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Market Update 110223

4:30 pm : Renewed selling pressure sent stocks to their second straight loss as $100 oil spooked participants. Technical support helped limit the downturn.

The mood among participants was mixed in the opening minutes of trade, but the tone quickly soured as oil prices extended their climb to new two-year highs amid ongoing concerns related to social and political turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa. At its session high, oil traded at $100 per barrel on the nose. Prices were backed down in afternoon trade so that the energy component settled pit trade with a 2.8% gain at $98.10 per barrel. Weekly oil inventory figures will be released tomorrow morning.

Oil's late morning and early afternoon climb induced renewed selling pressure among stocks. At its session low, the S&P 500 was down 1% to the 1300 line. However, support at that level combined with oil's pullback from the $100 mark so that stocks were able to catch some relief.

Trading volume was up sharply for the second straight session, but the 1.33 billion shares that exchanged hands today on the NYSE was the highest tally in two months.

Although the broad market closed comfortably above its session low, energy was the only major sector to finish with a gain. Higher oil prices helped energy stocks outperform for the entire session and settle with a 2.0% gain. Chesapeake Energy (CHK 34.33, +2.32) was one of the sector's top percentage gainers after it posted a better-than-expected earnings report.

At the other end of the spectrum, industrial stocks endured the sharpest selling. That sector shed 1.8% as FedEx (FDX 89.25, -4.04) fell more than 4% as investors considered the consequence of higher fuel costs on the operations of the global delivery company.

Retailers also had a rough session. They fell 1.8% as a group. TJX Co (TJX 48.81, -0.91) traded in line with the group after its disappointing outlook overshadowed an upside earnings surprise. Saks (SKS 11.86, -0.31) and home improvement retailer Lowe's (LOW 25.73, -0.26) also logged losses, despite their own upside earnings surprises. In contrast, Chico's FAS (CHS 13.15, +1.09) overcame an earnings miss to climb sharply to a six-month high.

Hewlett-Packard (HPQ 43.10, -5.13) tumbled almost 10% after its upside earnings surprise was ignored because of a light revenue figure and a disappointing forecast.

Toll Brothers (TOL 21.20, +0.44) had better-than-expected earnings and scored a gain. The stock will likely come back into focus tomorrow, which is when the latest new home sales report will be posted.

Existing home sales for January were reported today. They increased 2.7% month over month to an annualized rate of 5.36 million units, which is greater than the rate of 5.23 million units that had been expected, on average, among economists polled by Briefing.com.

In the face of further weakness among stocks, Treasuries at the short end of the yield curve lacked support. Pressure in the space picked up after a $35 billion auction of 5-year Notes drew a yield of 2.19%, a bid-to-cover of 2.69, and an indirect bidder participation rate of 34.2%. However, the 30-year Bond was able to advance so that its yield moved down to 4.58%.

Advancing Sectors: Energy (+2.0%)
Declining Sectors: Consumer Staples (-0.2%), Utilities (-0.4%), Financials (-0.4%), Materials (-0.7%), Health Care (-1.0%), Telecom (-1.0%), Tech (-1.3%), Consumer Discretionary (-1.5%), Industrials (-1.8%)DJ30 -107.01 NASDAQ -33.43 NQ100 -0.9% R2K -1.6% SP400 -1.4% SP500 -8.04 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 629/2.48 bln/1996 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1062/1.33 bln/1959

3:30 pm : Energy continued its tear today, adding another 2.9%. April WTI crude oil rallied for 2.8% to close at $98.10 per barrel. The rally was, once again, supported by concerns about supply disruptions in the Middle East. Various reports indicate that anywhere between 25%-50% of Libya's oil production has been shut in due to the ongoing protests. Prices traded to $100 per barrel exactly in early afternoon trade, a fresh ~2.5 yr high, but pulled back close to 2 points heading into the close. March natural gas gained 0.1% to finish at $3.89 per MMBtu.

Precious metals added 1.1% today, helped by a flight to safety over concerns about the Middle East as well as the continued sell off in equities. April gold finished higher by 0.8% to $1414.00, while March silver rallied for 1.4% to end at $33.29 per ounce. DJ30 -75.72 NASDAQ -21.14 SP500 -3.86 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 770/2.0 bln/1844 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1097/951.0 mln/1899

3:00 pm : Stocks remain in the red, but losses aren't as severe as they were at midday. Still, the S&P 500 remains on pace for its worst two-session performance since August.

Participation has been strong again today. During the prior session share volume on the NYSE climbed above 1.1 billion. With an hour left in today's trade, share volume on the Big Board is already headed for 900 million. The 50-day average is just 978 million shares.

The earnings calendar for tonight and tomorrow morning is quite full. However, there aren't very many widely-held names in the bunch. DJ30 -85.29 NASDAQ -23.61 SP500 -4.83 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 752/1.87 bln/1873 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1020/880 mln/1978

2:30 pm : Stocks continue to gradually climb off of their session lows, but energy is still the only major sector in positive territory.

Energy stocks are up 2.2% as a group. They have been led by oil and gas exploration plays (+3.6%) and drillers (+2.3%). However, refiners (-1.2%) are down markedly amid the rise in oil prices since higher crude costs often crimps crack margins for refiners.

Consumer staples stocks and utilities stocks are the next best performing sectors, but they are still down fractionally. Their relative strength today is largely owed to their defensive nature.

Industrial stocks are at the opposite end of things. Their 1.8% loss makes the industrial space the worst performing sector today. FedEx (FDX 89.88, -3.41) has been the heaviest drag on the sector as participants consider the consequences of higher fuel costs on the global shipment company's operations. DJ30 -95.81 NASDAQ -27.66 SP500 -6.78 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 724/1.73 bln/1883 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1003/810 mln/1989

2:00 pm : Stocks are trying to extend a recent push up from the 1300 line. In turn, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite are at their best levels in over an hour.

Oil prices have pulled back in recent trade. The energy component set a new 2-year high of $100 per barrel earlier, but it is now at $98.90 per barrel with a 3.7% gain.

Volatility is up sharply after it had been relatively subdued in early trade. In turn, the Volatility Index (VIX), often euphemistically dubbed the Fear Gauge, is up more than 8%. Given its spike today and its surge in the prior session, the VIX is at its highest level in almost three months. DJ30 -110.72 NASDAQ -36.21 SP500 -9.52 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 605/1.59 bln/1989 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 905/743 mln/2064

1:30 pm : Additional selling recently knocked the stock market down to the 1300 line after it had failed to extend an upward push off of the 1302 line. The latest leg down comes as oil prices hit $100 per barrel on the nose.

Treasuries have turned lower in recent trade. Their dip follows results from a $35 billion auction of 5-year Notes. The auction drew a yield of 2.19%, a bid-to-cover of 2.69, and an indirect bidder participation rate of 34.2%. For comparison, the prior auction drew a bid-to-cover of 2.97 and an indirect bidder participation rate of 45.0%. An average of the past five auctions results in a bid-to-cover of 2.77 and an indirect bidder participation rate of 42.0%. DJ30 -115.53 NASDAQ -42.77 SP500 -12.10 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 590/1.44 bln/1973 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 892/670 mln/2077

1:00 pm : A sluggish start led to more stiff selling as oil prices extended their climb toward $100 per barrel. Technical support has helped the broad market stabilize.

Premarket trade suggested that stocks might put together a modest rebound after suffering their worst loss in six months during the prior session. However, strength waned with the approach of the open. That left stocks to start the session without much direction, leaving them susceptible to headline risk related to the social and political turmoil of the Middle East and North Africa.

Volatile conditions in that region continue to underpin interest in oil, though. Oil has been up since the start of pit trade, but it buying has accelerated over the course of the past couple hours. The enrgy component is currently up more than 4% to trade at $99.60 per barrel. At its session high the energy component was less than a dime shy of $100 per barrel.

Weekly oil inventory data has been delayed until tomorrow morning due to the holiday on Monday. Oil's climb to session highs coincided with increased selling against stocks, although the energy sector continues to sport a gain of more than 2% -- it is the only major sector still in positive territory.

Amid such widespread weakness, the S&P 500 has dropped to a 1% loss, which comes on top of its 2% loss during the prior session. However, the benchmark Index has been able to steady itself after securing support in the 1302 zone.

Corporate news offered little support to stocks. The latest round of earnings was headlined by Hewlett-Packard (HPQ 43.10, -5.13), which reported an upside earnings surprise, but that was tainted by a light revenue figure and a disappointing forecast. TJX Co (TJX 48.18, -1.54) had an upside surprise of its own, but also issued a disappointing outlook. Lowe's (LOW 25.33, -0.66) and Toll Brothers (TOL 20.45, -0.31) both had better-than-expected earnings.

Data was limited today. Existing home sales for January reportedly increased 2.7% month over month to an annualized rate of 5.36 million units, which is greater than what had been widely expected. New home sales data is due tomorrow.

Treasuries at the long end of the yield curve have seen the most demand today, but trade in that space could pick up when results from an auction of 5-year Notes are posted at 1:00 PM ETDJ30 -105.20 NASDAQ -41.05 SP500 -10.91 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 594/1.29 bln/1957 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 966/605 mln/1993

12:30 pm : Oil prices are flirting with the $100 mark, which hasn't been seen since 2008. At the moment, oil prices are up 4.3% to $99.50 per barrel.

Oil's spike to session highs has induced additional selling, which took stocks down to session lows. The S&P 500 found support at the 1302 line, so it has reclaimed a couple of points. It is now down 40 points from the multi-year high athat it set last week. DJ30 -94.94 NASDAQ -43.48 SP500 -11.29 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 618/1.11 bln/1918 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 959/521 mln/1981

12:00 pm : Sellers have increased their efforts in the past 30 minutes. Their efforts have taken each of the major equity averages to their lowest levels of the day. Still, in the face of mounting pressure, the energy sector continues to sport a gain in excess of 2%. That's mostly due to the fact that oil prices have extended their advance so that they are now up 3.2% to $98.45 per barrel, which makes for oil's highest level since October 2008.

Declining issues outnumber advancers by 3-to-1 in the broader market, but volatility hasn't increased dramatically. The Volatility Index was up as much as 30% during the prior session's sell-off, but today it is up a much less dramatic 3%. DJ30 -64.82 NASDAQ -31.50 SP500 -7.53 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 804/920 mln/1690 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1141/430 mln/1747

11:30 am : Stocks remain stuck in negative territory amid choppy trade.

However, Chesapeake Energy (CHK 33.72, +1.71) has been a standout. The stock is up about 5% following a better-than-expected earnings report for the latest quarter. A spike in oil prices above $97 per barrel has also helped.

Hewlett-Packard (HPQ 43.30, -4.92) is at the opposite end of the spectrum. Its 10% loss stems from disappointment over the company's outlook and latest quarterly report, which featured a light revenue figure that has cast a pall over better-than-expected earnings.

Fluor (FLR 66.65, -3.92) is also in rough shape this session, though its percentage loss is about half of what HPQ has endured. Nonetheless, its slide follows an earnings miss. DJ30 -45.33 NASDAQ -19.99 SP500 -3.44 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 938/770 mln/1510 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1317/365 mln/1541

11:00 am : Action has become quite choppy. The lack of direction has left the major equity averages to continue trading in the red.

Energy stocks continue to outperform by a wide margin. The sector is now up 2.2%. With this session's move, the sector is up more than 14% for the year. For comparison, industrials make up the next best performing sector on a year-to-date basis; industrials are collectively up 5% this year, but down 1.2% today.

Treasuries are seeing strong interest at the long end of the yield curve. Specifically, the 30-year Bond is up 23 ticks so that its yield is at 4.56%. Meanwhile, the 5-year Note is flat so that its yield is at 2.13% ahead of results from an auction of 5-year Notes at 1:00 PM ET. DJ30 -27.66 NASDAQ -13.23 SP500 -1.71 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 854/621 mln/1543 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1210/301 mln/1615

10:35 am : Energy commodities are again the best performers in the CRB Commodity Index this morning, but today, a key concern is where else protests may spread to outside of Libya. April crude extended gains at the open of pit trade and pushed to new session highs of $97.97 per barrel. Currently, crude is up 2% at $97.36 per barrel. Note: Due to Presidents Day, crude inventory data will be released at 11:00am ET tomorrow, while natural gas data will be released at its regular time tomorrow at 10:30am ET.

March natural gas fell into negative territory late last night and has remained there since. It rallied at the open of pit trading along with crude, but couldn't hold its gains. It's now back near session lows and is currently down 1% at $3.83 per MMBtu

Precious metals were modestly higher earlier this morning and extended gains in recent trade. April gold is now 1% higher at $1412.90 per ounce, while March silver is up 1.9% at $33.70 per ounce.

May sugar is the worst performing commodity in the CRN Index today, while all industrial commodities are in the red (cotton -2.6%, nickel -2.2%, aluminum -2.0%, copper -1.9%). May corn is the worst performing of the ag grain commodities and is currently -15.5 cents (or 2.3%) at $6.7575/bushel.
DJ30 -19.30 NASDAQ -9.31 SP500 -0.83 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 873/415.9 mln/1469 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1176/212.6 mln/1600

10:00 am : Stocks made a modest push into positive territory in the first few minutes of trade, but sellers have been quick to step back in and apply renewed pressure. Their efforts have taken the major averages down to modest losses.

Energy continues to trade with strength, though. The sector's 1.2% gain is primarily underpinned by a 2.6% gain in oil prices to $97.85 per barrel. The spike in oil prices comes amid continued headline risk associated with social and political turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa.

Existing home sales for January were just released. They increased 2.7% month over month to an annualized rate of 5.36 million units, which is greater than the rate of 5.23 million units that had been broadly expected among economists polled by Briefing.com. DJ30 -31.48 NASDAQ -6.28 SP500 -1.58 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1219/196 mln/994 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1656/116 mln/1033

09:45 am : For the second straight session the energy sector is up with an enviable gain in the early going. Collectively, energy stocks have already advanced 1.1%, which gives them a wide lead over the broader market. During the prior session energy stocks had been up as much as 1.5% before broader market weakness imbued the sector and dragged it down to a 0.7% loss.

Financials are up with a solid 0.4% gain in early trade. The sector slumped to a 3.1% loss yesterday, so the advance this morning makes for a modest rebound.

Broader market action is generally mixed, such that the major equity averages are hovering near the neutral line. DJ30 -20.77 NASDAQ +1.31 SP500 +1.37 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1015/65 mln/990 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1144/55 mln/1233

09:15 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +0.60. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +3.90. Stock futures have been backed down from their morning highs so that a relatively flat start to trade now looks to be in order. That would make for a rather lackluster follow-up to the prior session's 2% sell-off, which was the worst single-session slide for the S&P 500 in six months. Social and political turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa continues to represent headline risk for stocks.

However, the volatile conditions in that region have provided a boon to oil prices, which have resumed their climb this morning with a 1.1% gain at $96.45 per barrel. Safe havens like gold and silver are also up; they currently trade 0.2% higher at $14.04 per ounce and 0.7% higher at $33.09 per ounce, respectively.

The dollar hasn't attracted much interest, though. Instead, it is down 0.3% against a basket of competing currencies after minutes from a Bank of England meeting revealed that one of its voting members has joined those that favor an increase in interest rates.

Corporate news continues to be of secondary interest, although Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) has attracted considerable negative interest following a light revenue figure and a disappointing forecast that reflects caution about consumer spending related to personal computers.

The economic calendar for today features January existing home sales figures, which are due at 10:00 AM ET. The latest Treasury auction features the 5-year Note. Results will be posted at 1:00 PM ET.

09:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +2.50. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +6.40. Strength among stock futures has waned over the past hour or so. Meanwhile, the CRB Commodity Index is down fractionally. Silver prices are extending their rally from the prior session, but with a 1.2% gain at $33.26 per ounce the precious metal is still shy of the 30-year high that was set above $34 per ounce yesterday. Gold prices are up, too; the yellow metal was last quoted at $1403 per ounce, up 0.2%. Oil prices are up 0.9% to $96.30 per barrel in the opening moments of pit trade. Natural gas prices are down 0.7% to $3.84 per MMBtu.

08:35 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +3.30. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +7.40. Futures for the S&P 500 are losing ground. They now trade with only a marginal lead over fair value. Down 0.5%, Germany's DAX is headed for its third straight loss. Automakers BMW and Volkswagen have been the heaviest drags on trade, but Deutsche Bank (DB) is working to extend its prior session advance. Commerzbank has pulled back from a three-month high to trade with a slight loss following the release of fourth quarter results, which featured net income of 257 million euros on revenue of 3.13 billion euros. France's CAC is currently flat. Financial plays Axa (AXA), BNP Paribas, and Societe Generale have shown leadership, but their efforts have been offset by LVMH Moet Hennessey, Vinci SA, and GDF Suez. Britain's FTSE is off by 0.7%, which puts the Index on pace for its fourth straight loss. Vodafone (VOD), BP Plc (BP), Rio Tinto (RIO), and Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) have weighed heavily on overall trade. Bank stocks HSBC (HBC) and Lloyds Group (LYG) have provided some support, though. Published minutes from the last Bank of England meeting revealed that another voting member wanted to raise the target rate rather than leave it unchanged. That has helped win support for the British pound, which is up 0.6% at $1.623.

Action in Asia was relatively mixed overnight. Japan's Nikkei fell to a 0.8% loss after it had dropped 1.8% in the previous session. Fanuc Corp, KDDI Corp, and Honda Motor (HMC) were atop the list of declining issues. Fast Retailing rebounded 3.4% to settle above its 200-day and 50-day moving average. Although its advancers outnumbered its declining issues by more than 7-to-2, mainland China's Shanghai Composite made only a slight recovery from its prior session sell-off. Its 0.3% gain was led by Zijin Mining and Shandong Gold. PetroChina (PTR) and China Petroleum (SNP) were heavy drags on trade. Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.4% in its latest round of trade. Strength in HSBC, China Mobile, and China Shenhua was countered by weakness in CNOOC (CEO), PetroChina, and Industrial & Commercial Bank.

08:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +4.00. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +9.10. Yesterday the sock market logged its worst percentage loss in six months, but stock futures suggest that a modest rebound is in the works. The bid comes even though overseas action has been mixed and Dow component Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) disappointed with its latest quarterly report. A light top line and weak guidance detracted from better-than-expected earnings. Shares of HPQ are down more than 9% ahead of the open. Shares of Lowe's (LOW) have encountered more moderate premarket selling, although the home improvement retailer posted an upside earnings surprise of its own and issued a solid forecast. Homebuilder Toll Brothers (TOL) has benefited from a modest bid following a better-than-expected quarterly report. Homebuilders could see some volatility with the release of monthly existing home sales figures at 10:00 AM ET. The latest monthly new home sales figures will be released tomorrow morning. The improved tone of trade this morning has put some pressure on Treasuries, but the yield on teh benchmark 10-year Note remains below 3.50%. Results from an auction of 5-year Notes are due at 1:00 PM ET. As for the dollar, it is down about 0.3% against a basket of major foreign currencies.

7:04PM Crude extends gains after hours; May crude now +$1.14 at $99.24/barrel (USO) 39.80 +1.31 :

6:59PM Sears Holdings Board of Directors appoints Lou D'Ambrosio CEO (SHLD) 87.23 -2.93 : The Sears Holdings Board of Directors announced that Lou D'Ambrosio was elected chief executive officer and president of the co. He will assume the office and join the Board of Directors effective Thursday, Feb 24, 2011. Mr. D'Ambrosio was chief executive of Avaya Inc. from 2006 to 2008 and served on the co's Board of Directors. After improving Avaya's operating performance and driving market leadership, D'Ambrosio led Avaya through a going private transaction, delivering attractive returns to its shareholders. He stepped down from the CEO post in 2008 for medical reasons. Over the last six months, D'Ambrosio has worked closely with Sears Holdings as a consultant to the Board of Directors on key strategic and operational initiatives. Prior to joining Avaya in 2002, he spent 16 years at IBM.

6:52PM Interdigital Comm misses by $0.03, beats on revs (IDCC) 53.14 -2.68 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.76 per share, $0.03 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.79; revenues rose 24.7% year/year to $95.3 mln vs the $93.9 mln consensus. InterDigital expects first quarter 2011 revenue contributions from existing agreements to be in the range of $76 million to $77 million. This range includes an increase in current patent licensing royalties from the same set of patent customers of 5% over fourth quarter 2010 and 15% year over year. The significant increase in current patent licensing royalties is due to increased royalties relating to our customers' sales of smartphone products.

6:49PM Yamana Gold beats by $0.03, reports revs in-line (AUY) 12.44 +0.20 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.23 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.20; revenues rose 33.8% year/year to $535.1 mln vs the $535.9 mln consensus. Production in 2011 is expected to be in the range of 1.04 to 1.14 million GEO, as previously disclosed. Copper production in 2011 is targeted to be in the range of 145-160 million pounds. Estimated cash costs for 2011 are expected to be below $250 per GEO on a by-product basis. The Company continues to focus on exploration with a budget of approximately $85 million in 2011.

6:42PM Central Pacific Financial common stock will begin trading without the value of the rights on February 28, 2011 (CPF) 29.18 -0.82 : Co Central Pacific Financial (CPF), parent co of Central Pacific Bank ("CPB"), today announced that the New York Stock Exchange has set February 28, 2011 as the day CPF common stock will trade without the value for the subscription rights subject to its planned $20 million common stock rights offering (the "Rights Offering").

6:41PM CME Group raises quarterly dividend 22% to $1.40/share (CME) 301.40 +1.32 :

6:41PM Gerova Financial discusses NYSE halting trade in GFC (GFC) 5.28 -0.39 : Co announced that the New York Stock Exchange, after discussions with the Company, elected to halt trading pending the Co's disclosure of additional information relative to its operations, management restructuring and business plans.

6:34PM Gulfmark Offshore beats by $0.16, reports revs in-line (GLF) 41.25 -0.37 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.59 per share, $0.16 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.43; revenues rose 3.8% year/year to $87.9 mln vs the $88.5 mln consensus.

6:31PM Helix Energy misses by $0.07, beats on revs (HLX) 13.73 -0.09 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.06 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.07 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.13; revenues rose 70.2% year/year to $306.3 mln vs the $298.2 mln consensus.

6:30PM Granite City reports Q4 EPS of ($0.22) vs. ($0.37) in last year's quarter; revs rise 3.6% to $21.6 mln (GCFB) 4.07 :

6:25PM Crude trades higher after hours; May crude is currently +0.91 cents at $99.02 per barrel (USO) 39.80 +1.31 :

6:24PM Hersha Hospitality Trust beats by $0.01, beats on revs (HT) 14.90 -0.26 : Reports Q4 (Dec) funds from operations of $0.08 per share, $0.01 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.07; revenues rose 39.4% year/year to $74.6 mln vs the $68.6 mln consensus. For 2011: Total consolidated portfolio RevPAR for 2011 in the range of a 6% to 8% increase versus 2010. Total portfolio Hotel EBITDA margin improvement of 100 basis points to 150 basis points. Same store RevPAR for 2011 in the range of a 5% to 7% increase versus 2010. Same store Hotel EBITDA margin improvement of 75 basis points to 125 basis points.

6:21PM Excel Trust beats by $0.03; guides FY11 FFO in-line (EXL) 12.13 -0.38 : Reports Q4 (Dec) funds from operations of $0.19 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.16. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11, sees FFO of $0.80-0.95 vs. $0.92 Thomson Reuters consensus.

6:12PM American Railcar Industries misses by $0.13, beats on revs (ARII) 20.32 -1.17 : Reports Q4 (Dec) loss of $0.37 per share, $0.13 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of ($0.24); revenues rose 21.4% year/year to $95.3 mln vs the $72.3 mln consensus.

6:09PM MarkWest Energy Partners announces expansion of Arapaho Processing Complex (MWE) 44.03 +0.04 : Co announced the construction of a third plant at its Arapaho processing complex in Western Oklahoma to serve increasing volumes of liquids-rich natural gas production from Granite Wash producers, including Newfield Exploration and LINN Energy. Since expanding its operations in late 2008 to serve producers in the Texas panhandle, MarkWest's throughput volumes from the Granite Wash have increased to nearly 120 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) and are forecasted to continue increasing in 2011 and beyond

6:07PM Brookdale Senior Living misses by $0.01, misses on revs (BKD) 23.45 -0.41 : Reports Q4 (Dec) GAAP loss of $0.07 per share, $0.01 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of ($0.06); revenues rose 8.3% year/year to $561.4 mln vs the $567.5 mln consensus. For the full year 2011, the CO expects Cash From Facility Operations to range between $2.30-2.40 per share. These estimates do not include the impact on operating results from possible future acquisitions or dispositions.

6:02PM Netease.com beats by $0.13, beats on revs (NTES) 42.88 -0.12 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.83 per share, $0.13 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.70; revenues rose 30.2% year/year to $254.5 mln vs the $220.9 mln consensus.

5:44PM E*TRADE Financial announces secondary offering of 23,950,000 shares of common stock by an Affiliate of Citadel LLC (ETFC) 16.65 -0.27 : Co announced that Citadel Equity Fund Ltd., an affiliate of Citadel LLC, is offering 23,950,000 shares of E*TRADE's common stock in an underwritten offering. The selling stockholder has also granted the underwriter a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 3,592,500 shares of common stock. Closing of the offering is expected to occur on or about March 1, 2011, subject to customary closing conditions. E*TRADE will not receive any proceeds from the proposed offering. Goldman, Sachs & Co. is the sole underwriter of this offering.

5:39PM Farmer Bros announces price increase (FARM) 12.86 -1.00 : Co announced that it plans to raise the list price for all of its coffee, cappuccino and cocoa products and selected spice products effective March 14, 2011. Prices will increase a minimum of 15% on roast & ground coffee products, a minimum of 4% on liquid coffee products and a minimum of 5% on cappuccino, cocoa and selected spice products.

5:26PM Westar Energy increases quarterly dividend to $0.32 from $0.31 (WR) 26.03 -0.26 :

5:26PM Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacifico Q4 operating revs increased 9.8% (PAC) 37.19 -0.20 : Operating revenues increased 9.8% (Ps. 81.2 mln), mainly due to a 10.5% (Ps. 68.4 mln) increase in revenues from aeronautical services, while non-aeronautical service revenues increased 7.1% (Ps. 12.8 mln). In 4Q10, cost of services increased 10.4% (Ps. 23.3 mln), mainly as a result of a Ps. 22.1 mln increase in other operating costs. The increase in operating revenues causedthe cost ofgovernment concession taxes to rise 9.7% (Ps. 4.0 mln) in 4Q10,as well as the technical assistance fee, which increased 9.5% (Ps. 2.7 mln). Operating income increased 12.8%(Ps. 42.2 mln). EBITDA increased 9.5%(Ps. 51.2 mln) primarily due to an increase in revenues from aeronautical and non aeronautical services. The EBITDA margin,without considering the effects of INIF 17, decreased from 64.7% in 4Q09 to 64.6% in 4Q10, a decline of 10 basis points. Net income increased 34.3% (Ps. 113.8 mln).

5:26PM Sup Energy Svcs misses by $0.01, beats on revs; guides FY11 EPS in-line (SPN) 38.01 +0.37 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.42 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.01 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.43; revenues rose 72.7% year/year to $456.9 mln vs the $449.8 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.80-2.20 vs. $2.18 Thomson Reuters consensus.

5:24PM Northern Dynasty receives positive preliminary assessment technical report for globally significant pebble copper-gold-molybdenum project in Southwest Alaska (NAK) 17.60 -0.48 : Co announced that the National Instrument 43-101-compliant Technical Report on a Preliminary Assessment of the Pebble Copper-Gold-Molybdenum Project (the "Pebble Project") in southwest Alaska, completed for Northern Dynasty Minerals (NAK) by Wardrop, a Tetra Tech Co ("Wardrop"), confirms that Pebble is an economically robust project with the potential to become one of the most important metal producers of the 21st century. For the Pebble Project, the 45-year Reference Case yields a 14.2% pre-tax IRR, a 6.2-year payback on initial capital investment of $4.7 bln and a $6.1 bln pre-tax NPV at a 7% discount rate and long-term metal prices. At current prevailing metal prices, the 45-year Reference Case yields a 23.2% pre-tax IRR, a 3.2-year payback on initial capital investment and a $15.7 bln pre-tax NPV at a 7% discount rate For Northern Dynasty's 50% share of the project, the 45-year Reference Case yields an 18% pre-tax and 15.4% post-tax IRR, a 4.7-year pre-tax and 5.3-year post-tax payback on initial capital investment and a $3.6 bln pre-tax and $2.4 bln post-tax NPV at a 7% discount rate and long-term metal prices.

5:24PM Western Gas Partners beats by $0.05, beats on revs (WES) 34.61 -0.29 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.46 per share, $0.05 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.41; revenues rose 4.4% year/year to $127.1 mln vs the $118.4 mln consensus. "Based on current expectations and assuming the previously announced Fort Lupton acquisition from Encana closes on March 1, 2011, Adjusted EBITDA for 2011 is expected to be between $230-250 mln. Total capital expenditures excluding acquisitions are expected to be between $97-112 mln with maintenance capital expenditures expected to be between 11-14% of Adjusted EBITDA. The 2011 capital expenditure forecast includes the Encana Fort Lupton facility expansion already underway as well as the sanctioning of a third train at Chipeta Processing LLC."

5:22PM News Corp reports that FOX News Channel renews agreement with Cablevision (NWS) 17.70 -0.10 : Co reported that FOX News Channel (FNC) has renewed a multi-year agreement with Cablevision Systems Corp (CVC), announced Tim Carry, senior vice president of affiliate relations for FNC. The new deal, part of the broader programming agreement reached by Cablevision and News Corp last October, will secure the network's distribution across Cablevision's subscriber footprint throughout New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

5:22PM Intrepid Potash beats by $0.04, beats on revs (IPI) 35.69 -0.83 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.24 per share, $0.04 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.20; revenues rose 31.6% year/year to $96.2 mln vs the $87.3 mln consensus. During the fourth quarter of 2010, Intrepid increased production of potash to 224,000 tons, including tons produced from the harvest of our Moab solar evaporation ponds that is more heavily concentrated in the fourth and first quarters of each year, and sold 216,000 tons of potash. This compares to 124,000 tons produced and 150,000 tons sold in the fourth quarter of 2009. The 216,000 tons of potash we sold were at an average net realized sales price of $386 per ton compared to $408 per ton during the fourth quarter of 2009.

5:15PM Mindray announces FDA 510 clearance of its A5 anesthesia system (MR) 26.19 +0.13 : Co announced that its A5 Anesthesia System has received 510 clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The A5 anesthesia device, part of the all new A Series portfolio, is an anesthesia delivery platform that will complement Mindray's broad range of existing ultrasound and patient monitoring systems.

5:14PM Actuant extends and expands senior credit facility (ATU) 27.53 -1.14 : Co announced today that it has amended and extended its Senior Credit Facility. The amended Credit Facility provides for $300 million of additional borrowing capacity, to a total of $700 million, has a five year term and includes a $600 million revolver and a $100 million term loan. It also includes an expansion option of $300 million, subject to certain conditions.

5:14PM Supreme Industries reports Q4 ($0.50) vs. ($0.21) in last year's quarter; revs rose 23% to $54.5 mln (STS) 3.15 -0.04 :

5:10PM Douglas Emmett obtains $350 mln term loan all-in rate of 4.46% (DEI) 18.13 -0.28 : Co announced that it has obtained a 7-year secured, non-recourse $350 million term loan. This loan has a maturity date of March 1, 2020, including two one-year extension options. The loan bears interest at a fixed interest rate of 4.46% until March 1, 2018 and a floating interest rate thereafter. Monthly loan payments are interest-only for the first three years with principal amortization thereafter based upon a 30-year amortization schedule. The loan proceeds were used to repay a $319.6 million term loan, which is one of the seven term loans aggregating $2.3 billion that mature on August 31, 2012. The balance of the loan proceeds will be retained for other corporate purposes.

5:10PM Essex Property announced a $0.03 per share annualized dividend increase to $1.04 per share (ESS) 6.42 -0.09 :

5:08PM FARO Techs beats by $0.03, beats on revs (FARO) 29.84 -0.55 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.29 per share, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.26; revenues rose 27.2% year/year to $58.5 mln vs the $51.9 mln consensus. "we maintain the view that our markets remain highly underpenetrated and we believe we have the ongoing opportunity to achieve the annual 20-25% sales growth rates we historically achieved. Our top priority continues to be strengthening our position as the leader in this space."

5:06PM Sturm Ruger beats by $0.02, beats on revs (RGR) 15.66 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.30 per share, $0.02 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.28; revenues rose 0.3% year/year to $64.1 mln vs the $62.5 mln consensus.

5:01PM Talecris Biotherapeutics reports EPS in-line, revs in-line (TLCR) 25.31 -0.24 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.38 per share, excluding non-recurring items, in-line with the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.38; revenues rose 5.3% year/year to $410.8 mln vs the $413.8 mln consensus.

5:01PM Wendy's signs a long-term agreement with Wenphil Corporation to significantly expand Wendy's brand presence in the Philippines (WEN) 4.90 -0.04 : The new agreement with Wenphil - a Wendy's franchisee since 1983 - calls for the development of 44 additional restaurants, which would increase the total number of Wendy's locations in the country to 75. As part of the agreement, Wenphil will expand outside of Metro Manila into other cities and regions in the Philippines through the use of sub-franchising.

5:00PM Waste Mgmt announces pricing of $400 mln senior notes (WM) 37.26 -0.44 : The co plans to use the net proceeds of the offering to repay $147 mln principal amount of 7.65% Senior Notes that mature in March 2011, plus accrued and unpaid interest. All remaining proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes, including additions to working capital, capital expenditures and the funding of potential acquisitions and investments in businesses. Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. and RBS Securities Inc. acted as joint book-running managers of the offering. In addition, Credit Agricole Securities (USA) Inc., Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, Lloyds Securities Inc., PNC Capital Markets LLC, and U.S. Bancorp Investments, Inc. acted as co-managers of the offering.

4:58PM Wyndham Worldwide prices $250 million of senior unsecured notes (WYN) 30.65 : Co intends to use the aggregate net proceeds from the offering to reduce outstanding indebtedness, including the previously announced tender offer to repurchase any and all of the outstanding 3.50% convertible notes due 2012 and repayment of borrowings under the revolving credit facility, and for general corporate purposes. The senior unsecured notes will bear interest at a rate of 5.625% per year payable semi-annually on March 1 and September 1 of each year, commencing September 1, 2011. The notes will mature on March 1, 2021. The notes were offered to the public at a price of 99.134% of principal amount.

4:58PM Palatin Technologies intends to offer and sell units consisting of shares of its common stock and warrants to purchase common stock in an underwritten public offering (PTN) 1.04 : Roth Capital Partners is acting as sole book-running manager for the offering and Madison Williams and Company is acting as co-manager.

4:56PM MEMC Elec intends to commence a private offering, subject to market and other conditions, of $500 million in aggregate principal amount of senior notes due 2019 (WFR) 13.64 :

4:55PM Murphy Oil announces that its wholly owned subsidiary, Murphy Oil Company, has commenced operation at the Tupper West natural gas processing facility in northeastern British Columbia (MUR) 73.72 -0.32 :

4:55PM Frozen Food Express announces retirement of Chief Executive Officer Stoney Stubbs, Jr. (FFEX) 4.40 -0.16 :

4:47PM MasTec beats by $0.07, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS, revs above consensus; guides FY11 EPS, revs above consensus (MTZ) 15.97 -0.30 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.44 per share, $0.07 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.37; revenues rose 47.2% year/year to $730.7 mln vs the $649.9 mln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.23 vs. $0.21 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of ~$575 mln vs. $538.58 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.20-1.23 vs. $1.20 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of ~$2.65 bln vs. $2.42 bln Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:45PM On Assignment agreement to acquire Valesta for EUR12.8 mln (ASGN) 9.99 -0.35 : Co announces that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Valesta, a privately owned provider of specialized staffing in the area of clinical research with headquarters in Mechelen, Belgium and branch offices in Spain and The Netherlands. Co will pay EUR12.8 million with a 3 year earn-out opportunity up to EUR5.2 million. The acquisition is expected to be accretive to On Assignment's gross margins, EBITDA, and EPS in 2011.

4:43PM Booz Allen Hamilton names Horacio Rozanski as Chief Operating Officer, effective immediately (BAH) 18.83 -0.32 : Rozanski is a member of the firm's leadership team and previously held the position of Executive Vice President and Chief Strategy & Talent Officer.

4:40PM Precision Drilling repays 10% senior unsecured note (PDS) 11.35 +0.22 : Co has repaid, in full, the 10% senior unsecured note issued to Alberta Investment Management. The aggregate repayment of ~$204 million included the $175 million in principle, accrued interest and a "make-whole" amount payable to AIMCo.

4:40PM NuVasive beats by $0.04, beats on revs; guides FY11 EPS below consensus, revs in-line (NUVA) 28.57 -1.18 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.46 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.04 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.42; revenues rose 21.0% year/year to $129.3 mln vs the $125.6 mln consensus. Co issues mixed guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.07-1.10, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $1.24 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $525-535 mln vs. $529.86 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:38PM Continental Resources beats by $0.02 (CLR) 67.29 +2.12 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.51 per share, excluding $0.78 in items, $0.02 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.49; oil and gas sales rose 34.3% year/year to $273.1 mln. The co reported production of 48,034 barrels of oil equivalent per day (Boepd) for the fourth quarter of 2010, a 27 percent increase over production of 37,747 Boepd for the fourth quarter of 2009 and an increase of seven percent over production in the third quarter of 2010. Crude oil accounted for 73 percent of Continental's fourth quarter 2010 production. Continental's proved reserves grew to 364.7 MMBoe as of December 31, 2010, 42 percent higher than proved reserves of 257.3 MMBoe at year-end 2009. The bulk of the increase reflected its drilling program in the Bakken play, which is expected to continue leading Continental's growth.

4:33PM Financial Inst. partially redeems 1/3 of its TARP preferred shares (FISI) 18.68 -0.14 : Co announced that it has redeemed one-third, or $12.5 mln, of the outstanding $37.5 mln of its Fixed Rate Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series A, issued to the U.S. Department of the Treasury pursuant to the Troubled Asset Relief Program in December 2008.

4:32PM Noble Corp secures a Letter of Intent with a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell plc for the 12,000 foot ultra-deepwater semisubmersible Noble Jim Day to operate in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico (NE) 42.64 +1.02 : Co announces that it has secured a Letter of Intent with a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) for the 12,000 foot ultra-deepwater semisubmersible Noble Jim Day to operate in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Under the terms contemplated by the LOI, the effective date of the commitment would be February 15, 2011 and the contract would extend through January 31, 2012. The LOI contemplates that Noble would receive a standby rate if Shell is unable to secure drilling permits as follows: 1) From February 15, 2011 through May 31, 2011: $156,000 per day; 2) From June 1, 2011 through July 31, 2011: $242,000 per day.

4:32PM Limited beats by $0.01, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS in-line; guides FY12 EPS in-line; raises Feb comparable store sales expectations (LTD) 31.77 -0.76 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $1.26 per share, $0.01 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $1.25; co previously reported prelim revs of $3.46 blh, 12.8% year/year, vs the $3.33 bln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.26-0.31 vs. $0.30 Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY12, sees EPS of $2.15-2.35 vs. $2.26 Thomson Reuters consensus. The co raises February comparable store sales expectations to increase in the high single digit range, versus its previous estimate of flat to up low single digits.

4:31PM Kadant beats by $0.13, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS, revs above consensus; guides FY11 EPS, revs above consensus (KAI) 20.81 -0.41 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.41 per share, $0.13 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.28; revenues rose 29.0% year/year to $73.3 mln vs the $64.9 mln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.35-0.37 vs. $0.26 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of $71-73 mln vs. $63.51 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.65-1.75 vs. $1.49 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $300-310 mln vs. $281.05 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. "The backlog at the end of the year was $94.3 million, an increase of 53 percent over last year, giving us an excellent start to 2011. Nevertheless, some of this backlog represents larger stock-preparation systems, particularly in China, which are scheduled to ship in the second half of the year and typically carry lower than average gross margins."

4:31PM Nordstrom increases its regular quarterly dividend 15% from $0.20 to $0.23 per share (JWN) 44.59 -1.06 :

4:30PM Conexant agrees to be acquired by Golden Gate Capital for $2.40 per share in chas and terminates merger agreement with SMSC (CNXT) 2.34 -0.18 : The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of calendar 2011. Conexant also announced that it has terminated its previously announced agreement with Standard Microsystems Corporation and paid to Standard Microsystems Corporation the $7.7 mln termination fee provided for under that agreement.

4:29PM Lithia Motors beats by $0.09, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS above consensus; guides FY11 EPS above consensus, revs below consensus (LAD) 14.37 -0.42 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.21 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.09 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.12; revenues rose 30.8% year/year to $555.6 mln vs the $444.2 mln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.19-0.21 vs. $0.15 Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues mixed guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.20-1.28, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $1.16 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $2.3-2.45 bln vs. $2.27 bln Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:27PM Insignia Sys announces approval of a $2.00 special dividend and $15 mln stock repurchase plan (ISIG) 7.11 : Co approves payment to the shareholders of a special dividend of $2.00 per share, to shareholders of record on April 1, 2011, with payment expected to be on May 2, 2011. Co also approved a Stock Repurchase Plan, authorizing co to repurchase up to $15 mln of the Company's common stock from time to time on or before January 31, 2012.

4:26PM KAR Auction Services beats by $0.06, beats on revs; guides FY11 EPS above consensus (KAR) 14.45 -0.57 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.20 per share, $0.06 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.14; revenues rose 5.6% year/year to $441.3 mln vs the $424.5 mln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.20-1.25 vs. $1.07 Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:23PM Turkcell reports Q4 results (TKC) 15.75 -0.11 : Co reports group revenue in the fourth quarter of 2010 was TRY2.19 billion (TRY2.26 billion), a decline of 3.3% compared to a year ago due to the negative impact of regulatory decisions in Turkey, which was partially offset by the higher contribution of Group subsidiaries driven by strong performance at Superonline and growth in mobile internet and services revenues. Net income increased by 45.6% to TRY368.1 million (TRY252.8 million) in Q4 2010 mostly due to the absence of one off items recorded in the fourth quarter of 2009(e.g. charges related to fixed asset write-offs and legal developments) and decrease in goodwill impairment costs, despite the increasing cost base in Turkey.

4:20PM Jack In The Box beats by $0.15, beats on revs; guides FY11 EPS in-line (JACK) 23.31 -0.06 : Reports Q1 (Dec) earnings of $0.61 per share, $0.15 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.46; revenues fell 2.4% year/year to $664.7 mln vs the $622 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.40-1.65 vs. $1.62 Thomson Reuters consensus. For FY11, same-store sales are expected to range from down 2 percent to up 2 percent at Jack in the Box company restaurants. Same-store sales are expected to increase approximately 3 to 5 percent at Qdoba system restaurants.

4:19PM KBR Inc. beats by $0.08, misses on revs; guides FY11 EPS in-line (KBR) 32.07 -1.44 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.51 per share, $0.08 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.43; revenues fell 21.0% year/year to $2.34 bln vs the $2.45 bln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $2.05-$2.30 vs. $2.19 Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:19PM H & R Block issues prelim Q3 revs of ~$850 mln vs. $883.2 mln Thomson Reuters consensus; sees near break-even net earnings from continuing ops vs. $0.15 consensus; co also releases interim tax season results (HRB) 14.18 +0.03 : Co issues downside prelim Q3 results. Seperately, the co reported total tax returns prepared through Feb. 15 grow 2.5%; retail returns prepared up 0.5 percent.Total online(1) returns prepared through Feb. 15 grow nearly 28% ; total digital returns increase 7.3%. Groeh in total retail and total online returns prepared accelerates to 17% and 32%, respectively for the period Feb. 1 to Feb. 15. Co said the guidance This reflects the industry-wide slow start to the tax season and ~$20 million of revenue deferral related to the IRS' delay in accepting certain forms. Those revenues will be recognized in the coy's fiscal fourth quarter. In addition, the co recorded pretax charges of ~$38 million, largely due to goodwill impairment at an ancillary tax business, as well as incremental legal expense.

4:18PM Equity One beats by $0.01, misses on revs; guides FY11 FFO in-line (EQY) 18.77 -0.24 : Reports Q4 (Dec) funds from operations of $0.27 per share, $0.01 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.26; revenues rose 6.2% year/year to $72.4 mln vs the $74.4 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11, sees FFO of $1.07-1.15 vs. $1.11 Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:17PM Endurance Specialty appoints William Bolinder Chairman of the Board, effective March 3 (ENH) 46.99 -0.63 :

4:17PM National Interstate misses by $0.09, beats on revs (NATL) 20.65 -0.29 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.36 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.09 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.45; revenues rose 47.1% year/year to $115.6 mln vs the $100.3 mln consensus.

4:17PM California Water misses by $0.11, misses on revs (CWT) 36.07 -0.63 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.23 per share, $0.11 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.34; revenues fell 1.3% year/year to $105.5 mln vs the $111.4 mln consensus.

4:17PM AXT Inc misses by $0.01, misses on revs; guides Q1 EPS, revs below consensus (AXTI) 8.36 -0.36 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.15 per share, $0.01 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.16; revenues rose 51.1% year/year to $26.9 mln vs the $28.9 mln consensus. Co issues downside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.11-0.13 vs. $0.14 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of $24-25 mln vs. $27.37 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. "While we are experiencing some near-term softness in the Taiwanese LED market and expect seasonality in our first quarter semi-insulating gallium arsenide revenues, we believe that we will see sequential growth in our business beginning again in the second quarter, driven by positive secular trends in the demand for wireless devices, LEDs and photovoltaics, as well as gains in our positioning within various customers in our market."

4:16PM Constellation Energy reaches an agreement in principle to settle the derivative lawsuit filed in the Circuit Court of Tuscaloosa County, Alabama (CEP) 2.84 +0.09 : Co announced that it has reached an agreement in principle to settle the derivative lawsuit filed in the Circuit Court of Tuscaloosa County, Alabama by Trust Venture Company on behalf of the Torch Energy Royalty Trust. Under the proposed settlement with Trust Venture and the Trust, (i) RBP II will make a payment of $1.2 mln to reimburse Trust Venture for its legal fees and expenses incurred in prosecuting the derivative lawsuit; (ii) RBP II will make an irrevocable offer to purchase the NPI from the Trust for at least $1 million, when it is separately offered for sale by the Trust at public auction within 180 days of the effective date of the settlement, with such bid amount to be deposited by RBP II in a third-party escrow account pending the public auction; (iii) the parties agree that the cumulative deficit balance in the NPI account is approximately $5.8 mln as of September 30, 2010, and that no further payments will be due to the Trust with respect to the NPI unless and until the cumulative deficit balance is reduced to zero; (iv) the Water Gathering and Disposal Agreement between RBP II and another subsidiary of the company for the gathering, separation, and disposal of water from the wells subject to the NPI will be amended to reduce the fee from $1.00 per barrel to $0.53 per barrel beginning on the first day of the month following the effective date of the settlement and to extend the term for an additional ten years; and (v) the parties will enter into a mutual release. The cost of $1.2 mln to be paid by RBP II to reimburse the derivative plaintiff for the legal fees and expenses incurred in prosecuting the lawsuit will be reflected in the company's fourth quarter 2010 operating results, which the company plans to release later this week.

4:16PM Calumet Specialty Products announces public offering of 4.5 mln common shares (CLMT) 22.55 -0.47 : Co intends to use the net proceeds from this offering to repay borrowings outstanding under its revolving credit facility. Additional net proceeds, if any, will be used for general partnership purposes, including working capital, capital expenditures and acquisitions. Goldman, Sachs & Co., Barclays Capital Inc. and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. are acting as joint book-running managers for the offering. Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, RBC Capital Markets Corporation and Oppenheimer & Co. are acting as co-managers for the offering.

4:15PM Sourcefire reports EPS in-line, revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS below consensus, revs in-line (FIRE) 22.70 -1.97 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.17 per share, in-line with the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.17; revenues rose 7.6% year/year to $38 mln vs the $37.9 mln consensus. Co issues mixed guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.01-0.03 vs. $0.06 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of $28.7-30.7 mln vs. $30.62 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:15PM Caliper Life Sciences beats by $0.01, reports revs in-line; guides FY11 revs in-line (CALP) 6.57 -0.22 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.02 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.01 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.01; co preannounced revs of $36.1 mln; press release reports revs fell 4.0% year/year to $36.2 mln vs the $36.1 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11, sees FY11 revs of $135-145 mln vs. $140.50 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:13PM RailAmerica beats by $0.27, beats on revs (RA) 13.35 -0.30 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.38 per share, $0.27 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.11; revenues rose 16.8% year/year to $127.6 mln vs the $121.2 mln consensus. Co also announces its board of directors authorized the repurchase of up to $50 mln of the Company's common stock.

4:12PM American Equity Investment Life misses by $0.03, beats on revs (AEL) 13.26 -0.17 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.41 per share, $0.03 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.44; revenues rose 14.3% year/year to $277.9 mln vs the $266.1 mln consensus.

4:11PM Kodiak Oil & Gas announces record year-end 2010 proved reserves quantities and reported record production and sales volumes for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2010. (KOG) 6.84 +0.44 : Co announces record year-end 2010 proved reserves quantities and reported record production and sales volumes for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2010. Co's estimated total proved reserves at December 31, 2010 were ~11.5 million barrels of oil equivalent (MMBoe), as compared to 4.5 MMBoe at December 31, 2009. The 2010 total represents a 158% increase from 2009's estimated proved reserves on an equivalent basis, and is comprised of 10.0 million barrels of crude oil and 9.0 billion cubic feet (Bcf) of natural gas.

4:10PM Interface beats by $0.01, reports revs in-line (IFSIA) 16.16 -0.56 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.22 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.01 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.21; revenues rose 14.9% year/year to $265.3 mln vs the $265.5 mln consensus.

4:10PM United Online beats by $0.04, beats on revs; guides Q1 revs in-line (UNTD) 6.76 -0.07 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.30 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.04 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.26; revenues fell 6.8% year/year to $232.6 mln vs the $226.7 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q1, sees Q1 revs of $234-239 mln vs. $238.32 mln Thomson Reuters consensus, with Adjusted OBIDA of $38-41 mln.

4:10PM ProAssurance beats by $1.73, beats on revs (PRA) 59.23 +0.24 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $3.08 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $1.73 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $1.35; revenues rose 0.9% year/year to $185.5 mln vs the $158.8 mln consensus.

4:10PM Hansen Medical reports EPS in-line, misses on revs (HNSN) 2.16 +0.07 : Reports Q4 (Dec) loss of $0.20 per share, in-line with the Thomson Reuters consensus of ($0.20); revenues fell 51.4% year/year to $3.5 mln vs the $5.4 mln consensus.

4:10PM Duff & Phelps beats by $0.03, beats on revs; announces 33% increase in dividend (DUF) 16.34 -0.32 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.25 per share, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.22; revenues rose 4.0% year/year to $105.5 mln vs the $100 mln consensus. Co also announced a 33% increase in their quarterly dividend from $0.06 to $0.08 per share.

4:09PM Stone Energy beats by $0.04, beats on revs (SGY) 26.31 +0.31 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.49 per share, $0.04 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.45; revenues fell 14.7% year/year to $170 mln vs the $158.3 mln consensus. For the first quarter of 2011, Stone expects net daily production to average between 200 - 210 MMcfe. Stone expects full year 2011 average daily production to be in the range of 200 - 220 MMcfe per day.

4:09PM LaSalle Hotel beats by $0.08, misses on revs; guides Q1 FFO in-line (LHO) 27.00 -0.81 : Reports Q4 (Dec) funds from operations of $0.37 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.08 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.29; revenues rose 23.6% year/year to $161.7 mln vs the $167 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q1, sees FFO of $0.10-0.12 vs. $0.12 Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:09PM Dyax reports Q4 loss per share of (0.09) vs. ($0.11) Thomson Reuters consensus; revenue increased 47.6% y/y to $9.3 mln vs. $8.04 mln consensus (DYAX) 1.85 -0.06 : Co issues guidance for FY11, sees revenue of $38-$44 mln vs. $52.68 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Expects to be cash flow breakeven in 2013, and have GAAP positive earnings in 2014.

4:09PM Tyler Tech beats by $0.03, misses on revs; guides FY11 EPS in-line, revs in-line (TYL) 20.72 -0.39 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.21 per share, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.18; revenues fell 2.4% year/year to $72.4 mln vs the $74.9 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $0.74-0.79 vs. $0.79 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $306-312 mln vs. $307.10 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Tyler expects that capital expenditures for the year will be between $5.0 million and $5.5 million, and that depreciation and amortization expense will be between $10.5 million and $11.0 million.

4:08PM Caribou Coffee reports EPS in-line, beats on revs; guides FY11 EPS in-line, revs in-line (CBOU) 8.82 +0.00 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.21 per share, in-line with the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.21; revenues rose 1.8% year/year to $77.9 mln vs the $75.7 mln consensus. Caribou Coffee sees FY11 revs +7-9% vs +8.1% Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $0.58-0.62 vs. $0.61 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 net sales growth of 7-9%, which equates to ~$304-310 mln vs. $304.72 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:07PM Questcor Pharma misses by $0.03, misses on revs (QCOR) 13.42 -0.61 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.12 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.03 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.15; revenues rose 13.1% year/year to $29.3 mln vs the $30 mln consensus.

4:07PM Priceline.com beats by $0.17, reports revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS in-line, revs above consensus (PCLN) 425.99 -7.79 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $3.26 per share, $0.17 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $3.09; revenues rose 35.1% year/year to $731 mln vs the $734.9 mln consensus. Gross profit for the quarter was 52.8%. Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $2.34-2.44 vs. $2.30 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of $753-782 mln vs. $742.31 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Expects total gross booking growth of 45-50% and gross profit between 47-52%.

4:06PM Exco Resources misses by $0.04, misses on revs (XCO) 20.42 +0.13 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.11 per share, $0.04 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.15; revenues rose 26.8% year/year to $135 mln vs the $158.1 mln consensus.

4:06PM Penn Virginia announces initial drilling success and leasehold acquisition in the Eagle Ford Shale; also announces record year-end proved oil and gas reserves of 942 bln cubic feet of natural gas equivalent as compared to 935 Bcfe at year-end 2009 (PVA) 17.04 +0.22 : Co announces drilling success with its initial Eagle Ford Shale well. The successful well, the Gardner #1-H, had a peak 24-hour production rate of ~1,100 barrels of oil per day and 1.0 million cubic feet of natural gas (MMcf) per day, or ~1,250 barrels of oil equivalent per day. Co also announces that it has acquired ~4,100 additional net Eagle Ford Shale acres in Gonzales County, Texas for $14.5 mln in cash. Co expect capital expenditures in the Eagle Ford Shale in 2011, including the newly acquired leasehold, of up to ~$165 million. Co also announces the following operational results for the year ended December 31, 2010: 1) Record year-end proved oil and gas reserves of 942 billion cubic feet of natural gas equivalent (Bcfe) as compared to 935 Bcfe at year-end 2009; 2) Proved developed reserves increased to 53% from 46%; 3) Proved oil and natural gas liquid (NGL) reserves increased to 21 percent from 17 percent; 4) PV-10 value increased 28 percent to $878 million from $688 million.

4:06PM Louisiana Bancorp announces stock repurchase program of 5% of shares, or 180,797 shares (LABC) 14.87 -0.13 :

4:05PM MercadoLibre beats by $0.01, beats on revs (MELI) 67.05 -1.80 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.36 per share, $0.01 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.35; revenues rose 27.1% year/year to $62.3 mln vs the $60.7 mln consensus. Starting in the third quarter of 2010, the company began to pre-sell credit card receivables from its MercadoPago financing operations. For this reason, starting in the third quarter of 2010, MercadoPago financing revenues now represent the net amount received from financing institutions as a result of pre-selling these installments-related financing receivables. Credit card receivables are being pre-sold in order to better manage credit risk; generate increased predictability of the associated cost; and not assume any financing risk.

4:03PM ISTA Pharm beats by $0.05, beats on revs; guides FY11 EPS below consensus, revs in-line (ISTA) 7.14 -0.08 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.14 per share, $0.05 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.09; revenues rose 49.4% year/year to $51.1 mln vs the $46.8 mln consensus. Co issues mixed guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $0.11-0.18 vs. $0.19 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $175-190 mln vs. $180.23 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:03PM WebMD Health beats by $0.12, beats on revs; guides Q1 revs in-line; guides FY11 EPS above consensus, revs in-line (WBMD) 52.30 -1.05 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.55 per share, $0.12 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.43; revenues rose 22.0% year/year to $168.5 mln vs the $166.2 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q1, sees Q1 revs of in excess of $125 mln vs. $128.32 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues mixed guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.22-1.40 vs. $1.20 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $610-640 mln vs. $629.24 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.

4:02PM News Corp announces pricing of offer to purchase certain of its debt securities for cash (NWS) 17.70 -0.10 : News America Incorporated, a subsidiary of News Corporation, announces the total consideration offered to be paid in its previously announced cash tender offer for any and all of its outstanding 9 1/4 % Senior Debentures due February 1, 2013. The Securities have a total principal amount outstanding of $500 mln and are fully and unconditionally guaranteed by News Corporation.

4:01PM MercadoLibre initiates quarterly cash dividend of $0.08 (MELI) 67.06 -1.79 :

3:49PM Dow Chemical is launching a cash tender offer for ~$750 million aggregate principal amount of notes listed by Dow and its subsidiaries (DOW) 36.00 -1.16 :

3:41PM Gammon Gold announces that co successfully resolved the labour disruption at its 100% owned El Cubo mine, located in Guanajuato State, Mexico (GRS) 9.05 -0.24 : Co has secured a more productive, standardized Collective Agreement that includes significant concessions and terms reflecting current legislated norms and industry best practices. The new two year collective agreement has been unanimously approved by the union.

3:34PM Verisk Analytics announced the appointment of Scott G. Stephenson, Chief Operating Officer, to the additional role of President (VRSK) 32.61 -0.59 : Co announced the appointment of Scott G. Stephenson, Chief Operating Officer, to the additional role of President. The company also announced the promotion of Mark V. Anquillare, Chief Financial Officer, to Executive Vice President, and Kenneth E. Thompson, General Counsel, to Executive Vice President. Mr. Stephenson, who has served as Verisk's Chief Operating Officer since 2008, will continue to report to Frank J. Coyne. Mr. Coyne maintains his role as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Verisk Analytics.

3:08PM Royale Energy received regulatory approval to commence production on the Goddard #2 well; well was immediately placed into production and is currently producing at a rate of approximately 10,000 MCF per day (ROYL) 3.29 +1.19 : Co announced it has received regulatory approval to commence production on the Goddard #2 well. Pursuant to a public hearing before the Colusa County Board of Supervisors, Royale was granted a Final Major Use Permit, allowing the company to "open the spigot." The well was immediately placed into production and is currently producing at a rate of approximately 10,000 MCF per day. The Goddard #1 has been on-line, producing approximately 5,000 MCF per day since 3rd quarter 2010. The wells together with the newly drilled Goddard #3, which is also expected to commence production later this week, will drive company production totals to the highest levels in over a decade. "Our forthcoming announcement of profit in 2010 does not reflect production levels achieved with today's announcement. We look forward to our future results as the new gas sales are reflected in the 2011 bottom-line." The 2010 earnings are expected to be released in early March, reflecting an overall positive trend in the company's results. The construction of the pipeline from the recently drilled Magnum discovery will begin this month, allowing gas to flow from this well and from the Hubbard well if successful. The Hubbard is currently being drilled and total depth is expected to be reached next week.

3:00PM Minor new afternoon rebound highs for the stock indices -- Dow -85 and 64 points off its low, S&P -4.9, Nasdaq Comp -24 (SPY) :

2:51PM Hershey Foods reaffirms outlook (HSY) 50.97 -0.11 : Co reaffirms its expectations for full-year 2011 net sales and adjusted earnings per share-diluted growth, with results expected to be around the top of the co's long-term 3-to-5 (cons: +4.7%) percent and 6-to-8 percent objectives; co reaffirms FY11 EPS of $2.70-2.76 vs $2.77 Thomson Reuters consensus.

2:48PM NYMEX Energy Closing Prices (COMDX) : April crude oil settled up $2.49 to $97.91, March crude oil gained 2.5 cents to close at $3.892, March heating oil finished up 10.65 cents to $2.8989, while March RBOB gasoline surged 10.96 cents to end at $2.7117.

2:42PM CBOT Agriculture and Ethanol and ICE Exchange Sugar Closing Price (COMDX) : May corn finished up 12 cents (or +1.7%) to $7.0225, May wheat rose 2.5 cents to close at $7.9825, May soybeans gained 20.5 cents (or 1.6%) to close at $13.3125, Apr ethanol closed up 0.044 at $2.475, while may world sugar futures closed down 1.02 cents to 29.94 cents.

2:26PM Pullback in WTI crude continues with less than 5 min left in pit trade; now higher by $2.68 to $98.10 (COMDX) :

2:17PM Kentucky First Federal Bancorp reports revised earnings for the three month periods ended December 31, 2010 and 2009 (KFFB) 9.86 +0.86 : Co announced revised net earnings for the three month periods ended Dec 31, 2010 and 2009, as a result of recasting a prior period adj related to errors in the ESOP share release computation. Co announced revised net EPS of $0.06 for the three months ended Dec 31, 2010 vs revised net EPS of $0.03 for the three months ended Dec 31, 2009.

2:16PM iBio announces acquisition of Fabry disease orphan drug designation and development program (IBIO) 4.25 +0.23 : Co announces it has acquired Orphan Drug Designation for plant-produced human alpha galactosidase A and related property rights from an affiliate of Kentucky Bioprocessing LLC and has initiated a program, based on its iBioLaunch platform, to develop an improved version of the enzyme for therapy of Fabry disease.

2:00PM Stock indices edge up off lows (SPY) : Today's lagging small-caps (IWM) tested and stabilized near its 50 day as have the Nasdaq Comp/Nasdaq 100 after a minor penetration (Nasdaq Comp held at 2706 gap support) with the S&P flirting with the 1300 psych level (session low 1299.55) before lifting. For this afternoon the S&P will have to sustain a push through 1308/1309 to begin to improve today's negative pattern. A secondary level is at 1315. Minor support below the low is in the 1295/1294 zone. Relative sector strength on the minor bounce has come from: Casino BJK, Solar TAN, Airline FAA, Ag/Chem MOO, Materials XLB, Oil Service OIH, Semi SMH.

1:46PM Video Display announced the receipt of auction bids for its Fox International subsidiary (VIDE) 4.03 -0.06 : Co had previously announced its intent to sell the Fox International subsidiary. Board of Directors has received a management buyout bid for the Fox International subsidiary which is in excess of the Balance Sheet equity value recorded on current financial statements and is in excess of the minimum bid required to affect a sale of the subsidiary. In addition to the firm bid received, co received strong indications of interest from five industry participants who have requested an extension of 30 days of due diligence period to allow for additional meetings with the management team at Fox International and further review of the subsidiary financials and operations prior to submitting a final bid. The Board of Directors has resolved to extend the due diligence time period for an additional 30 days through March 22, 2011 for those five interested parties only, which will grant the additional time necessary to develop their final decisions. Upon the cessation of the additional 30 day due diligence period, it will accept the bid or a competing bid from one of the other five interested bidders should one be received in excess of the current bid.

1:32PM COMEX Metals Closing Prices (COMDX) : April gold finished higher by $12.50 to $1413.60, March silver gained 60.8 cents to end at $33.47, while March copper shed 5.8 cents to close at $4.289.

1:27PM Lagging Nasdaq Comp -43 slipped under its 50 sma/ema 2720/2714, thus far holding near its late Jan gap at 2706 -- session low 2705.65 (QQQQ) :

1:26PM April WTI crude oil drops a quick point after notching session highs at $100 per barrel; now higher by $3.34 to $98.76 (COMDX) :

1:22PM Johnson & Johnson confirms that it received a decision from the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington, D.C. overturning a 2009 federal court jury verdict that awarded it $1.8 bln after finding Abbott Lab (ABT) liable for patent infringement (JNJ) 60.57 -0.08 : See our 11:17 ET ABT comment.

1:19PM Midday pause in retreat short lived, stock indices drop to fresh session lows -- Dow -147, S&P -15, Nasdaq Comp -50 (SPY) :

1:09PM iShares Russell 2000 tests/attempting to stabilize near its 50 sma (IWM) : The Russell 2000 cash index and the IWM have tested their 50 day sma in midday trade (795.70 cash, session low 795.14; 79.46 IWM, session low 79.39), bringing the slide off the recent high to 5%, with just a fractional lift off the low noted thus far.

1:06PM April WTI crude oil trades to $100 per barrel; currently higher by $4.46 to $99.88 (COMDX) : Note that down the curve, the next 18 contracts are all trading above the $100 level.

12:27PM S&P -11 extends retreat back to 1302/1300 support zone (SPY) : The index was not able to form a constructive intraday price pattern off yesterday's low but instead formed lower highs within a very tight range reflecting limited interest. The slide has been extended further in midday trade bringing the 1302/1300 support area into play (session low 1302.02). This marks its Jan highs, 62% retrace of the Jan/Feb rally, congestion and psych level. A rebound back through roughly 1307 and the 1309/1310 zone is needed to begin to improve the intraday pattern.

12:11PM Relative Sector Weakness (TECHX) : Sectors that have underperformed the S&P during the recent downside extension for the market include: Retail XRT, Housing XHB, Semi SMH, Materials XLB, Airline FAA, Networking IGN, Disk Drive, Casino BJK, Steel SLX, Solar TAN, Industrial XLI.

12:06PM Acme United announces new $20 mln bank facility (ACU) 27.71 -0.40 : Co announced that it has renewed its loan agreement with Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. The new two-year facility provides for borrowings up to $20 million at an interest rate of LIBOR plus 2%. The agreement expires on March 31, 2013.

12:05PM NASDAQ 100 -27 approaching its 50 sma/ema at 2392 for first time since last Sep -- session low 2293 (QQQQ) : Nasdaq Comp 50 sma/ema at 2720/2714 (session low 2716).

12:03PM Stock indices grind down to new lows in midday trade -- Dow -76, S&P -9.4, Nasdaq Comp -37 (SPY) :

12:02PM New Concept Energy stated that its policy is not to comment on unusual market activity (GBR) 8.20 +1.42 :

12:01PM April WTI crude oil pushes through $99 to notch highs at $99.10; now up $3.55 to $98.97 (COMDX) :

12:01PM Owens Corning reaches definitive agreement to divest glass reinforcements plant in Capivari, Brazil (OC) 55.53 +1.36 : Co announces that it has reached a definitive agreement to sell its glass fiber reinforcements plant in Capivari, Brazil, to Chongqing Polycomp International Corporation. Owens Corning originally announced its intention to divest the facility in September, 2010.

11:56AM UPS notches new session low of 73.16 probing its 50 sma/ema zone at 73.29.73.16 (UPS) 73.19 -1.42 :

11:51AM SPDR Homebuilders testing its Feb low (XHB) 17.50 -0.40 : Saw a bounce near its 50 sma off the open but it has been marching steadily lower for the last two hours as it got no mileage out of the slightly better housing data which has brought its Feb reaction low into play at 17.47 (session low 17.45) -- LEN, MDC, MTH, PHM, SPF, TOL, DHI, RYL, KBH.

11:42AM RRSAT Global is providing uplink, playout and connectivity services for fashiontv H3, the 3D programming on the Fashion TV Paris High Definition channel (RRST) 7.19 -0.11 :

11:41AM WTI April crude oil to fresh highs at $98.52; now up $3.00 to $98.42 (COMDX) :

11:33AM Dow -63 and S&P -6.1 join Nasdaq Comp -25 at new session lows (SPY) :

11:23AM Roche Hldg received approval from DoD to provide remote service and support for its lab analyzers at Womack Army Medical Center (RHHBY) 36.85 +0.44 : Roche is the first in-vitro (test tube) diagnostics manufacturer to be approved by the DOD for this remote access.

11:18AM Fresh highs for April WTI crude oil at $98.18; now up $2.74 to $98.15 (COMDX) :

11:16AM U.S. Steel extends its recent pullback lower intraday as it dips down to challenge its 50-day ema off of the $57.00 level (X) 57.03 -0.55 : The Feb low is below at $56.35.

11:14AM Albany Intl announces that John B. Cozzolino has been named Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer (AIN) 22.48 -0.52 : Cozzolino has been serving as co's Acting Chief Financial Officer since September 23, 2010, and as Vice President-Corporate Treasurer and Strategic Planning since February 2009. From 2007 until 2009, he served as Vice President-Strategic Planning.

11:11AM Corn futures move into positive territory for the first time in the session; May corn is currently +1 cents at $6.9125/bushel (JJG) 52.71 +0.53 :

11:10AM Apple has held near its 50 ema/sma the last two sessions, currently working back toward it early session high of 342.93 (AAPL) 342.04 +3.43 :

11:08AM iShares DJ Real Estate displays some intraday relative strength in recent action (IYR) : CPT, AIV, KIM, MAC, BXP, VNO, SPG.

11:01AM Allstate Insurance unit plans to add 120 new agency owners in California during 2011 (ALL) 31.77 +0.03 : Allstate signed on 44 new California "exclusive agents" in 2010 and 17 in 2009.

10:59AM Some intraday relative strength has been noted in recent action in Finance XLF, Reg Bank KRE, Energy/Commodity, Computer-Hardware (TECHX) :

10:57AM S&P -1.7 and Dow -29 did not confirm the new Nasdaq Comp -14.5 low with some limited upticks noted (SPY) : No confirmation has been seen thus far and some intraday technicals are extended/divergent. As noted earlier the S&P needs to clear 1314 on a sustained basis with a secondary intraday barrier at 1318/1319.

10:52AM Deere hovering slightly above its session low at 88.78 and its 50 ema/sma at 88.65/88.33 (DE) 88.99 -2.00 : Stock is down for the fourth session in a row bringing the slide during this period from high to low to roughly 8.8%.

10:44AM Tyson Foods has amended its $1 billion credit facility (TSN) 18.62 -0.07 : The credit facility continues to be secured by domestic cash, accounts receivable and inventory, and guaranteed by substantially all of domestic subsidiaries. The facility contains a new provision, which allows the lien on such collateral to be released following the company satisfying a corporate credit ratings test which occurs when corporate credit ratings are (i) at least Baa3 or BBB-, in each case with stable outlook or better, from either Moody's or S&P and (ii) at least Ba2 or BB, in each case with stable outlook or better, from the other rating agency. The amended credit facility is scheduled to mature, and the commitments thereunder will terminate on February 23, 2016. As of February 23, 2011, there were no outstanding borrowings under the original credit facility, and no borrowings are expected at the time of the effectiveness of the amendment.

10:43AM Housing XHB, Semi SMH and Retail XRT slide to new session lows (TECHX) :

10:41AM Lagging Nasdaq Comp -17 sets minor new session low, Dow -44 and S&P -3 has not yet confirmed the new low (SPY) :

10:40AM Currency Chart Watch: Euro/Yen retesting 200 ema/Jan peak (TECHX) : (Click for chart).

10:32AM Stock indices lift further off supports -- Dow -13, S&P -0.01, Nasdaq -7 (SPY) : Highlighted supports in The Technical Take and the 10:14 update for the three major averages and have thus far seen a stabilization/minor bounce. The S&P is probing an initial intraday barrier at 1314 with the next level at the early high 1317.

10:14AM S&P probing low end of first level support (SPY) : Highlighted support at 1311/1309 in The Technical Take and have seen the index slide to 1309.67 in recent trade. The hold is a positive but need to see a sustained push initially above 1314 to begin to improve the intraday action. Second level support is at 1307/1305. The Dow and Nasdaq Comp are holding at similar levels at 12155/12140 and 2745/2739, respectively.

10:11AM HJ Heinz and Coca-Cola (KO) announce strategic partnership that enables Heinz to produce its ketchup bottles using KO's PlantBottle packaging (HNZ) 48.20 +0.49 :

10:10AM Stock indices unable to get any mileage out of better housing data, slip to fresh lows -- Dow -53, S&P -5.1, Nasdaq Comp -12.9 (SPY) :

10:08AM Dollar Index slides to new session/13 day low (TECHX) : Seeing some intraday relative strength in Energy/Commodity (XLE, OIH, GDX, SLV, GLD, SLX).

10:06AM Stock indices set fractional new session lows but no follow through developing thus far -- Dow -35, S&P -2.1, Nasdaq Comp -8.2 (SPY) :

10:02AM World Wrestling announced a one year agreement which will bring WWE Raw to Brazilian free TV beginning in March 2011 (WWE) 12.28 +0.06 :

10:01AM Stock indices hovering near lows, tick slightly higher on better data -- Dow -31, S&P -1.5, Nasdaq -6.3 (SPY) :

9:58AM Vista Gold & Midas Gold enter into combination agreement in respect of Idaho Gold Properties (VGZ) 2.92 -0.02 : Co and Midas Gold announced that Midas and certain of Vista's US subsidiaries have executed a Combination Agreement whereby they will contribute their respective Idaho gold assets through a share exchange and contribution to Midas Gold Corp., a new Canadian private company. If the plan of share exchange is approved by the shareholders of Midas, and all other conditions to the transaction are satisfied or waived, Midas Gold will be owned, on a fully diluted basis, 65% by Midas and 35% by Vista.

9:55AM Mosaic under early pressure but holding in the vicinity of its 50 ema at 78.65 after a minor penetration -- 78.51 (MOS) 79.15 -1.00 :

9:49AM WTI, Brent continue to push higher (COMDX) :

* April WTI now up $2.03 to $97.44
* April Brent higher by $3.67 to $109.45

9:48AM Stock indices slide quickly off highs, Dow -33 and Nasdaq Comp -5.1 set new session low -- S&P -1.4 (SPY) :

9:45AM Paulson Capital names Murray G. Smith as Chief Financial Officer (PLCC) 1.08 0.00 : Co and the wholly owned subsidiary, Paulson Investment Company, have named Murray G. Smith as ChCFO. Mr. Smith is located in Portland, Oregon and has been the interim CFO since September of 2010.

9:44AM IBM holding at its 20 day ema for second day, back hovering near its early session high at 162.48 (IBM) 162.40 +0.45 :

9:43AM Opening Point Gainers/Losers (TECHX) : Point Gainers: NDSN (+15.79), DEP (+7.44), VRTX (+5.61), AAPL (+3.52), HLF (+3.34), COG (+2.92), DDS (+2.44), DTV (+1.87), AGQ (+1.91), OCLR (+1.67), YOKU (+1.62)

Point Losers: HSFT (-6.56), NFLX (-5.75), HPQ (-5.20), LL (-2.40), OVTI (-2.64), FLR (-2.42), CF (-2.16), CMI (-2.03), DTO (-2.06), LOPE (-1.65), MON (-1.75), DE (-1.36)

9:42AM SPDR Homebuilders sets new session high of 18.09 after opening test of its 50 sma support at 17.84 -- session low 17.82 (XHB) 18.09 +0.19 : TOL +3.5%, KBH +1.9%, PHM +2.1%, LEN +2.7%, MDC +2.2%, MTH +1.7%, SPF +2.2%, DHI +1.7%, RYL +2.3%.

9:40AM Gold trades to its best levels of the morning at $1406.80; now up $4.90 to $1406.00 (COMDX) :

9:37AM April WTI crude oil trades through $97 to notch highs at $97.04; now up $1.60 to $97.02 (COMDX) :

9:36AM HMS Holdings awarded third party liability and medicaid improper payment audit and recovery contract by Tennessee; financial terms not disclosed (HMSY) 74.90 -1.71 :

9:35AM Relative weakness in Ag/Chem, MON -1.7% gaps down and breaks under its Feb low and 50 sma/ema (MON) : IPI -2%, BG -1.5%, AGU -1.5%, MOS -1.4%, MOO -0.8%, CF -1%.

9:34AM China Valves Tech's Henan Kaifeng High Pressure Valve Co signs a research and development agreement with Nantong Power Plant (CVVT) 6.41 -0.04 : Co announces that with guidance and coordination from The Bureau of National Energy of China, the Company's subsidiary Henan Kaifeng High Pressure Valve Co has signed a research and development agreement with Nantong Power Plant to supply DN250main stream valves, DN350 hydraulic inlet / outlet three-way valves, DN800 extraction of high discharge check valves, and DN2800 turbine vacuum Butterfly valves, all which are newly designed for 1,000 MW ultra-supercritical power plants.

9:34AM Vornado Rlty Trust beats by $0.08 (VNO) 89.58 +0.39 : Reports Q4 (Dec) funds from operations of $1.17 per share, $0.08 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $1.09.

9:32AM U.S. Oil Fund ETF testing yesterday's high and its nine month close high at 39.05 (USO) 39.03 +0.54 : Its Jan reaction highs are at 39.27 and 39.48 (nine month intraday peak).

9:31AM Motorola Solutions and Verizon Wireless (VZ) announced alliance to bring wireless communication solution to public safety customers (MSI) 37.71 -0.37 : This solution combines a private public safety-controlled broadband network tailored for mission critical operations with the benefits of commercial networks in the country.

9:27AM Reminder: Due to Monday's holiday, DoE energy inventory data will be released tomorrow at 11am ET (COMDX) :

9:25AM ZAGG announces a distribution agreement for their gadget protection products with U.S. Cellular (ZAGG) 8.89 :

9:20AM Grupo Aeroportuario Del Sureste announces 4Q10 passenger traffic up 1.69% YOY (ASR) 52.03 : Other 4Q10 Highlights include: EBITDA increased by 4.83% to Ps.466.95 million; total revenues increased by 58.32% due to increases of 4.68% in aeronautical revenues, 5.72% in non-aeronautical revenues and 100.0% in construction services; commercial revenues per passenger increased by 4.08% to Ps.63.84; operating profit rose by 29.63%.

9:18AM HiSoft Tech lowers FY10 EPS guidance below consensus due to bad debt provision (HSFT) 31.40 : Co lowers FY10 EPS to $0.67-0.68, ex-items, from $0.82-0.83 vs $0.82 Thomson Reuters consensus due to bad debt provision of $3.5 mln, or $0.15-0.16 per share. "We discovered a credit risk associated with a particular client that is experiencing cash flow issues. We noted this matter in the last two weeks, during an effort to assess and enhance our client relationship with this particular client. The information we gathered showed signs of going concern issues for this client. In an effort to be pro-active and prudent, we will provide a full provision of the doubtful accounts for the receivable balance for this client as of December 31, 2010. As there is significant doubt with respect to the collection of this balance, we believe it is appropriate for the provision provided. We believe that our accounts receivable collection process and practices remain among the best in the industry and our days sales outstanding (DSO) are expected to come in at an industry best of around 90 days in the fourth quarter of 2010. Our business growth and fundamentals for 2010 remained robust."

9:16AM April Brent crude oil to fresh ~2 yr highs at $109.45; now up $3.55 to $109.33 (COMDX) :

9:10AM Comstock COO to retire March 15, 2011 (CRK) 25.09 : CO announces that Mack Good will retire as COO effective March 15, 2011. A successor has not been named

9:09AM April WTI surges to new ~2.5 yr high at $96.89; now up $1.35 to $96.77 (COMDX) :

9:08AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* Caliper Life Sciences (CALP) and Covaris announced a co-marketing agreement which will leverage Covaris' acoustic DNA shearing platforms and Caliper's automation and microfluidics technologies to develop automated workflows for next generation sequencing experiments.
* The Government National Business Funding Agency and IBM (IBM) announced a five-year information technology services agreement to develop and manage a private cloud-computing technology infrastructure that will centralize IT operations for 10 government-owned companies that provide power utility, postal, port shipping, transportation, housing and other critical services to Peruvian citizens.
* St. Joseph Health System selected Care Management and Homecare solutions from Allscripts (MDRX) to streamline patient movement through their 14 hospitals and enhance patient care following discharge.
* Planar Systems (PLNR) added an 82-inch LCD display to its growing lineup of high performance, easy-to-service displays for advertising and digital signage applications in airports, shopping malls and other public spaces.

9:05AM April WTI crude oil ticks to its highest levels of the morning, at $96.57, following the open of pit trade; now up $1.13 to $96.55 (COMDX) :

9:05AM Fluor misses by $0.10, misses on revs; reaffirms FY11 EPS guidance (FLR) 70.57 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.65 per share, $0.10 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.75; revenues fell 3.9% year/year to $5.27 bln vs the $5.66 bln consensus. Co reaffirms guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $3.00-3.40, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $3.32 Thomson Reuters consensus. The co remains encouraged about future opportunities after three consecutive quarters of new award strength and backlog growth... Fluor had very strong new awards in 2010 which surpassed the company's previous record and drove the backlog to just under $35 billion at year-end [+30% YoY]. While we experienced substantial challenges on the Greater Gabbard project during 2010, the company is well positioned for growth in 2011 and beyond as our markets and the global economy continue to strengthen."

9:04AM Seanergy Maritime announces new time charter agreement for a Panamax Vessel at $20,000 gross rate; this employment is expected to generate ~$7 mln of gross revenues during the period of the charter (SHIP) 0.81 :

9:03AM Endurance Specialty increases quarterly dividend 20% to $0.30 per ordinary share (ENH) 47.62 :

9:03AM Dynavax Technologies' two Phase 3 HEPLISAV trials cleared by DSMB to continue to study completion (DVAX) 2.96 : Co announces that the Data Safety Monitoring Board established for co's two ongoing Phase 3 trials for HEPLISAV has completed its planned safety assessments. The DSMB determined that the studies may continue without protocol modification, and that no other formal meetings of the DSMB are required. All subjects in the large safety and lot-to-lot consistency trial randomized to HEPLISAV are now eight months past their last dose. Co states it would be unlikely to see a serious adverse event related to HEPLISAV at this time. Based on co's progress, it plans on completing the trials and filing a BLA by the end of 2011.

9:01AM RADCOM announced that Jonathan Burgin, its CFO, will be leaving effective May 21, 2011; co expects to announce his replacement in advance of Mr. Burgin's departure (RDCM) 10.62 :

8:54AM Eaton Vance misses by $0.14, beats on revs (EV) 32.94 : Reports Q1 (Jan) earnings of $0.30 per share, $0.14 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.44; revenues rose 14.8% year/year to $312.3 mln vs the $308.9 mln consensus. Assets under management on January 31, 2011 were $191.7 billion, a new all-time high. This represents an increase of 19 percent from the $161.6 billion of managed assets as of January 31, 2010 and an increase of 4 percent from the $185.2 billion of managed assets as of October 31, 2010.

8:38AM KKR beats by $0.39 (KKR) 16.18 : Reports Q4 (Dec) economic net income of $1.02 per share, $0.39 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.63. Assets under mgmt totaled $61.0 bln as of Dec 31, 2010, up 16.8% from $52.2 bln as of Dec 31, 2009. Fee related earnings were $95.1 mln and $318.3 mln for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2010, respectively, up from FRE of $87.5 mln and pro forma FRE of $247.4 mln in the comparable periods of 2009. Book value was $5.7 bln on a segment basis as of Dec 31, 2010, representing $8.38 per adjusted unit. "We continue to show great progress in the two areas that drive our business: investment performance and capital raising. Our investment returns across all strategies compared favorably to their benchmarks."

8:35AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (AJG) announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the business and certain assets of Woodbrook Underwriting Agencies in London, England. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
* True Religion Apparel (TRLG) announced that the Company has named David Chiovetti as Senior Vice President of North America Retail, a newly created position, effective February 22, 2011. Chiovetti was most recently Vice President of Stores, Guess (GES) and Guess by Marciano, where he provided leadership in all aspects of strategic planning and operations for these businesses.
* Advanced Cell Technology (ACTC.OB) announced that it has been issued a patent on its "single-blastomere" technique. Patent Number 7,893,315 broadly covers ACT's proprietary single-blastomere technology that provides a non-destructive alternative for deriving human embryonic stem cell lines.

8:33AM Denbury Resources beats by $0.03, beats on revs (DNR) 22.81 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.22 per share, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.19; revenues rose 91.7% year/year to $519.1 mln vs the $491.8 mln consensus. Denbury's cap-ex budget for FY11 remains at $1.1 bln ($1.2 bln including capitalized interest and tertiary start up costs at Hastings and Oyster Bayou Fields during 2011). "Our fourth quarter production, reserves and financial results were on or ahead of schedule, putting the final touches on an exceptional 2010 for Denbury. We begin 2011 with a strong balance sheet, plenty of liquidity and, to date, strong oil prices. Although not a big factor in the fourth quarter, we also expect to benefit from the strong rise in Light Louisiana Sweet crude oil prices in the first part of 2011, as we are fortunate to have a significant portion of our crude sales based on that index. Our first seven weeks of 2011 have gotten off to a slightly slower start than we would have liked due to the harsh winter, particularly in the Bakken area, but we expect to recover quickly and believe we will achieve our 2011 targets."

8:31AM China Architectural Engineering appoints Steven Zhixin Xing as Chief Executive Officer and as a member of the Company's Board of Directors (CAEI) 1.18 : Co announces that it has appointed Steven Zhixin Xing as CEO and as a member of the co's Board. Xing is currently the president of Shanghai ConnGame Network, a subsidiary of the co.

8:27AM TJX beats by $0.03, reports revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS below consensus; guides FY12 EPS in-line (TJX) 49.72 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $1.05 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $1.02; revenues rose 6.6% year/year to $6.33 bln vs the $6.36 bln consensus. Consolidated comparable store sales for the quarter increased 2% over the prior year's very strong 12% increase. Co issues downside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.75-0.82, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.87 Thomson Reuters consensus, with comps -1% to +2%. The co estimates EPS growth to be lower in the first quarter than in the full year due to far more challenging YoY comparisons in Q1, particularly for its European business, as well as the timing of certain expense items. Additionally, for most of the first quarter, the co will not have the benefit of sales from the 90 converting A.J. Wright stores, which negatively impacts expense leverage in the first quarter. Co issues in-line guidance for FY12, sees EPS of $3.78-3.93, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $3.82 Thomson Reuters consensus, with comps +1-2%.

8:20AM Fresh Market beats by $0.03, reports revs in-line; guides FY11 EPS above consensus (TFM) 44.89 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.33 per share, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.30; revenues rose 13.1% year/year to $289.4 mln vs the $287.9 mln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.01-1.05 vs. $1.01 Thomson Reuters consensus, with comps +4-5%. Comparable store sales for Q4 increased 6.0% YoY to $261.3 mln. The impact of the extra day in fourth quarter fiscal 2010 is ~1.1 percentage points of the growth. The comparable store sales increase was driven by a 3.5% increase in the number of transactions and a 2.5% increase in average transaction size.

8:16AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* TMNG Global (TMNG) announced an agreement with a leading U.S. cable operator to deploy the company's Ascertain Business Assurance Software Suite.
* Force Protection Australasia, a Force Protection (FRPT) company, announced the delivery of two variants of the Ocelot protected light mobility vehicle to the Commonwealth of Australia for the next phase of evaluation as part of the Land 121 Phase 4 program.
* Education Realty Trust (EDR) has executed agreements with the Edwards Companies to develop, own and manage new collegiate housing at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.
* ECOtality (ECTY) commenced the installation of the company's flagship Blink Level 2 Residential Charging Stations in Oregon.

8:07AM Jack Henry reports Banking division delivered strong sales of the jhaPassPort suite of ATM and debit transaction processing services (JKHY) 31.60 : Co announced that during calendar year 2010, its Jack Henry Banking division generated strong sales of the jhaPassPort suite of ATM and debit transaction processing services. More than ninety new processing contracts were signed with the banks currently automated by the company's core systems. The company also generated record cross sales with the add-on solutions included in the jhaPassPort suite. Co also reported an 18 percent increase in transactions during the same time period and a record backlog of new clients pending conversion to the jhaPassPort Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) platform.

8:05AM AstraZeneca ONGLYZA US Label update provides further evidence regarding use in renally impaired adults with Type 2 Diabetes (AZN) 48.38 : Bristol-Myers (BMY) and AstraZeneca (AZN) announced that the FDA has approved the inclusion of data from two clinical studies in an update to the ONGLYZA U.S. Prescribing Information for adult type 2 diabetes patients. The renal study investigated the safety and efficacy of ONGLYZA in patients with moderate to severe renal impairment or end-stage renal disease. The 12-week data showed that ONGLYZA 2.5 mg once daily significantly improved glycoslated hemoglobin from baseline compared to placebo when added to patients' current diabetes treatment.

8:04AM Saks beats by $0.05, reports revs in-line; sees FY12 comps up in the mid single digits (SKS) 12.17 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $0.13 per share, ex-$0.01 after tax gain, $0.05 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.08; revenues rose 6.8% year/year to $866.3 mln vs the $859.7 mln consensus. FY12 guidance: Comparable store sales are expected to grow in the mid-single digit range for the full year. Comparable store inventory levels are expected to be up in the mid-single digit range throughout the year. Based upon current inventory levels and the Company's promotional calendar and permanent markdown cadence, the co expects the gross margin rate for the full fiscal year to be modestly above the 40.1% rate achieved in 2010. The co's gross margin rate is typically higher in the first half than in the second half of the fiscal year.

8:03AM Tyco reaches agreement with Oceania Capital to acquire OCP's Signature Security Group for AUD171 mln (TYC) 46.16 : Co announces that it has reached an agreement with Oceania Capital to acquire OCP's Signature Security Group for AUD171 mln. Co intends to combine Signature Security's Australian and New Zealand operations with its ADT Security business under the ADT name. The unit had annualized revenue of ~ AUD80 mln.

8:03AM HSN, Inc. reports Q4 EPS of $0.69 vs. $0.69 Thomson Reuters consensus; revenue increased 9% y/y to $915.2 mln vs. $894.7 mln consensus (HSNI) 30.49 : Gross profit margin declined 130 basis points to 32.3% from 33.6%. The decline was primarily due to retail price reductions in fashion, a mix shift to electronics which have both lower gross margins and greater shipping promotions, and an increase in inventory reserves.

8:03AM Playboy: Icon Merger Sub extends expiration date of offer to purchase all outstanding shares of Class A and Class B common stock (PLA) 6.13 : Icon Acquisition Holdings announces that its wholly owned subsidiary, Icon Merger Sub, has extended the expiration date of its offer to purchase for cash all of the outstanding shares of Class A common stock (PLA.A) and Class B common stock (PLA) of Playboy Enterprises. at a purchase price of $6.15 per share. The offer is now scheduled to expire at 17:00 ET, on March 3, 2011. The offer was previously scheduled to expire at 17:00 ET on February 22, 2011. All other terms and conditions of the offer remain unchanged.

8:02AM Parker Drilling misses by $0.04, beats on revs (PKD) 4.73 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.01 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.04 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.05; revenues fell 1.4% year/year to $173.3 mln vs the $160.3 mln consensus.

8:02AM IdaCorp beats by $0.05; guides FY11 EPS below consensus (IDA) 37.97 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.41 per share, $0.05 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.36. Co issues downside guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $2.80-2.95 vs. $3.00 Thomson Reuters consensus.

8:01AM Vertex Pharm: Phase 3 Study of VX-770 Shows Marked Improvement in Lung Function Among People with Cystic Fibrosis with G551D Mutation (VRTX) 38.22 : The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and Vertex Pharmaceuticals announced today that VX-770, an oral medicine in development that targets the defective protein that causes cystic fibrosis, showed promising results in a Phase 3 clinical trial. The trial was designed to evaluate patients age 12 and up who carry at least one copy of a CF mutation called G551D. The study included 161 patients who received at least one dose of VX-770 or placebo. Patients who took the drug, compared to those on placebo, showed a marked improvement in lung function at 24 weeks, which was sustained for the duration of the 48-week trial. Patients also showed improvement across all key secondary endpoints in the study, including reduced likelihood of experiencing a pulmonary exacerbation, decreased respiratory symptoms and improved weight gain. Each of these areas is critically important to the health of people with CF.

7:59AM Pennsylvania R.E.I.T. beats by $0.03; guides FY11 FFO below consensus (PEI) 14.69 : Reports Q4 (Dec) funds from operations of $0.56 per share, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.53. Co issues downside guidance for FY11, sees FFO of $1.56-1.66 vs. $1.73 Thomson Reuters consensus, with Same store NOI growth, excluding lease termination rev, of between (1.0)% and 1.0%; Same store NOI was $78.9 mln for the quarter ended December 31, 2010, an increase of 2.5% compared to $77.0 mln for the quarter ended December 31, 2009.

7:55AM Denison Mining enters into CAD65 mln 'bought deal' financing; 18.3 mln shares at CAD3.55 (DNN) 3.72 : Co announces that it has entered into an agreement with a syndicate of investment dealers, which have agreed to purchase, on a bought deal basis, 18.3 mln common shares of co at a purchase price of CAD3.55 per common share ( for aggregate gross proceeds in the amount of C$64,965,000. In accordance with an existing agreement between the co and its largest shareholder, Korea Electric Power, KEPCO is entitled (but not required) to subscribe for additional common shares of the co in a separate private placement transaction in order to maintain its existing 15.83% shareholding level. KEPCO will be entitled to subscribe for ~3.4 mln common shares at the subscription price of CAD3.55 per share.

7:45AM People's United Financial names Kirk W. Walters as CFO; Walters is expected to commence his duties shortly and will also be appointed to the Boards of Directors of co (PBCT) 13.24 : Walters was most recently Senior Executive Vice President and a member of the Board of Directors of Santander Holdings USA, the parent company of Sovereign Bank. Walters replaces Paul D. Burner, who recently left the company.

7:43AM Dollar Tree beats by $0.02, misses on revs; guides Q1 EPS in-line, revs in-line; guides FY12 EPS in-line, revs in-line (DLTR) 52.17 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $1.29 per share, $0.02 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $1.27; revenues rose 10.7% year/year to $1.73 bln vs the $1.74 bln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.71-0.77 vs. $0.73 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of $1.48-1.52 bln vs. $1.49 bln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY12, sees EPS of $3.55-3.76 vs. $3.68 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY12 revs of $6.43-6.6 bln vs. $6.5 bln Thomson Reuters consensus.

7:36AM Clean Harbors beats by $0.10, beats on revs; guides FY11 revs in-line (CLH) 91.87 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.88 per share, $0.10 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.78; revenues rose 20.2% year/year to $417.1 mln vs the $391.5 mln consensus. Co raises guidance for FY11, sees FY11 revs of $1.54-1.59 bln vs. $1.56 bln Thomson Reuters consensus, up from $1.52-1.57 bln previously. For 2011, the Company expects EBITDA in the range of $262 million to $270 million, an increase from its previous guidance of $258 million to $267 million.

7:35AM Senior Housing beats by $0.01, beats on revs (SNH) 22.77 : Reports Q4 (Dec) funds from operations of $0.44 per share, $0.01 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.43; revenues rose 11.3% year/year to $96.8 mln vs the $93.8 mln consensus.

7:34AM Tim Hortons announces new share repurchase program for up to $445 mln in common shares; increases quarterly dividend by 31% and declares a dividend of $0.17 per common share (THI) 41.83 : Co announces that it has obtained regulatory approval from the Toronto Stock Exchange to commence a new share repurchase program for up to $445 million in common shares, not to exceed the regulatory maximum of 14,881,870 shares, representing 10% of the Company's public float as of February 17th, 2011. Co also announces the Board of Directors has approved a 31% increase in the quarterly dividend to $0.17 per common share.

7:33AM DIRECTV beats by $0.12, beats on revs; reaffirms FY13 tgt of $5 in EPS (DTV) 44.23 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.74 per share, $0.12 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.62; revenues rose 10.7% year/year to $6.62 bln vs the $6.52 bln consensus. DIRECTV adds 667,000 net new subscribers in q4 or 79% more than a year ago representing the largest quarter in 10 years. DIRECTV Latin America full year revenues grow 25% and operating profit before depreciation and amortization increases 67% driven by strong subscriber growth * DIRECTV U.S. 2010 revenues increase 9% fueled by 4.9% ARPU growth while operating profit before depreciation and amortization climbs 11%. "With the successful execution of these strategies along with our plan for returning excess cash to shareholders, we remain confident in our ability to continue creating significant shareholder value as we strive to achieve our EPS target of $5 per share in 2013. [consensus $4.95]."

7:32AM Oncolytics Biotech announces completion of enrollment in translational clinical trial investigating REOLYSIN in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (ONCY) 6.27 : Co announces completion of enrollment in translational clinical trial investigating REOLYSIN in patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. "The early results from this study reported in 2010 concluded that reovirus can be successfully delivered specifically to colorectal liver metastases following intravenous administration as a monotherapy. This is supportive of observations that REOLYSIN was active against metastatic liver lesions in a number of different combination therapy studies."

7:31AM Sunesis Pharma receives FDA fast track designation for Vosaroxin in AML (SNSS) 1.99 : Co announces that vosaroxin, co's lead drug candidate, has been granted Fast Track designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the potential treatment of relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia in combination with cytarabine.

7:20AM Unisys prices an offering of 2,250,000 shares of its 6.25% Mandatory Convertible Preferred Stock, Series A at an initial liquidation preference of $100 per share (UIS) 37.43 : Each share of the mandatory convertible preferred stock will be mandatorily convertible on March 1, 2014 into between approximately 2.1899 shares and 2.6717 shares of Unisys common stock. The closing is expected to occur on February 28, 2011.

7:05AM Frontier Communications misses by $0.05, misses on revs (FTR) 9.20 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.05 per share, excluding items, $0.05 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.10; revenues rose 160.8% year/year to $1.36 bln vs the $1.39 bln consensus. Revenue of $857.9 million is attributable to the July 1, 2010 acquired properties for the three months ended December 31, 2010. For the full year of 2011, the expectations for capital expenditures and free cash flow, excluding acquisition/integration costs and capital expenditures, to be within $750-780 million and $1.15-1.2 billion, respectively. We expect that in 2011 cash taxes will be ~$50-75 million.

7:05AM GeoVax Labs announces publication of phase 1 clinical trial in The Journal of Infectious Diseases (GOVX) 1.11 : Co announces publication of the results of Phase 1 clinical trial testing of its HIV/AIDS vaccine products. The vaccines showed excellent safety characteristics in each of the three regimens. All of the regimens induced both antibody and T cell responses. Antibody-induced immune response rates were highest in the MMM group, whereas T cell response rates were highest in the DDMM group. The DMM group had intermediate response rates. On the basis of the excellent safety and immune response rates, HVTN has moved both the DDMM and MMM regimens forward into Phase 2a testing, which is currently ongoing in the trial designated HVTN 205. HVTN 205 has 300 participants in both North and South America and is designed to increase the base of information on safety and immunogenicity.

7:04AM Garmin misses by $0.05, misses on revs; guides FY11 EPS below consensus, revs below consensus (GRMN) 32.14 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.83 per share, $0.05 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.88; revenues fell 20.9% year/year to $838 mln vs the $863.6 mln consensus. Co issues downside guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $2.25-2.50 vs. $2.56 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $2.4-2.5 bln vs. $2.53 bln Thomson Reuters consensus.

7:03AM Duncan Energy receives buyout offer from Enterprise Products Partners (EPD); represents a value of $42.00 for each Duncan Energy Partners common unit (DEP) 32.56 : Co announces that it received a proposal from Enterprise Products Partners (EPD) whereby EPD and certain affiliates would acquire all of the outstanding publicly-held common units of co through a unit-for-unit exchange. EPD is proposing consideration of 0.9545 Enterprise common units for each issued and outstanding publicly-held DEP common unit. The proposed transaction would be structured as a merger of DEP with a wholly owned subsidiary of Enterprise. The consideration represents a value of $42.00 for each DEP common unit. Co states it will begin their review review of the merger proposal. Enterprise owns 100% of the general partner of Duncan Energy Partners and owns ~58% of the outstanding common units of DEP.

7:03AM Lumber Liquidators misses by $0.04, misses on revs; guides FY11 EPS below consensus, revs in-line (LL) 27.34 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.21 per share, $0.04 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.25; revenues rose 11.7% year/year to $153.2 mln vs the $154.9 mln consensus. Comparable store net sales increased 1.2% for the quarter, in comparison to a decrease of 5.7% in the third quarter of 2010 and an increase of 5.5% for the fourth quarter of the prior year. Comparable store net sales for the fourth quarter reflect residual productivity challenges due to the SAP implementation, partially offset by customers continuing to respond to the Company's value proposition and an increase in average sale. Co issues guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.10-1.28 vs. $1.29 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $700-730 mln vs. $714.61 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. "We expect to build momentum as the year progresses, and generate meaningful year-over-year improvement in our top- and bottom-line results in the back half of the year. We are confident in our ability to once again leverage our proven store model as we open additional stores in both existing and new markets. Our first Canadian stores are expected to open in March 2011, highlighting an expansion in the number of new stores we plan to open annually. While we anticipate continuing to operate in a challenging economic environment this year and are cautious in our near-term outlook, we strongly believe that our value proposition will allow us to gain further share in the fragmented wood flooring market."

7:03AM Conexant: SMSC announces that it does not plan to increase its offer for Conexant above $2.25 per share (CNXT) 2.52 : SMSC announces that it does not plan to increase its offer for Conexant Systems above $2.25 per share in response to a proposal from Golden Gate Capital. SMSC also announced that it has agreed to waive the "match period" under the merger agreement. On February 21, 2011, the board of directors of Conexant informed SMSC that it had determined that a proposal from Golden Gate Capital to acquire Conexant constituted a "superior proposal" as such term is defined in the existing merger agreement. If Conexant terminates the merger agreement to accept the proposal from Golden Gate Capital, SMSC will be entitled to a termination fee of $7.7 mln.

7:01AM Vertex Pharm reports data from Phase 3 study of VX-770; improvements in lung function were observed through week 24 (VRTX) 38.22 : Co announced positive results from the Phase 3 STRIVE study of VX-770, an oral medicine in development that targets the defective protein that causes cystic fibrosis. STRIVE was designed to evaluate people with a mutation in the CF gene known as G551D. In this study, profound improvements in lung function were observed through week 24, and sustained through week 48, among those who received VX-770 compared to those treated with placebo. Significant improvements in all key secondary endpoints were also observed through week 48 among those who received VX-770. The primary endpoint of the study was mean absolute change from baseline compared to placebo in percent predicted FEV1 through week 24. Data from the study showed a mean absolute improvement in lung function from baseline compared to placebo through week 24 of 10.6% among those treated with VX-770. Mean absolute improvement in lung function among those treated with VX-770 was 10.5% through week 48.

7:00AM ISIS Pharm reports that its selective CRP inhibitor demonstrated activity in a Phase 1 study (ISIS) 9.01 : Co announces the results from a Phase 1 clinical trial in which ISIS-CRPRx produced statistically significant reductions in C-reactive protein in the cohort of subjects in the study with elevated CRP. In this study, ISIS-CRPRx was well tolerated at doses up to 600 mg/week. Isis plans to evaluate ISIS-CRPRx in Phase 2 studies in indications that could provide early proof-of-concept in diseases with elevated CRP. Isis plans to initially evaluate ISIS-CRPRx in multiple myeloma and rheumatoid arthritis, before expanding into cardiovascular and other diseases.

6:33AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* JDA Software Group (JDAS) announced that HEMA has selected a number of space planning solutions from the JDA Category Management suite, including JDA Space Planning, JDA Space Automation, JDA Intactix Knowledge Base and JDA Planogram Generator to help improve shelf-level planning and increase shopper satisfaction.
* QLT (QLTI)announced the departure of Dipak Panigrahi, MD, SVP, Research and Development and Chief Medical Officer.

6:27AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* KongZhong Corporation (KONG) announced that it has entered into a binding agreement with Nokia Growth Partners to partially prepay the 5-year convertible senior note issued to NGP on March 18, 2009. Under the terms of the agreement, KongZhong will prepay 70% of the aggregate principal amount of the 5-year convertible senior note for US$ 9.31 million in cash, plus any accrued but unpaid interest on the note.
* Jammin Java Corp. (OTCBB: JAMN) confirmed United Natural Foods Canada, a division of United National Foods (UNFI), as its Canadian distribution partner.
* UK HealthCare, the patient care operations of University of Kentucky, will deploy the Allscripts (MDRX) Electronic Health Record and Practice Management solution to help its team of 6,000 physicians, nurses, pharmacists and health care providers enhance the quality of patient care, improve patient communications, and better manage the cost of care delivery.
* iPass (IPAS) announced that its network partnership with Oslo Lufthavn Tele & Data AS has expanded the iPass Mobile Network to cover the 46 airports in Norway that are operated by its government agency, Avinor.

6:11AM Lamar Advertising misses by $0.01, reports revs in-line; guides Q1 revs in-line, appoints new CEO (LAMR) 39.58 : Reports Q4 (Dec) loss of $0.08 per share, $0.01 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of ($0.07); revenues rose 5.1% year/year to $275.7 mln vs the $276.6 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q1, sees Q1 revs of ~$256 mln vs. $256.77 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Additionally, co appoints Sean Reilly as CEO effective Feb 21. He had previously been COO and President of co's Outdoor Division since November 2001. Former CEO will remain Chairman.

6:09AM Range Resources provides operations update; Q4 drilling expenditures of $253 mln funded the drilling of 90 (64 net) wells and 7 (7 net) recompletions (RRC) 48.66 : Co provides operations update. Fourth quarter drilling expenditures of $253 mln funded the drilling of 90 (64 net) wells and 7 (7 net) recompletions. A 95% success rate was achieved. For the full-year, 237 (167 net) wells were successfully drilled and are now on production, while 111 (81 net) wells are currently in various stages of completion or waiting on pipeline connection. For the year, capital expenditures totaled just under $1.1 bln or $100 million less than budgeted.

6:07AM Lowe's beats by $0.03, reports revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS in-line, revs above consensus; guides FY12 EPS in-line, revs above consensus (LOW) 25.99 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $0.21 per share, $0.03 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.18; revenues rose 3.1% year/year to $10.48 bln vs the $10.45 bln consensus. Comparable store sales increased 1.1% for the fourth quarter and increased 1.3% for fiscal 2010. Co issues guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.34-0.38 vs. $0.38 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of up ~2% YoY to ~$12.64 bln (cons: +1.4%) vs. $12.56 bln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues guidance for FY12, sees EPS of $1.60-1.72 vs. $1.66 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY12 revs of up ~5% to ~$51.26 bln (cons: +3.5%) vs. $50.49 bln Thomson Reuters consensus.

6:06AM Amdocs announces additional $1 bln share repurchase program authorization; co also announces two new contracts (DOX) 28.97 : Co will provide additional details on the new repurchase authorization and present Amdocs' financial and business outlook for FY2011-FY2013 at its Analyst Day (today). Co also announces two contracts: TIM Brasil has selected products from co's Customer Experience System 8 portfolio - including Order Management, Service Management, Resource Manager and Enterprise Product Catalog - to provide the foundation for its "B/OSS" transformation initiative supporting its next-generation network; Vodafone Germany has selected Amdocs OSS software to support the rollout of its 4G LTE mobile network in order to increase the capacity and speed of data services it can offer to its customers.

6:05AM Quanta Services reports EPS in-line, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS in-line, revs below consensus; guides FY11 EPS below consensus, revs in-line (PWR) 22.63 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.16 per share, in-line with the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.16; revenues rose 12.3% year/year to $1.11 bln vs the $1.01 bln consensus. Co issues mixed guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.02-0.03 vs. $0.16 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of $775-825 mln vs. $879.97 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues mixed guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $0.80-0.90 vs. $1.05 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $4.1-4.4 bln vs. $4.39 bln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co states: "The slow recovery in the economy and ongoing regulatory hurdles continue to create a challenging business environment in the industries Quanta serves. Management cannot predict the timing or extent of the impact that these issues may have on demand for Quanta's services, particularly in the near term."

6:03AM WellPoint reaffirms FY11 guidance; increased share repurchase authorization to $1.6 bln for 2011 (WLP) 65.29 : Co reaffirms guidance for FY11 (Dec), sees EPS of at least $6.30 vs. $6.57 Thomson Reuters consensus. In addition, its Board of Directors declared a quarterly dividend to shareholders in the first quarter of 2011 of $0.25 per share. This quarterly rate represents an annualized dividend of $1.00 per share. The Board of Directors also increased the share repurchase authorization to a total of $1.6 billion for 2011, and intends to utilize this authorization by year-end, subject to market and industry conditions.

5:38AM Toll Brothers beats by $0.09, beats on revs (TOL) 20.76 : Reports Q1 (Jan) earnings of $0.02 per share, $0.09 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of ($0.07); revenues rose 2.3% year/year to $334.1 mln vs the $317.2 mln consensus. Co reports Home building deliveries of 570 units, a decline of 4% compared to FY 2010's first quarter results. FY 2011's first quarter average delivery price of $586,000 was 7% higher than FY 2010's same period average price. FY 2011's first-quarter net signed contracts per community of 2.81 units rose 7% compared to FY 2010's first quarter average of 2.63 units. The co's cancellation rate as a percentage of contracts was 5.7%. As a percentage of beginning-quarter backlog, it was 2.3%, the lowest in four years. The co's cancellation rates have returned to historic norms after several years of elevation. "We ended FY 2011's first quarter with a relatively flat backlog compared to FYE 2010. As such, we currently estimate that we will deliver between 2,200 and 2,800 homes in FY 2011 at an average price of between $540,000 and $565,000 per home. Due to geographic mix, we expect a lower average price for delivered homes in the final three quarters of FY 2011 than reported in our first quarter."

5:31AM Dolan misses by $0.08, reports revs in-line; guides FY11 EPS in-line, revs in-line (DM) 13.30 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.18 per share, $0.08 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.26; revenues rose 10.2% year/year to $76.7 mln vs the $76.7 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.20-1.30 vs. $1.27 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $328-338 mln vs. $335.86 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co sees Adjusted EBITDA of $95 - 100. "During the quarter, company-wide, we incurred some non-recurring items that reduced our EPS by approximately $0.04. These items, in combination with the shortfall in high-margin public notice revenue, are the primary reasons for the difference relative to previous EPS guidance."

4:21AM Virgin Media offers private placement of 750 mln equivalent of Senior Secured Notes due 2021 (VMED) 27.04 : Co intends to use the net proceeds from the notes offering to prepay a portion of its A and B Tranches under its senior credit facility. Specifically, co intends to prepay ~GBP533 mln of its A Tranche, thus eliminating all scheduled amortisation in 2011 through to the end of 2014, and apply any remaining net proceeds to repay partially its B Tranche currently scheduled for payment in 2015.

3:34AM On The Wires (WIRES) :

* Golden Meditech announces that its affiliate, China Cord Blood (CO) has made a major advancement in domestic market expansion, via the inauguration of Zhejiang Cord Blood Bank in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, which will advance the development of umbilical cord blood stem cell banking services in Zhejiang while providing professional services to the public in the region. The new cord blood bank in Zhejiang shall be under the direct governance of the Provincial Ministry of Health as the only licensed operator.
* iPass (IPAS) announced that its network partnership with Oslo Lufthavn Tele & Data AS has expanded the iPass Mobile Network to cover the 46 airports in Norway that are operated by its government agency, Avinor.
* Global Sources (GSOL) has extended its contracts with AsiaWorld-Expo Management to host China Sourcing Fairs at Hong Kong's AsiaWorld-Expo from 2011 through 2014, in addition to the renewed contracts announced in June 2010, representing a total gross value of ~$16.7 mln.
* Fluidigm (FLDM) has appointed Eisenberg Brothers as its distributor in Israel.
* Elan (ELN) and PPD (PPDI) announced they have formed a global business collaboration focused on the advancement, progression and execution of Elan's development portfolio. The primary objective of this relationship is to deploy both companies' skills and expertise in a flexible, integrated manner to drive the execution of Elan's clinical programs in a parallel and expedited basis and on a global scale.

3:31AM Frensius Kabi Pharma files 10-K for APP Pharma; Contingent Value Rights EBITDA measurement not met, CVR to expire worthless (APCVZ) 0.08 : Co announces it today filed its Form 10-K for APP which provid an update on the Contingent Value Rights granted to APP stockholders in conjunction with co's acquisition of APP Pursuant to the agreement governing the CVRs, the right to receive a payment with respect to the CVRs was contingent upon APP achieving consolidated cumulative Adjusted EBITDA in excess of $1.268 bln for the measurement period (three years ending December 31, 2010). The consolidated Adjusted EBITDA for the measurement period was $1.126 bln. Since the cumulative Adjusted EBITDA did not exceed the required threshold, CVR holders will not receive any payments on the CVRs and the CVRs will expire without value.

3:18AM Hudbay Minerals JV with Halo reports new drilling results in Cold-Lost property; intersected an 11.90 meter mineralized zone that assayed 1.54% copper and 5.42% zinc (HBM) 16.16 : Hudson Bay Mining and Smelting, an affiliate of co, has reported new results for drilling at the Cold-Lost property. The hole intersected an 11.90 meter mineralized zone that assayed 1.54% copper and 5.42% zinc. This includes an interval with significant precious metal credits of 0.99 g/t gold and 24.06 g/t silver over 7.97 meters which also contains 2.06% copper and 7.74% zinc. The hole is owned primarily by Halo Resources and HudBay has an agreement in which it can earn up to a 67.5% joint venture interest in a 1.1 square kilometer area of the 200 square kilometer Sherridon VMS Property in Manitoba which hosts the Cold and Lost mineralization.

2:27AM Fresenius Medical beats by $0.02; revs in-line; sees FY11 revs above consensus (FMS) 64.60 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.90, $0.02 better than $0.88 Thomson Reuters consensus; revs increased 4% YoY to $3,167 mln vs $3,175 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY11 (Dec), sees FY11 (Dec) revs of $12.8-13.0 bln vs. $12.74 bln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co sees FY11 Net income attributable to FMC AG & Co KGaA expected to be between $1.035-1.055 bln, with operating margins forecast to increase by ~20 basis points. For 2011, the co expects to spend around 5% of revenue on capital expenditures and ~$1.2 bln on acquisitions. The debt/EBITDA ratio is expected to be below 2.8 by the end of 2011.

2:13AM ITC Holdings beats by $0.02; beats on revs; sees FY11 EPS below consensus (ITC) 67.68 : Reports Q4 (Dec) GAAP earnings of $0.71, $0.02 better than $0.69 Thomson Reuters consensus; revs increased 20.8% to $189.1 mln vs $172.8 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co reaffirms and issues downside guidance for FY11 (Dec), sees EPS of $3.20-3.30 vs. $3.34 Thomson Reuters consensus. Co sees capital investment guidance for 2011 also being maintained at $560-640 mln.

1:56AM Ormat Tech misses by $0.02, misses on revs; guides FY11 revs below consensus (ORA) 27.95 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.10 per share, $0.02 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.12; revenues fell 1.5% year/year to $92.8 mln vs the $94.3 mln consensus. Co issues downside guidance for FY11, sees FY11 revs of ~$390-$410 vs. $430.91 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. With regard to rev guidance, co expects 2011 Electricity Segment revenues to be between $315-325 mln and Product Segment between $75-85 mln.

1:34AM Cell Therapeutics reports updated results of Phase II study of OPAXIO; reports higher rates of pathological complete response in patients with advanced esophageal cancer (CTIC) 0.29 : Co announces that updated phase II study results of OPAXIO in patients with advanced esophageal cancer conducted by the Brown University Oncology Group which demonstrates that 38% of the patients receiving OPAXIO in combination with cisplatin and concurrent radiation achieved a pathologic or endoscopic complete response. A pathological complete response, observed in 32% of patients in the study, is recorded only when the esophagus is surgically removed after therapy and no tumor can be found microscopically.

1:27AM iStar Financial proposes to arrange $3 bln in new senior secured credit facilities (SFI) 8.39 : Co announces it has engaged JP Morgan (JPM) to arrange up to $3.0 bln in new senior secured credit facilities, the proceeds of which would be used to refinance the co's secured loan facilities due to mature in June 2011 and 2012, as well as repay a portion of the co's unsecured debt maturing in 2011. The proposed new credit facilities may be divided into tranches with differing interest rates and maturity dates.

1:23AM Franklin Street Properties closes new $500 mln credit facility (FSP) 15.24 : Co announces the closing of a new credit facility with a group of banks. The total availability under the New Revolver is $500 mln. The New Revolver also includes an accordion feature that allows for up to $100 mln of additional borrowing capacity subject. As part of the closing, the co's $250 mln credit facility and $75 mln term loan will be repaid from the proceeds of the New Revolver and terminated.

1:19AM Fluor wins browse offshore FEED contract in Australia; terms not disclosed (FLR) 70.57 : Co announces that its Offshore Solutions unit was awarded a front-end engineering and design contract by Woodside for the Browse Liquefied Natural Gas Development. Co will be responsible for FEED services for the offshore central gas processing facility including the steel jackets, a compression platform and a utilities accommodation platform. Co has teamed with McDermott (MDR), to design the steel jackets and float-over installation. Co booked the undisclosed contract services value in the fourth quarter of 2010.

1:12AM Dresser-Rand responds to questions about its business in the Middle East & North Africa; does believe situation will have material impact on 2011 revs (DRC) 46.65 : In response to inquiries, co made the following disclosures concerning its business in the Middle East and North Africa. In 2010, revenues from countries in the region amounted to ~6.9% of total revenues of nearly $2.0 bln. The following countries in the region, Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Yemen, that have or are experiencing unrest, represent ~2.6% of total 2010 revenues. Libya represents 1.2% "While unrest in the region is a cause for concern, we believe the situation in certain parts of the Middle East and North Africa will not have a material adverse impact on our expected 2011 revenues or operating results."
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