Briefing.com: Hourly In Play (R) – 22:00 ET
Jul 08, 2010 (Briefing.com via COMTEX) -- Hourly In Play (R)
Updated: 08-Jul-10 22:00 ET
18:51
Futures are lower after hours with S&P 500 futures 1.51 points below fair value of 1066.91 and Nasdaq 100 futures 3.71 points below fair value of 1797.46
18:40
KFS Kingsway announces repurchase of outstanding indebtedness (1.78 +0.13)
Co announced that since the debt repurchases made in connection with the disposition of Jevco Insurance Co at the end of March 2010, it has repurchased an aggregate principal amount of C$33,932,000 of Unsecured 6% Debentures due July 11, 2012 issued by KFS 2007 General Partnership (the "2012 Debentures") and an aggregate principal amount of US$25,583,000 of 7.50% Senior Notes due 2014 (the "2014 Notes") issued by KFS, for a total purchase price of ~US$55.1 million. As a result of these acquisitions, the aggregate principal amount of 2012 Debentures and 2014 Notes that remains outstanding is C$12.5 mln and US$26.9 mln, respectively.
18:01
VMC Vulcan Materials: Azusa City Council approves new plan for Azusa rock project (43.89 +0.15)
Vulcan Materials Company, Western Division announced that the Azusa City Council has approved the co's Revised Conditional Use Permit, Reclamation Plan and Development Agreement for Azusa Rock. The new operating permit is the result of collaborative input from the City, community leaders and Vulcan Materials.
18:01
AEA Advance America announces decision to cease operations in Arizona (3.82 +0.17)
AEA announced its intention to cease operations in its 47 centers in Arizona. The decision to cease operations comes after the existing law permitting cash advances in Arizona expired on June 30, 2010 and the Company concluded that an economically viable alternative product or service does not currently exist. For the three months ended March 31, 2010, total revenues and center gross profit generated from the Co's operations in Arizona was ~$3.7 mln, and $1.5 mln respectively.
17:50
APD Air Products: Airgas Board of Directors to review revised unsolicited tender offer from Air Products (68.78 +1.04) -Update-
Co noted that Air Products & Chemicals (APD) has issued a press release announcing a revised tender offer to acquire all outstanding common shares of Airgas at a price of $63.50 per share in cash. Consistent with its fiduciary duties and as required by applicable law, the Airgas Board of Directors will review the revised tender offer to determine the course of action that it believes is in the best interests of the Company and its stockholders. Airgas stockholders are advised to take no action at this time pending the review of the revised offer by the Airgas Board of Directors.
17:48
KSU KCS suffers service disruptions in Northern Mexico due to Hurricane Alex (37.14 +0.87)
Kansas City Southern's (KSU) rail service in northern Mexico has been disrupted by damage resulting from Hurricane Alex, which made landfall on June 30. The hurricane, which has impacted service on KCS's primary Mexican rail subsidiary, Kansas City Southern de Mexico, S.A. de C.V. ("KCSM"), caused significant track damage around the Monterrey and Saltillo areas as well as on the lines to Laredo and Matamoros. There have also been multiple track related incidents due to the hurricane. KCSM has issued freight embargos at the U.S. - Mexico border and into Monterrey while the damage is repaired. KCS and KCSM currently expect traffic in some of the impacted areas to resume beginning today. Once the rail lines reopen, it could take up to two weeks to clear congestion and move trains currently parked as a result of the service disruption.
17:37
PNCL Pinnacle Airlines, Inc. Releases June Performance Data (5.92 -0.06) -Update-
Co reports June 2010 ASM of 532,462, up 0.9%, reports RPM of 399,444, down 7.3%, reports load factor of 75.0%, 6.7 points lower than June 2009.
17:35
PNCL Colgan Air releases June performance data (5.92 -0.06)
Co reports June 2010 ASM of 247,490, down 0.9%, reports RPM of 61,153, up 4.2%, reports load factor of 64.1%, 1.3 points higher than June 2009.
17:30
CX CEMEX reaches agreement to sell non-core aggregates and concrete block assets in Kentucky (9.55 -0.05)
Co announced that it has reached an agreement to sell seven aggregates quarries, three resale aggregate distribution centers, and one concrete block manufacturing facility in Kentucky to Bluegrass Materials Company, LLC for U.S.$90 million.
17:30
SHEN Shenandoah Telecommunications signs agreement with Sprint Nextel to offer prepaid wireless (17.88 +0.12)
Co announced that its wireless subsidiary, Shenandoah Personal Communications Company, a Sprint PCS Affiliate of Sprint Nextel, has signed an amendment to the current contract with Sprint Nextel to allow Shentel to sell Virgin Mobile and Boost prepaid wireless services.
17:22
CYBS CyberSource announces early termination of HSR waiting period (25.83 +0.36)
Co announced that the U.S. Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission granted early termination of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, as amended with respect to the planned acquisition of CyberSource by Visa (V), which was announced on April 21, 2010.
17:22
CPF Central Pacific Financial enters into written agreement with regulators (1.51 +0.04)
Central Pacific Financial (CPF), parent co of Central Pacific Bank (CPB), announced that on July 2, 2010, it entered into a Written Agreement (Agreement) with the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the Hawaii Division of Financial Institutions. The terms of this Agreement are substantially similar to and will replace a Memorandum of Understanding that was entered into by the same parties on April 1, 2009.
17:16
HAE Haemonetics settles German patent suit (56.90 +0.10)
Co announced settlement of its pending legal action against STRADIS-MED GmbH and its General Manager, Jochen Kirchner, for the infringement of two German utility models of Haemonetics (DE 200 10 825 U1 and DE 203 10 937 U1) related to Haemonetics' plasma technology. Effective immediately, STRADIS-MED and Mr. Kirchner committed not to market the infringing plasma bottle in Germany and Austria.
17:03
HCN Health Care REIT announces gross investments of $292.9 mln for Q2 2010 (42.85 +0.24)
Co announced that it completed $292.9 million of gross investments during the second quarter of 2010. During the quarter, the co had dispositions of $14.6 million, resulting in net new investments of $278.3 million. For the six months ended June 30, 2010, the co completed $877.6 million of gross investments, offset by $47.5 million of asset sales and loan payoffs, which generated $830.1 million of net new investments.
17:01
PFE Pfizer to present more than 40 abstracts on pre-clinical, clinical and outcomes research at Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Alzheimer's disease (14.82 +0.20)
Co will present new data on its investigational compounds targeting various aspects of Alzheimer's disease (AD), a complex degenerative brain disorder. New findings on the role of comorbidities, the burden of care and costs associated with AD, also will be discussed. These data, some in collaboration with our partners, will be presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease 2010 (ICAD 2010) in Honolulu, July 10-15.
17:01
NRF NorthStar Realty Finance announces acquisition of $1.1 bln CDO (2.81 +0.06)
Co announced that an affiliate of CapitalSource (CSE) (i) delegated to NorthStar collateral management and special servicing rights, and the associated fees, relating to CapitalSource's ~$1.1 bln collateralized debt obligation consisting primarily of first mortgage loans on commercial real estate (the "CDO") and (ii) sold to NorthStar the CDO's Class J notes (~$50 mln current balance), the CDO's Class K notes (~$60 mln current balance) and the CDO's equity. Total consideration paid in the transaction was $7 mln.
16:50
UAUA United Airlines reports June 2010 operational performance (20.51 +0.46)
Co reported its preliminary consolidated traffic results for June 2010. Total consolidated revenue passenger miles (RPMs) increased in June by 3.5% on an increase of 1.1% in available seat miles (ASMs) compared with the same period in 2009. This resulted in a reported June consolidated passenger load factor of 87.9%, an increase of 2.0 points compared to 2009. For June 2010, consolidated passenger revenue per available seat mile (PRASM) is estimated to have increased 30.5% to 31.5% year over year, 2.7 percentage points of which is due to accounting adjustments booked in the month. Consolidated PRASM is estimated to have increased 5.0% to 6.0% for June 2010 compared to June 2008, 2.2 percentage points of which is due to accounting adjustments booked in the month.
16:46
BRE BRE Properties announces resignation of Chief Operating Officer Edward Lange (36.93 -0.09)
16:40
APD Air Products confirms it increases all-cash offer for Airgas (ARG) to $63.50 Per Share (68.78 +1.04) -Update-
Co announced it has increased its fully financed offer to purchase all of the outstanding shares of Airgas, Inc. (NYSE: ARG) to $63.50 per share in cash, an increase of $3.50 per share over its initial offer of $60.00 per share and a premium of 46% over the closing price of Airgas' shares on February 4, 2010, the day before Air Products announced its proposal to acquire Airgas. At $63.50 per share, the acquisition is expected to be immediately accretive to Air Products' earnings per share on both a GAAP and cash basis, excluding one-time costs.
16:38
CPTS Conceptus fell 31.6% to $12.00 following lowered guidance (see 16:06ET post) (15.79 -0.19) -Update-
16:28
PTC PAR Technology CEO John Sammon announces intention to retire by end of year (4.94 -0.06)
16:27
RHHBY Roche Hldg announced that the FDA cleared its new LightCycler MRSA Advanced Test (35.60 +0.25)
16:27
PRXI Premier Exhibitions reports Q1 GAAP ($0.03) vs. ($0.20) in the prior year's quarter; revs 1.8% to $11.1 mln (1.20 +0.05)
16:19
ZEUS Olympic Steel completed a new $125 million five-year asset based credit facility on June 30, 2010 (23.83 +0.72)
16:17
LFL Lan Airlines says system passenger traffic for June increased 15.5% as capacity rose 15.4%. (19.97 +0.15)
Co announces that system passenger traffic for June increased 15.5% as capacity rose 15.4%. As a result, the Company's load factor increased 0.1 points to 72.0%. International passenger traffic accounted for approximately 71% of total passenger traffic.
16:17
NFP National Financial Partners closed its new senior secured credit facility and completed other previously announced capital structure initiatives (10.47 +0.27)
16:17
LNUX Geeknet elects Kenneth Langone Chairman of the Board of Directors (1.17 +0.01)
16:15
NANO Nanometrics reaffirms its positive business outlook for 2010 and 2011 (8.69 -2.17) -Update-
The co's CEO said, "I believe the current business environment is extremely healthy, and the positioning of our Co's products is the strongest in Nanometrics' history. Our business outlook is strong, both in the near term and in the longer term, and is continuing to improve. The technical capabilities and expected fan-out of business for our Atlas thin film/optical critical dimension platform with key customer accounts are tracking nicely and in fact are exceeding prior forecasts, leading us to reaffirm our strong business outlook for 2010 and 2011."
16:08
LWSN Lawson Software reports EPS in-line, revs in-line; guides Q1 EPS below consensus, revs below consensus; guides FY10 EPS above consensus, revs above consensus (7.62 +0.01)
Reports Q4 (May) earnings of $0.12 per share, in-line with the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.12; revenues rose 5.8% year/year to $197 mln vs the $198.7 mln consensus. Co issues downside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.08-$0.09 vs. $0.10 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q1 revs of $170-$174 mln vs. $181.91 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY10, sees EPS of $0.47-$0.51 vs. $0.41 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY10 revs of $755-$770 mln vs. $739.77 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.
16:08
BGFV Big 5 Sports issues Q2 EPS guidance below consensus; comps -0.5% (12.01 -0.13)
Co issues downside guidance for Q2 (Jun), sees EPS of $0.20-0.23 vs. $0.28 Thomson Reuters consensus on a -0.5% comp decline. "Our top-line results were slightly softer than we expected, which we attribute largely to the sluggish pace of the economic recovery across much of our geography as well as a lack of warm weather in many of our west coast markets. All three of our major merchandise categories -- footwear, hardgoods and apparel -- performed within a relatively tight range of one another. Although we comped positively in April and June and experienced encouraging sales trends over the recent Fourth of July holiday period, those sales were not enough to offset a challenging month of May that was impacted by lackluster sales of summer-related products."
16:06
SCSC ScanSource guides Q4 revs above consensus (25.09 )
Co guides Q4 revs to $573-583 mln vs $536.94 mln Thomson Reuters consensus.
16:06
NDN 99 Cents Only reports Q1 sales of $346.5 mln vs. $347.01 mln consensus; Q1 same store sales were +2.7% (15.22 +0.08)
Co reports Q1 sales of $346.5 mln vs. $347.01 mln consensus. The co's total retail sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2011 were $336.6 mln, compared to $321.8 mln for the same quarter last year. The company's overall same-store sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2011 increased 2.7%, with the number of same-store sales transactions increasing 2.3% and the average transaction size increasing to $9.60 from $9.56.
16:06
CPTS Conceptus lowers Q2 and FY10 guidance (15.79 -0.19)
Co lowers guidance for Q2 (Jun), sees GAAP EPS of ($0.02)-(0.01), down from $0.00-0.03, vs. $0.02 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees Q2 (Jun) revs of $36.8-36.9 mln, down from $39.5-41 mln, vs. $40.05 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co lowers guidance for FY10 (Dec), sees GAAP EPS of $0.21-0.26, down from $0.50-0.55, vs. $0.52 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY10 (Dec) revs of $143-145 mln, down from $160-165 mln, vs. $161.03 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co has lowered net sales guidance due to domestic macroeconomic factors that are causing a reduction in physician office visits, and, to a lesser extent, a stronger U.S. dollar and Company initiatives related to competitive trialing. Based on third-party research combined with Company projections, domestic physician office visits in general during 2010 are expected to remain depressed over prior-year levels by 5% to 10% due to continued high unemployment rates. In addition, the Company estimates that currency exchange will negatively impact 2010 net sales by ~$4.0 million and GAAP diluted EPS by approximately $0.09, compared with the Company's previous expectations.
16:04
ATX A.T. Cross Company has repurchased 1.25 mln shares of Class A common stock for ~$5 mln from Galal Doss, a member of the Board of Directors (4.51 +0.01) -Update-
16:02
ATX A.T. Cross Company announced that it has repurchased 1.25 million shares of the Company's Class A common stock for approximately $5 million (4.52 +0.02)
<p>Co announced that it has repurchased 1.25 million shares of the Company's Class A common stock for approximately $5 million. All of the shares were purchased from Mr. Galal Doss, a member of the Company's Board of Directors. This is the second significant repurchase transaction announced since December 2009, when the Company acquired 1.5 million shares from Mr. Doss. Combined, these two transactions total 2.75 million shares or 18% of the shares outstanding at an average purchase price of $3.68 per share.
16:01
COSI Cosi reports Q2 revenues decreased 6.4% to $29.62 mln (no ests) (0.70 +0.02)
The increase over last year's second quarter was due primarily to the recognition of fees resulting from a franchisee termination during the second quarter of 2010 as well as the royalties from the thirteen restaurants acquired by a franchisee from the Company during the second quarter of 2010. Company-owned comparable restaurant sales increase for the 2010 second quarter was comprised of a 3.1% increase in traffic and a 0.2% increase in average check.
15:40
TAN Global & sector ETF movers- Solar Power names (TAN) now lead all sectors in late trade; Natural gas (UNG) remains under pressure -Technical-
The Actively Traded Leading Global & Sector ETFs:
solar power- TAN +2.25%, iShares Australia- EWA +2.25%, ag/grain complex- JJG +2.0%, biotechnology- IBB +1.50%, XBI +1.75%, clean energy- PBW +1.75%, crude/WTI oil- USO +1.75%, OIL +1.75%, ag/chem- MOO +1.75%, oil & gas/energy services- XOP +1.50%, XES +1.50%, IEO +1.50%, basic materials- XLB +1.25%, IYM +1.50%, oil HLDRS- OIH +1.50%, SPDRS cons. stpls.- XLP +1.25%, RBOB gas- UGA +1.25%
The Actively Traded Lagging Global & Sector ETFs:
natural gas- UNG -4.25%, VIX vol index- VXX -2.75%, VXZ -1.50%, gold miners & junior gold miners- GDX -1.50%, GDXJ -1.0%, iShares Israel- EIS -1.25%, Russia- RSX -1.0%, wind energy- FAN -0.75%, Yen currency shares- FXY -0.75%, Thailand- THD -0.75%, platinum- PGM -0.50%, PTM -0.50%, US bonds & fixed income- TLT -0.50%, TLH -0.25%, gold- GLD -0.50%
15:36
DIA Dow +90 sets a new high above the morning peak, S&P +6.9 and Nasdaq +9.9 have not yet confirmed -Technical-
15:22
SPY Stock indices back retesting midday range highs -- Dow +67, S&P +4, Nasdaq +2.9 -Update- -Technical-
15:14
SPY Stock indices fail to take out midday range highs after credit data but slip back relatively limited thus far -- Dow +39, S&P +0.8, Nasdaq -4 -Update- -Technical-
15:11
HRLY Herley Industries subsidiary, Micro Systems receives $4 mln development and production contract (15.08 -0.19)
Co announced that its Micro Systems, subsidiary, has received a development and production contract valued at over $4 mln from the US Navy for the development and production of a Datalink Transmitter/Receiver Unit.
15:09
APC Anadarko Petro pushes higher intraday as it elevates up into its mid June rebound high near $45.00-45.54 (45.34 +3.60) -Technical-
15:03
DII Decorator Industries Comments on Market Activity: "co knows of no reason for the unusual market activity" (1.43 +0.10)
Co responded to an inquiry from the NYSE Amex today regarding the unusual trading activity in its common stock on Wednesday, July 7. The Company stated that its normal policy is not to comment on unusual activity, but it knows of no reason for the unusual market activity.
14:59
VMED NASDAQ 100 (NDX) strength & weakness- Media Services (VMED) now leads all percentage gainers heading into the final hour of trading; Semis (NVDA, LRCX) still lag -Technical-
NDX 10 Best % Performers:
VMED, PCLN, QGEN, MYL, FWLT, COST, APOL, LIFE, BIIB, VRSN
NDX 10 Worst % Performers:
NVDA, ROST, LRCX, NTAP, ERTS, URBN, MICC, ADSK, RIMM, XRAY
NASDAQ TRIN +1.65
NASDAQ A/D +295
14:59
COMDX CBOT Agriculture and Ethanol and ICE Exchange Sugar Closing Prices
December corn closed 7 cents higher (or 1.8%) at $3.9625 per bushel, November soybeans closed higher by 13.5 cents at $9.46 per bushel, Sept wheat closed 18 cents higher at $5.485 per bushel, August ethanol closed $0.02 higher at $1.604, October world sugar futures closed 0.03 cents higher to 17.09 cents. Today's results are ahead of tomorrow USDA July supply/demand report, which will be released at 8:30am ET.
14:56
DD Dow 30 (INDU) strength & weakness- Chemical name (DD) continues to lead all percentage gainers with strength also seen in Staple names (KO, PG) heading into the final hour of trading -Technical-
INDU 5 Best % Performers:
DD, MCD, PG, BA, KO
INDU 5 Worst % Performers:
JPM, CSCO, INTC, MSFT, TRV
NYSE TRIN +1.0
NYSE A/D +645
14:51
ACXM Acxiom: Wells Fargo (WFC) renewed its agreement with Acxiom to manage its customer and prospect database (14.41 -0.02)
14:37
COMDX NYMEX Energy Closing Prices
Crude oil settled higher by $1.37 to $75.44, natural gas shed 17 cents to finish at $4.395, RBOB gasoline gained 3.07 cents to close at $2.056 and heating oil ended up 3.16 cents to $2.0103 (all Aug contracts).
14:32
NYNY Empire Resorts announced it has received word the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe has decided to end its exclusive discussions with Empire Resorts to build a Class III casino (1.57 +0.14)
13:45
RURL Rural/Metro retains Blount County, Tennessee 911 ambulance contract in competitive bid (8.43 -0.15)
Co received unanimous approval from the Blount County Commission to retain its long-standing contract for exclusive 911 ambulance services in Blount County, Tennessee. The contract was awarded in a competitive bidding process. The five-year contract term began July 1, 2010 and is expected to generate net ambulance revenue of ~5.7 million annually.
13:41
CMTL Comtech Telecom receives $22.2 mln in Blue Force tracking order for mobile satellite data communications transceivers (28.75 +0.27)
Co announced that its Maryland-based subsidiary, Comtech Mobile Datacom Corporation, received a $22.2 mln order under its IDIQ contract with the U.S. Army Communications Electronics Command for mobile satellite data communications transceivers. Total orders received to date against this $384.0 mln contract increased to $262.7 mln.
13:37
COMDX COMEX Metals Closing Prices
Aug gold finished lower by $2.90 to $1196.00, Sept silver shed 12 cents to close at $17.78, and Sept copper gained 0.05 cents to end at $3.0155.
13:21
SPY Stock indices lifting slightly above midday range high in recent trade -- Dow +67, S&P +4.7, Nasdaq +4 -Update- -Technical-
13:01
KSP K-Sea Transportation executes an amendment letter to its revolving credit agreement to provide for waiver period (4.26 +0.12)
Co announced today that K-Sea Operating Partnership L.P., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Partnership, executed an amendment letter to its revolving credit agreement to evidence an agreement with the revolving credit lenders to negotiate changes in certain financial covenants through August 31, 2010. In the event the Partnership is not in compliance with its financial covenants, the Amendment Letter would grant a temporary waiver of compliance with the financial covenants through August 31, 2010.
12:54
CBOE CBOE Holdings confirms it won index options litigation against ISE (29.00 -0.23)
Co confirmed that the Circuit Court of Cook County has ruled in favor of CBOE, CME Group Index Services (CME), and The McGraw-Hill Companies (MHP), regarding the index options litigation brought against the International Securities Exchange, and The Options Clearing Corporation. The ruling prohibits ISE from listing or offering a market for trading in options on either the S&P 500 Index or the Dow Jones Industrial Average, as to which CBOE holds an exclusive license. In addition, the ruling forbids OCC, which clears trading for all U.S. options exchanges, from clearing SPX and DJX options unless they are traded pursuant to CBOE's exclusive license.
12:45
EWA Global & sector ETF movers- Australia (EWA) continues to lead all regional & global plays while Aerospace & defense (PPA) now leads all domestic sectors; Natural gas continues to lag here @ midday -Technical-
The Actively Traded Leading Global & Sector ETFs:
iShares Australia- EWA +1.50%, aerospace & defense- PPA +1.0%, iShares healthcare providers- IHF +1.0%, ag/grain complex- JJG +1.0%, iShares transports- IYT +0.75%, SPDRS cons. staples- XLP +0.75%, crude/WTI oil- USO +0.50%, OIL +0.50%, clean energy- PBW +0.50%, solar power- TAN +0.50%, Australian Dollar currency shares- FXA +0.50%
The Actively Traded Lagging Global & Sector ETFs:
natural gas- UNG -5.25%, Russia- RSX -2.25%, iShares Israel- EIS -1.50%, gold miners & junior gold miners- GDX -1.50%, GDXJ -1.25%, semis- SMH -1.25%, XSD -1.0%, IGW -1.25%, VIX vol index- VXX -1.50%, silver- SLV -1.0%, Thailand- THD -1.0%, China 25- FXI -1.0%, coal- KOL -1.0%
12:42
TECHX Tobacco Index a top performer, sets new session high -Update- -Technical-
The index has been a strong performer today as its broke above its June range top and 50 day averages. Helping to underpin today are: MO +2%, PM +1.8%, RAI +1.9%, BTI +1.3%, UVV +1.8%, LO +1.7%, AOI +1.3%, VGR +0.5%. The index has reached as high as 889 today with the next resistance at 895/896 (200 sma/extension target).
12:32
PCLN NASDAQ 100 (NDX) strength & weakness- Internet Retailers (PCLN, AMZN) lead the percentage gainers here @ midday; Semis (NVDA, AMAT, KLAC) show weakness -Technical-
NDX 10 Best % Performers:
PCLN, VRSN, VMED, AMZN, LIFE, QGEN, COST, FWLT, APOL, CTSH
NDX 10 Worst % Performers:
ROST, NVDA, LRCX, NTAP, ORLY, RIMM, KLAC, MICC, LLTC, AMAT
NASDAQ A/D +290
NASDAQ TRIN +1.40
12:31
ASEI American Science & Engineering receives order from an international agency for ZBV military trailers valued at $3.0 mln (74.78 +0.87)
12:29
DD Dow 30 (INDU) strength & weakness- Major Chemical name (DD) now leads all percentage gainers here @ midday -Technical-
INDU 5 Best % Performers:
DD, MCD, BA, AXP, MRK
INDU 5 Worst % Performers:
JPM, INTC, CSCO, AA, HD
NYSE A/D +825
NYSE TRIN +0.95
12:26
JBT JBT Corp announces award of poultry processing contracts valued at $5.5 million (14.83 -0.07)
11:54
European Markets Closing Prices
European markets are now closed; stock markets across Europe performed as follows: UK's FTSE: +1.6% Germany's DAX: +.68% France's CAC: +1.45% Spain's IBEX: +0.93% Portugal's PSI: +1.268%
11:47
SPY Nasdaq Comp slips into the red -3.2, Dow +30 and S&P +0.8 slips to minor new morning pullback lows -Update- -Technical-
Sector relative weakness on this move has been noted in Semi SMH, Housing XHB, Retail XRT, Consumer Discretionary XLY, Disk Drive, Networking, Casino, REITs IYR.
11:46
COMDX Crude oil drops to its lowest levels of the session, and back to areas seen in the overnight trade; now higher by 51 cents to $74.58
11:41
SKYW SkyWest reports June RPMs increased 4%, ASMs increased 3.2% and load factor was up 0.6 percentage points to 82.9% (11.87 -0.04)
11:41
SPY S&P +2.6 stalled after first 10 minutes near resistance but pressure minimal -Update- -Technical-
The index reached the upper end of the first level resistance zone (1068/1071) noted in The Technical Take in the first 10 minutes of trade but pressure has remained limited thus far as the index has held above today's gap bottom/unchanged (1060, session low 1061). Intraday need to see a push back above 1064 and 1066 or the door will be open to some additional short term downticks. Initial minor support below is at 1056/1055. The first minor resistance above the early high (1071) is near 1075.
11:38
POT Potash sets new session high of 90.12, pauses near its late June gap bottom at 90.25 (90.03 +3.21) -Technical-
The gap top comes into play at 91.61.
11:23
BLD Baldwin Technology received orders in June totaling approximately $1.7 million from Japanese newspaper publishers (1.19 -0.01)
11:01
BPI Bridgepoint Education announced that Ashford University has entered into an alliance agreement with Bright Horizons Family Solutions (15.71 +0.29)
Co announced that Ashford University has entered into an alliance agreement with Bright Horizons Family Solutions. With this agreement, Bright Horizons' 18,000 employees will receive significant cost savings through waived fees and a prior learning credit evaluation toward an Ashford University degree program.
11:01
11:00
BA Boeing reports second quarter deliveries; commercial airplanes' full year 2010 delivery guidance is unchanged at between 460-465 airplanes (64.65 +1.35)
Boeing reports second quarter deliveries of 114 airplanes, and 2010 year to date of 222 airplanes.
10:55
APD Air Products to build 1.5MW solar farm at its US headquarters (68.37 +0.63)
Co will build a 12-acre solar farm at its corporate headquarters in Allentown, Pa., capable of generating 1.5 MW of electricity. The 1.5MW is enough to serve the energy needs of nearly half of Air Products' administration buildings. The project is expected to begin construction this fall and be onstream in the spring of 2011. By utilizing the 1.5MW of renewable power, Air Products reduces its dependence on purchased electricity thereby lowering its carbon dioxide (CO2) footprint by more than 1,000 tons per year.
10:53
XLF Financial Select Sector SPDR slips to minor new session low near the flat line (14.19 -0.01) -Technical-
10:44
GLD streetTRACKS Gold Shares slip to fresh opening lows as it dips down to challenge its 2-day/month low near $116.30 (116.36 -1.39) -Technical-
GDX, AEM, GG, GFI, RGLD, GOLD, AUY, ABX, NEM
10:42
ASEI American Science & Engineering receives $8.3 mln contract for multiple ZBVs for Latin American customs agency (74.44 +0.53)
10:40
EWA Global & sector ETF movers- Australia (EWA) leads all regional & global plays while Clean Energy (PBW) leads all domestic sectors through 1st hour trading; Naturla gas (UNG) sharply lower -Technical-
The Actively Traded Leading Global & Sector ETFs:
iShares Australia- EWA +2.50%, clean energy- PBW +1.75%, crude/WTI oil- USO +1.50%, OIL +1.75%, RBOB gas- UGA +1.50%, iShares transports- IYT +1.50%, solar power- TAN +1.50%, Australian Dollar currency shares- FXA +1.25%, iShares US broker/dealers- IAI +1.25%, SPDRS industrials- XLI +1.25%
The Actively Traded Lagging Global & Sector ETFs:
natural gas- UNG -3.50%, VIX vol index- VXX -2.0%, VXZ -1.0%, gold miners & junior gold miners- GDX -1.50%, GDXJ -0.75%, Russia- RSX -1.25%, iShares Israel- EIS -1.25%, Thailand- THD -1.0%, silver- SLV -1.0%, gold- GLD -1.0%, Yen currency shares- FXY -1.0%
10:30
COMDX Natural Gas Follow-Up
Working gas in storage was 2,762 Bcf as of Friday, July 2, 2010, according to EIA estimates. This represents a net increase of 78 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 23 Bcf less than last year at this time and 285 Bcf above the 5-year average of 2,477 Bcf. In the East Region, stocks were 64 Bcf above the 5-year average following net injections of 48 Bcf. Stocks in the Producing Region were 128 Bcf above the 5-year average of 834 Bcf after a net injection of 19 Bcf. Stocks in the West Region were 93 Bcf above the 5-year average after a net addition of 11 Bcf. At 2,762 Bcf, total working gas is within the 5-year historical range.
10:30
UNG Natural gas drops quickly to lows following inventory data; now off 9.9 cents to $4.466
10:28
PCLN NASDAQ 100 (NDX) strength & weakness- Online Retailers (AMZN, PCLN) lead all percentage gainers through today's 1st hour of trading -Technical-
NDX 10 Best % Performers:
PCLN, AMZN, CTSH, VMED, VRSN, YHOO, FWLT, CTXS, COST, STX
NDX 10 Worst % Performers:
ROST, NVDA, RIMM, MICC, LRCX, BBBY, TEVA, ORLY, LLTC, MXIM
NASDAQ A/D +1160
NASDAQ TRIN +0.85
10:26
GE Dow 30 (INDU) strength & weakness- Conglomerate name (GE) leads all percentage gainers through today's 1st hour of trading -Technical-
INDU 5 Best % Performers:
GE, BA, AXP, DD, CAT
INDU 5 Worst % Performers:
HD, TRV, INTC
NYSE A/D +1575
NYSE TRIN +0.75
10:23
FXE Euro Currency Futures set new two month high, test trendline -Technical-
(Click for chart).
10:12
INV Amer. Resid Inv.Tr. prices registered offering 1,481,481 shares of its common stock at $2.565 per share (2.70 -0.79)
Co prices registered offering 1,481,481 shares of its common stock at $2.565 per share along with Series A warrants to purchase up to 1,481,481 shares of common stock with an exercise price of $3.43 per share of common stock and Series B warrants to purchase up to 893,519 shares of common stock with an exercise price of $0.01 per share of common stock. The offering will raise gross proceeds to the Company of approximately $3.8 million before advisory fees and offering expenses.
10:11
MEE Massey Energy announced that it has acquired the assets and permits of the Marmet Dock river barge loading facility (28.98 -0.32)
Co announced that it has acquired the assets and permits of the Marmet Dock river barge loading facility from Kanawha River Terminals. Located at mile post 69 on the Kanawha River near Marmet. This active dock facility has ground storage capacity of 300,000 tons. The annual loading capacity of the facility, as currently configured, is in the range of 5 to 7 million tons.
10:09
UUP Dollar Index probes trendline support, edging slightly higher intraday -Technical-
(Click for chart).
10:00
AEP American Electric and Allegheny Energy (AYE) update testimony filed in West Virginia strongly supports the need for the Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline (34.53 +0.16)
The cos announced that updated testimony filed in West Virginia strongly supports the need for the Potomac-Appalachian Transmission Highline (PATH). The new data, filed as supplemental testimony in an application before the Public Service Commission of West Virginia, incorporates new studies by independent grid operator PJM Interconnection recommending the construction of PATH to resolve significant reliability issues on the region's electric transmission grid. The PATH companies also plan to incorporate the new information into the existing application in Maryland, as well as in a new application to be filed in Virginia in the third quarter.
09:54
CHNG China Natural Gas announces acquisition of compressed natural gas compressor station (7.70 +0.10)
Co announced that it completed the acquisition of a CNG compressor station in Hanchuan City, Hubei Province, China. The compressor station is centrally located in Makou Industrial Park, Hanchuan City, Hubei Province, which is 38 km from the center of Wuhan in the east, in a neighborhood with Hanyi Railway in the south, facing Yihuang Highway. Co stated "The Makou compressor station is fully operational and has a daily processing capacity of 80,000 - 100,000 cubic meters."
09:50
SMH Semiconductor Hldrs ETF an early laggard as its pulls back near the flat line (27.00 -0.02) -Technical-
NVDA -1.2%, LLTC -0.8%, XLNX -0.5%, LRCX -0.3%, INTC -0.2%.
09:48
HD Home Depot slip back slightly into the red after modestly firmer start (27.96 -0.05) -Technical-
The stock attempted to break above the high of its 8 month low bar from Tuesday at 28.13 off the open but thus far it has failed to hold.
09:41
SPY S&P +9 probes upper end of first levels resistance zone in the 1068/1071 area -- session high 1071 -Update- -Technical-
(S&P 1069.55)
09:38
CV Central Vermont Public: Young announces retirement plans; CV plans national search (20.26 0.00)
Co announced that president Bob Young will remain as chairman, president and chief executive officer until next May to allow for an orderly search and transition. Sayre said Russell Reynolds Associates, a leading executive search firm, will assist CV with an internal and national search for Young's successor. CV's ongoing succession planning should ensure a smooth process, Sayre said. CV announced Young's plans now so the company could begin the search.
09:38
SPY Stock indices extend in early trade amid broad based strength -- Dow 88, S&P +9.7, Nasdaq +19 -Technical-
Casino +1.8%, REITs IYR +1.7%, Housing XHB +1.7%, Disk Drive +1.5%, Transports IYT +1.5%, Industrial XLI +1.4%, Broker IAI +1.4%, Bank +1.4%, Crude Oil USO +1.3%, Retail XRT +1.3%, Insurance KIE +1.3%, Finance XLF +1.3%, Energy XLE +1.2%.
09:31
ORCL Oracle tests its 200 ema in opening trade at 23.21 -- session high 23.19 (23.11 +0.02) -Technical-
This also lines up with its June close high (23.20). Its 200 sma comes into play at 23.49.
09:31
QTWW Quantum Fuel announced that it has received an initial purchase order for supplying Q-Drive powertrain systems for the Fisker Karma production program (0.53 +0.06)
Co announced that it has received an initial purchase order for supplying Q-Drive powertrain systems for the Fisker Karma production program under the terms of its supply agreement. Under this purchase order, Quantum will supply the first production systems this fall to enable the start of volume production, which is expected to commence in February 2011, with a forecasted production volume of 15,000 vehicles per year.
09:30
VIA Viacom's MTV Networks acquires Social Express, social gaming development company (36.90 -0.08)
09:29
MIM MI Developments rejects dissident shareholders' action (12.46 )
Co announced that it has learned through the media of the filing of a Statement of Claim (commenced by a Notice of Action) against it and certain of its current and former directors and officers with the Ontario Superior Court of Justice by certain shareholders alleging, among other things, that directors of MID breached their duties in connection with certain transactions with Magna Entertainment Corp. MID has not been served with this Statement of Claim or Notice of Action.
09:21
On The Wires
Burger King (BKC) and Seattle's Best Coffee, part of Starbucks Corporation (SBUX) announced they have signed an agreement to begin offering Seattle's Best Coffee in BURGER KING restaurants across Canada this fall... Diodes Incorporated (DIOD) introduced a pair of low dropout linear regulators with industrial temperature ratings of -40oC to +85oC. Designed for applications such as set-top boxes, routers, and LCD monitors, the 300mA, 150mV dropout AP7335 and the 600mA, 300mV dropout AP7365 offer adjustable and fixed output voltage operations at an accuracy of 2% across the temperature range... Furmanite Corporation (FRM) announced that its subsidiary, Furmanite America, has successfully signed two Multi-Site Agreements for its services throughout North America.
09:20
AYI Acuity Brands anounces additional 2.0 mln share repurchase plan (36.88 )
09:19
TIV Tri Valley reports June Oxnard Oil Production; stockholders equity expected to be $4.5 million, up from the $915,942 reported on March 31, 2010 (0.83 )
Co announced that gross oil production during June from its Pleasant Valley tar sands project in Oxnard, California averaged 305 barrels of oil per day as compared to 333 and 186 barrels of oil per day in May and April, respectively. Company also reported its stockholders' equity as of June 30, 2010 is expected to be approximately $4.5 million, up from the $915,942 reported on March 31, 2010.
09:06
ERJ Embraer SA delivers 69 jets in Q2 2010 (21.29 )
On June 30, 2010, the firm order backlog totaled US$ 15.2 billion, which represented a 5.0% reduction from the US$ 16.0 billion of the previous quarter.
09:04
ACAP American Phys to be acquired by The Doctors Company for $41.50/share (31.76 )
Co announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement pursuant to which The Doctors Company will acquire APCapital for $41.50/share in cash, or an aggregate purchase price of ~$386 million. The $41.50 per share in cash purchase price represents a premium of approximately 31 percent over the $31.76 per share closing price of ACAP on July 7, 2010, the last trading day prior to today's announcement. (Stock is Halted)
09:03
RICK Rick's Cabaret reports June nightclub sales of $6.36 mln (7.72 )
Co had revenues of $6.36 million at its nightclubs in June. The June revenues brought total nightclub sales for the company's third quarter ending June 30 to $19.58 million. Eric Langan, President and CEO of the company, said: "Generally our revenues are holding up, although we are working on improving sales at several clubs that have been impacted by market-specific economic weakness." Companywide revenues were up 4.2 percent compared with the $6.1 million reported in 2009. Same club-same month revenues compared with 2009 were off 5.4 percent, primarily because of lower revenues at the Las Vegas Rick's Cabaret and at the Club Onyx locations in Philadelphia and Charlotte.
09:02
MMG Metalline Mining appoints Greg Hahn Interim Chief Executive Officer/President (0.63 )
Co announces the retirement of Merlin Bingham and the appointment of Greg Hahn as the Interim Chief Executive Officer and President. Mr. Bingham will continue to serve as a member of the Board of Directors. Mr. Hahn has served as a director of co since October 2007, and has over 30 years experience in the industry.
09:02
DFS Discover Financial Services announces International Alliance with Serbia's DinaCard (14.57 )
Co announces an agreement with DinaCard, the Serbian payment network, which will allow DinaCard cardholders to use the Discover, Diners Club International and PULSE networks for international purchases and cash access outside of Serbia by the end of 2010.
09:01
DITC Ditech announced that its Board of Directors elected Alan B. Howe to serve as Chairman of the Board (1.25 )
Co announced that its Board of Directors elected Alan B. Howe to serve as Chairman of the Board. As part of a planned transition process, Mr. Howe, who was already a member of the Ditech board, has assumed the role of Chairman effective today. He will replace Edwin Harper as Chairman, based upon Mr. Harper's decision to retire from the Ditech board on September 16, 2010.
09:01
MRK Merck details plans to advance integration of R&D, manufacturing and business operations worldwide; expects its total workforce to be reduced by ~15% (35.43 )
Co provides further detail on integration plans for its R&D, manufacturing and other business operations as part of a global restructuring program announced following the November 2009 merger of Merck and Schering-Plough. Co announcesplans to phase out operations at eight research sites and eight manufacturing sites, as well as to continue to consolidate office facilities worldwide, as part of the global merger restructuring program that began last December. Co continues to expect its total workforce to be reduced by approx 15% across all areas of the combined company worldwide as part of the initial phases of its merger restructuring program. The co said it will continue to hire new employees in strategic growth areas of the business as necessary. Merck said it remains committed to achieving its previously announced synergy target of $3.5 bln in ongoing annual savings in FY12. With the plans announced, Merck expects the initial phases of the merger restructuring program to result in savings of approx $2.7-3.1 bln in 2012 toward the $3.5 bln target.
08:58
On The Wires
MIND C.T.I. (MNDO) announced that the previously disclosed purported securities class action against MIND C.T.I., its Chairperson and CEO, a former CFO and a former director, has been dismissed... PhotoMedex (PHMD) announced that it has received from AMICO Group, its distributor in the Middle East, a multi-million dollar order to purchase XTRAC laser systems that will be installed in hospitals throughout the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Delivery is expected to be in the third and fourth quarters of this year.
08:47
BTN Ballantyne Strong announced that it has entered into a $20 mln, one-year Revolving Credit Agreement and Note with Wells Fargo Bank (7.59 )
08:47
LRAD LRAD expects to report fiscal Q3 2010 revenues of over $3.0 mln vs consensus of $7.03 mln (1.17 )
Co announced that it expects to report fiscal Q3 2010 revenues of over $3.0 million vs consensus of $7.03 mln and nine-month fiscal year revenues of over $12.0 mln for the period ended June 30, 2010. Due to orders received late in fiscal Q3 and orders expected this quarter, co anticipates a strong fiscal Q4 and reporting on a fiscal basis its fourth consecutive year of record LRAD revenues, its third consecutive year of record co revenues, and its first profitable year for the period ending September 30, 2010.
08:44
DEJ Dejour Enterprises reports June production (0.29 )
Gross project oil and gas production for the month of June was 29,967 barrels of oil equivalent (BOE), 95% of the production recorded in May. This represents a 315% improvement over the benchmark average gross monthly production of 9,500 BOE recorded during Q1-2010.
08:42
On The Wires
RegeneRx Biopharmaceuticals (RGN) announced it has received Notice of Acceptance from the Australian patent office for the use of Thymosin beta 4, its analogues, isoforms and other derivatives in the treatment of infections and inflammatory disorders including colitis, ileitis, gastrointestinal ulcers and gingivitis, among others. The patent expires in 2023... Boston Scientific Corporation (BSX) announced enrollment of the first patient in its MultiSENSE clinical trial... Suddenlink Communications and TiVo (TIVO) have entered into a strategic relationship for Suddenlink to distribute co-branded, TiVo Premiere DVRs as well as non-DVR set-top boxes... pSivida (PSDV) announced that its licensee, Alimera Sciences (ALIM), has submitted a Marketing Authorization Application to the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency in the United Kingdom for Iluvien.
08:39
SCOK SinoCoking provides update on mine consolidation process (12.97 )
Co provided further updates on the company's involvement in the process of coal mine consolidation in Henan Province, China. On July 6, 2010, the provincial government of Henan Province granted Henan Province Pingdingshan Hongli Coal & Coke consolidator status within Baofeng County. SinoCoking's management expects that if all 22 of the presently contemplated mining company acquisitions are completed, the Company's overall coal production capacity will reach an estimated 3.45 million tons per year, which would place it in the same regulatory category as six other large mining enterprises in Henan Province, all of which are state-owned.
08:34
SIMO Silicon Motion expected Q2 revenue will be stronger than previous outlook (4.68 +0.20)
Co announced that expected revenue in Q2 will be stronger than its previous outlook. Co expects revenue in the second quarter of 2010 to increase sequentially between 23% and 25%, up from prior guidance of 10-20% (new guidance calc to revs of ~$31.98-32.50 mln vs. $29.82 mln Thomson Reuters consensus). Co also expects Q2 gross margin excluding stock-based compensation to be in line with its previously communicated guidance of 46% to 48%.
08:33
MMR McMoRan Expl updates in-progress exploration activities in the shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico (11.47 )
Co updated its shallow water Gulf of Mexico exploration activities, including indications of potential hydrocarbon bearing zones at the Blueberry Hill deep gas sidetrack location and in-progress drilling at the Davy Jones and Blackbeard East ultra-deep prospects. The Blueberry Hill #9 STK1, located on Louisiana State Lease 340 in 10 feet of water, commenced drilling on April 26, 2010 and has been drilled to a true vertical depth of 23,500 feet. McMoRan owns a 42.9 percent working interest and a 29.7 percent net revenue interest in the Blueberry Hill well. Plains Exploration & Production (PXP) holds a 47.9 percent working interest. On April 7, 2010, McMoRan commenced drilling the Davy Jones offset appraisal well on South Marsh Island Block 234, two and a half miles southwest of the discovery well, which logged 200 net feet of pay in multiple Eocene/Paleocene sands below 27,300 feet in January 2010.
08:32
DUCK Duckwall-ALCO Stores reports June comparable sales of -6.6%, no consensus; sales YTD fell 4.1% to $195.7 million (14.48 )
08:31
ITI Iteris Holdings awarded $2.0 million contract by LA County South Bay Cities to prioritize and implement Measure R Highway Fund Projects (1.33 )
08:31
ROST Ross Stores reports Jun same store sales +5.0% vs +5.3% Briefing.com consensus; Raises Q2 EPS guidance (55.35 )
Co raises guidance for Q2 (Jul), sees EPS of $1.00-1.02, up from $0.95-0.99, vs. $1.00 Thomson Reuters consensus. The guidance is based on "quarter-to-date sales and gross margin performance, as well as our continued expectation for a 3% to 4% increase in July comparable store sales."
08:17
On The Wires
Inergy (NRGY) announced that its wholly owned, regulated subsidiary Central New York Oil And Gas Company, has executed the binding precedent agreements necessary for the filing of regulatory applications and construction of the previously announced MARC I Hub Line Project... PharmAthene (PIP) announced that the company has recently demonstrated that its lyophilized rPA vaccine candidate is structurally stable and potent at various temperatures up to and including 70 degrees centigrade.
08:14
SHLM A. Schulman beats by $0.07; beats on revenue (18.65 )
Reports 3Q (May) earnings of $0.48 per share, excludes items, $0.07 better than Thomson-Reuters consensus of $0.41; revenue increased 41.2% year/year to $420.3 mln vs $404.1 mln single-analyst estimate. Co estimates 4Q10 results will be roughly in line with 4Q09 results.
08:12
On The Wires
Microchip Technology Incorporated (MCHP) announced that it has granted an exclusive limited license to sell certain Serial NOR-Flash products from its Silicon Storage Technology subsidiary to Professional Computer Technology, headquartered in Taiwan... Infinity Pharmaceuticals (INFI) and Intellikine announced an agreement under which Infinity obtained global development and commercialization rights to Intellikine's portfolio of inhibitors of the delta and gamma isoforms of phosphoinositide-3-kinase... Isilon (ISLN) announced that NAVTEQ has deployed multiple tiers of Isilon scale-out storage to help support its comprehensive database of digital location content.
08:05
KTOS Kratos Defense and Security received new security system design, deployment and integration contract work valued at more than $5 mln (10.43 )
08:04
RMTI Rockwell Medical Tech successfully completes FDA meeting regarding SFP (5.36 )
Co announces that it has successfully completed an End of Phase II meeting with the FDA regarding its lead drug candidate Soluble Ferric Pyrophosphate, a novel continuous iron-replacement therapy designed to treat iron deficiency anemia in hemodialysis patients. During the meeting, Rockwell solicited input on the Company's planned Phase III clinical program for SFP. As a result of those conversations with the FDA, Rockwell has confirmed a change in hemoglobin is an approvable endpoint for the Phase III trial design. The Company will now use data from the prior Phase IIb study of SFP to finalize the Phase III protocol for FDA submission.
08:02
JASO JA Solar announces 70MW supply agreement with Solar-Fabrik AG (5.48 )
Co announced it has entered into supply agreements with Solar-Fabrik AG. Under the terms of the agreements, JA Solar is expected to supply Solar-Fabrik with approximately 70MW of photovoltaic products. Shipment has already started and will continue through the end of 2010. The supply agreements further strengthen the strong partnership between the two companies that began in 2008.
08:01
GEO Geo Group selected for contract award for 200-Bed McFarland Community Correctional Facility in California; expected to generate ~$4.75 mln in annualized revs (20.78 )
08:01
OPTR Optimer Pharma announces it has received a $500,000 milestone payment from Cempra Pharmaceuticals, pursuant to the terms of a licensing agreement between the companies (8.97 )
08:01
BKH Black Hills Corp receives approval from the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission to implement new electric service rates (29.21 )
Co announced that the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission issued a bench order approving the settlement stipulation agreement that was previously filed on May 14, 2010. The original rate request was filed on Sept. 30, 2009, to recover costs associated with the new generation facility, Wygen III, near Gillette, Wyo., and other generation, transmission and distribution investments and increased operating expenses. New rates will be implemented for electricity service on and after July 12, 2010, and will replace the interim rates effective since April 1, 2010 The new rates represent an approximate $22 mln increase to base rates, a 12.7% revenue increase. Co implemented an interim base rate increase of $24 mln, or about 20% revenue increase on April 1. Since the new rates are lower than the interim rates, customers will receive refunds for the difference between the two rates for electricity used from April 1, 2010, to July 12, 2010. A typical South Dakota residential customer using an average of 600 kilowatt-hours of power each month will see a refund of about $10. Commercial and industrial customers' refund amounts will vary based on their electric service rates and electricity use.
07:50
On The Wires
Shire (SHPGY) announces that its subsidiaries Shire Development and Shire Pharmaceutical Development have filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware against Cadila Healthcare Limited, doing business as Zydus Cadila and Zydus Pharmaceuticals, for the infringement of U.S. Patent No. 6,773,720... Microsoft (MSFT) has signed a patent cross-licensing agreement with DENSO, supplier of advanced automotive technology, to further the development of each co's current and future products. The agreement with DENSO builds on prior patent agreements Microsoft announced with makers of personal navigation devices.
07:46
CLU Cellu Tissue reports Q2 EPS of ($0.07) vs $0.09 Thomson Reuters consensus; revs +11% YoY to $132.1 mln vs $140.89 mln consensus; reaffirms FY11 EBITDA guidance (8.05 )
Co reaffirms FY11 EBITDA guidance of $77-85 mln vs the $80.4 mln consensus.
07:42
On The Wires
Community Health Systems (CYH) announced that a subsidiary has acquired substantially all of the assets of Marion Regional Healthcare System located in Marion, South Carolina... Athens Bancshares Corporation (AFCB) announced that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.05/share of common stock. This is the first cash dividend since the co completed its initial stock offering on January 6, 2010 in connection with the conversion of Athens Federal community Bank from mutual to stock ownership... Nova Measuring Instruments (NVMI) announced multiple installations of its Nova T500 stand-alone optical CD metrology tool which are expected to total seven different customers by the end of Q3 of 2010. Co also noted that 5 of these are new stand-alone metrology customers... Pfizer (PFE) announced a $100 mln investment into the expansion of its Singapore Nutrition Plant... Oilsands Quest (BQI) has extended the deadline for the sale of its oil shale assets located near Pasquia Hills in Saskatchewan to Canshale.
07:36
On The Wires
Aeterna Zentaris (AEZS) announced that a poster on its oral synthetic growth hormone secretagogue/ghrelin receptor agonist, AEZS-130, will be presented at the upcoming 7th International Congress of Neuroendocrinology... Tyler Technologies (TYL) has reached an agreement with Knox County, Indiana to provide real property appraisal services for the 2012 general reassessment. The services are valued at approximately $1 mln... Idera Pharmaceuticals (IDRA) announced the issuance of patents covering compositions and methods of using its synthetic immune modulatory oligonucleotides targeted to Toll-like receptors.
07:32
HELE Helen of Troy beats by $0.02, reports revs in-line (22.08 )
Reports Q1 (May) earnings of $0.59 per share, $0.02 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.57; revenues rose 11.3% year/year to $160.2 mln vs the $161.3 mln consensus. Gross margin +450 bps YoY to 45.2%.
07:32
AIR AAR Corp to expand Afghanistan airlift support for USTRANSCOM; contract has a duration of one-year with four one-year renewal options and is valued at $24 mln per year (16.06 )
Co announced that it has been selected by the U.S. Transportation Command to provide airlift support services in Afghanistan. The new Short Take Off and Landing contract has a duration of one-year with four one-year renewal options and is valued at $24 million per year.
07:31
STST Argon ST: The Boeing Company commences a cash tender offer to purchase all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Argon ST for $34.50/share (34.37 )
(BA)
07:17
ACL Alcon created Alcon Litigation Trust to defend or maintain litigation relating to any transaction between Alcon and Novartis (152.32 )
The Alcon Independent Director Committee announced today the creation and funding of the Alcon Litigation Trust established under New York law pursuant to a resolution of the Alcon board of directors. The current members of the IDC are the initial trustees of the Trust. The Trust, which has been funded with $50 million, is intended to provide the financial means to commence, defend or maintain litigation relating to any transaction between Alcon and a majority shareholder, including the transaction contemplated by the merger proposal announced by Novartis AG (NVS) on January 4, 2010.
07:03
ISCA Intl Speedway beats by $0.06, misses on revs; guides FY10 EPS below consensus, revs below consensus (25.01 )
Reports Q2 (May) earnings of $0.35 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.06 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.29; revenues fell 6.7% year/year to $142.2 mln vs the $144.7 mln consensus. Co issues downside guidance for FY10, sees EPS of $1.50-1.60, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $1.64 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY10 revs of $650.0-660.0 mln vs. $663.54 mln Thomson Reuters consensus. Co estimates FY10 EBITDA margin of 32.0-34.0% and operating margin of 21.0-24.0%.
07:00
SNBC Sun Bancorp announces $100 mln equity investment (3.61 )
Co announces the signing of definitive investment agreements with private equity funds affiliated with WL Ross & Co. LLC , the Bank's founding Brown Family shareholders, and others, to invest $100 million in the aggregate in shares of the Company's common stock and newly authorized preferred stock that is mandatorily convertible into common stock upon the receipt of shareholder approval, all as part of the Company's strategic growth plan. The shares to be purchased by WL Ross will represent 24.9% of the Company's outstanding common stock, pro forma for the closing and assuming the conversion of the convertible preferred stock. The investment was made at $4.00 per share.
06:38
S&P futures vs fair value: +0.60. Nasdaq futures vs fair value: -3.30.
06:38
Asian Markets
Nikkei...9535.74...+256.10...+2.80%. Hang Seng...20050.56...+193.50...+1.00%.
06:38
European Markets
FTSE...5070.44...+55.60...+1.10%. DAX...6010.32...+17.50...+0.30%.
06:19
On The Wires
Baker Hughes (BHI) announces that the international rig count for June 2010 was 1,099, up 9 from the 1,090 counted in May 2010, and up 132 from the 967 counted in June 2009. The international offshore rig count for June 2010 was 312, up 14 from the 298 counted in May 2010 and up 45 from the 267 counted in June 2009... LaBarge (LB) receives a $1.2 million contract from Raytheon Missile Systems (RTN) to provide printed circuit card assemblies for the Rolling Airframe Missile Guided Missile Weapon System.
06:13
THTI THT Heat Transfer Tech receives approval to list on NASDAQ; trading begins on July 8, 2010 under symbol "THTI" (4.60 )
06:12
GST Gastar Exploration provides operations update (3.73 )
Co announces the following operational updates. The Donelson #4 well has been completed in two lower Bossier zones. The B-6 zone was completed and flowed at an initial gross sales rate of 8.6 million cubic feet of natural gas per day. That zone was put behind a temporary plug and the B-5 zone was completed at an initial gross sales rate of 10.7 MMCFD. The B-5 zone will be produced until the reservoir pressures equalize and, at that time, the two zones will be co-mingled. Three additional zones in the Donelson#4 well remain to be completed at future dates. Gastar has a 67% before payout working interest (49.7% before payout net revenue interest) in the Donelson #4 well.
06:10
GBX Greenbrier Comp beats by $0.21, misses on revs (10.79 )
Reports Q3 (May) earnings of $0.19 per share, includes warrant amortization expense and amortization of convertible debt discount and excludes gain on extinguishment of debt, $0.21 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of ($0.02); revenues fell 13.5% year/year to $211.5 mln vs the $214 mln consensus. Based on current industry trends, Greenbrier expects business visibility for the balance of 2010 to remain limited. Management continues to anticipate that revenues will be lower in 2010 compared to 2009. EBITDA excluding special charges is expected to be modestly higher in 2010 compared to 2009, due in part to higher expected gross margins in Greenbrier's Manufacturing segment.
03:31
LDK LDK Solar signs module supply contract with ABB (5.38 )
Co signs a contract to supply solar modules to the Power Systems division of ABB SpA, a subsidiary of ABB Group (ABB). Under the terms of the agreement, LDK Solar will deliver 13 megawatts of solar modules to ABB in the third quarter of 2010. A wider cooperation agreement is under negotiation to supply ABB with larger volumes of solar modules in the remainder of 2010 and 2011.
02:02
CRXL Crucell N.V. reaches agreement with sanofi pasteur on programs in field of paediatric and respiratory vaccines (18.66 )
Co announces that Crucell and sanofi pasteur (SNY) reached an agreement on a series of transactions to restructure their partnership. Crucell will waive its right to terminate an existing license agreement between Crucell Switzerland and sanofi pasteur's subsidiary Shantha Biotechnics Ltd for the development of paediatric vaccines, based on Haemophilus influenzae b. This termination right was triggered by the acquisition of Shantha by sanofi pasteur in July 2009. At the same time, sanofi pasteur will return to Crucell the commercial rights that sanofi pasteur held under an exclusive license agreement for the development and commercialization of a cell-based influenza vaccine, based on Crucell's PER.C6 technology. Crucell will assume full responsibility for the FluCell program and will commence immediately with the development of a cell-based influenza vaccine.
01:49
HRB H&R Block appoints Alan Bennett to position of President and Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately (15.49 )
Co announces current CEO Russ Smyth has resigned in order to accept the position of CEO of a large private company headquartered in his hometown of Chicago. Bennett served during 2007-2008 as the company's interim CEO, and since 2008 he has served on its board of directors.
01:47
CPA Copa Holdings reports monthly traffic statistics for June 2010 (46.65 )
For the month of June 2010, Copa Holdings' system-wide passenger traffic increased 10.6%, while capacity increased 8.1%. System load factor for June 2010 was 73.0%, a 1.6% increase when compared to June 2009. Copa Airlines passenger traffic for June 2010 increased 10.6%, while capacity increased 9.0%. This resulted in a load factor of 73.2%, a 1.1% increase when compared to June 2009.
01:46
On The Wires
Time Warner (TWX) prices a $1 bln underwritten public offering of 3.15% senior notes due 2015 at a price equal to 99.881% of their face amount, a $1 bln underwritten public offering of 4.70% senior notes due 2021 at a price equal to 99.762% of their face amount and a $1 bln underwritten public offering of 6.10% debentures due 2040 at a price equal to 99.931% of their face amount... TransAtlantic Petroleum Ltd. (TAT) announces that its wholly-owned subsidiary, TransAtlantic Worldwide, Ltd., has entered into a Share Purchase Agreement with Zorlu Enerji Elektrik Uretim A.S. under which TransAtlantic Worldwide will acquire 100% of the voting securities of Amity Oil International Pty. Ltd. and Zorlu Petrogas Petrol Gaz ve Petrokimya Urunleri n aat Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S., each a wholly-owned subsidiary of Zorlu, for a purchase price of $96.5 mln. The execution of the SPA follows the execution of a Memorandum of Understanding previously announced on May 4, 2010... United Microelectronics (UMC) reports unaudited net sales for June 2010 increased 25.49% year/year to NT$10.34 bln.
01:42
CGV CGGVeritas provides its vessel utilization update for 2Q10; takes delivery of Oceanic Vega seismic vessel (19.65 )
Vessel utilization for 2Q10: The vessel availability rate was 92%. This compares to a 90% availability rate in 1Q10 and an 89% rate in 2Q09. The vessel production rate was 92%. This compares to a 92% production rate in 1Q10 and an 88% rate in 2Q09. CGGVeritas also announces that on July 1st, it took delivery of the Oceanic Vega, a new seismic vessel co-owned with Eidesvik.
18:49
DITC Ditech Networks amends preferred stock purchase rights agreement in order to help manage net operating loss (NOL) carryforward assets (1.25 +0.01)
Co announced that its board of directors has amended the terms of the Ditech Networks Rights Agreement, referred to as the "Rights Plan," under which Ditech Networks initially distributed rights to holders of its outstanding common stock in 2001. The Rights Plan has been amended in an effort to deter acquisitions of DITC common stock that might limit or reduce the availability to Ditech Networks of its net operating loss carryforwards for United States federal income tax purposes (NOLs), which DITC believes is in the best interests of all stockholders. Existing stockholders will not be required to divest any shares of the co's common stock acquired before the amendment became effective.
18:31
ARLP Alliance Resource Partners, L.P.: Kentucky mine safety report confirms Dotiki mine accident due to undetectable geologic conditions (47.15 +1.63)
Co announced that the Kentucky Office of Mine Safety and Licensing (OMSL) has issued its final report on the fatal roof fall accident that occurred April 28, 2010 at the Dotiki mine operated by ARLP's independent operating subsidiary Webster County Coal, LLC. The accident tragically claimed the lives of two Dotiki miners, Justin Travis and Michael Carter.
18:31
SRDX SurModics signs license agreement with Clinuvel Pharmaceuticals (16.25 +0.04)
Co announced that it has entered into a license agreement with Clinuvel Pharmaceuticals Limited of Melbourne, Australia. Under the agreement, the Company's SurModics Pharmaceuticals unit has licensed certain of its biodegradable polymer implant technology to Clinuvel for the treatment of sun-induced skin disorders. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
17:42
COBK Colonial Financial Services expects to sell 2,295,000 shares of common stock at $10.00 per share, (9.36 )
Co announced that Colonial Financial Services ("Colonial Financial Services"), which is the proposed stock holding company for Colonial Bank, FSB (the "Bank") in connection with the mutual-to-stock conversion of Colonial Bankshares, MHC, expects to sell 2,295,000 shares of common stock at $10.00 per share, for gross offering proceeds of $22.95 million, in its stock offering.
17:31
FRED Fred's comparable store sales for June Increase 1.7% vs. Briefing.com consensus of 3.0% (10.64 +0.43)
Fred's total sales for the month increased 2% to $178.3 million from $174.7 million in June 2009. Comparable store sales for the month rose 1.7% compared with an increase of 0.2% in the same period last year. Fred's total sales for the first five months of fiscal 2010 increased 3% to $791.5 million from $768.0 million for the same period last year. On a comparable store basis, year-to-date sales increased 2.3% on top of an increase of 1.7% in the same period last year.
17:23
Futures are mixed after hours with S&P 500 futures 2.20 points above fair value of 1056.90 and Nasdaq 100 futures 0.15 points below fair value of 1788.90
17:12
CISG CNinsure announces follow-on public offering of ~4.6 mln ADS (27.35 +0.57)
Co announced it intends to offer, subject to market and other conditions, approximately 4,600,000 American depositary shares ("ADSs"), each representing 20 ordinary shares of the Company. In addition, a selling shareholder will be offering 700,000 ADSs, subject to market and other conditions. CNinsure intends to grant the underwriters an option to purchase up to 795,000 additional ADSs.
17:11
BXC BlueLinx extends credit agreement (2.43 +0.11)
Co announced that it has entered into an amendment to its revolving credit agreement with a syndicate of banks led by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. The amended credit facility provides for borrowing capacity of up to $400 mln and matures in January 2014, replacing the Co's existing $500 mln credit facility, which was scheduled to mature in May 2011. In addition, the amended credit facility provides for an additional $100 mln uncommitted accordion credit facility, which would permit the Co to increase the maximum amount of borrowing capacity up to $500 mln.
17:07
MFN Minefinders reports La Bolsa project economics and reserves; throughput is projected at 8,500 tonnes of ore per day with two-stage crushing and gold and silver recovery achieved (8.72 +0.26)
Co The minable reserve, using prices of $825 per ounce of gold and $14 per ounce of silver contains 316,135 ounces of gold and 4.5 mln ounces of silver. Assuming average recoveries of 72% for gold and 7% for silver, the total production from La Bolsa is estimated at 227,600 ounces of gold and 315,100 ounces of silver over a six year mine life. The life of mine reserve strip ratio is estimated at 1.9 to 1 waste to ore and the operating strip ratio is estimated at 1.5 to 1 waste to ore, net of capitalized pre-stripping. La Bolsa Reserves: Proven and probable reserves have been estimated as of June 10, 2010 with 9,461,535 tonnews of gold proven and 6,169,633 probable, while silver reserves proven are 3,079,309 and 1,422,228 probable.
16:46
COT Cott Corp announces business combination with Cliffstar Corp (5.73 +0.16)
Co announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire privately-held Cliffstar Corp, a private label manufacturer of shelf stable juices, for cash consideration of $500 mln, payable at closing, and subject to adjustments for working capital and other items. In addition to the $500 million due at signing, Cliffstar is entitled to $14 mln of deferred consideration, which will be paid over a three-year period.
16:44
FRE Freddie Mac announces shares of co's common and preferred stock to be traded on OTC market under the symbol FMCC (20.11 -0.47)
16:32
FNM Fannie Mae announced today that its common stock will commence trading on the OTC Bulletin Board under the ticker symbol "FNMA" on Thursday, July 8, 2010 (0.25 -0.05)
16:31
BA Boeing announces agreement to acquire Narus (63.30 +1.94)
Co announced an agreement to acquire Narus, a provider of real-time network traffic and analytics software used to protect against cyber attacks and persistent threats aimed at large Internet Protocol networks. Narus is privately held and the terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
16:30
BBBB Blackboard to acquire Elluminate and Wimba for ~$116 mln (37.90 +1.00)
Co announced that it has entered into definitive agreements to acquire both Elluminate, Inc. and Wimba, Inc., two of the leading providers of synchronous learning and collaboration technology to the education markets, for a total of $116 mln in cash, excluding transaction costs and subject to certain adjustments.
16:24
CACH Cache refutes Chico's claims (4.99 -0.07)
Co announced that it refutes all of the claims asserted against the Co and certain of its employees on June 30, 2010 by Florida based Chico's FAS (CHS) and White House|Black Market. The complaint alleges, among other things, that two former employees of Chico's that are currently employed by Cache supplied the Co with confidential information and trade secrets. The Co believes that Chico's FAS filed the lawsuit in an effort to undermine Cache in the marketplace and to promote Chico's viewpoint within the industry resulting in false allegations reported in a key trade publication and in an analyst report.
16:15
TSCO Tractor Supply trading 2.5% higher after hours at $65.37 following its increase in FY10 guidance (see 16:03 post) (63.78 +2.51) -Update-
16:11
YGE Yingli Green Energy announces initial production of 400 MW capacity expansions (11.59 +0.64)
Co announced the initial production of its latest 400 MW capacity expansions. The new solar PV manufacturing lines include a 300 MW PANDA monocrystalline silicon based production capacity at the Company's Baoding headquarters, and a 100 MW multicrystalline silicon based production capacity in Haikou, Hainan Province.
16:07
SLH Solera appoints Renato Giger as Chief Financial Officer (39.96 +0.68)
Co announced the appointment of Renato Giger to the position of Chief Financial Officer. Giger's appointment follows Solera's decision to conclude Dudley Mendenhall's employment as Chief Financial Officer. Mendenhall's separation from Solera was not prompted by any regulatory issues nor is it related to Solera's financial statements or other reporting requirements. Solera notified Mendenhall on July 2, and he will continue to work through August 15 as part of a planned transition.
16:05
FBP First Bancorp announces agreement with the U.S. Treasury (0.42 +0.02)
Co announced that it has signed an agreement with the United States Department of the Treasury pursuant to which it will issue a new series of preferred stock in exchange for the preferred stock the U.S. Treasury currently holds. Upon satisfaction of certain closing conditions, the co will issue Series G, Fixed Rate Cumulative Mandatorily Convertible Preferred Stock to the U.S. Treasury in exchange for the $400 mln of its Series F, Fixed Rate Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock that the co issued to the U.S. Treasury in January 2009 pursuant to the TARP Capital Purchase Program, plus approximately $23.3 mln in accrued dividends. The terms of the new Series G Preferred Stock will be similar to those of the Series F Preferred Stock for which it will be exchanged, except that the Series G Preferred Stock will be convertible into common stock. The co expects to issue the shares of Series G Preferred Stock to the U.S. Treasury within the next 30 days.
16:04
WDFC WD-40 Company beats by $0.12, beats on revs; raises FY10 EPS, narrows FY10 revs guidance (33.90 +0.18)
Reports Q3 (May) earnings of $0.54 per share, $0.12 better than the Thomson Reuters consensus of $0.42; revenues rose 20.1% year/year to $82.6 mln vs the $77.7 mln consensus. Co issues guidance for FY10, sees EPS of $2.05-2.14 vs. $2.05 Thomson Reuters consensus; sees FY10 revs of $313-319 mln vs. $317.25 mln Thomson Reuters consensus; previous guidance called for EPS of $1.92-2.01 on rev of $308-321 mln.
16:03
WFC Wells Fargo to consolidate its Wells Fargo financial consumer finance division into its newly expanded Coast to Coast community banking network; will recognize a $0.02 per share restructuring charge in Q2 (26.66 +1.51)
Co announces the restructuring of its Wells Fargo Financial division, including closing its 638 Wells Fargo Financial stores across the U.S. and exiting the origination of non-prime portfolio mortgage loans. Restructuring-related, pre-tax charges of approximately $185 million will be incurred in total, with $137 million, or $0.02 per common share, recorded in second quarter 2010 for severance costs. The remaining charges are expected to be recognized in the second half of 2010, primarily in the third quarter. Once implemented, ongoing cost savings from Wells Fargo Financial's restructuring are expected to offset these charges in the first year and a half.
16:03
TSCO Tractor Supply raises FY10 EPS well above consensus, raises FY10 revs; sees Q2 EPS and revs above consensus (63.23 +1.96)
Co raises FY10 EPS to $4.00-4.10 vs. $3.72 consensus, up from $3.48-3.60 raises FY10 revs to $3.49-3.53 bln vs. $3.52 bln consensus, up from $3.44-3.50 bln. Co sees Q2 EPS of $2.03-2.05 vs. $1.741 consensus; sees Q2 revs of $1.07 bln vs. $1.05 bln consensus. Co said, "We had expected favorable moisture levels and were able to take advantage of this with strategic inventory allocation and effective markdown management. As a result, we achieved strong same-store sales, higher gross margin, expense leverage and better-than-expected earnings... Although we remain cautious about economic conditions, we expect that the momentum from our sales and margin initiatives will continue to benefit us."
16:02
WCG WellCare Group cleared by court to pursue former executives (23.12 +0.20)
Co announced that the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida today approved a partial settlement and granted a motion enabling the Company to pursue claims against its former top executives, Todd Farha, Paul Behrens and Thad Bereday. In addition, the Court dismissed all claims against current and former directors.
16:00
HAIN Hain Celestial reaches an agreement with Icahn Group (20.22 +0.36)
Co announces that Brett Icahn and David Schechter have been appointed to its Board of Directors pursuant to an agreement with investment funds managed by Carl Icahn. Under the terms of the agreement, the Icahn Group have agreed to support the Company's Board of Directors' slate of director nominees, which will include Messrs.
16:00
FTI FMC Tech: Gazprom awards FMC Technologies $190 mln subsea equipment contract
Co announced that it has signed an agreement with Gazprom Dobycha Shelf for the manufacture and supply of subsea production equipment to support the Kirinskoye field. The award has a value of approximately $190 million in revenue to FMC Technologies. Deliveries are scheduled to commence in the second quarter of 2011.
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