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On a muggy Thursday in the dog days of August 2011, the news broke that the American technology giant Hewlett-Packard was about to acquire British software maker Autonomy Corp. The offer price represented a 64 percent premium on the previous day�� close. At his office in mid-Manhattan, hedge fund manager Jim Chanos ��0 did not rejoice.
Only a few weeks earlier, his firm, Kynikos Associates, had put together a report on Autonomy, calling its chief operating officer unqualified, its customers unenthusiastic, its market share and growth numbers questionable, its financial disclosures ��ery poor,��and its margin profile ��uspiciously high.��/p>
��e thought this was one of the great shorts of all time,��says Chanos, who specializes in ferreting out corporate bad behavior and then short-selling the companies that indulge in it. (That is, he borrows shares in a company and sells them at the current price, in the expectation that he will be able to pay back the loan, or ��over the short,��with shares purchased at a much lower price when the truth comes out. See boxes, pages 41 and 43.) Autonomy was the firm�� largest short position in Europe. So Hewlett-Packard�� decision to more than double the value of the company was��nd here Chanos laughs���very painful.��/p>
5 Best Information Technology Stocks To Buy For 2015: PhotoMedex Inc.(PHMD)
PhotoMedex, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a skin health company in North America and internationally. It offers disease management and aesthetic solutions to dermatologists, professional aestheticians, and consumers. The company provides no!no! hair removal products; professional products, including capital equipment to physicians and skin care specialists; XTRAC laser products for the treatment of psoriasis and vitiligo; NEOVA formulations for premature skin aging due to UV-induced DNA damage; Omnilux Light-emitting diode (LED) systems to treat wrinkles, acne, minor muscle pain, and pigmented lesions; Lumi�e light therapy equipment, a non-invasive skin care solution for use in non-medical applications primarily salons and spas; and topical lotions to improve the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, skin tone, and blemishes. It also provides home-use devices under the no!no! brand for various indications, including hair removal, acne treatment, and ski n rejuvenation; and a professional product line for acne clearance, skin tightening, psoriasis care, and hair removal to physician clinics and spas. In addition, the company engages in the development, manufacture, and sale of surgical products, including proprietary free-beam and Contact Laser Systems for surgery. Further, it sells surgical disposables and accessories to hospitals and surgery centers; and repairs, maintains, and provides replacement parts for the company?s products. The company is headquartered in Montgomeryville, Pennsylvania.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Seth Jayson]
PhotoMedex (Nasdaq: PHMD ) reported earnings on May 8. Here are the numbers you need to know.
The 10-second takeaway
For the quarter ended March 31 (Q1), PhotoMedex met expectations on revenues and beat expectations on earnings per share.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: Sovereign Lithium Inc (SLCO)
Sovereign Lithium, Inc., formerly Great American Energy Inc., incorporated on February 22, 2007, is a mineral exploration and development company focused on supporting clean energy and clean technology industries. The Company is engaged in identifying, acquiring and developing mineral assets in the United States and surrounding countries. The Company�� portfolio of projects primarily targets lithium production with a sub-focus on rare earth elements (REE).
The Company�� project includes Big Smoky Valley lithium project and Bear Creek REE project. Big Smoky Valley lithium project is located in Esmeralda Country in Nevada. It represents 48 unpatented placer mining claims consisting of 7,680 acres (3,108 hectares) in and around Esmeralda Country, Nevada. Bear Creek REE project consists of 10 mining claims totaling 7,311 acres (2,959 hectares) in British Columbia, Canada.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By John Udovich]
Small cap OTC stocks Sovereign Lithium Inc (OTCMKTS: SLCO), Life Stem Genetics Inc (OTCMKTS: LIFS), Nevada Gold Corp (OTCMKTS: NVGC), Guar Global Ltd (OTCMKTS: GGBL) and Makism 3D Corp (OTCMKTS: MDDD) all saw their trading halted late last year by the SEC, but now all of these stocks are trading again. So what's going on and why the sudden crackdown? First, here is a quick look at what happened to the following five small cap stocks:
- [By James E. Brumley]
Well, as it turns out, the snake that bit L&L Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:LLEN) and Sovereign Lithium Inc. (OTCMKTS:SLCO) didn't end up biting Makism 3D Corp. (OTCMKTS:MDDD). And in retrospect, that's probably how it should be. Indeed, the fact that MDDD didn't even come close to suffering the same fate as SLCO or LLEN did may be the biggest assurance Makism 3D fans could hope for that the company is everything it says it is.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: General Communication Inc.(GNCMA)
General Communication, Inc. provides communication services to residential and business customers under the GCI and Alaska Wireless brand names in Alaska. The company?s Consumer segment provides local and long distance voice services; video services and products, including cable, high-definition television, digital video recorder, premium channel programming, video on demand, and pay-per-view programming services; Internet access; and fixed and mobile wireless voice and data services. This segment also sells handsets, personal computer wireless data cards, and accessories to residential customers; and offers bundled services and products, which comprise long-distance, cable television, cable modem Internet access, local access, and wireless services. Its Network Access segment provides interstate and intrastate-switched message telephone, multi-protocol label switching, frame relay, private line and dedicated Internet, and wireless services to GSM and CDMA wireless carrie rs. The company?s Commercial segment offers local and long distance communication, video, Internet, data network, managed, wireless, and bundled products and services. Its Managed Broadband segment offers Internet access, data network, and managed services to rural school districts, hospitals, and health clinics. The company?s Regulated Operations segment provides wireline communications services, including local access and long-distance, and Internet services and products, to residential, business, and governmental customers in areas of rural Alaska. General Communication, Inc. sells its services primarily through direct contact marketing, as well as through local media advertising, and its retail stores and Website. As of December 31, 2011, it had approximately 87,900 long-distance customers, 138,100 local access lines in service, 142,600 basic cable subscribers, 139,900 wireless subscribers, and 119,400 cable modem subscribers. The company was founded in 1979 and is bas ed in Anchorage, Alaska.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Dan Radovsky]
Alaska Communications and General Communications, (NASDAQ: GNCMA ) , or GCI, today signed the network sharing agreement they proposed last summer.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: Nestle SA (NSRGY)
Nestle SA is a company engaged in the nutrition, health and wellness sectors. It is the holding company of the Nestle Group, which comprises subsidiaries, associated companies and joint ventures throughout the world. The Company has such business units as Food and Beverage, Nestle Waters and Nestle Nutrition. Nestle is also active in the pharmaceutical sector. It divides its products into nine categories: Prepared dishes and cooking aids, Beverages, Confectionery, Ice cream, Water, PetCare, Milk products, Nutrition and Pharma. It has numerous subsidiaries engaged in various areas of activity, including Alcon Ophthalmika GmbH (Austria), Alcon Bulgaria EOOD (Bulgaria) and Galderma Laboratorium GmbH (Germany) for pharmaceuticals; Novartis Nutrition GmbH (Austria) and Hjem-IS A/S (Denmark) for food and beverages, and Galderma International SAS (France) and Galderma Laboratorium GmbH (Germany) for health and beauty activities. The Company is headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland. In July 2008, Novartis AG acquired a 25% stake in Alcon, Inc. from Nestle SA. In March 2010, the Company acquired Kraft Foods Inc' frozen pizza business.
In April 2008, L'Oreal and Nestle SA's joint venture, Galderma Pharma S.A., announced that its United States holding company, Galderma Laboratories, Inc., had acquired approximately 97% interest in CollaGenex Pharmaceuticals, Inc. During the year ended December 31, 2004, Nestle had 500 factories in 83 countries around the world. In 2004, 15 factories were acquired or opened and 29 closed or divested.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Blake Bos]
Starbucks (NASDAQ: SBUX ) currently holds 25% of the market share in packaged coffee, and is now making a very ambitious push further into this space with the release of its Verismo home coffee machines. But thus far, consumers' reactions to the machine have been very lukewarm. In this video, Motley Fool consumer goods analyst Blake Bos takes a look at Starbucks' machine compared to the Nespresso machine from Nestle (NASDAQOTH: NSRGY ) . He tells us what consumers like better about the Nespresso, but also why Starbucks won't be giving up the fight in this space anytime soon.
- [By Patricio Kehoe]
The first on the list is The Coca-Cola Company (KO), in which Citadel disclosed a $267 million stake with over 6.46 million shares. The Coca-Cola Company is the best global brand (in terms of brand equity) and the world麓s largest producer of soft drinks. The company sells products in more than 200 countries and owns or licenses more than 500 brands. It operates in a highly competitive industry with PepsiCo (PEP), Nestle (NSRGY), Groupe Danone (GPDNF), Kraft Foods (KRFT) and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group (DPS). Due to this, the firm's strategy is to use its brands and financial strength to achieve long-term growth. Additionally, it has created an extensive and well-organized global distribution system, which cannot be replicated by any of its competitors at least at a reasonable cost. It has a proven commitment to returning cash to investors, with a current dividend yield of 2.94% which is considered quite good to protect investors' purchasing power.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: Infoblox Inc (BLOX)
Infoblox Inc. (Infoblox), incorporated in May 2003, is an automated network controller. The Company�� network functions include Internet protocol (IP) address management, device configuration, compliance, network discovery, policy implementation, security and monitoring. The Company�� appliance-based solution combines real-time IP address management with the automation of key network control and network change and configuration management processes in purpose-built physical and virtual appliances. It is based on its software that is scalable and automates vital network functions, such as IP address management, device configuration, compliance, network discovery, policy implementation, security and monitoring. It offers two families of products: Trinzic Enterprise and Trinzic NetMRI. The Trinzic Enterprise product family enables real-time IP address management and automates key network control processes. The Trinzic NetMRI product family automates network change and configuration management processes.
Trinzic Enterprise Family
The Company derives its product revenue from its Trinzic Enterprise family of products. The components of its Trinzic Enterprise family, are Trinzic Enterprise, Trinzic IPAM for Microsoft, Trinzic Reporting and Trinzic IPAM Insight. Its Trinzic Enterprise product is an appliance that is designed to for continuous operation of network control. Trinzic Enterprise offers file delivery services via the File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP), and Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), time synchronization services via the Network Time Protocol (NTP) and Logging services via Syslog.
Trinzic IPAM for Microsoft provides a single, Web-based management interface for the centralized management of DNS, DHCP and multiple IP address pools running on Microsoft servers without any installation of software on Microsoft servers. It also provides Microsoft server management capabilities, such as centralized IP address management! , DNS changes and individualized, role-based access control. Trinzic Reporting provides long-term reporting, trending, analysis and tracking capabilities to report network utilization, isolate performance problems, implement DHCP and DNS capacity planning and identify security threats. Trinzic Reporting automates tasks associated with collecting, tabulating and correlating data and displays the information through its Web-based management interface. Trinzic IPAM Insight allows automated discovery of network device configuration information used in automation and compliance reporting.
Trinzic NetMRI Family
The Company�� Trinzic NetMRI products components of include Trinzic Network Automation, Trinzic Network Compliance, Trinzic Switch Port Manager and Trinzic PCI Insight. Its Trinzic NetMRI product automates network change and configuration management processes. Trinzic NetMRI enables information technology organizations to automate network changes, gain visibility into the impact of changes occurring on the network, manage network configurations, archive network configurations and meet a range of compliance requirements for both physical and virtual machines. Trinzic NetMRI discovers and monitors network infrastructure devices to determine critical network information. It uses this information to analyze network stability, to identify unauthorized devices and to take inventory of network devices for inventory management and/or troubleshooting. Trinzic Network Automation automates network configuration functions.
Trinzic Network Compliance automates the network compliance process, meeting corporate security requirements and providing the necessary information and control for internal and external compliance mandates. Trinzic Network Compliance also automatically alerts IT personnel in the event of a failure to meet compliance guidelines and permits the establishment and deployment of specific end customer requirements with click and drag simplicity, supporting ! complianc! e mandates such as those under the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC).
Trinzic Switch Port Manager enables its end customers to identify the number of switch ports, manage them precisely and locate the next available switch port. It helps provide views and management of switches with both current and historical IP addresses, MAC addresses, VLAN mappings and network device topology information. It also shows where devices have been connected, when they connected and where they are currently connected so that the network administrator can easily track authorized devices and find rogue devices that can pose security risks and create network instability. Trinzic PCI Insight is an integrated offering that bundles Trinzic Network Compliance, Trinzic IPAM Insight from its Trinzic Enterprise family of products and consulting services and enables its end customers to optimize their PCI DSS compliance.
The Company competes with BMC Software, Inc., EMC Corporation, Hewlett-Packard Company and International Business Machines Corporation, Alcatel-Lucent, BT Group plc and BlueCat Networks, Inc.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Ben Eisen and Saumya Vaishampayan]
Infoblox Inc. (BLOX) �skidded nearly 29%. The firm warned late Tuesday that its full-year 2013 revenue could come in below Wall Street expectations. The company projected sales of $270 million, compared to estimates of $276.9 million, according to FactSet.
- [By Rich Bieglmeier]
[Related -Infoblox Inc (BLOX): Getting off the Mat?]
Infoblox is an automated network controller. The Company's network functions include Internet protocol (IP) address management, device configuration, compliance, network discovery, policy implementation, security and monitoring.
- [By Victor Reklaitis]
Today�� movers & shakers: Hewlett Packard (HPQ) �surged 9% for its best day since May. Infoblox Inc. (BLOX) , a data-center technology company, slid 29% following its weaker-than-expected outlook late Tuesday. Apple Inc. (AAPL) �gained for the third day, closing at its highest since Jan. 2. Read more in the Movers & Shakers column.
- [By Mani]
[Related -Infoblox, Inc. (BLOX) Q4 Earnings Preview: What To Watch?]
In the past three quarters, the company's earnings have managed to edge past the Street's view by a wide margin in the range of 50 to 83.3 percent. Perhaps, another nice surprise is on its way.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: AMR Corp (AAMRQ)
AMR Corporation (AMR), incorporated in October 1982, operates in the airline industry. The Company�� principal subsidiary is American Airlines, Inc. (American). As of December 31, 2011, American provided scheduled jet service to approximately 160 destinations throughout North America, the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe and Asia. AMR Eagle Holding Corporation (AMR Eagle), a wholly owned subsidiary of AMR, owns two regional airlines, which do business as American Eagle - American Eagle Airlines, Inc. and Executive Airlines, Inc. (collectively, the American Eagle carriers). American also contracts with an independently owned regional airline, which does business as AmericanConnection (the AmericanConnection carrier). As of December 31, 2011, AMR Eagle operated approximately 1,500 daily departures, offering scheduled passenger service to over 175 destinations in North America, Mexico and the Caribbean.
American, AMR Eagle and the AmericanConnection airline served more than 250 cities in approximately 50 countries with, on average, 3,400 daily flights and the combined network fleet numbered approximately 900 aircraft as of December 31, 2011. American Airlines is also a founding member of the oneworld alliance, which includes British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, LAN Airlines, Iberia, Qantas, JAL, Malev Hungarian, Mexicana, Royal Jordanian and S7 Airlines. Together, oneworld members serve 750 destinations in approximately 150 countries, with about 8,500 daily departures. American is also one of the scheduled air freight carriers in the world, providing a range of freight and mail services to shippers throughout its system onboard American�� passenger fleet.
To improve access to each other�� markets, American has established marketing relationships with other airlines and rail companies. As of December 31, 2011, American had marketing relationships with Air Berlin, Air Pacific, Air Tahiti Nui, Alaska Airlines, British Airways, Cape Air, Cathay Pacific, China Eastern Airl! ines, Dragonair, Deutsche Bahn German Rail, EL AL, Etihad Airways, EVA Air, Finnair, GOL, Gulf Air, Hawaiian Airlines, Iberia, Japan Airlines (JAL), Jet Airways, JetStar Airways, LAN (includes LAN Airlines, LAN Argentina, LAN Ecuador and LAN Peru), Niki Airlines, Qantas Airways, Royal Jordanian, S7 Airlines, and Vietnam Airlines.
American has established the AAdvantage frequent flyer program (AAdvantage). AAdvantage members earn mileage credits by flying on American, American Eagle and the AmericanConnection carrier or by using services of other participants in the AAdvantage program. Mileage credits can be redeemed for free, discounted or upgraded travel on American, American Eagle or other participating airlines, or for other awards. American sells mileage credits and related services to other participants in the AAdvantage program. There are over 1,000 program participants, including a credit card issuer, hotels, car rental companies, and other products and services companies in the AAdvantage program. As of December 31, 2011, AAdvantage had approximately 69 million total members.
The Company competes with Alaska Airlines (Alaska), Delta Air Lines (Delta), Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways (JetBlue), Hawaiian Airlines, Southwest Airlines (Southwest) and AirTran Airways (Air Tran), Spirit Airlines, United Airlines (United) and Continental Airlines (Continental), US Airways and Virgin America Airlines.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Ben Levisohn]
What a wild ride it’s been for AMR Corp. (AAMRQ) shareholders. The parent of American Airlines lost 45% on the day when the DoJ said it would try to block its merger with US Airways (LCC). Then it started rising as support for the deal grew and analysts predicted as much as a 75% chance that the AMR Corp. and US Airways merger would go through.
Associated PressCall it 99%. Today the DoJ announced that it would approve the merger, although the combined airline would have to give up some gates at certain airports to promote competition.
Cowen’s Helane Becker and Conor Cunningham call it “the merger than never should been blocked.” They write:
Despite the divestitures, the companies maintained their synergy target of $1 Bn annually by 2015. We believe the company will achieve 25% to 35% of their target in 2014. We have always been skeptical of airline synergy targets but believe the company has significant earnings potential when a single operating certificate is achieved…
We view the settlement as positive for both the group and more importantly US Airways. The $1.0 billion synergy target is unchanged from prior guidance, despite slot divestitures at Washington National Airport and New York LaGuardia Airport, as well as gates at Boston Logan, Chicago O’Hare, Dallas Love Field, Los Angeles International and Miami
International. We would be a buyer of US Airways on any weakness as momentum traders will probably look to sell despite having a positive outlook on profitability going forward.S&P Capital IQ’s Jim Corridore reiterated his Strong Buy on US Airways:
The Department of Justice has issued a press release outlining terms of an agreed upon settlement that will allow the merger to go through. LCC will give up 104 slots at Reagan not reserved for smaller planes, 34 slots at LaGuardia, and gates and facilities at various other airports throughout the U.S. We think the
- [By Ben Levisohn]
Airlines have performed better this week, but how could they not following last week’s devastation after the Justice Department said it would try to block the merger between AMR Corp. (AAMRQ) and US Airways (LCC).
- [By Adam Levine-Weinberg]
This deal is part of a broader push by Delta to gain market share in New York, especially among corporate fliers.� Delta was previously a distant third in the New York-London market, behind AMR (NASDAQOTH: AAMRQ ) -- which has a joint venture with British Airways, providing frequent service to Heathrow -- and United Continental (NYSE: UAL ) , which flies from its Newark hub to Heathrow.� The Virgin Atlantic tie-up levels the playing field for Delta.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: AutoZone Inc.(AZO)
AutoZone, Inc. retails and distributes automotive replacement parts and accessories. The company?s stores offer various products for cars, sport utility vehicles, vans, and light trucks, including new and remanufactured automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, and non-automotive products. Its automotive hard parts product line includes A/C compressors, batteries and accessories, belts and hoses, carburetors, chassis, clutches, CV axles, engines, fuel pumps, fuses, ignition, lighting, mufflers, starters and alternators, water pumps, radiators, and thermostats. The company?s maintenance items include antifreeze and windshield washer fluid; brake drums, rotors, shoes, and pads; chemicals, including brake and power; steering fluid, oil, and fuel additives; oil and transmission fluids; oil, air, fuel, and transmission filters; oxygen sensors; paint and accessories; refrigerant and accessories; shock absorbers and struts; spark plugs and wires; and windshield wiper s. Its discretionary product line comprises air fresheners, cell phone accessories, drinks and snacks, floor mats and seat covers, mirrors, performance products, protectants and cleaners, sealants and adhesives, steering wheel covers, stereos and radios, tools, and wash and wax products. The company also offers commercial sales program that provides the delivery of parts and other products to local, regional, and national repair garages, dealers, service stations, and public sector accounts. In addition, it sells the ALLDATA brand automotive diagnostic and repair software through the Website, alldata.com; and automotive hard parts, maintenance items, accessories, and non-automotive products through the Website, autozone.com. As of May 7, 2011, the company operated 4,467 stores in the United States and Puerto Rico, and 261 stores in Mexico. AutoZone, Inc. was founded in 1979 and is based in Memphis, Tennessee.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Ben Levisohn]
Autozone�(AZO) has dropped 0.6% to $412 after the company reported a profit of $10.42 a share, beating analyst forecasts of $10.33.
- [By Brad Thomas]
Like many of the other Triple-Net REITs, Agree operates its investment platform with a variety of free-standing net lease tenants including many household names such as Walgreens (WAG), CVS (CVS), Staples, Chase Bank, AutoZone (AZO), Advance Auto Parts (AAP), Lowe's (LOW), McDonald's (MCD), Family Dollar (FDO), Harris Teeter, Dollar General (DG), and Wawa. As shown below, Agree has a majority (88%) of nationally-recognized tenants, including many investment grade retailers (62.6%).
- [By WWW.DAILYFINANCE.COM]
www.netflix.com From a fast-growing maker of luxury purses hoping to bag another blowout quarter to the country's leading streaming video service rolling out another exclusive series, here are some of the things that will help shape the week that lies ahead on Wall Street. Monday -- We Remember It's Memorial Day, and that means that all of the stateside exchanges are closed. Of course, there will be international stocks trading. But whether you honor the spirit of the Memorial Day holiday or just see it as the start of summer and a good excuse to fire up the barbecue, there's no reason to be glued to CNBC. Your investments can wait. Tuesday -- Checking Under the Hood The auto parts industry has proven to be an all-weather niche. When the economy's humming along, folks are spending money on their cars. When the economy's in a funk, drivers hold on to their cars longer, and that requires more money invested in maintaining their aging vehicles. It's against this backdrop that AutoZone (AZO) reports quarterly results on Tuesday morning. Analysts see sales climbing 6 percent higher with earnings per share soaring 16 percent. The 4,871-store chain has beaten Wall Street's profit targets every quarter over the past year, so let's not assume that analysts are being generous with their forecasts. Wednesday -- Kors of Action Michael Kors (KORS) continues to be the growth darling when it comes to luxury handbags. As the iconic Coach (COH) has struggled, Kors has taken market share with its fashionable purses, satchels and other accessories. It's not even close. Analysts see Coach's sales declining 6 percent for its fiscal year ending in June. Wall Street sees Kors growing its business by 47 percent for its fiscal year that ended in March. We'll know for sure how Kors wrapped up fiscal 2014 when it reports on Wednesday. Thursday -- Big Savings in Bulk Another retailing niche that has seemed to have the same all-weather appeal as auto parts is the warehouse club m
- [By James E. Brumley]
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ:ORLY), AutoZone, Inc. (NYSE:AZO), The Pep Boys - Manny, Moe & Jack (NYSE:PBY), and Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (NYSE:AAP) may all technically be in the same business, but they're hardly in the same proverbial boat. In fact, their performances - sales and earnings - are oddly disparate. Which among PBY, AZO, ORLY, and AAP are the winners and the losers, and perhaps more important, why? The question can at least partially be answered by a chart, and what the chart can't tell us about each, the narrative can.
O'Reilly Automotive
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