Posted by Optiondragon
From Briefing.com
Periodicals Wrap-Up for Monday, August 25
WALL STREET JOURNAL: Top economists believe that the U.S. Treasury will have to put money into Fannie Mae (FNM) and Freddie Mac (FRE), but the economists are unsure if the new funds will be able to stabilize the economy. WALL STREET JOURNAL: Precision Drilling Trust (PDS), a Canadian oil and natural gas drilling company, agreed to acquire U.S. driller Grey Wolf (GW) for about $2B in cash and shares. The boards of both companies have reportedly approved the takeover. FINANCIAL TIMES: Although Wells Fargo (WFC) wants to acquire insurance distribution and wealth management companies, it is unlikely to try to buy a larger competitor, Wells’ CEO said. WALL STREET JOURNAL: Analysts and Alpharma (ALO) both agree that King Pharmaceutical’s (KG) $33 per share offer for Alpharma is too low. Analysts believe that Alpharma is worth $38-$42 per share, and at least one firm identified other potential bidders for the company. UK TIMES: Speaking from the banking conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, a Bank of England official warned that the world’s economic slowdown would “drag on for some considerable time.”
Asian Markets Wrap-Up for Monday, August 25
Stocks gained in most major Asian countries, spurred by the drop in oil prices on Friday. JAPAN: The Nikkei 225 advanced 1.68% to 12,878.66. Honda (HMC) climbed 4.4% and Toyota (TM) increased 2.9%. Mizuho Financial (MFG), a bank, surged 4.8%, brokerage Nomura Holdings (NMR) advanced 3%, and Mitsubishi UFJ (MTU), another bank, rallied 4.8%.Tire maker Sumitomo Rubber (SMTUF) rose 5.1%. CHINA: Shares dropped slightly as commodity producers fell. The CSI 300 Index inched down 0.18% to 2,400.55. Zijin Mining Group Co. (ZIJMF), a gold producer, sank 2.9% after gold prices fell. Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. (YZC) retreated 1.9% after the company said its profits would drop. Wuhan Iron & Steel Co. lost 1.7% and Baoshan Iron & Steel slipped 1% after Goldman Sachs downgraded both companies. Pudong Bank inched up 0.1% and Construction Bank added 0.4%. Oil refiner Sinopec (SHI) gained 1.4%. AROUND ASIA: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index surged 3.50%, while South Korea’s KRX 100 advanced 0.59% and Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite added 0.32%….Taiwanese export orders increased 5.5% year-over-year in July, the slowest growth rate in five years. The decelerated growth reflected weakness in U.S. and Chinese demand.
Investment bankers are nervous-WSJ
Many investment bankers are worried that they will lose their jobs, as they believe the industry’s situation has worsened over the summer. Commercial real estate and higher level residential mortgages have begun to deteriorate, and additional write-downs are expected. As a result, the credit crunch is expected to worsen, making it more difficult for the banks to generate revenue.
Futures are slightly lower, but traders expect volatile week
We are still looking at a flattish to slightly lower open for the U.S. markets as the week-long data wave begins this morning at 10:00 am ET with the release of existing-home sales for the month of July. Market specialists are looking for some wide swings in the averages this week, as a great deal of economic data is expected to be released and many traders are still on vacation. Trading volumes on the exchanges are expected to be light this week. The U.S. dollar has extended its momentum this morning, as it is gaining ground against the Euro. Conviction is growing among investors and traders that U.S. interest rates are likely to remain steady. DJIA futures are currently down 2 points to 11,615, Nasdaq futures are down 2 points to 1,927 and S&P 500 futures are down 3.20 points to 1,289. Oil is rising 53c to $115.12.
Tudor soar to the top of quant hedge funds-NY Post
Tudor Investment recently started trading quantitative strategies, but sources say the it has produced an 18.9% return since January 1, solidly beating market peers.
Internet viewing unprecedented for the Olympics-NY Times
Ratings for NBC’s (GE) coverage of the Olympics were record breaking but the Internet usage produced 2 clear winners, NBC and Yahoo’s (YHOO) Olympic section.
Russia prepared to break ties with NATO, President say-Dow Jones
American Int’l-AIG estimates and target lowered@FBCO
Credit Suisse lowered AIG estimates based on weakening credit markets and higher losses from its derivatives business. The firm sees higher risk profile due to uncertainty regarding ratings, size of potential capital raise, and the cost of de-risking its CDS business. Price target to $22 from $30. Shares are Neutral rated.
Amylin Pharma-AMLN coverage assumed with an Outperform@LEER
Leerink believes pancreatitis concern is overblown and expects shares to be trading in a valuation range of $46 to $48 in 2009.
Google-GOOG: Q3 will be first quarter in ten of FX losses@CSTI
Collins Stewart believes that after 10 quarters of positive FX impact, GOOG’s Q3 will mark the first quarter of FX losses on a Q/Q basis. The firm estimates this trend reversal will put $22M negative pressure on GOOG’s gross revenue, but admits this is not a “game changer.” Collins Stewart reiterates a Buy rating on the stock.
CME Group-CME target lowered to $390 from $435, maintain Hold@DBAB
Deutsche Bank believes dilution from the NYMEX acquisition will likely exacerbate weak volume trends, causing negative year-over-year EPS comparisons. However, the firm thinks the deal strengthens CME’s competitive positioning in the long term.
VMware-VMW: Believe client virtualization interest is increasing@SBSH
Citigroup believes VMW is seeing a noticeable increase in client virtualization interest, but does not believe desktop virtualization will be a meaningful revenue driver until 2H09 at the earliest. However, they believe desktop virtualization could be a source of long-term upside. Shares remain Hold rated.
LDK Solar-LDK sees FY09 revenue $2.8B-$3B vs. consensus of $2.43B
Sees FY09 wafer shipments of 1.45 GW to 1.55 GW.
Weekly additions to the Investors Business Daily-100
The following are additions to the Investors Business Daily-100 list for the week of August 22: Titan (TITN), Potash Corp Saskatchewan (POT), Arch Coal (ACI), Massey Energy Company (MEE), Hess Corp. (HES), ITT Educational (ESI), Arena Resources (ARD), Intuitive Surgical (ISRG), Agrium (AGU), Helmerich & Payne (HP), Mindray Medical (MR), Monsanto (MON), Altra Holding (AIMC ), Colfax Corp (CFX ), Natural Gas Services GRP (NGS), T Three Energy Services (TTES), Tesco Corp (TESO), Alcon Inc (ACL).
Weekly subtractions from the Investor’s Business Daily-100
The following are subtractions from the Investors Business Daily-100 list for the week of August 22 : Ezcorp (EZPW), Bruker (BRKR), Koppers Holdings (KOP), Plexus Corp. (PLXS), Jinpan International (JST), Activision Blizzard (ATVI), Nordson Corp. (NDSN), Gorman-Rupp (GRC), Stanley (SXE), Badger Meter (BMI), Sybase (SY), Synaptics (SYNA), Express Scripts (ESRX), Netflix (NFLX), Kenexa (KNXA), Interwoven (IWOV), Hub Group (HUBG), Itron(ITRI).
Fast Money Position recap- First Moves: Joe likes long NVDA, Guy prefers long MCD, Zack likes long RIO, Tatro likes ESLR.
Karabell Owns (AAPL), (FMCN), (GLD), (GOOG), (JPM), (NOK), (SLB), (RIO), (WFR), (CHL), (WFR): Tatro Owns (C), (GS): Quint Tatro Is The Principal Of Tatro Capital: Tatro Capital Owns (AAPL), (FXI), (QQQQ), (SPY), (T), (XLF), (JWN), (SSO), (ENER), (ESLR): Jon Najarian Owns (AAPL), (BKC), (BRK.B), (C): Jon Najarian Owns (RIMM) Calls; (SCHW) Calls, (AKAM) Calls: Terranova Owns (RIMM), (GS); Terranova is Long Sept. Mini S&P Futures, Terranova Owns (AIG) Puts; Terranova Is Long October Crude Oil Futures: Terranova Is Long Crude Oil Time Spread (Long Dec. 2008, Short Dec. 2012)
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