Forget ROI, Where Do We Get The Umbrellas?
Edited by Thomas Granahan
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
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1:53 (Dow Jones) At Citigroup's (C) annual shareholder meeting at Carnegie
Hall earlier Tuesday, some shareholders had questions other than those
related to Citi's good-standing as a corporate citizen or how fair it was
with poor borrowers. One shareholder was focused on grander issues: "How do
we get a hold of those little red umbrellas" to wear on our lapels?, she
asked CEO Sandy Weill. (TAS)
1:43 (Dow Jones) Merrill says the biggest challenge in forecasting the rest
of the year for Texas Instruments (TXN) is not its wireless end market, but
its other market segments, most notably non-wireless analog. Merrill expects
TI to post 1Q net of 16c a share later tonight, and the company's
intermediate-term problems aside, TI remains Merrill's favorite large-cap
name in the sector. (TG)
1:29 (Dow Jones) Lehman's Jeff deGraaf says volume too light Monday to draw
any meaningful conclusions about direction of market. It did not refute or
support his belief that the bulls have upper hand as market works off
oversold condition. He's still not looking for much more, though, and while
he likes the fact that skepticism is accompanying the strength, he doesn't
see enough of the market prerequisites to believe the low was a legitimate
bottom. (TG)
12:50 (Dow Jones) Merrill Lynch was "pleasantly surprised" by Mellon
Financial's (MEL) first quarter numbers, which beat consensus estimates by a
penny and Merrill's estimate by three pennies. "The good news for Mellon is
that they had exceptionally tight cost control. Managed asset flows remain
very impressive." Merrill reiterates its buy/buy rating on Mellon, which is
adding 8 cents Tuesday at $38.88. (GS)
12:28 (Dow Jones) April is off to a good start for retailers, Prudential
says, as sales are equal to ahead of plan for most retailers. The firm,
which expects same-store sales growth of 3.6% in its general merchandise
index and 0.2% decline in its department store index, says "We continue to
recommend an overweight position in the group as we expect interest rate and
tax cuts to continue to act as catalysts for the stocks." The firm's
favorites: TGT, WMT, LOW, FDO, KM, MAY, FD and S. (GS)
12:08 (Dow Jones) Men, we have to make a stand here as the question of
whether business dress is making a comeback gains profile. UBS' Richard
Jaffe nicely summarizes the argument in a new one-page note. He rounds up
plausible arguments about the demise of dotcom casual and the idea that men
will need more suits for job interviews, and fashion trades have noted the
return of the preppy look. But Jaffe thinks that if more formal dress
catches on, it won't be until 2H, when men traditionally buy clothes. Can't
we just meet somewhere in the middle? Did our performance really lag without
the ties? Just asking. Oh, and a little coldwater for one theory about
return of business dress: the Bush White House's "formal" dress policy.
Let's keep in mind that our president wears jeans and cowboy boots with his
dinner jacket. How formal is that? (GC)
11:59 (Dow Jones) Feeling a little glum about the 4% selloff in Cisco (CSCO)
after its weak outlook? Does the 81% drop from its March 2000 high have you
down? Well, if you've been with Cisco from the start, those complaints may
fall on deaf ears - Cisco is up 25,733% from its February 1990 6-cent
split-adjusted IPO, according to Anderson & Strudwick's Kent Engelke. (TG)
11:45 (Dow Jones) UBS Warburg analyst Robin Farley cut her earnings
estimates on Carnival Corp. (CCL), Royal Caribbean Cruises (RCL), and P&O
Princess Cruises (POC) because of Carnival's cautious tone on slowing
booking volumes. For 2001, her EPS view on Carnival went to $1.74 from
$1.78; Royal Caribbean went to $1.87 from $2.21; and P&O Princess was cut to
$1.68 from $1.73. (DDO)
11:36 (Dow Jones) Charles Schwab Corp. (SCH) reports 1Q results in-line with
reduced views. The online and discount broker continues to work on its
announced plans to lay off 11% to 13% of its full-time staff, but doesn't
have any new cost-cutting moves to announce, says Schwab CFO Christopher
Dodds. The firm also expects to spend less on advertising and market
development in the second and third quarters than the $94 million it spent
during the first quarter. Schwab shares are up 2.5%. (GFC)
11:29 (Dow Jones) National Assn. of Manufacturers Prez Jerry Jasinowski says
"the basis for recovery is emerging, with inventories being worked off,
firms aggressively cutting costs, inflation slowing down, recent interest
rate cuts having a positive impact, and potential productivity gains still
in place." (JC)
11:22 (Dow Jones) As Cisco (CSCO) pulled back to $16.59 after being as low
as $15 Tuesday morning, investors sold near-month options, especially puts.
Sellers of April 15 puts, for instance, likely do not expect the stock to
fall below $15 before contracts expire this Friday, or are willing to buy
stock at that price. Volatility remains high and largely unchanged Tuesday
morning. At the CBOE, these out-of-the-money puts recently were at 25 cents
on volume of 5,316 contracts, with 3,449 contracts trading away, compared
with open interest of 82,847. (KT)
11:11 (Dow Jones) Harley-Davidson (HDI) earned an initial buy rating at Bear
Stearns because of strong demand for its motorcycles in the U.S., prospects
for international growth, earnings visibility, and its strong balance sheet,
says analyst Joe Yurman. He set a six- to 12-month price target of $55 to
$57 a share on the stock, which was recetly up 1% at $42. (DDO)
(END) DOW JONES NEWS 04-17-01
01:55 PM
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