For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – November 20, 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: Bank of America (BAC), MGIC (MTG), Fannie Mae (FNM), Freddie Mac (FRE) and The Gymboree Corp. (GYMB).

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Here are highlights from Thursday’s Analyst Blog:

Mortgage Delinquencies: Record High

The delinquency rate is going up much faster than foreclosures are being started. With unemployment high and rising, it is hard to see a lot of those delinquencies getting cured. Either the lenders will have to let people live indefinitely in their houses without

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W.W. Grainger Inc. (GWW) reported a 3% year-over-year drop in October sales. (October this year had one less selling day compared to October 2008.) The company benefited from a 2% positive contribution from the businesses in Japan and India, 1% from the acquisition of Imperial Supplies and 2% from favorable foreign currency translation. Excluding the impact of acquisitions and currency exchange, Grainger’s daily sales in October were down 8% from last year. The company witnessed a 7% decline in daily sales in the U.S., as demand remained weak across all end markets. These results include sales from Imperial Supplies, which the company acquired in mid-October. Excluding this acquisition, U.S. daily sales were down 8%. In the Canadian (Acklands-Grainger) division, daily sales were up 5% due to favorable foreign exchange. However, the division’s daily sales were down 7% in local currency due to continued weakness in ...

The Gymboree Corp. (GYMB) reported its fiscal third quarter results after the closing bell on Wednesday. The company posted earnings of $34.8 million, a growth of 12.6% from $30.9 million recorded in the year-ago period. Earnings per share came in at $1.15, which topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.13.   Gymboree is a specialty retailer offering apparel and accessories for children under the Gymboree, Gymboree Outlet, Janie and Jack and Crazy 8 Brands, as well as play programs under the Gymboree Play & Music brand. At the end of October 2009, the company operated a total of 951 stores across the U.S., Canada and in Puerto Rico.   The company reported a nearly 2% increase in total sales to $269.1 million during the quarter, compared to $264.1 million in the year-ago quarter. The expansion was primarily driven by the addition of 78 new stores in the last ...

Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) recently posted October net sales of $5.68 billion, a 7% increase over last year's $5.30 billion. Comparable sales spiked 5% year-over-year.

Company Description

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates an international chain of membership warehouses, mainly under the "Costco Wholesale" name. The company currently operates 562 warehouses, including 409 in the United States and Puerto Rico, 77 in Canada, 21 in the United Kingdom, 7 in Korea, 6 in Taiwan, 9 in Japan, 32 in Mexico and 1 in Australia. Costco also operates Costco Online at www.costco.com and at www.costco.ca in Canada. The company plans to open an additional five new warehouses (including the relocation of one warehouse to a larger and better-located facility), prior to the end of calendar 2009.

Recent Events

In recent news, it was reported that Costco will stop carrying Coke products due to a dispute over prices as the retail giant is trying

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Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. (PSUN) reported fiscal third quarter results after the closing opening bell on Monday. The company posted a wider net loss of $10.9 million, or 17 cents per share, compared to a loss of $2.5 million, or 4 cents per share in the year-ago period. However, the result came in ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate for a 19-cents loss.   Pacific Sunwear is a lifestyle specialty retailer and offers casual apparel with a limited selection of accessories and footwear targeted towards teens and young adults. The company operates a nationwide, primarily mall-based chain of retail stores, under the names “Pacific Sunwear" and “PacSun". As of October 31, 2009, the company operated 904 stores in 50 states and Puerto Rico.   The company recorded a 17.1% decline in net sales to $268.3 million during the quarter, compared to $323.6 million in the year-ago period. ...

JC Penney Company Inc. (JCP), a leading retailer of apparel and footwear, accessories, fashion jewelry, beauty products and home furnishings, recently reported third-quarter 2009 results. The quarterly earnings of 11 cents a share tumbled 80% from 55 cents posted in the prior-year quarter, weighed down by qualified pension plan expense. Earnings missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny. The retailer, however, mentioned that earnings outshined the company’s initial guidance range of a loss of 5 cents to profit of 5 cents a share on the heels of effective inventory management and lowered unprofitable discounting. Consequently, gross profit rose 1.9% year-on-year to $1,696 million. On stronger-than-expected results, JC Penney raised its fiscal year 2009 earnings outlook. Management now expects earnings in the range of 93 cents to $1.08 per share, as against 75 cents to 90 cents previously anticipated. For the fourth-quarter 2009, earnings are ...

Labor Department statistics released today showed a marked decline in initial jobless claims, extending a run of such declines.

Initial claims are an important barometer for layoffs and hiring. A 12K decline to 502,000 from the previous week, and a drop in the 4-week average to 519,750, is a strong indicator of improvement. The 4-week average is down 20% since the highpoint earlier this year, and initial claims look like those from the beginning of this year. Despite these facts, we are still well above the accepted 450,000 benchmark, which represents the point at which the labor market is theoretically adding jobs.

Continuing claims (which trail initial claims by a week) fell 2.4% to 5.6M, also beating out the expectations of market analysts. Congress has created the largest extension program to date for jobless claims, adding a total of 73 additional weeks to the base 26 weeks of benefits,

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – November 11, 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: AT&T Inc (T), Centennial Communications Corp (CYCL), Verizon (VZ), JA Solar Holdings Co. Ltd. (JASO) and AutoNation (AN).

Get the most recent insight from Zacks Equity Research with the free Profit from the Pros newsletter: http://at.zacks.com/?id=5513

Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:

AT&T Completes CYCL Acquisition

AT&T Inc (T) has reportedly completed its much anticipated acquisition of Centennial Communications Corp (CYCL), the eighth largest US wireless carrier by subscribers. This follows the recent approvals of the transaction by the US Department of Justice and US

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Developers Diversified Realty Corporation (DDR), a leading real estate investment trust (REIT), is planning to raise $400 million through Term Asset-backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF program). The TALF was created by the Fed to support the issuance of asset-backed securities (ABS) collateralized by student loans, auto loans, credit card loans and loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration.  The deal is being eagerly anticipated by the $700 billion market for commercial mortgage backed securities (CMBS), which took a severe beating in 2008 from the economic downturn. With the deal, Developers Diversified would be able to raise significant capital to increase its liquidity. By the end of the third quarter of 2009, the company had over $5 billion of consolidated debt.  Developers Diversified specializes in the acquisition, ownership, development, redevelopment, leasing and management of shopping centers and business centers. The company owns and manages 670 retail operating ...

AT&T Inc (T) has reportedly completed its much anticipated acquisition of Centennial Communications Corp (CYCL), the eighth largest US wireless carrier by subscribers. This follows the recent approvals of the transaction by the US Department of Justice and US telecom regulator Federal Communications Commission (“FCC"). The transaction, which was originally set to complete in second-quarter 2009, is now officially closed.  As per the agreement terms, shareholders of Centennial will receive $8.50 in cash for every share they own, equating to approximately $944 million. Including net debt, the aggregate value of the deal is $2.7 billion. AT&T will take appropriate steps to redeem all of Centennial’s outstanding debts. AT&T expects minimal dilution to earnings and cash flow in 2009 given the upfront integration costs.  The acquisition has expanded AT&T’s wireless coverage to include the rural areas of the Midwest and Southeast regions of the US as ...