Earning Plays

[3xBuBu]

Wednesday, June 17

State Street repays $2 billion in TARP funds(7:34 pm ET)
LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- State Street Corp. (STT: news, chart, profile) said late Wednesday that it has repaid the full amount of the Treasury Department's $2 billion investment in the company under the TARP Capital Purchase Program. Boston-based State Street said it redeemed all of the outstanding shares of preferred stock issued to the Treasury, with the move set to reduce its net income by approximately $105 million in the second quarter, as a result of the difference between the amortized cost of the preferred stock and the redemption price. State Street also said it will start discussions with the Treasury for the financial-services firm to repurchase the Treasury's warrant to buy 2.79 million State Street shares.

FedEx loss is $2.82 a share in quarter(8:06 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- FedEx Corp. (FDX: news, chart, profile) said today it lost $876 million, or $2.82 per share for the fourth quarter , including $3.46 a share of previously disclosed charges. In the same period a year ago, FedEx lost $241 million, or 78 cents a share. Excluding these charges, earnings were 64 cents a share. These charges, approximately $1.2 billion, result from the impairment of goodwill related to the acquisitions of Kinko's Inc. and Watkins Motor Lines. Revenue was $7.85 billion, down 20%. Analysts polled by FactSet Research estimated, on average, adjusted earnings of 51 cents and sales of $8.4 billion. FedEx sees earnings of 30 cents to 45 cents a share in the first quarter, compared to $1.23 a year ago. "At this time we do not have enough visibility into the economic recovery and jet fuel prices to provide a meaningful annual earnings forecast," said Chief Financial Officer Alan Graf, Jr.

Southern California Edison inks solar thermal deal(7:24 am ET)
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Southern California Edison, a unit of Edison International (EIX: news, chart, profile) , said Wednesday it inked two contracts with Solar Millennium for a potential 726 megawatts of power through solar thermal generators, which use heat from the sun to create steam and produce electricity. The projects call for two 242 megawatt facilities with an option to expand one by another 242 megawatts. The units will be built in Blythe, Calif. and Ridgecrest, Calif. and are expected to go into operation in 2013 and 2014. Financial terms of the deals weren't disclosed.

Scotts Miracle-Gro lifts earnings forecast(7:07 am ET)
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Scotts Miracle-Gro Co. (SMG: news, chart, profile) on Wednesday lifted its earnings forecast for fiscal 2009, citing strong consumer demand in the U.S. The group said it now expects to report adjusted earnings of $2.35 to $2.45 a share, compared to a previous forecast of $2.10 to $2.30 a share. It also upped its free cash flow forecast to a minimum of $180 million from a range of $150 million to $170 million. The company said consumer purchases of its products in the U.S. were up 17% for the fiscal year to date, as measured by point-of-sale data from its largest retail partners.
Tuesday, June 16

Adobe profit dips, but meets expectations(4:08 pm ET)
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - Adobe Systems Inc. (ADBE: news, chart, profile) said Tuesday its fiscal second-quarter net income fell to $126 million, or 24 cents a share, from $214.9 million, or 40 cents a share in the same period a year earlier. San Jose-based Adobe said revenue for the period ended in May fell to $704.7 million from $886.9 million. Excluding special items, Adobe said earnings for the quarter were 35 cents a share. Analysts on average had expected Adobe to post earnings excluding special items of 35 cents a share on $694.8 million in revenue, according to Thomson Reuters data.