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ConAgra Foods Raises Dividend – Analyst Blog

Zacks Market Commentaries — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 20:50:38 +0000

Last week, ConAgra Foods Inc. (CAG) raised its regular quarterly dividend by a 1 cent to 20 cents based on encouraging results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2010. The company has decided to pay the dividend on Dec. 1 to shareholders of record Oct. 30.

During the quarter, earnings excluding one-time items were 38 cents compared to 27 cents in the year-ago quarter. This was the above Zacks Consensus Estimate of 33 cents. Total revenue was $2,961 million from $3,052 million in the year-ago quarter.

The Consumer Foods segment posted sales of $1,860 million, up 1% year over year. Operating profit came to $250 million, up from $186 million in the last-year quarter. This segment accounted for 63% of total revenue in the first quarter.

Sales in the Commercial Foods segment were $1,101 million, down 9% from the first quarter of fiscal year 2009. The sales decline was the result of lower flour prices resulting from lower underlying wheat costs. Segment operating profit was $141 million, 5% above the same period in fiscal 2009. The segment was responsible for the remaining 37% of total revenue.

For the quarter, capital expenditure from continuing operations for property, plant and equipment was $119 million, compared with $106 million in the year-ago period. Depreciation and amortization expense from continuing operations was approximately $82 million for the quarter compared to a total of $76 million in the year-ago period.

During the quarter, ConAgra announced plans to build a state-of-the-art sweet potato processing plant in Delhi, Louisiana, which is expected to be fully operational by the end of calendar 2010. Management believes that the plant will significantly expand its presence in the sweet potato fries market and enable additional significant sales and profit growth opportunities for the Lamb Weston specialty potato operations over time.

ConAgra expects fiscal 2010 full-year diluted EPS from continuing operations, excluding items impacting comparability, to approach $1.70, based on the expectations for continued progress in the consumer foods segment throughout the remainder of the fiscal year.
Read the full analyst report on "CAG"
Zacks Investment Research

ConAgra Beats Zacks Consensus – Analyst Blog

Zacks Market Commentaries — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 14:21:22 +0000

Today before the market opened, ConAgra Foods, Inc. (CAG) reported encouraging results for the first quarter FY2010 ended August 30, 2009.

Earnings excluding one-time items were 38 cents per share, compared to 27 cents in the year-ago quarter. It was the above Zacks Consensus Estimate of 33 cents. Total revenue was $2,961 million from $3,052 million in the year-ago quarter.

The consumer foods segment posted sales of $1,860 million, up 1% year over year and operating profit of $250 million, up from $186 million in the last year quarter. It accounts for 63% of the total revenue in the first quarter.

Sales for the commercial foods segment were $1,101 million, down 9% from the first quarter of FY2009. The sales decline was the result of lower flour prices resulting from lower underlying wheat costs. The segment's operating profit was $141 million, 5% above the same period in FY2009. The segment is responsible for the remaining 37% of total revenue.

For the quarter, capital expenditures from continuing operations for property, plant and equipment were $119 million, compared with $106 million in the year-ago period. Depreciation and amortization expense from continuing operations was approximately $82 million for the quarter, compared to a total of $76 million in the year-ago period.

During the quarter, the company announced plans to build a state-of-the-art sweet potato processing plant in Delhi, Louisiana, which is expected to be fully operational by the end of calendar 2010. Management believes that the plant will enable additional significant sales and profit growth opportunities for the Lamb Weston specialty potato operations over time.

The company expects fiscal 2010 full-year diluted EPS from continuing operations, excluding items impacting comparability, to approach $1.70, based on the expectations for continued progress in the consumer foods segment throughout the remainder of the fiscal year.
Read the full analyst report on "CAG"
Zacks Investment Research

One Voice Technologies, Inc. (OVOE.OB) Updates Investor Community

QualityStocks — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 15:40:41 +0000

One Voice Technologies, Inc.’s Chairman and CEO Dean Weber issued the following corporate update to investors today: “We are working closely with our carrier customer in India, MTNL, along with our local sales partner Mantec Consultants in Delhi, India on the launch of our MobileVoice Remote Email Access service. The key to a successful service [...]

Energtek, Inc. (EGTK.PK) Led by Successful Management Team

QualityStocks — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 17:46:08 +0000

In today’s busy and ever changing market, many companies lose sight of their most important asset: a quality, effective mangement team. As the lifeblood of the company, it is essential to maintain a group that will continue to provide success and notoriety. That is why Energtek, Inc., a prominent alternative energy technology company, is excited [...]

Jobs Rundown, Market Records, Coming Megatrend, a Special Announcement and More!

Addison Wiggin — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 13:07:24 +0000

pMore tough news for U.S. jobs… what you need to know in today’s BLS employment report#8230;Dow setting records left and right… two historic looks at just how lousy 2009 has been#8230;a href="http://www.contrarianprofits.com/articles/author/chris-mayer/" class="alinks_links"Chris Mayer/a on the next megatrend… far bigger than the current crisis#8230;Chuck Butler explores “a strange thing happening in currencies”#8230;Plus, a reader exposes our “simple-minded,” “right-wing babbling” for what it is… at last#8230;/p p strongEmployment will make or break this depression./strong Today, it’s not looking so good. 12.5 million Americans are out of work, and counting. Here’s the quick and dirty on the rest of the employment numbers this morning:/p ul liThe economy shed 651,000 jobs in February, right in line with Wall Street’s expectations. That’s the 14th month in a row of net job losses/li liJanuary#8230;/li/ul

Weekend Reading: 28 Feb, 2009

Edward Hugh — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 19:30:01 +0000

The Hidden Flaws In China And India Schools: Jay Mathews in the Washington Post says that “India and China, despite their economic successes, have public education systems that are, in many ways, a sham.” India: Toward High-End Outsourcing: Vivek Wadhwa in Business Week claims that “companies on the Subcontinent (are taking) the [...]

India’s Nuclear Sector, Ready to Explode

Contrarian Profits — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 16:46:52 +0000

pMajor energy companies are lined up to lock deals and land big profits with India’s new nuclear trade. India was out of the global nuclear loop for over 30 years, until now. /p pa href="http://www.contrarianprofits.com/articles/author/jason-simpkins" class="alinks_links"Jason Simpkins/a of a href="http://www.moneymorning.com" class="alinks_links"Money Morning/a says that “…some analysts estimate that India’s nuclear energy sector could be worth as much as $200 billion.”/p pHere he shows us what majors are lined up for the deal:/p blockquotepIndia launched its first nuclear test in 1974, but the country refused to sign the global a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_Non-Proliferation_Treaty" target="_blank"Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons/a (NPT). As a result, the 45-member a href="http://www.nuclearsuppliersgroup.org/" target="_blank"Nuclear Suppliers Group/a (NSG) banned India from global nuclear trade./p pThat ban was lifted last September when Washington pushed through a “waiver” that freed India from 34 years of sanctions./p pa href="http://www.heritage.org/research/missiledefense/bg1935.cfm" target="_blank"Critics of#8230;/a/p/blockquote

Gold Rises 2 % on Fresh Investor Interest

Contrarian Profits — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 13:56:41 +0000

pFirm investment demand outweighs weak jewelery buying#8230; Euro weakens on euro zone outlook#8230; Oil prices tumble nearly 10 percent#8230;/p pGold swung into the black on Tuesday, rising more than 2 percent to a one-week high of $855.75 an ounce, amid market talk of a large order. /p p Firm investment demand for gold as a haven from risk is fueling buying of the precious metal, analysts said. /p p Spot gold was quoted at $853.00/855.00 an ounce at 1228 GMT, up from $834.55 late on Monday. Earlier it touched a low of $822.90, down more than 1 percent. /p p Standard Chartered analyst Daniel Smith said strong investor flows into products such as exchange-traded funds as investors sought more secure assets were offsetting weaker jewelery demand. /p p #8220;People#8230;/p

Gold Leads Precious Metals Slide on Firmer Dollar

Contrarian Profits — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 20:30:02 +0000

pDollar rises to 3-week high vs euro on stimulus hopes#8230; Oil prices fail to hold gains above $48 a barrel#8230; Abu Dhabi Dec gold sales fall 40 pct month on month. /p pGold slid more than 3 percent in Europe on Monday as the strengthening dollar knocked the metal#8217;s appeal as a currency hedge, and oil prices retreated from highs. /p pOther precious metals tumbled in gold#8217;s wake, with silver falling 8 percent, platinum 3 percent and palladium 6 percent. /p p Spot gold was quoted at $851.65/853.65 an ounce at 1445 GMT, down from $873.20 an ounce late in New York on Friday, having touched a session low of $843.50. /p p U.S. gold futures for February delivery on the COMEX division of the New#8230;/p

High Cash, No Debt, High Yield Stocks

Fred Fuld — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 07:08:00 +0000

If you are looking for the perfect stock, these days you might ignore the PE ratios and the PEG ratios, and look for stocks with large amounts of cash, no debt, and pay a high dividend. These types of stocks are considered to be the best ones to weather a severe recession. According to WallStreetNewsNetwork.com, there are 35 stocks that are debt free, with plenty of cash, and dividend yields between 1% and 18.5%.

Biovail Corp ( BVF ) is a pharmaceutical company which develops treatments for central nervous system disorders, pain management, and cardiovascular diseases. They currently have 354.1 million in cash, giving them $2.23 in cash per share. The stock has a forward PE of 7.1 and pays a yield of 18.5 %.

Terra Nitrogen Co. ( TNH ) produces and markets nitrogen fertilizer products . They currently have 190.1 million in cash, giving them $10.18 in cash per share. The stock has a PE of 5.5 and pays a yield of 14.9 %.

Mahanagar Telephone Nigam ( MTE ) is a provider of fixed-line and other telecommunications services in Delhi and Mumbai, India. They currently have 704.9 million in cash, giving them $2.24 in cash per share. The stock has a forward PE of 10.17 and pays a yield of 9.4 %.

Maxim Integrated Products ( MXIM ) makes and sells linear and mixed-signal integrated circuits. They currently have 1.218 billion in cash, giving them $3.80 in cash per share. The stock has a forward PE of 11.36 and pays a yield of 6.5 %.

Lorillard ( LO ) makes and markets cigarettes in the United States. They currently have 1.208 billion in cash, giving them $7.11 in cash per share. The stock has a forward PE of 11.66 and pays a yield of 5.8 %.

Grupo Aeroportuario Del Sureste ( ASR ) is an operator of airports in Mexico. They currently have 136.0 million in cash, giving them $4.54 in cash per share. The stock has a forward PE of 9.31 and pays a yield of 5.8 %.

Cohn & Steers ( CNS ) is a manager of high-income equity portfolios and provider of investment banking services. They currently have 200.4 million in cash, giving them $4.82 in cash per share. The stock has a forward PE of 15.9 and pays a yield of 5.7 %.

Gentex Cp ( GNTX ) makes and sells electro-optic products, automatic-dimming rearview mirrors, and fire protection products. They currently have 338.2 million in cash, giving them $2.41 in cash per share. The stock has a forward PE of 17.98 and pays a yield of 5 %.

Paychex Inc ( PAYX ) is a provider of payroll services, and integrated human resource and employee benefits outsourcing. They currently have 464.1 million in cash, giving them $1.29 in cash per share. The stock has a forward PE of 15.77 and pays a yield of 4.7 %.

Analog Devices ( ADI ) makes and sells analog, mixed-signal, and digital signal processing integrated circuits. They currently have 1.278 billion in cash, giving them $4.40 in cash per share. The stock has a forward PE of 11.85 and pays a yield of 3.8 %.

An Excel spreadsheet database of 35 high cash, no debt, high yield stocks can be found at WallStreetNewsNetwork.com. If you like high yield stocks, you should also consider Tax Free Income Stocks, and Top Yielding Electric Utilities.

Author owns ASR.

By Stockerblog.com

News and Charts — TGIF Edition

Sean Brodrick — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:06:48 +0000

Dr. Jeff Masters gives us the latest on monster hurricane Ike …

Ike's long-term fate has two main possibilities:

1) Ike may hit eastern Cuba, as forecast by the latest (12Z, 8am EDT) runs of the GFDL and ECMWF models, and a number of ensemble members of the latest 12Z GFS model (Figure 2). A hit on Cuba would severely disrupt the storm, weakening it to a Category 1 or 2. Ike could then move on into the Gulf of Mexico and re-intensify, as forecast by the ECMWF model.

2) Ike may plow through the Bahamas and come very close to South Florida (the consensus of the HWRF, NOGAPS, and GFS models). A trough of low pressure may then pull Ike to north. This turn to the north might occur over Florida, or over the western Bahamas, within 200 miles of the Florida coast. In the latter case, North Carolina might be at risk. The recent model trend has been to depict a weaker trough, resulting in Ike getting stranded, like Fay and Gustav did. Ike would resume a slow motion to the west as ridge of pressure builds in, potentially crossing Florida into the Gulf of Mexico.

XX Sean's note -- I think the potential for Ike to cross into the Gulf of Mexico is not reflected in oil's price right now, which is why I hesitate to add a hedge on oil at this time.

And then there's OPEC. They meet on Tuesday. What the heck are they going to do? ...

OPEC Is Unlikely to Cut Production at Vienna Meet, Goldman's O'Neill Says OPEC is unlikely to cut supply at next week's meeting in Vienna because of the hurricane season, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Chief Economist Jim O'Neill said.

XX Sean’s note – I disagree. I think OPEC is going to cut either official or unofficial production. Stay tuned.

GOLD

I’m about to show you some bullish fundamentals. The fact that gold keeps falling in the face of bullish fundamentals is quite bearish for the short term.

South Africa gold production falls 10 percent

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AP) — Gold production in the world leading supplier South Africa fell more than 10 percent in the second quarter compared to the same period last year, the industry said Thursday, blaming electricity shortages since the beginning of the year.

A dire fuel shortage caused by poor government planning forced rolling power cuts across the country in the first couple of months of the year. Since February, industries have been limited to 90 percent of their normal power usage.

Weak India Gold Prices Attract More Buyers

Indian gold demand rose on Friday as buyers and sellers kept themselves busy ahead of the peak festive season due to a fall in prices, dealers said.

"The demand is rising significantly as we are heading for a peak festive season," said Rahul Gupta of Delhi-based P P Jewellers.

XX Sean's note -- but this bullish news matters not when the traders are ready to sell.

Gold Heads for First Weekly Drop in Three in London as Dollar Strengthens Gold headed for its first weekly drop in three as the dollar strengthened against the euro, curbing demand for the metal as an alternative investment.

AGRICULTURE

Agriculture Prices to Stay High on China, India Demand Global agricultural prices will probably remain higher than in the previous decade as strong demand from China and other developing nations outstrips gains in production, a U.S. agriculture official said.

Australian Wheat Crop May Be Below Forecast on Dry Weather, JPMorgan Says Australia, the world's sixth-largest wheat exporter, may produce less of the grain than forecast because of dry weather, JPMorgan Chase & Co. said.

US ECONOMY

U.S. Payrolls Fell 84,000 in August; Unemployment Rate Increases to 6.1% The U.S. lost more jobs than forecast in August and the unemployment rate climbed to a five-year high, heightening the risk that the economic slowdown will worsen.

U.S. House Price Decline Could Be Worse than Great Depression, Economist Shiller Says

* Home price declines are already approaching those in the Great Depression, when they plunged 30% during the 1930s. With prices already down almost 20%, it's not a stretch to think we might exceed that drop this time around.

* There are about 10 million homeowners whose debt is higher than their home value, which has broad implications for how Americans feel about their wealth and spending habits (read: more pressure on consumer spending).

GLOBAL ECONOMY

Global Wealth May Fall 10% This Year Due to Markets, Financial Post Says Global wealth may decline 10 percent this year because of volatility on financial markets, the Financial Post reported, citing a study released by the Boston Consulting Group.

Australia, New Zealand Dollars Decline to Lowest in Two Years Against Yen The Australian and New Zealand dollars slumped to the lowest levels in more than two years against the yen as a decline in U.S. stocks prompted traders to sell higher-yielding assets financed in Japan's currency.

Australia's S&P/ASX Falls to 2-Week Low; James Hardie, BHP Billiton Drop Australia's stocks fell for the fifth day, with the benchmark index heading to its lowest in two weeks, after rising jobs claims in the U.S. and declining metal prices heightened concerns of a global economic slowdown.

Hedge Funds in India

Richard C. Wilson — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 17:15:21 +0000

Hedge Funds in India

The Benefits of Offering Hedge Funds in India

Here's a short article on how the Committee of Financial Sector Reforms in India might introduce hedge funds and why this would be a positive move for the Indian markets and fund industry as a whole.
______________________

The Draft Report of the Committee on Financial Sector Reforms headed by Professor Raghuram Rajan was issued for comment in April 2008. Among the proposals that the high-level committee made was the introduction of domestic hedge funds. The committee feels that, “The presence of hedge funds would induce greater competitive pressure for other regulated fund management channels such as mutual funds.”

This week’s article discusses the benefits of introducing hedge funds in the Indian market. It shows how hedge funds could improve asset price efficiency. Besides, such funds, by virtue of their diverse investment styles, could provide investors an opportunity to enhance their risk-adjusted portfolio returns.

Of different genre

Suppose a long-only (mutual fund) manager and a hedge fund manager both have a negative view on SBI, a positive view on HDFC Bank and a neutral view on ITC.

Long-only active managers will buy ITC in the same weight as their benchmark index, may overweight HDFC Bank and may not take any exposure in SBI. There is a reason for such a strategy. Active managers strive to beat their benchmark index. But they do not take too many active bets, lest their bets go wrong. Often, active funds tail the benchmark index with few active bets. Importantly, such managers cannot short-sell to take advantage of their negative view on a stock.

Hedge fund managers’ do not suffer from such constraint. In the above example, the hedge fund manager may overweight HDFC Bank, short-sell SBI and not take any exposure in ITC.

Better still, to neutralise any market risk, the hedge fund manager may buy HDFC Bank and short-sell SBI in such a way that the market risk in HDFC Bank is offset by short-selling SBI. Often, neutralising market risk on a portfolio would mean short-selling Nifty futures.

Exploiting price inefficiency

Hedge funds identify mispriced assets and exploit any price inefficiency. One way to do this is to employ statistical arbitrage.

Suppose a hedge fund manager finds that combination of one share of HDFC Bank and two short shares of SBI (1HDFC – 2SBI) has a stable statistical distribution. If the “spread” wanders far away from its mean, a hedge fund manager would set-up this strategy with a view that the “spread” will tighten. Such relative-value strategies can help arbitrate away asset price inefficiencies in a “normal” market. Read more...

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Accelerating Indian Inflation Continues to Pressure The Central Bank

Edward Hugh — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 12:10:00 +0000

Inflation accelerated again in India in the week ending June21, reaching its fastest pace in more than 13 years, and strengthening the case for the central bank to increase borrowing costs again this month. Wholesale prices rose 11.63 percent in the week to June 21, after gaining 11.42 percent in the previous week, according to the latest government report issued in Delhi last Friday.

The Reserve Bank of India, which next meets to review rates on July 29, last month raised its benchmark interest rate twice to a six-year high of 8.5 percent and lifted its cash reserve ratio to 8.75 percent, in an ongoing battle to contain growth in the money supply and rein-in inflation. According to the latest RBI data the money supply rose 20.7 per cent year-on-year basis as of June 20, as against the 21.4 per cent increase recorded for the fortnight ended June 6. The pace of money supply growth is thus still well above the RBI's indicative projection of 16.5-17 per cent set for 2008-09.

As a further inflation control measure the Indian government last week also banned exports of corn. This follows earlier restrictions placed on the overseas sales of other food items including wheat, rice, cooking oils and pulses. India has also banned cement exports and imposed a tax on outgoing shipments of steel products.

Evidently this whole situation presents policy with great difficulties since the driving force behind the lions share of the inflation is now not domestic demand as such but global commodity prices (although of course it is the case that rapid economic growth in the BRICs and other emerging economies lies behind the rapid rise in these prices). Crude oil prices touched an all-time high of $145.85 a barrel on July 3, raising concern India's import costs will once more surge as the country relies on overseas crude to meet three-quarters of its needs.

Rising energy costs have fanned inflation in India by making transport, manufactured products and food more expensive. Fuel, power and electricity prices rose 16.2 percent in the week ended June 21 from a year earlier, while food costs, including bread, salt, cooking oil and tea were up 14.6 percent.

Foreign Exchange Reserves

India's foreign exchange reserves fell to $311.790 billion as on June 27, down from $312.481 billion a week earlier, according to the RBI weekly statistical supplement released on Friday. Reserves rose to a record $316.171 billion in late May and have since declined, mainly due to dollar sales by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which has been intervening in the currency market to prop up the rupee and provide foreign exchange to the oil companies who need to use them for their import payments. Foreign currency assets, expressed in dollar terms, include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of other currencies held in its reserves such as the euro, pound sterling and yen.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have also been pulling out a part of their investment from the now volatile Indian stock markets, adding to the downward pressure on foreign exchange reserves. FIIs have sold $6.7 billion more Indian shares than they have bought so far in 2008, following a record $17.2 billion in net purchases last year, according to data from the Securities and Exchange Board of India.

The Rupee

The Rupee fell to a 15-month low this week as data showed the India's trade and current-account deficits are widening after oil prices in New York more than doubled in the past 12 months. The rupee also dropped as losses in local equities spurred speculation overseas funds will pull their money out of the country. The currency declined 0.6 percent to 43.15 a dollar this week as of the 5 p.m. close of trading in Mumbai.

Current Account

India has paid an average $7.7 billion a month for oil imports so far this year, compared with $5.4 billion in 2007, government data show. That widened the trade deficit to a record $10.8 billion in May.

India's current-account deficit narrowed in the last quarter as exports and remittances increased faster than oil imports, the central bank said. The deficit was $1.04 billion in the three months ended March 31 from $5.1 billion in the previous quarter, the Reserve Bank of India said during the week. India last had a current account surplus of $4.3 billion in the quarter ended March 2007.

The rising trend in crude oil costs suggest India's current account deficit may widen this quarter, extending the rupee's losses. The average cost of India's crude oil import basket, a mix of Dubai and Brent, almost doubled to $93.9 a barrel in the quarter ended March 31. The international price of oil has surged 41 percent since then.

India's merchandise exports rose 20 percent to $42.8 billion in the quarter ended March 31 from a year earlier, while imports gained 37 percent to $66.6 billion. Invisibles, an item which includes both software exports and remittances from Indians working abroad, increased 26 percent to $22.8 billion.