Computer chip component maker Atmel Corp. recently said it plans to sell a wafer fabrication plant in Rousset, France, to LFoundry GmbH, of Germany. French law requires Atmel to present the proposed acquisition to the employee representatives of the Works Council in Rousset. The council is expected to decide on whether it approves in the first quarter of 2010. Although terms were not disclosed,
A mood of edacious buying is visible in shares of Atmel Corp. (ATML). Tuesday of last week saw a quick shot of heavy volume accompanied by an upswing in the stock to close up by 5.9% on 12.1 million shares, almost 3x daily average volume that is typically just around 4.6 million shares. Then again today, another active session with the stock price moving higher by 6.3% on 10.03 million shares
In a tumultuous marketplace where equity destruction has been commonplace and long-only investors have gotten crushed, the performance of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. (GMCR) has been a real outlier thanks to growing sales of K-Cup coffee portion packs for its Keurig Single-Cup brewers that are popular in homes, offices and hotels. Second quarter results released on Tuesday were a testament
World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. (WWE) has been thrown into the ring of accidental high yielders, a label used to describe companies whose dividends have become increasingly handsome as their share prices have been decimated. WWE recently announced that it would pay its regular quarterly dividend of $.36 a share on its common stock payable on March 25 to shareholders of record on March 13.
Hologic Inc. (HOLX), a leading developer, manufacturer and supplier of premium diagnostics products and medical imaging systems for women, is a sleeper medical technology company that’s slipped off the radar, but should be on a list of mid-cap plays to watch as the new trading year begins. Down from much loftier price levels, the stock has become reasonably priced, trading at $12.68 or 10.3x
The outlook is pretty bleak for Meredith Corp. (MDP). The publishing company best known for its Better Homes and Gardens and Family Circle brands reported first quarter publishing profit that was down to $33 million from $55 million a year ago with broadcasting operating profit down to $11 million from $14 million. There were some bright spots – the ability to cut expenses by 5% in the face of
Enthusiasm has waned for anything China related, but American Oriental Bioengineering Inc. (AOB) should have gotten more of a pop on yesterday’s news that Roth Capital initiated coverage of the company with a “buy” rating and a $10 price target, highlighting its "cash-rich" nature. That stood out right away because a look at the financial statements shows that at the end of last quarter, the
In the midst of what could be a prolonged recession, investors are lining up at the exits to rid consumer discretionary stocks from their portfolios, but Cinemark Holdings Inc. (CNK), a movie theatre operator, is a stock that the market place might be too overly pessimistic about in light of its rich dividend yield and earnings resiliency as moviegoers still lineup at the box office in decent
Despite a rapid decline in commodities prices, a Barclays analyst note emphasized some of the positives that seem to have been discounted in shares of Copano Energy (CPNO) with the ongoing drop in crude oil, namely its strong hedge position through 2010 that supports its current cash distribution at roughly a mid-$40 crude level production and its strong liquidity position. Specifically, the
Shares of Nike Inc. (NKE) have fallen considerably, erasing much of its pre-earnings announcement gains, dropping about 13.2% since reporting second quarter results last Wednesday. The footwear company did post $.80 a share in earnings, beating the analyst consensus slightly, but the 6% growth in revenue to $4.6 billion missed expectations slightly on weaker U.S. and European sales. And going
Having declined just 2.2% ytd, Sherwin-Williams Company (SHW), the well-known basic materials brand which engages in the development, manufacture, distribution, and sale of paints, coatings, and related products, has outperformed the benchmark S&P 500, of which it is a component, by 37.5%. A relatively inexpensive valuation with a PE ratio in the low teens and the ability of management to
CyberSource Corp. (CYBS) shares have climbed significantly the past few weeks, in fact doubling from their late November lows of $6.11. The run has been buoyed by a variety of factors – a depressed valuation after the company reiterated 2008 full year earnings of $.63 to $.64 a share that sparked a wave of buyers, a stock buyback of $15 million that represents a significant portion of the $73.16
The Cheescake Factory Inc. (CAKE) got a sweet upgrade from SunTrust analyst Robinson Humphrey earlier yesterday who raised his rating on the restaurant stock to “buy” from “neutral” while setting an $11 price target. From news wire reports, he mentions that debt covenants have played a role in the steady share price decline, but believes the company can amend its credit facility. The company is
Investors looking to put cash to work in a low-interest rate environment will seek safety and decent dividend yielding names - recession proof companies like consumer products maker Clorox Corp. (CLX), so it is surprising to see shares exhibiting such relative weakness this morning, off close to 4% and nearly testing long-term support at $52. Clorox has failed to gain much traction lately, even
Altria Group Inc. (MO) shares are under some pressure after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that consumers can sue tobacco companies under state unfair-trade laws despite cigarette labeling being regulated by the Federal Trade Commission. Altria’s legal department was quick to point out that while the lawsuits may proceed, the plaintiffs must still prove the company’s use of use of ‘lights’ and ‘
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is well off its 52-week high of $72.76 that it hit in early September, currently trading in the mid-$50’s. Funds have sold the stock off, but the trade should reverse and investors might want to take a look at it now that its premium that risk averse investors assigned to it has disappeared with the stock valued at just 12.1x 2009 earnings of $4.66 a share. Johnson &
Specifics have been lacking, but the vague nature of an infrastructure plan has been overshadowed by the largesse of it – the next administration’s plan to embark on the largest public works spending program since the interstate highway system. Vulcan Materials Company (VMC) is a producer of construction aggregates and other construction materials in the U.S. and Mexico and stands to benefit
Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (EBS) is a small cap biotech play that has gone vertical in the past five trading days - the intra-day low of $16.75 last Friday to an intra-day high of $23.10 this past Friday marks a 37.9% upswing. The ytd return of 347% is no less astounding. Having the federal government as a major customer can do that and securing a follow-on contract with the Department of
Direxion Shares 3x Exchange-Traded Funds made their debut in the ETF space on Nov. 5. The new ETFs are a group of leveraged bull and bear index funds that seek 300% of the daily performance, or 300% of the inverse of the daily performance (before fees and expenses) of the four distinct Russell indexes they benchmark whether it may be large cap, small cap, energy or financials. The ETF’s have
Google Inc.’s (GOOG) recent underperformance has been particularly uncanny and frustrating. The major U.S. stock indices posted their largest two-day gain since 1987 with the tech-heavy NASDAQ rising 12.7% over that short time period whereas Google actually continued to lose value – down to a multi-year low of $257.44 at yesterday’s close from Thursday’s close of $259.56, acting as a rare
Late Friday evening press releases are often good times to bury horrible, no good, very bad news. But for CyberSource Corp. (CYBS) that just isn’t the case. The board of directors approved a new stock repurchase program on Friday Nov. 21 which authorizes the payment solutions firm to buy an additional $15 million in common stock through March 2009. The announcement comes on the heels of a
It would be real tempting to look at the Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (EBS) chart and see a double top forming with the potential for a significant retrace. Technically, it would make some sense. After closing at a 52-week high of $18.30 on Oct. 20, the stock fell to re-test support at the $14 level and its 50-day ma at $13.84 before bouncing back over the past week on modest volume to close
Clorox Co. (CLX) first quarter earnings were good – profit of $.91 a share on $1.38 billion in sales, beating Street expectations of $.84 on $1.24 billion. And the consumer products company reiterated fiscal 2009 guidance of $3.60 to $3.75. That was despite projecting growth of only 4-6% vs. the previously issued range of 6-8% because of foreign currency devaluation versus the U.S. dollar (20%
Last Thursday, Synaptics Inc. (SYNA), a developer of touchscreen computing solutions, announced net income for the first quarter of fiscal 2009, excluding non-cash charges for share-based compensation of $.50 per diluted share on revenue of $17.9 million, beating the consensus estimate of $.44. And in a market where considerable doubt is placed on the business outlook, Synaptics delivered good
A major bear market rally seems to be imminent so here are a few names that have already started to move up and could see some additional upside in the coming days and weeks ahead due to short covering.
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (CMG) – 4.9 million shares short or 34.7% of the float. 551,529 is the avg. daily volume. Chipotle last week said its quarterly sales grew 19% thanks to 20 new
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