Latest News In Stock Market Investment Research – Nov 20, 2009

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European shares in tight range

20 Nov 2009 at 3:58am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — European shares pulled back from early gains on Friday, trading in a tight range as losses from oil and gas shares offset gains for chemical firms. Oil futures edged lower in electronic trading, down 28 cents at $77.18 a barrel. The U.K. FTSE 100 index rose 0.1% to 5,273.86, the German DAX index rose 0.1% to 5,706.46 and the French CAC-40 index inched up 0.1% to 3,795.85.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Nokia eliminates 330 R&D jobs in Finland, Denmark

20 Nov 2009 at 3:49am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Nokia Corp. , the world’s largest mobile-phone maker, on Friday said it plans to eliminate roughly 330 jobs in its research and development operations. The cuts will affect up to 230 employees at its Oulu site in Finland and 100 at its Copenhagen site and represent about 2% of the company’s global R&D staff.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Fiat cut to neutral from buy at UBS

20 Nov 2009 at 2:27am

MADRID (MarketWatch) — Italian automaker Fiat was cut to neutral from buy on Friday at UBS, which said it sees lower equity value for Chrysler. UBS said it continues to see value in Fiat as an agent of transformational change and not owning it is akin to a “risky bet against structural change in European autos.” UBS said it has cautious views on auto demand in Europe and Brazil, as well as slow recoveries in trucks and machinery. A European scale deal remains a requirement for Fiat to spin off its auto business, with PSA Peugeot Citroen a likely candidate, said UBS. Near term, UBS views 10 euros per share as fair for the consolidated operations but its value of Chrysler to Fiat has been cut to 1 euro from 2 euros previously.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Thomas Cook, Tui Travel cut at Morgan Stanley

20 Nov 2009 at 2:01am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Tui Travel was downgraded to equalweight from overweight at Morgan Stanley while Thomas Cook was downgraded to underweight from equalweight at Morgan Stanley. The broker said that it cut forecasts for the firms to reflect a weaker operating environment and more expensive debt financing. “Thomas Cook appears to us to have the most forecast risk as it has above-average margins and, we believe, needs to refinance its debts quicker than the market believes, potentially including new equity,” the broker said. Tui Travel is its top pick of the tour operators. Tui Travel shares declined 2.3% and Thomas Cook shares lost 3.9%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


TNT upgraded to buy at UBS

20 Nov 2009 at 1:50am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — TNT was upgraded by UBS to buy from neutral on Friday. The broker added delivery firm to its key call list and said “with TNT having taken out around 170 million euros of fixed costs in the past 12 months, we believe it is well placed to benefit from any volume recovery.” Shares rose 2.2% in Amsterdam.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Cable & Wireless upgraded at J.P. Morgan

20 Nov 2009 at 1:49am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Cable & Wireless was upgraded to overweight from neutral at J.P. Morgan on Friday. The broker said that Cable & Wireless has underperformed the sector by 19% and the FTSE by 25% year-to-date despite heavy emerging markets exposure. “This reflects sensitivity to recessionary pressures. But with expectations rebased post the first half, we believe focus will now shift to C&W’s above-average gearing into cyclical recovery,” the broker said. Shares rose 2.4%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Rio Tinto cut to underperform at Credit Suisse

20 Nov 2009 at 1:47am

MADRID (MarketWatch) — Mining group Rio Tinto was downgraded to underperform from neutral on Friday at Credit Suisse, which said shares are now trading at fair value. Shares have outperformed those of rival BHP Billiton by 17% in the Australian market and 20% in the U.K. market, noted the analysts. The investment bank also said it doesn’t expect BHP to make another takeover offer for Rio Tinto either, as it would be dilutive for earnings per share and cut BHP’s return on equity. BHP is Credit Suisse’s preferred pick of Australian diversified miners.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


KKR shares gain after swinging to profit

20 Nov 2009 at 1:35am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Shares in Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. climbed 2.3% in early trading on the Amsterdam market after the private equity firm said late Thursday that it swung to a third-quarter profit and is seeing interesting investment opportunities. The firm closed a deal in October to buy its Amsterdam-listed fund and become a publicly traded company. KKR reported economic net income of $656.6 million for the third quarter, following a loss of $465.6 million a year earlier. The turnaround was largely due to unrealized gains from increases in the fair value of KKR’s private equity investment portfolio. “While we continue to face difficult economic conditions, we are also observing signs of improving trends, particularly as it relates to debt and equity capital markets,” said co-CEOs Henry Kravis and George Roberts. “We are seeing interesting situations to invest capital all over the world, across various industries, and throughout the capital structure,” they added.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Merck KGaA cut to hold from buy at Citi

20 Nov 2009 at 1:31am

MADRID (MarketWatch) — German pharmaceutical and chemical company Merck KGaA was downgraded to hold from buy on Friday at Citigroup, which said the risk-reward looks evenly balanced. The rejection of Erbitux by the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use on appeal in non-small lung cancer is a negative, said the analysts who are removing potential related sales from their forecast model. That’s somewhat balanced by Erbitux, which still has a strong profile for treating colorectal cancer. Citi cut its price target from 75 euros to 70 euros.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


European shares move higher in early trading

20 Nov 2009 at 1:06am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — European shares opened higher on Friday, ending a three-session run of losses. The gains came as technology shares recouped some losses made in the previous session and Volkwagen shares rose 1.5% after the firm’s board took another step towards the takeover of Porsche . The German DAX index rose 0.5% to 5,727.21, the French CAC-40 index rose 0.4% to 3,774.69 and the U.K. FTSE 100 index rose 0.3% to 5,280.80.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


German October producer prices fall 7.6% annually

20 Nov 2009 at 1:07am

MADRID (MarketWatch) — Producer prices in Germany fell 7.6% on an annual basis in October, but were flat on the month, the Federal Statistics Office reported on Friday. In September, annual producer prices also fell 7.6%, and were 0.5% lower on a monthly basis.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Volkswagen board approves Porsche deal contracts

20 Nov 2009 at 12:31am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — German car maker Volkswagen said that its supervisory board has approved the contracts relating to its planned multi-stage takeover of rival Porsche . The company said the agreement was a further important step towards the takeover, which would be completed over the course of 2011 under the plans. It added that the supervisory board of Porsche will meet Friday to consult on the contracts. Volkswagen shareholder are due to vote on financing measures, including the issue of new preferred shares, at a Dec. 3 meeting. The next major milestone in the takeover will be Volkswagen building its stake in Porsche to 49.9%, which is planned for realization by the end of 2009.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Intertek Group is in talks to buy DNV business

20 Nov 2009 at 12:25am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Safety services provider Intertek Group said Friday that it is in discussions with Det Norske Veritas to acquire the vast majority of its business assurance division. It is expected that the consideration will be settled in Intertek shares, resulting in DNV becoming a substantial shareholder in Intertek. The revenue of the business that may be acquired is expected to be around 200 million pounds ($332.9 million) in 2009. “Discussions between the two companies are ongoing and due diligence is under way,” the firm said.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Gartmore Group to list shares in London

20 Nov 2009 at 12:17am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Asset manager Gartmore Group said Friday that it intends to list its shares on the London Stock Exchange. The company will undertake an initial public offering of shares and will use the proceeds to cut its debt to around 150 million pounds ($249.7 million). Gartmore, which had 21.8 billion pounds (36.3 billion) of assets under management at Sep. 30, believes that the offering will enhance its profile and status with existing and potential clients and strengthen its ability to attract and retain investment talent. Assets under management have risen 17% since the end of 2008 and 34% since February 2009 and the firm said momentum is strong, with 924 million pounds of net inflows in the third quarter.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


Some Goldman shareholders call for bonus cuts: WSJ

19 Nov 2009 at 10:18pm

TOKYO (MarketWatch) — Some of the largest shareholders in Goldman Sachs Group Inc. have urged the Wall Street firm to reduce the size of its bonus pool, arguing that it should pass along more of its blockbuster earnings to investors, The Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site Friday, citing people familiar with the situation. The investors hold tens of millions of shares in Goldman Sachs, which is on track to make the biggest employee payout in the firm’s 140-year history, the report said.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.


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November 20 2009 03:50 am | Stock Market News

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