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Wednesday, May 14
U.S. gasoline prices topping $4 a gallon in some markets(10:53 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Average U.S. retail gasoline prices rose 3 cents to just under $3.76 a gallon in the last day, according to the Daily Fuel Gauge Report from AAA. A month ago, gasoline averaged $3.37 a gallon nationally and a year ago, the price stood at $3.09 a gallon. In Wailuku, Hawaii, regular unleaded gasoline now sells for $4.20 a gallon, up two cents from yesterday. In San Francisco, gasoline sells for $4.04 a gallon, up about a penny in the last day.
Energy shares rise ahead of inventory data(9:40 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Energy stocks rose ahead of weekly petroleum inventory data on Wednesday. The Amex Oil Index (XOI: news, chart, profile) rose 0.2% to 1,544. The Amex Natural Gas Index (XNG: news, chart, profile) rose 0.5% to 717. Sector leader Exxon Mobil (XOM: news, chart, profile) rose 50 cents to $90.18. Crude futures fell 57 cents to $125.23.
Global Water Resources files $50 mln IPO(8:08 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Global Water Resources Inc. late Tuesday filed to raise up to $50 million in an initial public offering with underwriter Janney Montgomery Scott. The Phoenix, Ariz. water resource management company plans to trade under the symbol GWRI on the Nasdaq.
Freddie Mac loses 66 cents a share in first quarter(7:40 am ET)
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Mortgage-finance giant Freddie Mac (FRE: news, chart, profile) said on Wednesday it lost 66 cents a share, or $151 million, in the first quarter, compared to a loss of 46 cents a share, or $133 million, a year ago. The company said challenging housing and credit-market conditions were behind a $1.2 billion provision for credit losses in the quarter. However, the company did better than analysts' expectations: Analysts surveyed by FactSet predicted that Freddie Mac would lose 91 cents a share in the first three months of 2008.
ReneSola net income triples, lifts revenue outlook(7:37 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- ReneSola Ltd. (SOL: news, chart, profile) on Wednesday said first-quarter net income nearly tripled to $17.7 million, or 28 cents a share, from $6.8 million, or 14 cents a share in the year-ago period. Revenue rose to $123 million from $36 million. The China-based solar panel maker lifted its 2008 revenue outlook to $570 million to $590 million from its earlier view of $530 million to $550 million. ReneSola said the May 12 earthquake that struck China's Sichuan province did not damage its facilities and construction remains on schedule. "ReneSola does not expect the earthquake to have a material effect on its operations in Sichuan province," the company said.
Dana swings to a gain after emerging from bankruptcy(7:18 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Dana Holding Corp. (DAN: news, chart, profile) on Wednesday said it earned $685 million compared to a loss of $92 million for the three months ended March 31. The latest period included a gain of $754 million, reflecting the effects of its emergence from bankruptcy on Jan. 31 and the adoption of fresh start accounting. Revenue at the Toledo, Ohio-based maker of axles, driveshafts and thermal management products rose 8% to $2.3 billion. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization, and restructuring rose to $148 million from $90 million. "We are making progress in our turnaround effort despite a tough environment," said Executive Chairman John Devine. "As discussed earlier this year, we have much more to do and remain focused on our top priorities. With a new management team coming together, a strong balance sheet, and a clear sense of urgency, we are committed to repositioning Dana for a strong future."
Intertape Polymer 1st-period loss wider; adjusted net up(6:42 am ET)
TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- Intertape Polymer Group Inc., (ITP: news, chart, profile) (CA:ITP: news, chart, profile) the Montreal developer of plastic- and paper-based packaging products and systems, reported a wider first-quarter loss on 1.2% lower sales. The loss widened to US$1.9 million, or US$0.03 a share, from $570,000, or 1 cent, in the year-earlier period. Adjusted earnings were 3 cents a share against 2 cents. Shares outstanding rose 44% to 59 million. Sales slipped to $184.5 million from $186.8 million. Higher selling prices offset higher materials costs, particularly resin plastic-based raw material, Intertape said. Gross-profit margin widened to 15% from 14.7%.
American Water Works swings to loss; adjusted profit up(5:49 am ET)
TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- American Water Works Co., (AWK: news, chart, profile) the Voorhees, N.J., water and wastewater utility company, swung to a first-quarter loss from a year-earlier profit on 8.2% higher revenue. The loss was $732.5 million, or $4.58 a share, compared with profit of $2.7 million, or 2 cents, in the year-earlier period. The loss reflected a charge to goodwill stemming from the company's initial public offering in April and its subsequent stock price. Excluding the charge, adjusted earnings doubled to 4 cents a share. Revenue reached $506.8 million from $468.5 million, largely on the back of rate increases. AWK, a division of the German utility giant RWE, (RWEOY: news, chart, profile) (DE:703712: news, chart, profile) went public at $21.50 a share, below its estimated range of $24 to $26. The stock closed on Tuesday at $21.32.
Arkema climbs after 64% profit rise(3:41 am ET)
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Arkema (FR:AKE: news, chart, profile) shares rose nearly 6% in Paris after reporting first-quarter profit rose a stronger-than-forecast 64% to 72 million euros ($111 million), while sales were up 0.3% to 1.49 billion euros. The profit rise at the maker of vinyl products and industrial chemicals was attributed to significant reductions in fixed costs and to expanding hydrogen peroxide production in Germany and buying Repsol's acrylic sheet making arm. It had a first-quarter operating margin of 10.7% and expects to achieve the 10% target it set out for the year.
Lanxess shares rise after 13% profit rise(3:27 am ET)
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Shares of Lanxess (DE:547040: news, chart, profile) , the German chemicals firm, rose 4.9% after reporting a stronger-than-forecast 13% rise in first-quarter net income to 103 million euros ($159 million), with sales down 10% to 1.53 billion euros after disposals and currency hits. Selling price and volume increases more than offset adverse raw material price and currency developments, the firm said. For the year, it expects operational sales growth and EBITDA pre exceptionals over 700 million euros compared to 719 million euros in 2007.
PlayStation3, electronics power Sony's 2007 net profit(2:50 am ET)
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Sony Corp. (SNE: news, chart, profile) (JP:6758: news, chart, profile) said Wednesday net income nearly tripled in the fiscal year ended March 31, as a strong performance in its electronics and game segments offset a weaker result in its film and financial services segments. The company said net income for the period totaled 369.4 billion yen ($3.5 billion), up from 126.3 billion yen a year earlier. The result was higher than consensus estimates for 334.5 billion yen. The electronics giant said sales grew 6.9% to 8.871 trillion yen. Revenue at its electronics unit climbed 8.9% helped by brisk sales of Bravia liquid-crystal display televisions, Vaio computers and digital cameras. The company's film division posted an 11.2% decrease owing to fewer releases and its financial services unit saw revenue fall 10.5% on investment losses and a fall in the valuations of convertible bonds. The company said its game division posted a 26.3% rise in revenue on a sharp rise in PlayStation3 sales. For the financial year ending March 31 2009, Sony forecasts net income will fall 22% to 290 billion yen. The company assumed an average exchange rate of 100 yen to the U.S. dollar and 158 yen to the euro throughout fiscal 2008.
Barratt sees sharp decline in housing market conditions(2:48 am ET)
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.K. home builder Barratt Developments (UK:BDEV: news, chart, profile) said Wednesday that market conditions have deteriorated significantly since the end of March as an unprecedented reduction in mortgage availability combined with declining consumer confidence. Total housebuilding revenue for the 19 weeks to May 11 fell 7.6% to 893 million pounds and net private reservations per week were down 34% from a year ago at 276. Since the end of March reservations have averaged 206 a week, it added.
Land Securities NAV falls 10% in 'demanding' market(2:46 am ET)
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Land Securities (UK:LAND: news, chart, profile) , a U.K. commercial property real estate investment trust, reported a 10% decline in adjusted net asset value, to 1,956 pence, slightly ahead of forecasts, as it swung to a loss of 888.8 million pounds. "The market is demanding but we have performed well in relative terms this year and our results show considerable success in terms of value preservation in the face of a sharply falling market," the company said. It said good progress has been made on plans for the demerger, with new chairmen selected for each business. Discussions with rating agencies indicate likely ratings of AA for separate London and Retail debt programs, in line with current group arrangements.
Tullow benefits from rising oil prices; production in line(2:37 am ET)
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Tullow Oil (UK:TLW: news, chart, profile) said Wednesday that its business has performed strongly so far in 2008 thanks to increasing oil and gas prices. Overall production, meanwhile, has been in line with expectations. The group said its increased spending on exploration has yielded good results in Ghana and Uganda, and that the outlook for the rest of 2008 is "very positive."
Compass Group profit up 7.6%, raises payout(2:32 am ET)
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.K. catering company Compass Group (UK:CPG: news, chart, profile) said Wednesday that its fiscal first-half net profit rose 7.6% to 213 million pounds ($414 million) as revenue grew 7.9% to 5.59 billion pounds. The group said it was able to improve its margin by 0.6 percentage points to 5.7% eve in the face of rising food prices. It said inflation for its basked of goods is around 4% to 5%, with significantly higher increases for dairy, rice and pasta goods. The group said it will also increase its interim dividend by 11% to 4 pence a share and buy back a further 400 million pounds of shares over the next 18 months.
Mitsubishi UFJ may post subprime hit of $2.9 billion: report(2:14 am ET)
HONG KONG (MarketWatch) -- Shares of Mitsubishi UFJ (JP:8306: news, chart, profile) traded lower Wednesday following a Japanese media report the bank may report a valuation loss of up to 300 billion yen ($2.9 billion) on investments. Mitsubishi UFJ, Japan's largest publicly traded bank, racked up the losses on securitized products, the Mainichi daily reported Wednesday without saying where it got the information. In January the bank had forecast subprime-related losses of 95 billion yen for the financial year ending March 31. Shares of Mitsubishi were down 2% at midday in Tokyo.