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Tuesday, Sept. 16
Morgan Stanley sticking with investment bank model: CFO(5:56 pm ET)
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Morgan Stanley (MS: news, chart, profile) Chief Financial Officer Colm Kelleher said late Tuesday that the firm believes in the investment banking business model. Banks and other financial institutions with customer deposits "do not necessarily better enable us to execute our business and in fact may bring with them their own set of complications," he explained during a conference call with analysts. Speculation has increased this week that Morgan Stanley may sell itself to a larger bank after rival brokerage firm Merrill Lynch (MER: news, chart, profile) was acquired by Bank of America (BAC: news, chart, profile) .
Morgan Stanley quarterly net income $1.425 billion(4:22 pm ET)
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Morgan Stanley (MS: news, chart, profile) said late Tuesday that fiscal third-quarter net income came in at $1.425 billion, or $1.32 a share, down slightly from a year earlier when the investment bank made $1.543 billion, or $1.44 a share. Net revenues were $8 billion in the latest quarter, 1% above last year's third quarter, the firm added. Morgan Stanley was expected to make 79 cents a share, according to a FactSet analyst survey. Morgan Stanley shares rose in after-hours action.
Energy stocks remain in red after Fed(2:23 pm ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Energy stocks remained in the red after the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee kept interest rates unchanged despite hopes of a cut. The Amex Oil Index (XOI: news, chart, profile) fell 2.3% to 1,117. The Philadelphia Oil Service Index ($OSX: news, chart, profile) subtracted 0.8% to 243. The Amex Natural Gas Index (XNG: news, chart, profile) gave up 1.8% to 510.
Constellation Energy shares fall 38% (2:20 pm ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Constellation Energy Group (CEG: news, chart, profile) fell 38% to $29.55 as it disclosed ties to Lehman Brothers, but the company said its liquidity remains sound despite the bankruptcy of the Wall Street firm. Constellation said in a filing with regulators that Lehman Brothers' total commitment within existing credit facilities stood at $150 million. Constellation said it holds excess liquidity of approximately $2 billion, excluding the existing Lehman commitment. "Constellation does not believe that the potential reduction in available capacity under the credit facilities would have a significant impact on its liquidity," the company said.
Energy stocks continue their slide(9:38 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Energy stocks continued their steep slide from the previosu session on Tuesday, as the sector moved down in lock-step with oil prices, which fell toward $90 a barrel. The Amex Oil Index (XOI: news, chart, profile) fell 3% to 1,108. The Amex Natural Gas Index (XNG: news, chart, profile) subtracted 4.4% to 496. Anadarko Petroleum (APC: news, chart, profile) fell 7% to $47.49. Hess Corp. (HES: news, chart, profile) fell 7% to $75.95. Oil futures subtracted $4.70 to trade at $91.01.
Monsanto sees 2008 earnings above target(9:08 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Monsanto Co. (MON: news, chart, profile) on Tuesday said it expects 2008 operating earnings of $3.58-$3.60 a share and net income of $3.49-$3.51 a share. Wall Street analysts expect earnings of $3.47 a share, according to a survey of by FactSet Research. The change in ongoing earnings reflected higher-than-expected sales and gross profit in the company's seeds and traits business and its Roundup and other herbicide businesses.
Kroger net income rises by $10 million(8:59 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The Kroger Co. (KR: news, chart, profile) on Tuesday said second-quarter profit rose by $10 million to $277 million, or 42 cents a share, from $267 million, or 38 cents a share in the year-ago period. Sales advanced to $18.1 billion from $16.1 billion. Wall Street analysts expected Kroger to earn 41 cents a share on revenue of $17.6 billion, on average. Kroger said Hurricane Ike and its remnants affected Kroger operations in Texas and several inland states particularly Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio. The financial impact of the hurricane will not be significant enough to cause Kroger to alter its strategy, the grocery retailer said.
Goldman loses $825 mln on mortgage exposure(8:46 am ET)
BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Goldman Sachs (GS: news, chart, profile) on Tuesday said it saw net losses of about $500 million on residential mortgage loans and securities in the third quarter. Meanwhile, it lost roughly $325 million for the quarter on its exposure to commercial mortgages, according to the earnings statement. "This was a challenging quarter as we saw a marked decrease in client activity and declining asset valuations," said Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein.
Goldman's investment-banking revenue falls 40%(8:40 am ET)
BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Goldman Sachs (GS: news, chart, profile) before Tuesday's opening bell said its fiscal third-quarter investment-banking net revenue fell 40% from a year earlier to $1.29 billion amid the upheaval in global credit markets. Net revenue in trading and principal investments fell 67% to $2.7 billion, according to Goldman's quarterly earnings report. Also, net revenue in fixed-income, currency and commodities dropped 67% from the year-ago quarter "primarily reflecting particularly weak results in credit products and mortgages, which were adversely affected by broad-based declines in asset values," the company said. Goldman shares lost more than 7% in premarket trading.
Goldman Sachs profit falls 70% amid slowdown (8:31 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Goldman Sachs (GS: news, chart, profile) said Tuesday that its fiscal third-quarter profit slipped 70% from a year ago as results at several units plummeted during ongoing market turmoil. The company, one of two remaining major independent investment banks in the U.S., said it earned $845 million, or $1.81 a share in the quarter, compared to $2.09 billion, or $4.58 a share a year ago. Twenty analysts polled by FactSet expected the company to earn $1.99 a share. Total revenue at the firm fell 43%, to $13.63 billion from $23.8 billion a year ago.
Ingram Micro cuts third-quarter forecasts(8:28 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Ingram Micro Inc. (IM: news, chart, profile) said Tuesday that it has cut its expected revenue for the third quarter to range from $8.3 billion to $8.6 billion. Net income is expected to range from $30 million to $39 million, or 18 cents to 23 cents a share, it said. The company cited "economic softness ... continuing into September" for the move.
Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. wins FDA OK for Risperdal(8:14 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. (MYL: news, chart, profile) on Tuesday said the U.S. Food & Drug Administration approved its abbreviated new drug application for Risperidone Tablets USP, used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The drug is the generic version of Janssen's Risperdal Tablets, which drew U.S. sales of $2.7 billion in the 12 months ending in June.
Dell sees 'further softening' in global demand this quarter(7:13 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Dell Inc. (DELL: news, chart, profile) said Tuesday it "is seeing further softening in global end-user demand in the current quarter." The computer maker said it expects to incur further costs as it realigns its business, reduces headcount and invests in infrastructure and acquisitions.
Mueller Industries CEO stepping down(7:14 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Mueller Industries Inc. (MLI: news, chart, profile) on Tuesday said CEO William D. O'Hagan is resigning for health reasons. The company named Greg L. Christopher as chief executive officer beginning in 2009. O'Hagan was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2007 and is currently undergoing treatment.
A&P balance sheet unaffected by Lehman bankruptcy filing(4:52 am ET)
TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., (GAP: news, chart, profile) the Montvale, N.J., supermarket operator, said on Monday that its balance sheet and liquidity were unaffected by Lehman Brothers' (LEH: news, chart, profile) filing under the bankruptcy laws. "Lehman Europe is party to a 3.2-million-share lending agreement with [A&P], entered into in connection with the company's convertible-note financings in December 2007," A&P said. The company needs more information regarding the bankruptcy proceedings before it can "properly assess whether Lehman Europe will be able to fulfill its obligation to return the borrowed shares," A&P said. Till then, A&P said, it will continue to consider the shares outstanding only for corporate-law purposes and not when it reports per-share results. "Lehman is not a party to [A&P's] indebtedness under its revolving-credit agreement with Bank of America N.A. (BAC: news, chart, profile) or its senior-note obligations," A&P said. A&P is majority held by closely held Tengelmann Group of Germany.
Debenhams comparable sales slip 0.9%(2:54 am ET)
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- U.K. department store operator Debenhams (UK:DEB: news, chart, profile) said Tuesday that comparable sales in the fiscal year to Aug. 30 fell 0.9% and it expects pretax profit for the period to match market expectations. The group said trading in August showed a marked improvement from July, but the U.K. retail sector continues to be adversely affected by wider economic concerns.
Aegon reveals $376 million exposure to Lehman Brothers(2:41 am ET)
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Insurer Aegon (AEG: news, chart, profile) said Tuesday that it has around 265 million euros ($376 million) of fixed income exposure to Lehman Brothers (LEH: news, chart, profile) , but doesn't hold any common equity in the failed firm. Aegon said the ultimate effect of a default by Lehman on its capital and net income will be substantially lower than 265 million euros due to taxes and recovery values. The insurer said it continues to have a strong balance sheet and ample liquidity.
Monday, Sept. 15
Pall Corp. reports higher profit, sales(5:54 pm ET)
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Pall Corp. (PLL: news, chart, profile) late Monday reported a fiscal fourth-quarter profit of $69.9 million, or 57 cents a share. A year ago, it earned $16.7 million, or 13 cents a share. For the quarter ended July 31, Pall said sales rose almost 12% to $723.2 million. The East Hills, N.Y.-based company forecast fiscal 2009 earnings in the range $2.15 to $2.30 a share, excluding charges.
Energy stocks fall hard in early action(9:41 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Energy stocks fell hard, joining crude futures in the red in early action on Monday. The Amex Natural Gas Index (XNG: news, chart, profile) shed 4%. The Amex Oil Index (XNG: news, chart, profile) fell 4.7%. Oil futures retreated $5.40 to $95.71. The stock market fell hard in the opening minutes of trade, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($DJ: news, chart, profile) down more than 200 points.