09:27 ET Brocade Comms (BRCD) 42.96: Stock jumps to 47.20 pre-market; hearing that in its presentation at the Merrill Lynch Techtopia
conference, Brocade said it saw a recovery in the storage market in Q2/Q3; CNBC reported that the company said it would meet or beat
estimates, but we have no confirmation of that.
09:22 ET Perot Systems (PER) 11.97: Merrill Lynch raises near-term rating to ACCUMULATE from Neutral. following yesterday's
1-cent-better report. Feels that stock has solid value at current levels but some patience may be required.
09:17 ET KLA-Tencor (KLAC) 55.35: SG Cowen initiates coverage with a BUY rating and $75 price target; says efficient operating model
and premium ASP are key competitive differentiators during downturn.
09:13 ET Mattel (MAT) 16.23: Banc of America Sec initiates coverage with a BUY rating and $19 price target. Believe Mattel will improve
operating margins from the current level of below 13% to nearly 15% in the next several years.
09:10 ET Cabot Micro (CCMP) 67.07: Salomon Smith Barney upgrades to BUY from Neutral and raises price target to $85 from $65. Firm
sees expectations that fab utilization rates in Asia will bottom in the June qtr as a positive. Puts CCMP's long term top-line growth of at least
30%.
09:10 ET Hasbro (HAS) 12.56: Banc of America Sec initiates with a MKT PERFORM rating; says company faces tough comparisons for
most of FY01 from both Pokemon (26% of FY00 revenues and whose popularity appears to be waning) and the Star Wars toy line. HAS
suffers from an increasingly heavy balance sheet with $1.3 billion in debt, while its revenues are subsequently declining.
09:08 ET Electronic Arts (ERTS) 62.19: Banc of America Sec initiates coverage with a MKT PERFORM rating. Despite having the most
successful and broadest game portfolio, the company's lofty valuation of 87x FY02 EPS estimate of $0.65 warrants an MP rating.
09:06 ET priceline.com (PCLN) 6.59: -- Update -- Merrill Lynch analyst Henry Blodget raises long-term rating to ACCUMULATE from
Neutral. Although does not feel company is out of the woods yet, more optimistic about its long-term viability. Underlying metrics were
better-than-expected, but not great. Given recent run in stock and expensive valuation (65x 2002 est. of $0.11), analyst would look for a more
attractive near-term entry point.
09:05 ET Activision (ATVI) 28.40: Banc of America Sec initiates coverage with a MKT PERFORM rating; says despite its improving
margins and the fact that ATVI will be a significant beneficiary of the Game Boy Advance release this summer, cautious on shares as stock has
appreciated about 400% in the past ten months and currently trades at 34x FY01 EPS estimate of $0.79.
09:01 ET CIGNA Corp (CI) 108.70: JP Morgan downgrades to LT BUY from Buy following earnings report this morning.
08:55 ET EMS Sector Upgraded : Bear Stearns upgrades Electronic Manufacturing Services group to BUY after their Annual EMS
Outsourcing Survey. In 105 responses from leading global OEMs, 85% of the respondents expect to increase their use of a contract
manufacturer over the next 12 months. Respondents cited 72% as a terminal outsourcing goal versus the current 13% penetration rate. Stocks
are cheap and estimate cuts are already in. Upgraded to BUY from Attractive: SLR, SANM, SCI, CLS, FLEX, JBL, VG.
08:47 ET Digital Island (ISLD) 2.04: Merrill Lynch downgrades to NT NEUTRAL from Accumulate after the company reported weak Q2
results and pushed out GM breakeven to Q4 from Q3.
08:45 ET St. Jude Medical (STJ) 58: Prudential upgrades to STRONG BUY from Hold in advance of the data on Atrial Fibrillation
suppression expected to be presented at NASPE meeting in Boston beginning today. Firm now has more confidence in STJ's ability to meet or
exceed growth expectations following analyst meeting yesterday. Raises price target to $72 from $55.
08:41 ET Checkpoint Sys (CKP) 10.52: Bear Stearns upgrades to BUY from Attractive after the company exceeded Q1 EPS expectation.
New product and financial streamlining initiatives enhance growth potential; says earnings outlook for 2001 and 2002 is promising.
08:41 ET Opening Indications : S&P futures +0.5, or 1.5 pts above fair value; Nasdaq 100 pre-market indicator +16. The positive talk on
Cisco, albeit very cautious optimism, has lifted the Nasdaq this morning; not seeing much direction in the S&P futures.
08:38 ET ATI Tech (ATYT) 5.43: Prudential upgrades to STRONG BUY from Hold based on valuation and PC end market stabilization.
Believes company is starting to see stable desktop demand and a slight pickup in mobile demand. Firm raises price target to $10 from $4.
08:35 ET Express Scripts (ESRX) 83.69: CIBC World Markets upgrades to STRONG BUY from Buy, cites attractive valuation, confidence
in the underlying fundamentals and in the PBM business in general, and upcoming investor day on 5/4. Price target is $116.
08:33 ET Cisco Systems (CSCO) 17.80: Morgan Stanley channel checks and recent CIO survey indicate stabilization in the N. American
enterprise networking market. Firm estimates that NA enterprises represents approx. 33% of company's revenue. Morgan says while
improvement is a positive, firm would be unable to justify valuation at higher prices.
08:32 ET DiamondCluster (DTPI) 17.25: CIBC World markets downgrades to HOLD from Strong Buy due to continuing weak demand for
consulting services.
08:28 ET Petroleum Refiners Cut : UBS Warburg downgrades independent refining companies after last night's release of the API's data
on U.S. crude oil and product inventories, which showed alarmingly high week-to-week builds in crude oil, gasoline, and distillate stocks. Stocks
downgraded: VLO, UDS, SUN, MRO. See Upgrades/Downgrades for details.
08:25 ET RF Micro Device (RFMD) 29.93: Merrill Lynch initiates coverage with a NT Accumulate/LT Buy rating and 12-18 month target
of $33; cites eventual recovery of the wireless market and the company's established leadership supplying power amplifiers to Nokia (NOK).
08:22 ET Autonation (AN) 10.20: -- Correction -- Earlier we reported that AN reported Q1 net of "$0.13 a share 2 cents above consensus."
Results were actually $0.17 a share for the qtr, still 2 cents above consensus.
08:14 ET Sonus Networks (SONS) 27.55: Company and Juniper Networks (JNPR) announce that they are working together to deliver
carrier-class solutions harnessing the latest innovations in MPLS/Traffic Engineering, service-aware routing and differentiated services.
Companies actively engaged in building converged core network infrastructure for carriers worldwide, including service provider Zephion
Networks.
08:13 ET S1 Corp (SONE) 7.08: WR Hambrecht upgrades to STRONG BUY from Buy citing solid Q1 results; believe S1 will achieve its
Q4:01 EBITDA breakeven target as revenues continue to increase each quarter and further operating expenditures are taken out of the model.
08:05 ET Oracle Corp (ORCL) 16.04: Merrill Lynch believes that company undertook an approximate 7% reduction in workforce yesterday,
somewhat deeper than the 5% firm had postulated in its comments two weeks ago. Feels that timing of reductions suggests that revenue
weakness continues at Oracle and the company is managing near-term earnings performance. Merrill thinks that its Q4 (May qtr) estimates
could prove aggressive.
08:00 ET McDATA (MCDT) 31.75: ABN AMRO initiates coverage with a BUY rating. Says stock currently trading at 48x projected 2002
earnings of $0.58, which is in line with the peer group average. Views this as an attractive valuation for a company with MCDT's future
opportunities and competitive advantage.
07:50 ET Opening Indications : Nasdaq futures spike up to +6 (13 pts above fair value) after CNBC reports rumor that Cisco could be
seeing some improvement in its inventory situation. Contract has now eased back to -2, or 5 pts above fair value...S&Ps trading 1.5 below fair
value.
07:36 ET i2 Technologies (ITWO) 17.77: Company promotes Greg Brady to the CEO post, replacing Sanjiv Sidhu, who will continue as
chairman of the board. Mr. Brady previously served as President of the company.
07:22 ET Opening Indications : This morning's fair value figures -- S&P 500 fair value: 1271; closed 1 pt above fair value on Tuesday.
Nasdaq 100 fair value: 1930; closed 7 pts above fair value on Tuesday. Current indications: S&P 500 futures are -4.5, or 3.5 pts below fair
value. Nasdaq 100 is -12, or 5 pts below fair value... Futures drifting early... Likely to see weakness in refiners at the open following CSFB
downgrade... Priceline.com (PCLN) bid up sharply after predicting a return to profitability next qtr.
07:15 ET Jones Apparel (JNY) 41.10: Designer of women's apparel reports Q1 earnings of $0.75 a share, 4 cents above consensus, vs
yr-ago net of $0.58. Total revenues increased 9% to $1.07 bln... Comfortable with full yr guidance of $2.95-$3.00; current consensus is $2.96...
(market note: 52-week range $21.25-$41.65).
07:10 ET Ford Motor (F) 28.30: Auto maker expected to release a report this week identifying global warming as a serious issue that must be
addressed, reports the Wall Street Journal... (WSJ article could spark interest in fuel cell stocks).
07:05 ET Autonation (AN) 10.20: Reports Q1 earnings of $0.17 a share, 2 cents above consensus, vs yr-ago EPS of $0.17. Revenues
declined 6.6% to $4.89 bln. Company sees Q2 earnings of $0.21-$0.23 and full yr net of $0.85-$0.90 vs mean estimates of $0.23 and $0.85.
06:54 ET Martha Stewart (MSO) 18.50: Reports Q1 earnings of $0.13 a share, 2 cents above consensus, vs yr-ago EPS of $0.11. Revenues
increased 3% to $71.2 mln... Company projects Q2 earnings of $0.10-$0.11 (consensus $0.12). Sees full yr EPS growth of 20%-25%.
06:43 ET Hughes Electronics (GMH) 22: General Motors' (GM) Board of Directors voted to authorize formal talks with Rupert Murdoch's
News Corp regarding a combination of Hughes Electronics with Murdoch's satellite network.
06:35 ET IPO Pricing : Simplex Solutions (SPLX) prices 4 mln shares at $12, the top end of $10-12 range. SPLX is a provider of software for
testing the design of ICs before expensive production starts. CSFB serving as lead manager.
06:12 ET U.S. Markets : S&P futures trading at 1268, 3.0 points below fair value, Nasdaq 100 futures trading at 1925, 5.0 points below fair
value. The 30-year bond is up 4 ticks at 5.731%. The dollar is a tad firmer against both the yen and the euro after yesterday's carnage.
06:11 ET European Markets : FTSE -0.17%, DAX -1.14% -- European stocks lower as regional manufacturing contraction puts the
near-term brakes on global reflation thoughts. Reuters Eurozone Purchasing Managers' Index for April fell to 49.3 from 50.2 in March, the first
contraction since February of 1999. Other big story of the day has been the plunge in Vodafone, which has been under heavy pressure following
the announcement that the company will sell $4.3 bln worth of new shares to fund its purchase of British Telecom’s stakes in Japan Telecom
and Spain’s Airtel.
06:10 ET Asian Markets : Nikkei -0.03%, Hang Seng +3.20% -- Asian stocks mixed. Hong Kong’s Hang Sang rallied 3.2% to make up for
gains lost to the recent holidays. Market closed at seven-week highs, boosted by blue chip banking, real estate and telecommunications stocks.
Korea’s Kospi pushed to two-month highs on heavy foreign buying, as well as a nice round of gains in the auto sector on the back of better than
expected April sales. Nikkei a tad weaker, but Topix at six-month highs with Japan Telecom up 18% after Vodafone agreed to pay $5.3 bln for
BT’s 20% stake in Japan’s third largest mobile phone company.
05:19 ET Goldman Sachs (GS) 92.65: The times, they are a changin... According to Wall Street Journal, Goldman Sach has reached an
agreement with about a dozen regional brokerage firms to distribute its investment research and securities issues to Middle America... The
move to attract relatively small retail investors is a depature for GS, which has historically shunned that part of the business... Regional
brokerage firms won't pay Goldman a formal fee for receiving the research or securities offerings; but will execute trades through Hull Group
and Spear Leeds & Kellogg, two market makers owned by Goldman.
05:10 ET Guidant Corp (GDT) 40.15: In a medical study to be presented in Boston today, at the North American Society of Pacing and
Electrophysiology, cardiologists found that Guidant's Contak CD device slowed the progression of heart failure by 21%, reports the Wall Street
Journal... Dr. Ludmer, a cardiologiest who helped run the study noted that the device, which improves the otherwise out-of-sync beating of
failing hearts, actually caused positive "remodeling" of the heart's shape and functioning. "That results in increased survival," said Dr. Ludmer...
FDA expected to decide on possible approval sometime this year... According to Fred McCoy, president of GDT's cardiac-rhythm unit, the
market for this therapy in the first 12-months could be "$150 to $200 mln." Journal notes that Medtronic's (MDT), a GDT competitor, dual
device is in the works but several months behind Guidant. |
