Latest News In StockMarketInvestment Reserach – May 08, 2009

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Huntsman swings to loss

8 May 2009 at 3:59am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Chemicals producer Huntsman Corp. said Friday that it swung to a net loss of $290 million, or $1.24 a share, from a profit of $7 million, or 3 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue for the quarter fell by a third to $1.69 billion, reflecting decreased demand across all the group’s businesses. The adjusted loss for the quarter was $1.17 a share, which also included tax expenses of 62 cents a share due to the establishment of a tax valuation allowance in the U.K. CEO Peter Huntsman said the firm is ahead of target and schedule to eliminate in excess of $150 million from its cost structure.

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AES Corp.’s quarterly net profit off more than 6%

8 May 2009 at 3:48am

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — AES Corp. reported first-quarter net income of $218 million, or 33 cents a share, down from $233 million, or 34 cents, earned in first three months of 2008. The Arlington, Va.-based power generator and distributor generated quarterly revenue of $3.38 billion, down from the prior year’s $4.08 billion. The consensus of three analysts surveyed by FactSet Research had been for AES to earn 26 cents a share. AES called its first-quarter performance “solid” and affirmed its 2009 profit forecast. The company sees full-year earnings from continuing operations in a range of $1.03 to $1.13 a share and has pegged adjusted earnings at 97 cents to $1.07 a share. The FactSet-derived consensus for 2009 profit stands at 99 cents a share.

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Glaxo: HPV trial shows higher response vs Merck

8 May 2009 at 3:38am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline said Friday that results from the first, large-scale comparative trial between licensed human papillomavirus vaccines show that GSK’s Cervarix generated a significantly higher immune response compared to Merck & Co’s Gardasil. The trial showed neutralising antibody levels for Cervarix vaccine were more than two times higher than those for Gardasil vaccine for HPV type 16, and more than six times higher for HPV type 18, GSK said. These results were highly statistically significant, it added.

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MDC loss narrows to $40.9 million

8 May 2009 at 3:28am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — House builder MDC Holdings Inc. said Friday that its first-quarter net loss narrowed to $40.9 million, or 88 cents a share, from $72.8 million, or $1.58 a share, a year earlier. Revenue for the period fell 56% to $175.9 million. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected a loss of 83 cents a share on sales of $137.2 million. MDC said the results included charges of $14.6 million for asset impairments and a $15.3 million increase in its deferred tax valuation allowance. “While declining home prices and historically low interest rates have improved affordability across our markets, we have yet to see a meaningful recovery in sales activity,” said CEO Larry Mizel.

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Beazer Homes loss narrows to $115 million

8 May 2009 at 3:19am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — House builder Beazer Homes USA Inc. said Friday that its fiscal second-quarter net loss narrowed to $114.9 million, or $2.97 a share, from $229.9 million, or $5.96 a share, a year earlier. The loss included $60.1 million of pretax charges related to inventory impairments and the abandonment of land option contracts. Revenue for the quarter ended March 31 fell 54% to $188.3 million. Analysts polled by FactSet had been expecting a loss of $1.80 a share in the latest quarter on revenue of $212.2 million. Home closings were down 39% at 814 and new orders fell 36% to 1,129. The cancellation rate, however, improved to around 30%, from 46% in the first quarter of this fiscal year and 34% a year earlier.

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Intercontinental cut to sell at Deutsche Bank

8 May 2009 at 3:17am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Deutsche Bank cut its rating on Intercontinental Hotels to sell from hold, saying it believes the recent rally in the shares due to investors’ more positive sentiment on the outlook for the U.S. economy is overdone.

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.


Calpine back to profit after year-earlier losses

8 May 2009 at 3:13am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Calpine Corp. said it swung to a $32 million, or 7 cents a share, profit, after losing $214 million in the year-earlier quarter. The year-ago quarter was impacted by the costs of restructuring and emerging from bankruptcy. The company also cited benefits from hedging as well as from the sale of surplus emission allowances in the west, which offset weaker demand and spark spreads in Texas. Revenue fell to $1.68 billion from $1.95 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet had forecast a loss of 10 cents a share. It’s sticking to its 2009 adjusted EBITDA guidance of $1.6 billion to $1.7 billion and its 2009 adjusted free cash flow guidance of $400 to $500 million.

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.


Ahold upped at UniCredit, sales momentum cited

8 May 2009 at 2:50am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — UniCredit on Friday raised its rating on Dutch supermarket chain Ahold to buy from hold, saying that consumer confidence is showing signs of stabilizing in its two core markets of the Netherlands and the U.S. In addition, the broker said that sales topped expectations in all markets in the first 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.


Thomson Reuters cut at RBS, slowdown ahead

8 May 2009 at 2:30am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Royal Bank of Scotland on Friday cut its rating on British media firm Thomson Reuters to sell from hold, noting that the shares have doubled from recent lows and are now expensive in its view. The broker added it believes the company’s business is late in the cycle and a material slowdown lies ahead. It also said that while the new flagship product –to be released in the second half– may help cushion the expected slowdown at the markets division, it could also be an opportunity for clients to review spending.

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.


Siemens upped at RBS on business profile

8 May 2009 at 2:15am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Royal Bank of Scotland on Friday raised its rating on German engineering giant Siemens AG to buy from hold and lifted its price target to 60 euros from 50 euros, saying it believes the company’s profile of activities will allow it to benefit from a recovery or to remain resilient in case the global economy remains subdued for longer. “For believers that the worst is over, short-cycle businesses give exposure to a rebound. For those who see recovery as further off, the long-cycle business should offer earnings protection,” the broker said. It added that Siemens’ restructuring was well timed as it should be relatively easy in the current climate to obtain concessions from suppliers.

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.


Carphone Warehouse buying Tiscali arm for $354 mln

8 May 2009 at 1:58am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — U.K. mobile phone retailer and broadband provider Carphone Warehouse said Friday that it’s buying the U.K. operations of Italy’s Tiscali for 236 million pounds ($354 million). Carphone Warehouse said the deal will lift earnings for the fiscal year to March 2010 by around 10% and will make its TalkTalk business the U.K.’s largest residential broadband provider, with 4.25 million customers. The company said the deal will be funded entirely through existing group debt facilities. Carphone Warehouse had previously offered 550 million pounds for the business last year.

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.


S&P cuts rating on Toyota to AA

8 May 2009 at 1:49am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services lowered to ‘AA’ from ‘AA+’ its long-term corporate credit ratings on Japan-based automaker Toyota Motor Corp. , citing the “weak” earnings guidance for the year to March 31, 2010. S&P said the outlook on Toyota’s debt is negative. The rating actions also reflect Standard & Poor’s view that the deterioration in global auto markets will continue to pressure Toyota’s profitability and cash flow through at least the current fiscal year, and may delay a recovery in Toyota’s operating and financial performance.

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.


Antofagasta upped by Nomura on valuation

8 May 2009 at 1:45am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Nomura raised its rating on Chilean copper miner Antofagasta to buy from reduce, saying its analysis indicates that copper miners are trading at a nearly 30% discount to the sector on both spot commodity prices and Nomura commodity price forecasts. The broker said it believes such a discount is unwarranted.

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.


Telenor upped at Nomura, over-spending period over

8 May 2009 at 1:33am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Nomura on Friday raised its rating on Scandinavian telecoms operator Telenor to buy from reduce, saying it believes the company will end a period of “over-spending” now that it needs to fund its Indian expansion. The broker told clients it sees scope for a sharp reduction in capital expenses given the traffic slump and previous high-investment for capacity growth. In addition it said that fading growth could bring consolidation in emerging markets.

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.


SocGen cut at DB as retail assets deteriorate

8 May 2009 at 1:25am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Deutsche Bank cut its rating on Societe Generale to hold from buy, saying the stock is no longer cheap relative to peers and asset quality is deteriorating faster than expected in the retail business. In addition, the broker told clients that the risk of further non-recurring items is threatening to offset any sustainability in the recent strong performance of the investment-banking business.

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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May 08 2009 03:17 am | Stock Market News

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