• HON
  Have You Considered Honeywell In Your Portfolio?

  John Mylant • Tue, Jun 18
• ABBV
  Successor To Humira? AbbVie And Galapagos Work On It

  Peter Geschek • Mon, Jun 17 • 1 Comment
• NSC
  Why I Like Norfolk Southern Corporation

  Andrew Brady • Mon, Jun 17 • 3 Comments
• CNI
  Canadian National Railway Is Highly Undervalued

  Ben Kramer-Miller • Sun, Jun 16 • 7 Comments
• WMT
  Wal-Mart: Is Reputation A Leading Indicator?

  Justin Weinstein • Sun, Jun 16 • 19 Comments
• PSX
  Phillips 66 – Disciplined Company, But No Upside Left

  Simon Moore • Sun, Jun 16 • 10 Comments
• SO
  Southern Company: Naysayers Are Wrong On This Core Holding

  Jon Parepoynt • Sun, Jun 16 • 25 Comments
• ELN
  Elan Is In Play

  Robert Wu • Sat, Jun 15 • 9 Comments
• WIN
  Will Windstream Prosper With The Avaya Aura?

  Adetokunbo Abiola • Fri, Jun 14 • 5 Comments
• SO
  This Is Why You Should Consider The Southern Company: A Utility Stalwart

  Horizon Investments • Fri, Jun 14 • 13 Comments
• PM
  Philip Morris Is A Great Dividend Play

  The Outsider • Fri, Jun 14 • 13 Comments
• KRFT
  Kraft: Attractive Dividend Yield With Low Growth Prospects

  investec • Thu, Jun 13 • 16 Comments
• WMT
  Wal-Mart Offers Low Prices Every Day (Does Not Apply To Our Stock)

  Market Exclusive • Thu, Jun 13 • 18 Comments
• WIN
  Windstream – Dividend Cut Inevitable, Probably Priced In

  Madhusudan Rao • Thu, Jun 13 • 37 Comments
• BGS
  B&G Foods’ Push Into Natural Snack Foods Makes Stock A Buy

  Chris Katje • Wed, Jun 12 • 1 Comment
• ABT
  Abbott Labs’ Absorb And The Dissolvable Stent Race

  Peter Geschek • Wed, Jun 12
• PM
  Philip Morris: The Crown Jewel Of The Tobacco Sector

  Stock Gamer • Wed, Jun 12 • 6 Comments
• PM
  How Healthy Is The Balance Sheet Of Philip Morris International?

  David Schauber, Jr. • Wed, Jun 12 • 8 Comments
• WMT
  How Wal-Mart Turbocharges Per-Share Earnings

  YCharts • Wed, Jun 12 • 1 Comment

• PAY
  12:29 PM VeriFone (PAY +4.1%) pops after director Alex Hart discloses he bought 10K shares on Friday at $15.72. Shares of the payment-processing hardware vendor remain down 45% YTD thanks to a lot of bad earnings news. [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
• SCTY
  12:24 PM More on SolarCity: The company continues its financing binge by announcing a $175M offering for convertible senior notes due 2018. The announcement comes shortly after SolarCity (SCTY +2.9%) obtained a $100M loan to finance new panel installations, and a month after it reached a $500M+ financing deal with Goldman. [Tech] Comment!
• RDHL
  12:21 PM RedHill Biopharma (RDHL +5%) says its New Drug Application for marketing approval in the U.S. of RHB-103 by the company and its co-development partner, IntelGenx (IGXT +5.3%), has been accepted for substantive review by the FDA. RHB-103 is an oral, thin film formulation of rizatriptan, which is used to treat acute migraine. The application is subject to a standard 10-month review period and will have a PDUFA goal date of Feb. 3, 2014. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• DXJ, EWJ
  12:20 PM The speculative phase of the rally in Japanese stocks is over, says Deutsche, setting up the next leg which will require the participation of domestic investors. Yes, underweight global equity funds may help, but they’ve already boosted stakes and have just $2T in assets compared to $9T of Japanese household cash. DXJ +3.1%, EWJ +2.3%. [Global & FX] Comment!
• PEGA
  12:19 PM Pegasystems (PEGA) declares $0.03/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 0.37%. For shareholders of record July 1. Payable July 15. Ex-div date June 27. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• NEM, BVN
  12:17 PM Thousands of opponents of the $5B Minas Conga copper and gold project in Peru march on Lake Perol, vowing to stop Newmont Mining (NEM -3%) from eventually draining it to reservoirs NEM and partner Buenaventura (BVN -2.6%) are building. Protesters, who fear the mine would threaten their water, say they plan to build a permanent camp near the lake to impede work on the site. [Commodities, On the Move] Comment!
• STP
  12:14 PM A Swiss court gives Suntech’s (STP +5%) European unit a 6-month moratorium on creditor claims; the unit had been given a 2-month reprieve on April 9. Suntech’s Chinese subsidiary remains in the midst of bankruptcy proceedings. Shares have more than tripled from a March 21 low of $0.30. [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
• IR
  12:08 PM Ingersoll-Rand (IR +1.9%) completes its $1.55B debt offering consisting of 3 tranches; $350M in aggregate principal amount of 2.875% notes due in 2019, $700M of 4.25% notes due in 2023, and $500M of 5.75% notes due in 2043. The company plans to use the funds to retire existing senior debt and to fund expenses related to its Allegion spinoff. [On the Move] Comment!
• TMUS, SNE
  12:07 PM T-Mobile USA (TMUS) will be the exclusive U.S. seller of Sony’s (SNE +2.8%) Xperia Z Android phone, which has posted strong international sales taken a big chunk of the high-end Japanese smartphone market. Together with a recent exclusive for Nokia’s Lumia 925, the deal suggests T-Mobile is having more luck with smartphone OEMs following the MetroPCS merger. Also: Canaccord has launched coverage on T-Mobile with a Hold and $22 PT. The firm views T-Mobile as an attractive M&A target for the company that fails to acquire Sprint/Clearwire, but considers shares fully valued. [Tech] Comment!
• FITB
  12:00 PM Fifth Third Bancorp (FITB) declares $0.12/share quarterly dividend, 9% increase from prior dividend of $0.11. Forward yield 2.62%. For shareholders of record June 28.Payable July 18.Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• 12:00 PM On the hour: Dow +0.72%. 10-yr -0.05%. Euro +0.3% vs. dollar. Crude +0.1% to $98.13. Gold -1.29% to $1365.25. Comment!
• AIG, AYR
  11:54 AM AIG slips 0.9% in an up market as Bernstein’s Josh Stirling says investors may want to brace themselves for a headline announcing the termination of the deal to sell an 80% stake in ILFC. Would it be such a bad thing? At least one comparable – Aircastle Limited (AYR) – has rallied 40% since the deal to sell ILFC was inked. Perhaps ILFC would command more than a $5.2B valuation today. [Financials] 2 Comments
• NFX
  11:50 AM Newfield Exploration (NFX +3.6%) is upgraded to Buy from Hold with a $29 price target at Stifel Nicolaus, which cites an upcoming increased proved NAV from expected ~$1.15B in H2 international asset sales, upside to 2013 guidance (possibly with Q2 results), and delivery of growth showing up from its domestic core areas. [Energy, Quick Ideas, On the Move] Comment!
• SCTY
  11:50 AM SolarCity (SCTY +3%) trades higher this morning after the company reported earlier that its 2013 megawatts deployed is now estimated to be around 270MW, up from mid-May guidance of 250MW. [Energy, On the Move] Comment!
• AMD
  11:49 AM More on AMD: Though Seattle is dominating headlines, the company remains committed to the x86 server CPU market. Berlin, an x86 CPU platform due in Q114, will feature 4 cores based on AMD’s next-gen Steamroller architecture, and will be offered as both a CPU and APU (integrated graphics), with the APUs being the first to offer uniform memory access for the chip’s CPU and GPU. AMD promises big improvements in performance/watt. Also due in Q114 is Warsaw, an enterprise-class offering said to be ideal for Facebook’s Open Compute Platform (previous). AMD has been bleeding share to Intel in the x86 server CPU space (PR) [Tech] Comment!
• WTSL
  11:39 AM “A mid-single digit operating margin over the next 2-3 years is reasonable,” says Piper’s Stephanie Wissink of Wet Seal (WTSL +0.7%) in a cautious note. Although “sales stability, merchandise margin improvement, and cost leverage” should drive margin expansion, “the current environment” warrants trepidation regarding store growth expectations, she adds. Meanwhile, SA contributor Unbigoted Research says the stock could be “the turnaround story of 2013″. [Consumer] Comment!
• RTN
  11:37 AM Raytheon (RTN +0.3%) says it’s received a $115.9M contract to provide engineering services for the Patriot Air and Missile Defense System. Under the contract, RTN will provide systems analysis, software development, testing and logistics support, as well as other NATO country-specific system requirements. [Global & FX] Comment!
• KBR
  11:35 AM KBR (KBR +1.6%) shares move higher following positive comments by Deutsche Bank, which notes the energy engineering services company’s “significant advantage” given its ability to compete from a vertically integrated position in liquefied natural gas, and sees upside potential from new wins for its ammonia business. [Energy, Quick Ideas, On the Move] Comment!
• AMD, ARMH
  11:35 AM AMD’s first ARM-based server CPU, codenamed Seattle, will enter production in 2H14, the chipmaker announces. Seattle CPUs will feature 8 or 16 of ARM’s (ARMH) high-end Cortex-A57 cores, with each running at 2GHz. or more. AMD claims the chips will “offer 3-4x the performance” of its new Opteron X-Series parts, and will integrate 10G Ethernet links and SeaMicro’s Freedom Fabric tech. Seattle, aimed at the budding microserver market, will face competition from fellow ARM licensees AppliedMicro (AMCC +6.5% – appears to be rallying on the news), Marvell (MRVL), and startup Calxeda, and also Intel’s Atom CPUs. Look for H-P to consider Seattle for its Moonshot server line. [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
• HCBK, MTB
  11:30 AM Hudson City Bancorp (HCBK +2%) pops as M&T Bank (MTB +0.6%) looks to soon be able to move forward with its purchase after agreeing with regulators to beef up its anti-money laundering policies. [Financials, M&A, On the Move, Breaking News] Comment!
• CMG
  11:30 AM Chipotle (CMG +1%) could see a benefit from the closure of 40 Qdoba restaurants, according to Miller Tabak. The firm has a price target of $400 on the restaurant chain. [Consumer] Comment!
• INSM
  11:27 AM UBS initiates Insmed (INSM +0.7%) at Buy with a $17.50 price target representing a 37% upside. Arikace “has a solid chance of success in its primary indication of cystic fibrosis,” analyst Matthew Harrison says, adding that the “underappreciated” non-tuberculous mycobacteria opportunity could be another growth catalyst going forward. (Previous: Arikace’s NTM indication possibly more compelling than CF opportunity) [Healthcare] Comment!
• DWA
  11:24 AM DreamWorks Animation (DWA +1.9%) signs a multi-year deal with German broadcaster RTL to produce animated TV shows. Under the agreement, the company will supply the leading children’s TV channel in the nation with a steady stream of shows based on characters from its franchises. [Consumer] Comment!
• LLY
  11:23 AM Eli Lilly and Company (LLY) declares $0.49/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 3.78%. For shareholders of record August 15. Payable September 10. Ex-div date August 13. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• EWZ, BRF
  11:21 AM Brazil (EWZ, BRF) has to be nearing a bottom. After a couple of years of struggles for both the economy and the Bovespa, the eulogies are beginning to be written for the planet’s next great country, lately been beset by waves of protests and evaporating support for President Rousseff. “The golden days are over, the feel-good factor is lost,” says an economics professor. “It was a short-lived dream,” says a struggling electrician. [Global & FX] 3 Comments
• PVA
  11:17 AM Penn Virginia (PVA +1.1%) says it received $21.4M from the exercises of preferential rights related to the recent $400M Eagle Ford Shale acquisition, resulting in expectations for 2013 cash flows and capex to decrease by 1%-1.5% each while 2013 production is expected to decrease by ~1%. [Energy] Comment!
• WMT, ZZ
  11:16 AM Heard during Wal-Mart’s (WMT +0.4%) presentation at the Jefferies Global Consumer Conference: 1) Sam’s Club CFO Michael Dastugue notes online channels are picking up as the chain dabbles with more social media promotions. 2) On products trending well, Dastugue notes mattress sales are strong. Should Sealy (ZZ) and Tempur-Pedic (TPX) be worried with Serta and Night Therapy leading sellers at Sam’s? 3) The company plans to open 15-20 new and relocated clubs during FY14. 4) New tech initiatives include self checkout kiosks, convertible registers, and scan & go testing. (webcast) [Consumer] Comment!
• STML
  11:09 AM Stemline Therapeutics (STML +10%) moves up again today after being initiated at Ladenburg Thalmann with a Buy rating and a hefty $36 price target. The stock has been moving steadily higher over the past few weeks, after the FDA granted an Orphan Drug Designation to its treatment for blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm, SL-401. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• PANW
  11:06 AM Goldman yanks Palo Alto Networks (PANW -1.7%) from its Conviction Buy list, leading the next-gen firewall leader to make fresh post-IPO lows. The firm defended Palo Alto late last month, after shares were clocked thanks to an FQ3 revenue miss (blamed on macro) and soft FQ4 guidance. [Tech] 1 Comment
• SLF
  11:01 AM Sun Life Financial (SLF +0.9%) inks a “game-changing” deal with the Canadian Wheat Board, transferring (for a fee) all of the Board’s pension plan risk to the insurer. It’s the first of its kind in Canada, says Sun Life, which has been actively seeking such deals since General Motors and Verizon struck similar agreements with Prudential last year. [Financials] Comment!
• 11:00 AM On the hour: Dow +0.68%. 10-yr -0.12%. Euro +0.2% vs. dollar. Crude +0.2% to $98.23. Gold -1.38% to $1364.05. Comment!
• HNT
  10:59 AM Health Net (HNT +1.1%) reaffirms its FY13 guidance of $2.20 – $2.30 per share on revenues of between $10.7B – $11.2B. Street estimates are for an EPS of $2.23 on revenues of $11.17B. [Healthcare, On the Move, Earnings] Comment!
• SI
  10:55 AM Reuters backs upthe WSJ in reporting Siemens (SI +0.8%) is talking to P-E firms TPG, KKR, and Blackstone about selling its 50% stake in Nokia Siemens; the news service adds past attempts to sell to P-E firms have failed due to price disagreements. Meanwhile, Goldman is assigning NSN a value of €6B, based on a valuation of 6x 2014E EV/EBITDA. [Tech, M&A] Comment!
• ANR
  10:54 AM With liquidity a relevant topic lately among coal companies, Alpha Natural Resources (ANR +2.1%) proactively tells a Brean Capital analyst it is confident in its current liquidity to meet $417M in debt obligations due in 2015 without tapping equity, which ANR sees as a poor option at today’s prices. ANR also says it isn’t inclined to employ its current liquidity toward additional acquisitions. [Energy, On the Move] Comment!
• AMZN, FB
  10:49 AM Amazon (AMZN +1.2%) tries to profit from the growing use of Facebook (FB +2.8%) as a “social gifting” platform by launching Amazon Birthday Gift, a solution that allows Facebook users to send a friend Amazon credit for his/her birthday, and then lets other friends to add to the pot. The product is separate from Facebook’s Gifts platform. Also: 1) Leveraging existing content deals, Amazon is adding videos and games from Disney, Viacom, Warner Bros., and Electronic Arts to its Kindle Freetime kids’ platform. The move comes shortly after a major deal was reached with Viacom for kids’ shows. 2) AdAge reports Facebook’s video ads will be delayed until fall. The magazine reported in April Facebook plans to charge up to $1M per daily ad slot. [Tech, Consumer] Comment!
• ACRX
  10:48 AM Jefferies sees a 33% upside for shares of AcelRx (ACRX -1.1%), raising its price target to $13 from $8. Analyst Corey Davis makes “numerous model adjustments as [the company] moves closer to an NDA filing for ARX-01″ and notes that the “next catalyst” is analyst day on July 27. Mark your calendar. [Healthcare] 1 Comment
• SSH
  10:45 AM Sunshine Heart (SSH +8%) pops after achieving a milestone for its flagship C-Pulse device, which is designed to treat Class III and ambulatory Class IV heart failure. The company said the devices has been implanted in 25 patients in North America and Germany, with the 25th patient implanted on June 14th at the German Heart Institute in Berlin. [Healthcare, On the Move] 1 Comment
• MCD
  10:43 AM Heard during a presentation by McDonald’s (MCD +1.1%) at the Jefferies Global Consumer Conference: 1) The company gives out more details on its After Midnight menu at select locations, noting that the Midnight to 4:00 AM fare will include popular breakfast items. 2) Execs says the 1,500-1,600 planned new restaurants and another 1,600 re-images will help lift sales by 6% to 7% after one year. 3) The dollar menu will continue to be focus and will see new items added later this year. (webcast, slides) [Consumer] Comment!
• HYG, LQD
  10:42 AM Panicky fixed-income investors have sent implied volatility through the roof on normally quiet bond funds like the High Yield Corporate Fund (HYG) and the Investment Grade Corporate Bond Fund (LQD). It could spell opportunity as large price declines in many bond funds have overwhelmed the actual drop in NAV. [Financials] 1 Comment
• WLT, KOL
  10:41 AM Walter Energy (WLT +12%) finally turns around since dropping 12% after delaying plans to refinance existing debt, as Morgan Stanley steps in to say WLT’s potential upside has finally grown too large to ignore. Other coal names (KOL +0.6%) also move higher, perhaps aided by Sterne Agee’s slightly improved view for the sector:ACI +4.2%, CLF +3.2%, ANR +3%, BTU +1.3%. [Energy, On the Move] Comment!
• LEN
  10:31 AM Lennar (LEN -1.7%) expands its homebuilding operations into the Nashville, Tennessee market by acquiring control of approximately 40 homesites in the Tollgate Village community. The company says been evaluating the Nashville market for some time and “believes this is a perfect time to enter.” The expansion into the Tennessee market is similar to LEN‘s other recent strategic moves into the Atlanta, Seattle, Portland and Central Texas regions, and now gives the company operations in 19 states and 46 markets across the nation. [Consumer] Comment!
• KMB
  10:29 AM Kimberly-Clark (KMB -0.4%) plans to invest $234M in Venezuela in order to expand manufacturing capabilities with the nation facing a national shortage of critical bathroom products. The company currently has 15% of the market for toilet paper in the nation, but that mark could be on the rise with capacity slated to be boosted by 30% to 40%. [Consumer] Comment!
• LUK
  10:23 AM Investment bank Jefferies – now fully owned by Leucadia (LUK) – reports FQ2 profit of $42M, off 34% Y/Y. The company saw a “significant slowdown” in fixed-income trading in March and April, says Leucadia CEO Richard Handler, blaming uncertainty over the Fed’s QE program. [Financials] Comment!
• CVLT
  10:20 AM CommVault (CVLT +3.3%) rallies after Pac Crest starts coverage with an Outperform and $92 PT. The firm notes CommVault is gaining share (IDC’s figures back that up), and expects the high-end backup software vendor to benefit from a new product cycle – CommVault announced a new version of its flagship Simpana backup/archiving software platform in February. [Tech, On the Move] 1 Comment
• RL
  10:19 AM Ralph Lauren (RL) declares $0.40/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 0.90%. For shareholders of record June 28. Payable July 12. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• PMT
  10:15 AM PennyMac Mortgage Investment Trust (PMT -1.1%) is downgraded to Sell at Ladenburg Thalmann. The move stands in contrast with Compass Point’s Buy recommendation from last week in which Kevin Barker argued the housing recovery should allow continued gains from PMT’s distressed loan portfolio and the stock trades at a meaningful discount to its mREIT peers. [Financials, On the Move] 2 Comments
• MTL
  10:13 AM Mechel (MTL +11.2%) leaps higher on news the company’s board authorized the buyback of up to $100M of ADRs representing Mechel’s common shares. [Commodities, On the Move] Comment!
• STLD
  10:11 AM Steel Dynamics (STLD) declares $0.11/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 2.94%. For shareholders of record June 30. Payable July 12. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• BOOM
  10:11 AM Dynamic Materials (BOOM) declares $0.04/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 0.96%. For shareholders of record June 28. Payable July 15. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• ENSG
  10:11 AM Ensign Group (ENSG) declares $0.065/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 0.72%. For shareholders of record June 30. Payable July 31. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• SIG
  10:11 AM Signet Jewelers (SIG) declares $0.15/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 0.87%. For shareholders of record Aug. 02. Payable Aug. 28. Ex-div date July 31. The board authorized to repurchase $350M of common stock. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• WHLR
  10:10 AM Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust (WHLR) declares $0.035/share monthly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 6.97%. For shareholders of record June 30. Payable July 31. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• GHDX
  10:10 AM Leerink Swann (Outperform) is “marginally more encouraged” on Genomic Health (GHDX -0.5%) after conversations with two urologists. As it turns out, both doctors “had already ordered” the company’s prostate cancer test even though they “had mixed views” on its utility. Apparently this is good news as analyst Dan Leonard now sees “upside to prostate test volume expectations.” [Healthcare] Comment!
• PKE
  10:05 AM Park Electrochemical (PKE) declares $0.10/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 1.65%. For shareholders of record July 05. Payable August 02. Ex-div date June 03. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• CHK
  10:02 AM Chesapeake Energy (CHK) on Monday named as chief compliance officer a lawyer it had previously hired to respond to an SEC investigation. Patrick Craine was hired to augment CHK’s regulatory and legal compliance efforts after last year handling the SEC’s inquiry into the controversial perk that granted former CEO Aubrey McClendon a share in each of CHK’s wells. [Energy] 1 Comment
• HPQ
  10:01 AM Todd Bradley, the well-respected head of H-P’s (HPQ +1%) PC/printer unit, is leaving that position to head H-P’s Chinese ops and work on expanding its global channel partner deals (his official title will be EVP, Strategic Growth Initiatives). Asia-Pac PC/printer chief and former Lenovo exec Dion Weisler will take over Bradley’s current job. The shakeup follows a quarter in which H-P’s PC sales fell 20% Y/Y, and more share was lost to Lenovo. Printer sales fell 1%, an improvement from recent quarters. Bradley’s name has occasionally come up when high-profile job openings at rivals are discussed. [Tech] 2 Comments
• 10:00 AM On the hour: Dow +0.32%. 10-yr -0.12%. Euro +0.15% vs. dollar. Crude +0.49% to $98.51. Gold -1.06% to $1368.45. 1 Comment
• BA, ERJ
  9:58 AM Boeing (BA) has signed an agreement to lead the sales of Embraer’s (ERJ) KC-390 military transport plane in the U.S., U.K. and in the Middle East. The deal comes a year after the companies signed a technical agreement and as Boeing attempts to win a lucrative contract to sell its F-18 fighter aircraft to Brazil, where Embraer is based. Boeing’s Chris Raymond said one deal had nothing to do with the other. Sure. (PR) 1 Comment
• PRXI
  9:58 AM Premier Exhibitions (PRXI +11.8%) races higher, boosted by the announcement of a buyback authorization and SA Pro’s nonpareil special situations aficionado Whopper Investments arguing the stock is trading well below a very conservative estimate of breakup value (article embargoed until tomorrow morning). [On the Move, Quick Ideas] Comment!
• CRL
  9:54 AM Goldman downgrades Charles River Labs (CRL -1.7%) to Sell from Neutral and lowers its price target to $38 from $44. Analyst Robert Jones cites (among other factors) “recent … channel checks [which] indicate still subdued early-stage spend and excess capacity as pharma prioritizes late-stage pipelines.” [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• EDU
  9:53 AM New Oriental Education & Technology (EDU +0.9%) continues to be the subject of privatization chatter, according to the South China Morning Post. The company has been slowly recovering its footing after closing under-performing schools and riding out an attack from a short seller. [Consumer] 1 Comment
• YHOO
  9:48 AM Yahoo (YHOO +1.1%) is looking to buy address book app developer Xobni for $30M-$40M, and video creation app developer Qwiki for $50M, Kara Swisher reports. Xobni, reported to be on Yahoo’s shopping list earlier in June, is said to consider Yahoo “the most natural home for it, given its strong e-mail offerings.” Qwiki originally built a site and iPad app that automatically created multimedia “stories” for reference topics (a deal was reached with Yahoo partner Bing), but has since shifted its attention to an app for creating movies out of a user’s photos and videos. Regardless, its video automation tech likely intrigues a company that just bought Summly. [Tech, M&A] Comment!
• BHP
  9:48 AM BHP Billiton (BHP -1.2%) is revisiting plans to develop a coking coal deposit in Australia’s Queensland state, seeking environmental approvals to extend production at two mines and retaining the option of another underground mine to develop more of the Red Hill deposit. The move comes even as BHP downplays the strength of extra demand from China amid an expected glut of steel in Asia. [Energy] Comment!
• EFA, CCHBF.PK
  9:45 AM MSCI’s reclassification of Greece to emerging market is a yawner as far as ETFs go, writes Dennis Hudachek, as the country’s presence in the EFA is less than 0.10%. With Coca-Cola Hellenic (CCHBF.PK) no longer part of the MSCI Greek Index, the country’s addition to the EEM will be of minimal effect. [Global & FX] Comment!
• THD, EPHE
  9:44 AM A nasty bout of late-session selling sends Thai shares (THD -3.4%) plunging nearly 3%, bucking a generally positive regional trend. Philippine stocks (EPHE +2.3%) rise 2.83% in Manila while shares in Indonesia (IDX +1%) and Singapore (EWS +0.9%) post solid gains. [Global & FX] Comment!
• GSK, APNHF.PK
  9:43 AM More on GSK (GSK -0.3%) / Aspen (APNHF.PK) deal: Reuters speculates that GSK’s sale of its thrombosis drug brands Arixtra and Fraxiparine to Aspen could be worth £700M, or twice this year’s anticipated sales of around £350M. That would be down from £420M in 2013 and £510M in 2011. Around 1,000 GSK workers, mostly in France, would transfer to Aspen. News of the prospective sale prompted speculation that GSK may look to offload other older drugs. [Healthcare, M&A] Comment!
• SBGI
  9:42 AM Sinclair Broadcast Group (SBGI -0.2%) says it picked up the assets of Dielectric from SPX Corporation in order to help its infrastructure needs. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, although the purchase price was characterized as “immaterial and leverage neutral.” [Consumer] Comment!
• ACAD
  9:31 AM Acadia Pharmaceuticals (ACAD +0.4%) says data from a Phase III trial of pimavanserin suggest the treatment is well-tolerated and effective when administered long-term. (See also: JMP, SA contributor weigh in on ACAD) [Healthcare] 1 Comment
• 9:31 AM At the open: Dow +0.2% to 15211. S&P +0.13% to 1641. Nasdaq +0.21% to 3459. Treasurys: 30-year -0.23%. 10-yr -0.15%. 5-yr -0.1%. Commodities: Crude +0.39% to $98.41. Gold -0.73% to $1372.95. Currencies: Euro -0.06% vs. dollar. Yen +1.13%. Pound +0.91%. Comment!
• CYTK, AMGN
  9:29 AM Cytokinetics’ (CYTK) results from a Phase II trial of its of omecamtiv mecarbil treatment for heart failure have been accepted for presentation at a “Hot Line Late Breaking Trials Session” at the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2013, which is taking place from Aug. 31 until Sep. 4. Cytokinetics’ hasn’t revealed any results but shares are up 14.4%. Those of partner Amgen (AMGN) are a mere +0.7%. In other news, Cytokinetics is set to join the Russell Global Index on June 28. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• TSO, PARR.OB
  9:29 AM Tesoro (TSO) said late Monday it struck a deal to sell its Kapolei refinery and other assets in Hawaii to Par Petroleum (PARR.OB) for $300M-$350M. Par will pay TSO $75M, plus working capital of $225M-$275M, for the idled 94K bbl/day refinery; the deal includes the purchase of retail stores and associated logistics. [Energy] Comment!
• SFL
  9:27 AM Shares of Ship Finance (SFL) fall 5.9% premarket after the company announces an 8M share public offering of stock to be priced at prevailing market prices. Funds from the offering are slated to be used to invest in new shipping assets. [Consumer, On the Move] Comment!
• FIO
  9:26 AM Fusion-io (FIO) -1.6% as in spite of a bullish coverage launch from Needham, as investors continue mulling negative sell-side commentary and the resignations of founders David Flynn and Rick White from the company’s board (following their May resignations as CEO and CMO). RBC declares Flynn’s departure serves to “validate investor concerns, that the transition wasn’t as amicable as one would expect.” Needham argues investor sentiment is bottoming, says checks indicate FIO “remains in the pole position” in the hyperscale data center realm, and that product launches this year and next “should re-establish FIO as a technology innovator.” [Tech] Comment!
• CEMI
  9:20 AM Chembio Diagnostics (CEMI) jumps 3.4% premarket after saying its FDA-approved Clearview COMPLETE HIV 1/2 assay has received CE Mark approval in Europe. The product will be marketed in the EU under the name SURE CHECK, and CEMI says it expects sales as soon as Q1 2014. (PR) [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• STLD
  9:19 AM Steel Dynamics (STLD) issues downside guidance for Q2, seeing EPS of $0.10-$0.14 vs. $0.24 consensus estimate, citing anticipated slower economic growth in China. Overall steel shipments are expected to rise slightly Q/Q, as decreases in merchant bar volume should be more than offset by increased sheet and other long product shipments. [Commodities] Comment!
• CWH
  9:18 AM In maybe more good news for CommonWealth REIT (CWH) shareholders, proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis – typically a supporter of managements – recommends clients vote to remove the entire board of the company. “(Management’s) interests are significantly misaligned with those of CW’s shareholders … and the external management structure provides for value transfers to the Manager irrespective of the losses realized by investors in the Trust.” [Financials] Comment!
• ADDYY.PK, NKE
  9:16 AM Adidas (ADDYY.PK) thinks sales of soccer-related products will rise to €2B ($2.7B) next year as the World Cup in Brazil drives demand. Nike (NKE) also is betting heavily on the global event – including a sponsorship of the popular national team from the host country. Sales of soccer apparel/gear is expected to be high enough in 2014 to also move the needle for Dick’s Sporting Goods (DKS). [Consumer] Comment!
• 9:15 AM Market preview: U.S. stock futures and European shares are flat-to-higher after U.S. CPI comes in slightly below expectations and as the FOMC meets on the first day of a two-day policy meeting. The S&P Mini is flat. “Today should be quiet, as people are only asking about tomorrow,” says economic strategist Andrew Wilkinson. Sony is +4.25% after Dan Loeb ups the ante over a spin-off for the company’s entertainment division. Ongoing: Paris Air Show [Top Stories, On the Move, U.S. Economy, Global & FX] Comment!
• CYTK, CBMX
  9:12 AM Premarket gainers: CYTK +12%. CBMX +11%. CAMT +10%. Losers: SFL -6%. [On the Move] Comment!
• XLU, IDU
  9:11 AM BAML private clients bought the dip last week, with the flows going via ETFs into large-cap and dividend plays like Utilities (XLU, IDU) – which saw the greatest buying since November 2011. Another favorite of the dividend crowd, Telecoms (IYZ) saw the biggest inflows since February. After buying through the spring, hedge funds turned sellers last week, and are now net-sellers YTD – just like 2012. Comment!
• LNKD
  9:10 AM LinkedIn (LNKD) +1.4% after Pac Crest starts coverage with an Outperform and $215 PT. ITG Research raised its estimates for the company on Friday. [Tech] 1 Comment
• AMKAF.PK, AMKBY.OB
  9:09 AM Danish shipper A.P. Moller-Maersk (AMKAF.PK) says the world’s three biggest shipping container operators have entered an alliance to reduce fuel consumption and improve service and operations. The P3 alliance, which also includes MSC Mediterranean Shipping and CMA, will operate a capacity of 2.6M containers between Asia and Europe, across the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. [Energy, Global & FX] 2 Comments
• SBUX
  9:07 AM Starbucks (SBUX) will be the latest restaurant chain to post calorie information on menu boards across the country. The company continues to try to position itself as a healthy alternative to fast food fare with its new grab-and-go lunches and line of Evolution Fresh juices, but also has its share of calorie headaches if whips, milks, and sugary options are included in beverage calorie counts. [Consumer] 2 Comments
• XIDE
  9:06 AM Exide Technology (XIDE) jumps 17.65% after a judge ruled that the maker of lead-acid batteries can reopen a plant in California that was closed by the state’s Department of Toxic Substances Control. The permission to reopen is pending a hearing next month. The department had ordered Exide, which recently filed for Chapter 11, to suspend operations at the plant in April, saying the facility’s arsenic emissions posed “an unacceptable risk to public health.” [On the Move] Comment!
• 9:00 AM On the hour: S&P +0.04%. 10-yr -0.15%. Euro -0.10% vs. dollar. Crude +0.23% to $98.26. Gold -0.64% to $1374.25. Comment!
• CPB
  9:00 AM Campbell Soup’s (CPB) acquisition of Danish firm Kelsen Group is a move designed to boost the company’s presence in China and other global markets, according to food industry analysts. With its 20-year history of growing brands in China, Kelsen provides a convenient shortcut to the booming sweet biscuits market in the nation. [Consumer] Comment!
• WMB, WPZ
  8:58 AM Goldman Sachs removes Williams Cos. (WMB) from its Conviction Buy List and lowers its price target to $40 from $45, and cuts Williams Partners (WPZ) to Neutral from Buy with a $52 price target, down from $58. Goldman believes last week’s explosion at the Geismar chemical plant adds material risk to near-term growth of both WMB and WPZ, putting dividend growth targets at risk. WMB -1.9% premarket. [Energy, Quick Ideas, On the Move] Comment!
• EAC
  8:58 AM Erickson Air-Crane (EAC), still stinging from a sell-off last week triggered by SA contributor Richard Pearson’s ZM Funds questions, rises 5.5% premarket after announcing a contract extension worth some $24M. (PR) [On the Move] Comment!
• 8:55 AM Redbook Chain Store Sales: +2.9% Y/Y vs. +2.8% last week. [Consumer] Comment!
• ACG, UTX
  8:55 AM Paris Air Show: Pratt & Whitney is having a good week, with LATAM Airlines choosing the company’s geared turbofan engines to power 42 Airbus A320 aircraft in a deal worth $1.4B (PR). The booking adds to orders for 730 engines that P&W will receive for its geared turbo fan engine after it was picked for Embraer’s next-generation E-Jet. P&W has also received a booking to power 12 A320s from Aviation Capital Group (ACG) (PR). The United Tech (UTX) unit expects revenue to double to over $24B by 2020 from $12.2B in 2010. Comment!
• FXI, CAF
  8:54 AM “The biggest contrarian play in the market today is assets linked to China (FXI, CAF),” says Michael Hartnett, summarizing BAML’s latest Fund Manager Survey, which shows money flowing out of commodities (DBC) and emerging markets (EEM, DEM, VWO). Where’s the money going? The eurozone and the U.S. Where it’s not going is fixed-income (AGG, BND) – 50% of managers say they’re now underweight bonds as opposed to 38% last month. Comment!
• GIL
  8:54 AM Gildan Activewear (GIL) says it picked up all the assets of New Buffalo Shirt Factory for around $7M in a deal which it thinks will boost manufacturing abilities for the company’s brands. [Consumer] Comment!
• MEIP
  8:49 AM MEI Pharma (MEIP) announces the dosing of the first patients in a Phase II trial of the myelodysplastic syndrome treatment Pracinostat, the company’s lead candidate. CMO Robert Mass calls the initiation of Phase II clinicals “an important milestone.” (PR) [Healthcare] Comment!
• BHP, PNW
  8:49 AM BHP Billiton’s (BHP) plans to sell a coal mine in New Mexico to the Navajo Nation for ~$85M have been derailed by proposed reforms of the state’s electricity market. The Navajos had expected to close a deal with BHP by July 1, but it can’t go ahead until a separate deal is completed between two utilities for part of a power station that buys coal from the mine on Navajo land. [Commodities] Comment!
• CAMT
  8:42 AM Camtek (CAMT) lands near the top of the “premarket gainers” list, rising 10.5% before the bell after saying it has entered into a frame engagement for 10 semiconductor inspection systems. The first order is worth “in excess of $2M,” the company says. (PR) [On the Move, Tech] Comment!
• SODA
  8:42 AM Oppenheimer lifts its price target on SodaStream (SODA) to $85 following the company’s intriguing deal with Whirlpool to jointly develop a home carbonation system. SODA +1.5% premarket to $72.05. [Consumer] 1 Comment
• FANG, GPOR
  8:37 AM Diamondback Energy (FANG) launches a secondary offering of 5M common shares, with ~3.4M shares are being sold by Wexford Capital and 1.6M by Gulfport Energy (GPOR). FANG, which had 37.2M shares outstanding as of March 31, won’t get any proceeds from the offering. [Energy] Comment!
• 8:36 AM More on Housing Starts: Total starts were up 6.8% from April, up 28.6% from a year ago. Single family starts in were about flat M/M. Total building permits of 974K fell 3.1% M/M, and gained 20.8% Y/Y. Single family permits rise 1.3% M/M. (full report) [U.S. Economy] 4 Comments
• CBMX
  8:34 AM Two studies demonstrating the clinical utility of microarray testing over karyotyping continue to drive an increase in the volume of prenatal testing, CombiMatrix (CBMX) says. Shares are up 17% premarket. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• GSK, APNHF.PK
  8:33 AM GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has received an offer from South Africa’s Aspen Pharmacare (APNHF.PK) for its thrombosis drug brands Arixtra and Fraxiparine (excluding China, India and Pakistan), and the related manufacturing site. GSK said any sale would fit in with its strategy of focusing on growth products and the delivery of its pipeline. (PR) [Healthcare, M&A] Comment!
• THI
  8:31 AM Tim Hortons (THI) has attracted the attention of a second hedge fund with Scout Capital Management increasing its stake to 5.5% and tipping off it plans to raise some issues with management. Earlier this year, Highfields Capital pushed the Tim Hortons board to consider U.S. expansion. (13D) [Consumer] Comment!
• 8:30 AM May Housing Starts: 914K vs. 950K forecast, 856K previous (revised from 853K). [U.S. Economy, Breaking News, Top Stories] Comment!
• 8:30 AM May Consumer Price Index: +0.1%;vs. +0.2% expected, -0.4% prior. Core CPI +0.2%; in-line with expectations, +0.1% prior. [U.S. Economy, Top Stories] 4 Comments
• TSN, PPC
  8:24 AM A profit warning from Hormel is enough to scare off some investors across the sector. Premarket: Tyson Foods (TSN) -1.3%, Pilgrim’s Pride (PPC) -2.0%, Seaboard (SEB) inactive. [Consumer, On the Move] Comment!
• RDS.A, CVX
  8:24 AM First production from the Majnoon field being developed by a consortium led by Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) is expected in July with total output reaching 175K bbl/day by year’s end, according to the top energy advisor to Iraq’s Prime Minister. But not likely to please the government is news that Chevron (CVX) and Total (TOT) are expanding exploration rights in Kurdish territory (I, II). [Energy] Comment!
• HRL
  8:19 AM Hormel (HRL) lowers estimates for profitability this year, dropping its EPS outlook to $1.88-$1.96 from prior guidance of $1.93-$2.03. The company cites higher input costs and poor pork sales for the shortfall. HRL -9% premarket, working off much of the gains picked up from enthusiasm in the sector after Smithfields Foods was bought out. [Consumer, On the Move] 1 Comment
• BSX
  8:19 AM Patients with Parkinson’s disease showed a 60% mean improvement in motor function after six months in a trial of Boston Scientific’s (BSX) Vercise DBS (deep brain stimulation) System. The implant is designed to selectively stimulate targeted areas when inserted in the brain. The study involved 40 subjects. (PR) [Healthcare] Comment!
• BBY, CVS
  8:15 AM More on ICSC Retail Sales: The retail sector put in a mixed week with department stores, electronics store chains ([[RSH[[, BBY), and drug stores (CVS, WAG, RAD]]) strong for the period, but sales at dollar stores (DG, DLTR, FIVE, FDO) and wholesale clubs (COST, PSMT) notably weak. After last week’s drop in sales cut into forward progress, the year-over-year gain in retail chain store sales stands 2.5% higher after threatening a 3% pace earlier in the year. [U.S. Economy] Comment!
• DCO
  8:12 AM Ducommun (DCO) gets a multi-year contract from UTX’s Sikorsky for the production of electromechanical assemblies for Black Hawk helicopters which the company has supplied since 2005. The Black Hawk is DCO’s “single biggest defense platform in terms of annual revenue.” (PR) Comment!
• JW.A
  8:11 AM John Wiley & Sons (JW.A): FQ4 EPS of $0.71 misses by $0.09. Adj. Revenue of $446M beats by $5M. (PR) [Earnings, Breaking News] Comment!
• DUK
  8:10 AM Duke Energy (DUK) names Lynn Good as its next president and CEO, succeeding Jim Rogers, who will continue to serve as chairman of the board until his Dec. 31 retirement. Good had served as DUK’s executive VP and CFO since 2009, and had held management positions at Cinergy, Deloitte & Touche and Arthur Andersen. [Energy] 2 Comments
• HAS, MAT
  8:06 AM Toys “R” Us reported sales fell 7.8% to $2.4B during its FQ1 as cold weather contributed to slow demand. Comparable store net sales dropped 8.4% in the U.S. and 6% in the international segment. The below-par performance from the toy seller doesn’t bode particularly well for Hasbro (HAS) and Mattel (MAT). [Consumer] 1 Comment
• ARCP, CWH
  8:05 AM Luxor Capital (about $5B in AUM) boosts its stake in American Realty Capital Properties (ARCP) to more than 17M shares (9.2% of the company) from about 4M previously. The stock is now Luxor’s 3rd largest individual holding. Other REITs owned by Luxor include: CommonWealth (CWH), Realty Income (O), Equity Residential (EQR), and AvalonBay (AVB). [Financials] Comment!
• SAFM
  8:03 AM KeyBanc is “incrementally positive on chicken,” but that doesn’t mean any price will do for shares of Sanderson Farms (SAFM) which are downgraded to Hold from Buy. In a valuation call, analyst Akshay Jagdale says protein companies have generally traded at a 12-14 multiple over the past seven years and at 13.8x estimates, SAFM’s valuation is “full.” [Consumer] Comment!
• 8:00 AM On the hour: S&P +0.1%. 10-yr -0.04%. Euro +0.06% vs. dollar. Crude -0.15% to $97.89. Gold -0.62% to $1374.55. Comment!
• 8:00 AM Three breakfast reads 1 How the Revival of Postwar Germany Began 2) Speculators Fight The Fed Once Again In The Bond Market: Can They Finally Win? 3) How Clearwire Became the Darling of Telecom [U.S. Economy, Global & FX, Consumer, Healthcare, Tech] Comment!
• BKI
  7:56 AM Georgia Pacific extends its tender off for share of Buckeye Technologies (BKI) to June 25. So far, 82% of shares have been tendered. [Consumer] Comment!
• ELN
  7:55 AM Royalty Pharma withdraws its request for a judicial review of a decision which required it to lapse its bid for Elan (ELN). Previously, the Irish Takeover Panel said the company could not modify the terms and conditions of its takeover bid after the fact. (previous) [Healthcare, M&A] Comment!
• AAPL
  7:54 AM The rumored iWatch will be more “hobby” than major product line for Apple (AAPL), says Jefferies’ Peter Misek. Likely not having a cellular chip, the iWatch would need to be paired with an iPhone for full functionality. Starting with some pricing assumptions and then slapping a 5% penetration on the installed iPhone base of 250M would move the EPS needle by only about 1%. [Tech] 9 Comments
• MTL
  7:52 AM Mechel (MTL) reports a Q1 net loss of $321M, with adjusted EBITDA of $210M and a 16% Y/Y decline in revenues to $2.48B, as the Russian miner says it was hurt by unfavorable price trends in global markets but expects changes to its asset structure and debt portfolio will enable it to survive an extended slowdown. MTL +1% premarket. [Commodities, Earnings] Comment!
• 7:52 AM Shares of Sony move up 3.6% premarket after Dan Loeb turns up the heat on his proposal to see the company spin off its entertainment business. What to watch: Sony holds its annual meeting on Thursday where execs will have to either publicly back a plan to keep the firm together or leave the door open just a crack that a spinoff is a possibility. [Consumer, Global & FX, On the Move] Comment!
• 7:47 AM ICSC Retail Store Sales: +0.3% W/W, vs. -2.7% last week. +2.5% Y/Y vs. +2.2% last week. [Consumer] Comment!
• 7:46 AM The FOMC will be able to chew on inflation data for May when it meets today, with the reading due out this morning. Economists expect that CPI rose 0.2% on month after sliding 0.4% in April, driven up by slightly higher food and gasoline costs. “Inflation is low in the U.S. at the moment, giving the Fed more room to wait for improvement in employment before it starts tapering,” say analysts at Danske Daily. [U.S. Economy, Top Stories] Comment!
• ARCP
  7:45 AM American Capital Realty Properties (ARCP) will be added to the Nasdaq Financial-100, the Russell Global, and Russell 3000 indexes, effective June 24 for Nasdaq and July 1 for Russell. The company also expects to be added to the Russell 2000 – the small-cap subset of the Russell 3000. (PR) [Financials] Comment!
• ANGO
  7:44 AM The FDA grants Investigational Device Exemption for a clinical study of focal ablation in prostate cancer with AngioDynamics’ (ANGO) NanoKnife. Patient enrollment is set to begin in FQ2 which ends on November 30 of this year. (PR) [Healthcare] Comment!
• SIG
  7:43 AM Signet Jewelers (SIG) approves a new buyback program which will allow the company to repurchase up to $350M worth of common stock on the open market. SIG +0.6% premarket. [Consumer] Comment!
• PTR, TOT
  7:40 AM China National Petroleum (PTR) and France’s Total (TOT) reportedly are set to finalize an agreement with Tethys Petroleum (TETHF.PK) to develop oil and gas assets in Tajikistan. “Based on the audited figure, there is enough gas in Tajikistan in our area to supply China’s natural gas demand in the next 25 years,” Tethys’ executive chairman says. [Energy] Comment!
• PBCT
  7:38 AM People’s United Financial (PBCT) is upgraded to Buy with price target of $15.50 (from $13.50) at JPMorgan, which calls the current price just south of $14 an attractive entry point. [Financials] 1 Comment
• HYGS
  7:35 AM Hydrogenics (HYGS) says it will install three of its HySTAT-60 electrolyzers at a fueling station in Bolzano, Italy as part of a new contract with The Linde Group. (PR) [Energy] Comment!
• UBS, HBC
  7:28 AM Hong Kong extends it Hibor-rigging investigation (previously limited to UBS) to include HSBC (HBC) and a number of other banks, according to the central bank. In other rate-rigging news, it’s bracelets for an ex-UBS trader as the U.K. launches criminal charges against him. [Financials, Global & FX] Comment!
• SKUL
  7:15 AM Skullcandy (SKUL) says it will it has started a search for a new CFO to replace the resigned Kyle Wescoat and shuffled other key execs. As part of its transition, the company will align certain product, marketing and sales functions. [Tech] 1 Comment
• 7:12 AM Putting to rest any doubt about whether Bernanke will seek a third term as FOMC chief, the President tells Charlie Rose the chairman has already stayed “a lot longer than he wanted or he was supposed to.” [U.S. Economy] Comment!
• GLD, IAU
  7:07 AM Gold (GLD, IAU) bulls may take comfort as Dennis Gartman jumps on the bearish bandwagon, calling the metal an “aging athlete” and “a broken commodity.” The man who loved “stuff that hurts when you drop it on your foot” 2 years ago says the price is headed to $1K if $1.2K support is broken. HSBC’s James Steel disagrees, seeing strong physical demand lifting the price to $1.6K in H2 and $2K in the longer term. [Commodities] 9 Comments
• JACK
  7:05 AM Jack In The Box (JACK) plans to close 67 Qdoba restaurants by the end of its current fiscal year after analyzing sales performance metrics. A charge of approximately $40M will be taken to cover costs associated with the closings. Expansion is still on tap for Qdboa, with the company saying 70 to 75 new outlets are scheduled to be opened this year and another 60 to 70 in 2014. [Consumer] Comment!
• FDS
  7:02 AM FactSet (FDS): FQ3 EPS of $1.15 misses by $0.11. Revenue of $214.6M (+6% Y/Y) misses by $0.34M. (PR) [Earnings, Breaking News, Tech] Comment!
• 7:00 AM On the hour: S&P +0.23%. 10-yr -0.09%. Euro +0.11% vs. dollar. Crude -0.23% to $97.81. Gold -0.51% to $1376.05. Comment!
• F
  6:57 AM Ford (F) plans to add buttons and knobs to its MyFord Touch infotainment system on more models. The automaker is reacting to some criticism over the digital touchscreen which was called too complicated by some drivers. [Consumer] 4 Comments
• CRZBF.PK, CRZBY.PK
  6:53 AM Commerzbank (CRZBF.PK, CRZBY.PK) will slash more than 5K jobs as part of its cost-cutting program, reports Reuters, which adds the bank has reached preliminary agreement with labor unions over the implementation of said cuts. Shares +1.2% in Frankfurt. [Financials] Comment!
• FNP
  6:51 AM Fifth & Pacific (FNP) says a court in New York ruled in its favor in a trademark case involving its Kate Spade brand. The decision will allow the Kate Spade Saturday brand name to survive in the market in its current form. [Consumer] Comment!
• RIO
  6:47 AM Rio Tinto’s (RIO) recently on-the-block 59% stake in Iron Ore Co. of Canada draws the interest of state-owned Chinese giant Minmetals. “We have invested in the neighborhood before,” President Wang Jionghui tells the WSJ. Active pursuit of a deal would depend on various factors such as partners, he adds. The stake likely has a value somewhere in the $4B range. [Commodities] Comment!
• NFLX
  6:46 AM Netflix (NFLX) announces the launch of Netflix Families in the U.K. as it increases its push to land new family-oriented viewers. The online interface will include a curated list of available family programming. [Consumer] 1 Comment
• TSLA
  6:41 AM North Carolina is the latest state to attempt to block Tesla Motors (TSLA) from selling electric vehicles directly to consumers. The state Senate has already approved a measure to ban Tesla from selling online in the state and the House could vote on it within weeks. [Consumer] 34 Comments
• SPY, QQQ
  6:40 AM Futures point to opening gains, the S&P 500 (SPY) and Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) both up 0.25% three hours before the bell. Most of Europe is moderately higher and Japan enjoyed a rare quiet session overnight. Treasury prices are flat ahead of the Fed beginning its 2-day meeting today. Comment!
• CHIX
  6:24 AM China’s determination to reign in the rapid growth of credit is being tested by a short-term credit squeeze at banks, with rates in the interbank funding market soaring and foreign-capital inflows slowing. The banks want the People’s Bank of China to inject liquidity by cutting the reserve-requirement ratio, but so far the PBOC is holding firm and maintaining the tight conditions. [Global & FX] Comment!
• 6:00 AM Overseas: Japan -0.2%. Hong Kong -0.02%. China +0.2%. India -0.5%. London +0.8%. Paris +0.1%. Frankfurt +0.02%. Comment!
• BA, UAL
  5:51 AM Paris Air Show: As widely expected, Boeing (BA) has officially launched the 787-10, a stretched version of the Dreamliner with up to 330 seats, and said it already has orders for 102 jets from five buyers (PR). One of these is United Airlines (UAL), which will be the launch customer in North America with a booking for 20 aircraft, including an upgrade on 10 existing 787 orders. Air Lease Corp. (AL) has booked 30 (PR). Meanwhile, Ryanair’s (RYAAY) shareholders have approved the carrier’s acquisition of 175 Boeing 737 aircraft in a deal worth $15.6B at list prices. [Top Stories] 1 Comment
• 5:29 AM The German ZEW survey of investor confidence rises to 38.5 in June from 36.4 in May and tops consensus of 38.1; however, the current situation print falls to 8.6 from 8.9 and misses forecasts of 9.5. Sentiment for the eurozone climbs to 30.6 from 27.6. “The financial experts stick to their assessment: the German economy is likely to pick up speed in the second half of 2013,” ZEW President Clemens Fuest said. “However, the results of the current survey indicate that the economy will improve rather slowly.” (PR) [Global & FX] Comment!
• 5:06 AM British Prime Minister David Cameron will lead talks on the exceptionally thorny topic of international tax reform at the G8 summit in Northern Ireland today. The discussion will focus on the key areas of transparency, tax havens and multinational tax avoidance. “We have made more progress in the last 24 hours than people have had in the past 24 years,” U.K. Finance Minister George Osborne said. [Global & FX, Top Stories, U.S. Economy] Comment!
• 4:55 AM The European Central Bank has numerous tools, whether they be “standard interest rate policy and non-standard measures,” that it can “deploy if circumstances warrant,” Mario Draghi says in a broad reiteration of commitments the ECB made last month. “We have been able to regain better control of monetary conditions in the euro area economy,” which is important for being able to boost the economy with the “appropriate monetary policy.” [Global & FX] 2 Comments
• SFD
  4:43 AM Smithfield Foods (SFD) intends to review a letter from activist investor Starboard, which reckons that the pork producer could earn more value by splitting up into three and then selling itself rather than going through with its $4.7B acquisition by Shuanghui. However, Smithfield reiterated its recommendation that shareholders vote for the Shuanghui deal, as it provides “significant, immediate and certain” cash value to shareholders. [M&A] Comment!
• 4:37 AM U.K. CPI +2.7% on year in May vs +2.4% in April and consensus of +2.6%. On month, CPI growth unchanged at 0.2% but above forecasts of +0.1%. (PR) PPI +0.8% on year vs +0.7% previously and consensus of +0.9%. On month, PPI -0.3% vs -2.3% and unchanged. (PR) [Global & FX, Top Stories, Breaking News] Comment!
• RTN, BA
  4:23 AM Paris Air Show: While defense companies are being hit by sequestration at home, they are enjoying increasing demand abroad for fighter jets, missile defense systems and other weapons. Air force sales doubled to $22B over the past two years, while the likes of Raytheon (RTN) are overbooked with meetings in Paris this week. Other vendors to benefit include Boeing (BA), United Tech (UTX), Lockheed Martin (LMT) and Textron (TXT). Comment!
• FEZ
  4:13 AM Asian and European (FEZ) shares are mixed as markets await the word from the FOMC, which is due to start a two-day session today. “I think the Fed is secretly sitting with its fingers crossed, hoping that the froth continues to be skimmed off asset markets,” says analyst Nick Beecroft. “I don’t think they will be bothered at all if the S&P 500 or other risk markets fall 5 or 10%, as long as it didn’t happen in a (single) day.” Japan -0.2%, Hong Kong flat, China +0.1%, India -0.2%. EU Stoxx 50 -0.2%, London +0.4%, Paris -0.2%, Frankfurt -0.1%, Madrid +0.4%, Milan +0.4%. [Global & FX, Top Stories, On the Move] 2 Comments
• BA, EJTTF.OB
  3:59 AM Paris Air Show: Boeing (BA) has lost out to Airbus (EADSF.PK) for a major order from easyjet (EJTTF.OB), which has agreed to purchase 135 A320 aircraft in a deal that would be worth $11.5B at list prices but in which the airline received a “very substantial” discount. easyjet has also taken an option for another 100 planes. (PR) [Consumer] Comment!
• MDT
  3:49 AM Medtronic’s (MDT) controversial Infuse bone-growth implant for spine surgery is no better than a traditional operation, two independent analyses have found, with the rates of complication similar regardless of the treatment used. Infuse generated $528M in sales in the last fiscal year. Medtronic, which commissioned the studies, had been hit by accusations that doctors who had originally supported Infuse had financial ties to the company worth millions of dollars. [Healthcare] 1 Comment
• C
  3:31 AM While the likes of Apple and Amazon go all out to keep their taxable income overseas, for the past few years Citigroup (C) has been trying to shift more of this type of profit back home. It’s not because the bank wants to pay more tax, it’s just that it has $55B of tax credits and deductions that it wants to use up. Hence the acquisition of $7B in credit-card loans to Best Buy customers. [Financials] 1 Comment
• FTE
  3:18 AM As expected, France Telecom’s (FTE) board yesterday kept Stephane Richard as CEO despite French authorities placing him under investigation for his role in the suspected misuse of public funds. Richard’s status was pretty much assured after the government said they would back him. The board said it doesn’t believe that Richard’s legal problems “impede his ability to fully and effectively” manage France Teleom. (PR) [Tech, Consumer] Comment!
• GM, FIATY.PK
  3:06 AM The EU new-car market showed no signs of bottoming out in May as registrations dropped 5.9% to 1.04M units, the lowest level for the month since 1993. The fall followed a 1.7% gain in April. In January-May, registrations slid 6.8% to 5.07M vehicles. GM (GM) was among those to suffer the most in May with an 11.3% decline. Toyota registrations dropped 4.9% but those of Ford fell just 0.3%. (PR) [Consumer, Global & FX] 1 Comment
• TLM
  2:55 AM Talisman Energy (TLM) has reportedly approached potential buyers, including private-equity firms, for its shale assets in the Eagle Ford basin in south Texas with a view to raising $2B. The speculation could come as a bit of a surprise, because while Talisman has said it is looking to offload non-core assets, its Eagle Ford interest is seen as core. [Energy, M&A] Comment!
• JCI, DLPH
  2:05 AM Johnson Controls (JCI) is reportedly in talks with P-E firms about selling them its automotive electronics unit, which is valued at $1B, after industry interest weakened due to the unit’s softer-than-expected performance. Delphi Automotive (DLPH) has pulled out the running, although Visteon (VC) and SAIC (SAI) subsidiary Huayu Automotive Systems are still involved. [M&A] Comment!
• SNE
  1:55 AM Sony (SNE) repeats that it will review Daniel Loeb’s proposal that the company float its entertainment business after Loeb’s Third Point hedge fund increased its stake in the electronics firm to 7% from 6.5%. In the past, Sony has said that its film and device units are better together – CEO Kazuo Hirai believes they have valuable synergies – and that it would consider Loeb’s spin-off idea. [Tech, Top Stories, Consumer] Comment!
• 1:45 AM Japanese industrial production grew 0.9% on month in April, as in March, but came in well below preliminary data of +1.7%. On year, output dropped 3.4% vs -6.7% a month earlier. The on-month change in April was due to the government altering the base year to 2010 from 2005, which affected the weightings of items in the index and the method used to account for seasonal factors. [Global & FX] Comment!
• ADBE
  12:10 AM Notable earnings after Tuesday’s close: ADBE [Earnings] Comment!
• FDS
  12:05 AM Notable earnings before Tuesday’s open: FDS [Earnings] Comment!
• 12:00 AM Tuesday’s economic calendar: FOMC meeting begins 7:45 ICSC Retail Store Sales 8:30 Consumer Price Index 8:30 Housing Starts 8:55 Redbook Chain Store Sales Comment!

Top Stories

• Stocks Rally 1%: Wall Street Gains on Fed Hopes After Weekly Loss
• Corporate America Fights Back Against (Chinese) Hackers
• Yes, the Markets Are Rigged: How to Survive the Shark-Infested Waters
• Home Builder Sentiment Index Tops 50, First Time in Seven Years
• Activist Gets Piggish on Smithfield Foods Deal
• China’s Credit Bubble About to Implode: Fitch Analyst
• Are Average Investors Better Off?
• Once Hot Internet IPOs Have Lost Their Luster: Suttmeier
• Time to Put a Little “SaaS” in Your Portfolio: JMP’s Lehmann
• Orchard Supply Files for Chapter 11, Lowe’s Steps In

Analysts’ Upgrades

• INTER NATIONAL MARKET INDEX (NYSE: ADR) was upgraded by analysts at Deutsche Bank from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Anite (LON: AIE) was upgraded by analysts at Barclays Capital to an “overweight” rating. They now have a GBX 170 ($2.67) price target on the stock.
• Antofagasta plc (NASDAQ: ANFGY) was upgraded by analysts at UBS AG from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Antofagasta (LON: ANTO) was upgraded by analysts at UBS AG to a “buy” rating. They now have a GBX 1,050 ($16.49) price target on the stock, down previously from GBX 1,140 ($17.90).
• Cheesecake Factory (NASDAQ: CAKE) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Casey’s General (NASDAQ: CASY) was upgraded by analysts at Stephens from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating.
• Century Aluminum Company (NASDAQ: CENX) was upgraded by analysts at Morgan Stanley from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating.
• PAGNIE FINANCIERE RI (NASDAQ: CFRUY) was upgraded by analysts at HSBC from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating.
• CIT Group (NYSE: CIT) was upgraded by analysts at Drexel Hamilton from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating. They now have a $52.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $2.00. 13.6% Upside.
• Comcast Co. (NASDAQ: CMCSA) was upgraded by analysts at Raymond James from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating.
• C-Cube Micro (NASDAQ: CUBE) was upgraded by analysts at Raymond James from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating.
• Cavco Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ: CVCO) was upgraded by analysts at Sidoti from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Cypress Sharpridge Investments (NYSE: CYS) was upgraded by analysts at Wunderlich from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating. They now have a $12.00 price target on the stock. 13.9% Upside.
• Walt Disney (NYSE: DIS) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Electricite de SA (EPA: EDF) was upgraded by analysts at Main First Bank AG to an “outperform” rating. They now have a €21.00 ($28.00) price target on the stock.
• Extra Space Storage (NYSE: EXR) was upgraded by analysts at Raymond James from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating.
• CGI Group (NYSE: GIB) was upgraded by analysts at Scotiabank from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating.
• Genuine Parts Company (NYSE: GPC) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Goodyear (NYSE: GT) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Hornbeck Offshore (NYSE: HOS) was upgraded by analysts at JPMorgan Chase from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating. They now have a $66.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $60.00. 26.7% Upside.
• Heartland Payment Systems (NYSE: HPY) was upgraded by analysts at Piper Jaffray from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating. They now have a $42.00 price target on the stock. 21.2% Upside.
• H&R Block (NYSE: HRB) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Intermediate Capital Group (LON: ICP) was upgraded by analysts at Societe Generale to a “buy” rating. They now have a GBX 500 ($7.85) price target on the stock.
• Jack in the Box (NASDAQ: JACK) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• KAR Auction Services (NYSE: KAR) was upgraded by analysts at Northcoast Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Lamprell (LON: LAM) was upgraded by analysts at Liberum Capital from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating. They now have a GBX 175 ($2.75) price target on the stock.
• Fidelity Southern Co. (NASDAQ: LION) was upgraded by analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating.
• MDU Resources Group (NYSE: MDU) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Magnum Hunter (NYSE: MHR) was upgraded by analysts at Capital One from a “neutral” rating to an “add” rating.
• Marvell Technology Group (NASDAQ: MRVL) was upgraded by analysts at Susquehanna from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating. They now have a $14.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $10.00. 27.2% Upside.
• Blue Nile (NASDAQ: NILE) was upgraded by analysts at William Blair from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating.
• Nomura (NYSE: NMR) was upgraded by analysts at Societe Generale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Petroleo Brasileiro SA (NYSE: PBR) was upgraded by analysts at Jefferies Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Patterson Companies (NASDAQ: PDCO) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Koninklijke Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG) was upgraded by analysts at Deutsche Bank from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Polaris Industries (NYSE: PII) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Prologis (NYSE: PLD) was upgraded by analysts at Wells Fargo from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating.
• Public Storage (NYSE: PSA) was upgraded by analysts at Raymond James from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating.
• Rent-A-Center, (NASDAQ: RCII) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Dow Jones Equity All REIT Total Return Index (NASDAQ: REIT) was upgraded by analysts at JPMorgan Chase from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating.
• Ryman Hospitality Properties (NYSE: RHP) was upgraded by analysts at JPMorgan Chase from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating. They now have a $42.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $40.00. 15.4% Upside.
• Rock-Tenn Company (NYSE: RKT) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Spectra Energy Partners, LP (NYSE: SEP) was upgraded by analysts at Raymond James from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating.
• Synergy Health (LON: SIE) was upgraded by analysts at Arden Partners Ltd to a “buy” rating.
• SurModics (NASDAQ: SRDX) was upgraded by analysts at Sidoti from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.
• Snam SpA (BIT: SRG) was upgraded by analysts at AlphaValue to an “add” rating. They now have a €3.90 ($5.20) price target on the stock.
• TIBCO Software (NASDAQ: TIBX) was upgraded by analysts at Wells Fargo from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating.
• Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) was upgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating.

Analysts’ Downgrades

• Associated British Foods (LON: ABF) was downgraded by analysts at Nomura from a “neutral” rating to a “reduce” rating. They now have a GBX 1,650 ($25.91) price target on the stock, down previously from GBX 1,800 ($28.27).
• INTER NATIONAL MARKET INDEX (NYSE: ADR) was downgraded by analysts at Numis Securities Ltd from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating.
• Amgen (NASDAQ: AMGN) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• ARM Holdings plc (NASDAQ: ARMH) was downgraded by analysts at Numis Securities Ltd from a “hold” rating to a “reduce” rating.
• Associated British Foods plc (NASDAQ: ASBFY) was downgraded by analysts at Nomura from a “neutral” rating to a “reduce” rating.
• AthenaHealth (NASDAQ: ATHN) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating.
• Banco Popolare SC (BIT: BP) was downgraded by analysts at Mediobanca SpA to an “underperform” rating. They now have a €0.95 ($1.27) price target on the stock.
• CONSOL Energy (NYSE: CNX) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating.
• Cofinimmo NV/SA (EBR: COFB) was downgraded by analysts at EVA Dimensions to an “overweight” rating.
• Chevron (NYSE: CVX) was downgraded by analysts at Jefferies Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating. They now have a $135.00 price target on the stock. They noted that the move was a valuation call. 12.2% Upside.
• Eni S.p.A. (NYSE: E) was downgraded by analysts at BNP Paribas from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating.
• Fortel Inc (NASDAQ: ECGP) was downgraded by analysts at Piper Jaffray from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating. They now have a $36.00 price target on the stock.
• Encore Capital Group (NASDAQ: ECPG) was downgraded by analysts at Piper Jaffray from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Echo Therapeutics (NASDAQ: ECTE) was downgraded by analysts at LifeTech Capital from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating. They now have a $3.75 price target on the stock. 34.9% Upside.
• NASDAQ (NASDAQ: FCE) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating.
• Fortress Investment Group LLC (NYSE: FIG) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Fugro N.V (AMS: FUR) was downgraded by analysts at Kepler Cheuvreux to a “hold” rating. They now have a €45.00 ($60.00) price target on the stock.
• Halcon Resources (NYSE: HK) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating.
• Health Management Associates (NYSE: HMA) was downgraded by analysts at Mizuho from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating. They now have a $17.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $12.00. 6.2% Upside.
• Helmerich & Payne (NYSE: HP) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Immunodiagnostic Systems Hldgs PLC (LON: IDH) was downgraded by analysts at Investec from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating. They now have a GBX 460 ($7.22) price target on the stock, up previously from GBX 360 ($5.65).
• Imagination Technologies Group (LON: IMG) was downgraded by analysts at Barclays Capital to an “equal weight” rating. They now have a GBX 300 ($4.71) price target on the stock.
• Infinera (NASDAQ: INFN) was downgraded by analysts at Jefferies Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating. They now have a $12.00 price target on the stock, up previously from $9.00. 6.8% Upside.
• World Fuel Services Co. (NYSE: INT) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• J.B. Hunt Transport Services (NASDAQ: JBHT) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Kimco Realty Co. (NYSE: KIM) was downgraded by analysts at Argus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating.
• Lincoln Electric Holdings (NASDAQ: LECO) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Micros Systems (NASDAQ: MCRS) was downgraded by analysts at Compass Point from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating. They now have a $45.00 price target on the stock. 5.9% Upside.
• Murphy Oil Corp (NYSE: MUR) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Nu Skin Enterprises (NYSE: NUS) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Portfolio Recovery Associates (NASDAQ: PRAA) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Prospect Capital (NASDAQ: PSEC) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating.
• Patterson-UTI (NASDAQ: PTEN) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Rent-A-Center, (NASDAQ: RCII) was downgraded by analysts at Sidoti from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Robert Half (NYSE: RHI) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Red Hat (NYSE: RHT) was downgraded by analysts at Susquehanna from a “positive” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Rogers Co. (NYSE: ROG) was downgraded by analysts at Sidoti from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.
• Saipem SpA(ADR) (NASDAQ: SAPMY) was downgraded by analysts at BNP Paribas from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating.
• Saipem SpA(ADR) (NASDAQ: SAPMY) was downgraded by analysts at Natixis from a “neutral” rating to a “reduce” rating.
• Saipem SpA(ADR) (NASDAQ: SAPMY) was downgraded by analysts at Societe Generale from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating.
• SBM Offshore (AMS: SBMO) was downgraded by analysts at Kepler Cheuvreux to a “reduce” rating. They now have a €10.00 ($13.33) price target on the stock.
• Saipem SpA (BIT: SPM) was downgraded by analysts at Societe Generale to a “sell” rating. They now have a €16.00 ($21.33) price target on the stock.
• Saras SpA (BIT: SRS) was downgraded by analysts at Mediobanca SpA to an “underperform” rating. They now have a €0.95 ($1.27) price target on the stock.
• Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) was downgraded by analysts at Raymond James from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating. They noted that the move was a valuation call.
• Ventas (NYSE: VTR) was downgraded by analysts at Ned Davis Research from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating.
• WisdomTree Investments (NASDAQ: WETF) was downgraded by analysts at Citigroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating.

Analysts’ New Coverage

• Blackstone Mortgage Trust Inc (NASDAQ: BXMT) is now covered by analysts at JP Morgan Cazenove. They set an “outperform” rating on the stock.
• Hikma Pharmaceuticals (LON: HIK) is now covered by analysts at Goldman Sachs. They set a “buy” rating and a GBX 1,170 ($18.37) price target on the stock.
• Invensys (LON: ISYS) is now covered by analysts at Canaccord Genuity. They set a “hold” rating and a GBX 420 ($6.60) price target on the stock.
• Lavendon Group (LON: LVD) is now covered by analysts at Cantor Fitzgerald. They set a “buy” rating and a GBX 190 ($2.98) price target on the stock.
• T-Mobile US Inc (NYSE: TMUS) is now covered by analysts at Robert W. Baird. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock.

• 11:16 PM Goldman’s take on the power of the press: “Stocks maintain early gains until FT Harding hits the tape with an article suggesting a signal from Bernanke this Wednesday that the taper was drawing near … Then via Twitter Harding casts doubt on his own predictions and more than half of those losses are reversed [reinforcing] how important the FOMC Wednesday will be.” Speaking of reinforcement, does this action just bolster Stan Druckenmiller’s contention that all price signals are now compromised by central bank interference? [U.S. Economy] Comment!
• ISRG
  10:53 PM Despite “mounting criticisms from multiple parties” the risk/reward profile on shares of Intuitive Surgical (ISRG) is “attractive,” Wedbush says, initiating the stock at Outperform with a $580 price target citing the company’s “track record of innovation” and the “ongoing launch of new instruments.” [Healthcare] Comment!
• PRXI
  10:42 PM Premier Exhibitions’ (PRXI) board authorizes a stock repurchase plan of up to 1.5M shares (about 3% of the float). “Today’s announcement is indicative of the improvement in our financial condition and our positive outlook for the future,” says Chairman Mark Sellers. Premier has tumbled badly of late over questions about whether the sale of its Titanic artifacts will ever go through. Remain patient, say the bulls, who also remind of now-viable operations separate from the Titanic. 1 Comment
• 10:22 PM New home prices in China rise in 69 out of 70 cities surveyed in May, once again (previous) undermining government efforts to curb property inflation. Prices jump 12% and 10% in Beijing and Shanghai respectively, versus 10.3% and 8.6% gains posted in April. [Global & FX] Comment!
• 9:28 PM Caution abounds as global markets nervously eye the Fed. In Tokyo the Nikkei edges up 0.4% early while shares trade modestly lower in Australia (ASX -0.4%) and hover around the flatline in Korea. The yen weakens 0.44% against the dollar to ¥94.90 at last check. [Global & FX] 1 Comment
• S, DISH
  8:28 PM Sprint (S) files suit to end Dish’s (DISH) $4.40/share tender offer for Clearwire (CLWR), alleging the deal (endorsed by Clearwire last week) violates Delaware law and the rights of Sprint and other “strategic” Clearwire investors. Among other things, Sprint claims the Dish offer can’t be concluded without the approval of both Comcast and Clearwire shareholders owning at least 75% of shares (Sprint has a majority stake). Clearwire investors aren’t bothered, shares +0.4% AH to $4.65. (previous: I, II) [Tech, M&A] 3 Comments
• MRC, CE
  7:59 PM MRC Global (MRC) says it’s been awarded a five-year global contract to supply and distribute pipe, valve and fitting needs for Celanese (CE). Financial details of the transaction weren’t disclosed. Comment!
• 7:53 PM The fundamentals haven’t changed enough to warrant all the skittishness in the market right now over what the Fed is going do about QE, observes Fusion Analytics’ Josh Brown. He brushes off talk recently in the Financial Times that Chairman Bernanke would likely signal a drawdown to the asset purchase program this week. “No one knows what’s going to happen,” he says. And regardless, headlines shouldn’t change an investment thesis anyway. [U.S. Economy] 4 Comments
• ORCL
  6:59 PM Oracle (ORCL) has the potential to support a quarterly dividend at least twice as high as its current $0.06/share (0.7% yield), argues RBC’s Matthew Hedberg. Hedberg points out Oracle, whose board will be free to consider a hike in August, only paid out 9% of its free cash flow in FY12, 1/3 of a peer group average of 27%. On the other hand, buybacks consumed 45% of free cash flow, a little above the peer group’s 41%. Meanwhile, Jefferies’ Ross MacMillan foresees Oracle reporting an in-line FQ4 on Thursday, with FQ3 order push-outs and a server refresh offsetting IT spending weakness. (Goldman) [Tech, Quick Ideas] 2 Comments
• GSS
  6:37 PM Golden Star Resources (GSS) +1.9% AH after providing an operational update, saying it is confident operations are viable in the current gold price environment and existing cash and cash flow from operations can cover its sustaining capital requirements for 2013. Gold production is seen at 290K-310K oz., ~10% lower than prior guidance, resulting in $45M less in operating costs. [Commodities, On the Move] 2 Comments
• 6:35 PM Online coupon/promo code site RetailMeNot has filed for a $230M IPO under the symbol SALE. The company, which relies on commissions from retail partners, had Q1 revenue of $40.6M (+37% Y/Y), and net income of $7M. It had contracts with 10K+ retailers at the end of 2012, and has featured 500K+ digital coupons in its marketplace each month this year. Monthly unique visitors averaged 24.2M in 2012. (S-1) [Tech] Comment!
• Z
  6:21 PM Zillow (Z +5.5%) is launching its first national TV spot, another sign the company is stepping up its efforts to compete for mindshare against Trulia and others in a fragmented online/mobile real estate market. The ad (video) will be shown in 30 and 60-second versions on CNN, USA, A&E, and other cable networks, and is part of Zillow’s “Find Your Way Home” ad campaign (launched earlier this year). Zillow’s sales/marketing spend rose 138% Y/Y in Q1 to $19.8M, and equaled 51% of revenue. [Tech] 1 Comment
• KFY
  6:19 PM More on Korn/Ferry (KFY): FQ4 beats across the board, as quarterly fee revenue jumps to $227.9M, an increase of 17%. Fee revenue in Leadership & Talent Consulting services grew 92% Y/Y. Looking forward, the company sees Q113 revenue of $215M – $227M, versus consensus estimates of $217.47M. Shares +2.1% AH. [Earnings, On the Move] Comment!
• WLT
  6:14 PM Morgan Stanley defends Walter Energy (WLT) after today’s sharp loss, saying potential upside from 52-week lows is too big to ignore and that WLT can work with its banks to obtain covenant relief with sufficient liquidity (earlier). The firm thinks shares could jump 200% to $35 even if WLT announced an equity offering that increased share count by a third, which the company has not indicated it was considering. WLT +3% AH. [Energy, On the Move] 8 Comments
• 6:00 PM On the hour: S&P +0.03%. 10-yr 0%. Euro -0.02% vs. dollar. Crude +0.06% to $98.19. Gold -0.03% to $1384.45. Comment!
• AMZN, EBAY
  5:57 PM U.S. online retail sales rose 14.6% Y/Y in May, says comScore. That sits well with Cantor, which is reiterating a Buy on Amazon (AMZN) and eBay (EBAY). Though May’s rate is down from April 16.9%, it’s above Q1 13.3%. Mobile activity is providing a lift – comScore estimates mobile made up 48% of time spent on U.S. retail e-commerce activity in Q1 (34% from smartphones, 14% from tablets). Meanwhile, eBay CEO John Donahoe predicts China will give PayPal a license, thus allowing it to take on Alibaba’s dominant AliPay service. eBay currently handles $6B/year worth of Chinese transactions, much of it from local merchants selling abroad. Analysys predicts the Chinese online payments market will soon top CNY1T ($163B). [Tech, Consumer] Comment!
• OAKS
  5:50 PM Five Oaks Investment (OAKS) declares dividend of $0.16/share for the month of July, August and September.Forward yield 14%. (PR) [Dividends] 1 Comment
• SFL
  5:46 PM Ship Finance International (SFL) announces an 8M share public offering. The company intends to use the net proceeds to invest in new assets within the shipping and offshore sectors and for general corporate purposes, including working capital. Morgan Stanley is acting as the sole book-running manager for the offering. Shares -5.4% AH. [On the Move] Comment!
• ADBE
  5:35 PM Notable earnings after Tuesday’s close: ADBE [Earnings] Comment!
• FDS
  5:30 PM Notable earnings before Tuesday’s open: FDS [Earnings] Comment!
• NSU, URI
  5:30 PM After-hours top gainers, as of 5:15 p.m.: NSU +4%. URI +4%. TMHC +4%. COCO +3%. HA +3%. After-hours top losers: GNMK -6%. LOPE -6%. SFL -6%. STAA -4%. BLDR -3%. [On the Move] Comment!
• BSX
  5:29 PM Boston Scientific (BSX) announces the first implantation of its Vercise DBS System as part of its intrepid clinical trial. The study intends to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of motor function and overall quality of life in patients using the Vercise DBS System for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. Shares -0.3% AH. [Healthcare] Comment!
• AAPL, LOGI
  5:26 PM A week after it was reported iOS 7 (AAPL) will add game controller support, gaming site Kotaku has leaked a picture of a Logitech (LOGI) iPhone controller. Once an iPhone is placed in the middle of the controller, the device strongly resembles a PlayStation Vita. The leak comes in a month that has already seen Logitech grow its mobile exposure by acquiring iPhone accessories startup TT Design Labs. [Tech] Comment!
• EME
  5:21 PM Emcor Group (EME) agrees to buy privately held RepconStrickland, an industrial and refinery service company, in a ~$455M deal. RepconStrickland includes five brands offering turnaround and specialty services such as shutdowns, overhauls, engineering and constructability reviews, project management, welding services, and emergency repair; it generated ~$400M in revenue last year. [Energy, M&A] Comment!
• STAA
  5:13 PM STAAR Surgical (STAA) falls 4% AH on the heels of a 6% regular session gain. The company said this morning that its Visian Implantable Collamer Lens has received marketing approval in Korea and Argentina. STAA’s president for the Asia Pacific Region says the Korean market “is both significant and fast growing,” and as such, the news “represents a very important milestone” for the company. (PR) [Healthcare, On the Move] 1 Comment
• CPB
  5:08 PM Campbell (CPB) is acquiring Denmark’s Kelsen Group, owner of the Kjeldsens and Royal Dansk baked snack brands (the latter is known to U.S. consumers for its butter cookies), from P-E firm Maj Invest for an undisclosed sum. Kelsen had 2012 sales of $180M, has been growing at a “compound double-digit rate” since ’09, and has seen its Chinese sales grow at a 28% CAGR over the last 3 years. The deal will bolster a baked snack business that includes the Pepperidge Farm cookie/cracker brand, and the Arnotts Australian biscuit brand. It’s expected to be “modestly accretive” starting in 2014. [Consumer, M&A] Comment!
• DAKP.OB, INT
  5:05 PM Dakota Plains (DAKP.OB) says it received $20M in financing for expansion of the Pioneer Terminal in North Dakota from World Fuel Services (INT), the parent of its joint venture partner, and the partners agree to use $31M of restricted cash toward funding the project. As a result, Dakota Plains’ $25M share of the expansion project is now fully funded. [Energy] Comment!
• 5:00 PM On the hour: S&P +0.03%. 10-yr -0.02%. Euro +0.18% vs. dollar. Crude +0.04% to $98.17. Gold -0.01% to $1384.65. Comment!
• IR
  4:56 PM Ingersoll-Rand (IR) announced that Allegion has filed for a new security spinoff with the SEC in connection with IR’s previously announced plan to spin off its commercial and residential security businesses. Comment!
• AI
  4:56 PM Arlington Asset (AI) declares $0.875/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 12.36 %. For shareholders of record June 28. Payable July 31.Ex-div date June 26(PR) [Dividends] 1 Comment
• GNMK
  4:53 PM GenMark Diagnostics (GNMK) falls 6.5% AH on top of 8.35% during the regular session. The company says it now sees FY13 revenue of ~$30M versus the $35M it originally estimated. GNMK cites “additional uncertainties relating to the future revenue contribution from its largest customer” (previous). [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• RMBS, STM
  4:47 PM Rambus (RMBS) +2% AH after announcing a patent settlement/licensing deal with STMicroelectronics (STM). The deal resolves all outstanding claims – ST has been one of Rambus’ ITC legal adversaries, covers the licensing of Rambus’ memory and cryptography IP, and gives Rambus access to ST’s silicon on insulator tech for use in future memory/interface tech development. Separately, Rambus is narrowing its Q2 revenue guidance range to $56M-$58M from $53M-$58M (consensus is at $57M). (SK Hynix deal) (LSI deal) [Tech, Earnings, On the Move, Breaking News] Comment!
• DPM, PSX
  4:46 PM Two pipelines covering more than 1,500 miles, owned in partnership by DCP Midstream (DPM), Phillips 66 (PSX) and Spectra Energy (SE) and carrying natural gas liquids from the Permian Basin, Eagle Ford Shale and the mid-continent to the Gulf coast, have begun service. The pipelines will ramp up to a combined capacity of ~375K bbl/day after planned pump stations are completed. [Energy] Comment!
• ENDP
  4:43 PM Following review, Moody’s (Ba3 from Ba2) downgrades Endo Health Solutions (ENDP) citing “pressures affecting core product lines” and the expectation that “debt/EBITDA will be sustained in a range of 3.0 to 4.0 times.” The ratings agency predicts the company will turn increasingly to “external growth opportunities requiring incremental debt” as organic growth dries up. Outlook: Negative. [Healthcare] Comment!
• AMTG
  4:40 PM Apollo Residential Mortgage (AMTG) declares $0.70/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 15.49 %. For shareholders of record June 28. Payable July 31.Ex-div date June 26(PR) [Dividends] 2 Comments
• HURC
  4:38 PM Hurco Companies (HURC) declares its first ever quarterly dividend of $0.05/share. Forward yield 0.75%. For shareholders of record June 28. Payable July 12. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• AMTG
  4:38 PM Apollo Residential Mortgage (AMTG) maintains its payout, declaring a $0.70/share Q2 dividend for an annualized yield of 15.5%. The current stock price of $18.08 compares to March 31 book value of $21.72/share. Shares +0.6% AH. (PR) [Financials, Breaking News] Comment!
• ACRE
  4:37 PM Ares Commercial Real Estate (ACRE) announces an 18M share public offering the funds from which will go towards investments, debt repayment, the funding of existing loans, and general corporate purposes. Underwriters will have an option on up to 2.7M additional shares. Shares -3.95% AH. (PR) [On the Move] Comment!
• BBRY
  4:31 PM More on BlackBerry: Digitimes reports supplier order visibility has risen to 2-3 quarters from a prior 1 quarter, thanks to BlackBerry’s (BBRY -1%) plans to release 3-4 models in 2H. Two of the phones – the Q5 and A10 – have already received plenty of ink , but details about additional devices are unknown. Thorsten Heins has said BB7 phones aimed at emerging markets will arrive, and that his idea lineup involves 6 phones. Digitimes adds Z10 and Q10 shipments have remained in the 1M/month range. (component purchase report) [Tech] 22 Comments
• AP
  4:29 PM Ampco-Pittsburgh Corporation (AP) declares $0.18/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 3.90 %. For shareholders of record July 15. Payable July 31.Ex-div date July 11 (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• CHIX
  4:29 PM Fitch continues to pound the table on China’s shadow banking sector (previous). “We have no idea who the borrowers are, who the lenders are, and what the quality of assets is,” Charlene Chu tells The Telegraph, adding that “we are already seeing defaults in trust products.” Earlier this month, rumors of defaults on interbank loans spooked the market and sent the overnight rate soaring. A telling stat: Overall credit has doubled and then some to $23T since late 2008 meaning that “they have replicated the entire US commercial banking system in five years.” (China financial ETF: CHIX) [Global & FX] Comment!
• ZTS, PFE
  4:27 PM Zoetis (ZTS +0.5%) says it’s joining the S&P 500 index, after Pfizer (PFE) splits off its remaining 80% stake in the animal-medicine company. It will replace First Horizon (FHN), which is replacing QLogic (QLGC) in the S&P MidCap 400 index. [Healthcare] Comment!
• HST
  4:26 PM Host Hotels & Resorts (HST) declares $0.11/share quarterly dividend, 10% increase from prior dividend of $0.10. Forward yield 2.56 % For shareholders of record June 28.Payable July 15.Ex-div date June 26.(PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• FOLD
  4:24 PM Amicus Therapeutics (FOLD -20.8%) finishes the day markedly lower after announcing earlier that it will delay seeking regulatory approval for migalastat HCI, its experimental Fabry disease drug until the second half of next year. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• 4:22 PM “Chill out,” tweets the FT’s Robin Harding, whose article suggesting Bernanke is likely to signal a coming taper at his press conference on Wednesday sent interest rates higher and knocked the Dow for about 150 points. Harding says there was nothing leaked, especially during the blackout period just ahead of an FOMC meeting. Harding’s piece isn’t much different than Hilsenrath’s from last week (which sent markets higher): Tapering is on the way, but it’s not an end to QE and certainly nowhere near a hike in interest rates. [U.S. Economy] 1 Comment
• IVR
  4:20 PM Invesco Mortgage Capital (IVR) declares $0.65/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 14.27 %. For shareholders of record June 27. Payable July 26.Ex-div date June 25 (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• GOOG
  4:20 PM Google (GOOG +1.2%) expands the Chromebook’s distribution to include Wal-Mart and Staples’ U.S. stores; Wal-Mart will sell an Acer Chromebook for $199 at 2.8K stores, and Staples will sell Acer, H-P, and Samsung Chromebooks at 1.5K stores. Best Buy and Amazon are already on board. Consumer and enterprise demand for Chrome OS hardware has been hurt by app issues (there aren’t enough of them, and they need to be browser/cloud-based) and a cratering low-end laptop market. But the OS has picked up some fans in the education vertical. (Chromebook Pixel) [Tech] Comment!
• PGF
  4:18 PM PowerShares Financial Preferred Portfolio ETF (PGF) announces monthly distribution of $0.092. 30-day SEC yield of 6.24% (as of 06/14/2013). For shareholders of record June 18. Payable June 28. Ex-div date June 14. [Dividends] Comment!
• PETM
  4:17 PM PetSmart (PETM) declares $0.165/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 0.96 %. For shareholders of record August 2. Payable August 16.Ex-div date July31 (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• VRX
  4:16 PM Valeant Pharmaceuticals (VRX) announces a $1.75B public offering in connection with the acquisition of Bausch & Lomb. Goldman is the sole manager. Shares -1% AH. (PR) [Healthcare] Comment!
• 4:15 PM Market recap: Stocks opened strong after the Nikkei jumped 2.7% as the dollar/yen rallied to 94.80, then pared gains in mid-afternoon on renewed taper talk ahead of Bernanke’s Wednesday press conference. Cyclical sectors contributed to the advance as energy, financials and tech all jumped more than 1%. Homebuilder sentiment spiked, while NY Fed manufacturing also rose. [Top Stories] 1 Comment
• IVR
  4:15 PM Another mortgage REIT holds the line on dividends with Invesco Mortgage (IVR) declaring a $0.65/share payout for Q2. Annualized, it’s a 14.3% yield. The current stock price of $18.23 compares to March 31 book value/share of $20.42. (PR) [Financials, Breaking News] Comment!
• RPRX
  4:08 PM Repros Therapeutics (RPRX) announces a 3M share public offering. Underwriters will have an option to buy an additional shares totaling 15% of the total amount of shares sold. Shares -1.28% AH. (PR) [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• KFY
  4:08 PM Korn/Ferry Int’l (KFY): FQ4 EPS of $0.32 beats by $0.01. Revenue of $238.6M beats by $15.02M. (PR) [Earnings, Breaking News] Comment!
• S, T
  4:03 PM Sprint (S -1.6%) adds 22 markets to its 4G LTE network, including Miami, New Orleans, and Tampa, increasing the network’s total reach to 110 markets. The carrier expects the network to cover 200M people; AT&T (T) is looking to cover 250M by year’s end, and Verizon (VZ), which already covers 90% of the U.S. population (~280M people), has said it will finish its LTE buildout by mid-2013, after which it will turn its attention to improving capacity. [Tech] Comment!
• 4:00 PM At the close: Dow +0.7% to 15176. S&P +0.77% to 1639. Nasdaq +0.88% to 3454. Treasurys: 30-year -0.52%. 10-yr -0.19%. 5-yr -0.03%. Commodities: Crude +0.01% to $98.08. Gold -0.28% to $1383.65. Currencies: Euro +0.27% vs. dollar. Yen +0.3%. Pound -0.22%. Comment!
• XOM
  3:58 PM Exxon Mobil (XOM +1%) subsidiary XTO Energy announces the startup of a facility in Pennsylvania to recover marketable liquids from the region’s natural gas. The 340-acre facility is the first of its kind for XTO in the Appalachia region and includes 40 miles of connecting pipeline; two gas compressor stations feed the facility, designed to treat ~125M cubic feet/day of natural gas. [Energy] Comment!
• TLLP, CVX
  3:50 PM Tesoro Logistics (TLLP +1.1%) agrees to sell its light petroleum products terminal in Idaho to settle the FTC’s conditions for acquiring Chevron’s (CVX) Northwest Products pipeline and terminal assets. The FTC had said the acquisition would give TLLP ownership of two of the three full service light petroleum terminals in Boise, significantly reducing competition for local terminal services. Tesoro (TSO) also +1.1%. [Energy] Comment!
• HBAN
  3:50 PM Finding success in the Midwest and the rest of New England, Huntington Bancorp (HBAN) is expanding its auto-dealer financing business into Connecticut. The bank has hired a team and is currently processing loan applications in the hopes of providing financing to more than 140 dealers. (PR) [Financials] Comment!
• LBTYA, VOD
  3:50 PM Liberty Global (LBTYA -2.1%) has made a €7.5B ($10B) offer for Kabel Deutschland, the FT reports. Such a bid would trump the €7.2B ($9.6B) offer Reuters reported Vodafone (VOD +1.3%) recently made. The Sunday Times reported yesterday Kabel is holding out for €8B in equity (to go with €3B in assumed debt), and that Vodafone is preparing a new bid. Liberty’s reported offer amounts to €85/share; Kabel closed at €82.47 in Frankfurt today. Update: Kabel confirms it has received an offer from Liberty. [Tech, M&A] Comment!
• OSH, LOW
  3:47 PM Shares of Orchard Supply (OSH +12.7%) are higher today after announcing earlier it would voluntarily file for bankruptcy in an effort to sell itself to Lowe’s (LOW). The stock initially soared over 90% on news that the deal would be worth around $205M, or approximately $34.17 per share, a massive premium to Friday’s close of $1.88. However, details in the press release showed the numbers are a little more convoluted than previously thought. LOW will assume the debt owed to nearly all of OSH‘s supplier partners, which means the actual per share value of the deal is contingent on how much debt gets wiped out in bankruptcy court. [Consumer, M&A, On the Move] Comment!
• COF
  3:46 PM More on the Capital One (COF +1.5%) downgrade: Contending with tough capital rules and new consumer protections for credit cards, the company has shifted to a defensive posture, says Dick Bove, citing CFO Steve Crawford’s talk at the Morgan Stanley conference last week. “What we got last week was a picture of a company that’s going through a transformation and generally stocks don’t do well when companies are going through periods of transformation.” [Financials] Comment!
• 3:45 PM Familiar refrain from across the pond: The extent of Slovenia’s economic problems may have been underestimated as “the macro backdrop is getting worse than expected,” one analyst tells Reuters. It now appears as though a European Commission-mandated audit may delay the transfer of billions in NPLs to a state-run bad bank. Some — like the country’s central bank — believe the problem loans on banks’ books may be more than double current estimates. [Global & FX] 1 Comment
• MCO, MS
  3:36 PM Moody’s (MCO), S&P (MHP), and Morgan Stanley (MS) earlier this year paid the state of Florida $9.5M as part of a confidential settlement over a crisis-era MBS deal gone bad, reports the WSJ. Florida was one of 14 plaintiffs in the suit, and the total settlement came to about $225M. The case is of interest because the ratings agencies have been deluged with these lawsuits but have rarely settled. The defendants deny any wrongdoing. [Financials] Comment!
• HAS
  3:33 PM Hasbro (HAS +0.2%) strikes an expanded licensing deal with Rovio to develop more toys and games based on the Angry Birds brand. As part of the deal, a collaboration between Angry Birds Star Wars from Rovio Entertainment and LucasFilm will also be expanded. [Consumer] Comment!
• MNST
  3:27 PM Goldman (Buy, PT $62) says last Friday’s sell-off in shares on Monster Beverage (MNST +0.3%) “seems overdone” as a proposal up for debate by the AMA “does not seem to contain new information.” [Consumer] Comment!
• XME, RIO
  3:20 PM J.P. Morgan turns a bit more positive on mining stocks (XME), moving to Neutral from Underweight on the sector as miners cut capex and the sector’s relative price/book ratio is back to 2009 lows. While the firm remains skeptical that free cash flow yield could turn positive again in 2014, it says the market could give the sector the benefit of the doubt for a while. Sector favorites: RIO, GLCNF.PK. [Commodities, Quick Ideas] Comment!
• EDAP
  3:16 PM EDAP (EDAP -12.4%) slides again today after the therapeutic ultrasound provider reported on Friday the full redemption of its $8M in outstanding long-term debt by using a portion of the net proceeds from the $12M private placement executed on May 28. [On the Move] Comment!
• VPHM, BMRN
  3:14 PM Shares of ViroPharma (VPHM +7.2%) spike midday after rumors surface that the company could be an acquisition target. While “no deal is imminent,” potential buyers have expressed “preliminary interest,” according to three anonymous sources cited by Reuters. The company has declined to comment. BioMarin (BMRN -0.2%) is also mentioned although the company says it is “not actively looking to be acquired.” [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• REM, JMI
  3:05 PM Rate worries have the mREIT sector (REM -1.6%) turning sharply lower again. Leading the way today is Javelin Mortgage (JMI -5.9%) – the non-agency mREIT externally managed by Armour Residential (ARR -1.7%) – after a downgrade to Sell at Barclays, which also cuts its price target to $14 from $21. Others: Annaly (NLY -3.1%), Chimera (CIM -2.1%), Invesco (IVR -2%), Two Harbors (TWO -2.2%), Hatteras (HTS -2.1%). [Financials, On the Move] 9 Comments
• 3:00 PM On the hour: Dow +0.32%. 10-yr -0.19%. Euro -0.02% vs. dollar. Crude +0.03% to $98.1. Gold -0.33% to $1383.05. Comment!
• CVX
  3:00 PM Chevron (CVX) is offering $6B of bonds in its first sale this year, planning to use the proceeds to refinance a portion of its existing commercial paper borrowings. CVX “is finding it increasingly difficult to expand production and add reserves,” a Morningstar analyst says, as many of the remaining pools of cheap, easily accessible resources are owned by government and national oil companies. [Energy] Comment!
• 2:59 PM Warner Music purchases Gala Records in a deal which will give it an important position in Russia’s booming music market. Execs with the former Time Warner property say the deal will give the firm an excellent channel for growth. [Consumer] Comment!
• BIOL
  2:55 PM Shares of Biolase (BIOL +14.6%) are having a strong session after the company says it has been preliminarily chosen for addition to the Russell 3000 Index and the Russell Global Index. The company reminds investors that “a May 31 report from Cantor Fitzgerald predicted that … an additional 2.5-3M BIOL shares will be purchased to be included by June 28th for Index-based funds’ compliance with their own guidelines.” Also, WallachBeth starts the shares at Buy with a $6.50 PT. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• IR
  2:54 PM Ingersoll-Rand (IR +0.3%) announces a private offering of senior notes, consisting of three tranches. The company intends to use the proceeds to fund the redemption of IR Global’s existing $600M of 6.00% Senior Notes due in 2013 and $655M of its 9.5% Senior Notes due 2014, and to fund expenses related to the spin-off of its commercial and residential security businesses. [Consumer] Comment!
• DIA, DOG
  2:54 PM Behind the rise in rates and the slide in stocks is the FT reporting Bernanke is likely to signal the Fed is close to tapering at his post-FOMC meeting press conference on Wednesday. Bernanke has a dual communication issue: To signal economic improvement is leading the Fed to taper, while at the same time reassuring markets the Fed remains and will remain extraordinarily accommodative. The Dow (DIA +0.3%) is up just 50 points now. [U.S. Economy] 15 Comments
• BBRY
  2:54 PM After opening higher, BlackBerry (BBRY -1.6%) has slumped in the wake of another critical note from Deutsche’s Brian Modoff. Though believing BlackBerry’s FQ1 results (due June 28) could beat estimates, Modoff says BB10 checks have been mixed, with Europe a weak spot. He’s also worried about Q5 demand in emerging markets due to possible pricing and app fragmentation issues, and mentions BlackBerry’s U.K. managing director “abruptly left the company this week.” (previous) [Tech] 24 Comments
• SPY, TLT
  2:47 PM Stocks give up more than half of their earlier gains 75 minutes before the bell, the S&P 500 (SPY +0.4%). It’s those interest rates again. Quiet for most of the day, rates began turning higher (TLT -0.4%) just after lunch, and the 10-year yield is now up 4 bps to 2.17%. Favorites of the dividend players, health care (XLV) and utilities (XLU) underperform – just flat on the session. 3 Comments
• CRAY
  2:44 PM Cray (CRAY +4%) rallies towards $20 after SA Pro contributor Vince Martin argues a high near-term multiples (Cray trades at 33x 2013E EPS) obscure a strong balance sheet ($6.72/share in cash at the end of Q1), and the potential for EPS to grow strongly in the coming years. Martin expects slowing opex growth to translate into operating leverage, and new storage and (via Cray’s YarcData unit) big data/analytics applications to allow Cray to break its historical dependence on U.S. government supercomputer orders. [Tech, On the Move, Quick Ideas] Comment!
• LQD
  2:42 PM Anticipating a rush of issuance ahead of higher interest rates, BlackRock weighs the merits of “standardization” in the U.S. corporate bond market (LQD). “We are very worried about secondary liquidity,” says the company’s Richard Prager, and having issuers sell paper in uniform sizes and maturities would both promote electronic trading and boost trading volumes. The so-called “new-issue premium” reached 11 bps last week, the most in over a year. [Financials] Comment!
• CBT
  2:41 PM Cabot (CBT +2.9%) shares are up sharply after announcing earlier the purchase of the remaining 60% stake in its Mexican carbon black manufacturing joint venture from Grupo Kuo for $105M, a move CBT says will bolster its carbon black business in North America and globally. CBT has owned ~40% of the NHUMO joint venture since 1990. CBT expects ~$0.15/share earnings accretion in FY 2014 from the deal. [Commodities, On the Move] Comment!
• NFLX, DWA
  2:39 PM Out with the old. The Netflix-DreamWorks Animation deal signals an important change in the way content is distributed, according to industry watchers The most important part of the deal is that it focus on exclusive fresh content for Netflix (NFLX +6.8%) from DreamWorks (DWA +4%) – instead of just filling up a library with older titles. The big picture: A bidding war for new films from Hollywood studios (LGF, SNE, VIA, CMCSA, DIS) could help the industry maximize profits. George Lucas and Steven Spielberg called it (I, II) last week when they predicted giant upheaval for the film industry. [Consumer] 5 Comments
• ACT, ABBV
  2:37 PM The Supreme Court’s ruling regarding challenges to generic drug deals “is a significant victory for American consumers, American taxpayers, and free markets,” the FTC says, noting that the ruling against “pay-for-delay agreements” makes it clear that these deals are subject to antitrust scrutiny. As MarketWatch notes however, stocks have pretty much shrugged it off with Actavis (ACT -1%) and AbbVie (ABBV -0.8%) down a bit, Teva (TEVA +0.3%) acting like nothing happened, and Impax (IPXL -0.7%) down only fractionally. [Healthcare] Comment!
• QCOM, SSNLF.PK
  2:32 PM With the help of Qualcomm (QCOM) silicon supporting the LTE-Advanced standard, Samsung (SSNLF.PK) is set to release a version of the Galaxy S4 that can deliver twice the download speeds of current models. GigaOm isn’t too impressed, pointing out Samsung appears to be adopting a simple version of LTE-Advanced that offers a technique for pooling spectrum bands (carrier aggregation). Meanwhile, Reuters points out many analysts have lowered their S4 sales estimates to ~7M/month from a prior ~10M/month, following order cut reports. That could be pressuring Universal Display’s (PANL -1.5%) shares. Qualcomm has an early lead in supporting LTE-Advanced, but Broadcom (BRCM) and Nvidia (NVDA) aren’t far behind (I, II). [Tech] Comment!
• D
  2:25 PM Jefferies thinks Dominion Resources (D +1.2%) could add $12/share of value through the creation of a Blue Racer MLP and the subsequent drop down of its Cove Point LNG liquefaction plant. D also could drop down its Dominion Transmission assets, which would increase EBITDA by ~70%, the firm adds as it reiterates a Buy rating and inches its price target up to $68 from $67.50. [Energy] Comment!
• NSU
  2:22 PM Shares of Nevsun (NSU -8.1%) fall after the company updates FY13 guidance. NSUN says that because its revenues will come primarily from copper as opposed to gold this year, its shares will be removed from NYSE Arca Gold Miners Index which will in turn cause Van Eck Gold Miners ETF to sell its position. The company notes that when its shares were deleted from Van Eck’s Market Vectors Junior Gold Miners index “the company experienced very significant trading volumes and was essentially price neutral.” (PR) [Commodities, On the Move] Comment!
• WBC
  2:15 PM WABCO Holdings (WBC +0.9%) says it’s been granted a license by Chinese authorities to re-manufacture air compressors in China for commercial and off-highway vehicles. The company’s Reman Solutions is currently re-manufacturing air compressors locally for China National Heavy Truck Corporation and for the independent aftermarket in China, and it hopes to expand to add other products, subject to government approvals. [On the Move, Global & FX] Comment!
• DDD, SSYS
  2:12 PM An upbeat analyst day helps 3D Systems (DDD +2.9%) outperform. In page 53 of its presentation slides (.pdf), 3D guides for 2013 revenue of $460M-$510. That’s better than prior guidance of $440M-$485M, and the midpoint is above a $476.8M consensus. 3D also promises continued gross/operating margin expansion, and notes a Wohler’s Report forecast for the 3D printer market to post a 23% CAGR from 2013-2020. Stratasys (SSYS +2.6%) and ExOne (XONE +4.4%) are also faring well; the latter has made new post-IPO highs. [Tech, On the Move, Earnings] Comment!
• ENB
  2:11 PM In final arguments to the federal panel reviewing the proposed Northern Gateway oil pipeline, Enbridge’s (ENB +0.8%) lawyer says the pipeline will ensure Canadian producers get full market value for their product, something that will benefit all Canadians. The B.C. government, which is against the project at least for now, says ENB’s “trust me” position just isn’t good enough. [Energy] Comment!
• DELL
  2:03 PM Of Dell’s (DELL +0.2%) top 21 shareholders, investors owning 18.2% of outstanding shares have signaled their opposition to Michael Dell/Silver Lake’s LBO offer, per a spreadsheet created by AllThingsD’s Arik Heseldahl. With Michael Dell (13.86% stake) not allowed to vote, the deal needs the backing of ~42% of shares to go through. Hesseldahl notes advisory firms ISS and Glass Lewis haven’t yet weighed in, and that their opinions will have a big impact on how index funds owning over 16% of shares end up voting. (Icahn/Dell) [Tech, M&A] Comment!
• 2:00 PM On the hour: Dow +1.13%. 10-yr -0.07%. Euro -0.05% vs. dollar. Crude +0.16% to $98.23. Gold -0.37% to $1382.45. Comment!
• NGVC
  1:50 PM Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage (NGVC +7.7%) trades higher as stocks related to organic foods continue to draw attention. SA author Stephen Simpson draws an important distinction between the company and Whole Foods Market by noting the grocery concern is more of a pure-play on the organic industry and has its eyes set on a smaller square-footage footprint. [Consumer, On the Move] Comment!
• POWR, EQU
  1:49 PM PowerSecure International Inc. (POWR +3.6%) and Equal Energy Ltd (EQU +4.4%) both trade higher today after landing on the long list of stocks to be added to the Russell 3000. [On the Move, Energy] 1 Comment
• AMD
  1:43 PM AMD (AMD +3.4%) further adjourns its annual meeting to July 12, to give shareholders more time to vote on Prop. 3, which aims to amend the chipmaker’s 2004 equity incentive plan; the meeting was originally held on May 16. Among other things, Prop. 3 would increase the number of shares AMD could issue under the plan by 19.5M, and adjust the plan’s definition of “performance goals.” Shares continue to outperform in response to Barron’s upbeat column. [Tech] Comment!
• KNDI
  1:43 PM Kandi Technologies (KNDI +25.4%) soars after saying Hangzhou City has begun construction on the first of 30 planned electric vehicle vertical parking and charging facilities, setting the stage for the deployment of “5-10K Kandi pure EVs … within one year from the initial launch.” SA contributor Tom Konrad’s advice: Shares of KNDI “should be a rental, not a purchase or even a long-term lease.” (PR) [On the Move] 4 Comments
• GILD
  1:31 PM Investors’ biggest concern regarding Gilead’s (GILD -0.9%) idelalisib may be its “market potential,” says Oppenheimer’s David Ferreiro who notes that data from a Phase 2 trial (previous) “are compelling” given that the observed “level of efficacy remains generally competitive with other investigational agents for non-Hodgkins lymphoma.” Ferreiro goes on to call the NHL space “crowded,” and sees peak sales for the drug at ~$700M. [Healthcare] Comment!
• NSANY.OB, GM
  1:30 PM Nissan (NSANY.OB) is threatening to put a damper on the summer profits of the Big Three (GM, F, FIATY.PK) automakers with new aggressive pricing stemming from a lower yen and an urge to gain market share in the U.S. What to watch: Nissan’s “scorched-earth” pricing policy is running up against an onslaught of new models from Detroit with positive reviews. The U.S. automakers may hold the line on prices – unless Toyota (TM) gets aggressive as well and forces the issue. [Consumer] 2 Comments
• FIO
  1:27 PM Piper’s Andrew Nowinski, once a staunch Fusion-io (FIO -1.8%) bull, has cut his PT to $15 from $18, lowered his FY14 revenue forecast to $550M (consensus is at $572.4M), and is reiterating a Neutral. Though Nowinski thinks Facebook’s spending on Fusion-io hardware “may be on the verge of returning to historical levels,” visibility at its other top customer, Apple, is “largely unclear.” He also thinks FY14 guidance, if provided with next month’s FQ4 report, will “factor in more conservative assumptions for both Core and Strategic growth than the Street is expecting.” Shares are close to their 52-week low of $13.13. [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
• LVS, MGM
  1:23 PM Macau gambling revenue rose 39% over the last week as both high VIP turnover and generous win percentage rates boosted sales for operators (LVS, MGM, MPEL, WYNN) in the region. Even if the pace slows down for the rest of June, the monthly revenue tally could easily exceed analyst estimates according to both RBC and Citi. [Consumer] 3 Comments
• INCY
  1:22 PM Some Jakafi commentary for Incyte (INCY +0.2%) shareholders from Piper Jaffray: New COMFORT II data “could ultimately support a label update, with a potential claim for survival [and] the 3-year OS analysis … further differentiates Jakafi from Sanofi’s JAK2 inhibitor ‘503 and Gilead’s momelotinib.” Analyst M. Ian Somaiya reiterates an Overweight rating (PT $27) on the shares and also calls the company’s pipeline “underappreciated.” (Previous: Jakafi may stabilize bone marrow fibrosis; Morgan Stanley raises concerns on side effects) [Healthcare] Comment!
• ATK, RYCEY.PK
  1:19 PM Alliant Techsystems (ATK +0.6%) says it’s landed a $50M contract from Rolls-Royce (RYCEY.PK +0.2%) to produce aft fan composite cases for the new Trent XWB-97 engine. The contract has the potential to grow to more than $200M. [Global & FX, Consumer] Comment!
• GOOG, QCOM
  1:15 PM Google (GOOG +1.4%) roundup: 1) Google has settled a class-action suit over its plans to create Class C shares, and thus further cement Larry Page, Sergey Brin, and Eric Schmidt’s control. The settlement compensates shareholders if the value of Class C shares differs 1%+ from their current Class A shares. 2) Specs leak for Motorola’s X Phone – it reportedly has just a 720p display and dual-core Qualcomm (QCOM) MSM8960 CPU to go with a 10MP camera – and the next Nexus 7 – it has a quad-core Qualcomm APQ8064 CPU and dual cameras. 3) Ryan Lawler observes YouTube’s top content creators are griping over ad prices and revenue splits, and looking for other options. But they’re hesitant to completely leave due to YouTube’s scale. [Tech] 1 Comment
• MDVN, JNJ
  1:08 PM Xtandi competitor ARN-509 “still has many outstanding questions/hurdles,” JPMorgan’s Geoff Meacham says, reiterating an Overweight rating on shares of Medivation (MDVN -9.3%) which are currently in a tailspin following JNJ‘s acquisition of Aragon (I, II). Meacham acknowledges that Aragon’s cause (both from a legal and development perspective) will be helped by JNJ’s substantial resources, but notes that early stage prostate cancer agents face “significant clinical, regulatory, and commercial hurdles.” [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• UTX, BA
  1:03 PM United Technologies (UTX +1.4%) ticks higher today after saying that its subsidiary, UTC Aerospace Systems, has signed a long-term repair license agreement with ST Aerospace for maintenance, repair and overhaul services for UTC Aerospace Systems components on the Boeing (BA) 787 Dreamliner. [On the Move] Comment!
• 1:00 PM On the hour: Dow +1.08%. 10-yr -0.05%. Euro -0.07% vs. dollar. Crude +0.34% to $98.41. Gold -0.32% to $1383.15. Comment!
• EMN
  12:59 PM Eastman Chemical (EMN +1.4%) shares likely will resume faster growth following recent instability, as profits benefit from company cost savings, tax advantages and important acquisitions, Barron’s said over the weekend. EMN has predicted profit will grow at a double-digit annual pace in the next few years and that EMN will earn $8/share in 2015, which the article says may be too conservative. [Commodities] Comment!
• MU, SNDK
  12:56 PM Citi becomes the latest sell-side firm to sing Micron’s (MU +4.9%) praises ahead of Wednesday’s FQ3 report: the firm has lifted its PT to $19 from $13.50, and sees the Elpida deal adding $0.88 to annual EPS. Sterne Agee, Jefferies, RBC, and Stifel have already offered bullish takes on Micron this month, generally on account of strong DRAM and NAND flash pricing. Sterne and RBC also argued Micron could produce $2/share or more in EPS post-Elpida. Both Micron and NAND rival SanDisk (SNDK +4.3%) are making fresh 52-week highs. [Tech, On the Move] 1 Comment
• TLT, TBT
  12:56 PM More from Zulauf at Barron’s: Taking issue with the gathering consensus of a stronger economy and the Fed pulling back, Zulauf suggests bond yields (TLT, TBT) may have stopped rising and could be set to fall. In conjunction with that view, noncyclical names (XLU, XLV) could be set for a comeback at the expense of cyclical sectors (XLV, XLB, XLE). [Quick Ideas] Comment!
• GDX, GDXJ
  12:47 PM Bullish on gold miners (GDX), Felix Zulauf – at the Barron’s mid-year roundtable – suggests a speculative trade is in order given the beating the sector has taken. A purchase of December $30 calls partially financed with the sale of December $40 calls could be a 3 or 4-bagger with a moderate bounce in the index. [Commodities, Quick Ideas] Comment!
• CAKE
  12:46 PM Cheesecake Factory (CAKE +1.1%) is back in a growth phase with new restaurants in Kuwait and Dubai as well as additional debuts planned for Asia. In the U.S., the company has kept a measured approach to growth since 2008, holding nearly steady at 162 outlets. What to watch: The company’s Grand Lux Cafe and RockSugar Pan Asian Kitchen brands hold some interesting potential. [Consumer] Comment!
• FRO, KNDI
  12:45 PM Midday top 10 gainers: FRO +24%. KNDI +23%. IGLD +20%. HOTR +17%. LIVE +16%. DQ +15%. BIOL +14%. HAST +14%. GNK +13%. CLFD +13%. Midday top 10 Losers: FOLD -25%. ORMP -15%. SGOC -12%. EDAP -11%. AXU -10%. BLIN -9%. CERE -9%. RVLT -9%. TEX -9%. PXLW -9%. [On the Move] Comment!
• IACAF.PK, EIX
  12:44 PM Ithaca Energy (IACAF.PK) agrees to sell Edison International (EIX) a 25% interest in the licenses containing the Handcross prospect, with EIX carrying a portion of Ithaca’s share of the costs of an exploration well. Ithaca also agrees to sell a 50% stake in a U.K. offshore license to Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A, RDS.B), with Shell paying the full cost of obtaining seismic data. [Energy] Comment!
• JWN
  12:38 PM Nordstrom (JWN +0.3%) has big plans to expand the number of Rack stores it operates, according to Women’s Wear Daily. The retailer will add 24 stores this year and aims to have 230 Rack stores up and running by 2016. [Consumer] Comment!
• PTY
  12:37 PM Pimco’s Corporate & Income Opportunity Fund (PTY +4.2%) makes a big move after Pimco’s Bill Gross gives it a plug at the Barron’s mid-year roundtable. In a time of interest rate jitters, Gross notes the fund’s “defensive qualities” and points out it’s within a whisker of its all-time high NAV despite a tough few weeks for fixed income. [Financials] 3 Comments
• CDXS
  12:37 PM Codexis (CDXS -5.2%) gives back a bit of Friday’s big move on what appears to be a bit of profit taking. The stock over 30% during the previous session after the company hit a milestone in its joint effort with Chemtex to “develop a fully integrated biomass to detergent alcohols technology. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• UBNT
  12:32 PM BofA/Merrill starts Ubiquiti (UBNT +6.4%) with a Buy and $21 PT. The firm touts the cost and scalability advantages of Ubiquiti’s wireless transmission systems (aimed to a large extent at emerging markets) over “traditional high-touch, high-cost solutions,” and the expansion of the company’s product line to include “routers, point-to-point wireless, and … enterprise solutions.” Shares had been slumping recently after ripping higher earlier this spring thanks to a Q1 beat and strong Q2 guidance. [Tech, On the Move, Quick Ideas] 1 Comment

• FRO:

  Midday top 10 gainers: FRO +24%. KNDI +23%. IGLD +20%. HOTR +17%. LIVE +16%. DQ +15%. BIOL +14%. HAST +14%. GNK +13%. CLFD +13%. Midday top 10 Losers: FOLD -25%. ORMP -15%. SGOC -12%. EDAP -11%. AXU -10%. BLIN -9%. CERE -9%. RVLT -9%. TEX -9%. PXLW -9%.

• COP, PTR:

  A Diverse Oil Portfolio Should Include These Companies

• WIN:

  Windstream Announces Second-Quarter Earnings Call

• PM:

  Lower Entry Prices Mean Locking Higher Yields Today

• STO:

  Production at the Oseberg field center in the Norwegian section of the North Sea is shut after an incident, and it is unclear when it will restart, operator Statoil (STO +0.5%) says. Oseberg field center processes oil and gas from the Oseberg, Oseberg Oest and Oseberg Soer fields, which produced 3.5M barrels of oil and 500M cubic meters of gas in April.

• ELN:

  Good News For This Small-Cap Biotech: Eli Lilly Wants To Develop Its Diabetes Drug

• DUK:

  Duke Energy continues to rise in solar electricity rankings

• FRO:

  Frontline (FRO +23%) soars after John Fredriksen backs the sector for gains due to “high growth” in LPG production. Other shipping stocks on the move: Ship Finance International (SFL) +1.5%, Seadrill (SDRL) +1.2%, StealthGas (GASS) +3.4%, GasLog (GLOG) +3.2%.

• ABBV:

  The Supreme Court says the FTC can take action against deals struck between brand-name drug makers and manufacturers seeking to market generics. The case stems from FTC v. Actavis and revolves around so-called “reverse-payment agreements,” so named because the holder of a patent makes a payment to the generic challenger as opposed to the other way around. Some say the agreements amount to the splitting of monopoly profits at the expense of the public. Shares of Actavis (ACT -1.7%) fall on the news and Abbvie (ABBV +0.1%) trades largely flat after slipping initially.

• MDLZ:

  Americans Panic When They Leave Essentials at Home

• JNJ:

  Buy And Hold: The Story For Procter & Gamble

• NSC:

  Why I Like Norfolk Southern Corporation

• SAN:

  FDIC Vice Chair Hoenig’s List Of ‘Below 3%’ Capital Ratios GSIBs

• FRO:

  Premarket gainers: OSH +47%. FRO +21%. KNDI +16%. LDK +8%. MNKD +5%. AMD +5%. DVAX +5%. NFLX +5%. Losers: FOLD -29%. TEX -14%. MDVN -7%.

• ELN:

  Today’s Market: Biotech And Cable M&A The Big Stories

• JNJ:

  Johnson & Johnson (JNJ +0.6%) has agreed to acquire privately held Aragon Pharmaceuticals for $650M in cash upfront and a further $350M in milestone payments. Aragon is carrying out Phase II trials for its prostate cancer drug ARN-509. The deal excludes the company’s experimental breast-cancer treatment, which will be spun off into a separate company called Seragon Pharmaceuticals. (PR)

• ABBV:

  AbbVie Presents Preliminary Results from Phase I Study of Investigational Oncology Compound ABT-199/GDC-0199 in Patients with High-Risk Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL) at European Hematology Association Annual Meeting

• JNJ:

  Johnson & Johnson Announces Definitive Agreement To Acquire Aragon Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

• ELN, TEF:

  Wall Street Breakfast: Must-Know News

• ELN:

  Elan (ELN) flies 8.3% premarket after investors approve a $200M share repurchase plan, meaning Royalty Pharma’s bid for the company has now lapsed, freeing Elan to seek other buyers. Also rejected were deals with Theravance (THRX) and the acquisition of AOP Orphan Pharmaceuticals.

• WMT:

  PriceSmart: Counting On Colombia

• ELN:

  Elan Announces Results of EGM

• JNJ:

  Elan is holding an investors’ meeting today, where shareholders are due to vote on four proposals, including a share $200M buyback, a drug spin-off and a series of acquisitions. A vote in favor of any of the resolutions would void an offer of up to $8B from U.S. investment firm Royalty Pharma. Elan put itself up for sale on Friday, but still refused to engage with Royalty over the weekend, much to the latter’s frustration. One imagines that Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) must be pleased to be well out of it, having last week sold the rest of its ADRs in Elan for $332.5M.

• PM:

  E-cigarettes Vs. Tobacco: Know Your Risks, Or Risk Your Future

• IAU:

  Chinese Physical Gold Deliveries Match World Gold Production

• TEF:

  AT&T (T) has reportedly been thwarted in a €70B bid to acquire Telefonica (TEF) by Spain’s government, which has the power to stop the sale of any company that is deemed strategic. The U.S. carrier told state representatives that it would take on the Spanish operator’s €52B of debt as part of any transaction. Telefonica said it hasn’t “received any approach or…indication of interest,” from AT&T.

• CP, NSC:

  Canadian National Railway Is Highly Undervalued

• WMT:

  Wal-Mart: Is Reputation A Leading Indicator?

• HON:

  GE Threatened By Seminal Event This Week

• IAU:

  Warning: Bond Bears Might Be From The Twilight Zone

• ABT, ABBV:

  Cramer’s Mad Money – 9 Things To Watch In The Week Ahead (6/14/13)

• JNJ:

  Gloomy Prospects For Medical Device Companies

• DUK:

  7 Reasons To Own Utilities After The Recent Pullback

• PSX:

  Phillips 66 – Disciplined Company, But No Upside Left

• JNJ:

  The Safety Valve Of Dividend Growth Investing

• HON:

  Honeywell and Safran to Demonstrate Electric Green Taxiing System at Paris Air Show

• ABBV:

  Bristol-Myers Squibb’s (BMY) and AbbVie’s (ABBV) Elotuzumab helped patients with previously-treated multiple myeloma live for a median 33 months without the blood cancer getting worse in a Phase II trial. The drug was given with Celgene’s (CELG) Revlimid and the steroid dexamethasone. Elotuzumab is also being tested in two Phase III trials for multiple myeloma. (PR)

• IAU:

  Gartman: ‘Gold Is A Broken Commodity’

• SO:

  Southern Company: Naysayers Are Wrong On This Core Holding

• DUK:

  Duke Energy crews expect to have power restored to most customers by tonight

• ELN:

  Elan Is In Play

• WIN:

  Will Windstream Prosper With The Avaya Aura?

• TEF:

  Europe’s mobile carriers (VOD, FTE, TI, TEF) won’t like this: the EU is planning to scrap roaming fees for voice, text, and data services next year (possibly by July ’14) as part of an effort to create a common telecom market. The cuts are only expected to affect carrier revenues by 2% on average, but the impact on profits will likely be bigger, given the margins attached. Regulators have already announced plans to harmonize telecom regulations, and to make it easier for carriers to merge. “There are around 100 operators in Europe and only 4 in the US … That’s not sustainable if we’re going to have a single market,” a source tells the Telegraph.

• KMI:

  Kinder Morgan Partners (KMP) restarts the 307K bbl/day Trans Mountain pipeline after repair crews finished their work on a defect that prompted a small oil spill – roughly six barrels – earlier this week. KMP plans to almost triple the line’s capacity, which extends from Alberta to B.C. and Washington state, and critics were quick to seize on the spill: “Where oil moves, it spills,” says the head of B.C.’s Sierra Club.

• JPM
  12:27 PM “It could be a shockwave when the bond market eventually turns,” new JPMorgan (JPM) chief risk officer Ashley Bacon tells Tom Braithwaite. The reversal in the bond bull market has to be the most anticipated financial event ever, writes Braithwaite, but it’s still likely to ensnare at least one bank. Will it rise up the pyramid to touch the giants? [Financials, U.S. Economy] Comment!
• VET
  12:23 PM Vermilion Energy (VET) declares C$0.20/share Monthly dividend, in line with previous. For shareholders of record June 28.Payable July 15. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• COF
  12:18 PM Capital One (COF +0.8%) is downgraded from Buy to Hold with $63 price target at Rafferty Capital. Rafferty? That’s Dick Bove’s new shop. [Financials] Comment!
• LINE, LNCO
  12:17 PM Linn Energy (LINE -3.4%) and LinnCo (LNCO -4.3%) trade lower following a weekend Barron’s article discussing that LINE’s distributable cash flow may be overstated and concerns over the pending merger with Berry Petroleum (BRY -2.4%). Barron’s long-held view is that LINE’s accounting is aggressive because the company wants to recognize the financial benefits of the puts but not the costs. (earlier) [Energy, On the Move] 11 Comments
• URG
  12:17 PM Ur-Energy (URG +2.8%) gets a lift today from Cantor Fitzgerald, who initiated the shares with a Buy and a $1.40 price target. Cantor thinks URG is poised to become the next U.S.-based uranium producer, with initial in-situ recovery production expected later this summer. The firm adds that it expects to post further ratings upgrades as the company transitions from construction to production. [On the Move, Commodities] Comment!
• SCTY
  12:15 PM SolarCity (SCTY -0.5%) underperforms as Copperfield Research takes aim, arguing the solar panel installer/electricity seller is “nothing more than a hybrid of a specialty finance company and an engineering & construction company.” Among other things, Copperfield asserts SolarCity “materially inflated” its net present value (NPV) via questionable assumptions, and notes the company has been investigated by the IRS and U.S. Treasury Inspector General for possibly overstating the market value of its systems. The firm assigns SolarCity a value of $11.38, or 2x its estimated NPV book value. (full report) [Tech, Quick Ideas] Comment!
• PJC
  12:03 PM Piper Jaffray (PJC +0.7%) looks to boost its M&A business, inking a deal to buy middle-market M&A advisory firm Edgeview Partners for an undisclosed amount. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close in Q3. (PR) [Financials, M&A] Comment!
• 12:00 PM On the hour: Dow +1.12%. 10-yr +0.02%. Euro -0.03% vs. dollar. Crude +0.32% to $98.38. Gold -0.33% to $1383.05. Comment!
• VICL
  12:00 PM Vical (VICL +0.7%) trades in the green today after being initiated at Brinson Patrick with an Outperform and a price target of $7 a share. The firm says that Allovectin is poised to be a significant value driver for the company, beginning in Q2 with a database lock of its melanoma Phase III trial. They believe the results will be positive, which will position VICL with a blockbuster opportunity in the melanoma market. [Healthcare] Comment!
• CIT
  11:58 AM CIT Group (CIT +2.1%) is upgraded to Buy at Drexel Hamilton thanks to the company having $2B now available to return to shareholders after the lapsing of its agreement with the Fed. A$200M buyback has already been announced and analyst David Hilder sees a payout ratio of more than 50% over time. [Financials] Comment!
• HOS
  11:57 AM Hornbeck Offshore (HOS +5.7%) is upgraded to Overweight from Neutral with a $66 price target (from $60) at J.P. Morgan, which believes HOS has plenty of room to run despite gaining more than 50% YTD. The firm sees confidence building in the earnings and free cash flow prospects of the $1.2B newbuild program of 24 high-capacity, high-spec vessels, whose first delivery is expected later this month. [Energy, Quick Ideas, On the Move] Comment!
• FB
  11:47 AM Instagram (FB) will add video-sharing support on Thursday, TechCrunch reports. Such an update would be aimed at Twitter’s Vine 6-second video-sharing app, which has racked up 13M+ users in just 5 months. An Android Vine app launched earlier this month has already passed Instagram on Google Play download charts. But with a base of 100M+ monthly users connected via both its own social network and Facebook, Instagram should be a formidable rival. TechCrunch notes adding video support could also appeal to marketers if/when Instagram begins showing ads. [Tech] Comment!
• CHTR, TWC
  11:45 AM Deutsche Bank’s Doug Mitchelson doesn’t think Charter Communications (CHTR +1.6%) and Time Warner Cable (TWC -2.1%) can complete a deal that would pay TWC shareholders in the $110-$125 range. Instead, the analyst believes TWC shareholders would have to receive a price closer to $146 in order to satisfy the board. Also in the mix is Liberty Media (LMCA +0.7%) with its 27% stake in Charter. [Consumer, M&A] Comment!
• AKS
  11:44 AM AK Steel’s (AKS -2.2%) downside guidance was below expectations but Goldman Sachs believes the miss was widely expected as steel prices came under pressure. But the new guidance implied significantly higher than expected operating costs; excluding the impact of maintenance, the firm estimates gross profit per ton will decline 13% Q/Q. Goldman maintains its Sell rating and $2.60 target price. [Commodities, On the Move] Comment!
• LMT
  11:43 AM Decreased government defense spending will hit Lockheed Martin’s (LMT +0.9%) sales to the tune of 6% this year S&P (A-minus) says, but thanks to “solid cash generation, strong liquidity,” and prudent capital allocation, the ratings agency raises its outlook on LMT to Stable from Negative. 1 Comment
• RXN
  11:40 AM Shares in Rexnord (RXN -6%) slip after the company announces a public offering, saying that funds affiliated with Apollo Global Management plan to sell 11M shares, with an option on an additional 1.65M to cover over allotments. {{RXN]] will not issue shares in the offering, nor receive any proceeds. [On the Move] Comment!
• INFN
  11:38 AM Infinera (INFN -2.6%) gives back some of its recent gains after Jefferies’ George Notter cuts shares to Hold, arguing they’re fully valued even if “there’s no denying that current business trends at Infinera are very good right now.” Shares still +88% YTD following strong Q1 results and 2013 guidance, and heady expectations for 100G optical networking hardware demand. [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
• LGF
  11:36 AM S&P upgrades Lions Gate (LGF +0.9%) to B-plus from B citing decreased leverage following the repayment of a $65M loan, growth in discretionary cash flows, and an outlook for “modestly” improved credit metrics going forward. 1 Comment
• CELG
  11:31 AM The European Commission amends the marketing authorization for Celgene’s (CELG -0.2%) REVLIMID to include patients with MDS-related transfusion-dependent anemia when other treatments have failed or proven insufficient. The company has pursued clearance for the indication for some 7 years. (previous) [Healthcare] Comment!
• STO
  11:28 AM Production at the Oseberg field center in the Norwegian section of the North Sea is shut after an incident, and it is unclear when it will restart, operator Statoil (STO +0.5%) says. Oseberg field center processes oil and gas from the Oseberg, Oseberg Oest and Oseberg Soer fields, which produced 3.5M barrels of oil and 500M cubic meters of gas in April. [Energy] Comment!
• RHT
  11:26 AM A downgrade to Neutral from Susquehanna leads Red Hat (RHT -0.1%) to underperform ahead of Wednesday’s FQ1 report; the enterprise Linux kingpin is just $0.80 above its 52-week low of $44.92, following a rough Feb. quarter and downbeat Street commentary. BMO downgraded Red Hat to Market Perform on May 20. [Tech] Comment!
• ROP
  11:24 AM Roper Industries (ROP +1.7%) subsidiary Compressor Controls says its been assigned a new patent by the USPTO for its compressor-expander set critical speed avoidance technology. The patent defines the technology for “A control method and apparatus for critical rotational speed avoidance in a compressor expander set in a gas refrigeration system.” The technology has been applied to LNG applications as well as gas plants and other critical applications where the compressor-expander machine is core to the process. [On the Move] Comment!
• GILD
  11:23 AM Gilead (GILD +0.1%) says its investigational indolent non-Hodgkins lymphoma treatment idelalisib achieved an overall 53.6% response rate in patients whose disease has been non-responsive to rituximab. The results represent interim data from a Phase 2 trial. Detailed results will be presented Thursday in Switzerland. (PR) [Healthcare] Comment!
• CWH
  11:12 AM CommonWealth REIT (CWH +1.1%) responds to Corvex and Related’s latest letter, urging shareholders not to take any action, again insisting the consent solicitation is not valid and masks C&R’s intent to seize control of the company at a bargain price. (PR) [Financials] Comment!
• ALGN, HSIC
  11:11 AM Align Technology (ALGN +3.2%) moves up this morning after Stifel Nicolaus’ Jonathan Block tweaks his price target up to $40 from $38 and suggests taking advantage of recent volatility to buy the stock. Block says there are number of catalysts to drive the shares higher over the near term, including overly conservative FY14 earnings estimates, resolution of its patent litigation against ClearCorrect, and synergy from its alliance with Henry Schein (HSIC). [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• ARUN
  11:10 AM Maxim starts Aruba (ARUN +2.7%) with a Buy and $17 PT, sending shares above $15. The enterprise Wi-Fi hardware vendor is still well below where it traded prior to delivering an FQ2 warning and light FQ3 guidance last month, and receiving many downgrades as a result. [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
• RH
  11:07 AM Shares of Restoration Hardware (RH +2.6%) are up gain again to brush aside a negative take in Barron’s amid Friday’s earnings-inspired rally. SA contributor Brian Nichols called it over the weekend, noting that despite the recent rally the company still only trades at 1.8X sales and has upside potential to improve margins. [Consumer, On the Move] Comment!
• CSIQ, LDK
  11:04 AM Chinese solar manufacturers react favorably to Beijing’s introduction of “reformed methods” to support them. The methods include easier financing, electricity subsidies, and a requirement that utilities buy all the electricity solar plants create. The government has also reiterated its call for industry consolidation. In addition to Canadian Solar (CSIQ +10% – previous), winners include LDK (LDK +8.8%), Yingli (YGE +11.8%), Daqo (DQ +17%), Trina (TSL +7.4%), and JinkoSolar (JKS +8%). Yingli just struck a deal to help develop 3GW worth of solar plants in Southern China by 2016. [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
• 11:00 AM On the hour: Dow +1.2%. 10-yr 0%. Euro +0.04% vs. dollar. Crude +0.17% to $98.24. Gold -0.31% to $1383.35. Comment!
• F
  10:59 AM Ford (F +2.2%) thinks it can cut into losses in Europe as new higher-margin vehicles start to sell amid higher demand on the continent. Ford’s head of sales in the region, Roelant de Waard, forecast sales in Ford’s main markets in Europe will increase about 3.7% Y/Y to about 14M in 2014. [Consumer] 1 Comment
• PMGLF.PK, ENB
  10:59 AM A 50% cut in Petrominerales’ (PMGLF.PK) market value has left its equity and net debt valued at the cheapest multiple to profit among any oil and gas explorer in the world with a market value higher than $250M, according to Bloomberg, which speculates its reserves, estimated at 40M-plus barrels of mostly high-quality light oil, could attract suitors such as Enbridge (ENB), TransCanada (TRP) or Pacific Rubiales (PEGFF.PK). [Energy, M&A] Comment!
• LL
  10:58 AM Lumber Liquidators (LL +2.6%) “has the potential to be one of the strongest growth stories in all of retail,” Piper Jaffray says, raising its price target on the shares to $97 from $90. Among the catalysts analyst Peter Keith cites are “accelerated market share gains, improvement in operational efficiency, and a compelling new store format.” SA contributor Jane Edmondson agrees, saying LL’s growth story is still “very much intact.” Note: Piper’s estimate puts a 30x multiple on the firm’s FY14 EPS estimate of $3.22 — consensus estimates have LL earning just $2.88 next year. [On the Move] Comment!
• WETF
  10:54 AM WisdomTree (WETF +3%) sails right through a downgrade from Buy to Hold by Citi’s William Katz. After the stock more than doubled over the past year, Katz suggests the upside is already discounted. Applying a valuation metric used for BlackRock (and adjusting for WisdomTree’s faster growth) leads to fair value for the shares of around $12, says Katz. [Financials, On the Move] Comment!
• FRO, SFL
  10:49 AM Frontline (FRO +23%) soars after John Fredriksen backs the sector for gains due to “high growth” in LPG production. Other shipping stocks on the move: Ship Finance International (SFL) +1.5%, Seadrill (SDRL) +1.2%, StealthGas (GASS) +3.4%, GasLog (GLOG) +3.2%. [Consumer] 3 Comments
• LLEN
  10:47 AM L&L Energy (LLEN +9.2%) pushes higher on news it will become a component of the Russell Global and Russell 3000 indexes, which LLEN hopes will boost liquidity and raise the stock’s visibility with institutional investors. [Energy, On the Move] Comment!
• TEVA
  10:44 AM In an effort to expand its pipeline of repiratory products, Teva Pharmaceutical (TEVA +0.4%) acquires MicroDose Therapeutx, a privately-held pharmaceutical and drug delivery company. Under the terms of the deal, TEVA will pay $40M up front, with additional payments of up to $125M for milestones and tiered royalty payments for the commercialization of MDT-637 and an earlier stage Asthma/COPD medicine. [Healthcare, M&A, Global & FX] Comment!
• IRBT
  10:41 AM iRobot (IRBT +6.4%) trades higher on what traders are calling a technical breakout. The company nabbed a $30M contract from the U.S. Army for robotic systems and spare parts. [Consumer, On the Move] Comment!
• SE, DPM
  10:39 AM Sandell Asset Management urges Spectra Energy (SE +1.1%) to take further steps to unlock value, including reviewing strategic alternatives for SE’s Canadian operations and DCP Midstream (DPM), after SE’s decision to drop its U.S. transmission assets into Spectra Energy Partners (SEP). The hedge fund believes SE has an intrinsic value of $48/share, or more than 40% over its current price. [Energy] Comment!
• TDC
  10:35 AM Teradata (TDC -0.4%) edges lower on an up day after Cowen starts coverage with an Underperform and $45 PT. Shares of the data warehousing and analytics hardware/software provider are down 10% YTD thanks to bad earnings news and concerns about share loss in a hotly contested market featuring IBM, Oracle, Greenplum (part of EMC/VMware’s Pivotal spinoff), and now Amazon’s Redshift [Tech] Comment!
• XHB, ITB
  10:34 AM NAHB Housing Market Index: +8 to 52, vs. consensus of 45. It’s the biggest one-month gain since 2002 and the first time above 50 for the index since April 2006. The reports is consistent with the NAHB forecast of a 29% increase in housing starts this year to more than 1M (first time since 2007), according to the group’s David Crowe. XHB +1.5%, [U.S. Economy] Comment!
• ROP
  10:30 AM Roper Industries (ROP) declares $0.165/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 0.54%. For shareholders of record July 12. Payable July 26. Ex-div date July 10. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• PBR
  10:29 AM Petrobras (PBR +1.8%) is upgraded to Buy from Hold at Jefferies, citing encouraging progress in its upstream division which adds confidence that its ambitious production targets can be achieved. On Friday, PBR said it brought in a partner for its African operations and sold its stake in some small-scale hydroelectric plants, part of a plan to raise $9.9B from asset sales to fund new investments. [Energy, Quick Ideas, On the Move] Comment!
• ACT, ABBV
  10:28 AM The Supreme Court says the FTC can take action against deals struck between brand-name drug makers and manufacturers seeking to market generics. The case stems from FTC v. Actavis and revolves around so-called “reverse-payment agreements,” so named because the holder of a patent makes a payment to the generic challenger as opposed to the other way around. Some say the agreements amount to the splitting of monopoly profits at the expense of the public. Shares of Actavis (ACT -1.7%) fall on the news and Abbvie (ABBV +0.1%) trades largely flat after slipping initially. [Healthcare, Top Stories, Breaking News] Comment!
• BZF, EWZ
  10:27 AM Brazil is facing a ratings downgrade in early 2014, says Barclays, thanks to a combination of weak growth and fiscal deterioration. The central bank’s hawkish rhetoric is nice, but only a major change in fiscal policy will prevent the downgrade and “rekindle positive investor sentiment.” As a result, the real (BZF) should remain under pressure. Stocks (EWZ, BRF) continue to underperform. They failed to get a boost from easy monetary policy in 2012 and now must deal with a rate hike cycle. [Global & FX] Comment!
• LXP
  10:26 AM Lexington Realty Trust (LXP) declares $0.15/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 5.00%. For shareholders of record June 28. Payable July 15. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• ECOM
  10:17 AM ChannelAdvisor (ECOM +5.4%) jumps on underwriter coverage day 4 weeks after delivering a strong IPO; Goldman, Raymond Janes, Pac Crest, and Needham have all launched coverage on the provider of e-commerce advertising/product listing services with bullish ratings. Goldman praises ChannelAdvisor’s “accelerating growth, and argues its scale (it handles $3.5B/year in gross merchandise volume and 100M SKUs) and industry fragmentation allow it to benefit from network effects. [Tech, On the Move, Quick Ideas] Comment!
• CSIQ
  10:13 AM Citing good execution and margin expansion, Nomura’s Nitin Kumar hikes the price target on Canadian Solar (CSIQ +10%) just slightly from $6.90 to $25. Kumar changes CSIQ’s peer group to “companies with significant project business” as the company’s system business should “generate 50%-plus earnings [in FY13-15] vs. 13% in 2012.” Kumar uses the new peer group’s target price-to-book value for FY14 (and a 20% discount for “execution risks and higher interest rates”) to arrive at the new PT. [Energy, On the Move] Comment!
• DB, BX
  10:12 AM Deutsche Bank (DB) is leading a wave of big banks ramping up exposure to single-family housing by extending credit to Wall Street firms so they can buy up homes to turn them into rentals. The bank reportedly just lent another $1.5B to Blackstone (BX) after an earlier $2.1B line got used up. Wayne Hughes’ American Homes 4 Rent has as much as a $1B line from Wells Fargo (WFC), and SilverBay Realty (SBY) just inked a $200M facility from Bank of America (BAC) and JPMorgan (JPM). [Financials] 2 Comments
• KCAP
  10:09 AM KCAP Financial (KCAP) declares $0.28/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 10.69%. For shareholders of record July 05. Payable July 26. Ex-div date June 02. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• DLTR
  10:03 AM Dollar Tree (DLTR +2.9%) trades higher after JPMorgan backs up its Overweight rating and adds two bucks to its price target to take it to $55. The investment firm thinks the discounter will see stable gross margins amid an increase in square footage. [Consumer, On the Move] Comment!
• SRC
  10:03 AM Spirit Realty Capital (SRC) declares $0.3125/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 6.30%. For shareholders of record June 28. Payable July 16. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• 10:00 AM On the hour: Dow +1.09%. 10-yr +0.06%. Euro +0.07% vs. dollar. Crude +0.41% to $98.47. Gold -0.14% to $1385.65. Comment!
• CVX, BP
  9:59 AM Angola shipped its first cargo of liquefied natural gas Sunday following delays of more than a year to its flagship 5.2M metric tons/year LNG project led by Chevron (CVX) and state-owned oil company Sonangol, with respective 36.4% and 22.8% stakes; BP, Eni (E) and Total (TOT) each hold 13.6% stakes. [Energy] Comment!
• EXR
  9:59 AM Extra Space Storage (EXR +2.3%) announces a private offering of $250M in exchangeable senior notes (settled in cash and shares upon exchange at a rate to be determined) and also says it will acquire 20 self-storage units in California for a total consideration of $196M. Meanwhile, Raymond James upgrades the shares to Strong Buy from Outperform. [On the Move] Comment!
• BLK, STT
  9:58 AM It’s still the “early days” for ETFs, according to iShares (BLK), which sees ETF AUM more than doubling to $3.5T by 2017. Among the key driving trends is the fast growth of self-directed accounts using ETFs – currently a $4T addressable market with a 9% growth rate. Along with BlackRock as industry giants are State Street (STT) and Vanguard. Smaller players include Schwab (SCHW), Northern Trust (NTRS), and WisdomTree (WETF). [Financials] Comment!
• MRVL
  9:57 AM Susquehanna upgrades Marvell (MRVL +2.3%) to Positive, sending shares above $11. The chipmaker/David Einhorn holding is now up 57% YTD, aided by an FQ1 beat, low expectations, and strong buyback activity. [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
• STSA
  9:56 AM Sterling Financial (STSA) declares special dividend of $0.35/share. For shareholders of record June 28. Payable July 12. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• PSEC
  9:54 AM Prospect Capital (PSEC) declares dividend for the month of Sep., Oct., Nov., and Dec., (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• CAT
  9:53 AM Caterpillar (CAT) issues a two-year 1.8B yuan ($290M) bond with a coupon of 3.25%. The debt is rated A2 by Moody’s and A by S&P and Fitch. Meanwhile, Caterpillar plans to lay off 260 out of 800 production workers at a plant in South Milwaukee due to falling demand for mining equipment. Comment!
• NFLX
  9:52 AM Netflix (NFLX +5.1%) roars 6% higher after news of a content deal with DreamWorks Animation breaks. Though the partnership will significantly strengthen the company’s menu of children’s programming including the rights to air Shrek and Kung Fu Panda series, with financial terms undisclosed there is a wildcard in the mix. [Consumer, On the Move] 1 Comment
• ICE, NYX
  9:50 AM IntercontinentalExchange (ICE +1.9%) is set to win unconditional approval from EU regulators for its $8.2B purchase of NYSE Euronext (NYX +1.7%), reports Reuters. ICE actually took care of possible conditions ahead of time, announcing in March it would cap trading fees for 5 years on soft commodities at the Liffe should the merger go through. [Financials, M&A, On the Move] Comment!
• PXD
  9:49 AM Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD +3.6%) lifts higher at the open as BAML raises its price target for the shares to $200 from $165, saying it continues to be struck by the sheer scale of PXD’s resource potential. Notable Calls’ take: FBR got the ball rolling with its $220 target a month ago, but this is the first tier-1 blessing. [Energy, Quick Ideas, On the Move] Comment!
• ARMH
  9:45 AM British i-bank Numis cuts ARM (ARMH -4.1%) to Reduce, leading shares to slump out of the gate. ARM is now down 23% from its mid-May high of $50.56; a steep valuation (shares still go for 32x 2014E EPS) is a likely factor. Topeka recently started coverage at Neutral. [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
• PSEC
  9:43 AM Prospect Capital (PSEC +2.2%) plans to keep its payout in place for the rest of the year, declaring monthly dividends of just over $0.11/share for September through December. The company notes the rates it pays on liabilities are locked in for many years, while the rates it receives on assets float – “providing upside to shareholders as interest rates rise.” (PR) [Financials, On the Move] Comment!
• LLY, TTHI
  9:40 AM Eli Lilly (LLY +1.3%) agrees to take over the development of Type 2 diabetes treatment TT-401 from Canadian firm Transition Therapeutics (TTHI +4.8%). Lilly will pay $7M upfront to Transition and $240M in milestone payments as well as royalties, although Transition will pay Lilly $14M in three installments during a mid-stage study. (PR) [Healthcare] Comment!
• AMGN
  9:39 AM As expected, shares of Amgen (AMGN +1.3%) pop in early trading after a positive feature in Barron’s over the weekend. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• HIMX
  9:39 AM Himax Technologies (HIMX) declares annual dividend of $0.25/ADS. For shareholders of record July 19. Payable July 31. Ex-div date July 17. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• BIG
  9:35 AM Shares of Big Lots (BIG +2.9%) get a nice push higher in early trading after Barron’s tags it as a stock with significant upside. [Consumer] Comment!
• CHK
  9:33 AM Chesapeake Energy (CHK) declares $0.0875/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 1.69%. For shareholders of record July 15. Payable July 31. Ex-div date July 11. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• VZ, TU
  9:33 AM Verizon (VZ) wants to enter the Canadian mobile market, and has “held exploratory talks” with minor local carrier Wind, The Globe and Mail reports. The Canadian government, fresh off relaxing foreign investment limits, is said to view Verizon “as the most likely foreign option” for bolstering competition in a market dominated by Telus (TU), Rogers (RCI), and Bell (BCE); ideally, Verizon would buy a small local carrier, then take part in upcoming spectrum auctions. Russia’s VimpelCom (VIP), the biggest investor in Wind, wants to sell its stake for $500M+. Telus’ efforts to buy another small rival, Moblicity, were recently blocked by Ottawa. [Tech, M&A] Comment!
• SKYW
  9:33 AM SkyWest (SKYW) declares $0.04/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous. Forward yield 1.13%. For shareholders of record June 28. Payable July 05. Ex-div date June 26. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• 9:31 AM At the open: Dow +0.91% to 15208. S&P +0.82% to 1640. Nasdaq +0.86% to 3453. Treasurys: 30-year +0.06%. 10-yr +0.08%. 5-yr +0.11%. Commodities: Crude +0.39% to $98.45. Gold -0.19% to $1384.95. Currencies: Euro +0.09% vs. dollar. Yen +0.65%. Pound -0.31%. 1 Comment
• PAA
  9:29 AM Plains Midstream Canada, a subsidiary of Plains All American Pipeline (PAA), has shut its Kemp pipeline after a recent spill of ~950 barrels of oil in Alberta. It’s strike two for PAA in the area, as Alberta’s government in April laid charges against Plains Midstream Canada for a 2011 pipeline rupture that resulted in the province’s largest oil spill in 36 years. [Energy] Comment!
• CYD
  9:28 AM China Yuchai International (CYD) declares dividend of $0.40/share. For shareholders of record June 28. Payable July 10. Ex-div date June 26. Additionally, the board declares special dividend of $0.40/share for FY12. (PR) [Dividends] Comment!
• BAC
  9:28 AM Bank of America’s (BAC) Article 77 hearing is on hiatus until July 8 to allow the presiding judge time on other cases. Day 8 of the hearing was an uneventful one, reports Mark Palmer, notable mostly for the judge admonishing an attorney representing the supporters to quit coaching (through gestures) a witness on the stand. [Financials] Comment!
• EPHE, THD
  9:26 AM Philippine (EPHE) and Thai (THD) stocks add 1.56% and 0.4% respectively to Friday’s gains in thin trading. Across the region : Malaysian (EWM) and Indonesian (EIDO, IDX) shares rise 0.57% and 0.3%, while the Straits Times (EWS, EWSS) tacks on 0.7%. Vietnamese equities (VNM) sell-off to the tune of 2%. [Global & FX] Comment!
• ORLY
  9:26 AM O’Reilly Automotive (ORLY) announces a proposed offering of $300M in senior notes which will be due in 2023. The company says the funds might be used for a variety of different items including buybacks and repayment of debt. [Consumer] Comment!
• AMD, INTC
  9:23 AM AMD +4.6% after Barron’s praises the chipmaker, arguing its SeaMicro server platform unit will help grow its share of an x86 server market where 96% of all hardware uses Intel’s (INTC) CPUs (per IDC). SeaMicro, acquired in 2012, has developed innovative tech (.pdf) for linking hundreds of CPUs in a dense, low-power fabric that’s well-suited for the “hyperscale” architectures embraced by Web/cloud firms, among others. The unit uses both AMD Opteron and Intel Atom CPUs, will eventually support ARM-based chips, and wants to license its tech to server OEMs. SeaMicro says it convinced Intel to supply it with Atom CPUs instead of costlier Xeon parts by arguing it “would sell [4x] as many Atom chips as Xeon chips, and that Intel would make [1.7x] the revenue as they would have with Xeon.” [Tech, Quick Ideas, On the Move] Comment!
• ERJ, SKYW
  9:22 AM Paris Air Show: Embraer (ERJ +4.1%) unveils potential orders for up to 365 of its new more fuel-efficient E-Jets E2 family of aircraft, including a firm order for 100 planes from launch customer SkyWest (SKYW) (PR). The regional carrier also has options for another 100 jets, which would make the whole deal worth $9.36B at list prices. International Lease Finance (AIG) signs a letter of intent (LOI) to acquire 50 jets from Embraer and takes an option for another 50 (PR). Five undisclosed airlines sign LOIs for a further 65 E2s (PR). [On the Move] Comment!
• CMCSA
  9:21 AM Comcast (CMCSA) is upgraded by Raymond James to a Strong Buy rating. A price target of $46 from the investment firm implies 16% upside potential. CMCSA +2% premarket. [Consumer] Comment!
• SBUX
  9:17 AM Starbucks (SBUX) will open its new juicery within weeks, according to Belus Capital. The company is looking to carve out of a piece of the juice bar market with “mixologists” that instill the same loyalty with consumers that its army of baristas do. [Consumer] Comment!
• CWH
  9:17 AM CommonWealth REIT (CWH) shareholders get another letter from Corvex and Related urging them to vote the board out. “We believe this continued value destruction is by design … without immediate change we believe the Portnoys will continue on their path.” The dissidents note ISS has recommended voting for dismissal of the entire board. [Financials] 1 Comment
• ORIG
  9:16 AM Ocean Rig UDW (ORIG) is awarded a contract for its ultra deepwater drillship Ocean Rig Skyros from a major oil company for five wells or a minimum of 275 days for drilling offshore West Africa, with an estimated backlog of ~$190M. ORIG says its total contracted backlog now stands at ~$5B. [Energy] Comment!
• 9:15 AM Market preview: U.S. stock futures track Asian and European shares higher as investors hold out hope that the Fed won’t start turning down the liquidity rush when the FOMC meets this week. The S&P mini is +0.8%. Telefonica is +3.4% following speculation that it was a buyout target for AT&T, while Terex slides 13.3% after an earnings warning. AMD is +5.3% on the heels of favorable review from Barrons. Later: NAHB Housing Market Index [Top Stories, On the Move, U.S. Economy] Comment!
• MDVN
  9:15 AM Shares of Medivation (MDVN) fall 6% premarket. Likely weighing on shares is Johnson & Johnson’s acquisition of Aragon, whose prostate cancer drug ARN-509 was the subject of a lawsuit MDVN filed claiming rights to the compound. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• OSH, FRO
  9:11 AM Premarket gainers: OSH +47%. FRO +21%. KNDI +16%. LDK +8%. MNKD +5%. AMD +5%. DVAX +5%. NFLX +5%. Losers: FOLD -29%. TEX -14%. MDVN -7%. [On the Move] Comment!
• BKS
  9:08 AM Barnes & Noble (BKS) says it will keep its lowered level of pricing on Nook products in place after last week it introduced a Fathers Day promotion. The Nook HD+ is listed at $149 for the 16GB device and $179 for the 32GB version. [Consumer] Comment!
• 9:00 AM On the hour: S&P +0.79%. 10-yr +0.04%. Euro -0.01% vs. dollar. Crude +0.25% to $98.32. Gold -0.28% to $1383.75. Comment!
• ATOS
  8:58 AM Atossa Genetics (ATOS) signs an agreement with the PPO HealthSmart, expanding access to the company’s ForeCYTE Breast Health Test. Shares +10.9% premarket. (PR) [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• AKS
  8:58 AM AK Steel (AKS) sees a higher than expected Q2 EPS loss of $0.38-$0.33, which may not compare to -$0.09 consensus estimate, but expects a 4%-5% increase in shipments Q/Q to 1.34M-1.36M tons due to strength in the automotive market. AKS expects its Q2 average selling price/ton to rise ~1% to ~$1,055/ton, primarily due to lower spot market prices for carbon steel products. AKS +0.8% premarket. [Commodities] Comment!
• LOW
  8:54 AM Lowe’s (LOW) deal to buy Orchard Supply stores in California is interesting to analysts because it’s a move into smaller-sized stores. Orchard stores – which were once under the Sears Holdings umbrella – average 36K square feet compared to Lowe’s spacey stores that average 113K square feet. Could a new Lowe’s brand be on tap? [Consumer] Comment!
• NVO, LLY
  8:54 AM BofA cuts its recommendation on Novo Nordisk (NVO -2.35%) to “neutral” from “buy” on concerns that data that Eli Lilly (LLY) is due to present at a conference later this week will show that the latter’s dulaglutide diabetes treatment is better than Novo’s Victoza. Novo investors are also worried about Sanofi’s (SNY +2.4%) Lantus and a combination of the product with another drug called Lyxumia. Sanofi is scheduled to present at the conference as well but Novo is not. [Healthcare] Comment!
• MNKD
  8:49 AM MannKind (MNKD) says a Phase 3 trial of Afrezza in patients with type 2 diabetes is complete. Shares are +4% premarket. The company plans to report data from the trial later in the summer. (PR) [Healthcare] Comment!
• SFD, TSN
  8:49 AM Smithfield Foods (SFD) moves up 1.4% premarket after Starboard Value pitches that a piecemeal sale of the company might make sense. The sum-of-the-parts chatter could also provide another lift for the packaged meats sector as a whole. On watch: Tyson Foods (TSN), Seaboard Corporation (SEB), Hillshire Brands (HSH), and Hormel Foods (HRL). [Consumer, On the Move] Comment!
• TEX
  8:46 AM Terex (TEX) -12.5% premarket after issuing downside EPS guidance for Q2 and FY 2013, citing a softer marketplace for its construction, material handling and port solutions, and cranes operations. TEX sees Q2 EPS of $0.50-$0.60 vs. $0.82 consensus estimate and FY13 EPS of $1.90-$2.10 vs. $2.56 consensus and below its prior guidance of $2.40-$2.70. [On the Move] Comment!
• TLT, TBT
  8:42 AM More on Empire State: The headline number is a big beat, but employment conditions soften with the Number of Employees index falling to 0 from 5.68, and the Average Workweek falling to -11.29 from -1.14. New Orders fell to -6.69 from -1.17. Shipments dropped to -11.77 from about 0. The 6-month outlook inched down to 25. What rose? Prices received: To 11.29 from 4.55. Treasury prices (TLT, TBT) remain flat on the session. (full report) [U.S. Economy] 1 Comment
• GREK
  8:40 AM There’s a “fraying political consensus” in Greece and it is most assuredly a credit negative factor, Moody’s says. Leaders will meet tonight to discuss the shutdown of state broadcaster ERT, an event which has sparked renewed protests and unrest in Athens. Meanwhile, stocks (GREK -7% premarket) continue to struggle as the ASE falls 2%. (previous) [Global & FX] Comment!
• VALE
  8:39 AM Vale (VALE) sees further local currency depreciation countering cost rises and a slowdown in Chinese iron ore demand. The real, the worst-performing emerging market currency in the past three months, could weaken to ~2.4 from 2.15 per U.S. dollar, bolstering Brazil’s competitiveness, while Chinese demand growth for iron ore and steel is expected to slow to ~5% from 10% in the first five months of this year. [Commodities] Comment!
• MPAA
  8:39 AM More on Motorcar Parts of America’s (MPAA) FQ4: Rotating electrical net sales up 18.2% Y/Y while gross profit for the segment improved. The company acknowledges it can’t continue investments in Fenco after cost savings failed to deliver. (PR) [Consumer, Earnings] Comment!
• BIOS
  8:36 AM BioScrip (BIOS) agrees to acquire fellow home-infusion company CarePoint Partners for $223M in cash, or a net $178M when taking into account a $45M future tax benefit that’s related to the deal. CarePoint is expected to generate $160M in annual revenues and will add 20,500 patients a year to BioScrip’s roster, giving the latter a total of 100,000 patients. (PR) [M&A, Healthcare] Comment!
• PNK, ASCA
  8:31 AM Pinnacle Entertainment (PNK) says it worked out an agreement in principle with the FTC that will allow its purchase of Ameristar Casinos (ASCA) to move forward. The company now has more time to sell a casino in Lake Charles, Louisiana and St. Louis, Missouri to satisfy regulatory concerns. [Consumer] Comment!
• 8:30 AM June Empire State Survey: Manufacturing +7.84 vs. +0.50 expected, +1.43 prior. [U.S. Economy] 2 Comments
• JNJ
  8:27 AM Johnson & Johnson (JNJ +0.6%) has agreed to acquire privately held Aragon Pharmaceuticals for $650M in cash upfront and a further $350M in milestone payments. Aragon is carrying out Phase II trials for its prostate cancer drug ARN-509. The deal excludes the company’s experimental breast-cancer treatment, which will be spun off into a separate company called Seragon Pharmaceuticals. (PR) [Healthcare] Comment!
• CRZO
  8:26 AM Carrizo Oil & Gas (CRZO) +2.3% premarket after raising its Q2 oil production guidance to 10,800-11,200 bbl/day from 9,600-10,000 bbl/day and its full-year 2013 crude oil production growth target to 40% from 28%, based on strong Eagle Ford shale results. Full-year capex plan is raised to $530M-$540M from $500M. [Energy, On the Move] Comment!
• XLF, PGF
  8:26 AM “Higher rates without meaningful economic growth are bad for banks (XLF), says FBR’s Paul Miller, making a counterpoint to last week’s line of bank executives welcoming the recent increase in interest rates. KBW’s Chris Mutascio is also skeptical, noting short-term rates driving loan pricing could stay flat while assets pegged to long-term yields lose value. [Financials] Comment!
• TSLA
  8:25 AM Shares of Tesla Motors (TSLA) move 2.6% higher premarket to $102.91 with a fresh Overweight rating and $150 price target from Global Equities helping to lift sentiment early in the week. The investment firm thinks Tesla is creating a “new industry” with its electric vehicles boasting solid performance and muscle. [Consumer, On the Move] 4 Comments
• FOLD
  8:25 AM Amicus Therapeutics (FOLD) falls 25% premarket as the company holds a conference call to discuss the regulatory strategy for its Fabry disease treatment migalastat HCL. FOLD says it plans to incorporate information from three trials in an NDA: Trial 011 (top-line data expected in Q4), trial 012 (top-line data expected in H2 2014), and data from a long-term integrated Phase 2 study. An FDA meeting to discuss Fabry Monotherapy’s approval pathway is now expected in H2 2014. (webcast) [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• TM
  8:21 AM Toyota (TM) pulls the plug on the practice of allowing warranties to be sold online by third parties and will limit sales to within the same state a consumer buys a vehicle. The automaker indicated it was concerned with running afoul of state commerce laws, but industry insiders think the move is designed to keep dealerships happy. Last year, Toyota Financial Servives sold over 500K extended service contracts providing a revenue stream for both the automaker and dealerships. [Global & FX, Consumer] Comment!
• JPM
  8:20 AM JPMorgan (JPM) ups its money-market funds’ transparency, beginning on Tuesday to disclose the amount of liquid assets held in its money-market funds. The move follows similar actions by Goldman and BlackRock and comes amid the SEC’s new rules regulating the industry. [Financials] Comment!
• BA
  8:19 AM Paris Air Show: Boeing (BA) receives an order for nine 777-300ER jets from Qatar Airways in a deal valued at $2.8B at list prices, with the jets to be delivered in early 2014. The companies will probably then finalize an option for another seven planes (PR). Looking forward, Boeing believes that its lineup of commercial airplanes positions it for future growth. Meanwhile, senior company exec Chris Chadwick reckons the firm could sell 100-200 KC-46 refueling tankers, which are based the 767, to international customers over the coming years. Comment!
• MPAA
  8:16 AM Motorcar Parts (MPAA): FQ4 EPS of -$0.14 misses by $0.11. Revenue of $89.34M beats by $6.6M. (PR) [Earnings, Breaking News, Consumer] Comment!
• GRH
  8:15 AM GreenHunter Resources (GRH): Q1 EPS of -$0.25 misses by $0.09. Revenue of $8.59M beats by $0.72M. (PR) [Earnings, Breaking News] Comment!
• SAPMY.PK, E
  8:13 AM Saipem (SAPMY.PK), Italy’s largest oil and gas engineer, plunges to four-year lows, knocking 25% off its value, in Milan trading after cutting its earnings guidance for the second time this year. Saipem reduces its EBITDA outlook by as much as €750M ($1B), saying it won’t be able to recover rising costs for projects in Algeria. Eni (E) owns 43% of Saipem. [Energy, On the Move] Comment!
• AMZN
  8:09 AM Amazon (AMZN) adds Disney Pixar titles to its LoveFilm streaming service in the U.K. Current subscribers will have access to the children’s hits from the studio at no extra cost. (Related: Netflix and DreamWorks Animation strike a deal for an original kids series) [Tech, Consumer] Comment!
• 8:05 AM Three breakfast reads: 1) From the ashes of Webvan, Amazon builds a grocery business 2) Intel Could Hit A Share Price Of $40 By 2016 3) Microsoft Must Share in PC Pain to Profit [Consumer, Tech] Comment!
• 8:05 AM Pay attention to the Fed’s updated economic projections set to be released at the conclusion of its policy meeting on Wednesday, writes Jon Hilsenrath. At GDP growth of 2.6% this year and 3.2% in 2014, the Fed is more optimistic than the Street (2.3% and 2.8%). How the Fed revises these numbers (along with estimated unemployment and inflation) will be the “critical issue” for projecting any changes to QE. [U.S. Economy] Comment!
• MWV
  8:03 AM MeadWestvaco (MWV) says it now sees Q2 profits for the food and beverage segment of $45-50M. “Unanticipated costs and lower productivity associated with a planned major maintenance outage and subsequent start-up issues” will hit results, although the affected Covington, Va. mill is now operating normally. (PR) Comment!
• UA
  8:01 AM Under Armour (UA) plans to launch a performance monitoring watch for consumers that could break new ground. The watch will use a variety of data tracking to “score” a workout on a scale between 0 and 10. (h/t Brian Sozzi) [Consumer] 1 Comment
• 8:00 AM On the hour: S&P +0.74%. 10-yr +0.13%. Euro -0.03% vs. dollar. Crude +0.4% to $98.46. Gold -0.29% to $1383.55. Comment!
• ERJ, AIG
  7:58 AM Paris Air Show: Embraer (ERJ) has launched the second generation the E-Jets family of aircraft, and is reportedly already lining up orders for 200 planes. Regional carrier SkyWest will be the launch customer for the E-Jets 2 with a booking for 100 aircraft, while AIG’s (AIG) Lease Finance Corp also plans to order 100 of the jets. (PR) Comment!
• DOW
  7:57 AM Sadara Chemical, Dow Chemical’s (DOW) JV with Saudi Aramaco, secures loan facilities worth ~$10.5B to support construction of a $19.3B petrochemical complex at Jubail in Saudi Arabia. Dow expects Sadara to deliver EBITDA margins of 35%-40% and a stream of equity earnings for Dow averaging $500M/year during the first 10 years following start-up, scheduled for 2015. [Commodities] Comment!
• PTLA
  7:51 AM Morgan Stanley initiates Portola Pharmaceuticals (PTLA) at Overweight with a $32 price target representing a 60% upside from Friday’s close. The company went public last month in an offering led by … Morgan Stanley. [Healthcare] Comment!
• MTG, RDN
  7:46 AM John Paulson’s getting a lot of ink for his losing gold bet, but he reminds investors his gold funds make up just 2% of AUM. His big bets (MTG, RDN, FNF, GNW) on a continued housing recovery are paying off, and he sees further big upside, notably in Radian and Genworth. [Financials] Comment!
• SODA, WHR
  7:45 AM More on the SodaStream (SODA) – Whirlpool (WHR) deal: The quick analyst take on the collaboration between the companies is that clear benefits exist for both with SodaStream gaining a major partner and Whirlpool jumping into a new product line. Though it’s still very early in the game, the broadening out of the home carbonation business isn’t great news for soda sellers (KO, PEP, DPS). [Consumer] 1 Comment
• F
  7:42 AM Ford (F) expects to export more vehicles from India as it seeks cost-cutting initiatives. Chennai, India is one of the locations where the automaker has a global platform set up for manufacturing new models. [Consumer] 3 Comments
• COV
  7:39 AM Covidien (COV) publishes the final results of the pivotal trial for its Pipeline embolization device for the treatment of patients with an unruptured large or giant wide-necked aneurysm in Radiology, the official peer-reviewed journal of the Radiological Society. Data from this trial led the FDA to approve the treatment in 2011. (PR) [Healthcare] Comment!
• NFLX
  7:37 AM More on the Netflix (NFLX) – Dreamworks Animation deal: The partnership between the two media players calls for 300 hours of original programming and appears to be a deeper commitment by Netlflix toward children’s programming. Though Netflix let a deal for content from Viacom’s Nickolodean expire early this year, it now has Dreamworks and Disney (starting in 2016) supplying it with content for kids. Financial terms weren’t disclosed. NFLX +1.4% premarket [Consumer] 6 Comments
• AIG
  7:35 AM AIG slips 1.2% premarket after giving the buyers of ILFC another 6 weeks (until July 31) to close on the purchase. During this extended time, AIG will be free to pursue other avenues for ILFC, including sale to another party or an IPO. (8-K) [Financials, M&A] Comment!
• AAPL
  7:28 AM Apple (AAPL) comments on government data inquiries, saying it received 4K-5K requests from law enforcement over the 6 months ended May 1, with most stemming from local police matters. “Regardless of the circumstances, our legal team conducts an evaluation … only if appropriate, we retrieve and deliver the narrowest possible set of information to the authorities.” Also noted: Conversations over iMesssage and FaceTime are encrypted and not even Apple can decrypt the data. 2 Comments
• SODA, WHR
  7:20 AM SodaStream (SODA) announces a collaboration with Whirlpool (WHR) that will see the companies jointly develop a home carbonation system under the KitchenAid brand. The product is expected to be available in Q4. [Consumer] 5 Comments
• ELN, THRX
  7:17 AM Elan (ELN) flies 8.3% premarket after investors approve a $200M share repurchase plan, meaning Royalty Pharma’s bid for the company has now lapsed, freeing Elan to seek other buyers. Also rejected is a deal with Theravance (THRX) and the acquisition of AOP Orphan Pharmaceuticals. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
• GM
  7:14 AM General Motors (GM) expands a previous recall of SUV models to include another 231K vehicles and bring the total to 480K vehicles. The recall is to address an issue with a potential electrical short which could cause a fire. [Consumer] Comment!
• TXRH
  7:14 AM BofA initiates coverage on Texas Roadhouse (TXRH) with a Buy rating and $28 price target. [Consumer] Comment!
• WY
  7:08 AM Weyerhauser (WY) raises cash for its Longview Timber purchase, announcing a 28M share secondary and an offering of 10M mandatory convertible preference shares. The offering price for the convertibles is expected to be $50 each and (unless converted earlier) they will automatically convert into common shares in 3 years. The stock’s off 1.1% premarket. Comment!
• GLD
  7:01 AM Gold (GLD) could fall to $1,200 soon, says BAML metals strategist Michael Widmer, acknowledging strong physical demand but saying it’s investor demand required to move prices higher. His team, however, is far more bullish for later this year, and sees the price retaking $1,700 by year’s end. “There are a few scenarios we are looking at (for H2).” [Commodities] 7 Comments
• 7:00 AM On the hour: S&P +0.9%. 10-yr +0.05%. Euro -0.03% vs. dollar. Crude +0.63% to $98.69. Gold -0.2% to $1384.85. Comment!
• NRP
  6:55 AM Abraxas (ABAS) inks a deal to sell the majority of the company’s non-operated Bakken properties to Natural Resource Partners (NRP) for $35.3M plus the assumption of about $8.1M in AFEs from 22 producing wells. Including this move, Abraxas has divested about 502 boepd for $47.3M since the start of the year. The company now estimates 2013 production of 4,550-4,700 boepd. (PR) [Energy] 1 Comment
• TWX, IMAX
  6:54 AM Man of Steel took in $125.1M over the weekend (Thursday-Sunday) to soar above the estimate of analysts and set up the Warner Bros. (TWX) film for a trilogy. Close to 80% of the first-run showings were in 3-D and IMAX. [Consumer] 1 Comment
• VOLVY.PK
  6:49 AM Volvo (VOLVY.PK) reports it delivered 16,372 vehicles in May, a 9% drop compared to last year as a solid month in South America couldn’t offset softness in North America and Europe. [Consumer, Global & FX] Comment!
• F
  6:44 AM Ford (F) CEO Alan Mulally says he sees the Asia-Pacific region accounting for up to 40% of the automaker’s sales within four or five years. The exec is in India just ahead of the launch of the EcoSport compact crossover in the nation. [Consumer] 2 Comments
• NFLX, DWA
  6:41 AM Netflix (NFLX) signs a multi-year deal with DreamWorks Animation (DWA) for new original series to air on the streaming service. The new shows will include characters inspired by Dreamworks Animation’s franchises. [Consumer] Comment!
• SPY, QQQ
  6:38 AM Stocks look to open the week with big gains, S&P 500 (SPY) futures +0.9% and Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) futures +1%. The Nikkei gained 2.7% overnight and Europe is sharply higher as well, the Stoxx 50 +1.6%. 3 Comments
• LOW
  6:37 AM Lowe’s (LOW) snaps up Orchard Hardware Stores out of bankruptcy in a deal which will add 60 new stores in California. Under the terms of the transaction, the company will pay $205M for Orchard and will assume some debt. [Consumer, M&A] Comment!
• EADSF.PK
  6:29 AM Paris Air Show: German aircraft leasing company Doric Asset Finance has signed a memorandum of understanding to purchase 20 Airbus (EADSF.PK) A380 jets in a deal worth $8B at list prices. The deal will be finalized in the coming months, while deliveries will begin in 2016. Meanwhile, Airbus CEO Fabrice Brégier said the planemaker is on course to more than double its profit margin by 2015 via increased efficiency and a revamped management. Comment!
• GE, BA
  6:23 AM Paris Air Show: GE Capital Aviation Services, GE’s (GE) aircraft leasing arm, has confirmed that it has committed to purchasing 10 Boeing (BA) 787-10X aircraft in a deal valued at$2.9B at list prices, pending the launch of this larger version of the Dreamliner. SkyMark Airlines plans to buy at least four Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, making the carrier the first from Japan to commit to the latest variant of the 737. 2 Comments
• JNJ
  6:11 AM Elan is holding an investors’ meeting today, where shareholders are due to vote on four proposals, including a share $200M buyback, a drug spin-off and a series of acquisitions. A vote in favor of any of the resolutions would void an offer of up to $8B from U.S. investment firm Royalty Pharma. Elan put itself up for sale on Friday, but still refused to engage with Royalty over the weekend, much to the latter’s frustration. One imagines that Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) must be pleased to be well out of it, having last week sold the rest of its ADRs in Elan for $332.5M. [Healthcare, M&A, Top Stories] Comment!
• 5:37 AM Car makers have been facing increasing regulatory pressure to sell zero-emission vehicles, with New York, New Jersey and seven other states following California in demanding that a minimum number of new-car sales will be electric, plug-in hybrid and hydrogen-powered by 2025 (in California, the goal is 25%). This is all very nice, except consumers are largely uninterested, partly due to cost. Still, 2025 remains a long way off. [Consumer] Comment!
• UAL
  5:11 AM United Continental Holdings (UAL) is finally enjoying some smooth flying after an “awful” 2012, CEO Jeff Smisek has said. Last year, the carrier lost $723M and suffered a wave of canceled and delayed flights, partly as an after-effect of the 2010 merger between United Airlines and Continental. “For far too long, we’ve operated this company as an airline. Airlines don’t make money,” Smisek added. [Consumer] 1 Comment
• GRA
  4:57 AM W.R. Grace (GRA) is due in court this morning for a hearing over a bankruptcy restructuring plan. Exiting Chapter 11 would actually be a remarkable event for W.R. Grace – the specialty chemical manufacturer been in bankruptcy protection for an astounding 12 years. The company’s has nevertheless thrived, helped by the shale revolution. “Obviously, we’re all eager to come out of bankruptcy,” says CFO Hudson La Force. Obviously. 1 Comment
• EADSF.PK, AIG
  4:41 AM Paris Air Show: Airbus (EADSF.PK) is reportedly poised to receive an order for 50 A320neo jets from AIG (AIG) unit International Lease Finance in a deal worth $5B at list prices. Airbus is also set to win a booking worth more than $4B for over 10 A380 planes from leasing company Doric Asset Finance. The A380 has otherwise not been popular with leasing firms, partly because it’s expensive to keep refitting the jumbo for different customers. Comment!
• GE, TUIVY.PK
  4:33 AM Paris Air Show: GE Capital Aviation Services, GE’s (GE) aircraft leasing arm, is reportedly likely to order 10 Boeing 787-10 jets when the planemaker launches the latest version of its Dreamliner tomorrow. Meanwhile, TUI Travel (TUIVY.PK) has confirmed a booking to acquire 60 737 Max jets, with the deal worth $6.1B at list prices. Comment!
• FEZ
  4:08 AM European equities (FEZ) follow Asian stocks higher as traders wait on the FOMC, which is due to meet tomorrow and on Wednesday. “Investors may be getting used to the idea that a very gradual tapering isn’t such bad news, considering that the (U.S) economy is slowly recovering,” says Mirabaud Securities’ John Plassard. Telefonica is +2.3% on buyout speculation involving AT&T. EU Stoxx 50 +1.1%, London +0.8%, Paris +1.3%, Frankfurt +1.3%, Milan +0.05%, Madrid +0.6%. [Global & FX, Top Stories, On the Move] Comment!
• FXY, JYN
  3:59 AM Asian shares rise ahead of the FOMC’s latest meeting this week, with tepid economic data in the U.S. on Friday perhaps convincing investors that the Fed won’t announce an early change to its $85B-a-month bond-buying program. Japanese stocks increase sharply for a second consecutive session, boosted by bargain-hunting following the recent sell-off and the weakening yen. Japan +2.7%, Hong Kong +1.1%, China -0.3%, India +0.4%. Dollar-yen (FXY) +0.8% at $95.02. [Global & FX, Top Stories, On the Move] Comment!
• SFD
  3:37 AM Activist investor Starboard Value has reportedly taken a 5.7% stake in Smithfield (SFD) and is urging the company to split up into three rather than complete its $4.7B acquisition by China’s Shuanghui. Starboard reckons Smithfield could be worth $44-55 if it were to break up into separate U.S. pork production, hog farming and international-sales companies, well above Shuanghui’s offer of $34 a share. [M&A, Top Stories] Comment!
• FTE
  3:15 AM France’s government has instructed its three representatives on France Telecom’s (FTE) board to vote to keep CEO Stephane Richard at a crucial directors’ meeting today to discuss his future. The meeting comes after Richard was placed under formal investigation as part of a probe into a €285M government arbitration payout to a businessman in 2008. Richard also has the support of employee shareholders, who hold one seat. [Tech, Consumer, Top Stories] Comment!
• ABB
  3:05 AM ABB (ABB) has appointed Ulrich Spiesshofer, the head of its automation and motion division, as its new CEO following the unexpected resignation of Joe Hogan in May for personal reasons. “Ulrich has been a key force in shaping and implementing ABB’s strategy,” said ABB Chairman Hubertus von Grunberg. Spiesshofer will take over at ABB, the world’s largest supplier of industrial motors, on September 15. (PR) Comment!
• T, TEF
  2:59 AM AT&T (T) has reportedly been thwarted in a €70B bid to acquire Telefonica (TEF) by Spain’s government, which has the power to stop the sale of any company that is deemed strategic. The U.S. carrier told state representatives that it would take on the Spanish operator’s €52B of debt as part of any transaction. Telefonica said it hasn’t “received any approach or…indication of interest,” from AT&T. [Tech, Consumer, Top Stories] 3 Comments
• TWX
  2:13 AM Time Warner’s (TWX) “Man of Steel” enjoyed a super opening weekend, generating almost $200M in worldwide ticket sales, including $125.1M in the U.S. and Canada. Given that the Superman reboot has also taken in $170M from promotional partners, the film has nearly covered its $375M production and marketing costs. The success of the film so far has strengthened speculation about sequels and a “Justice League” flick. [Top Stories, Consumer] Comment!
• KKR, BX
  1:52 AM KKR (KKR), Blackstone (BX), Carlyle (CG) and prospective strategic buyers such as U.K.-based Inmarsat (IMASF.PK) and Australia’s NewSat (NWTLD.OB) are among the suitors to have reportedly placed first-round bids for the satellite operations of Singapore Telecoms’ Australian unit, Optus, which SingTel values at over A$2B ($1.9B). SingTel advisers Credit Suisse (CS) and Morgan Stanley (MS) will provide a loan of A$1.7B that the acquirers can use to finance the deal. [Financials, Tech, Consumer, M&A] Comment!
• INDY, ICN
  1:38 AM The Reserve Bank of India has kept its benchmark interest rate at 7.25%, a decision that comes against a background of falling inflation and stuttering growth, which had prompted speculation that the RBI may cut rates. (PR) [Breaking News, Global & FX, Top Stories] Comment!
• 12:00 AM Monday’s economic calendar: 8:30 Empire State Mfg Survey 10:00 NAHB Housing Market Index Comment!