Frontier Communications (FTR) announced third quarter results with adjusted (excluding acquisition and integration costs) earnings per share of 18 cents, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 16 cents. Net income increased 11% year over year to $52.2 million, primarily due to gain on debt repurchases and higher operating income that increased 5% year over year to $172.5 million.   Revenues Remains under Pressure    The company reported revenues of $526.8 million, reflecting a 6% decrease over the year-ago quarter. The year-over-year decline is attributable to lower local, long-distance and switched access revenues coupled with decline in basic access lines. However, this was partially offset by increases in data and Internet service revenues.   Revenues for local services declined 8% year over year to $193.6 million while data and Internet services revenue increased 4% to $160 million. Switched access service revenues declined 8% year over year to $91.2 million

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – November 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: CIT Group Inc. (CIT), Dean Foods (DF), Frontier Communications (FTR), Verizon Communications (VZ) and Time Warner Cable (TWC).

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 Monday’s AnalystBlog:

CIT Group Files Chapter 11

CIT Group Inc. (CIT) has filed for Chapter 11 protection on Sunday. The company struggled for months to avoid collapse since the recession elicited billions of dollars in loan losses, and the financial crisis made it incapable of funding itself from

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Frontier Communications (FTR), a leading telecom operator in rural and suburban areas in the US, has reportedly received approvals from the Public Utilities Commissions of the states of California and Neveda and Public Service Commission of South Carolina for its impending acquisition of the rural fixed-line business of Verizon Communications (VZ). Moreover, the acquisition was recently approved by the shareholders of Frontier. The transaction is now subject to approval by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and other closing conditions and is expected to close during the second quarter of 2010. Verizon is divesting its rural fixed-line business (involving approximately 4.8 million access lines) in 14 states to Frontier under an agreement valued at approximately $8.6 billion. Under the deal terms, Verizon’s shareholders will receive approximately $5.25 billion in common stock of Frontier, equating to around 68% stake in the company. Moreover, Verizon will also ...

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DrStockPick.com Watch List!

My Picks for Friday October 30, 2009, are:

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FTR, Frontier Communications Corporation

FTR is a full-service communications provider and one of the largest local exchange telephone companies in the country serving rural areas and small and medium-sized towns and cities.

FTR offers telephone, television and Internet services, including wireless Internet data access, as well as bundled offerings, specialized bundles for small businesses and home offices, and data security solutions.

** FTR’s pending acquisition of Verizon Communications’ local wireline operations has received approval from the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada.

More about FTR at www.frontier.com

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MVTG, Mantra Venture Group Ltd., MVTG.OB

MVTG, through

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International Business Machines (IBM) has been charged by the Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA), a non-profit trade group organized by IBM’s rivals Microsoft (MSFT) and Oracle (ORCL). The allegation is directed at its Mainframe computer business, which is taking revenues and pressurizing profits of its competitors by withdrawing the license access to customers using non-IBM hardware operating systems. The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) is investigating the allegations against IBM for its conduct in the Mainframe business. Some smaller companies in the banking, government and health care sector develop technologies that would allow the software to run on cheaper hardware. Thus, to freeze competition, IBM has combined its mainframe operating systems with hardware and acquired startup Platform Solutions Inc. Moreover, it has been alleged that IBM has curbed license of its mainframe operating systems to users of Hercules, which is an open-source software that ...

Time Warner Cable Inc (TWC) has recently deployed its first next-generation DOCSIS 3.0 (also called Wideband) service in New York City. With this, TWC has established itself as a formidable player to counter the threat from high-speed FiOS network of Verizon Wireless (VZ). Earlier this month, the company has taken a decision to continue to roll-out switched digital video (SDV) in three major markets of Los Angeles, New York City (NYC) and Dallas. Deployment of SDV will free up bandwidth that can be used by TWC to offer 100 high-definition TV channels (HDTV), HD video-on-demand programs, and DOCSIS 3.0.   TWC will offer its residential tier Wideband service with 50 Mbps downstream and 5 Mbps upstream speed for $99.95. The company will also offer two commercial tier Wideband service. Together these services will cover 1.4 million subscribers in the NYC area.   The U.S. cable MSOs ...

Major cable MSOs (multi service operators) in the U.S. are aggressively deploying DCOSIS 3.0 technology. Intense competition among cable operators, satellite carriers and telecom service providers for broadband market share has forced the cable MSOs to opt for cost effective bandwidth enhancing technology for high-speed network. DOCSIS 3.0 (also called Wideband network) is a digital channel bonding technique that creates one larger and faster logical pipe to support throughput of at least 100 Mbit/second. With DOCSIS 3.0, cable operators are now able to offer one of the fastest Internet speeds available in the market. Comcast Corp. (CMCSA), the largest MSO in the U.S., has announced that it will upgrade around 40 million homes and businesses of the company’s existing networks with next-generation super-fast wideband technology by the end of 2009. Cablevision System Corp. (CVC) is also increasingly deploying DOCSIS 3.0. Time Warner Cable Inc. (...

After surging to almost one-year highs Wednesday, stocks took a step back as worries that the recent rally has gone too far, too fast resurfaced.  Investors pulled out profits even as latest round of upbeat economic data tried to convince them that a recovery is indeed underway.  Shares of companies that have led the recent advance failed to find favor amid a lackluster trading session.  Although the retreat was modest, it signaled a growing belief that the rally is overextended.

The Dow Jones industrial average declined 7.79 points, or 0.08%, to end the day at 9,783.92. The broad Standard & Poor's 500 Index retreated 3.27 points, or 0.31%, at 1,065.49 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index eased 6.40 points, or 0.30%, to end at 2,126.75.  On the New York Stock Exchange, declining shares beat those that advanced by eight to seven on volume of 1.52 billion shares.  At Wednesday's

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Rural telecom operator Frontier Communications Corp. (FTR) reportedly submitted two applications for federal funding to expand its broadband network in West Virginia. The company has asked for a total of $55 million through Broadband Initiatives Program and Broadband Technology Opportunities Program as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

The US government sanctioned ARRA as an economic stimulus package earlier this year, allocating almost $7.2 billion for broadband and related infrastructure development in rural and underprivileged markets across the country.

Frontier provides telecommunication services both as an incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC) and a competitive local exchange carrier (CLEC). The company filed one application for certain areas of West Virginia where it is authorized to operate as an ILEC and the other application for areas where it serves as a CLEC.

If sanctioned, Frontier will receive aggregate federal funding of $69 million for expanding broadband infrastructure

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Ciena Corporation (CIEN) announced better-than-expected results for the third quarter ended July 31 amid cautious consumer spending and weak demand. However, the more stable macro economic environment helped it deliver sequential growth, although year over year comparisons have been weak. Revenue of $164.8 million was down 34.9% year over year but increased 14.4% sequentially and beat the Zacks Consensus estimate of $156.0 million. Revenue for the quarter included $139.9 million in product revenue, which was down 37.4% from the year-ago period, and $24.9 million in services revenue, down 15.8% year over year. Ciena narrowed its non-GAAP (excluding one-time and non-cash items) net loss for the quarter to 5 cents from a net loss of 25 cents in the previous quarter. This was, however, down from the year-ago period of a net income of 37 cents, but beat the Zacks Consensus estimate of a 21 cent net ...