Stock Market News & Stocks to Watch from StraightStocks » Steve Jobs

Austin Business Journal Covers the Unveiling of eDoorways Corp.’s (EDWY.PK) “SOLVE” Doorway

QualityStocks — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 13:19:23 +0000

eDoorways Corporation, a web-based consumer problem solving gateway, lifestyle information source, and online business-to-consumer marketplace, recently unveiled its “SOLVE” doorway in Austin, TX. The October 9, 2009 edition of the Austin Business Journal covered the event. Staff Writer Christopher Calnan penned an article called “New way to link shops, customers debuts; Vying for business via instant [...]

Stock Market News for September 10, 2009 – Market News

Zacks Market Commentaries — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 14:16:10 +0000

U.S. stocks jumped to their highest level in almost a year after Federal Reserve’s Beige Book survey said the economy is showing signs of stabilization. Although shares closed off their session highs, the report was enough to lift sentiments on the Street. However, the report did indicate that labor markets are weak and retail sales are not picking up. Industrial shares rallied after Goldman Sachs raised its view on the U.S. multi-industry group, noting the industrial activity is picking up. Treasuries made a partial comeback after the government’s 10-year note auction witnessed a strong response.

The greenback remained near its year lows against a basket of currencies while gold prices eased a little to settle at $995.30. Crude prices were slightly up ahead of the September OPEC meeting.

The Dow Jones industrial average, which rose as much as 80 points earlier in the session, pared some gains to close at 9,547.22, up 49.88 points. The broad S&P 500 index advanced 7.98 points, or 0.78%, to close at 1,033.37, its best finish so far this year, and the tech-heavy NASDAQ rose 22.62 points, or 1.11%, to close at 2,060.39. On the NYSE, volume was a moderate 1.24 billion shares as advancing stocks outpaced those that fell seven to three.

Even as unemployment levels continuing to remain vexing, the Fed’s Beige Book revealed “signs of improvements" in 11 of the 12 districts. Meanwhile, OPEC also exited its monthly meeting with soothing words, leaving production levels unchanged, and asserting current prices were within their desirable range. Nevertheless, fears of a jobless recovery have given rise to worries that the economic recovery might be reversed after inventory builds and government assistance end.

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares declined even as CEO Steve Jobs made a much-awaited comeback after his almost six-month long medical leave. The company announced the launch of new products and slashed prices of existing iPod Touch models. SanDisk (NASDAQ:SNDK) jumped 6.1% to $19.32, its highest close in 11 months; Palm (NASDAQ:PALM) shares declined more than 8.7% after the company announced the launch of its Palm Pixi phones. The stock was downgraded by Credit Suisse to “neutral" from “outperform."

Among the S&P500 industry groups, nine recorded gains with industrials (+1.5%) and financials (+1.4%) topping the list. Among the industrial conglomerates, General Electric (NYSE:GE) advanced 2.6% to $14.87, its highest level since January and Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) jumped 5% to $43.93. Goldman (NYSE:GS) raised Illinois Tool Works (NYSE:ITW) to “conviction buy" from “neutral." Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) rose 3.1% to $48.41. GE also benefited from an analyst upgrade from JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM), and a hiked price target from Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS). Boeing (NYSE:BA) shares added 2.1% following the firm's projection of a return to growth in global air traffic next year. United Technologies (NYSE:UTX), which rose 1.4%, was also upgraded by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS). 3M (NYSE:MMM) rose 2.1%

Zacks Investment Research

STEVE JOBS IS AN INSPIRATION NOT A STOCK

David Blair — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 21:28:16 +0000

Steve Jobs took the stage today as he unveiled new IPODS for Apple Inc. Jobs recently returned to work after a six month leave of absence to recuperate from a liver transplant. While analysts and investors speculate on Jobs’ health and his future at Apple, I simply wish to revisit my very first post as THE CROSSHAIRS TRADER wherein I focused on Jobs as an inspiration to all of us.

Post from: The CrossHairs Trader

STEVE JOBS IS AN INSPIRATION NOT A STOCK

GenVec’s TNFerade Nears NDA Status (NASDAQ:GNVC)

Michael Vlaicu — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 06:06:14 +0000

GenVec, Inc. (Public, NASDAQ:GNVC) StocksHaven Investments profiles a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing gene-based therapeutic drugs and vaccines. Its lead product candidate, TNFerade biologic (TNFerade), is being developed for use in the treatment of cancer, and is currently undergoing Phase III trials which are expected to be completed by Q1 2010. In addition to its therapeutic product [...]

Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Apple Inc., Palm, Nokia, Motorola and Research in Motion – Press Releases

Zacks Market Commentaries — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 13:15:26 +0000

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – September 3, 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: Apple Inc. (AAPL), Palm (PALM), Nokia (NOK), Motorola (MOT) and Research in Motion (RIMM).

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 Wednesday’s Analyst Blog:

Apple's New iPod

It is widely believed that Apple will use the event to announce major updates to the iPod Touch, the classic iPod and the iPod Nano. The upgrades could include adding a digital camera to the devices, while the iPod Touch could also be augmented with a video camera. No updates to iPod Shuffle are expected.

Apple is also expected to provide an update to the iTunes media management software at the event. Rumor has it that Steve Jobs may appear for the first time at the event after he returned to Apple from his temporary leave of absence.

Apple’s resurgence has been driven by the tremendous success of its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store. Apple unveiled the iPod nano in 2005, which was followed by the launch of iPod Touch in 2007. Apple’s iPod remains popular, as evident from the 6% increase in unit shipments to 54.8 million in fiscal 2008 compared to 2007.

However, growth in the digital music player market may slow down as the core market becomes saturated. Apple suffered declining year-over-year sales of its iPods in the first nine months of 2009 as demand fell due to global recession. The company could sell only 44.1 million iPods during the first nine months of 2009. iPod revenues were down 13.0%.

Apple faces significant competition from Palm (PALM), Nokia (NOK), Motorola (MOT) and Research in Motion (RIMM) in all areas of its business.

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Zacks.com is a property of Zacks Investment Research, Inc., which was formed in 1978 by Leonard Zacks. As a PhD in mathematics Len knew he could find patterns in stock market data that would lead to superior investment results. Amongst his many accomplishments was the formation of his proprietary stock picking system; the Zacks Rank, which continues to outperform the market by nearly a 3 to 1 margin. The best way to unlock the profitable stock recommendations and market insights of Zacks Investment Research is through our free daily email newsletter; Profit from the Pros. In short, it's your steady flow of Profitable ideas GUARANTEED to be worth your time! Register for your free subscription to Profit from the Pros at http://at.zacks.com/?id=5518.

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Zacks Investment Research

New Apple iPods – Analyst Blog

Zacks Market Commentaries — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 17:30:09 +0000

Apple Inc. (AAPL) is expected to unveil a new line up of iPod portable music players for the holiday period when it will hold a special media event in San Francisco on Sept 9. Apple declined to name the products.

It is widely believed that Apple will use the event to announce major updates to the iPod Touch, the classic iPod and the iPod Nano. The upgrades could include adding a digital camera to the devices, while the iPod Touch could also be augmented with a video camera. No updates to iPod Shuffle are expected.

Apple is also expected to provide an update to the iTunes media management software at the event. Rumor has it that Steve Jobs may appear for the first time at the event after he returned to Apple from his temporary leave of absence.

Apple’s resurgence has been driven by the tremendous success of its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store. Apple unveiled the iPod nano in 2005, which was followed by the launch of iPod Touch in 2007. Apple’s iPod remains popular, as evident from the 6% increase in unit shipments to 54.8 million in fiscal 2008 compared to 2007.

However, growth in the digital music player market may slow down as the core market becomes saturated. Apple suffered declining year-over-year sales of its iPods in the first nine months of 2009 as demand fell due to global recession. The company could sell only 44.1 million iPods during the first nine months of 2009. iPod revenues were down 13.0%.

Apple faces significant competition from Palm (PALM), Nokia (NOK), Motorola (MOT) and Research in Motion (RIMM) in all areas of its business.

To revamp the slowing demand, updates to the company’s iPod line will be a major driver. We expect a growth in more advanced iPod Touch units in the next few quarters. We believe the event will be quite important as Apple’s new product launches will be a thing to watch out for.
Read the full analyst report on "AAPL"
Read the full analyst report on "PALM"
Read the full analyst report on "NOK"
Read the full analyst report on "MOT"
Read the full analyst report on "RIMM"
Zacks Investment Research

Apple fairly valued? Decide for yourself!

Daniel Hung — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 02:57:45 +0000

Apple’s stock is fast approaching its 52-week high of $177.50 set almost exactly 1-yar ago and seems within striking distance of its all-time high valuation near $200. I wrote at the beginning of the year about Apple’s intrinsic value and recommended buying the stock when it hit $89/share amid rumors of Steve Jobs’ declining health [...]

Lessons for Apple in Mays, Madoff

Investment U — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:30:36 +0000

Lessons for Apple in Mays, Madoff by The Investment U Research Team In many ways Steve Jobs return to Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) was overshadowed by the demise of Billy Mays and the Bernie Madoff’s sentencing. However, there are lessons for Apple in both of these men. Billy Mays tragic loss should give iPhone and iPod creators [...]

Stock Market News for June 30, 2009 – Market News

Zacks Market Commentaries — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:16:26 +0000

US stocks started the holiday-shortened trading week on a positive note as energy, technology and industrial shares pulled equity markets higher. Although stocks seesawed in early trading, a gain in oil prices buoyed sentiments on the Street and investors raced to put money in the stock market.

The Down Jones industrial average advanced 91 points or 1.1% and the S&P 500 increased 0.9%. NASDAQ edged up 0.3%. Volume on the NYSE was light with only 1.07 billion shares exchanging hands and advancing issues outpacing declining stocks by a three-to-two margin. The measure of market volatility, the CBOE Vix, retreated 2.2% to 25.35%, its lowest level since mid-September. Treasury prices jumped, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year note declining to 3.48%. Crude prices jumped to more than $71 per barrel on higher demand expectations and reports that Nigerian militants partly shut down an offshore oil facility.

Trading is expected to remain volatile this week as some money managers do last minute adjustments to their portfolios, a phenomenon known as "window dressing." The week, cut short by the Independence Day holiday, also brings a spate of economic data and is likely to provide a sense of where the markets are headed. Of key importance is the monthly employment report that is due on Thursday. There are expectations that unemployment in US rose at a slower pace than projected.

The jump in crude prices boosted energy stocks, sending shares of Chevron (NYSE:CVX) up 1.4% and ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) up 2.2%. A WSJ report that said banking firms are expected to report higher second-quarter profits boosted financials. Moreover, SLM (NYSE:SLM) shares rallied 8.5% on pricing details of its student loan services contracts, announced yesterday by the Department of Education.

Meanwhile, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) announced that CEO Steve Jobs has returned to work. The iPhone maker said Jobs will work at Apple offices "a few days a week" and work from home the other days. Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) rose 2.2% after Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) raised its price target on the software maker. General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) rose 2.8% to $57 and Eastman Chemical (NYSE:EMN) jumped 3.7% to $38.79.

Among DJIA components, all but Alcoa (NYSE:AA) advanced. Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ) led the gainers with an advance of 3.5%, followed by Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), which rose 3.5% and Merck (NYSE:MRK), which added 3.2%. The $22.4 billion Magellan Fund reported it raised its holdings of Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) in May. Merck (NYSE:MRK) rose after reporting it has returned to normalized shipments of its Zostavax shingles vaccine. However, Alcoa (NYSE:AA) declined after analysts at FBR Capital, downgraded the stock to "underperform" from "market perform", citing valuation and oversupply concerns.

All ten S&P500 industry groups recorded gains, with utilities rising 1.3%, oil and gas adding 1.2%, telecom rising 1.2%, and financials advancing 1.1%. Home builders also rose after Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) upgraded KB Homes (NYSE:KBH), which had reported signs of moderation in certain negative housing trends. Lennar (NYSE:LEN), which reported new home sales and orders picked up during the quarter, jumped 5.8%. Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) upgraded JC Penney (NYSE:JCP) shares to "overweight" from "equal-weight", noting the company was "the most likely candidate" among department store chains to outperform current margin projections for the second quarter.

Zacks Investment Research

Company News for June 22, 2009 – Corporate Summary

Zacks Market Commentaries — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 14:28:02 +0000

* Reports suggest Xstrata and Anglo American (NASDAQ:AAUK) are engaged in merger talks in a deal which could total about $68 billion and result in the combined firm becoming the world's number-three miner behind BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP) and Vale (NASDAQ:VALE)

* Reuters reported 100,000 of Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone 3Gs were sold via preorders, explaining away some of the launch's diminished excitement level. Some news reports said Steve Jobs underwent a liver transplant two months ago in Tennessee, and is still due back at month's end

* Walgreen (NYSE:WAG) is expected to report fiscal third-quarter earnings of 56 cents a share

* UBS (NYSE:UBS) upgraded Vulcan Materials (NYSE:VMC) to "buy," based upon housing and infrastructure recovery

* JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM) upgraded Verisign (NASDAQ:VRSN) to "overweight" from "neutral"

* According to a Wall Street Journal report, Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) may stop conducting businesses with some retailers in states, which would force sales tax payments on online transactions

Zacks Investment Research

Smart Phones, Smart Investments?

Andrew Snyder — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 23:07:22 +0000

pThe cell phone industry is making big moves today. Palm’s (NASDAQ:PPL) new phone release is taking its share price down. While speculation over Steve Jobs and the iPhone is creating its own problems for Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)./p pIt is a pretty dismal day on Wall Street. With thoughts of surging interest rates, an unstoppable rise in unemployment levels and bank fears remaining high, plenty of investors are taking their recent gains and heading back to the sidelines./p pWith the S#38;P plunging below the 930 level today and volatility on the rise, it is not a day to put a news release on the Street, especially if it contains less-than-stellar news./p pstrongPalm (NASDAQ:a href="http://www.google.com/finance?q=palm" target="_blank"PALM/a)/strong is learning the lesson the hard way today. After releasing its highly anticipated#8230;/p

Company News for June 8, 2009 – Corporate Summary

Zacks Market Commentaries — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:04:41 +0000

* Barclays (NYSE:BCS) is reportedly in talks to sell its Barclays Global Investors, in a deal valued at about $12 billion. Reports suggest those interested include, BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), which is expected to succeed competing bidder Bank of NY Mellon (NYSE:BK)

* Citigroup (NYSE:C), no longer among the DJIA components, is reportedly ready to restart last week's delayed $58 billion stock swap

* Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) worldwide development conference this week promises heightened attention for a major new product announcement of a lower-priced iPhone, priced at either $149 or $99, compared to the current low end of $199, with expectations that Steve Jobs would make an appearance. Apple has closed higher over the past nine consecutive trading days.

* According to the International Air Transportation Association, global airline losses are expected to reach $9 billion this year, almost twice its projections three months ago, due to rising fuel costs and weak demand

* General Mills (NYSE:GIS) raised its 2009 earnings guidance by several cents from prior estimate of between $3.87 to $3.89 per share

Zacks Investment Research

Zacks Earnings Preview: National Semiconductor and The Talbots Inc. – Press Releases

Charles Rotblut — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:03:40 +0000

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL - June 8, 2009 - Zacks.com releases the list of companies likely to issue earnings surprises. This week's list includes National Semiconductor (NSM) and The Talbots Inc. (TLB). To see more earnings analysis, visit http://at.zacks.com/?id=3207.

Every day, Zacks.com makes 4 stock picks available, free of charge. To see them, go to http://at.zacks.com/?id=3567.

The Week's Events

S&P 500 members Brown Forman (BF.B), National Semiconductor (NSM) and Pall Corporation (PLL) headline what will be a very light earnings calendar. Only 37 companies are confirmed to report.

On the economic front, the Fed will release its periodic Beige Book on Wednesday afternoon. The next morning we will get May retail sales numbers from the Commerce Department.

Tuesday: April wholesale inventories
Wednesday: Fed Beige Book, April trade deficit, May treasury budget, weekly crude inventories
Thursday: May retail sales, weekly initial jobless claims
Friday: Initial June University of Michigan consumer confidence, May import and export prices

Three Fed officials are scheduled to speak. Governor Daniel Tarullo will talk about financial regulation at the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday. On Wednesday, Governor Elizabeth Duke will deliver a lunchtime speech about consumer protection in Cleveland. Finally, Atlanta Fed Reserve President Dennis Lockhart will talk about the economy at a conference in Atlanta on Thursday.

The smartphone market will be in focus.

Palm's (PALM) next generation phone, the Pre, goes on sale tomorrow (Jun 6). Expect to hear some discussion about sales and initial reaction by customers.

Competitor Apple (AAPL) is expected to release details about a new iPhone. A software developers conference starts on Monday and there is speculation that Steve Jobs will be the one introducing the new mobile device.

The markets are stuck in a trading range. Given the light amount of data, there doesn't seem be a reason to think that things will change this week.

This said, keep an eye on Wednesday and Thursday, however. The combination of the Beige Book, speeches from Fed officials, oil inventories and a 10-year treasury auction (Wednesday at 1 p.m.) could get some traders to be more active.

Companies That Could Issue Positive Earnings Surprises

Fiscal-fourth quarter estimates for National Semiconductor (NSM) have been gradually improving. The current consensus estimate, which calls for a loss of 44 cents per share, is 3 cents better than the average forecast of a month ago. The most accurate estimate is slightly more bullish and calls for a loss of 42 cents per share. Though NSM has topped expectations twice in the past 4 quarters, it has also missed twice, so this is a risky call. National Semiconductor is scheduled to report on Thursday, Jun 11, after the close of trading.

Companies That Could Issue Negative Earnings Surprises

The Talbots Inc. (TLB) has not only disappointed investors for 2 consecutive quarters, but it missed estimates by wide margins. Brokerage analysts are bracing for a first-quarter loss of 49 cents per share, but the most accurate estimate suggests the retailer could post a wider loss of 52 cents per share. Talbots is scheduled to report on Tuesday, Jun 9, before the start of trading.

Charles Rotblut, CFA is the senior market analyst for Zacks.com. He can be reached at crotblut@zacks.com.

Want to turn earnings surprises into quick profits? Learn how by visiting http://at.zacks.com/?id=3206.

About the Zacks Rank

Since 1988, the Zacks Rank has proven that "Earnings estimate revisions are the most powerful force impacting stock prices." Since inception in 1988, #1 Rank Stocks have generated an average annual return of +28%. During the 2000-2002 bear market, Zacks #1 Rank stocks gained +43.8%, while the S&P 500 tumbled -37.6%. Also note that the Zacks Rank system has just as many Strong Sell recommendations (Rank #5) as Strong Buy recommendations (Rank #1). Since 1988, Zacks Rank #5 stocks have underperformed the S&P 500 by 82% annually (+2% versus +10%). Thus, the Zacks Rank system allows investors to truly manage portfolio trading effectively.

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Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities (including a broker-dealer and an investment adviser), which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates.

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Contact: Charles Rotblut, CFA
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Zacks Investment Research

Stock Market News for June 5, 2009 – Market News

Zacks Market Commentaries — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 14:27:45 +0000

U.S. stocks rose for the fifth time in six days as analysts recommended buying bank stocks and oil prices rose again pushing energy stocks higher. Investors also took heart from the drop in unemployment numbers and U.S. workers filing first-time claim for jobless benefits. The Dow Jones industrial average added 75 points, or 0.9% to close at 8750 and the S&P 500 index rose 1.1% to close at 942.46. The S&P is up 39% since hitting its 12-year low on March 9. The tech-heavy Nasdaq continued its strong performance and rose 1.3%.

Among S&P industry groups, financials were the leading gainers, rising 3.4% as traders took reports of a failed Latvian bond auction in their stride. A Bernstein upgrade of Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) to "outperform" also helped financials and the effects of the failed bond auction were nowhere to be seen. Bernstein suggested Goldman's capital strength will allow the firm to consolidate its position further in fixed income, currency and commodity markets. Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ:FITB), which has been asked by regulators to raise $1.1 billion as part of the stress tests, reported sale of $1 billion common shares and said it is on track to raise the required amount. Keycorp (NYSE:KEY) jumped 20% after RBC Capital Markets cited the stock a "top pick." Today's reports suggesting the FDIC is pushing for an executive shuffle at Citigroup (NYSE:C) may imperil CEO Pandit's tenure, and provide another reason for firms to shun government funds and rush to pay back TARP monies.

Basic material shares continued their advance, rising 2.1%, with Alcoa (NYSE:AA), up 6.2%, leading the list of gainers on the DJIA. Improved demand scenario, especially from China, helped the advance in Alcoa shares. Oil and gas sector shares gained 2.1%. Among stocks from the sector, Chevron (NYSE:XOM) and Exxon Mobil (NYSE:CVX) led the gainers as crude prices surged 4.1% to $68.81, a seven-month closing high. Bullish analysts at Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) upped their forecasts for crude to $85 per barrel in 2009 and $95 in 2010.

Technology stocks advanced 1.5%, helped by prospects for new product launches and analyst upgrades. Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) rose after the iPhone-maker's profit and share-price target was increased by Oppenheimer. Some reports suggested CEO Steve Jobs was expected to return from his medical leave by month's end. Citi (NYSE:C) raised Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) price target to $580 from $450, on expectations that second quarter results will meet estimates and the company will report better results next year. Advanced Micro Devices (NYSE:AMD) said the company expects fourth quarter sales to improve from a year ago, helped by better economic conditions. Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) announced plans to purchase Wind River Systems (NASDAQ:WIND) for an all-cash deal valued at $884 million.

Dismal retail sales numbers in May, with an estimated 75% of retailers falling short of targets, posting an estimated 8.6% average drop in same-store-sales, however, could not check the rally. Costco (NASDAQ:COST) reported a 7% drop, versus estimates of a 6.4% decline; Target (NYSE:TGT) comparable-sales fell 6.1% versus expectations of a 4.3% drop; Saks (NYSE:SKS) disappointed with a 26.6% sales fall versus an anticipated 14% drop; Macy's (NYSE:M), however, was slightly ahead of expectations with its 9.1% decline, less than the 9.3% anticipated.

Zacks Investment Research

Earnings Preview for June 8 – 12 – Earnings Preview

Charles Rotblut — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 05:00:00 +0000

On the economic front, the Fed will release its periodic Beige Book on Wednesday afternoon. The next morning we will get May retail sales numbers from the Commerce Department.

Tuesday: April wholesale inventories
Wednesday: Fed Beige Book, April trade deficit, May treasury budget, weekly crude inventories
Thursday: May retail sales, weekly initial jobless claims
Friday: Initial June University of Michigan consumer confidence, May import and export prices

The smartphone market will be in focus.

Palm's (PALM) next generation phone, the Pre, goes on sale tomorrow (Jun 6). Expect to hear some discussion about sales and initial reaction by customers.

The markets are stuck in a trading range. Given the light amount of data, there doesn't seem be a reason to think that things will change this week.

Companies That Could Issue Positive Earnings Surprises

Companies That Could Issue Negative Earnings Surprises

Charles Rotblut, CFA is the senior market analyst for Zacks.com. He can be reached at crotblut@zacks.com.

Surprise Trader can help you turn earnings surprises into quick profits. Learn how.

Earnings Calendar

Here is a list of companies that we have confirmed will report during the week of June 8 - 12¹. Prices are as of Thursday's, June 4, market close.

Company	Stock	Zacks Estimate	Year Ago EPS	Last Qtr Surprise	Date	Time	Price
Ferrellgas -Lp	FGP	$0.65	$0.55	(7.6%)	6/8	N/A	$16.80
Fuelcell Energy	FCEL	($0.30)	($0.38)	(9.4%)	6/8	AMC	$3.74
Pall Corp	PLL	$0.42	$0.54	(13.6%)	6/8	AMC	$26.67
Quiksilver Inc	ZQK	$0.04	$0.30	22.2%	6/8	AMC	$3.28
99 Cents Only	NDN	$0.04	($0.06)	(5.3%)	6/9	AMC	$10.04
Cra Intl Inc	CRAI	$0.30	$0.48	(48.7%)	6/9	BTO	$28.63
Gigamedia Ltd	GIGM	$0.11	$0.20	(6.7%)	6/9	BTO	$6.31
Korn/Ferry Intl	KFY	($0.06)	$0.36	(20.0%)	6/9	BTO	$11.82
Movado Grp Inc	MOV	($0.48)	$0.05	(975.0%)	6/9	BTO	$8.15
Nci Bldg System	NCS	($0.14)	$0.85	8.9%	6/9	AMC	$3.99
Oxford Inds Inc	OXM	$0.25	$0.59	100.0%	6/9	AMC	$10.85
Pep Boys M M &J	PBY	$0.06	$0.00	11.5%	6/9	BTO	$7.81
Piedmont Nat Ga	PNY	$0.66	$0.66	(1.8%)	6/9	BTO	$23.11
Rentrak Corp	RENT	$0.05	$0.10	0.0%	6/9	AMC	$10.50
Shuffle Master	SHFL	$0.04	$0.09	(75.0%)	6/9	AMC	$4.25
Streamline Hlth	STRM	($0.02)	($0.09)	N/A	6/9	AMC	$3.48
Talbots Inc	TLB	($0.49)	$0.21	(258.2%)	6/9	BTO	$4.88
Titan Machinery	TITN	$0.13	$0.24	-14.29%	6/9	BTO	$16.06
Brown Forman B	BF.B	$0.49	$0.65	5.2%	6/10	BTO	$45.99
Hooker Furnitur	HOFT	$0.16	$0.23	5.0%	6/10	BTO	$12.00
Linktone Ltd	LTON	($0.02)	($0.18)	220.0%	6/10	AMC	$2.50
Measuremnt Spcl	MEAS	$0.00	$0.31	200.0%	6/10	AMC	$6.39
Mens Wearhouse	MW	$0.00	$0.20	62.5%	6/10	AMC	$18.43
North Amer Egy	NOA	$0.16	$0.66	44.1%	6/10	AMC	$7.75
Stewart Entrp A	STEI	$0.08	$0.15	(12.5%)	6/10	BTO	$4.90
Access Integr-A	CIDM	($0.21)	($0.43)	0.0%	6/11	N/A	$1.11
Arcsight Inc	ARST	$0.07	($0.03)	300.0%	6/11	AMC	$17.75
China Med Tech	CMED	$0.45	$0.53	268.8%	6/11	BTO	$25.01
Chindex Intl	CHDX	$0.10	($0.20)	(21.4%)	6/11	BTO	$8.69
Del Monte Foods	DLM	$0.26	$0.29	36.4%	6/11	BTO	$8.40
Herley Inds Inc	HRLY	$0.16	$0.15	220.0%	6/11	AMC	$11.02
Hoku Scientific	HOKU	($0.08)	($0.12)	(300.0%)	6/11	BTO	$3.12
Lululemon Athlt	LULU	$0.08	$0.12	33.3%	6/11	BTO	$14.08
Mds Inc	MDZ	$0.06	$0.06	(14.3%)	6/11	BTO	$5.44
Natl Semicon	NSM	($0.44)	$0.35	180.0%	6/11	AMC	$13.99
Repligen	RGEN	($0.06)	($0.10)	100.0%	6/11	N/A	$4.55
School Specialt	SCHS	($0.66)	($0.66)	(13.9%)	6/11	BTO	$19.69

BTO = Before The Market Open, AMC = After The Market Close

¹Some of the companies listed in the earnings calendar may not be in the Zacks Rank universe.

Zacks Investment Research

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL): Outperform from Underperform at RBC

Notable Calls — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 10:29:00 +0000

div style="text-align: justify;"RBC Capital is out upgrading span style="font-weight: bold;"Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)/span to Outperform from Underperform while raising tgt to $165 from $95.br /br /Firm notes their prior concerns these past months were: 1) Recession headwinds; 2) Margin downshifts; 3) Management uncertainty.br /br /They now see these issues mitigated or resolved, leaving us more positive, based on: 1) turnaround in RBC's proprietary consumer demand survey; 2) improved margin visibility via product roadmap; 3) stronger resiliency, gains for Global Smartphones; 4) Apple's "VIP" (Valuation Innovation Premium), a factor they underestimated, sustaining outperformance despite near-term challenges; 5) belief Steve Jobs' is likely to return to Apple.br /br /span style="font-weight: bold;"Consumer Demand Turnaround./span Following 2 years of declines, RBC/IQ Changewave data (2,700) shows 11% spending more on consumer electronics vs. 10% March, helping restore demand for Apple products.br /br /span style="font-weight: bold;"Smartphone Resiliency. /spanAs shown by recent RIM/Apple quarterly results, Smartphones have proven recession-resistant; they are raising Smartphone forecast to 30% Y/Y growth CY09 (21% prior) and iPhone ests. to 28M (24M prior).br /br /span style="font-weight: bold;"Improved Margin Visibility./span RBC believes Apple won't produce a Netbook or iPhone Nano this year, addressing their 'margin downshift' concern. They are raising F09 EPS estimates to $5.57 ($5.06 prior) and F10 to $6.39 ($5.64 prior) based on 35%/34% F09/F10 GMs (33%/31% prior).br /br /span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"Notablecalls: /spanI like RBC overall but they have run with the heard when it comes to AAPL over the past couple of years. They were high on the stock when it was at $200 and they bashed it when it was trading in the $80's.br /br /So now they are positive again.br /br /Sorry Mike and Mark, but you guys need to up the ante or soon nobody will be paying any attention to your calls.br //divdiv class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='http://res1.blogblog.com/tracker/29297569-3657893562672739006?l=notablecalls.blogspot.com'//div

Apple Inc. Not Falling Far – Analyst Blog

Zacks Market Commentaries — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:32:11 +0000

Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) CEO Steve Jobs had taken a temporary leave to focus on health issues. We believe the company's day-to-day operations will not be affected as its fundamentals remain intact.

Apple reported strong Q109 results beating its own expectations, but the company provided a cautious outlook for 2Q09. Apple is benefiting from the industry's trend towards laptops away from desktops, increased iPod sales and sale of its lower price point on the 3G iPhone. The company continued to take market share with its Macintosh and smartphones.

However, we don't believe recent launches will be enough to drive a meaningful upgrade cycle. Moreover, fears of a sluggish economy and slow consumer spending remain. We maintain a Hold rating on AAPL shares with a 6-month price target of $87.00.

Priyanka Poddar contributed to this report.
Read the full analyst report on "AAPL"
Zacks Investment Research

Welcome TheStreet.com Readers…

Daniel Hung — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 18:18:41 +0000

… and any other new readers! It seems that this blog has gotten a little string of publicity with a mention on Bloomberg News earlier in the week and a quote in a new article by TheStreet.com, “Apple Investors, the Love’s Still Strong“. As such, the site has had an influx of new visitors who [...]

Steve Jobs Autobiography

Fred Fuld — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 04:35:00 +0000

There is a a href="http://valleywag.gawker.com/5154585/when-is-the-steve-jobs-autobiography-coming-out" target="_blank"rumor/a going around Silicon Valley that Steve Jobs, the founder and head of Apple (AAPL), is writing an autobiography. The closest book to a live story on Jobs was the unauthorized biography a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0471787841?ie=UTF8tag=antiquestocka-20linkCode=as2camp=1789creative=9325creativeASIN=0471787841"iCon Steve Jobs: The Greatest Second Act in the History of Business/aimg src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=antiquestocka-20l=as2o=1a=0471787841" width="1" height="1" border="0" alt="" style="border:none !important; margin:0px !important;" /, which Jobs had removed from all the Apple Stores.div class="blogger-post-footer"div class='adsense' style='text-align:center; padding: 0px 3px 0.5em 3px;' script type="text/javascript"!-- google_ad_client="ca-pub-2427831169011625"; google_ad_width=300; google_ad_height=250; google_ad_format="300x250_as"; google_ad_type="text"; google_ad_channel ="8681602088"; google_color_border="FFF3DB"; google_color_bg="FFF3DB"; google_color_link="1B0431"; google_color_url="1B0431"; google_color_text="29303B"; //--/script script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js" /script /div

Steve Jobs Leaves Work, Steve Wozniak Comes Back to Work

Fred Fuld — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 18:48:00 +0000

By now, everyone knows that Steve Jobs has taken a medical leave of absence from Apple Inc. (AAPL). But the other founder of Apple, Steve Wozniak, who has been semi-retired, has become the a href="http://www.vnunet.com/vnunet/news/2235905/woz-goes-back-work" target="_blank"chief scientist at Fusion-io/a. Fusion-io produces solid state memory devices.div class="blogger-post-footer"div class='adsense' style='text-align:center; padding: 0px 3px 0.5em 3px;' script type="text/javascript"!-- google_ad_client="ca-pub-2427831169011625"; google_ad_width=300; google_ad_height=250; google_ad_format="300x250_as"; google_ad_type="text"; google_ad_channel ="8681602088"; google_color_border="FFF3DB"; google_color_bg="FFF3DB"; google_color_link="1B0431"; google_color_url="1B0431"; google_color_text="29303B"; //--/script script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js" /script /div

Could Tax Problems Trip up the Confirmation of the Best Candidate for Treasury Secretary?

Contrarian Profits — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 16:45:08 +0000

pAfter a two-day “holiday” to start the week–Martin Luther King Day today (Monday) and Inauguration Day tomorrow (Tuesday)–it’ll be back to business on Wednesday as Congress begins to grill U.S. Treasury Secretary nominee Timothy Geithner – the appointment many observers believe to be the most important of the new Barack Obama administration./p pa href="http://www.moneymorning.com/2008/11/24/timothy-f-geithner/" target="_blank"Geithner/a, currently the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, is viewed by Democrats and Republicans alike as probably the most qualified candidate to succeed current Treasury Secretary a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Paulson" target="_blank"Henry M. “Hank” Paulson Jr.,/a since whoever fills this post will have to be able to step right in and make whatever moves are needed to fix a financial system that seems to get worse by the week. Geithner is#8230;/p

Apple Rating Stays a Hold – Analyst Blog

Zacks Market Commentaries — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 15:52:37 +0000

Apple, Inc.'s (AAPL) CEO Steve Jobs has taken a temporary leave of absence to focus on health issues. We believe the company's day-to-day operations will not be affected as its fundamentals remain intact.

Apple's lower price point on the 3G iPhone has taken market share from its competitor Research In Motion (RIMM), producer of the BlackBerry. Moreover, Macintosh continues to take share from traditional PCs.

We remain concerned about slowing iPod sales as the category matures, and don't believe recent launches will be enough to drive a meaningful upgrade cycle. Moreover, fears of a sluggish economy and slow consumer spending remain.

We maintain a Hold rating on AAPL shares and lower our six-month price target to $86.50.

Priyanka Poddar contributed to this report.

Read the full analyst report on AAPL.

Read the full analyst report on RIMM.

"AAPL" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
"RIMM" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
Zacks Investment Research

Global Investment News Briefs Friday, January 16th, 2009

Contrarian Profits — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 14:40:08 +0000

pJPMorgan Profit Down 76%; U.S. Foreclosures up 81% in 2008; U.S. Crude Falls 10%; Incoming SEC Chief Touts Investor Protection; Apple Without its Core; BofA Plunge; Auto Execs Uncertain/p ul type="disc" lia href="http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive#38;sid=aJnpIea7sSZQ"Fourth quarter profit dived 76%/a for strongJPMorgan Chase #38; Co./strong (a href="http://finance.google.com/finance?q=jpm"JPM/a), as the financial crisis forced the bank to write down $2.9 billion in assets and increase its reserves, strongemBloomberg/em/strong reported. The second-largest U.S. bank by assets posted a net income of $702 million, or 7 cents a share, compared with $2.97 billion, or 86 cents a share, the year earlier./li /ul ul type="disc" liOne in every 54 U.S. households received a foreclosure filing in 2008, a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTRE50E1KV20090115"an 81% annual increase and a 17% increase from November to December/a, strongemReuters /em/strongreported, citing a report from RealtyTrac. Almost 3.2 million filings#8230;/li/ul

Steve Jobs Health Drags Down Apple

Investment U — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 15:14:46 +0000

Steve Jobs Health Drags Down Apple Alexander Wissel, Editor in Chief, Investment U Many Apple (AAPL) investors discovered in shock that Steve Jobs would be taking a five-month leave-of-absence to deal with his health problems. The stock is down over 5% in early Thursday trading. In 2004 Jobs had surgery to fight off pancreatic cancer that involved removing [...]

The Trading Day Ahead – 01/15/09

Daniel Shepard — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 09:11:59 +0000

Thursday January 15, 2009 Navivest Today will be a critical day for the stock market. With yesterday’s 248.42-point (2.9%) drop in the Dow, we’ve now had six consecutive days in which the index closed to the downside. Since the start of the week, we have been looking for a rebound and thought we would get one on Wednesday, [...]

Apple CEO Steve Jobs Taking Medical Leave

Daniel Shepard — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 01:40:42 +0000

Wednesday January 14, 2009 Navivest After dropping $2.38 in regular trading on Wednesday, Apple (AAPL) shares are down another $6.03, or 7.07% to $79.30, after details of a letter from Apple CEO Steve Jobs to company employees were released, in which Steve Jobs announced that he will be taking a medical leave until the end of June. Just [...]

Jobs Taking Leave from Apple – Analyst Blog

Zacks Market Commentaries — Wed, 14 Jan 2009 17:15:30 +0000

It has been reported that Steve Jobs, CEO and co-founder of Apple Inc. (AAPL) will take a 6-month leave of absence from his responsibilities at Apple.

His health has been a matter of concern for some time, and conjecture about it has had an impact on the stock price. His hormone deficiency is apparently more serious than previously indicated.

Apple is a large company. Its strategies and "road map" have been in place for some time. Its management has depth, since Steve Jobs has not been the COO for many years. I would not expect any significant impact on revenue or profits due to his absence.

The company has prospered with new products every 5 or 6 years. Since the iPhone is two years old we would not have expected a new direction from Apple until 2010.

By then we should know more about his health.

Read the full analyst report on AAPL.

"AAPL" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
Zacks Investment Research

Review of the 2009 Macworld Conference and Expo

Fred Fuld — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 08:17:00 +0000

a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SWmtZExgT4I/AAAAAAAAAnU/qUCH6PVlFiM/s1600-h/iphonecrowd.jpg"img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SWmtZExgT4I/AAAAAAAAAnU/qUCH6PVlFiM/s200/iphonecrowd.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289949883613073282" //a Considering how bad the economy is and in spite of the absence of Steve Jobs, the 2009 Macworld Conference and Expo, held at Moscone Center in San Francisco, California was very successful. This is also in spite of the fact that Apple (AAPL) announced that they wouldn't be back next year. But that isn't the only disappearing act. br /br /There were a couple other major companies that were conspicuous by their absence, such as Adobe (ADBE). Adobe used to be one of the anchor exhibitors at the Expo, and one of the noteworthy producers of Macintosh software. Another MIA was Sony (SNE). Does anyone remember the old Sony beige 3.5 inch floppy disks?br /br /So who was there in place of the biggies? There were approximately 400 exhibitors and most of them were small or private or unknown businesses, more small business exhibitors than I've ever seen at any of the previous Expos. It is amazing how many companies and employees exist because of the Macintosh, the iPod, and the iPhone. br /br /a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SWmsON0Dg5I/AAAAAAAAAm0/RVl1CkKvHAY/s1600-h/dmc.jpg"img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SWmsON0Dg5I/AAAAAAAAAm0/RVl1CkKvHAY/s200/dmc.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289948597549499282" //aFor example, one local San Francisco Bay Area computer repair shop, called techrestore.com, had a DeLorean time machine automobile on display to attract visitors. And speaking of cars, Honda Motor Company (HMC) had an Acura on display, along with a very old working Mac Plus on display. Remember those? Actually, it was a Mac Plus case that had been gutted with a more up-to-date computer installed. Honda has a PE ratio of 14 and a yield of 3.6%. a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SWmslO-XUhI/AAAAAAAAAm8/mgAYk6qjp-o/s1600-h/acura.jpg"img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SWmslO-XUhI/AAAAAAAAAm8/mgAYk6qjp-o/s200/acura.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289948992998167058" //abr /br /One of the surprise exhibitors was Google (GOOG), which had displays showing Google Maps and YouTube. Google has a PE of 19.a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SWms1jQBjdI/AAAAAAAAAnE/-XmUL-amEq4/s1600-h/google.jpg"img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SWms1jQBjdI/AAAAAAAAAnE/-XmUL-amEq4/s200/google.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289949273318854098" //abr /br /br /Other publicly traded companies that attracted a lot of people to their exhibits include Nikon (NINOY.PK) and NEC Electronics (NELTY.PK), both of which trade on the Pink Sheets, and Canon Inc. (CAJ) with a PE of 9, and Hewlett-Packard Company (HPQ) with a PE of 12 and a yield of 0.9%, both of which trade on the New York Stock Exchange.br /br /Of course, Microsoft (MSFT) was there, promoting Office 2008 for the Mac. The stock has a PE of 10 and a yield of 2.7%. br /br /a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SWmtHqcl2gI/AAAAAAAAAnM/OUB51R0hsX8/s1600-h/lennon.jpg"img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_T9VXVyuEITg/SWmtHqcl2gI/AAAAAAAAAnM/OUB51R0hsX8/s200/lennon.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5289949584488258050" //abr /The show also had the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus again this year, which is a non-profit mobile recording studio that travels to schools across the company. Overall, the show and the exhibits were well received. Let's hope the Macworld Expo is repeated in the future, and let's hope Apple continues to be successful, since many people and many small companies rely on its success. br /br /By the way, if you had followed the a href="http://stockerblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/macworld-expo-apple-stock-correlation.html"MacWorld Expo Apple Stock Correlation/a, it would have worked. I wrote about this back on October 28, and each year prior to that for several years. You would have made a profit of 2.7% in less than two months, buying Apple at 88.14 on November 17 and selling on January 9 at 90.58.br /br /iAuthor owns AAPL and MSFT./ibr /br /By Fred Fuld at a href="http://Stockerblog.com"Stockerblog.com/adiv class="blogger-post-footer"div class='adsense' style='text-align:center; padding: 0px 3px 0.5em 3px;' script type="text/javascript"!-- google_ad_client="ca-pub-2427831169011625"; google_ad_width=300; google_ad_height=250; google_ad_format="300x250_as"; google_ad_type="text"; google_ad_channel ="8681602088"; google_color_border="FFF3DB"; google_color_bg="FFF3DB"; google_color_link="1B0431"; google_color_url="1B0431"; google_color_text="29303B"; //--/script script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js" /script /div

Global Investment News Roundup Wednesday, January 7th, 2009

Contrarian Profits — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 11:15:46 +0000

pAlcoa Cuts 13% of Workforce; Best Buy to Sell Used iPhones; Jobs’ Statement Earns Apple Upgrade; India Exports Slowing Dramatically; Europe Inflation at 2-Year Low; U.S. Still Innovation Leader; Belarus to Secure IMF Aid/p ul type="disc" listrongAlcoa Inc./strong (a href="http://finance.google.com/finance?q=aa"AA/a) said late yesterday (Tuesday) that it a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/alcoa-lay-off-13500-workers/story.aspx?guid=%7BF6DCE3C3%2D2CF8%2D46C9%2DBEF3%2D4B699EE9CA31%7D#38;siteid=bnbh"will cut 13% of its global workforce/a. The company will also sell four business units, cut output, freeze salaries and hiring efforts, strongemMarketWatch /em/strongreported. The measures will result in a fourth-quarter charge of $900 million to $950 million after tax, or $1.13 to $1.19 a share./li /ul ul type="disc" liElectronics retail strongBest Buy Co./strong (a href="http://finance.google.com/finance?q=bby"BBY/a) said it a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/ousiv/idUSTRE5050YL20090106"will sell used Apple Inc’s/a (a href="http://finance.google.com/finance?q=aapl"AAPL/a) iPhone 3G -returned 30 days of their purchase -at $149 for the 8-gigabyte version and $249 for the 16-gigabyte version, strongemReuters /em/strongreported.#8230;/li/ul

Global Investing Roundups Tuesday, January 6th, 2009

Contrarian Profits — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 11:57:30 +0000

pBorders Ousts CEO; Front Page Ads in New York Times; Steve Jobs Speaks, Apple Soars; U.K. Short Selling Ban Ending; Whitman’s Future; Oil Rises on MidEast Violence; Russia Cuts Gas Supplies to Europe/p ul type="disc" listrongBorders Group, Inc. /strong(a href="http://finance.google.com/finance?q=NYSE%3ABGP"BGP/a) a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssConsumerGoodsAndRetailNews/idUSN0552044220090105"ousted its Chief Executive George Jones/a and replaced him with outsider Ron Marshall, a strongWildridge Capital Management/strong executive whose primary experience is turning around ailing companies, strongemReuters /em/strongreported. George had been Borders’ CEO for the past three years./li /ul ul type="disc" listrongThe New York Times Co. /strong(a href="http://finance.google.com/finance?q=NYSE%3ANYT"NYT/a) a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssTechMediaTelecomNews/idUSN0536626720090105"opened its front page to advertisers/a, a controversial move within journalism circles but also one that follows rivals the strongemWall Street Journal/em/strong and strongemUSA Today/em/strong. The ad space is two-and-half inches high and runs across the bottom of the page, strongemReuters /em/strongreported./li /ul ul type="disc" listrongApple Inc./strong (a href="http://finance.google.com/finance?q=NASDAQ%3AAAPL"AAPL/a) investors#8230;/li/ul

Debt Prices Fall as Germany, U.S. Eye Large Tax Cuts

Contrarian Profits — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 19:30:41 +0000

pDebt prices plummet, dollar gains#8230; U.S. stocks fall on profit-taking but rise in Europe#8230; Dollar at 3-week high vs euro on hopes for stimulus plan#8230; Oil gains as Gaza fighting raises Mideast supply worries./p pNews about a planned U.S. stimulus package helped pull investors into the dollar on Monday but U.S. Treasury prices slumped on fears a price bubble is about to pop in the face of a massive wave of fresh debt. /p p European equities advanced for the fifth session in a row, spurred by gains in shares of oil companies on the back of rising crude prices. U.S. stocks were mostly lower as investors took profits on the rally that was racked up in thin trading last week. /p p Oil prices#8230;/p

Apple Stock Up On Steve Jobs’ Health

Daniel Shepard — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 15:37:51 +0000

Monday January 5, 2009 Navivest Shares of Apple (AAPL) are up over 3% today, after the company’s CEO Steve Jobs issued a letter explaining his recent dramatic weight loss and that, at least for today, is reassuring investors. According to the letter, the reason for the weight loss throughout 2008 has been diagnosed as being the effects of [...]

Apple Will Live, But MacWorld… – Analyst Blog

Zacks Market Commentaries — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 08:34:37 +0000

MacWorld started as a trade show for the MacIntosh computer and remained a computer show for many years. It is not run by Apple Inc. (AAPL) -- it is just about Apple.

Apple has moved away from computers as its only business, and MacWorld has been declining in importance for many years.

Without Apple and Steve Jobs at MacWorld the trade show becomes even less significant and, in my opinion, it will waste away much as COMDEX did.

The real question is the health of Steve Jobs. Is the decision for him not to appear due to health reasons or because MacWorld is no longer significant? This is why AAPL stock declined on the news about MacWorld since the institutional money managers have been speculating about Job's health for some time.

Apple is more than Steve Jobs. It is correct that he has been a driving creative force for many years, but the company is not just one man.

Apple will live; MacWorld will die.

Read the full analyst report on AAPL

"AAPL" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
Zacks Investment Research

Dollar, Gov’t Bond Yields Sink to New Lows

Contrarian Profits — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 22:06:56 +0000

pDollar plunges to 13-1/2 year trough vs yen, below 88#8230; European, U.S. government debt touch fresh historic lows#8230; Morgan Stanley#8217;s, PNB Paribas#8217; losses lead stocks lower#8230; Oil slips; OPEC#8217;s record cut doesn#8217;t offset demand slide /p pThe dollar fell anew against the euro and yen while yields on U.S. and European government debt traded at or near historic lows on Wednesday, a day after the bold credit easing by the Federal Reserve to combat a worsening recession. /p p Oil prices dropped as much as $3 a barrel after dealers said a record supply cut by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries would not be enough to counter slumping energy demand brought on by the global economic downturn. /p p Equity markets on either side#8230;/p

A Mac World without Macworld – Zacks Tale of the Tape

Zacks Market Commentaries — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 13:13:24 +0000

Apple Inc. (AAPL) caused a stir yesterday when the company made two announcements concerning the upcoming Macworld Expo.

First, Apple said it has no plans to continue its participation at the conference following this year. Secondly, they said the keynote address will be delivered by Senior VP Philip Schiller, and not CEO Steve Jobs, whose annual appearance at the event has become legendary.

The move has ignited a firestorm of speculation about Jobs' future with Apple. Rumors about Jobs' health have run rampant since he appeared earlier this year looking less-than-healthy.

Whether or not Jobs' health is compromised, it seems plausible that the company is slowly rolling out a succession plan. In October, the company held a press event in Cupertino. During that presentation, Chief Operating Officer Tim Cook took the stage to introduce the new Apple notebook lines.
Cook was notably dressed in Jobs' trademark jeans and black shirt.

Putting Schiller center-stage may be the continuation of an attempt by the company to showcase the capable, competent staff who back up the charismatic Jobs. Apple's share price is uncomfortably tied to shareholders assumptions about Jobs, his health and his continuance in leadership. Soothing that panic reflex would be a commendable goal.

Speaking of volatility, Macworld itself has been a frequent catalyst for kneejerk reactions in Apple's share price. Each year, shareholders speculate about the products which will or will not be introduced at the conference, and whether or not they meet the expectations of the Apple faithful.

Message discipline is one of Apple's key strengths. They have been enormously successful at controlling the release of information to maximize the effect the media has on their success. They have increasingly hosted their own events on their own schedule to promote new product introductions and improvements. Discontinuing the one yearly event where they have the least control is entirely consistent with their communications strategy.

"AAPL" Free Stock Analysis: Buy? Sell? Hold?
Zacks Investment Research

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL): One Scare Too Many; Downgrading to Perform – Oppenheimer

Notable Calls — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 11:41:00 +0000

div style="text-align: justify;"Oppenheimer is out downgradingspan style="font-weight: bold;" Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)/span to Market Perform from Outperform span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;"saying they don't know why Steve Jobs has pulled out of his annual address at Macworld on January 6. Maybe he's not feeling well, or maybe he just has nothing new to say/spanspan style="font-weight: bold;"./span Whatever the reason, the unexpected announcement has underscored the greatest risk to Apple's long-term success—its dependence on Jobs' health and its apparent lack of a succession plan.br /br /Six months have passed since Jobs appeared at the Apple Developer Conference, looking drawn and unwell. It's past time for Apple to either disclose the state of his health or elaborate a viable plan for eventually transferring power. Until such time, they can no longer continue to recommend Apple as a long-term investment. Downgrading to Perform; and removing $145 PT.br /br /span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"Notablecalls:/span This call I think will generate some serious debate about Jobs' health. It sure takes a set of cojones to come out with a downgrade like this one.br /br /I see more downside to AAPL stock in the n-t./div

Taking an Alternative Perspective on Apple’s iPod Growth

Turley Muller — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:38:00 +0000

Apple Inc. (nasd:AAPL)- Analysts and the media have regularly cited slowing iPod sales as a major headwind for Apple shares. The iPod has been a major force in Apple’s total sales growth since it has been such a large percentage of Apple’s overall revenue. A common claim is that the iPod has been so successful, that everyone has one. A seemingly positive statement, some choose to take a negative point of view. For example, “ It’s not good for future growth because Apple is running out of new people to sell iPods to. Basically everyone who wants an iPod, already has one. While there will be sales resulting from the replacement cycle, it certainly won’t generate the magnitude of growth exhibited in the past. Therefore, iPod sales will significantly deteriorate.”

Apple has sold almost 175M iPods, and imagine if Apple created a new iPod that motivated iPod owners to upgrade, as well as appealing to non-iPod consumers. One can say Apple did, the iPhone. Apple reports iPhone sales in a separate segment apart from iPod, and it accounts for iPhone revenue using a subscription method that distorts actual performance due to spreading revenue over a 24 month period. If we were to combine iPhone sales, using traditional accounting, with the iPod segment, then we would get an entirely different picture. That wouldn’t change any of the overall numbers, but it would change the perception that iPod growth is rapidly slowing.

iPod Growth:
iPods were the primary growth engine for FY05 and FY06, responsible for roughly 58% of Apple’s total revenue growth for both years. In FY07, iPod segment generated only 14% of overall sales growth as iPod sales only increased 8% compared to 69% in FY06. Actually, revenue growth for the iPod segment ticked up in FY08, growing 10%.

Some cite market saturation as the major factor that will lead to a slowdown in iPod demand. Given iPod’s large revenue contribution along with having been the primary growth engine, critics predict a rough road ahead for Apple. As a percentage of total revenue, iPod accounted for 33% (FY05), 40% (FY06), 35% (FY07) and 28% (FY08). However, the iPod is becoming less significant for revenue growth due to the success of the Mac and iPhone segments. Yes, times have changed. It still seems that many have yet to catch on.

Apple’s revenue grew 35% in FY08 and 24% in FY07, yet the iPod was the slowest growing segment both years. In the last quarter (4Q08), iPod sales were only 21% of total revenue, and less than 15% not using iPhone subscription accounting. Thus, concerns about flagging iPod sales detrimentally impacting Apple’s overall business are stretched since the iPod is becoming less of a contributor. On a non-GAAP basis, the largest revenue contributing segments are the iPhone and Mac, which are the also the fastest growers.

Andy Zaky from Bullish Cross is a leading expert on Apple. Zaky recently wrote an excellent analysis regarding Apple’s dwindling reliance on iPod to fuel overall growth. He argues that too many are focusing on the slowing growth of the iPod segment and that they are misinformed as to the real impact any slowdown would have on Apple’s revenue growth.

Zaky writes: “Investors, the media and the analysts have consistently overstated Apple's dependence on the iPod for future revenue and earnings growth. In Q1 2008, the street, choosing to disregard iPhone and Mac revenue as being at the core of Apple's primary driver of future revenue growth, only focused on how iPod unit sales grew at a meager pace of 5% YoY.”

Zaky adds: “Even today, analysts and the media continue to question whether Apple could succeed in a recessionary environment due largely to the perceived uncertainty as to whether iPod sales can continue to grow in 2009. Several members of the media, including analysts and fund managers who don't cover technology stocks, continue to refer to Apple as the "iPod maker" or simply a "gadget maker" indicating that Apple's core business is derived from iPod sales.”

Viewing From an Alternative Perspective- iPod + iPhone Combined:
Arguably, The iPhone is just and extension of the iPod product line. Steve Jobs said “It’s the best iPod we’ve ever made.” The iPod segment has expanded with the Mini, Nano, Shuffle, and Classic model introductions. The iPhone is more/less a Touch with a cellular radio. Yet, one is an iPod and the other is an iPhone, at least judging by how Apple breaks out sales by product segment in its financial releases.

Until last quarter, whether Apple included iPhone revenue in the iPod segment, or reported it separately, there wouldn’t be much of a noticeable difference on the surface. This is because iPhone unit sales have been quite modest relative to iPod, and iPhone revenue is distorted from the subscription accounting that amortizes sales over 24 months. Management repeatedly said that iPhone wasn’t a significant portion of revenue. Very true using subscription accounting, 3% (Q1), 5% (Q2) 6% (Q3), 10% (Q4). Yet, the GAAP accounting treatment isn’t an accurate reflection of Apple’s business performance.

What if we took a different perspective and adjusted iPhone revenue to reflect the total amount earned in each period instead of the distorted subscription basis? And, what would it look like if iPod and iPhone were combined into a single reported segment?

Apple very easily could have decided to report iPhone sales as a part of the iPod segment, as well as using normal accounting. It’s all a matter of choice, the real figures stay the same. We probably wouldn’t still hear misguided comments such as “iPhone sales may be growing but it’s a very small revenue contributor. iPod is a huge revenue contributor and its sales are slowing.”

Without subscription accounting couple with combining iPhone sales with iPod, revenue dollar growth (Y/Y) for combined would be: 41% vs. 4% (4Q07), 47% vs. 17% (1Q08), 59% vs. 8% (2Q08), 26% vs, 7% (3Q08), and 184% vs. 3% (4Q08). With the iPhone’s $199 price tag and Apple’s plans to be in over 70 countries by the end of the year, we should expect to see growth figures like the 184% (4Q08) going forward. See the tables below.

Conclusion:
From a combined iPod & iPhone perspective, we wouldn’t hear these misplaced concerns of an iPod slowdown. Instead, it could be characterized as “Apple tackled the issue of slowing iPod growth by introducing a new iPod with cell phone functionality which has re-ignited sales growth in the iPod segment.” “Apple could sell another 175M iPods as users upgrade to the iPod cell phone.”

Disclosure: Long Apple

Taking an Alternative Perspective on Apple’s iPod Growth

Turley Muller — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:38:00 +0000

Disclosure: Long Apple

Taking an Alternative Perspective on Apple’s iPod Growth

Turley Muller — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:38:00 +0000

Disclosure: Long Apple

Taking an Alternative Perspective on Apple’s iPod Growth

Turley Muller — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:38:00 +0000

Disclosure: Long Apple

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QualityStocks — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 23:00:55 +0000

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Trader Mark — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 19:14:00 +0000

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