MONDAY--STOCKS to watch

[Fishhead]

By Michael Baron, MarketWatch


Bank of America (BAC: news, chart, profile) said Friday after the closing that a small number of computer data tapes were lost during shipment to a backup data center. The missing tapes contained U.S. federal government charge-card program customer and account information, the Charlotte, N.C., company said. According to the company, the investigation has found no evidence to suggest the tapes or their content have been accessed or misused.
Bear Stearns (BSC: news, chart, profile) received an upgrade to "outperform" from Wachovia.

Best Buy (BBY: news, chart, profile) received an upgrade to "overweight" from "underweight" at J.P. Morgan.

Champion Industries Inc. (CHMP: news, chart, profile) late Friday reported fourth-quarter earnings of $263,000, or 3 cents a share vs. $14,000, or breakeven, a year ago. Revenue for the quarter was $34.4 million vs. $29.3 million last year.

Delta Petroleum Corporation (DPTR: news, chart, profile) said it's selling $150 million of senior notes due 2015 via a private placement. The company will use the net proceeds from the offering to repay current bank debt. Delta Petroleum shares added 90 cents to $15.56 Friday.

Federated Department Stores (FD: news, chart, profile) and May Department Stores (MAY: news, chart, profile) confirmed plans to merge early Monday. The deal calls for Federated to acquire May for $17 billion in cash, stock and debt assumption. The per share consideration of $17.75 in cash and 0.3115 shares of Federated stock values May shares at $35.50 each. May's stock closed Friday at $35.35, up almost 4 percent. The cash and stock portion of the transaction has a value of $11 billion, and Federated is assuming $6 billion worth of May's debt. Federated has also agreed to increase its annual dividend to $1 per share. The boards of both companies have approved the deal, which is expected to close in the third quarter. Federated anticipates the transaction will add to earnings per share in 2007. Federated shares closed last week at $56.79. See full story.

FLYi Inc. (TICKER:FLYI) reported late Friday that it swung to a fourth-quarter loss of $86 million, or $1.90 a share. The pro forma loss for the quarter was $66 million, or $1.45 a share. Last year, the Dulles, Va., holding company of Independence Air reported earnings of $13.7 million, or 30 cents a share. Revenue fell to $94.1 million from $187.6 million a year earlier.

General Motors (GM: news, chart, profile) and Ford Motor (F: news, chart, profile) were downgraded to "sell" from "neutral" at Banc of America due to evidence that market share losses will continue. Analyst Ronald Tadros now expects market share losses of 1 percentage point per year for both GM and Ford vs. his prior forecast of losses of 0.50 percentage points. He said price hikes would exacerbate market share losses while price cuts would hurt earnings. Tadross cut GM's stock price target to $27 from $32 and his 2005 earnings estimate to $3 a share from $3.50. For Ford, he lowered his price target to $10 from $13 and his 2005 earnings forecast to $1.50 a share from $1.80. GM, a component of the Dow industrials, closed Friday up 20 cents at $36.89 and Ford added 20 cents to $13

H.J. Heinz Company (HNZ: news, chart, profile) reported third-quarter net income of $152.4 million, or 43 cents per share, down 25 percent from $202.2 million, or 57 cents per share in the year-ago period. The company said it sees its fiscal 2005 net income at the lower end of its $2.32-$2.42 per share estimated range. Excluding a $73.8 million non-cash asset impairment charge, primarily for its Hain Celestial Group (HAIN: news, chart, profile) investment, and income of 4 cents per share from discontinued operations, third-quarter net income was $212.4 million, or 60 cents per share. The company was expected to earn 59 cents per share, according to a survey of analysts by Thomson First Call. Sales rose to $2.26 billion from $2.1 billion. Earnings were impacted by higher commodity and fuel costs, offset by a lower tax rate. The stock rose 43 cents to $37.39 on Friday.

King Pharmaceuticals (KG: news, chart, profile) and Mylan Laboratories (MYL: news, chart, profile) have agreed to terminate their merger agreement because they were unable to agree upon terms for a revised transaction.

Medtronic Inc. (MDT: news, chart, profile) said late Friday it is recalling 1,924 Lifepak 500 automatic external defibrillators made in 1997, because some of the devices failed to work correctly. The company said it knows of eight cases where the devices may have "prevented patient resuscitation."

Millennium Cell Inc. (MCEL: news, chart, profile) and Dow Chemical Co. (DOW: news, chart, profile) will join forces to develop and commercialize portable fuel-cell systems for use in consumer electronics and military applications, the companies announced. Terms call for Dow Chemical Dow to initially acquire a preferred equity interest in Millennium Cell amounting to 3 percent on a fully diluted basis. Pending achievement of hydrogen fuel-cell development milestones, Dow will be able to buy additional equity in Millennium Cell through cash investments up to a total of $5 million. In addition, Millennium Cell will seek shareholder approval for the potential issuance of more than 19.9 percent the company's currently outstanding shares to Dow Chemical at its April 21 annual meeting. Millennium Cell's shares ended Friday's trading at $1.73, up 22 cents, or 14.6 percent, while Dow Chemical added 84 cents, or 1.5 percent, to $56.24.

Montpelier Re Holdings Ltd. (MRH: news, chart, profile) said late Friday its board declared a special cash dividend of $5.50 a share. The Hamilton, Bermuda, insurance firm also increased its quarterly dividend 5.9 percent to 36 cents a share. Both dividends are payable on March 11 to shareholders as of March 15.

The Reynolds and Reynolds Co. (REY: news, chart, profile) said Chief Financial Officer Dale Medford plans to retire from the company and its board of directors effective June 1. Shares rose 13 cents to $27.52 on Friday.

Tiffany & Co. (TIF: news, chart, profile) said fourth-quarter net income was $217 million, or $1.48 per share, up 96 percent from $110.5 million, or 74 cents per share last year. Sales rose 11 percent to $810 million. The period included a pre-tax gain of $193.6 million for the company's sale of its equity stake in Aber Diamond Corp. The sale and other events resulted in a boost of 67 cents per share in the fourth quarter. Net income excluding items was 81 cents per share. Tiffany was expected to earn 79 cents per share, according to a survey of analysts by Thomson First Call. The company reiterated its fiscal 2005 earnings target of $1.45-$1.55 per share, which includes 10 cents per share from expensing equity-based compensation. Shares fell 2 cents to $30.92 on Friday.

Yellow Corp. (YELL: news, chart, profile) agreed to acquire USF Corp. (USFC: news, chart, profile) for $1.47 billion. See full story.

Wal-Mart (WMT: news, chart, profile) said Saturday it expects February U.S. same-store sales growth of about 4 percent, the top of its previous estimate of growth of 2 percent to 4 percent

 

[Fishhead]

Down 35.44 currently

 

[dav168]

It may be way too late to watch this stock but if SHR could break through it's old high(around $75) it could start a new run to higher levels.


David

 

[dav168]

I'll throw out 2 more "stocks to watch"(Neither of which I own). IVN- basically been in a trading range from 6.5-7.5. My brother has been buying on dips and selling at peaks over the last few months.Another is GLOW-nice run over the last few months and still looks good especially if it holds above 2.10 or so.


I should have noted in the post above,that SHR is a stock I own.

David

 

[Glaken]

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width="100%" border=0 xmlns:msxsl="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:xslt" xmlns:user="urn:www.briefing.com"><TBODY><TR><TD class=st-Time vAlign=baseline noWrap>12:00 ET </TD><TD class=storyTitle vAlign=top>Dow -47, Nasdaq -9, S&P -5.09</TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD class=st-Art>[BRIEFING.COM] Major indices continue to sport widespread losses midday in the wake of mixed economic data, renewed inflation concerns and volatile oil prices despite strong M&A activity... Jan income fell a less than expected 2.3%, (consensus -2.6%) while personal spending was flat (consensus +0.1%)... However, the inflation indicator for consumer prices climbed 0.2% while the core PCE deflator rose 0.3%, the largest gain since Oct. 2001... Feb Chicago PMI checked in at 62.7 (consensus 60.5), as both the production and new orders components rose to very strong 68.5 levels, but Jan new home sales dipped 9.2% to 1.106 mln (consensus 1.125 mln)... The latter has prompted profit taking in homebuilders (-1.3%) after last week's strong performance while investors overall have maintained a more cautious sentiment after the increase in a key measure of inflation... Biotech (-4.9%) has been the largest standout to the downside, and weighed on health care (-1.2%) and drug stocks (-0.5%), following Biogen Idec (BIIB 36.15 -31.13) and Elan Corp's (ELN 8.52 -18.38) voluntarily withdrawal of MS drug Tysabri... Energy (-0.8%), which was strong early on as crude oil futures ($51.53/bbl +$0.04) neared $52/bbl, has since succumbed to some profit taking after it too is coming off a solid week of gains... Other areas under pressure have been airline, financial, materials, disk drive and semiconductor... Transportation (+0.8%), however, has been strong following Yellow Roadway's (YELL 58.97 -2.34) plans to acquire USF Corp (USFC 48.12 +9.30) for $1.37 bln while retail has found modest buying support now that Federated (FD 56.90 +0.11) has confirmed it will acquire May Dept. Stores (MAY 34.69 -0.66) for $11 bln... Other M&A news includes Mylan (MYL 17.39 +0.45) has terminated its $4 bln agreement to buy King Pharmaceuticals (KG 9.48 -0.77)... Computer hardware and software have also posted modest gains... Meanwhile, all three of this morning's only worth earnings reports - Heinz (HNZ 37.91 +0.52), Nicor (GAS 37.36 +0.67) and TIF came in better than analysts expected, but downside guidance from Tiffany (TIF 30.26 -0.66) has pressured shares of the retailer... Treasuries have failed to benefit from this morning's mixed economic data as the 10-year note is now off 9 ticks to yield 4.29%, the benchmark's highest yields of the session... ..NYSE Adv/Dec 1570/1590. ..NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1259/1673. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=14></TD></TR><TR><TD class=st-Time vAlign=baseline noWrap>11:30 ET </TD><TD class=storyTitle vAlign=top>Dow -38, Nasdaq -6, S&P -3.56</TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD class=st-Art>[BRIEFING.COM] Still not much conviction this morning as weakness in biotech weighs on sentiment... Shares of both Biogen Idec (BIIB 36.06 -31.22) and Elan Corp (ELN 8.42 -18.48) have plummeted after the companies voluntarily withdrew multiple sclerosis (MS) drug Tysabri (which was cleared for marketing by the FDA in Nov.) following two serious adverse events - one patient died and another developed a serious central nervous system disease... PDLI (-11.0%) has also fallen in sympathy while some rivals like TEVA (+6.9%), which markets a competitive Copaxone MS treatment, as well as SRA (+18.4%) and CHIR (+1.9%), have actually surged as Tysabri has been suspended until further notification... S&P Health Care Index -1.1%... ..DRG -0.4%... ..BTK -4.7%. ..NYSE Adv/Dec 1569/1549. ..NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1255/1655. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=14></TD></TR><TR><TD class=st-Time vAlign=baseline noWrap>11:00 ET </TD><TD class=storyTitle vAlign=top>Dow -15, Nasdaq -1, S&P -1.66</TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD class=st-Art>[BRIEFING.COM] Market pares some of its losses and climbs to highs of the morning but still trades with a tinge of caution... Meanwhile, resurgence in M&A activity has helped minimize today's losses as strong balance sheets and confidence in management provide some modest support for equities... Federated Dept. Stores (FD 57.45 +0.66) has confirmed it will acquire May Dept. Stores (MAY 34.87 -0.48) for $11 bln... Yellow Roadway (YELL 59.12 -2.19) has reached a definitive agreement to acquire USF Corp (USFC 48.18 +9.36) for $1.37 bln while reports suggest Qwest (Q 3.90 +0.04) is willing to revise its offer for MCI (MCIP 22.72 +0.12)... However, Mylan (MYL 17.44 +0.50) has terminated its $4 bln agreement to buy King Pharmaceuticals (KG 9.58 -0.67), but investors have applauded Mylan's decision as MYL shares have surged 3.0%... ..NYSE Adv/Dec 1508/1530. ..NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1253/1600. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=14></TD></TR><TR><TD class=st-Time vAlign=baseline noWrap>10:30 ET </TD><TD class=storyTitle vAlign=top>Dow -31, Nasdaq -4, S&P -3.08</TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD class=st-Art>[BRIEFING.COM] Stocks remain under pressure as Chicago PMI holds strong but new home sales fall... Feb Chicago PMI has checked in above the breakeven 50% mark for the 22nd consecutive month with a read of 62.7 (consensus 60.5), as both the production and new orders components rose to very strong 68.5 levels and employment rose 5 points to 57.7... The better than expected expansion in regional manufacturing activity should bode well for tomorrow's release of the ISM index (consensus 57.0)... Jan new home sales, however, dipped 9.2% to 1.106 mln (consensus 1.125 mln) as the Dec gain was revised to 5.6% (from 0.1%)... The housing data, which are more volatile over the winter months, were reflected by an even wilder swing in pricing... ..NYSE Adv/Dec 1349/1619. ..NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1097/1634. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=14></TD></TR><TR><TD class=st-Time vAlign=baseline noWrap>10:00 ET </TD><TD class=storyTitle vAlign=top>Dow -27, Nasdaq -4, S&P -2.22</TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD class=st-Art>[BRIEFING.COM] Indices continue to sport modest losses early on as investors await another batch of economic data... Meanwhile, energy (+1.0%) continues to benefit from higher oil prices while semiconductor has extended last week's gains after the SOX (+0.6%) hit a new 2005 high on Friday and positive comments on Oracle (ORCL 13.22 +0.09) have given software a boost... Biotech (-4.2%), however has been hammered after Biogen Idec (BIIB 40.37 -26.91) and Elan (ELN 9.12 -17.78) pulled their MS drug Tysabri from the market... Airline, transportation, financial, utility, homebuilding and materials have also been weak... ..NYSE Adv/Dec 1169/1362. ..NASDAQ Adv/Dec 1171/1334. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=14></TD></TR><TR><TD class=st-Time vAlign=baseline noWrap>09:40 ET </TD><TD class=storyTitle vAlign=top>Dow -31, Nasdaq -4, S&P -2.40</TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD class=st-Art>[BRIEFING.COM] Market shows little follow through, opening on a lower note, as inflation concerns resurface... While the underlying trends with regards to the Commerce Dept.'s earlier report were stable, Jan personal income and spending data were affected by monthly fluctuations... Jan income fell 2.3%, less than economists expected (consensus -2.6%), due to the downside of Microsoft's Dec dividend payment which left a 3.7% gain, while personal spending was flat (consensus +0.1%)... More noteworthy was the inflation indicator (deflator) for personal spending, which climbed 0.2%, while the core deflator rose 0.3%, the largest gain since Oct. 2001, adding some interim inflation worries following the larger than expected Jan core PPI of +0.8%... At 10:00 ET, Feb Chicago PMI (consensus 60.5) and Jan New Home Sales (consensus 1125K) will be released... ..NYSE Adv/Dec /. ..NASDAQ Adv/Dec /. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=14></TD></TR><TR><TD class=st-Time vAlign=baseline noWrap>09:15 ET </TD><TD class=storyTitle vAlign=top>Market is Closed </TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD class=st-Art> [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: -1.8. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -6.0. Expectations remain intact for stocks to open on a downbeat note... Still contributing to the modest weakness have been mixed economic data, downside guidance and and oil prices near $52/bbl </TD></TR><TR><TD height=14></TD></TR><TR><TD class=st-Time vAlign=baseline noWrap>09:00 ET </TD><TD class=storyTitle vAlign=top>Market is Closed </TD></TR><TR><TD></TD><TD class=st-Art> [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: -2.2. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -6.0. Still shaping up to be a modestly lower open for the cash market as the larger than expected 0.3% rise in the core PCE price index was a bit concerning... While this morning's earnings were few and far between, the three worth noting (i.e. HNZ, GAS and TIF) all posted better than expected results, but GAS and TIF issued downside guidance... There have also been some notable downgrades on GM, F, BIIB, DDS, APC, MAY and NOVL while TXN, BSC, BBY, GP and CSC have been upgraded </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

 

[VaultedTreehouse]

Fish I would be buying puts on MSO. Martha has run up b/c of her getting out. Way over valued and insider selling quite high.

 

[Dubpoet]

PVX, PGH check um out. You want steady income, answer to my prayers!

 

[Fishhead]

Thanks for all the tips!

Terriffic

---FISH---

 

[dav168]

looks like IVN has broken out of it's trading range and looks to me like it's about to move to higher levels.


David

 

[victorygallop]

My wife works for urban outfitters (URBN).

The stock has had an unbelievable year. After a rough 2 month span, it looks like they picking up speed.

It seems to be a great company to invest in.

 

[ppeter]

Pgic

 

[dav168]

IVN continues it's run up...up another 3+% today and something like 15+% for the week. I "mentioned" it on Monday but of course did not buy any myself. Adding this to the list of MANY stocks I've missed out on or sold too soon !! LOL


David