting most of the potential losses to the government. In the words of one fund manager: "This is one of those opportunities that, as an investor, we have to take advantage of."
  • IMF boosts Asia growth outlook. The IMF raised its 2009-2010 growth forecast for Asia's economy, but warned that a fragile recovery in advanced economies and lingering problems in the global financial system still pose risks. IMF now sees Asia growth of 2.8% and 5.8% this year and next, up from previous estimates of 1.2% and 4.3% - far higher than the 1.25% growth expected from G-7 economies, but well short of the region's 6.66% average. The report says the region is outpacing other parts of the world, with 'green shoots' of recovery appearing earlier and taking firmer root than elsewhere. (IMF Asia Outlook)
  • U.S.-China trade talks open on sour note. China/U.S. trade talks opened on a discordant note Thursday as fresh frictions surfaced after China announced plans to investigate dumping allegations against Detroit's Big Three automakers. Punitive measures are unlikely to cause much harm since most of the vehicles they sell are made in China, but another row - on top of disputes over steel pipes, chicken, movies and music - could further stress their tenuous relationship ahead of Obama's Nov. 15 visit.
  • Economists shave GDP estimates after weak orders. Durable goods orders rose 1% in September, short of the 1.5% gain economists expected, but a reverse of August's 2.4% drop. Following the weaker-than-expected gain, Goldman Sachs economist Ed McKelvey dropped his Q3 GDP growth estimate - due out this morning - to 2.7% from a previous 3%. "The headline gain in orders was in line with expectations but not as firm as we had thought," he said. Later, Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch followed suit, with Morgan shaving its outlook to 3.8% from 3.9%, and Merrill to 2.3% from 2.5%.
  • AIG recoups CDS losses. AIG (AIG) is seeing billions of dollars in inflows from recovering credit-default swaps - the very securities that helped level the insurer. Q2 inflows may have topped $3B, including at least $1B from Goldman Sachs (GS). Credit-default swaps - a type of insurance policy on securities backed by assets such as mortgages - required AIG to put up huge amounts of collateral when the investments they backed fell in value. Many of the sour trades were closed out last year by the government, a move that saved AIG, but may have deprived it of billions of dollars.
  • Homebuyer credit extension nears approval. Key senators voiced support for extending and expanding the soon-to-expire homebuyer tax credit, and a vote on the measure could come next week. The current plan would see the $8,000 first-time homebuyer tax credit, set to expire at the end of November, extended through April 2010, and would allow for people who have been in their home for at least five years to receive a $6,500 tax credit if they purchase a new primary residence. The income limit on the credit would also rise to $125,000 from $75,000.
  • House panel approves credit rating rules. The House Financial Services Committee signed off (49-14) on legislation aimed at ratings agencies, including barring them from consulting for companies they're also rating, and requiring raters to have outsiders on their boards. The bill also enables investors to sue firms for failing to carry out their duties.
  • Fed: To grow or to shrink? A draft bill of new financial-regulation legislation moving through Congress would give the Fed substantial new powers, including the authority to force large firms to shrink if their size threatens the broader economy. The view is likely to conflict with the Senate's, where financial regulation is moving at a much slower pace, and members of both parties remain wary of offering the Fed - seen by many as partially responsible for the collapse - any new authority.
  • New home sales flatline. New home sales fell 3.6% in September to an annual rate of 402K, well short of economist consensus of 440K and last month's downward-revised 417K. Months' supply rose to 7.5 from 7.3 in August. Sales were down 7.8% year-over year, and, from the peak of the residential construction boom back in mid-2005, sales are down 71.1%. After adjusting for population growth since the pre-2009 all-time low in 1981, sales are now 15% below previous records. (Census Bureau's New Home Sales (.pdf))
  • Norway tightens rates. Norway became the first European country to hike interest rates post-crisis, lifting its key rate by 25 bps to 1.5%. Governor Svein Gjedrem noted inflation is higher than expected, while unemployment was "considerably lower than previously projected," and indicated rates would rise gradually. On Oct. 6, Australia became the first G-20 nation to tighten. (Norges Bank statement)

Earnings: Thur. Before Open

  • ABB Ltd. (ABB): Net income of $1.03B (+12%). Sales $7.9B (-10%). Orders $7.06B (-21%). "It remains unclear when and how quickly capital investments by customers will recover from the downturn. In addition, the volatility of raw material prices and the limited availability of project funding continue to influence the timing of many power and industrial investment decision." ABB preannounced on Oct. 19. Shares -2.1% premarket. (PR)
  • Aetna (AET): Q3 EPS of $0.69 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $8.72B (+14.4%) in-line. Sees full-year EPS of $2.75 vs. $2.86 consensus. (PR)
  • Allegheny Energy (AYE): Q3 EPS of $0.59 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $794M (-6.6%) vs. $952M. (PR)
  • Allergan (AGN): Q3 EPS of $0.70 in-line. Revenue of $1.13B (+4.2%) vs. $1.08B. Shares +0.8% premarket. (PR)
  • American Electric Power Company (AEP): Q3 EPS of $0.93 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $3.5B (-16.7%) vs. $3.97B. (PR)
  • AstraZeneca (AZN): Q3 EPS of $1.46 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $8.2B (+5.5%) vs. $7.9B. Sees full-year core EPS of $6.20-6.40 vs. consensus of $5.99. Shares +0.7% premarket. (PR)
  • AutoNation (AN): Q3 EPS of $0.36 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $2.92B (-13.2%) vs. $3.13B. "Cash for Clunkers was a highly effective stimulus program that provided a much needed lift in auto sales and has set the stage going forward for a gradual recovery of new vehicle sales." Says CARS boosted Q3 EPS by $0.07. Approves $250M buyback. (PR)
  • Avon (AVP): Q3 EPS of $0.42 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $2.55B (-3.5%) in-line. (PR)
  • Barrick Gold (ABX): Q3 EPS of $0.54 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $2.1B (+11.6%) in-line. Significantly reduced gold hedges, and will eliminate within 12 months. (PR)
  • BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (BCRX): Q3 EPS of -$0.28 misses by $0.06. Revenue of $10.5M (+18%) vs. $4.6M. BioCryst recently received FDA approval to use its flu I.V. drug peramivir as an emergency treatment against H1N1. (PR)
  • Brookfield Properties (BPO): Q3 FFO of $0.34 in-line. Revenue of $657M (-7.1%) vs. $580M. (PR)
  • Burger King (BKC): FQ1 EPS of $0.34 misses by $0.03. Revenue of $637M (-5.4%) vs. $653M. Expects the unpredictable consumer environment will persist in fiscal 2010. (PR)
  • Brunswick (BC): Q3 EPS of -$1.53 misses by $0.19. Revenue of $666M (-35.9%) vs. $701M. Shares -5.1% premarket. (PR)
  • CME Group (CME): Q3 EPS of $3.35 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $650M (-17.4%) in-line. "As the economy continues to stabilize, there is room for further organic growth in our core business. At the same time, we are actively working to ensure that the benefits our business model brings to the financial system are communicated to the legislators and regulators who are charged with regulatory reform." (PR)
  • CNOOC (CEO): Q3 revenue of 23.8B yuan ($3.47B, -23.1%) vs. estimate of 21.6B. Avg. selling price -36.6% to $67.83/barrel. Net daily production +18.4% to 647K. Capital expenditure +10.3% to 11.24B yuan. Shares -0.9% premarket. (Bloomberg, PR)
  • Colgate-Palmolive (CL): Q3 EPS of $1.12 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $4B (+0.3%) in-line. (PR)
  • Corinthian Colleges (COCO): FQ1 EPS of $0.37 beats by $0.09. Revenue of $388M (+34.2%) vs. $378M. Total student population +25% to 93.5K. Sees full-year EPS of $1.55-1.60 vs. $1.35. Shares +5% premarket. (PR)
  • Cott (COT): Q3 EPS of $0.18 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $405M (-3.7%) in-line. To sell $200M in senior notes due in 2017, and use proceeds to fund a previously announced tender offer for notes due in 2011. (PR)
  • Deutsche Bank (DB): Q3 net profit €1.4B from €414M a year ago. Pre-tax profit of €1.3B from €93M. Net writedowns of €300M. Risk provision of €544M, up from €236M a year ago, but down from €1B in Q2. Return on equity 15% vs. 1% last year. Says it reduced levels of trading risk, "even at the expense of short-term revenue gains." DB released preliminary results last week. Shares -2.6% premarket. (PR)
  • Digital Realty Trust (DLR): Q3 FFO of $0.74 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $163M (+14.9%) in-line. Shares (PR)
  • Eastman Kodak (EK): Q3 EPS of -$0.23 misses by $0.04. Revenue of $1.78B (-25.9%) vs. $1.89B. Sees revenue decline at high-end of previous 12-18% range. (PR)
  • Expedia (EXPE): Q3 EPS of $0.48 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $852M (+2.3%) vs. $829M. "Travelers are clearly responding to our improving value proposition, as we broaden our fee cuts and increase the depth and breadth of our global supply." Shares +6.8% premarket. (PR)
  • ExxonMobil (XOM): Q3 EPS of $0.98 misses by $0.05. Revenue of $82.3B (-40.3) vs. $85.2B. Shares -1.5% premarket. (PR)
  • France Telecom (FTE): Q3 Ebitda of €4.56B (-8%), in line with consensus. Revenue of €12.69B (-6.4%) vs. €12.85B. Expects Q4 to be similar to Q3, and will thus continue to implement cost savings plans to prevent its Ebitda margin from declining further. Shares -0.5% in Paris. (PR, WSJ)
  • GrafTech International (GTI): Q3 EPS of $0.15 beats by $0.09. Revenue of $165M (-47.8%) vs. $162M. (PR)
  • Kellogg Company (K): Q3 EPS of $0.94 beats by $0.10. Revenue of $3.28B (-0.3%) in-line. "The current economic environment has placed significant pressure on our consumers." (PR)
  • KBR Inc. (KBR): Q3 EPS of $0.45 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $2.84B (-5.9%) in-line. (PR)
  • Mack-Cali Realty (CLI): Q3 FFO of $0.81 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $194M (-5.3%) vs. $175M. (PR)
  • Monster Worldwide (MWW): Q3 EPS of $0.01 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $215M (-35.2%) vs. $223M. (PR)
  • Moody's (MCO): Q3 EPS of $0.43 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $452M (+4.2%) vs. $417M. Declares quarterly dividend of $0.10. (PR I, II)
  • Motorola (MOT): Q3 EPS of $0.01 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $5.45B vs. $5.54B. Appoints Edward Fitzpatrick as CFO. Sees Q4 continuing operations EPS of $0.07-0.09 vs. $0.06. Shares +4.3% premarket. (PR)
  • MPS Group (MPS): Q3 EPS of $0.06 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $408B (-29.4%) vs. $403B. MPS is being acquired by Adecco. (PR)
  • Mylan Laboratories (MYL): Q3 EPS of $0.32 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $1.26B (-23.7%) in-line. Sees 2010 EPS of $1.24-1.28 vs. $1.17. (PR)
  • Newmont Mining (NEM): Q3 EPS of $0.79 beats by $0.24. Revenue of $2.05B (+49.5%) vs. $1.72B. (PR)
  • Nintendo (NTDOY.PK): H1 net profit of ¥69.5B ($768M, -52%). Sales of ¥548B (-34.5%). Cuts H1 dividend by 37% to ¥270. Sold 5.75M Wii consoles (-43%) and 11.7M DS hand-held player sales (vs. 13.7M last year). Sees full-year net income of ¥230B vs. ¥270B consensus, full operating profit of ¥370B (-33%), sales of ¥1.5T (-18%), and Wii sales of 20M (vs. previous 26M). (PR I, II, III, Bloomberg)
  • Noble Energy (NBL): Q3 EPS of $1.10 beats by $0.28. Revenue of $621M (-43.4%) vs. $657M. (PR)
  • NRG Energy (NRG): Q3 EPS of $1.02 misses by $0.12. Revenue of $2.92B vs. $2.18B. (PR)
  • Office Depot (ODP): Q3 EPS of -$0.08 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $3.03B (-17.2%) in-line. (PR)
  • OfficeMax (OMX): Q3 EPS of $0.08 misses by $0.06. Revenue of $1.83B (-12.6%) in-line. Same-store sales -11.5%. Continues to anticipate macro employment trends will not turn positive until well into 2010. (PR)
  • Patterson-UTI Energy (PTEN): Q3 EPS of -$0.12 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $176M (-71%) vs. $163M. (PR)
  • PG&E (PCG): Q3 EPS of $0.93 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $3.23B (+12.3%) vs. $3.48B. (PR)
  • PPL Corp. (PPL): Q3 EPS of $0.52 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $1.8B vs. $3B. (PR)
  • Procter & Gamble (PG): FQ1 EPS of $1.06 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $19.8B (-6%) in-line. (PR)
  • Shell (RDS.A): Adjusted net income of $2.62B vs. consensus of $2.5B. Revenue of $75B, down from $131.6B a year ago. "Q3 results were affected by the weak global economy. Upstream and downstream profitability has been sharply reduced compared to year-ago levels. We see some indications that energy demand and pricing are improving, but the outlook remains very uncertain, and we are not expecting a quick recovery." Shares -3.5% in London. (PR)
  • Smith International (SII): Q3 EPS of $0.07 misses by $0.08. Revenue of $1.88B (-34.1%) in-line. (PR)
  • Sprint Nextel (S): Q3 EPS of -$0.17 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $8.04B (-8.8%) in-line. Net subscribers -135K. Post-paid churn 2.17% vs. 2.05% in Q2, due to seasonality and heightened competition. Pre-paid churn 6.65% vs. 6.38% in Q2. (PR)
  • Taiwan Semi (TSM): Q3 EPS of $0.18 in-line. Revenue of $2.74B (-8.1%) in-line. Gross margin +1.5 points from Q2 to 47.7%. Sees Q4 revenue of NT$90-92B vs. consensus of NT$85.8B. (PR)
  • Ventas (VTR): Q3 EPS of $0.66 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $236M (+0.3%) vs. $230M. (PR)
  • Virgin Media (VMED): Q3 operating cash flow of £348M (+7%) vs. consensus of £337M. Ebitda of £348M. Revenue of £953M (+1.3%) vs. £942M. Net additions of 8,100 vs. 8,000. (PR)
  • Williams Companies (WMB): Q3 EPS of $0.24 beats by $0.05. Shares +2.2% premarket. (PR)
  • Xcel Energy (XEL): Q3 EPS of $0.48 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $2.31B (-18.8%) vs. $3.01B. (PR)

Earnings: Wed. After Close

  • AFLAC (AFL): Q3 EPS of $1.25 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $4.5B (+23%) vs. $4.7B. Shares -0.2% AH. (PR)
  • Agnico-Eagle Mines (AEM): Q3 EPS of -$0.11 vs. estimate of $0.20; results include foreign exchange loss and other items accounting for cost of $0.14/share. Revenue of $159M (+91%) vs. $183M. Shares -8.3% AH. (PR)
  • Akamai Technologies (AKAM): Q3 EPS of $0.38 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $207M (+5%) vs. $199M. Shares +9.6% AH. (PR)
  • Annaly Mortgage Management (NLY): Q3 EPS of $0.75 beats by $0.03. Net interest income of $436M (+24%). Shares +2.3% AH. (PR)
  • AvalonBay Communities (AVB): Q3 FFO of $1.09 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $224M (+0.3%). Sees Q4 FFO of $0.61-0.64 vs. $0.97 and full-year FFO of $3.86-3.90 vs. $4.19. (PR)
  • Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN): Q3 FFO of $0.44 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $147M (+2%) vs. $141M. Raises full-year FFO guidance to $1.82-1.85 from $1.75-1.80, vs. $1.78. Sees fiscal 2010 FFO of $1.23-1.34 vs. $1.38. Shares -1.9% AH. (PR)
  • Cadence (CDNS): Q3 EPS of $0.03 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $216M (-7%) vs. $215M. Sees Q4 EPS of $0.02-0.04 vs. $0.01, and full-year EPS of -$0.08 to -$0.10 vs. -$0.14. (PR)
  • Cerner (CERN): Q3 EPS of $0.61 in-line. Revenue of $409M (-3%) vs. $421M. Sees Q4 EPS of $0.68-0.74 vs. $0.74. Shares -1.9% AH. (PR)
  • CB Richard Ellis Group (CBG): Q3 EPS of $0.08 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $1B (-23%) in-line. Shares -4% AH. (PR)
  • Duke Realty (DRE): Q3 FFO of $0.32 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $224M (+4.1%) vs. $219M. (PR)
  • Equity Residential (EQR): Q3 FFO of $0.53 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $493M (-4%) vs. $487M. Sees Q4 FFO of $0.49-0.53 vs. $0.49. (PR)
  • Express Scripts (ESRX): Q3 EPS ex-items of $0.99 beats by $0.19. Revenue of $5.6B (+3%) vs. $5.5B. Sees full-year EPS of $3.76-3.82 vs. $3.49. Shares +0.8% AH. (PR)
  • First Solar (FSLR): Q3 EPS of $1.79 beats by $0.05. Revenue of $481M (+38%) vs. $529M. Shares -15.9% AH. (PR)
  • Genco Shipping & Trading (GNK): Q3 EPS of $1.09 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $93M (-14%) vs. $91M. Shares -2.9% AH. (PR)
  • Helix Energy Solutions Group (HLX): Q3 EPS of $0.04 misses by $0.01. Revenue of $216M (-65%) vs. $249M. Shares -0.3% AH. (PR)
  • LSI Logic (LSI): Q3 EPS of $0.18 beats by $0.14. Revenue of $578M (-19%) vs. $556M. Sees Q4 EPS of $0.07-0.13 vs. $0.06 and Q4 revenue of $605M-645M vs. $587M. Shares +7% AH. (PR)
  • Lincoln National (LNC): Q3 EPS of $0.84 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $2.1B (-8%) vs. $2.4B. Shares +9.2% AH. (PR)
  • O'Reilly Automotive (ORLY): Q3 EPS of $0.63 beats by $0.07. Revenue of $1.26B (+13%) vs. $1.23B. Comparable store sales up 5.3%; "Continued improvement in our gross margin results fueled by improved acquisition costs as the result of our increased purchasing power." Shares -0.2% AH. (PR)
  • Owens-Illinois (OI): Q3 EPS of $0.74 misses by $0.19. Revenue of $1.9B (-7%) in-line. Shares -6% AH. (PR)
  • Questar (STR): Q3 EPS of $0.60 beats by $0.09. Revenue of $600M (-21%) vs. $542M. Raises full-year EPS guidance to $2.45-2.55 from $2.35-2.45, vs. $2.57. (PR)
  • Realty Income (O): Q3 FFO of $0.47 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $82M (flat) in-line. Sees full-year FFO of $1.86-1.92 vs. $1.83. Shares +2.3% AH. (PR)
  • Ryland Group (RYL): Q3 EPS of -$1.20 misses by $0.31. Revenue of $328M (-40%) vs. $352M. Shares -0.5% AH. (PR)
  • Symantec (SYMC): FQ2 EPS of $0.36 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $1.48B (-3%) vs. $1.43B. Shares +6.1% AH. (PR)
  • Teck Resources (TCK): Q3 EPS of $0.59 beats by $0.09. Revenue of $2.1B in-line. Sees 2009 coal sales of 19.5-20.5M tons, slightly higher than previous guidance. Shares +4.1% AH. (PR)
  • Teradyne (TER): Q3 EPS of $0.14 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $262M (-12%) vs. $256M. Sees Q4 EPS of $0.12-0.17 vs. $0.12 on Q4 revenue of $255M-270M vs. $252M. Shares +2.2% AH. (PR)
  • Trinity Industries (TRN): Q3 EPS of $0.29 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $557M (-52%) vs. $564M. Sees Q4 EPS of $0.08-0.13 vs. $0.06. Shares -1.3% AH. (PR)
  • XL Capital (XL): Q3 EPS of $0.89 beats by $0.26. Revenue of $1.5B (-15%) vs. $1.7B. Shares +5.2% AH. (PR)

Today's Markets

Asia markets moved sharply lower Thursday, but losses in Europe were mild and U.S. futures have moved higher overnight following Wednesday's losses.


Complete Story »]]> DIA SPY QQQQ USO GLD ABB AEM AET AFL AIG AKAM AVB AVP BDN BKC BLK CBG CDNS CEO CERN CIT CL DB DRE EK EQR ESRX FSLR FTE GNK GS HLX KBR LNC LSI MCO MYL NEM NLY NTDOY.PK O OI OMX ORLY PG RDS.A RYL S SII STR SYMC TCK TER TRN TROW TSM VMED XL ABX AEP AN MOT MWW ODP BCRX BPO CLI CME COT DLR GTI MPS NBL NRG XOM AGN AYE AZN BC COCO EXPE K PCG PPL PTEN VTR WMB XEL Eli Hoffmann Will FHA Fall into the Sub-Prime Trap? http://seekingalpha.com/article/165820-will-fha-fall-into-the-sub-prime-trap?source=feed 165820 By Dirk van Dijk

Friday’s New York Times has an important article on the Federal Housing Administration. The FHA has stepped in to back up mortgage loans as the private sector has stopped making them.

]]> Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:08:12 -0400 Zacks.com Zacks.com submits:

By Dirk van Dijk

Friday’s New York Times has an important article on the Federal Housing Administration. The FHA has stepped in to back up mortgage loans as the private sector has stopped making them.


Complete Story »]]> AIV FNM EQR FRE Zacks.com Low Home Ownership Rate Hurting the Economy http://seekingalpha.com/article/164867-low-home-ownership-rate-hurting-the-economy?source=feed 164867 Coming out of most economic downturns, home building is one of the key locomotives to power the economy. Housing is sort of the ultimate durable good, where during downturns demand builds up, and then has a powerful upward force on the economy as the pent-up demand is released.

Given that almost all houses are financed rather than bought with cash, the sector is exquisitely interest-rate sensitive. However, with the rate of home ownership falling, residential investment (RI) will not be a very powerful engine this time around.

]]> Mon, 05 Oct 2009 13:48:01 -0400 Zacks.com Zacks.com submits:

Coming out of most economic downturns, home building is one of the key locomotives to power the economy. Housing is sort of the ultimate durable good, where during downturns demand builds up, and then has a powerful upward force on the economy as the pent-up demand is released.

Given that almost all houses are financed rather than bought with cash, the sector is exquisitely interest-rate sensitive. However, with the rate of home ownership falling, residential investment (RI) will not be a very powerful engine this time around.


Complete Story »]]> EQR AIV DHI LEN Zacks.com Smarter Way to Pick High Yield Stocks? http://seekingalpha.com/article/164776-smarter-way-to-pick-high-yield-stocks?source=feed 164776 I was reading Charles Schwab Investing Insights (Volume 8, 2009) and came across a strategy for picking high-yield stocks. The article studied the 1500 largest stocks by market capitalization from 1990-2009 and divided yielding stocks into 4 quadrants. The highest yielding quadrant underperformed the preceding two quadrants. The highest yield group had 12-month returns of 10.04%, versus 10.73% for the next highest and 10.21% for the 3rd highest yield group. The lowest yield group returned 9.58% and stocks that paid no dividends returned 9.85%. In other words, the highest yield stocks did not equate to the highest return.

However, the Schwab study offered an alternative strategy for picking the likely winners among the highest yielding stocks. They ranked the highest yielding stocks by 6 month price momentum, divided them into 5 segments, and found that highest yield stocks with the highest 6 month price momentum outperformed a) all other momentum segments (in other words, those high yield stocks with lower price momentum) and b) the annual return of every quadrant mentioned in paragraph one.]]> Mon, 05 Oct 2009 04:11:16 -0400 Scott's Investments Scott's Investments submits:
I was reading Charles Schwab Investing Insights (Volume 8, 2009) and came across a strategy for picking high-yield stocks. The article studied the 1500 largest stocks by market capitalization from 1990-2009 and divided yielding stocks into 4 quadrants. The highest yielding quadrant underperformed the preceding two quadrants. The highest yield group had 12-month returns of 10.04%, versus 10.73% for the next highest and 10.21% for the 3rd highest yield group. The lowest yield group returned 9.58% and stocks that paid no dividends returned 9.85%. In other words, the highest yield stocks did not equate to the highest return.

However, the Schwab study offered an alternative strategy for picking the likely winners among the highest yielding stocks. They ranked the highest yielding stocks by 6 month price momentum, divided them into 5 segments, and found that highest yield stocks with the highest 6 month price momentum outperformed a) all other momentum segments (in other words, those high yield stocks with lower price momentum) and b) the annual return of every quadrant mentioned in paragraph one.

Complete Story »]]> RRD MWV VTR GE PLD HCP MAT NI TEG PM EQR NYX LEG Scott's Investments Real Estate? I'm Not Buying into It Just Yet http://seekingalpha.com/article/163811-real-estate-i-m-not-buying-into-it-just-yet?source=feed 163811 The Market Week Ahead

First, US Employment Rate Report is Friday. October is almost here. This bear market rally looks like it’s ready to reverse once they take the bull off the stage. S&P500 going to 400 like some say and I think? Europe is releasing bank stress test results. There’s talk that the US Fed might start raising rates sooner than later. I’ve been saying all along, we have not seen the lows for stocks or real estate prices yet. I see them much lower in the years ahead. Then again I could be wrong. The market always shows the way through its fear and greed social mood.

]]> Mon, 28 Sep 2009 02:16:38 -0400 Michael Michaud Michael Michaud submits:

The Market Week Ahead

First, US Employment Rate Report is Friday. October is almost here. This bear market rally looks like it’s ready to reverse once they take the bull off the stage. S&P500 going to 400 like some say and I think? Europe is releasing bank stress test results. There’s talk that the US Fed might start raising rates sooner than later. I’ve been saying all along, we have not seen the lows for stocks or real estate prices yet. I see them much lower in the years ahead. Then again I could be wrong. The market always shows the way through its fear and greed social mood.


Complete Story »]]> LXP BXP CUZ DRE HST SPG EQR AIV VNO FCH CBG JLL GBE Michael Michaud Case-Shiller: Home Prices Are Actually Rising http://seekingalpha.com/article/158216-case-shiller-home-prices-are-actually-rising?source=feed 158216
The Case-Shiller composite index of housing prices in 20 major metropolitan areas rose 0.7% on a seasonally adjusted basis in June, following an essentially unchanged reading in May. The not-seasonally-adjusted numbers were even better (and what most of the press coverage were initially focused on). However, there is a distinct seasonal pattern to housing prices, so it is better to focus on the seasonally adjusted numbers.

The increase in prices was widespread, with 15 of the 20 areas seeing an increase -- better than expected, and extremely good news. In May, nine of the 20 cities were up. The news is still tentative, with much of the good news coming from a reduction in supply as banks have been letting the foreclosure pipeline build, and an increase in demand from the first-time homebuyer tax credit, which expires at the end of November.

]]> Tue, 25 Aug 2009 14:54:25 -0400 Zacks.com Zacks.com submits:


The Case-Shiller composite index of housing prices in 20 major metropolitan areas rose 0.7% on a seasonally adjusted basis in June, following an essentially unchanged reading in May. The not-seasonally-adjusted numbers were even better (and what most of the press coverage were initially focused on). However, there is a distinct seasonal pattern to housing prices, so it is better to focus on the seasonally adjusted numbers.

The increase in prices was widespread, with 15 of the 20 areas seeing an increase -- better than expected, and extremely good news. In May, nine of the 20 cities were up. The news is still tentative, with much of the good news coming from a reduction in supply as banks have been letting the foreclosure pipeline build, and an increase in demand from the first-time homebuyer tax credit, which expires at the end of November.


Complete Story »]]> AIV EQR Zacks.com Thoughts on REITS, Financials and the U.S. Dollar http://seekingalpha.com/article/157771-thoughts-on-reits-financials-and-the-u-s-dollar?source=feed 157771 A good thread busted out in the comments on Thursday's post. A reader asked me to weigh in on my concerns about inflation (hyper or otherwise) and the status of the dollar. Another reader asked for my take on financial stocks and REITs.

So let's roll 'em up and dive in.

]]> Sun, 23 Aug 2009 09:53:43 -0400 Roger Nusbaum Roger Nusbaum submits:

A good thread busted out in the comments on Thursday's post. A reader asked me to weigh in on my concerns about inflation (hyper or otherwise) and the status of the dollar. Another reader asked for my take on financial stocks and REITs.

So let's roll 'em up and dive in.


Complete Story »]]> EQR BCS SAN CME BAC UUP UDN Roger Nusbaum 10 Stocks that Could Benefit from Apartment Rental Rate Spike http://seekingalpha.com/article/156054-10-stocks-that-could-benefit-from-apartment-rental-rate-spike?source=feed 156054 Many apartment owners can't wait until 2012. If the economy recovers, they will be looking at a perfect storm of events - a shortage of available entry-level housing units, a boom in demand driven largely by Millenials (real-estate jargon for those just about ready to strike out on their own), and the ability to push rents significantly higher due to a shortage of suitable apartments.

Tom Bozzuto, CEO of the Bozzuto Group, a Greenbelt, MD.-based multifamily manager overseeing 28,500 units in the Mid-Atlantic states, told Multifamily Executive Magazine recently that "It's not a lot of fun right now to be in the apartment business. But, you take pleasure in knowing that this is the trough in the wave."

]]> Fri, 14 Aug 2009 01:27:30 -0400 Thomas Smicklas Thomas Smicklas submits:

Many apartment owners can't wait until 2012. If the economy recovers, they will be looking at a perfect storm of events - a shortage of available entry-level housing units, a boom in demand driven largely by Millenials (real-estate jargon for those just about ready to strike out on their own), and the ability to push rents significantly higher due to a shortage of suitable apartments.

Tom Bozzuto, CEO of the Bozzuto Group, a Greenbelt, MD.-based multifamily manager overseeing 28,500 units in the Mid-Atlantic states, told Multifamily Executive Magazine recently that "It's not a lot of fun right now to be in the apartment business. But, you take pleasure in knowing that this is the trough in the wave."


Complete Story »]]> AIV AVB BRE CPT EQR ESS HME MAA PPS UDR Thomas Smicklas Increased Pressure on Rents Is Bad News for Apartment REITs http://seekingalpha.com/article/153840-increased-pressure-on-rents-is-bad-news-for-apartment-reits?source=feed 153840 The National Multi Housing Council, a trade group for apartment owners, has released its quarterly index, and it shows that vacancies are up. This means that rents are likely to continue to be under pressure.

The data is presented in the table below (from here). The key index with respect to the future course of rents is the market tightness index, which rose to 20 in the most recent quarter (their quarters are not aligned with calendar quarters, but the data shown covers May, June and July, and I will refer to it as the second-quarter data) from 16 in the first quarter and just 11 in the fourth quarter. This is one of those indexes like the ISM where any reading below 50 indicates weakness and anything above 50 represents strength.

]]> Wed, 05 Aug 2009 04:37:23 -0400 Zacks.com Zacks.com submits:

The National Multi Housing Council, a trade group for apartment owners, has released its quarterly index, and it shows that vacancies are up. This means that rents are likely to continue to be under pressure.

The data is presented in the table below (from here). The key index with respect to the future course of rents is the market tightness index, which rose to 20 in the most recent quarter (their quarters are not aligned with calendar quarters, but the data shown covers May, June and July, and I will refer to it as the second-quarter data) from 16 in the first quarter and just 11 in the fourth quarter. This is one of those indexes like the ISM where any reading below 50 indicates weakness and anything above 50 represents strength.


Complete Story »]]> AIV AVB EQR Zacks.com Equity Residential Q2 2009 Earnings Call Transcript http://seekingalpha.com/article/153011-equity-residential-q2-2009-earnings-call-transcript?source=feed 153011 Equity Residential (EQR)

Q2 2009 Earnings Call

July 30, 2009 11:00 am ET

]]> Fri, 31 Jul 2009 19:37:17 -0400 Equity Residential (EQR)

Q2 2009 Earnings Call

July 30, 2009 11:00 am ET


Complete Story »]]> EQR Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News http://seekingalpha.com/article/152443-wall-street-breakfast-must-know-news?source=feed 152443

  • Reactions to Microhoo. Reactions to the Microsoft (MSFT) and Yahoo (YHOO) search deal announced yesterday have been mixed. Some investors wondered why Yahoo agreed to a deal with no upfront fee, after previously saying any deal would be conditioned on 'a boatload of cash,' and doubts about the deal's benefits to Yahoo helped pull shares down 12% (Microsoft closed up 1.4%, and the deal may mark an important turning point for CEO Steve Ballmer). Still, others felt "dropping the dead weight of search isn’t a horrible idea" for a company that has no realistic chance of beating Google (GOOG). The deal could face antitrust concerns but will likely be approved.
  • TARP exit for AmEx. American Express (AXP) has officially exited TARP after repurchasing warrants from the government for $340M. The company said the warrant buyback, along with $74.4M of dividend payments it made, provided taxpayers with an annualized 26% return. Analysts noted the repurchase price was in line with the $1.1B Goldman Sachs (GS) paid, indicating the Treasury has indeed taken a tougher negotiating stance on the warrant purchases in light of congressional pressure.
  • FDIC to break up banks. In an effort to entice more buyers, the FDIC is poised to start breaking up failed banks into good and bad pieces. The goal is to sell the most distressed parts of failed banks to private equity firms and other investors that are willing to take a larger risk on bad assets. The 'good' pieces of failed banks, including deposits and branches, could then be sold to traditional banks.
  • Sanofi buys out Merck's JV stake. Sanofi-Aventis (SNY) agreed to buy Merck's (MRK) half of their joint Merial animal-health venture for $4B in cash, and said the companies may work together again in the future to form the world’s largest maker of animal treatments. Sanofi and Merck had collaborated on Merial for over ten years, building it into a company with $2.6B in annual sales. The deal should help Merck allay antitrust concerns over its proposed purchase of Schering-Plough (SGP). Premarket: SNY -0.9% (7:00 ET).
  • Mortgage fraud probe includes Goldman, Deutsche. A Senate panel reportedly subpoenaed financial firms including Goldman Sachs (GS) and Deutsche Bank (DB) in search of evidence of mortgage fraud during last year's market meltdown. The probe is focused on whether bankers had private doubts about the financial soundness of the mortgage-related securities they were publicly promoting. Washington Mutual, now largely owned by JPMorgan Chase (JPM), may also have been among the firms that received a subpoena.
  • Citi advances asset sales. Citigroup (C) is 'moving extremely fast' on asset sales, said CEO Vikram Pandit. Citigroup announced today it had agreed to sell its stake in a Japanese asset management unit to Sumitomo Trust & Banking, Japan’s fifth-largest bank, for ¥112.4B ($1.18B).
  • New help for homeowners. The White House is planning to announce new guidelines today to help homeowners struggling with Federal Housing Administration-insured mortgages. The guidelines will narrow the gap between the FHA's mortgage-modification program and the White House's foreclosure-prevention plan, and will "offer borrowers an opportunity to stay in their homes, make payments that are manageable and defer [payment of] the money owed to a later time when, hopefully, home values have improved."
  • Fidelity signs IPO pact with Deutsche. Fidelity Investments struck a deal with Deutsche Bank (DB) allowing Fidelity's individual investors to participate in initial public offerings underwritten by Deutsche as of this week. Fidelity reached a similar deal last month with private equity group Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, but the Deutsche deal carries more weight because Deutsche is one of the 10 busiest underwriters of stock offerings in the U.S. For Deutsche, access to Fidelity's customers will broaden the range of IPOs it can land.
  • Beige Book sees recession moderating. The Federal Reserve's Beige Book was released yesterday, and noted the recession seems to be growing less severe. Some regions said the downturn's pace has moderated, and others reported that activity is stabilizing. Retail sales are still sluggish, and wages and benefits are steady or falling in most districts. (Read the Fed's Beige Book summary)
  • China seeks to reassure on monetary policy. In a volatile day of trading, Chinese stocks managed to close up 1.7% after China's central bank released a statement aimed at calming jittery investors. After the Chinese stock market fell 5% on Wednesday, its largest daily drop in eight months, the central bank pledged to maintain loose monetary policy in order to support an economic recovery and to ensure sustainable credit growth, seemingly without relying on a strict, central bank-directed quota system used in the past.
  • Boeing gets squeezed. British Airways (BAIRY.PK) is pressuring Boeing (BA) to renegotiate installment payments on its 787 Dreamliner orders. Predelivery payments can total tens of millions of dollars per jetliner, and as airlines find it increasingly difficult to bankroll the payments, plane makers like Boeing are getting squeezed. In other bad news for Boeing, a contractor said yesterday that the Dreamliner's braking system is still incomplete because of a dispute over who should pay for the work, and S&P downgraded Boeing's credit rating by one notch over concerns of additional production cuts due to airline order deferrals and cancellations.
  • PennyMac a few pennies short on IPO. PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust, the distressed-mortgage investment company run by former Countrywide No. 2 Stanford Kurland and 10 other former Countrywide officials, raised $320M in its initial public offering, $80M less than planned. The company sold 16M shares at $20 each.

Earnings: Thursday Before Open

  • AmerisourceBergen (ABC): FQ3 EPS of $0.42 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $18.39B (+2.2%) vs. $18.11B. (PR)
  • Aon (AOC): Q2 EPS of $0.76 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $1.9B (-4%) in-line. (PR)
  • Art Technology Group (ARTG): Q2 EPS of $0.06 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $44M (+6%) in-line. Shares +3.2% premarket (8:20 ET). (PR)
  • AstraZeneca (AZN): Q2 EPS of $1.64 beats by $0.24. Revenue of $8B (+0%) vs. $7.8B. Shares +3.5% premarket (6:40 ET). (AstraZeneca's press release (.pdf))
  • Automatic Data Processing (ADP): FQ4 EPS of $0.45 in-line. Revenue of $2.1B (-4.5%) in-line. Issues downside guidance for FY '10, sees EPS of $2.29-2.39 vs. $2.44 consensus, sees revenue down 1-4%, or to roughly $8.51-8.78B, vs. $8.94B consensus. (PR)
  • Avon (AVP): Q2 EPS of $0.38 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $2.47B (-9.7%) in-line. (PR)
  • Barrick Gold (ABX): Q2 EPS of $0.49 beats by $0.11. Revenue of $2B (+3%) vs. $1.9B. Shares +3.5% premarket (8:10 ET). (PR)
  • Becton, Dickinson and Co. (BDX): FQ3 EPS of $1.30 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $1.8B (-2%) in-line. (PR)
  • BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (BCRX): Q2 EPS of -$0.23 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $4.8M (+80%) vs. $4.1M. R&D expenses decreased to $11.2M from $13.4M a year ago. (PR)
  • CIGNA (CI): Q2 EPS of $1.14 beats by $0.18. Revenue of $4.5B (-8%) vs. $4.8B. (PR)
  • Cincinnati Financial (CINF): Q2 EPS of -$0.03 misses by $0.21. Revenue of $874M (-5%) vs. $912M. (PR)
  • CMS Energy (CMS): Q2 EPS of $0.26 misses by $0.02. Reaffirms guidance for FY '09, sees EPS of $1.25 vs. $1.27 consensus. (PR)
  • Colgate-Palmolive Company (CL): Q2 EPS of $1.07 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $3.75B (-5.5%) in-line. Gross margin increased 2 points to 58.8%, driven by easing raw and packaging material costs, and continued benefit from higher prices already implemented and its ongoing aggressive savings programs. (PR)
  • CONSOL Energy (CNX): Q2 EPS of $0.62 misses by $0.19. Revenue of $1.1B (-12%) in-line. (PR)
  • Covidien (COV): FQ3 EPS of $0.74 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $2.5B (-3%) in-line. (PR)
  • Cummins (CMI): Q2 EPS of $0.30 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $24.3B (+525%) vs. $2.5B. (PR)
  • Digital Realty Trust (DLR): Q2 FFO of $0.71 in-line. Revenue of $155M (+25.2%) vs. $161M. (PR)
  • Dow Chemical (DOW): Q2 EPS of $0.05 beats by $0.14. Revenue of $11.3B (-40%) vs. $13B. (PR)
  • Eastman Kodak (EK): Q2 EPS of -$0.71 misses by $0.34. Revenue of $1.77B (-28.9%) vs. $1.83B. Sees loss from continuing ops at the low end of its previous $200-400M range. Shares -0.9% premarket (8:00 ET). (PR)
  • Endo Pharmaceuticals (ENDP): Q2 EPS of $0.73 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $373M (+22%) vs. $358M. (PR)
  • ExxonMobil (XOM): Q2 EPS of $0.84 misses by $0.18. Revenue of $74.46B (-46.1%) vs. $71.29M. Production was down 3%. Lower margins reduced earnings by $1B. Shares -1.8% premarket (8:30 ET). (PR (.pdf))
  • GrafTech International Ltd (GTI): Q2 EPS of $0.12 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $158M (-51%) vs. $143M. (PR)
  • International Paper (IP): Q2 EPS of $0.20 beats by $0.20. Revenue of $5.8B (-0.1%) in-line. (PR)
  • Iron Mountain (IRM): Q2 EPS of $0.25 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $746M (-3%) vs. $741M. (PR)
  • KBR Inc. (KBR): Q2 EPS of $0.42 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $3.1B (+17%) vs. $2.9B. (PR)
  • Kimco Realty (KIM): Q2 EPS of $0.31 misses by $0.01. Revenue of $189M (+3%) in-line. (PR)
  • Mack-Cali Realty (CLI): Q2 EPS of $0.87 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $173M (-3%) vs. $167M.
  • MasterCard (MA): Q2 EPS of $2.67 beats by $0.25. Revenue of $1.28B (+2.7%) in-line. Net revenue was up 7% on a constant currency basis. Gross dollar volume was down 0.6%; purchase volume was down 0.7%. Shares +7.2% premarket (8:30 ET). (PR)
  • Motorola (MOT): Q2 EPS of -$0.01 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $5.5B (-32%) vs. $5.6B. Issues downside guidance for Q4 (Dec), sees EPS of -$0.01 to $0.01 vs. $0.05 consensus. Shares +7.3% premarket (7:45 ET). (PR)
  • Mylan (MYL): Q2 EPS of $0.32 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $1.3B (+5%) vs. $1.2B. (PR)
  • Newell Rubbermaid (NWL): Q2 EPS of $0.47 beats by $0.12. Revenue of $1.5B (-18%) in-line. (PR)
  • Noble Energy (NBL): Q2 EPS of $0.66 beats by $0.11. Revenue of $491M (-59%) vs. $588M. (PR)
  • NRG Energy (NRG): Q2 EPS of $1.56 vs. consensus of $0.74 (may not be comparable). Revenue of $2.2B (+70%) vs. $2.1B. (PR)
  • NYSE Euronext (NYX): Q2 EPS of $0.51 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $1.1B (+9.5%) in-line. (PR)
  • OfficeMax (OMX): Q2 EPS of $0.04 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $1.66B (-16.5%) in-line. "Given the projected weak economic climate and our anticipation of a soft Back-to-School season, OfficeMax remains very cautious in its expectations for the second half of 2009." (PR)
  • Oshkosh Truck (OSK): FQ3 EPS of -$0.30 misses by $0.12. Revenue of $1.23B (-36.1%) vs. $1.38B. "For Q4, we expect solid performance from our defense and fire & emergency segments, while we expect that our access equipment and commercial segments will both continue to face tough market conditions." (PR)
  • Parker-Hannifin (PH): FQ4 EPS of $0.31 beats by $0.09. Revenue of $2.2B (-34%) in-line. Shares -1% premarket (7:50 ET). (PR)
  • Patterson-UTI Energy (PTEN): Q2 EPS of -$0.12 in-line. Revenue of $161M (-69%) vs. $167M. (PR)
  • Regal Entertainment Group (RGC): Q2 EPS of $0.26 misses by $0.03. Revenue of $789M (+17%) vs. $769M. (PR)
  • Rockwell Collins (COL): FQ3 EPS of $0.91 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $1.1B (-9%) in-line. (PR)
  • Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A): Q2 EPS of $0.62 vs. consensus of $0.93 (may not be comparable). Revenue of $63.9B (-51%) vs. $60.5B. Shares -0.65% premarket (6:50 ET). (PR)
  • Sally Beauty (SBH): FQ3 EPS of $0.16 in-line. Revenue of $673M (-0.5%) vs. $684M. (PR)
  • Sony (SNE): FQ1 net loss of ¥37.1B ($390M) vs. consensus of -¥110B and vs. a net profit of ¥35B a year ago. Still sees full-year loss of ¥120B. Revenue fell 19% to ¥1.6T. Shares +7.2% premarket (8:10 ET). (DJ)
  • Spirit AeroSystems (SPR): Q2 EPS of $0.61 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $1.1B (-0.2%) in-line. Shares +2.3% premarket (8:00 ET). (PR)
  • Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM): Q2 EPS of $0.14 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $2.2B (-23%) in-line. (PR)
  • Travelers (TRV): Q2 EPS of $1.26 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $6.2B (-2%) in-line. (PR)
  • Tyco International (TYC): FQ3 EPS of $0.58 beats by $0.13. Revenue of $4.2B (+0.6%) vs. $4.3B. (PR)
  • Ventas (VTR): Q2 FFO of $0.68 beats by $0.06. "Our high-quality, diversified healthcare and seniors housing assets are performing very well due to demographic and need-driven demand." (PR)
  • Waste Management (WMI): Q2 EPS of $0.52 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $2.95B (-15.5%) vs. $3B. Company is changing its ticker symbol to WM as of August 5, 2009. Issues downside guidance for FY '09, sees EPS of $1.95-1.99 vs. $2.02 consensus. (PR)
  • Xcel Energy (XEL): Q2 EPS of $0.25 in-line. Revenue of $2B (-23%) vs. $2.6B. (PR)

Earnings: Wednesday After Close

  • AFLAC (AFL): Q2 EPS of $1.20 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $4.3B (flat) vs. $4.7B. Announced planned acquisition of Continental American for $100M. (PR)
  • Agnico-Eagle Mines (AEM): Q2 EPS of $0.01 misses by $0.11. Revenue of $139M (+58%) vs. $126M. EPS includes noncash currency loss of $0.12/share and stock option expense of $0.03/share. (PR)

  • Akamai Technologies (AKAM): Q2 EPS of $0.40 misses by $0.01. Revenue of $205M (-2.7%) vs. $211M. (PR)

]]> Thu, 30 Jul 2009 07:18:38 -0400 SA Editor Rachael Granby

  • Reactions to Microhoo. Reactions to the Microsoft (MSFT) and Yahoo (YHOO) search deal announced yesterday have been mixed. Some investors wondered why Yahoo agreed to a deal with no upfront fee, after previously saying any deal would be conditioned on 'a boatload of cash,' and doubts about the deal's benefits to Yahoo helped pull shares down 12% (Microsoft closed up 1.4%, and the deal may mark an important turning point for CEO Steve Ballmer). Still, others felt "dropping the dead weight of search isn’t a horrible idea" for a company that has no realistic chance of beating Google (GOOG). The deal could face antitrust concerns but will likely be approved.
  • TARP exit for AmEx. American Express (AXP) has officially exited TARP after repurchasing warrants from the government for $340M. The company said the warrant buyback, along with $74.4M of dividend payments it made, provided taxpayers with an annualized 26% return. Analysts noted the repurchase price was in line with the $1.1B Goldman Sachs (GS) paid, indicating the Treasury has indeed taken a tougher negotiating stance on the warrant purchases in light of congressional pressure.
  • FDIC to break up banks. In an effort to entice more buyers, the FDIC is poised to start breaking up failed banks into good and bad pieces. The goal is to sell the most distressed parts of failed banks to private equity firms and other investors that are willing to take a larger risk on bad assets. The 'good' pieces of failed banks, including deposits and branches, could then be sold to traditional banks.
  • Sanofi buys out Merck's JV stake. Sanofi-Aventis (SNY) agreed to buy Merck's (MRK) half of their joint Merial animal-health venture for $4B in cash, and said the companies may work together again in the future to form the world’s largest maker of animal treatments. Sanofi and Merck had collaborated on Merial for over ten years, building it into a company with $2.6B in annual sales. The deal should help Merck allay antitrust concerns over its proposed purchase of Schering-Plough (SGP). Premarket: SNY -0.9% (7:00 ET).
  • Mortgage fraud probe includes Goldman, Deutsche. A Senate panel reportedly subpoenaed financial firms including Goldman Sachs (GS) and Deutsche Bank (DB) in search of evidence of mortgage fraud during last year's market meltdown. The probe is focused on whether bankers had private doubts about the financial soundness of the mortgage-related securities they were publicly promoting. Washington Mutual, now largely owned by JPMorgan Chase (JPM), may also have been among the firms that received a subpoena.
  • Citi advances asset sales. Citigroup (C) is 'moving extremely fast' on asset sales, said CEO Vikram Pandit. Citigroup announced today it had agreed to sell its stake in a Japanese asset management unit to Sumitomo Trust & Banking, Japan’s fifth-largest bank, for ¥112.4B ($1.18B).
  • New help for homeowners. The White House is planning to announce new guidelines today to help homeowners struggling with Federal Housing Administration-insured mortgages. The guidelines will narrow the gap between the FHA's mortgage-modification program and the White House's foreclosure-prevention plan, and will "offer borrowers an opportunity to stay in their homes, make payments that are manageable and defer [payment of] the money owed to a later time when, hopefully, home values have improved."
  • Fidelity signs IPO pact with Deutsche. Fidelity Investments struck a deal with Deutsche Bank (DB) allowing Fidelity's individual investors to participate in initial public offerings underwritten by Deutsche as of this week. Fidelity reached a similar deal last month with private equity group Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, but the Deutsche deal carries more weight because Deutsche is one of the 10 busiest underwriters of stock offerings in the U.S. For Deutsche, access to Fidelity's customers will broaden the range of IPOs it can land.
  • Beige Book sees recession moderating. The Federal Reserve's Beige Book was released yesterday, and noted the recession seems to be growing less severe. Some regions said the downturn's pace has moderated, and others reported that activity is stabilizing. Retail sales are still sluggish, and wages and benefits are steady or falling in most districts. (Read the Fed's Beige Book summary)
  • China seeks to reassure on monetary policy. In a volatile day of trading, Chinese stocks managed to close up 1.7% after China's central bank released a statement aimed at calming jittery investors. After the Chinese stock market fell 5% on Wednesday, its largest daily drop in eight months, the central bank pledged to maintain loose monetary policy in order to support an economic recovery and to ensure sustainable credit growth, seemingly without relying on a strict, central bank-directed quota system used in the past.
  • Boeing gets squeezed. British Airways (BAIRY.PK) is pressuring Boeing (BA) to renegotiate installment payments on its 787 Dreamliner orders. Predelivery payments can total tens of millions of dollars per jetliner, and as airlines find it increasingly difficult to bankroll the payments, plane makers like Boeing are getting squeezed. In other bad news for Boeing, a contractor said yesterday that the Dreamliner's braking system is still incomplete because of a dispute over who should pay for the work, and S&P downgraded Boeing's credit rating by one notch over concerns of additional production cuts due to airline order deferrals and cancellations.
  • PennyMac a few pennies short on IPO. PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust, the distressed-mortgage investment company run by former Countrywide No. 2 Stanford Kurland and 10 other former Countrywide officials, raised $320M in its initial public offering, $80M less than planned. The company sold 16M shares at $20 each.

Earnings: Thursday Before Open

  • AmerisourceBergen (ABC): FQ3 EPS of $0.42 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $18.39B (+2.2%) vs. $18.11B. (PR)
  • Aon (AOC): Q2 EPS of $0.76 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $1.9B (-4%) in-line. (PR)
  • Art Technology Group (ARTG): Q2 EPS of $0.06 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $44M (+6%) in-line. Shares +3.2% premarket (8:20 ET). (PR)
  • AstraZeneca (AZN): Q2 EPS of $1.64 beats by $0.24. Revenue of $8B (+0%) vs. $7.8B. Shares +3.5% premarket (6:40 ET). (AstraZeneca's press release (.pdf))
  • Automatic Data Processing (ADP): FQ4 EPS of $0.45 in-line. Revenue of $2.1B (-4.5%) in-line. Issues downside guidance for FY '10, sees EPS of $2.29-2.39 vs. $2.44 consensus, sees revenue down 1-4%, or to roughly $8.51-8.78B, vs. $8.94B consensus. (PR)
  • Avon (AVP): Q2 EPS of $0.38 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $2.47B (-9.7%) in-line. (PR)
  • Barrick Gold (ABX): Q2 EPS of $0.49 beats by $0.11. Revenue of $2B (+3%) vs. $1.9B. Shares +3.5% premarket (8:10 ET). (PR)
  • Becton, Dickinson and Co. (BDX): FQ3 EPS of $1.30 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $1.8B (-2%) in-line. (PR)
  • BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (BCRX): Q2 EPS of -$0.23 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $4.8M (+80%) vs. $4.1M. R&D expenses decreased to $11.2M from $13.4M a year ago. (PR)
  • CIGNA (CI): Q2 EPS of $1.14 beats by $0.18. Revenue of $4.5B (-8%) vs. $4.8B. (PR)
  • Cincinnati Financial (CINF): Q2 EPS of -$0.03 misses by $0.21. Revenue of $874M (-5%) vs. $912M. (PR)
  • CMS Energy (CMS): Q2 EPS of $0.26 misses by $0.02. Reaffirms guidance for FY '09, sees EPS of $1.25 vs. $1.27 consensus. (PR)
  • Colgate-Palmolive Company (CL): Q2 EPS of $1.07 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $3.75B (-5.5%) in-line. Gross margin increased 2 points to 58.8%, driven by easing raw and packaging material costs, and continued benefit from higher prices already implemented and its ongoing aggressive savings programs. (PR)
  • CONSOL Energy (CNX): Q2 EPS of $0.62 misses by $0.19. Revenue of $1.1B (-12%) in-line. (PR)
  • Covidien (COV): FQ3 EPS of $0.74 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $2.5B (-3%) in-line. (PR)
  • Cummins (CMI): Q2 EPS of $0.30 beats by $0.04. Revenue of $24.3B (+525%) vs. $2.5B. (PR)
  • Digital Realty Trust (DLR): Q2 FFO of $0.71 in-line. Revenue of $155M (+25.2%) vs. $161M. (PR)
  • Dow Chemical (DOW): Q2 EPS of $0.05 beats by $0.14. Revenue of $11.3B (-40%) vs. $13B. (PR)
  • Eastman Kodak (EK): Q2 EPS of -$0.71 misses by $0.34. Revenue of $1.77B (-28.9%) vs. $1.83B. Sees loss from continuing ops at the low end of its previous $200-400M range. Shares -0.9% premarket (8:00 ET). (PR)
  • Endo Pharmaceuticals (ENDP): Q2 EPS of $0.73 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $373M (+22%) vs. $358M. (PR)
  • ExxonMobil (XOM): Q2 EPS of $0.84 misses by $0.18. Revenue of $74.46B (-46.1%) vs. $71.29M. Production was down 3%. Lower margins reduced earnings by $1B. Shares -1.8% premarket (8:30 ET). (PR (.pdf))
  • GrafTech International Ltd (GTI): Q2 EPS of $0.12 beats by $0.08. Revenue of $158M (-51%) vs. $143M. (PR)
  • International Paper (IP): Q2 EPS of $0.20 beats by $0.20. Revenue of $5.8B (-0.1%) in-line. (PR)
  • Iron Mountain (IRM): Q2 EPS of $0.25 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $746M (-3%) vs. $741M. (PR)
  • KBR Inc. (KBR): Q2 EPS of $0.42 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $3.1B (+17%) vs. $2.9B. (PR)
  • Kimco Realty (KIM): Q2 EPS of $0.31 misses by $0.01. Revenue of $189M (+3%) in-line. (PR)
  • Mack-Cali Realty (CLI): Q2 EPS of $0.87 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $173M (-3%) vs. $167M.
  • MasterCard (MA): Q2 EPS of $2.67 beats by $0.25. Revenue of $1.28B (+2.7%) in-line. Net revenue was up 7% on a constant currency basis. Gross dollar volume was down 0.6%; purchase volume was down 0.7%. Shares +7.2% premarket (8:30 ET). (PR)
  • Motorola (MOT): Q2 EPS of -$0.01 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $5.5B (-32%) vs. $5.6B. Issues downside guidance for Q4 (Dec), sees EPS of -$0.01 to $0.01 vs. $0.05 consensus. Shares +7.3% premarket (7:45 ET). (PR)
  • Mylan (MYL): Q2 EPS of $0.32 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $1.3B (+5%) vs. $1.2B. (PR)
  • Newell Rubbermaid (NWL): Q2 EPS of $0.47 beats by $0.12. Revenue of $1.5B (-18%) in-line. (PR)
  • Noble Energy (NBL): Q2 EPS of $0.66 beats by $0.11. Revenue of $491M (-59%) vs. $588M. (PR)
  • NRG Energy (NRG): Q2 EPS of $1.56 vs. consensus of $0.74 (may not be comparable). Revenue of $2.2B (+70%) vs. $2.1B. (PR)
  • NYSE Euronext (NYX): Q2 EPS of $0.51 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $1.1B (+9.5%) in-line. (PR)
  • OfficeMax (OMX): Q2 EPS of $0.04 beats by $0.03. Revenue of $1.66B (-16.5%) in-line. "Given the projected weak economic climate and our anticipation of a soft Back-to-School season, OfficeMax remains very cautious in its expectations for the second half of 2009." (PR)
  • Oshkosh Truck (OSK): FQ3 EPS of -$0.30 misses by $0.12. Revenue of $1.23B (-36.1%) vs. $1.38B. "For Q4, we expect solid performance from our defense and fire & emergency segments, while we expect that our access equipment and commercial segments will both continue to face tough market conditions." (PR)
  • Parker-Hannifin (PH): FQ4 EPS of $0.31 beats by $0.09. Revenue of $2.2B (-34%) in-line. Shares -1% premarket (7:50 ET). (PR)
  • Patterson-UTI Energy (PTEN): Q2 EPS of -$0.12 in-line. Revenue of $161M (-69%) vs. $167M. (PR)
  • Regal Entertainment Group (RGC): Q2 EPS of $0.26 misses by $0.03. Revenue of $789M (+17%) vs. $769M. (PR)
  • Rockwell Collins (COL): FQ3 EPS of $0.91 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $1.1B (-9%) in-line. (PR)
  • Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A): Q2 EPS of $0.62 vs. consensus of $0.93 (may not be comparable). Revenue of $63.9B (-51%) vs. $60.5B. Shares -0.65% premarket (6:50 ET). (PR)
  • Sally Beauty (SBH): FQ3 EPS of $0.16 in-line. Revenue of $673M (-0.5%) vs. $684M. (PR)
  • Sony (SNE): FQ1 net loss of ¥37.1B ($390M) vs. consensus of -¥110B and vs. a net profit of ¥35B a year ago. Still sees full-year loss of ¥120B. Revenue fell 19% to ¥1.6T. Shares +7.2% premarket (8:10 ET). (DJ)
  • Spirit AeroSystems (SPR): Q2 EPS of $0.61 beats by $0.02. Revenue of $1.1B (-0.2%) in-line. Shares +2.3% premarket (8:00 ET). (PR)
  • Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM): Q2 EPS of $0.14 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $2.2B (-23%) in-line. (PR)
  • Travelers (TRV): Q2 EPS of $1.26 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $6.2B (-2%) in-line. (PR)
  • Tyco International (TYC): FQ3 EPS of $0.58 beats by $0.13. Revenue of $4.2B (+0.6%) vs. $4.3B. (PR)
  • Ventas (VTR): Q2 FFO of $0.68 beats by $0.06. "Our high-quality, diversified healthcare and seniors housing assets are performing very well due to demographic and need-driven demand." (PR)
  • Waste Management (WMI): Q2 EPS of $0.52 misses by $0.02. Revenue of $2.95B (-15.5%) vs. $3B. Company is changing its ticker symbol to WM as of August 5, 2009. Issues downside guidance for FY '09, sees EPS of $1.95-1.99 vs. $2.02 consensus. (PR)
  • Xcel Energy (XEL): Q2 EPS of $0.25 in-line. Revenue of $2B (-23%) vs. $2.6B. (PR)

Earnings: Wednesday After Close

  • AFLAC (AFL): Q2 EPS of $1.20 beats by $0.06. Revenue of $4.3B (flat) vs. $4.7B. Announced planned acquisition of Continental American for $100M. (PR)
  • Agnico-Eagle Mines (AEM): Q2 EPS of $0.01 misses by $0.11. Revenue of $139M (+58%) vs. $126M. EPS includes noncash currency loss of $0.12/share and stock option expense of $0.03/share. (PR)

  • Akamai Technologies (AKAM): Q2 EPS of $0.40 misses by $0.01. Revenue of $205M (-2.7%) vs. $211M. (PR)


Complete Story »]]> DIA SPY QQQQ USO GLD AEM AFL AIZ AKAM AMKR AOC AVB AXP AZN BA BAIRY.PK BARE BDX BMR C CBG CCI CDNS CERN CI CLF CLI COV CTV DB DOW DRE ELY EQR ESRX FISV FLEX FLS FMC GG GMCR GNK GOOG GS HBI HIG HIW HLX IRM JPM KBR KIM LNC LRCX LSI MRK MSFT MTZ MYL NWL NYX O OI ORLY RDS.A RGC RYL SGP SNY SYMC TER TRN TRV TSM TSO TYC UAM URI V VAR WLL YHOO ABC AVP BCRX CINF CL CMI CNX COL DLR EK ENDP GTI IP MOT NBL NRG OMX OSK PH PTEN SBH SPR VTR WM XEL ABX ADP ARTG CMS MA SNE XOM Rachael Granby The Housing Crash Isn't Over: Here's How to Profit http://seekingalpha.com/article/150029-the-housing-crash-isn-t-over-here-s-how-to-profit?source=feed 150029 The US housing market has not hit bottom and, depending on which view you take, has quite some room to move down further. The truth is that we are still in the middle of a historic crash. However, as with such market dislocations, there are very attractive opportunities to invest and make profits if one has capital, patience, expertise, and a good plan in place.

I’ve pulled together some very compelling data from a myriad of sources including G7 Capital Management, a private equity firm specializing in distressed real estate. It’s using this data that I’ll lay out exactly why I feel the people that are calling for a bottom are the soon-to-be victims of a massive head fake; why the nightmare has a long way to go; and how you might be able to profit from it.

]]> Tue, 21 Jul 2009 04:37:43 -0400 Larry Meyers The US housing market has not hit bottom and, depending on which view you take, has quite some room to move down further. The truth is that we are still in the middle of a historic crash. However, as with such market dislocations, there are very attractive opportunities to invest and make profits if one has capital, patience, expertise, and a good plan in place.

I’ve pulled together some very compelling data from a myriad of sources including G7 Capital Management, a private equity firm specializing in distressed real estate. It’s using this data that I’ll lay out exactly why I feel the people that are calling for a bottom are the soon-to-be victims of a massive head fake; why the nightmare has a long way to go; and how you might be able to profit from it.


Complete Story »]]> AVB HME GRT GTY PHM TOL DHI KBH LEN NVR EQR Larry Meyers Apartment Vacancy Hits a 22-Year High http://seekingalpha.com/article/147923-apartment-vacancy-hits-a-22-year-high?source=feed 147923 This bit of data came as a surprise to me because, generally, I thought the rising trend in foreclosures would have expanded the pool of potential renters. However, that is not the case at all these days as vacancy rates topped out at 7.5% in the last quarter according to real estate research firm Reis Inc. That rate falls just short of the 7.6% level in 1987, but the Reis blames the soft market on unemployment, which most analysts believe will continue to be a problem for at least the next quarter or more.

There are two main contributing factors that lead to the trouble for apartment leasing. For one, the growing number of job losses is wrecking havoc on demand. As one example, would be apartments with rent divided among multiple working parties are being vacated when one of those people losses their job. The remaining tenants often cannot cover the extra portion of the rent in the time necessary to find another roommate. Some people that once lived on their own are finding roommates to help cover costs and some people are moving back home to live with their parents. Furthermore, with new buildings being finished adding to the supply overhang, some building owners are having to convert properties that were once for sale to rentals in order to get the cash flow. The growing supply and the shrinking pool of renters is having a heck of an effect forcing rental rates to come down. The asking rates for rentalsEQR has fallen .6% in each of the last two quarters. Effective rates, or the rates actually paid by tenants have fallen even faster dropping .9% in the last quarter and 1.9% from a year ago.

]]> Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:04:14 -0400 Ockham Research Ockham Research submits:

This bit of data came as a surprise to me because, generally, I thought the rising trend in foreclosures would have expanded the pool of potential renters. However, that is not the case at all these days as vacancy rates topped out at 7.5% in the last quarter according to real estate research firm Reis Inc. That rate falls just short of the 7.6% level in 1987, but the Reis blames the soft market on unemployment, which most analysts believe will continue to be a problem for at least the next quarter or more.

There are two main contributing factors that lead to the trouble for apartment leasing. For one, the growing number of job losses is wrecking havoc on demand. As one example, would be apartments with rent divided among multiple working parties are being vacated when one of those people losses their job. The remaining tenants often cannot cover the extra portion of the rent in the time necessary to find another roommate. Some people that once lived on their own are finding roommates to help cover costs and some people are moving back home to live with their parents. Furthermore, with new buildings being finished adding to the supply overhang, some building owners are having to convert properties that were once for sale to rentals in order to get the cash flow. The growing supply and the shrinking pool of renters is having a heck of an effect forcing rental rates to come down. The asking rates for rentalsEQR has fallen .6% in each of the last two quarters. Effective rates, or the rates actually paid by tenants have fallen even faster dropping .9% in the last quarter and 1.9% from a year ago.


Complete Story »]]> EQR Ockham Research