Market Update: 110317 4:30 pm : Stocks staged a strong bounce after they had logged sizable losses for three straight sessions in reaction to a massive earthquake in Japan, subsequent failures at that country's nuclear facilities, and ongoing social and political unrest in the Middle East and North Africa.
Buyers stepped back into action today with a broad-based bid that took the Dow and S&P 500 up more than 1%. The Nasdaq also staged a strong gain, but lagged its counterparts amid weakness in Amazon.com (AMZN 160.97, -3.73), which descended to a new three-month low.
Energy stocks were leaders in the broader market. As such, the Energy Select SPDR (XLE 76.00, +2.25) spiked to a 3% gain. The sector was helped by a spike in crude oil prices, which settled pit trade with a 3.5% gain at $101.42 per barrel.
Despite the spike in oil prices, global delivery outfit FedEx (FDX 87.89, +2.61) was a top performer following its strong forecast, which overshadowed an earnings miss for the latest quarter.
Disappointing guidance from Guess? (GES 37.71, -6.16) overshadowed the retailer's upside earnings surprise for the latest quarter. Weakness in the stock caused retailers to trail the broader market. As such, the S&P Retail SPDR (XRT 47.99, -0.18) fell firmly.
A deluge of data was released this morning, but none of it was met with much of a reaction.
Initial weekly jobless claims for the week ended March 12 totaled 385,000, which is on par with the 386,000 initial claims that had been expected, on average, among economists polled by Briefing.com. Initial claims for the prior week were revised upward to 401,000.
Consumer prices for February increased by 0.5%, which is greater than the 0.4% that had been widely expected. The stronger-than-expected increase follows a 0.4% increase for the prior month. Excluding food and energy, consumer prices increased by 0.2%, which is more than the 0.1% increase that had been broadly anticipated. Core consumer prices also increased by 0.2% in the prior month.
The Philadelphia Fed Index for March surged to a 25-year high of 43.4, which blew out the Briefing.com consensus 28.1.
Leading Indicators for February increased by 0.8%, but that is less than the 1.0% that had been broadly expected. Industrial production decreased by 0.1% in Februay. It had been broadly expected to increase by 0.6%.
None of today's data was able to help generate support for the dollar, which continued its descent against Japan's yen. The yen's rapid ascent to record levels against the greenback has stirred speculation about an intervention by Japan's Minister of Finance and central bank. DJ30 +161.29 NASDAQ +19.23 NQ100 +1.0% R2K +0.5% SP400 +0.6% SP500 +16.84 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1569/1.99 bln/1002 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2198/1.03 bln/806
3:30 pm : Commodities finished higher across the board today, led by a 5.4% rally in grains. May wheat surged 7.9% to close at $7.14 per bushel, while May corn ended limit up at $6.46, higher by 4.9%.
The Energy sector added 3.4%, led by a 5.7% rally in April natural gas, which closed at $4.16 per MMBtu. It notched highs at $4.16, its best levels in close to 1.5 months. This morning's larger than expected draw down in inventories acted as the catalyst to today's rally. April crude oil surged 3.5% to close at $101.42 per barrel, its best close in around a week. Today's session was substantially less volatile than the previous, evidenced by the absence of short volatile moves in prices. With the risk trade back for the time being, markets once again refocused on the Middle East.
Precious metals, which gained 0.2% on the day, were the laggard sector today. It was a relatively quiet session for the precious metal as April gold finished higher by 0.5% to $1403.80 per ounce and May silver ended lower by 0.5% to $34.25 per ounce. DJ30 +134.30 NASDAQ +19.43 SP500 +14.59 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1698/1.5 bln/861 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2232/675.2 mln/744
3:00 pm : Stocks have reclaimed some of the gains that they lost in afternoon trade. The positive tone among traders this session has given advancing issues a near 3-to-1 advantage over decliners on the NYSE. Still, stocks remain shy of the session highs that were set earlier today.DJ30 +138.35 NASDAQ +25.39 SP500 +15.55 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1648/1.41 bln/887 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2154/615 mln/793
2:30 pm : Stocks remain off of session highs, but they continue to sport broad-based gains. However, retailers have had a hard time participating in today's bounce. As a group, shares of retailers are up only fractionally. A disappointing earnings report from Guess? (GES 39.00, -4.87) has weighed on the space.
Outside of equities, oil prices have extended their push into the final minutes of pit trade. Oil prices were recently quoted with a near 4% gain at almost $102 per barrel. DJ30 +110.92 NASDAQ +20.91 SP500 +12.35 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1595/1.29 bln/927 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2080/570 mln/851
2:00 pm : Stocks have extended their recent downturn so that the major equity averages are now at session lows. Still, overall gains remain relatively strong.
Despite the stock market's recent slip, Treasuries have retreated. Yields had been approaching session lows, but they have since retraced that move.
Participation hasn't been as strong today as it was yesterday -- about a half billion shares have been exchanged on the NYSE up to this point.DJ30 +97.79 NASDAQ +20.47 SP500 +11.34 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1674/1.19 bln/836 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2187/515 mln/742
1:30 pm : A recent flurry of selling has pulled stocks back a bit, but the major equity averages continue to boast strong gains for the session.
Amid the stock market's recent slip, Treasuries have trimmed a substantial portion of their losses. In turn, the benchmark 10-year Note is now down only a few ticks. That has yields near their lows for the day. DJ30 +101.16 NASDAQ +25.24 SP500 +12.45 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1856/1.06 bln/649 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2375/460 mln/571
1:05 pm : Stocks suffered a cumulative loss of 3.6% over the past three sessions. The sell-off left the S&P 500 to settle below its 100-day moving average yesterday for the first time since September, but buyers have stepped back in to provide stocks with some relief.
The S&P 500 is down 5% from the two-year high that it set one month ago amid ongoing headline risk related to social and political unrest in the Middle East and North Africa, and more recently from the fears that have stemmed from the massive earthquake and subsequent failures at nuclear facilities in Japan. Today, though, the mood among participants has improved considerably, such that the stock market is on pace for its best single-day performance in two weeks.
Energy stocks have provided the most leadership. Strength in the sector is broad, but oil and gas equipment and exploration plays have exhibited the most strength.
FedEx (FDX 89.01, +3.73) is another top performer following a strong forecast, which has overshadowed an earnings miss for the latest quarter. The global delivery company's strength also comes in the face of a bounce by oil prices back toward $101 per barrel.
In contrast, utilities stocks have failed to find any meaningful support. The sector has been in the red all session with a modest loss as electricity generation plays come under pressure.
While the broad market has put together an impressive performance today, the dollar's doldrums continue. Its weakness in recent sessions comes as the yen climbs to record levels. The yen's rapid ascent has stirred speculation about an intervention by Japan's Minister of Finance and central bank.
Participants got a big dose of data today, but the broad market seemed to take it in stride. The latest initial weekly jobless claims tally totaled 385,000, which is on par with what had been broadly expected.
Overall consumer prices for February increased 0.5%. Core prices increased by 0.2%. Both were on the order of what had been widely anticipated.
The Philadelphia Fed Index for March surged to a 25-year high of 43.4, which blew out the Briefing.com consensus.
Leading Indicators for February increased by a slightly smaller-than-expected 0.8%, but only industrial production for February really disappointed with its 0.1% slip in the face of consensus forecasts for an increase of about 0.6%. DJ30 +152.54 NASDAQ +36.77 SP500 +18.81 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1840/990 mln/636 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2330/425 mln/599
12:30 pm : Steady buying continues to keep stocks up with heady gains. Though impressive, the move does little to offset the losses suffered in recent weeks. In fact, the S&P 500 is still down 5% from the two-year high that it set one month ago. The descent from that point has come mostly amid social and political unrest in the Middle East and North Africa, and more recently from the fears that have stemmed from the massive earthquake and subsequent failure at nuclear facilities in Japan. Headline risk related to those events remains.DJ30 +148.38 NASDAQ +37.00 SP500 +18.04 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1843/879 mln/638 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2319/388 mln/586
12:00 pm : Energy stocks are collectively up nearly 3%, as measured by the Energy Select SPDR (XLE 75.72, +1.97). Energy issues make up this session's top performing sector. In contrast, utilities stocks continue to underperform as the only major sector that failed to stage a gain -- the Utilities SPDR (XLU 30.85, -0.14) is down about 0.4%.
Among energy plays, oil and gas exploration plays like Schlumberger (SLB 86.68, +3.58) and National Oilwell Varco (NOV 77.51, +3.11) are the top performers. As for utilities, energy generation giant Exelon (EXC 39.44, -0.51) continues to trade lower; it set a new six-month low this morning.DJ30 +133.51 NASDAQ +35.78 SP500 +16.21 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1829/800 mln/625 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2306/345 mln/570
11:30 am : Stocks have eased off of session highs, but they continue to trade with impressive gains. As things currently stand, the stock market is on pace for its best single-session performance in two weeks.
In contrast, the dollar continues to trade with weakness. That has left the Dollar Index to trade with a 0.9% loss to set a new four-month low that is within close reach of its 52-week closing low. The dollar's decline comes as the carry trade between the greenback and the Japanese yen is unwound. DJ30 +128.55 NASDAQ +37.29 SP500 +16.71 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1890/668 mln/537 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2373/290 mln/483
11:00 am : Stocks continue to preserve robust gains. Apple (AAPL 338.70, +8.70) is a primary leader following news that analysts at Credit Suisse assigned an Outperform rating to the stock. Just yesterday the stock fell to its lowest level in more than a month amid broad market weakness and a downgrade by analysts at JMP Securities.
However, Wireless Ronin (RNIN 1.38, +0.31) is this session's strongest performer by percent gained. The small-cap stock has surged almost 30% following news that the company has entered into a teaming and co-marketing agreement with Sprint (S 5.01, +0.14). DJ30 +160.98 NASDAQ +40.57 SP500 +20.39 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1891/531 mln/514 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2413/230 mln/425
10:30 am : The dollar index remains weak this morning, which is providing strength to most commodities. In the CRB Index, 16 of its 19 components are trading higher led by sugar +3.3%, wheat +3.0% and copper +2.9%.
Natural gas futures trended higher overnight, hitting session highs an hour before pit trading began. Ahead of inventory data it was $0.03 higher at $3.96 per MMBtu. Following the data, which showed a draw of 56 bcf versus consensus of a draw down of 42 bcf, natural gas pushed to new session highs and is now +0.096 at $4.03 per MMBtu.
Crude oil is back near the $100 level as commodities are seeing a broad-based rally. Ongoing events in Japan, a weak dollar and strength in the Nikkei are providing additional strength in crude this morning. In current trade, its +2.2% at $100.13 per barrel.
Precious metals are mixed after gold erased its overnight losses. Gold moved into positive territory near the end of the overnight session and has been in positive territory since. It has pulled back somewhat, but remains above the $1400 level at $1400.40 +4.30 (+0.3%). Silver has gained modestly in recent trade, but remains slightly lower at $34.38 -0.08 (or -0.2%).DJ30 +167.79 NASDAQ +39.71 SP500 +21.44 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1889/345.4 mln/450 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2363/166.5 mln/413
10:00 am : Stocks continue to trade with strength. The Philadelphia Fed Index for March has provided support to this morning's bid. It surged to a 25-year high of 43.4, which blew out the Briefing.com consensus.
Leading Indicators for February were less impressive. They increased by 0.8%, which is less than the 1.0% that had been broadly expected. DJ30 +122.31 NASDAQ +30.83 SP500 +15.18 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1802/195 mln/455 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 2317/105 mln/417
09:45 am : Strong buying in the first few minutes of trade has all three of the major equity averages up in excess of 1%. Although the bid has been broad based, utilities stocks have failed to find support. In turn, the Dow Jones Utility Average is down 0.4%.
Meanwhile, a strong forecast from FedEx (FDX 89.40, +4.12) has helped the Dow Jones Transportation Index climb to a 1.6% gain, which has come in the face of higher oil prices. Futures contract prices for the energy component recently cleared $100 per barrel, but it has since eased back by about a dime. DJ30 +124.58 NASDAQ +30.06 SP500 +15.78
09:15 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +20.20. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +34.40. Stock futures suggest that a strong opening is in order. The bid comes amid renewed strength among Europe's major bourses, which have rebounded sharply after suffering several sizable losses during the past week. Strength in Europe comes despite another round of losses among Asia's major equity averages. Initial weekly jobless claims came down in line with expectations and increases to February CPI were of little surprise. However, industrial production decreased by 0.1% in Februay. It had been broadly expected to increase by 0.6%.
09:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +20.30. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +36.70. Europe's major bourses are up with impressive gains following broad weakness in recent sessions. Germany's DAX logged losses in each of the last six sessions, but is up 1.8% this session. Of its 30 components, Commerzbank is the only issue that has failed to put together a gain. France's CAC is currently up 1.7%. Britain's FTSE is up 1.4% after falling in 11 of the last 13 sessions. Real estate plays have provided leadership in the latest round of trade. Unable to preserve their rebound in the prior session, Asia's major averages succumbed to renewed selling pressure. Japan's Nikkei logged a 1.4% loss, but only after it had rallied back from a much sharper drop. Concerns related to radiation leaks at compromised nuclear facilities continue. Hong Kong's Hang Seng suffered a 1.8% drop.
08:35 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +17.10. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +28.00. Stock futures continue to trade with strength in the wake of the latest dose of data. Initial weekly jobless claims for the week ended March 12 totaled 385,000, which is on par with the 386,000 initial claims that had been expected, on average, among economists polled by Briefing.com. Initial claims for the prior week were revised upward to 401,000. Continuing claims came down to 3.71 million from 3.79 million. Consumer prices for February increased by 0.5%, which is greater than the 0.4% that had been expected, on average, among economists polled by Briefing.com. The stronger-than-expected increase follows a 0.4% increase for the prior month. Excluding food and energy, consumer prices increased by 0.2%, which is more than the 0.1% increase that had been broadly anticipated. Core consumer prices also increased by 0.2% in the prior month.
08:05 am : S&P futures vs fair value: +14.10. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +23.70. Stocks have logged losses in seven of the past nine sessions, but some relief appears to be in order this morning as stock futures point to a positive start to trade. This morning's bid comes as Europe's major bourses bounce after further losses overnight among Asia's major averages. Although Japan's stock market succumbed to further selling, the yen continues to gain ground against the greenback -- it was last quoted with a 0.5% gain at about 78.50 yen per dollar. Oil has added to its price gain from the prior session by climbing 1.8% to $99.73 per barrel in electronic trade amid continued tumult in the Middle East and North Africa. Reports indicate that the UN has drafted a resolution to impose a No-Fly Zone over Libya. In corporate news, FedEx (FDX) came short of the consensus earnings estimate for its latest quarter, but issued strong guidance. The stock is up about 4% ahead of the open. Fifth Third (FITB) is up only modestly in premarket trade following news that the bank has repurchased the warrant issued to the Treasury Dept. The bottom of the hour brings the latest CPI figure and weekly jobless claims. Industrial production data are due at 9:15 AM ET. Leading Indicators and the Philadelphia Fed Survey follow at 10:00 AM ET.
07:32 am : [BRIEFING.COM] S&P futures vs fair value: +11.10. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: +18.20.
6:45PM Taseko Mines announces 2010 operating profit of $126 mln (TGB) 5.83 +0.22 : For the year ended December 31, 2010, Taseko had an operating profit of $125.5 mln and net earnings of $148.6 mln ($0.80 per share). This compares to an operating profit of $48.3 mln and net earnings of $10.6 mln ($0.06 per share) for the year ended December 31, 2009. Revenue for 2010 was $278.5 mln from the sale of 86.3 mln pounds of copper and 0.9 mln pounds of molybdenum at average realized prices of US$3.66 per pound and US$16.32 per pound, respectively. For the three months ending Dec 31, 2010, TGB had an operating profit of $57.5 mln and net earnings of $25.3 mln ($0.14 per share). Total sales for the fourth quarter were 33.6 mln pounds of copper and 0.3 mln pounds of molybdenum at average realized prices of US$4.12 per pound and US$16.24 per pound, respectively.
6:31PM Independence Hldg reports Q4 ($0.01) vs. $0.04 in last year's quarter (IHC) 85.79 +0.84 :
6:20PM American Caresource Holdings reports Q4 in-line (ANCI) 1.92 +0.09 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.01 per share, incl income tax gains, in-line with the Thomson Reuters dual-analyst est of $0.01; revenues fell 4.0% year/year to $16.1 mln vs the $15.0 mln dual-analyst est.
6:13PM Cabot statement on impact from Japan earthquake (CBT) 44.30 +0.54 : Cabot reports no injuries, minimal physical damage to its Japan facilities from earthquake Transportation and infrastructure disruptions have impacted operations BOSTON and TOKYO. CBT confirmed the safety of all its employees in Japan and said that its facilities have sustained only minimal physical damage. "We have a strong presence in Japan," said, Patrick Prevost, Cabot's president and chief executive officer. "We are deeply concerned for the people of the region and are committed to providing support where we can." Cabot's two primary materials produced in Japan are carbon black and tantalum. Cabot operates carbon black manufacturing facilities in Chiba and Shimonoseki, a tantalum powder facility in Aizu, and business offices in Toyko and Osaka.
6:05PM Scorpio Tankers misses by $0.01 (STNG) 10.09 +0.17 : Reports Q4 (Dec) ($0.13), $0.01 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of ($0.12); revenues fell 11.3% year/year to $12.0 mln vs the $12.5 mln consensus.
5:59PM Tianli Agritech reports 2010 EPS of $0.90 vs. $0.56 last year; revs rose 70% to $21.3 mln (OINK) 4.88 +0.56 :
5:58PM H & R Block Richard C. Breeden to Step Down as Chairman and Director of the co (HRB) 15.89 +0.07 : Richard C. Breeden, Chairman of the Board of H&R Block, Inc. (HRB), announced he will step down as Chairman and a director of the company effective at the end of the current tax season on April 18, 2011. Mr. Breeden has led the company's board since November 2007, after winning more than 85% of the vote in a proxy contest through which he sought to redirect the company's focus on its core tax business.
5:57PM Vitesse statement regarding Japan earthquake impact; co currently does not anticipate any major impact on its ability to supply product to customers (VTSS) 5.09 +0.07 : Co confirmed that all of its employees in Japan are safe and that its office in Tokyo is undamaged and functional, following last week's disastrous earthquake and tsunami. The Company extends its profound condolences as the Japanese people cope and recover from this natural disaster. Based on initial evaluations, the Company currently does not anticipate any major impact on its ability to supply product to customers, and believes that its inventories are sufficient to meet global demand until any supply chain disruptions are resolved. The Company is also implementing a structured plan to continually assess the global supply chain for supply risk. Senior management will continue to monitor the situation closely.
5:01PM Maxwell Technologies' Heavy Transportation Ultracapacitor Module receives approvals from UK Vehicle Certification Agency (MXWL) 15.56 +0.15 : Co announced that the North American office of United Kingdom's Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA) has granted European Economic Community (EEC)-Type Approval and Conformity of Production (CoP) clearance to Maxwell's 125-volt Heavy Transportation Module (HTM125). The EEC-Type Approval certifies that Maxwell's HTM125 complies with the EEC vehicle electromagnetic compatibility requirements of Council Directive 72/245/EEC as last amended by Commission Directive 2009/19/EC and ECE Regulation 10.03.
5:01PM PPG Automotive OEM Coatings announces electrocoat price increases (PPG) 87.16 +1.64 : The automotive OEM coatings business of PPG announced that it will implement price increases and surcharges for its electrocoat primer coatings line and related products effective May 1 or as contracts permit. Global demand, capacity constraints, outages and availability of feedstocks and intermediates have tightened supply and caused significant increases in raw material costs, resulting in the need for price adjustments, according to Cynthia A. Niekamp, PPG senior vice president, automotive OEM coatings.
5:01PM GenMark Diagnostics announced Paul Ross appointed CFO of GenMark Diagnostics (GNMK) 4.01 +0.26 : Co announced that it has appointed Mr. Paul Ross as Chief Financial Officer, effective April 4, 2011. Ross joins the co from Teledata Technology Solutions, a global provider of information technology consulting services, where he serves as the chief financial officer. Prior to Teledata, Ross served as chief financial officer for nasdaq-listed companies Meade Instruments Corp., a multinational consumer optics co and also for Power-One, Inc., a manufacturer of power supply products for use in communication, semiconductor, testing, medical, industrial, and other electronic instruments.
5:00PM eLoyalty to sell its integrated contact solutions business unit for ~$40.9 mln (ELOY) 6.82 -0.03 : ELOY announced it has signed a definitive agreement to sell its Integrated Contact Solutions ("ICS") business unit, which is engaged in the business of providing consulting, systems integration, and the ongoing management of large, complex, multi-channel data, telephony and converged IP-based customer management solutions in both cloud-based and customer premise environments, to a subsidiary of TeleTech Holdings, one of the largest global providers of technology-enabled business process outsourcing solutions. Under the terms of the definitive agreement, TeleTech has agreed to acquire the ICS business and associated assets and agreed upon liabilities for total consideration of $40.85 million in cash, subject to net working capital and other adjustments as set forth in the definitive agreement.
4:59PM VimpelCom receives key regulatory approvals for combination with Wind Telecom S.p.A. (VIP) 13.94 +0.28 : Co announced that it has received all the necessary regulatory approvals needed to complete the combination of VimpelCom and Wind Telecom S.p.A. ("Wind Telecom") (the "Transaction"). Final approvals have now been received from the Italian Antitrust Authority, the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine, the Competition Commission of Pakistan and the Pakistan Telecommunications Authority. The completion of the Transaction remains subject to certain other conditions precedent, such as receipt of funds to finance the Transaction. Confirmation of these regulatory approvals will allow the Co to proceed without delay to finalize its combination with Wind Telecom, which is expected to occur in the first half of 2011.
4:58PM Willbros awarded storage tank projects (WG) 10.22 +0.33 : Co announced today that a unit of its Downstream Oil & Gas segment was awarded contracts by Plains Marketing, L.P. to build three new petroleum storage tanks at their Patoka Terminal in , IL. The project consists of construction of two internal floating roof tanks and an additional external floating roof tank. The total working capacity of the three tanks will be nearly one million barrels of crude oil.
4:41PM Goldman Sachs announced that H. Lee Scott, Jr. has decided not to stand for re-election to the Board of Directors (GS) 155.75 +1.37 :
4:41PM Alico updates status on IRS examinations (ALCO) 24.43 +0.26 : Co announced that it has received a Revenue Agent's Report ("RAR") from the Internal Revenue Service ("IRS") dated March 9, 2011 pertaining to previously disclosed examinations of Alico, Inc., Agri-Insurance Co, Ltd. and Alico-Agri, Ltd. tax returns for the tax years ended Aug 31, 2005, 2006, 2007 and the one month transition period ended Sept 30, 2007 (the "Dispute Period"). The March 9, 2011 RAR requires Alico and its subsidiaries to either remit $13.0 mln, consisting of $8.7 mln in taxes and $4.3 mln in penalties, or file a response within 30 days of the notice. Co previously reported that on September 9, 2010 and Oct 28, 2010, the IRS issued RARs pursuant to its examinations of Alico, Agri-Insurance and Alico-Agri for the Dispute Period. Based on the combined positions taken in the Sept 9, 2010, Oct 28, 2010 and March 9, 2011 RARs, the IRS has demanded additional taxes and penalties of $26.8 mln, consisting of $14.5 mln in taxes and $12.3 mln in penalties. The RARs did not quantify the interest on the taxes.
4:37PM Polypore announces secondary offering of 4.5 mln shares of common stock by selling stockholders (PPO) 55.69 +0.52 : Co announced the public offering of an aggregate of 4.5 mln shares of its common stock by certain selling stockholders of the Company, including Warburg Pincus Private Equity VIII, L.P. and Warburg Pincus International Partners, L.P., and certain executive officers of the Co. The selling stockholders will receive all of the proceeds from this offering. No shares are being sold by the Co. Warburg Pincus is selling 4,214,705 shares of common stock in the offering. After this offering, Warburg Pincus and its affiliates will beneficially own ~13% of the Co's common stock. The Co's executive officers participating in the offering, including the Co's Chief Executive Officer, are selling an aggregate of 285,295 shares of common stock in the offering. Barclays Capital Inc. will act as sole book-running manager for the offering.
4:30PM Compass Minerals Intl subsidiary announces increase the price of all sulfate of potash specialty fertilizer products by $50/short ton on orders placed or shipped on or after April 1, 2011, or as contracts allow (CMP) 88.47 :
4:26PM LDK Solar beats by $0.17, beats on revs; guides Q1 (Mar) revs in-line; guides FY11 (Dec) revs above consensus (LDK) 12.89 +0.96 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $1.09 per share, $0.17 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.92. Gross margin for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010 was 27.3%, compared to 22.2% in the third quarter of fiscal 2010 and 9.9% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009. Co issues in-line guidance for Q1 (Mar), sees Q1 (Mar) revs of $800-850 mln vs. $821.67 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY11 (Dec), sees FY11 (Dec) revs of $3.5-3.7 bln vs. $3.09 bln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co expects FY11 wafer shipments of 2.7 to 2.9 gigawatts (GW), module shipments of 800 MW to 900 MW, in-house polysilicon production of 10,000 MT and 11,000 MT, in-house cell production between 500 MW and 600 MW, and gross margin between 24% and 29%.
4:20PM Amkor announced that its manufacturing facility in Kitakami, Japan, located about 260 miles northeast of Tokyo, has suffered relatively minor damage in last week's earthquake (AMKR) 6.49 +0.10 : The Kitakami facility is currently closed due to power supply interruptions and plans are underway to restore production capabilities at the site when power, gas and water supplies, and transportation systems are stabilized. The Kitakami facility is Amkor's smallest operation in both units and revenue, generating approximately $10 million to $11 million of monthly sales prior to the earthquake. The Kitakami facility only provides services to a few Japan-based customers. We are working closely with these customers to assess and support their requirements in light of the earthquake's impact on their operations.
4:20PM Nike misses by $0.04, misses on revs; futures orders in-line (NKE) 85.41 +0.59 : Reports Q3 (Feb) earnings of $1.08 per share, $0.04 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $1.12; revenues rose 7.3% year/year to $5.08 bln vs the $5.18 bln consensus. Ex-the impacts of FX, NIKE Brand revenues rose 9% driven by growth in all seven NIKE Brand key categories and every geography except Japan. Revenues for our Other Businesses increased 1%, with minimal impact from FX, as growth in Converse, Cole Haan, and Hurley was largely offset by lower revs in Umbro and NIKE Golf. As of the end of the quarter futures orders for NIKE Brand athletic footwear and apparel, scheduled for delivery from March through July 2011, totaled $7.9 bln, 11% higher than orders reported for the same period last year. Ex-currency changes, reported orders would have increased 9% vs. the +7-11% consensus range. Q3 gross margin of 45.8% vs. the 46.0% consensus. During the third quarter, NIKE, Inc. repurchased a total of 5.5 mln shares for ~$468 mln as part of its four-year, $5 bln share repurchase program, approved by the Board of Directors in September 2008. As of the end of the third quarter the co has purchased a total of 22.9 mln shares for ~$1.7 bln under this program.
4:17PM Alterra Capital announces initial loss estimates for three recent natural catastrophe events, which include $5-8 mln related to Jan Australian floods; $6-10 mln related to Cyclone Yasi; and $15-20 mln related to New Zealand Feb 21 earthquake (ALTE) 20.96 +0.46 :
4:17PM Warner Chilcott reaffirms 2011 revs in-line, guides 2011 EPS (WCRX) 22.21 -0.09 : Co announced that certain of its subsidiaries have successfully completed the refinancing of the Company's prior senior secured credit facilities. The co reaffirms 2011 revs of $2.7-2.8 bln vs. $2.7 bln Thomson Reuters consensus. The Company now estimates that its full year 2011 GAAP net income will decrease by approximately $15 million and be in the range of $255 million to $281 million, primarily driven by the write-down of previously outstanding deferred loan costs in connection with the refinancing which are expected to more than offset reduced cash interest costs for the balance of 2011. Full year 2011 CNI, as defined above, is now expected to increase by $0.15 per share from a range of $3.45 to $3.55 per share, to a range of $3.60 to $3.70 per share (Consensus is $3.55).
4:16PM Theragenics confirms rejection of $2.20 per share takeover proposal from German company (TGX) 2.02 +0.43 : "After careful and thorough evaluation, and with the assistance of our financial and legal advisors, our Board unanimously determined that the proposal grossly undervalues our business and prospects, and therefore is inadequate and not in the best interests of Theragenics and its stockholders."
4:16PM Eli Lilly announces important action regarding recall of alcohol prep pads made by Triad Group included in forteo starter kits (LLY) 34.13 +0.50 : Co announced that patients should not use the alcohol prep pads made by the Triad Group that are contained in the black starter kits for Forteo in the United States. The Triad Group is recalling the alcohol prep pads due to potential contamination with the bacteria, Bacillus cereus, which could result in life threatening infections, especially in at-risk populations, including immune suppressed and surgical patients. The starter kits did not contain the Forteo Delivery Device.
4:07PM PC Connection acquires ValCom Technology for $11.6 million (PCCC) 7.93 +0.05 : Under the terms of the stock purchase agreement, co paid the shareholders of ValCom Technology $8.6 million at closing and will pay up to an additional $3.0 million upon the achievement of certain performance milestones over the next eighteen months.
4:07PM Intuit Reports TurboTax Online Unit Growth of 30 Percent From Feb. 13 Through March 12 (INTU) 48.44 -0.07 : Co announces that from Feb. 13 through March 12, total TurboTax federal units grew 23 percent compared to the same period last year. The company reported strong momentum since mid-February with TurboTax Online unit growth of 30 percent compared to the same period last year. For the season-to-date through March 12, total TurboTax federal units were up 7 percent compared to the same period last year. Also through March 12, TurboTax Online units were up 14 percent, while desktop units were down 3 percent compared to the same period last year. The company's first season-to-date consumer tax update was released in mid-February and reported TurboTax federal unit results through Feb. 12.
4:06PM Protalix BioTherapeutics announces proposed public offering of common stock (PLX) 6.10 -0.11 : Co announced that it intends, subject to market conditions, to offer and sell shares of its common stock in an underwritten public offering. Citi and Barclays Capital Inc. are acting as the joint book-running managers for the offering. The Company expects to use the net proceeds from the sale of the shares for one or more of the following: to fund clinical trials for the Company's product candidates; to fund the Company's research and development activities; to enhance the Company's manufacturing capacity; and for working capital and general corporate purposes.
4:04PM Gordmans Stores beats by $0.02, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS and revs above consensus; issues upside FY12 guidance (GMAN) 14.27 +0.62 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $0.44 per share, $0.02 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.42; revenues rose 9.4% year/year to $168.4 mln vs the $164.7 mln consensus. Comparable store sales increased 6.0% over the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009. Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.34-0.36 vs. $0.33 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of $119-121 vs. $117.73 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY12, sees EPS of $1.30-1.35 vs. $1.31 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY12 revs of $563-571 vs. $561.69 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. "Gordmans delivered strong operating results for the fourth quarter driven primarily by comparable stores sales growth and enhanced gross profit margins. We are pleased with the progress we have made on several key merchandising, marketing and inventory management initiatives that we believe drove sales and earnings growth during the fourth quarter and the year. We are optimistic with respect to our outlook for fiscal year 2011, during which we expect to open six new stores, relocate one store and enter two new major markets."
4:03PM Shoe Carnival beats by $0.02, reports revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS in-line, revs in-line (SCVL) 25.85 +0.45 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $0.33 per share, $0.02 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.31; revenues rose 5.3% year/year to $179.9 mln vs the $180.9 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.72-0.75 vs. $0.71 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of $198-201 mln vs. $192.79 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co sees Q1 same store sales of 3-5%.
4:03PM rue21 announces plans to double the size of its current 189,600 square foot Distribution Center located in Weirton, West Virginia. (RUE) 29.75 -0.91 : Development plans call for the construction of 180,000 square feet of additional storage space, additional receiving docks, and improved truck circulation areas. The plans also call for a 5,000 square-foot employee area which includes additional employee restrooms, locker rooms, and a new cafeteria with access to an outdoor seating area.
4:02PM Host Hotels authorizes a regular quarterly cash dividend of $0.02 per share on the Company's common stock, an increase of $0.01 from the previous quarter (HST) 17.26 +0.37 :
4:02PM Anacor Pharma enters into a development agreement with Medicines for Malaria Venture to develop Anacor's compound AN3661 for the treatment of malaria (ANAC) 6.83 +0.16 : Co announced that it has entered into a development agreement with Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) to develop Anacor's compound AN3661 for the treatment of malaria. Under the agreement, Anacor and MMV will work together on the development of AN3661 through human proof-of-concept studies. AN3661 was developed as part of a research agreement signed by the two parties in April 2010 to identify new compounds for the treatment of malaria using Anacor's boron chemistry. AN3661 is the first candidate arising out of the research agreement to move into preclinical development.
4:01PM Covidien confirms that all of its nearly 1,500 employees in Japan are safe and that its office in Tokyo is undamaged and functional (COV) 51.68 +1.25 : Co confirms that all of its nearly 1,500 employees in Japan are safe and that its office in Tokyo is undamaged and functional. Covidien's manufacturing facility in Shizuoka and its distribution centers in Shizuoka and Tokyo did not suffer any damage. Japan represented approximately 8 percent of Covidien's fiscal year 2010 net sales.
4:01PM Full House Resorts receives Indiana Gaming License (FLL) 3.57 +0.03 : Co has been approved for an Indiana gaming license by the Indiana Gaming Commission. The awarding of the license should enable the company to close on its acquisition of the Grand Victoria Casino and Resort in Rising Sun, Indiana early in the second quarter of 2011.
4:00PM Affymax to sell shares of its common stock in an underwritten public offering (AFFY) 6.44 +0.07 : Co announces that it is offering to sell shares of its common stock in an underwritten public offering. All of the shares in the offering are to be sold by Affymax. Lazard Capital Markets LLC is acting as sole book-running manager in the offering, with Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated acting as co-manager.
4:00PM EV Energy prices private offering of $300 million of 8.0% senior notes (EVEP) 44.65 -1.51 : Co announes that it priced its private offering to eligible purchasers of $300 million in aggregate principal amount of 8.0% senior unsecured notes due 2019 at an offering price equal to 100% of par. The offering was upsized from the previously announced $250 million to $300 million. The Partnership intends to use the net proceeds, after expenses, from the notes offering of ~$291.7 million to repay indebtedness under its existing revolving credit facility.
3:53PM HearUSA has filed in New York State Supreme Court to obtain a temporary restraining order against Siemens Hearing Instruments (EAR) 0.45 -0.13 : Co filed today in New York State Supreme Court to obtain a temporary restraining order against Siemens Hearing Instruments Inc. The purpose of the restraining order is to allow the court to address the merits of the dispute between HearUSA and Siemens concerning the alleged $2.3 million pre-payment. HearUSA said it will vigorously resist the efforts by Siemens to engage in self-help measures and to take possession of the Company's assets.
3:52PM iStar Financial announces new $2.95 billion credit agreement (SFI) 9.09 +0.06 : Co enters into a new $2.95 billion senior secured credit agreement providing for two tranches of term loans: a $1.50 billion A-1 tranche due June 28, 2013, which bears interest at a rate of LIBOR plus 3.75%, and a $1.45 billion A-2 tranche due June 30, 2014, which bears interest at a rate of LIBOR plus 5.75%. Both tranches include a LIBOR floor of 1.25%.
3:48PM Late day push to new high for Dow +182, S&P +19 hovering slightly under morning peak -- Nasdaq Comp +26 (SPY) :
3:36PM F5 Networks sinks to fresh lows as it dips down to probe its Jan/6-mth low near $102.50-103.00 (FFIV) 103.12 -3.40 : Any weakness below that zone would usher in the $100.00 "psychological" level. Also of interest, the stock is trading back below its 200-day ema ($105.87) for the first time since April of 2009 with this breakdown into fresh March low territory at hand.
3:29PM Amazon.com slides to new session low of 160.96, its four month low from Tuesday is at 160.76 (AMZN) 161.03 -3.67 : Note that its 200 ema comes into play thereafter at 159.42.
3:17PM Riverbed Technology slips back, retesting 50 day sma/ema and Feb/March trendline (RVBD) 38.96 -0.55 :
3:13PM Lear extends afternoon slide, holding modestly above its three month low set yesterday at 97.03 -- session low 95.37 (LEA) 95.37 -1.66 :
3:03PM Stock indices extending afternoon push after minor retracement -- Dow +142, S&P +16, Nasdaq Comp +25 (SPY) : The Dow and S&P pulled back to roughly the 38% retracement of the bounce off yesterday's low this afternoon (Nasdaq Comp held near 50%) with some lift noted over the last hour. A continued posture above these levels leaves it in positioned for a follow through attempt. Resistance above for the S&P is at 1276 in front of the high (1278). Relative sector strength has been noted in Energy XLE, Oil Service, OIH, Ag/Chem MOO, Copper JJC, Silver SLV, Finance XLF.
3:01PM Air Products increased the quarterly dividend 18% on the company's common stock to $0.58 per share from $0.49 per share (APD) 86.28 +2.15 :
2:52PM CBOT Agriculture and Ethanol and ICE Exchange Sugar Closing Prices; wheat +7.3%, corn +4.9% (the exchange limit) (COMDX) : May corn finished up 30 cents (+4.9%) to $6.465, May wheat rose 48.25 (or 7.3%) cents to close at $7.1025, May soybeans gained 44 cents (or 3.4%) to close at $13.31, April ethanol closed higher by 0.102 cents at $2.399, while May world sugar futures closed up 0.89 cents to 26.74 cents.
2:37PM NYMEX Energy Closing Prices (COMDX) : Crude oil settled higher by $3.44 to $101.42, natural gas gained 22.5 cents to close at $4.163, heating oil finished up 6.48 cents to $3.062 while RBOB gasoline ended up 10.24 cents to $2.9461 (all April contracts).
2:24PM Crude oil to fresh highs, at $101.99, with approx 7 min left in pit trade; now up$3.71 to $101.69 (COMDX) :
2:11PM First Solar announced it will build its new U.S. manufacturing center in Mesa, Ariz; First Solar will invest about $300 million in the factory (FSLR) 154.20 -0.88 : The new factory, in combination with First Solar's recently expanded facility in Perrysburg, Ohio, will increase First Solar's U.S. production capacity to more than 500MW per year.
1:42PM COMEX Metals Closing Prices (COMDX) : April gold gained $7.70 to close at $1403.80, May silver shed 21.4 cents to end at $34.258, while May copper finished higher by 14.65 cents to $4.344.
1:36PM SWS Group confirms receipt of unsolicited conditional proposal from Sterne Agee to acquire co for $6.25 per share (SWS) 6.07 +1.14 : Sandler O'Neill + Partners, L.P., is serving as financial advisor to SWS Group, and Andrews Kurth LLP is serving as its legal advisor.
1:26PM Washington Trust increases quarterly dividend $0.01 to $0.22 per share (WASH) 21.65 +0.25 :
1:20PM Crude oil trades through $101; now up $3.17 to $101.15 (COMDX) :
1:12PM GenMark Diagnostics receives medical device manufacturing license for its Carlsbad Facility (GNMK) 4.00 +0.25 : Co has received notice from the California State Food and Drug Branch, that following a recent audit of its new Carlsbad facility, it has been issued with a medical device manufacturing license, enabling the company to manufacture and distribute all its existing and future products from this facility. All operations at its Pasadena facility, which had been the source of all manufacturing and distribution for the company, will cease at the end of March 2011.
1:01PM Corinthian Colleges unit WyoTech has signed an agreement with Republic Services (RSG), to grant interviews to WyoTech graduates specializing in the school's automotive, diesel and collision programs (COCO) 4.53 -0.18 :
1:01PM Cinedigm Digital Cinema announced that American Multi-Cinema selected its Exhibitor; expects that implementation will be completed by summer 2011 (CIDM) 1.56 +0.01 :
12:57PM Fresenius Medical confirms that its patient safety organization gains official certification by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (FMS) 64.86 +0.63 : The purpose of a PSO is to establish a framework by which doctors and other health care providers may voluntarily report information to PSOs, on a privileged and confidential basis, to collect and analyze patient safety events.
12:47PM Theragenics: Eckert & Ziegler announces offer to Board to acquire Theragenics for $2.20 per share (TGX) 2.01 +0.38 : Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen, has announced that it has submitted a non-binding proposal to the Board of Directors of Theragenics Corporation (TGX), to acquire, either directly or through IBt Bebig, all the outstanding shares of Theragenics for $2.20 per share, in cash. The offer represents a total equity value of approximately $74 million and a premium of 38.4% over Theragenics' closing stock price on March 16, 2011. The offer also represents a premium of 15.8% over the 52 week high trading price of Theragenics stock. The non-binding offer, which was made on February 8, 2011, and rejected by Theragenics on March 11, 2011, was reiterated in a letter sent today to Theragenics' Board of Directors. Eckert & Ziegler has named Canaccord Genuity, based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, as its U.S. Financial advisor.
12:32PM Oil Service HOLDRS Trust pushes to new session high of 156.31 in recent trade (OIH) 156.28 +5.38 : The top of its now six day trading range is at 156.91 with its 20 day ema, which provided important support on numerous occasions during the Aug to Feb advance, just above at 157.07 -- BHI, CAM, DO, ESV, EXH, HAL, NBR, NE, NOV, RDC, RIG, SLB, TDW, WFT.
11:48AM Stock indices slipping back off morning highs -- Dow +126, S&P +16, Nasdaq Comp +35 (SPY) : Relative weakness on this move has been noted in Finance XLF, Housing XHB, Retail XRT, Silver SLV, Gold Miners GDX, Steel SLX.
11:38AM Wabash Natl announces agreement to manufacture frac tanks for the environmental services, and oil and gas industries (WNC) 10.78 +0.37 : Co announces an exclusive, 5-year agreement to manufacture frac tanks for Indiana-based Sabre Manufacturing. Wabash National will be investing ~$2.5 million and adding up to 200 jobs to support the new manufacturing initiative. Production of approximately 300 units in 2011, to be manufactured at co's South Campus in Lafayette, Ind., is expected to commence next month with upwards of 2,500 units being produced over the next 5 years. Frac tanks are bulk liquid storage containers used by fluid management companies in the environmental services, and oil and gas industries.
11:14AM Currency Chart Watch: Dollar Index tests 52-wk close low (UUP) 76.00 -0.68 : Noted the test last week of the Jan/Feb downsloping trendline with the two day test/failure keeping the weaker bias intact. Today's bearish extension has set a new four month low with the Dollar Index testing its 52-wk close low from Nov at 75.87 (session low 75.84). It has stabilized/edged off the low over the last several hours but only a limited rebound has been noted thus far. Initial resistances are at 76.15 and 76.35 with sustained progress above 76.66 and the bear trendline (dropping roughly 0.10 per day, at 76.75 Friday) needed to improve the established negative bias -- Click for chart.
11:04AM Alcoa edges to minor new session high of 16.06, hovering modestly below this week's range top/50 ema at 16.15/16.19 (AA) 16.05 +0.40 :
10:54AM Crude ticks to new highs; now up $2.72 to $100.70 (COMDX) :
10:46AM New York Times launches digital subscriptions (NYT) 9.00 +0.15 : Co announces that it is launching digital subscriptions, which will affect some users of its Web site, NYTimes.com, and its applications for smartphone and tablet. The subscription plan allows for free access to a set amount of content across digital platforms. When the monthly reading limit is reached, users who are not already home delivery subscribers will be asked to become digital subscribers. Digital subscriptions will be available in the United States and globally on March 28, 2011.
10:33AM Nasdaq Comp +41 joins Dow +166 and S&P +21 at minor new session highs (SPY) : Relative sector strength in recent trade (outperforming the S&P) has been noted in Oil Service OIH, Energy XLE, Materials XLB, Copper JJC, Ag/Chem MOO, Transports/Rail IYT, Silver SLV, Semi SMH, Retail XRT.
10:30AM Natural gas spikes to its best levels of the morning following inventory data; now up 9.6 cents to $4.034 (UNG) :
10:21AM Dow +158 and S&P +19 set new session highs, Nasdaq Comp +33 has not yet confirmed the move (SPY) :
10:19AM Energy Select Sector sets a fresh session high of 75.63, this week's high/six day range top is at 75.78/75.81 (XLE) 75.60 +1.85 : CVX, COP, DVN, XOM, RIG, SLG, OXY, MRO, HAL, APA, APC.
10:09AM Mosaic working up toward this week's rebound high/range top from yesterday at 77.81 (MOS) 77.36 +1.88 :
10:01AM CoreLogic announces the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has awarded a patent to the company for its unique ParcelPoint technology (CLGX) 17.66 +0.42 :
10:01AM Humana has begun piloting a new long-term care insurance offering (HUM) 63.70 +0.81 : The plan offers benefits with the flexibility to ensure individuals have access to the resources they need in the case of chronic illness. The pilot has launched in six states: Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.
10:01AM Stock indices lift modestly after stronger Philly Fed -- Dow +141, S&P +17, Nasdaq +33 (SPY) :
9:59AM Caterpillar notches new session high of 102.29, this week's rebound high/four day range top from Monday is at 102.59 (CAT) 102.10 +1.70 :
9:49AM Opening Point Gainers/Losers (TECHX) : Point Gainers: GOOG (+7.00), AAPL (+6.48), SI (+6.71), XIV (+5.04), FDX (+3.81), ERX (+3.65), PCLN (+3.13), OIH (+3.29), CLF (+3.02), EOG (+2.69), DO (+2.40)
9:48AM Top performing sectors (TECHX) : Providing leadership in early session action are Energy/Commodity (Steel SLX +2.2%, Oil Service OIH +2.2%, Energy XLE +1.9%, Ag/Chem MOO +1.6%, Crude Oil USO +1.6%, Materials XLB +1.4%) along with Transports IYT, Biotech BBH +1.7%, Industrial XLI +1.5%, Broker IAI +1.4%.
9:48AM Quest Diagnostics announced that its ColoVantage test has been approved by New York State's Department of Health for testing on samples of patients in the state (DGX) 54.53 +0.44 :
9:45AM Travelers tests highs of last two sessions at 58.82/58.84 -- session high 58.83 (TRV) 58.75 +0.62 : Stock held nicely at support on Tuesday near its Nov peak and between its 50 ema/sma and rebounded to the 58.82/58.84 area over the last two days. It has probed this initial resistance in early trade today.
9:41AM Star Scientific announced that Leo S. Tonkin, the longest-serving member of the board of directors, announced his retirement effective as of today (CIGX) 3.08 +0.18 : Richard L. Sharp has been elected to the company's board of directors.
9:39AM Siemens AG gaps aggressively higher, flirts with its 50 ema/sma at 126.80/127.00 -- session high 126.62 (SI) 126.21 +6.76 :
9:37AM Aggressive run higher in opening trade for stock indices -- S&P +16, Dow +127, Nasdaq Comp +36 (SPY) : There is resistance for the S&P at 1275/1278 with the 38% retracement of the slide off the March high slightly above at 1280 (session high 1274.81).
9:33AM Genomic Health announces results from nine studies utilizing the Oncotype DX test in early-stage breast cancer patients (GHDX) 23.39 -0.37 : Co announced results from nine studies utilizing the Oncotype DX test in early-stage breast cancer patients at the 12th Annual St. Gallen International Breast Cancer Conference in St. Gallen, Switzerland. The studies included region-specific decision impact data that demonstrated the knowledge of a patient's Recurrence Score (RS) result changed physicians' treatment recommendations in approximately 33 percent of cases in the United Kingdom (UK), Germany and Spain, which is similar to what has been shown in United States. Health economic data that illustrated the cost effectiveness of utilizing the RS result in Greece, Hungary and Singapore were also presented.
9:32AM Sun Bancorp announced today the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 25 mln shares of common stock at a public offering price of $3.00 per share (SNBC) 3.10 -0.18 : After deducting the underwriting discount and estimated offering expenses payable by the company, Sun expects to receive net proceeds of ~$70,250,000.
9:31AM Vishay Announces That Its Sales Office in Tokyo and All Its Japan Employees Are Safe (VSH) 17.02 +0.36 : Co provides an update on the impact to Vishay operations from the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Its sales office in Tokyo is safe and all Vishay employees who work in Japan are well. Co has no manufacturing sites in Japan. There is no impact to Vishay factories in other Asian countries as a result of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan.
9:31AM Wireless Ronin enters into a teaming and co-marketing agreement with Sprint (S) to offer customers a comprehensive, fully-hosted digital signage and content management solution (RNIN) 1.05 -0.02 :
9:31AM Air Products will increase supply of hydrogen to Marathon Petroleum Company LP, a subsidiary of Marathon Oil Corporation (MRO) (APD) 58.86 +1.74 :
9:27AM China Automotive to restate its financial statements; accounting review points to non-cash items related to convertible notes (CAAS) 10.23 : Co announces that it expects to restate its previously issued financial statements for fiscal year 2009 and the first three quarters of fiscal year 2010 to reflect non-cash gains or losses related to the accounting treatment for the co's convertible notes issued on February 15, 2008. The Convertible Notes contain an embedded conversion feature that allows for an adjustment to the conversion price in the event that the Company issues equity securities at a price lower than the original conversion price. This adjustment feature provides the note investors with a level of anti-dilution protection not available to common shareholders. Co states the accounting errors did not result from any changes in the co's internal accounting policies, and the Company has no evidence that the errors resulted from any fraud or intentional misconduct. Further, these errors are non-cash and have no financial impact on the operational performance of the co.
9:16AM Document Security Systems signs a licensing agreement with Buffalo, NY-based security printer Midwest Banknote (DMC) 4.50 :
9:07AM On The Wires (WIRES) :
* CPEX Pharmaceuticals (CPEX) announced that its Board of Directors has completed its review of the unsolicited, non-binding letter received from Mangrove Partners on March 14, 2011 regarding a potential alternative transaction involving a recapitalization of CPEX, and unanimously believes that the merger agreement with FCB I Holdings Inc. continues to be the most compelling opportunity for stockholders to immediately and with certainty realize the maximum after-tax value for their shares. * International Game Technology (IGT) announced that the Company has formalized an agreement with the California Nations Indian Gaming Association Economic Development Corporation LLC. This mutually beneficial agreement provides CNIGA EDC LLC with monetary awards for increases in the number of IGT Wide Area Progressive/Contribution games in use at the casinos of CNIGA member tribes. * Roper Industries' (ROP) TransCore successfully completes factory acceptance testing and certification of the radio frequency identification technology to be used statewide. The first installation will be on North Carolina's Triangle Expressway in the Research Triangle Park.
9:02AM Endurance Specialty announces that its initial loss estimate related to the floods which occurred in Australia in Jan is $15 mln and that its initial loss estimate related to the earthquake in New Zealand on February is $45 mln (ENH) 46.13 :
9:02AM Bally Technologies promotes Ramesh Srinivasan to President and COO (BYI) 34.58 : CO announces the promotion of Ramesh Srinivasan to President and COO. He joined co in 2005 as Executive Vice President of Bally Systems. He replaces Gavin Isaacs, the co COO for the past four years, who will depart Bally effective March 30 to join Shuffle Master (SHFL) as its CEO.
9:01AM Aehr Test Systems received an order for Advanced Burn-in and Test System (AEHR) 1.69 : This is the first ABTS ordered by this customer. This system is configured to do burn-in and test of high pin count logic ICs. The system has 320 IO channels and is also backward compatible with Aehr Test Systems' earlier generation ATX system, preserving the customer's investment in burn-in-boards.
9:01AM Shuffle Master announced that Gavin Isaacs has been named CEO, effective April 1, 2011 (SHFL) 9.50 : Co announced today that Gavin Isaacs has been named Chief Executive Officer, effective April 1, 2011, subject to his obtaining appropriate regulatory approvals. Mr. Isaacs will be appointed to the Company's Board of Directors.
9:01AM Maxim Integrated provides update on impact of Japan quake; expects no material impact to revenue for the current quarter (MXIM) 23.66 : Co reported no structural damage to its partner facility, Seiko Epson, as a result of the catastrophic earthquake in Japan. However, a regional power outage has affected production at the facility located in Sakata, Japan. The Seiko Epson facility provided approximately 15 percent of Maxim's wafer starts last quarter. All products manufactured at Seiko Epson can be manufactured at other facilities, which have sufficient excess capacity. Therefore, Maxim has already begun shifting production from the Japan facility to its internal fabs and other foundry partners. Maxim expects no material impact to revenue for the current quarter, which ends on March 26, 2011. The company is assessing potential exposure to June quarter revenue from manufacturing delays at Seiko Epson as well as global supply chain issues at Maxim and its customers. The company will include any impact to the June quarter results in its earnings guidance, which it will provide on April 21, 2011.
8:54AM CPEX Pharmaceuticals continues to recommend that stockholders vote for the merger agreement with FCB (CPEX) 27.15 : Co announces that its Board of Directors has completed its review of the unsolicited, non-binding letter received from Mangrove Partners regarding a potential alternative transaction involving a recapitalization of CPEX and unanimously believes that the merger agreement with FCB I Holdings continues to be the most compelling opportunity for stockholders to immediately and with certainty realize the maximum after-tax value for their shares. Consistent with its fiduciary duties and CPEX's merger agreement with FCB, the CPEX Board reviewed the Mangrove Letter in consultation with outside legal counsel and financial advisors and based on its evaluation has determined not to engage in discussions with Mangrove regarding the Alternative Proposal. The Board also reaffirmed its recommendation that stockholders vote FOR the merger agreement with FCB. In making this determination, the Board concluded that the Alternative Proposal described in the Mangrove Letter is not, and is not reasonably likely to lead to, a transaction that is both financially more favorable to the CPEX stockholders than the merger with FCB and reasonably capable of being consummated. In reaching this conclusion, the Board determined that the Alternative Proposal lacked certainty of financing and contains flawed valuation assumptions:
8:47AM On The Wires (WIRES) :
* Nalco (NLC) and the DOE's Argonne National Laboratory have reached a licensing agreement for Argonne's resin wafer electrodeionization technology. * Sparton (SPA) announced an initial contract manufacturing award from Talyst. * Quickparts, a 3D Systems (TDSC) co, announced the immediate availability of greatly enhanced quoting capabilities through QuickCutCNC. * IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) announced new daily volume records for the ICE Gasoil and ECX EUA futures contracts. On 16 March, 523,053 Gasoil futures traded on ICE Futures Europe, crossing the 500,000 contracts mark for the first time, and surpassing by more than 17% the previous record of 445,325 contracts traded on 24 February 2011.
8:45AM Natural Resource prices a secondary public offering of 6 million common units owned by Adena Minerals at$35.60 per unit (NRP) 37.48 : Co will not receive any of the proceeds from this offering and the number of outstanding common units of NRP will remain unchanged.
8:42AM iShares Japan: Headlines crossing that TEPCO has connected the power cable to the Fukushima plant (EWJ) :
8:39AM On The Wires (WIRES) :
* Radient Pharmaceuticals Corporation (RPC) announced it has retained law firm DLA Piper to represent the Company in a class action suit filed 2011 by The Rosen Law Firm, P.A. on March 11, alleging RPC has violated federal securities laws by misrepresenting the relationship of RPC with third parties in the Company's clinical studies of its Onko-Sure(R) in vitro diagnostic cancer test. * CytRx Corporation (CYTR) announced that it has initiated an open-label Phase 1b safety and dose escalation clinical trial with INNO-206 at the Sarcoma Oncology Center in Santa Monica, California. * Medidata Solutions (MDSO) announced that Exton, Pa.-based ViroPharma Incorporated has extended its agreement to use the Medidata Rave electronic data capture and clinical data management platform for another multi-year period, building on the success of the relationship in the initial contract. * Limoneira Company (LMNR) announced that in a 6 to 1 vote today, the Local Agency Formation Commission approved conditions that will allow for the annexation and incorporation of 541 acres, known as East Area 1, into the City of Santa Paula.
8:39AM Cornerstone OnDemand prices 10.5 mln share IPO at $13 vs. the $9-11 expectation (CSOD) :
8:32AM Cavico Schedules final breakthrough of Vietnam's longest tunnel at A Luoi Hydropower project; co expects project to generate $53 mln in total revs (CAVO) 1.55 : Co announces that its subsidiary, Cavico Bridge and Tunnel, has scheduled a third and final tunnel breakthrough at the A Luoi Hydropower project. The breakthrough is scheduled to take place during the second week of April 2011. In July 2007, Cavico was awarded a contract to excavate the headrace tunnel as well as four sub-tunnels, a surge tank, a vertical shaft, and a service access road. The Company broke through the first and second sub-tunnels in August and December 2010, respectively. Cavico expects the A Luoi project to generate $53 million in total revenues for the Company.
8:32AM Kimberly-Clark announces price increases (KMB) 63.26 : Co announced that its baby and child care and consumer tissue businesses are notifying customers of plans to raise prices in North America during the second and third quarters of 2011. The company said the increases are necessary to offset inflationary pressure from higher raw material and energy costs.
8:31AM Capstone Turbine secures follow-on order for six C65s from natural gas producer (CPST) 1.74 : Co announced it sold six additional C65s to a prominent natural-gas producer whose current fleet of 49 Capstone microturbines has exceeded 1 mln run time hours.
8:29AM April WTI pushes through $100 to notch highs at $100.67; now up $2.51 to $100.49 (COMDX) :
8:10AM FedEx misses by $0.01, reports revs in-line; guides Q4 EPS above consensus; guides FY11 EPS in-line (FDX) 85.28 : Reports Q3 (Feb) earnings of $0.81 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.01 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.82; revenues rose 11.1% year/year to $9.66 bln vs the $9.61 bln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for Q4, sees EPS of $1.66-1.83, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $1.65 Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $4.83-5.00, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $4.87 Thomson Reuters consensus. While yields grew in all transportation segments, unusually severe winter storms during the quarter disrupted operations, decreased shipping volume and increased costs, impacting year-over-year results by approximately $0.12 per diluted share. "Continued growth in the global economy is driving solid revenue gains in our transportation businesses. We expect strong demand for our services to boost our financial performance in our fourth quarter."
8:09AM On The Wires (WIRES) :
* ARIAD Pharmaceuticals (ARIA) announced that it has elected to exercise its option with Merck (MRK) to co-promote ridaforolimus, an investigational mTOR inhibitor, in the sarcoma indication upon its potential approval in the United States next year. * ImmuCell Corporation (ICCC) announced that it has entered into a sales and marketing collaboration with Agri Laboratories Ltd. of St. Joseph, Missouri. The AgriLabs sales and marketing teams will work with ImmuCell to expand market demand for First Defense. * Entree Gold (EGI) announced that the Entree and Oyu Tolgoi JV has budgeted $7 mln for exploration and development work on the joint venture ground within the Lookout Hill Property, Mongolia. * Viscom AG and CyberOptics (CYBE) jointly announced an OEM agreement to equip Viscom's SPI inspection systems product line with CyberOptics' 3D SPI sensor technology. * China-Biotics (CHBT) announced that the co has expanded its categories of strain formula supplied to Bright Dairy. * OSI Systems (OSIS) announced that the Rapiscan 620 DV multi-view advanced baggage scanner has passed the "Type C" standard set by the European Commission for Civil Aviation for detection of liquid explosive threats, as well as other potential threats.
8:06AM Hawaiian Holdings proposes $75 mln Convertible Senior Notes offering (HA) 6.71 : Co announces its intention to offer, subject to market and other conditions, $75 mln aggregate principal amount of convertible senior notes due 2016 in an underwritten public offering. The co intends to use a portion of the net proceeds from the sale of the notes to pay the cost of the convertible note hedge transactions; a portion of the net proceeds from the sale of the notes to repay a portion of the outstanding loans under the co's existing credit agreement; the remaining net proceeds for general corporate purposes, which could include working capital, fleet capital expenditures, acquisitions, refinancing of existing or other debt or other capital transactions.
8:04AM Capital Gold acknowledges Timmins Gold added $0.25 in cash to its unsolicited offer for co (CGC) 5.24 : Co acknowledges that, on March 15, 2011, Timmins Gold added $0.25 in cash to its unsolicited offer for Capital Gold. Also on March 15, 2011, Gammon Gold announced that it was proposing to amend its merger agreement with Capital Gold to increase the cash component of the merger consideration to be paid to Capital Gold's stockholders by $0.30, from $0.79 to $1.09. The Board of Directors of Capital Gold has considered both bids and unanimously reaffirms its support of the merger with Gammon, as increased.
8:04AM Ivanhoe Energy reports FY10 revenues of $21.9 mln compared to $23.7 mln in 2009 (IVAN) 2.79 -0.07 : Revenue decline primarily due to lower net production volumes in the Dagang field. Sunwing Energy's working interest at Dagang decreased from 82 percent to 49 percent in September 2009 upon the Company recovering its development costs. In 2010, $17.8 million in cash flow was consumed in operations compared to $15.0 million in 2009, primarily due to lower revenue combined with higher general and administrative expenses.
8:03AM Quicksilver Resrcs and Darden family will not pursue a take private transaction of co (KWK) 14.60 : KWK and the members of the Darden family announced today that they had determined not to further pursue a take private transaction of co at this time. The Darden Family Interests first announced that they were interested in a take private transaction in October 2010. The Darden Family Interests have decided not to pursue a take private transaction at this time because they have concluded that co's current capital structure and governance is superior to an alternate private structure for maximizing KWK's exploration and development opportunities.
8:02AM Dorman Products announces the resolution of its dispute with Dayco Products (DORM) 33.99 : Co announces that it has reached a negotiated business resolution of its dispute with Dayco Products, LLC. The dispute involved the appearance of Dorman's automatic belt tensioners and certain statements made by both Dorman and Dayco pertaining to Dorman's automatic belt tensioners. Under the terms of the resolution, Dorman will continue to market automatic belt tensioners, but agreed to: 1) Further modify the appearance of 5 SKUs out of a product line of 36 SKUs. 2) Use the symbol any time Dorman refers to a Dayco belt tensioner part number that is registered as a trademark with the federal registry. 3) With respect to Dorman's belt tensioners only, not use the phrases "OE" or "SAE" to describe its belt tensioners as Dorman is not an OE supplier. Also under the resolution, co agreed to pay Dayco the nominal amount of $37,500.
8:02AM Met-Pro Corp beats by $0.01, beats on revs (MPR) 10.55 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $0.12 per share, $0.01 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.11; revenues rose 20.2% year/year to $23.8 mln vs the $22.4 mln consensus. New order bookings for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2011 were up 10% to $89.9 mln compared with $81.8 mln for the prior fiscal year.
8:00AM Cardiovascular Systems receives FDA 510(k) marketing clearance for stealth 360 orbital PAD system (CSII) 11.16 :
7:48AM LaSalle Hotel acquires the leasehold interest in the Viceroy Santa Monica for $80.1 million (LHO) 25.17 :
7:37AM Actuant reports EPS in-line, revs in-line; guides Q3 EPS in-line, revs above consensus; raises FY11 EPS, in-line, raises revs above consensus (ATU) 27.33 : Reports Q2 (Feb) earnings of $0.30 per share, excluding non-recurring items, in-line with the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.30; revenues rose 24.0% year/year to $331 mln vs the $328.6 mln consensus. Co issues guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.42-0.47, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.46 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q3 revs of $375-385 mln vs. $372.72 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co raises guidance for FY11, sees EPS of $1.50-1.60, excluding non-recurring items, up from $1.45-1.60 vs. $1.56 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY11 revs of $1.400-1.425 bln vs. $1.39 bln Thomson Reuters consensus, up from $1.38-1.43 bln. "At the mid-point of fiscal 2011, we are pleased with our financial performance, notably year-over-year year-to-date EPS growth in excess of 50%, excluding prior year restructuring costs. While we expect second half fiscal 2011 year-over-year core sales growth and margin expansion to moderate, overall sales and earnings will continue to grow reflecting sales momentum and the Mastervolt acquisition. Our core sales growth on a year-to-date basis has benefitted from positive global economic conditions. However, these same factors, as well as foreign currency rate changes, have put upward pressure on material and other input costs which we have effectively mitigated to date."
7:32AM China Armco Metals announces that it has delivered its first shipment of 150K metric tons of iron ore, valued at $19.8 mln, from Mineracao Usiminas S.A (CNAM) 2.35 0.00 :
7:29AM 1st United Bancorp prices 5 mln shares of common stock at $6.50 pre share (FUBC) 7.50 :
7:21AM BioSante correction: FY10 EPS of ($0.70) vs. ($0.65) Thomson Reuters consensus (BPAX) 1.83 : CO last night reported FY10 EPS of ($0.70) vs. ($0.65) Thomson Reuters consensus and ($1.40) last yr, this decrease in net loss was due primarily to transaction and non-cash technology related expenses in 2009, associated with the co's merger with Cell Genesys, offset by increased LibiGel clinical development expenses in 2010.
7:19AM lululemon athletica beats by $0.07, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS in-line, revs below consensus; guides FY12 EPS above consensus, revs in-line (LULU) 79.35 : Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $0.64 per share, normalized for a tax adjustment, $0.07 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.57; revenues rose 52.8% year/year to $245.4 mln vs the $239.3 mln consensus. Gross profit for the quarter increased by 66% to $143.5 million, and as a percentage of net revenue gross profit increased to 58.5% for the quarter from 53.9% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009. Co issues guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.36-0.38 vs. $0.37 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of $175-180 mln vs. $180.56 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues guidance for FY12, sees EPS of $1.90-2.00 vs. $1.88 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY12 revs of $885-900 mln vs. $896.35 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. "The exceptionally strong sell through of our Q4 product line leaves us with short term unmet demand in the first quarter due to a low inventory position. However, the strength of our business model and growing guest demand for our product give us the opportunity to accelerate our store and e-commerce channel growth in 2011 and to establish ourselves as the number one women's athletic wear brand. While we will see some cost pressures in 2011, we are confident in our ability to maintain our business model through disciplined management, operating efficiencies and leverage on higher sales."
7:14AM Hitachi announces effects of the earthquake; announces year-end dividend forecast revision; revised forecast to be decided (HIT) 49.42 : Co announces that damage to buildings and facilities has been confirmed at co's main production bases in Ibaraki Prefecture, including: cracks in walls; fallen ceiling, roofs, and walls; broken glasses; and fallen cabinets inside of buildings. There are no clear forecasts for the recovery of utilities such as water and gas. At Hitachi Appliances, production of room air conditioners and others resumed today, with the exception of tentative interruption due to the planned suspension of electric power supply. Regular operations also resumed at co's main production bases in Kanagawa Prefecture and full production of dry cell batteries has resumed at Hitachi Maxell Ltd.'s Osaka Works.
7:05AM On The Wires (WIRES) :
* Trimble (TRMB) announced that it partnered with Truecount Corporation, an innovator in RFID software solutions for the retail industry. * AECOM Technology Corporation (ACM) announced that it has been awarded a contract for the construction management of DC Water's Enhanced Nitrogen Removal Program in Washington. AECOM's total fees are ~US$40 mln during the five-year contract. * Mediabistro.com, a division of WebMediaBrands (WEBM), announced that it acquired the assets of the blog FacebookMarketing.de from Philipp Roth and Jens Wiese of Munich, Germany. * Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers (RBA) announced it will conduct an unreserved public auction in San Antonio, Texas on April 1, 2011. * Power-One (PWER) announced the introduction of two new members to its PFE series Platinum-efficiency AC-DC front-end power supplies, the PFE600 and PFE850. * Microsemi (MSCC) announced the development of enhancement mode Gallium Nitride field-effect transistors for satellites and other military power conversion, point-of-load, and high speed switching applications.
7:04AM Winnebago Inds beats by $0.05, misses on revs (WGO) 15.19 : Reports Q2 (Feb) earnings of $0.11 per share, $0.05 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.06; revenues fell 3.5% year/year to $106.6 mln vs the $116.4 mln consensus.
6:58AM Velti correction: Reports Q4 adj. EPS of $0.34 vs. $0.73 last yr; rev -13% YoY to $57.5 mln (no ests) (VELT) 12.16 :
6:57AM Alnylam Pharma responds to Tekmira (TKMR) complaint; co maintains its guidance regarding its pipeline, partnership, and cash goals (ALNY) 10.15 : Co responds to the filing of a complaint by Tekmira Pharmaceuticals (TKMR) in the Business Litigation Session of the Massachusetts Superior Court. The complaint alleges misappropriation and misuse of information, amongst other allegations. Co states that the complaint filed by TKMR is without merit or foundation, and intends to fully defend themselves in this matter. As part of the communication to ALNY regarding the filed complaint, TKMR has stated that it will meet its contractual obligations related to the manufacturing of certain ALNY development-stage and clinical pipeline products. ANLY is maintaining its guidance regarding the co's pipeline, partnership, and cash goals.
6:42AM Harbin Electric beats by $0.02, misses on revs; Special Committee continues to evaulate $24 offer to go private from Chairman/CEO Yang (HRBN) 16.68 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.62 per share, $0.02 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.60; revenues fell 0.9% year/year to $106.2 mln vs the $109 mln consensus. "Since being formed, the Special Committee has engaged legal and financial advisors. The Special Committee's process is ongoing and the Special Committee intends to continue with its work, including evaluating any proposal presented by Mr. Yang as well as other proposals which the Company may receive, for as long as the Special Committee, in consultation with its advisors, deems necessary. There can be no assurance that any definitive offer will be made, that any agreement will be executed or that this or any other transaction will be approved or consummated."
6:20AM TransAtlantic Petroleum provides year end operatinal update and reserves summary; co expect to achieve a production rate from our properties in Turkey of at least 10,000 boe per day by the end of 2011 (TAT) 2.96 : Co announces Net oil and gas production, after royalty, for the 4Q10 increased 171% to ~344,000 boe compared to ~127,000 boe for the fourth quarter of 2009. For the fourth quarter of 2010, net oil production, after royalty, in the co's Selmo oil field increased 45% to ~180,000 barrels of oil from ~124,000 barrels of oil in the fourth quarter of 2009. For 2010, net oil and gas production, after royalty, increased 133% to ~974,000 boe compared to ~417,000 boe in 2009. The increase in 2010 was the result of a full year of production in the Selmo oil field, additional production in the Arpatepe oil field and new production in the Thrace Basin gas fields. Additionally co expects to achieve a production rate from our properties in Turkey of at least 10,000 boe per day by the end of 2011.
6:16AM On The Wires (WIRES) :
* Level 3 Communications (LVLT) announced it has added ultra-low-latency network routes to Milan and Zurich to its European financial services portfolio. * INX (INXI) announced that it has met the rigorous standards of SAS70 Type II certification for secure, reliable and effective operations. * Ashland (ASH) announced that James its CEO will undergo surgery to repair a perforated colon resulting from diverticulitis. Throughout his recovery, he will be available on a limited basis. He is expected to return to his full duties in ~2-3 months.
6:06AM Greenbrier reports New Railcar Orders for 4,200 Units Valued at $325 mln; sees Q2 EPS in-line; revs above consensus (GBX) 27.51 : Co announces that it has received orders for 4,200 railcar platforms valued at $325 mln. Delivery of these orders is anticipated to occur principally in calendar 2011. Co issues mixed guidance for Q2 (Feb), sees EPS of ($0.01) vs. ($0.01) Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q2 (Feb) revs of ~$280 mln vs. $251.66 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co's new railcar manufacturing backlog as of February 28, 2011, was ~9,500 units with an estimated value of $720 mln, compared to 8,100 units valued at ~$580 mln as of November 30, 2010.
6:02AM Maxygen: Astellas (ALPMY) exercises option to purchase co's interest in Perseid for exercise price of $76 mln (MAXY) 4.11 : Co announces that Astellas Pharma has exercised its option to purchase all of co's equity interests in Perseid Therapeutics at the current exercise price of $76.0 mln. Under the terms of the cos' 2009 JV arrangement, co transferred substantially all of its protein pharmaceutical programs and related assets and research and development personnel to Perseid and granted Astellas an option to acquire all of its ownership interest in Perseid at specified exercise prices that increased each quarter over the term of the option, which was scheduled to expire on September 18, 2012.
5:42AM Coca-Cola Hellenic's Board elects current COO Dimitris Lois to succeed Doros Constantinou when he retires effective Q3 (CCH) 26.70 :
4:07AM Inovio Pharma misses by $0.02; beats on revs (INO) 1.11 : Reports Q4 (Dec) EPS of ($0.06) vs ($0.04) Thomson Reuters consensus; revs declined 7.7% YoY to $2.4 mln vs $1.3 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.
3:06AM Sanmina-SCI sees Q2 EPS and revs below consensus; co's Pres/CCO resigns, will continue in consulting role (SANM) 13.40 : Co issues downside guidance for Q2 (Mar), sees EPS of $0.28-0.32 vs. $0.41 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q2 (Mar) revs of $1.56-1.60 bln vs. $1.65 bln Thomson Reuters consensus. The outlook for the second quarter may be impacted by a delay in defense market projects and shipments due to Federal budget uncertainty, recently resolved labor strike in India delaying certain product shipments, and short-term softness in the optical market near the end of the quarter. Additionally, co announces that Hari Pillai, President and Chief Operating Officer will resign from the co and continue in a consulting capacity on terms to be determined.
2:12AM ChinaCast Education reports Q4 EPS in-line; beats on revs; sees FY11 revs in-line with consensus (CAST) 5.57 : Reports Q4 (Dec) adjusted EPS of $0.12 vs $0.12 Thomson Reuters consensus; revs increased 56% YoY to $25.7 mln vs $23.7 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY11 (Dec), sees FY11 (Dec) revs of $94-96 mln vs. $95.60 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.
1:56AM China Valves Tech misses by $0.19, beats on revs (CVVT) 5.95 : Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.12 per share, $0.19 worse than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.31; revenues rose 105.9% year/year to $52.3 mln vs the $44.1 mln consensus. Co issues guidance target for FY11, and is targeting FY11 revs of 25-28% growth to ~$229.6-235.1 mln vs $220.97 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. The co expects the petrochemical, oil and gas industry to remain a strong growth driver in 2011, supported by the demand from domestic thermal power and water supply markets. The co also intends to continue its long-term efforts to become a significant valve supplier to the nuclear power market in China. Following higher labor and raw material costs in line with higher inflation in China, co expects gross margin ~41%-42% for the next few quarters.
1:28AM Vista Gold files resale registration statement for 14,666,739 special warrants (VGZ) 3.27 : Co announces that on March 15, 2011 it filed a resale registration statement. Co agreed to file the resale registration statement pursuant to the terms of the October 22, 2010 private placement of 14,666,739 special warrants. The Special Warrants were issued to the selling securityholders at a purchase price of $2.30 per Special Warrant for aggregate gross proceeds to the co of $33,733,500.
1:23AM Ashland authorizes $400 mln mln stock repurchase program; intends to increase annual dividend to $0.70 from $0.60 per share (ASH) 56.00 : Co announces its Board has approved a $400 mln stock repurchase program. Under the program, the co's common shares will be purchased through a combination of a 10b5-1 automatic trading plan and discretionary purchases on the open market or in privately negotiated transactions. In addition, the board intends to increase the annual dividend to $0.70 per share from its current annual rate of $0.60 per share, commencing with the June 15 dividend payment.
1:18AM Ur-Energy issues new NI 43-101 preliminary assessment validating Lost Creek Project; report recommends further development to bring project into production (URG) 1.45 : Co announces it has issued a Preliminary Assessment for the co's Lost Creek Property. The economic analysis estimates that Lost Creek will generate net earnings over the life of the project, before income tax, of $179 mln. It is estimated that the Lost Creek project has an internal rate of return of 91% and a net present value of $118.1 mln applying an 8% discount rate. The estimated operational cost for the project is $19.66 per pound of uranium produced while the total cost of uranium production including all required capital spending is estimated at $42.65 per pound. The results reaffirm the economic projections presented in the 2008 PA. In order to realize the full economic benefits described in the 2011 PA, the report recommends further development to bring the Lost Creek Project into production.
1:14AM Qualcomm issues statement on supply chain in Japan; does not foresee a significant impact (QCOM) 50.50 : Based on a review of it extended semiconductor supply chain, co states it does not foresee any significant impact in our ability to supply product to our customers due to the events in Japan. With regard to the availability of Bismaleimide Triazine resin, co uses either BT-based or epoxy-based laminate materials in our chipset packages. http://finance.yahoo.com/marketupdate/inplay
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