Month: September 2011

Leading medical devices maker Smith & Nephew ( SNN ) strengthened its Arthroscopy franchise with the launch of Dyonics Platinum Series Shaver Blades.The Dyonics Incisor Plus Platinum 4.5 mm Blade and Dyonics Bonecutter Platinum 5.5 mm blades are the first in the 18-blade family to incorporate the company’s Platinum technology. The Dyonics Incisor Plus Platinum 4.5 mm Blade is designed to deal with knee procedures including anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction and complex meniscectomies. The Bonecutter Platinum blade is designed to be used for subacromial decompression procedures in the shoulder and ACL reconstruction in the knee due to its ultra-aggressive resection of thick tissue and hard bone. […]

Leading distributor of pharmaceuticals and medical supplies Cardinal Health ( CAH ) recently revealed the commercialization of its latest Protexis Latex Hydrogel surgical gloves, which are powder-free, sterile latex surgical gloves with a coating of hydrogel. The company has given the brand name, Protexis, to its range of surgical gloves. According to Cardinal Health, its latest Protexis brand reflects its commitment to bring to market expertise and protection that clinicians can depend upon. […]

Essex Property Trust, Inc ( ESS ) ., recently announced that it has acquired two apartment communities named as The Bernard and Redmond Hill located in Seattle and Redmond, Washington, respectively. Redmond Hill is a group of four communities and consists of 882 units. The company acquired these properties through its joint venture with Wesco I, LLC for $151.3. […]

Canadian drug maker Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. ( VRX ) recently announced that it has raised its purchase offer for another Canadian company Afexa Life Sciences Inc. which it offered to buy in August 2011 […]

We have retained our Neutral recommendation on natural gas producer Ultra Petroleum Corp. ( UPL ) . Houston, Texas-based Ultra Petroleum is an independent energy firm engaged in the acquisition, development, exploration and production of oil and gas properties […]

Bank of America Corporation ( BAC ) is yet again haunted by the legal complications. BofA is now facing a private lawsuit of $50 billion over its Merrill Lynch acquisition. Though the lawsuit is not new, a judge has allowed shareholders’ claims to proceed recently in August […]

(This is Part 2 of the "How We Got to 1.3% Growth" article. Part 1 can be found here .) Government Spending Government spending subtracted 0.16 ( 0.18 , 0.23) points to growth in the second quarter, down from a 1.23 (1.20) point drag in the first quarter, and a 0.58 (0.34) point drag in the fourth quarter. I should point out that in the GDP accounts, it is only government consumption and investment that is counted as part of G […]

Darden Restaurants Inc ( DRI ) posted first quarter 2012 earnings of 78 cents per share, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate, but down 3% from the year-ago quarter's earnings of 80 cents. Hurricane Irene impacted the company’s quarterly earnings by 2 cents. […]

We remain Neutral on Panera Bread Co. ( PNRA ) over the long term, based on second quarter 2011 earnings, the new menu offering and increased positive impact from My Panera loyalty card program. These were partially offset by high unemployment and faltering consumer confidence along with inflated commodity costs. […]

This is essentially the same post as I put up on July 29th when the first cut at the GDP numbers for the second quarter came out. I have put the new, revised figures in bold . The original numbers (first release) are shown in regular font and the second look is in italics in parenthesis immediately after the new numbers. […]

We are maintaining our Neutral recommendation on Bristol-Myers Squibb Company ( BMY ) with a target price of $33.00. Bristol-Myers is a major producer and distributor of pharmaceuticals and other healthcare related products. […]

Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. ( MMI ) has finally launched its next-generation (4G) Long-Term Evolution (LTE) technology enabled XOOM tablet. This product was launched in mid-February 2011 with Verizon Wireless, a joint venture between Verizon Communications Inc […]

The Integrated Weapon Systems Division of Alliant Techsystems Inc. ( ATK ) has received a contract for producing multiple variants of 20mm PGU-series ammunition. The contract awarded by the U.S. […]