Month: September 2011

Before the opening bell, FedEx Corporation ( FDX ), the world's second-largest package delivery company, reported first quarter fiscal 2012 adjusted earnings of $1.46 per share. The quarter’s earnings fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny but increased 22% from $1.20 earned in the year-ago quarter. […]

Discover Financial Services ( DFS ) reported third-quarter earnings per share of $1.18, dramatically ahead of both the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 91 cents and 47 cents recorded in the year-ago quarter. Net income spiked substantially by over 148.7% year over year to $649 million from $261 million. Net income allocated to common shareholders also surged to $642 million from $258 million in the year-ago quarter […]

General Mills Inc ( GIS ) has reported adjusted earnings, excluding the effects of mark-to-market valuation of certain commodity positions, of 64 cents in the first quarter of fiscal 2012, flat compared to the prior-year quarter. The quarterly earnings however, surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2 cents. Management affirms its fiscal 2012 earnings to be in the range of $2.59 – $2.61 a share, excluding mark-to-market effects and integration costs for the Yoplait acquisition […]

We recently upgraded our recommendation on Ferrellgas Partners L.P. ( FGP ) to ‘Neutral’ seeing potential in the partnership’s strategy of growing-through-acquisitions and by expanding its presence. We believe the partnership's strategy of pushing for acquisitions supplements its organic growth efforts […]

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. ( BBBY ) reported better-than-expected second-quarter 2011 results on the heels of strong growth in sales and higher margins. Earnings rose approximately 33% to 93 cents per share from the year-ago quarter earnings of 70 cents a share, handily surpassing its earnings guidance range of 77 cents to 82 cents per share […]

Garmin Ltd. ( GRMN ) announced the acquisition of Garmin Distribution Africa (Pty) Ltd. […]

Drugstore chain operator Rite Aid Corp. ( RAD ) posted a net loss of $94.7 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2012 compared with a much wider loss of $199.3 million in the year-ago period. The quarterly loss per share of 11 cents not only improved from the prior-year loss of 23 cents but also outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate loss of 18 cents […]

A leading provider of open source solutions, Red Hat Inc . ( RHT ) reported strong second quarter 2012 results, which beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by three cents. Earnings per share (EPS) of 22 cents (including stock-based compensation expenses but excluding amortization) increased 69.2% from 13 cents per share reported in the year-earlier quarter […]

Hewlett-Packard Company ( HPQ ) has hit headlines again only a month after its chief Leo Apotheker announced major restructuring plans. Though the news is yet to be confirmed by the company, its shares shot up 6.7% to $23.98 and inched up 0.04% in after-market trade on market buzz. The upside in share price was based on reports of Apothekar‘s forced resignation, flashed on Bloomberg […]

The rating agency A.M.Best Co. has affirmed the financial strength ratings (FSR) and the issuer credit ratings (ICR) of the health insurer Humana Inc. ( HUM ) and conferred a debt rating of “bbb” to the company. […]

Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance fell by 9,000 last week to 423,000. This was worse than the expected level of 418,000. Last week’s numbers were revised upwards by 4,000, so one could see it as a decrease of 5,000 […]

Home Properties Inc. ( HME ), a multifamily real estate investment trust (REIT), has recently acquired ‘The Apartments at Cambridge Court’ – a 544-unit apartment community in White Marsh, Maryland, for $90.4 million. […]

Oil drilling equipment maker FMC Technologies Inc. ( FTI ) has won a contract worth $135 million from BG Norge, a subsidiary of BG Group. The deal entails manufacture and supply of subsea production equipment by FMC to the Knarr oil and gas field […]

Xerox Corp. ( XRX ) recently announced that one of its fully owned subsidiaries, ACS, has acquired an Italian-based, multi-lingual customer care firm XL World. The acquisition is expected to enhance the company’s European language services to support call center and business process operations. […]