From Briefing.com: 4:16PM Lattice Semi narrows Q2 rev guidance to upper end, sees up 2-4%, from prior of 1-4% (LSCC) 3.69 +0.01 : Co announced second quarter revenue is now expected to be up 2% to up 4% sequentially, which equates to $57.17-58.86 mln vs $58.08 consensus. This is a revision from previous guidance of up 1% to up 4% sequentially.
4:10PM Microsoft issues statement regarding Yahoo (MSFT) 28.24 +1.12 : "In the weeks since Microsoft withdrew its offer to acquire Yahoo!, the two companies have continued to discuss an alternative transaction that Microsoft believes would have delivered in excess of $33 per share to the Yahoo! shareholders. This partnership would ensure healthy competition in the marketplace, providing greater choice and innovation for advertisers, publishers and consumers. As stated on May 3rd and reiterated on May 18th Microsoft was not interested in rebidding for all of Yahoo!. Our alternative transaction remains available for discussion." (YHOO)
4:05PM Mattson appoints Andrew Moring as Chief Financial Officer (MTSN) 4.79 +0.21 : Co announces that it has appointed Andrew Moring as CFO, effective immediately. William Turner has tendered his resignation from his position as Executive Vice President and CFO to pursue other opportunities.
4:25 pm : It appeared the stock market would reclaim a substantial portion of its recent losses Thursday, but the session’s optimism faded during afternoon trading as buyers moved to the exits. Still, after dipping into negative ground the stock market was able to close 0.3% higher.
Helping to fuel morning buying interest was a slip in oil prices and renewed interest in financial stocks, along with some positive economic data. Financials gained as investors sought opportunities after the sector was clipped in the previous session. Primary leaders included marquee names from the banking industry, such as Bank of America (BAC 29.44, +0.59), Citigroup (C 19.89, +0.68), and JPMorgan Chase (JPM 38.01, +0.88).
However, investment services firm Lehman Brothers (LEH 22.70, -1.05) failed to attract positive attention. The firm announced today it is ousting its CFO and COO. The news sent its shares sharply lower as investors began to fear Lehman’s problems may be worse than presumed.
Notably, the financial sector was upgraded at Morgan Stanley. The sector closed more than 2.0% higher.
Oil prices were down 3.0% at one point, but staged a comeback to close on the Nymex $0.59 higher at $136.97 per barrel. Oil’s resurgence undercut much of the session’s optimism. Though oil made its way back into positive ground, the energy sector still closed 1.8% lower on Thursday.
In merger and acquisition news, Belgian brewer InBev made an unsolicited $46 billion offer for Anheuser-Busch (BUD 61.40, +3.05). The offer to BUD shareholders is worth $65 per share, or an 11% premium to yesterday’s closing price, but will likely be met with considerable resistance by politicians and brand faithful.
As for Yahoo! (YHOO 23.52, -2.63) and Microsoft (MSFT 28.24, +1.12), the two tech heavyweights failed to reach an agreement related to possible business combinations. Shares of YHOO fell precipitously on the news. Microsoft’s stock closed near its session high as investors believe it will put its dealings with Yahoo! in its past.
From the economic corner, May retail sales increased by 1.2%, excluding autos. The results bested the 0.7% increase that economists expected. April sales, less autos, were revised upward to an increase of 1.0%. The better-than-expected results also encouraged early morning sentiment as the data, paired with last week’s same-store sales data for May, will likely result in upward revisions to second quarter GDP forecasts.
In other economic news, initial jobless claims for the week ending June 7 totaled 384,000, which is more than the 370,000 claims that were expected. In turn, the four week moving average advanced to 371,500 from 369,000. Continuing claims rose to 3.139 million from 3.081 million.
Separately, the 10-year Treasury note fell considerably on Thursday, lifting its yield to 4.22%, which is the note's highest yield this year.DJ30 +57.81 NASDAQ +10.34 NQ100 0.0% R2K +0.3% SP400 +0.1% SP500 +4.38 NASDAQ Dec/Adv/Vol 1309/1541/2.26 bln NYSE Dec/Adv/Vol 1496/1628/1.33 bln
2:28PM Zoran announces preliminary approval of derivative litigation settlement (ZRAN) 13.52 -0.05 : Co announced that the U.S. District Court has granted preliminary approval of an agreement to settle a previously-disclosed shareholder derivative action relating to the company's historical stock option practices. The settlement is subject to final court approval. Notice of the settlement will be sent to shareholders, and the court hearing for final approval has been scheduled for August 18, 2008.
3:41 pm Yahoo! (YHOO)
Shares of Yahoo! (YHOO 22.77, -3.38) plummeted 13% in Thursday afternoon trade on word that talks regarding its potential acquisition by Microsoft (MSFT 28.23, +1.11) have concluded without reaching an agreement.
The two companies had several meetings regarding a total or partial acquisition of Yahoo. Yahoo said Microsoft is no longer interest in pursing an acquisition of all of Yahoo, even at Microsoft's previous offer of $33 per share or $47.5 billion, an offer which was rejected by Yahoo in early May.
Microsoft was interested in purchasing just Yahoo's search business, which Yahoo's board determined would not be in the best interest of its shareholders.
Yahoo said it "remains focused on maximizing value for stockholders by continuing to execute on its strategy of being the 'starting point' for the most consumers on the Internet and a 'must buy' for advertisers."
According to reports, Yahoo is close to announcing a deal with competitor Google (GOOG 549.81, +4.61).
Yahoo is currently trading at $22.77 per share, which is roughly 18% more than its level before Microsoft's initial bid in January.
(Note: Briefing.com has a business relationship with Yahoo and Microsoft.)
11:39 am Qualcomm (QCOM)
Communication equipment company Qualcomm (QCOM 49.00, +2.69) raised its earnings guidance for its fiscal third quarter and its full year 2008.
San Diego-based Qualcomm is benefiting from the global migration to 3G. CEO Dr. Paul Jacobs said "Our updated guidance reflects greater than expected demand for our 1xEV-DO and HSPA chipsets as well as revenues from advanced 3G network upgrades." The company also enjoyed a higher-than-expected average price for CDMA devices.
The company expects fiscal third quarter revenue to be slightly above the prior guidance of $2.5 billion to $2.7 billion, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.6 billion. Qualcomm forecasts earnings of $0.54 to $0.55 per share, excluding nonrecurring items, which tops the consensus estimate of $0.52.
For the full year, the company expects to earn between $2.09 and $2.13 per share, up from its previous range of $2.04 and $2.09. The consensus estimate stands at $2.11 per share.
Shares are up 5.8% on the news, the largest daily advance since Jan. 24, when shares spiked 10% in response to the company's first quarter earnings.
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