Stocks to Watch, Jan. 25: Microsoft, eBay and Netflix

January 31, 2007 at 9:51 pm · Filed under macroeconomy

SAN FRANCISCOAmong the companies whose shares are expected to see active trade in Thursday’s session are Microsoft Corp., eBay Inc. and Netflix Inc.

AT&T Inc. () is expected to report earnings per share for the fourth quarter, according to analysts polled by Thomson First Call.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. () is expected to post per-share income of 16 cents for the fourth quarter.

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Dow Jones & Co. () , the publisher of this report, is expected to report earnings per share of 43 cents for the fourth quarter.

Federated Investors Inc. () is expected to report fourth-quarter per-share income of 48 cents.

Ford Motor Co. () is expected to post a per-share loss of $1.01 for the fourth quarter.

Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. () is expected to report per-share income of $2.26 for the fourth quarter.

Microsoft () is expected to post second-quarter per-share income of 23 cents.

Northrop Grumman Corp. () is expected to report earnings per share of $1.26 for the fourth quarter.

St. Jude Medical Inc. () is expected to post fourth-quarter income of 39 cents per share.

Stanley Works () is expected to report earnings per share of 98 cents for the fourth quarter.

After Wednesday’s closing bell, eBay () reported fourth-quarter profit climbed 24 percent as sales rose more than expected, helped by a surge in its electronic-payments business and higher prices for the items eBay sells online.

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AllianceBernstein Holding LP () reported its profits jumped a record 45.1 percent in the fourth quarter, aided by $10.6 billion in net inflows and a 23.9 percent boost in assets under management.

American International Group Inc. () said it offered to buy the 38.1 percent of 21st Century Insurance Group that it doesn’t already own for roughly $690 million in cash.

AmeriCredit Corp. () said second-quarter net income rose, as revenue gained, to $95.4 million, or 74 cents a share, from $86.6 million, or 59 cents a share, during the same period in the prior year.

Charles Schwab Corp. () said it has approved the buyback of up to an additional $500 million of the company’s stock.

Corning Inc. () said James Houghton will step down as non-executive chairman of the board at the company’s annual shareholders meeting on April 26.

CPI Corp. () said total reported net sales for the eight-week period ended Jan. 7 fell 3 percent compared with the same period last year.

Cypress Semiconductor Corp. () said it has approved a new stock repurchase program of up to $300 million, effective immediately.

Ev3 Inc. () said the Food and Drug Administration has approved the Protege RX Carotid Stent. The stent, when used in conjunction with the ev3 embolic protection device, is indicated for the treatment of carotid artery disease in patients who are at high-risk for adverse events.

Fair Isaac Corp. () said first-quarter net income rose, as revenue gained and the income tax provision fell, to $31.2 million, or 52 cents a share, from $28.5 million, or 43 cents a share, during the same period in the prior year.

Hexcel Corp. () reported fourth-quarter net income of $19 million compared with $136.4 million during the same period a year ago. Revenue at the structural materials company rose 7.5 percent to $299.2 million from $278.2 million.

Kirby Corp. () reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $23.9 million, or 45 cents a share, compared with $19.8 million, 38 cents a share, in the same period last year, boosted by strong engine services sales.

LSI Logic Corp. () said its quarterly profit rose 55 percent, helped by lower costs and sales of its data storage chips.

MTS Systems Corp. () reported fiscal first-quarter net earnings of $10.1 million, or 54 cents a share, up 27 percent from $7.96 million, or 40 cents a share, in the year-ago period.

Shares of online DVD rental pioneer Netflix () rose 9 percent after the company announced fourth-quarter results that topped most analysts’ expectations, and exceeded its 2006 year-end subscriber goal.

NetLogic Microsystems Inc. () said fourth-quarter net income fell, as research and development expenses rose, to $1.53 million, or 7 cents a share, from $4.98 million, or 26 cents a share, during the same period in the prior year.

Polycom Inc. () reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $25.8 million, or 28 cents a share, compared with $9.27 million, or 10 cents a share, in the same period last year, boosted by higher sales.

Qualcomm Inc. () saw earnings rise nearly 5 percent in its first fiscal quarter, which the company credited to strong demand for wireless phones that use the company’s chipsets and software.

Rambus Inc. () reported fiscal fourth-quarter revenue of $51.7 million, up 24 percent from the same period a year ago.

Ryland Group Inc. () and Meritage Homes Corp. () said their quarterly profits fell from a year earlier as builders reel in their balance sheets to adjust to slower activity in the U.S. housing market.

Silicon Storage Technology Inc. () said fourth-quarter pre tax earnings were $4.7 million, compared with $10.2 million in the same period last year. The maker of memory products added net revenues were $117.8 million, down from $133.2 million last year.

Security and storage software maker Symantec Corp. () said third quarter profit and revenue rose ahead of analyst expectations, and it plans to begin trimming costs as a result of weak sales to businesses.

Talx Corp. () reported third-quarter net earnings of $8.73 million, or 27 cents a share, up 18 percent from $7.64 million, or 22 cents a share, during the year-ago period.

Teradyne Inc. () reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $10.9 million, or 6 cents a share, compared with $224.1 million, or $1.07 cents a share, in the same period last year, as revenue dropped and expenses rose.

Textron Inc. () said better sales and pricing for its Citation business jets gave a lift to fourth-quarter earnings, overriding charges at its Bell Helicopter unit. But its earnings outlook fell shy of expectations.

Trident Microsystems Inc. () reported second-quarter revenue of $70.2 million, compared with $40.6 million during the year-ago period. The chipmaker also said it has concluded that actual measurement dates of certain stock option grants issued in the past have differed from the recorded grant dates of such awards.

W. R. Grace & Co. () reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $5 million, or 7 cents per basic share. During the same period a year ago, the chemicals company posted a net loss of $600,000, or a penny per basic share.

Copyright (c) 2006 MarketWatch, Inc.

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January 31, 2007 at 9:51 pm · Filed under macroeconomy

Clothes giant Burberry will give away one of its factories to local people to make up for taking away their jobs, it has emerged.

Burberry wants to shut the plant in Treorchy, South Wales and transfer work to China.

The shutdown will mean the loss of 300 jobs.

The company said it planned to donate the site and its contents to the “Welsh community”.

It said: “Burberry is working with local and national groups to ensure the best possible use of the assets and to leave a lasting legacy for the benefit of the community and future generations in the region.”

Secretary of State for Wales Peter Hain welcomed the news, but it was criticised as a “PR stunt” by trade unions.

Burberry plans to shut the site in March, claiming it is no longer viable.

The firm said if the factory cannot be used, it has agreed it could be sold and the proceeds made available to the local community.

It has underwritten the value at 1 million.

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Oil slides below $US53

January 31, 2007 at 9:51 pm · Filed under macroeconomy

OIL eased below $US53 a barrel overnight as investors balanced mild weather in the US with the prospect exporter group OPEC may lower supply further to boost prices. Kuwait’s oil minister said overnight the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) may hold an emergency meeting after February 1 should prices fall further. Oil touched a 19-month low below $US52 last week.

“Even though it is only mid-January, at this point the markets have already written off the winter,'’ said Mike Wittner, analyst at investment bank Calyon.

US crude was down 18 cents at $US52.81 by the end of overnight trading in London.

Brent crude for February, which expires on Tuesday, was up 15 cents at $US53.10.

Floor trading at the New York Mercantile Exchange was closed for Martin Luther King Jr Day, but electronic markets remained open.

Oil’s slide this year as mild weather in the US curbed heating fuel demand is worrying for OPEC, which has been cutting supply since November to stem crude’s drop from a record high of $US78.40 hit in July.

The OPEC group pledged to lower supply by 1.2 million barrels per day from Nov 1. Meeting in Abuja, Nigeria, last month, OPEC agreed to trim output by a further 500,000 bpd from February 1.

Kuwait’s oil minister, Sheikh Ali al-Jarrah al-Sabah, said overnight OPEC may meet should prices fall further, though he preferred to wait until after the latest cutback took effect.

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