For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – October 28, 2009 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: DryShips, Inc. (DRYS), Capmark Financial Group Inc. (CPFNG), Citigroup Inc. (C), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS).

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Here are highlights from Tuesday’s AnalystBlog:

DryShips Beats, Results Hurt

DryShips, Inc.’s (DRYS) third-quarter earnings of 27 cents per share were 6 cents ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate. This excludes a loss of $39.3 million or 15 cents per share associated with the valuation of the company’s

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Capmark Financial Group Inc. (CPFNG), one of the key commercial real-estate lenders in the U.S., along with some of its subsidiaries has filed Chapter 11 protection. The filing adds to the lingering concern that the commercial real-estate market is still struggling.  The company seeks to be allowed to continue to pay its vendors and salaries, and protect the businesses with its customers and partners.  Capmark was created in March 2006 through a leveraged buyout of the commercial real estate assets of General Motors' finance arm GMAC. Earlier this year also, the company had indicated that it might file for bankruptcy due to deteriorating conditions in the financial and commercial real estate markets and capital inadequacy.  Capmark is currently negotiating the terms of the bankruptcy with its creditors, which include Citigroup Inc. (C) and JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) among others.  Capmark ...

As a follow up to my post on "Blackstone Group: A High Beta Play on Recovery", news came out yesterday that Kodak (EK) is gonna raise $700 Mil through a series of transactions, including $400 Mil from secured debt issued to private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR). In exchange for funding, KKR gets two seats on EK's board. In my previous post I talked about how private equity fills a big need during hard times like the current recession (is it still?), and these firms are gonna make tons of money out of it. The EK capital raising is just one of many deals to come. Banks are reluctant to lend, the government is head over heels in deficit so companies which need funds to reorganize and shore up balance sheets turn to private equity. Many ...

Citigroup Inc.'s (C) Japanese private equity arm has restarted efforts to sell the country's largest call center company, Bellsystem24, by market share, with the first round of bidding due to close September 1st. Global buyout firms including Permira and KKR are set to bid for the company, grabbing a rare opportunity to chase big investments in Japan.

Around 20 buyout firms have reviewed the books of Bellsystem24, but only four or five may submit formal bids next week due to the deal size. Besides Permira and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co, potential bidders include CVC Capital and Bain Capital. Some other firms, though not actively working on the deal at present, may enter the race if invited to partner prominent bidders.

Japanese mega-banks, which include Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MTU) and Mizuho Financial Group (MFG), which were hurt less by the global financial crisis, are willing to lend

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The once booming business of private equity faces an uncertain future. What’s not uncertain, however, is that many private equity deals are imploding from the weight of leveraged debt and greed. Inevitable bankruptcies will result in higher unemployment and a deeper recession.

Private equity is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded.  The name “private equity”is the rechristened, kinder and more gentile label for what used to be known as leveraged buyouts, or LBOs. But make no mistake about it, while leverage may not be part of the name any more, it remains a big part of every private equity deal.

LBO firms, or “franchises”, as Henry Kravis, co-founder of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR), likes to call his shop, acquire publicly traded operating companies. Then they streamline management and operations to increase profitability and hope to cash out

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According to reports in local media, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., a private equity firm, has announced plans to invest about USD300 million in China's milk industry. The report said the investment would be realized through USD100 million equity capital and USD200 million debt financing from Chinese banks. So far, KKR has not revealed that which [...]

South Korea Plans $10.8 billion Stimulus; KKR IPO Delayed Again; DryShips Posts 71% Profit Growth; Oil Slides Below $64; Manufacturing Hits 26-year Low; Viacom Profit Down 37%; Cars Sales Plummet

South Korea’s government announced plans for a 14 trillion won ($10.8 billion) economic stimulus aimed to create an extra 200,000 jobs, extend tax breaks for factory investments and increase infrastructure spending and development. Relief measures announced this year now total 33 trillion won, according to the finance ministry, Bloomberg reported. Initial public offering plans for buyout firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. have again been delayed, this time because its Amsterdam-listed affiliate suffered big investment losses. With KKR’s delay, there hasn’t been a U.S. IPO in nearly three months, Reuters reported. DryShips ...

No wonder this economy is so hard to figure out: The economic reports are as volatile as the economy itself. Just when the dreaded "R" word seemed to be creeping back into the daily office chatter, a few economic reports last week seemed to reaffirm that the enhanced pessimism may be a tad bit early. In the second quarter, gross domestic product (GDP) grew at a 3.3% pace, a significant upward revision from the 1.9% growth rate reported last month. While analysts were hoping that the summer tax rebates would provide more of a boost than initially posted, most were surprised by the strength exhibited in this new release. But that begs the question: Does that mean that a lower GDP revision is in the cards for next month? Meanwhile, consumer confidence in August rebounded to its best showing since May and durable good orders ...