Bloomberg:
- Hennes & Mauritz AB, Europe’s largest clothing chain, said fiscal first-quarter profit rose 29%, more than analysts expected, as textile prices fell following the end of quotas on exports from countries such as China.
- Global economic expansion is at a “turning point” with growth slowing to 3.1% this year after the fastest increases in four years.
- Iraq’s National Assembly today named Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani as the country’s first democratically elected president in more than 50 years.
- Fed Chairman Greenspan told Congress he supports a new regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac if it has the power to rein in the growth of the two mortgage lenders.
- The yen fell against the dollar, approaching a five-month low, on speculation Japanese investors are shifting funds toward higher-yielding bonds in the US and Europe at the start of their financial year.
- Fannie Mae staff falsified signatures and doctored figures that may have been used to improve earnings, the mortgage lender’s regulator Armando Falcon said today in testimony before Congress.
- The SEC passed a rule guaranteeing that all investors get the best price on all electronic stock trades.
- US 10-year T-notes rose for the first day this week after comments from Fed Chairman Greenspan reduced speculation the central bank may view rising energy prices as contributing to faster inflation.
- Crude oil is nearly unchanged today after the Energy Department said US refiners boosted stockpiles for an eighth week.
The Wall Street Journal:
- Allied Domecq Plc’s Dunkin’ Donuts and the Baskin Robbins ice-cream chain would be put up for sale if Pernod Ricard SA’s joint bid with Fortune Brands for Allied is successful.
- Google and Yahoo! are finding that a growing number of clicks on search-linked pop-up ads are being made to inflate a company’s advertising bills.
- Holdings of US growth and value funds show signs of overlap, citing a report by Merrill Lynch.
- Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah is expected to meet President Bush later this month to talk about various issues, which will probably include high energy prices and the war against terrorism.
- MBIA is being investigated over an agreement with a re-insurer separate from the one that triggered its earnings restatement.
- Nucor and other steel producers are supplying growing amounts of products for residential home construction that usually relies on wood frames.
LA Times:
- California’s growing problem with obesity may cost the state $28.7 billion this year in health-care costs and lost productivity, which is 32% more than five years ago.
Philadelphia Inquirer:
- Comcast Corp. has added a cable channel for gay and lesbian viewers as part of its video-on-demand services.
USA Today:
- High-speed Internet connections may become even faster with the adoption of technology that could boost speeds by as much as 16-fold.
AP:
- Voters in Kansas voted by a margin of 70% to 29% to approve an amendment to their state constitution to ban gay marriage and civil unions, joining 17 US states with similar bans.
Interfax:
- OAO Mobile Telesystems, Eastern Europe’s largest mobile-phone company, will invest $50 million in its Uzbek unit this year to broaden coverage in the Central Asian state.
Tex Report:
-Exports of stainless steel from Japan declined 8.5% in February from a year earlier to 113,555 metric tons.
Edaily:
- Posco and BHP Billiton may spend as much as $10 billion to build a steel mill and iron ore mine in India.
Wednesday, April 06, 2005
Morning Buy/Sell Recommendations
Goldman Sachs:
- Reiterated Outperform on DNA and A.
- Reiterated Outperform on RIMM, sees 30% upside.
Smith Barney:
- Reiterated Buy on RIMM, target $96.
- Reiterated Buy on WY, target $75.
- Reiterated Buy on SEBL, target $11.
- Reiterated Buy on CSCO, target $30.
- Reiterated Buy on BJS, target $62.
- Reiterated Buy on MEE, target $54.
Morgan Stanley:
- Raised PFE to Overweight, target $32.
- Reinstated ATG Overweight, target $40.
- Said steel prices may fall in the second half, ending six straight quarters of increases, as demand growth slows in China, the US and Europe.
- Reiterated Overweight on CP, target $40.
- Reiterated Overweight on N, target $50.
Merrill Lynch:
- Raised ATYT, ALTR, BRCM, AMIS, MXIM to Buy.
Legg Mason:
- Raised IGT to Buy, target $35.
- Rated WMS Buy, target $33.
Prudential:
- Downgraded NCX to Underweight, target $35.
- Downgraded WLK to Underweight, target $24.
Bear Stearns:
- Rated CMOS Outperform, target $12.
- Rated MTSN Outperform, target $12.
Deutsche Bank:
- Raised IPG to Buy, target $16.
Piper Jaffray:
- Raised JCP to Outperform, target $63.
JP Morgan:
- Rated ATU Overweight.
UBS:
- Downgraded RSAS to Reduce, target $11.
- Raised BHI to Buy, target $55.
- Reiterated Buy on IBM, target $107.
- Reiterated Buy on RIMM, target $95.
- Reiterated Outperform on DNA and A.
- Reiterated Outperform on RIMM, sees 30% upside.
Smith Barney:
- Reiterated Buy on RIMM, target $96.
- Reiterated Buy on WY, target $75.
- Reiterated Buy on SEBL, target $11.
- Reiterated Buy on CSCO, target $30.
- Reiterated Buy on BJS, target $62.
- Reiterated Buy on MEE, target $54.
Morgan Stanley:
- Raised PFE to Overweight, target $32.
- Reinstated ATG Overweight, target $40.
- Said steel prices may fall in the second half, ending six straight quarters of increases, as demand growth slows in China, the US and Europe.
- Reiterated Overweight on CP, target $40.
- Reiterated Overweight on N, target $50.
Merrill Lynch:
- Raised ATYT, ALTR, BRCM, AMIS, MXIM to Buy.
Legg Mason:
- Raised IGT to Buy, target $35.
- Rated WMS Buy, target $33.
Prudential:
- Downgraded NCX to Underweight, target $35.
- Downgraded WLK to Underweight, target $24.
Bear Stearns:
- Rated CMOS Outperform, target $12.
- Rated MTSN Outperform, target $12.
Deutsche Bank:
- Raised IPG to Buy, target $16.
Piper Jaffray:
- Raised JCP to Outperform, target $63.
JP Morgan:
- Rated ATU Overweight.
UBS:
- Downgraded RSAS to Reduce, target $11.
- Raised BHI to Buy, target $55.
- Reiterated Buy on IBM, target $107.
- Reiterated Buy on RIMM, target $95.
Wednesday Watch
Late-Night Headlines
Bloomberg:
- Asian takeovers reached a record $119 billion in the first quarter, as Japan's Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group and UFJ Holdings announced plans to merge and form the world's biggest bank by assets.
- Crude oil is falling for a third day on speculation global stockpiles may rise because of increased output by the OPEC.
Washington Post:
- Wal-Mart Stores would be required to spend more on employee health care under legislation approved today my Maryland lawmakers.
AP:
- HealthSouth sued its former auditors, Ernst & Young LLP, for failing to detect a $2.7 billion accounting fraud.
Commercial Times:
- Taiwan central bank's US dollar assets rose after the bank bought the unit to stop the local currency's gain. US dollar assets now account for about 70% of the island's foreign-currency reserves, up from about 60% in the second half of last year.
Hong Kong Economic Journal:
- China's National Development and Reform Commission urged the central bank to raise interest rates to curb property prices.
Shanghai Daily:
- Prices for new apartments in Shanghai fell last month as government efforts to cool the property market start to take effect.
Economic Daily News:
- Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing and United Microelectronics are likely to see their March sales rise from February as demand for chips used in flat panel displays is climbing.
Late Buy/Sell Recommendations
Goldman Sachs:
- Reiterated Outperform on GOOG, IBM, DKS and YHOO.
Night Trading
Asian Indices are -.25% to +.50% on average.
S&P 500 indicated +.09%.
NASDAQ 100 indicated +.07%.
Morning Preview
US AM Market Call
NASDAQ 100 Pre-Market Indicator/Heat Map
Pre-market Commentary
Before the Bell CNBC Video(bottom right)
Asian Indices
European Indices
Top 20 Business Stories
In Play
Bond Ticker
Analyst Actions
Macro Calls
Rasmussen Consumer/Investor Daily Indices
CNBC Guest Schedule
Earnings of Note
Company/EPS Estimate
AA/.39
BBBY/.55
BLUD/.14
CBK/.11
MON/1.28
NDC/.12
SCHN/1.00
Splits
None of note
Economic Releases
None of note
Bloomberg:
- Asian takeovers reached a record $119 billion in the first quarter, as Japan's Mitsubishi Tokyo Financial Group and UFJ Holdings announced plans to merge and form the world's biggest bank by assets.
- Crude oil is falling for a third day on speculation global stockpiles may rise because of increased output by the OPEC.
Washington Post:
- Wal-Mart Stores would be required to spend more on employee health care under legislation approved today my Maryland lawmakers.
AP:
- HealthSouth sued its former auditors, Ernst & Young LLP, for failing to detect a $2.7 billion accounting fraud.
Commercial Times:
- Taiwan central bank's US dollar assets rose after the bank bought the unit to stop the local currency's gain. US dollar assets now account for about 70% of the island's foreign-currency reserves, up from about 60% in the second half of last year.
Hong Kong Economic Journal:
- China's National Development and Reform Commission urged the central bank to raise interest rates to curb property prices.
Shanghai Daily:
- Prices for new apartments in Shanghai fell last month as government efforts to cool the property market start to take effect.
Economic Daily News:
- Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing and United Microelectronics are likely to see their March sales rise from February as demand for chips used in flat panel displays is climbing.
Late Buy/Sell Recommendations
Goldman Sachs:
- Reiterated Outperform on GOOG, IBM, DKS and YHOO.
Night Trading
Asian Indices are -.25% to +.50% on average.
S&P 500 indicated +.09%.
NASDAQ 100 indicated +.07%.
Morning Preview
US AM Market Call
NASDAQ 100 Pre-Market Indicator/Heat Map
Pre-market Commentary
Before the Bell CNBC Video(bottom right)
Asian Indices
European Indices
Top 20 Business Stories
In Play
Bond Ticker
Analyst Actions
Macro Calls
Rasmussen Consumer/Investor Daily Indices
CNBC Guest Schedule
Earnings of Note
Company/EPS Estimate
AA/.39
BBBY/.55
BLUD/.14
CBK/.11
MON/1.28
NDC/.12
SCHN/1.00
Splits
None of note
Economic Releases
None of note
BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are mostly higher as another decline in energy prices is boosting exporting shares in the region. I expect US equities to open mixed as optimism over lower energy prices offsets worries over Tech sector earnings. The Portfolio is 50% net long heading into tomorrow.
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