• Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) agreed to pay Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE:AMD) $1.25 billion to settle a private antitrust lawsuit

• Dell (NASDAQ:DELL) announced plans to enter the smartphone business, in partnership with China Mobile and Claro. Its first product, the Mini 3, will be designed around Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Android operating system

• Disney (NYSE:DIS) reported fiscal fourth quarter results after yesterday's close, with earnings ex-items coming in 5 cents a share better-than-expected at 46 cents. Revenues of $9.87 billion came in well ahead of Zacks estimates of $9.18 billion

• McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) addressed its plans to open 1,000 additional restaurants next year, and provide an image makeover to the rest.  The firm set targets for average annual sales growth of 3-5% and average annual operating earnings growth of 6-7%

• Abercrombie and Fitch (NYSE:ANF) reported third quarter non-GAAP earnings of 30 cents a share, well above Zacks estimates of 20 cents, as revenues of $765.4

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McDonald’s Corporation’s (MCD) comparable sales for the month of October 2009 showed a sluggish growth of 3.3% as against the rise of 8.2% in the same month last year, exposing its sensitivity to rising unemployment, economic downturn, and the discount war amongst fast-food chains to lure consumers.   The company faces stiff competition from Burger King Holdings Inc. (BKC), Wendy’s/Arby’s Group, Inc. (WEN) and Yum! Brands Inc. (YUM). However, these quick-service operators are faring better than casual dining restaurant chains, such as Cosi Inc. (COSI) and Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc. (RRGB), as cash-strapped consumers are trading towards fast-food centers due to relative cheap dining options.  System-wide sales at McDonald’s worldwide restaurants climbed 10.3% for the month of October. However, in constant currencies, the rate of increase in system-wide sales dipped to 5.2%.
 In the United States , comparable sales remained flat ...

McDonald’s Corporation (MCD) recently reported third-quarter 2009 results that topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate, driven by effective cost control and rise in comparable sales across all regions. McDonald’s quarterly earnings came in at $1.15 per share, up 10% from $1.05 reported in the prior-year quarter, and surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.11 per share. The strong U.S. dollar continues to moderate results, trimming the earnings by 5 cents a share. Excluding foreign currency translation and gains, earnings increased 14% to $1.20 per share. Revenue for the quarter declined 4% to $6,046.7 million, but increased 2% in constant currencies. Revenue from company-operated restaurants declined 7% to $4,093.6 million, whereas revenue from franchise-operated restaurants increased by 5% to $1,953.1 million. Total operating income rose 6% to $1,932.8 million, but jumped 11% in constant currencies. Despite a sinking global economy, McDonald’s continues to grow same-store sales while ...

• Potash (NYSE:POT) reported third-quarter earnings of 82 cents a share, versus Zacks estimates of 82 cents, as revenues fell 64% to $1.1 billion. Citing continued caution among fertilizer customers, the firm projected fourth quarter earnings of 65 to 85 cents a share

• Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) reported net profits of $2.33 billion on a surge in investment banking operations and strength in its private banking arm. Its tier one capital ratio rose to 16.4%, the highest of any of the world's major banks

• UPS (NYSE:UPS) reported third quarter results of 55 cents, three cents above Zacks estimates, on revenues of $11.15 billion, versus Zacks estimates of $11.17 billion. The company said it sees fourth quarter earnings of 58 cents to 65 cents a share

• Merck's (NYSE:MRK) third quarter results of 90 cents beat Zacks estimates by 8 cents on inline revenues of $6 billion. The firm set full year guidance

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Weak global economic conditions and a downgrade of Well Fargo by prominent banking analyst Richard Bove spooked investors even as Morgan Stanley and Yahoo reported better-than-expected earnings.  The Dow Jones industrial average slipped below the 10,000 level yesterday as markets pulled back in the final hour of trading.

Bove of Rochdale Securities said earnings at Well Fargo (NYSE:WFC) were helped by mortgage-servicing fees rather than improving business trends, and trimmed his rating on the bank to “sell" from “hold."  However, Well Fargo and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), which reported its first quarterly profit in a year, were behind the market’s strength earlier in the session.  Bove also cited accelerating loan losses at the firm for the downgrade.  After Bove’s cut, FBR slashed its rating on the firm to "underperform," questioning Well Fargo's earnings quality.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell below the psychologically important 10,000 level, declining 92.12 points, or

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A bit of selling pressure sent major averages lower at the end of an otherwise upbeat week on Wall Street as Bank of America and General Electric’s numbers disappointed investors.  The Dow Jones industrial average, after closing above the 10,000 mark for two successive sessions, finished just below that level.  Despite the drop, stocks managed to post impressive gains on the week even as investors grew jittery about credit losses in the financial sector. 

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) said it lost $2.2 billion during the quarter after it wrote down almost $10 billion in bad loans and General Electric’s (NYSE:GE) revenue numbers were below Street projections.  Higher loan losses aggravated investors’ concerns as Citigroup (NYSE:C) and JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM) had also reported higher loan losses during the quarter.  General Electric’s (NYSE:GE) results were impacted by lower earnings at its GE Capital unit.    

The 30-share Dow Jones industrial average fell

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  After McDonald’s Corporation (MCD) announced an increase in its quarterly dividend by 10% to 55 cents a share last week, another fast food company, Yum! Brands Inc. (YUM) followed the suit. Yum!, the operator of Taco Bell, Pizza Hut and KFC fast food chains, recently raised its quarterly dividend by 11% to 21 cents a share. This marks the fifth annual increase since the inception of dividend program in 2004. Since then, the company has returned over $1 billion to shareholders. The increased dividend is payable on Nov. 6, 2009 to shareholders of record as on Oct. 16, 2009. Yum!’s Board of Directors also authorized the company to repurchase shares worth $300 million. Over a decade, the company has returned more than $6 billion to shareholders via share buybacks. We believe that despite economic headwinds, Yum! is actively managing its capital, returning much ...

McDonald’s Corporation (MCD), the leading fast food chain, has been consistently enhancing its shareholders’ return by way of dividend and share repurchases. The company has paid dividends for 33 consecutive years and has increased the dividend amount every year. Recently, the company announced a 10% increase in its quarterly dividend, bringing the total quarterly dividend to 55 cents a share. The dividend is payable on December 15, 2009 to shareholders as on December 1, 2009. The total quarterly dividend payout is estimated to be about $600 million. Earlier, the company has raised its quarterly dividend in the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2008 by 33%, following a 50% increase in fiscal year 2007. In September 2007, McDonald’s had announced its intention to return $15 billion to $17 billion to shareholders as dividend and through share repurchases from 2007 through 2009. This is nearly double what ...

• Research In Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ:RIMM) reported Q2 EPS of $1.03; revenues surged 37% year-over-year to $3.53 billion. The company sees Q3 revenues of $3.60-$3.85 billion and Q3 EPS of $1.00-$1.08. • McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) raised its quarterly dividend 10% to 55 cents, offering a current yield of 3.92%. • Citigroup (NYSE:C) shares sank on news the firm plans to shrink its retail banking operations. • Unilever (NYSE:UL) agreed to the $1.87 billion purchase of Sara Lee's (NYSE:SLE) personal care business consisting of the Sanax and Duschdas brands. • Twitter is reportedly ready to raise about $100 million in a new funding, which would value the company at about $1 billion.Zacks Investment Research

McDonald’s Corporation’s (MCD) comparable sales growth lost momentum in the month of August 2009. After increasing 4.3% in the month of July, the rise in comps was restricted at 2.2%, exposing its sensitivity to rising unemployment, the economic downturn and the discount war amongst fast-food chains to lure consumers. Last year, comps had increased 8.5% in the month of August. System-wide sales for the company’s worldwide restaurants climbed 1.1% for the month of August, after falling 0.3% in July. However, in constant currencies, the rate of increase in system-wide sales dipped to 4.1% from 6.2% in the month of July. In the United States, comparable sales rose 1.7% in August (versus 4.5% increase last year for the comparable month), boosted by new product offerings -- new Premium products like Angus Third Pounders and Dollar Menu products like the Big Mac and McCafe premium coffees. However, the ...