New York Stock Exchange Spokesperson Says There Have Been No Discussions with Facebook About Switching
by Insider Scoop - May 24th, 2012 11:48 am
Courtesy of Benzinga.
Rich Adamonis, NYSE (NYSE: NYX) spokesperson told Benzinga “In response to incorrect reports re: NYX and Facebook (NDAQ: FB): There have been no discussions with Facebook regarding switching their listing in light of the events of the last week, nor do we think a discussion along those lines would be appropriate at this time.”
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DiggCarriage Services Increases Stock Repurchase Program to $8M
by Insider Scoop - May 24th, 2012 10:58 am
Courtesy of Benzinga.
Carriage Services, Inc. (NYSE: CSV) announced that its Board of Directors at their quarterly meeting yesterday authorized an increase in the Company’s common stock repurchase program from $6 million to $8 million. Through May 23, 2012, the Company has repurchased 812,800 shares, or in excess of 4% of its outstanding common stock under this program.
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Rumored Apple and Sony Alliance Grows Stronger on New iPhone 5 Report
by Insider Scoop - May 24th, 2012 10:22 am
Courtesy of Benzinga.
Is Sony producing the next-gen touch panels for Apple’s next-gen iPhone?
If the mounting reports are any indication, the answer is a resounding yes. Earlier this week, a Taiwanese publication reported that Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) had enlisted in the help of Sony (NYSE: SNE) to build the iPhone 5. Sony was commissioned to produce in-cell touch panels for the highly anticipated smartphone.
Now DigiTimes (via Forbes) has released a very similar report, claiming that Sony has been added to Apple’s list of in-cell touch panel suppliers, which includes several other manufacturers.
“LG Display, Toshiba Mobile Display (TMD) and Sharp have been previously tapped as the three suppliers of in-cell touch panels for the new iPhone,” reports DigiTimes, whose sources claim that the iPhone 5 should launch in September or October. “LG Display has ramped up its yield rate to 70-80%, and TMD is expected to enter mass production as scheduled, said the sources, adding that Sharp has been slow with regard to improving its yield rate, giving Sony a chance to also enter the supply chain.”
Further, DigiTimes said that its sources have indicated that Sony “shipped 50,000 units of 4-inch in-cell touch panels to HTC for product development in the second half of 2011.” At that time, “Sony claimed that the yield rate for the in-cell panel production had reached 70%,” DigiTimes wrote. “Sony will begin volume production of in-cell touch panels for the new iPhone at the end of May, revealed the sources.”
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Is Europe About to Cut Rates? (FXE, FEZ, USO, GLD)
by Insider Scoop - May 24th, 2012 9:40 am
Courtesy of Benzinga.
Today, Zerohedge reported that JP Morgan predicts a 25 bps cut in the benchmark rate at the September meeting of the ECB, which you can see here. Credit Suisse now agrees, citing that ECB rate changes move with the euro area composite PMI, and the recent weakness in this economic indicator will prompt the ECB to cut.
The chart above shows how the Purchasing Manager’s Index and the change in ECB rates move together, and the analysts at Credit Suisse are now calling for a rate cut as soon as July, as they cite that a cut at the June meeting would be too early. They point to July because there seems to be a 3-month lag to the ECB taking action vs. the PMI. The pair are showing that a 50 bps cut is reasonable at one of the meetings later this year, however, with rates at 1% and the ECB consistently harping on the danger of ZIRP, a 25 bps cut and then a wait and see policy seem more likely.
Even though this news would be euro (NYSE: FXE) bearish, it might actually create a spike as people feel that the crisis will ease. The market is probably already pricing in some sort of a rate cut anyways. Look for European stocks (NYSE: FEZ) to bounce on the news and look for also a nice bounce in oil (NYSE: USO) and gold (NYSE: GLD).
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HP’s CEO Meg Whitman Appears on CNBC
by Insider Scoop - May 24th, 2012 9:19 am
Courtesy of Benzinga.
On CNBC, HP’s (NYSE: HPQ) CEO Meg Whitman appeared to give her outlook on the company in the wake of HP’s earnings release yesterday.
She stated that the company was only in the first steps of its turn-around, saying that she was only about 10-15% done. Whitman stated that the lazer printer segment was not as strong as it should be. She said that putting the printer division with the PC division had produced great synergies, with 8 new printers coming this fall.
Whitman stated that the majority of savings from changes to the company would go back into the business. She stated that the company will give better guidance on the bottom line in Q3 and Q4.
Whitman agreed that HP is not a growth company in its current state, but that it could begin to grow in 2013. She said that she believed that the company would not need further layouts.
When asked about competing with Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Whitman stated that Apple does very well with the consumer, while HP focuses on the business end. She agreed though that the company must be more aggressive in the mobile sector. Whitman announced that HP had a Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) Windows 8 tablet coming this fall.
On the Autonomy acquisition, Whitman stated that she still liked the company, despite its struggles.
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Google’s Long-Awaited iPad-Killer Finally Revealed?
by Insider Scoop - May 24th, 2012 8:41 am
Courtesy of Benzinga.
The first Google-branded tablet is reportedly on its way, and it’s coming from a very familiar manufacturer.
DigiTimes, everyone’s favorite source for inflated Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) rumors, is reporting that the Android maker has teamed up with Asus to produce a seven-inch “tablet PC” that will ship in July (via AppleInsider).
DigiTimes’ sources — from the “upstream supply chain,” of course — claim that Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) will ship 600,000 units at launch. Whether or not these units will be allocated to one nation or several, no one knows.
According to DigiTimes, Google originally planned to release its first branded tablet in the month of May, “but design and costs did not reach its expectations, and the product was delayed to July for some minor adjustments.”
Let’s Hope This Report is False
While Google promised to deliver an iPad-killer by the end of spring, it would be better if the company continued to delay its tablet until it was ready to release something special.
DigiTimes’ report makes it sound as if Google is going to release a generic touch screen device that will do nothing to excite the masses. Granted, no specifics about the software or hardware were mentioned. But when I hear the words “Asus” and “tablet PC,” I think, “Been there, done that.”
Asus has produced some decent products, to be sure. But it’s hard to believe that this rumored tablet will be the one that raises Google’s status.
Prior to launch, the Kindle Fire was overflowing with positive press due to the fact that it was from Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) and came with a smaller price tag than its nearest competitor. After launch, the hype quickly died down as the media’s attention turned toward the forthcoming iPad. Now that the third-generation iPad has been released, hype for the Kindle Fire 2 should be rising. But it has been mild at best. Why? Because the end result of using a cheap tablet did not prove to be as exciting as people anticipated.
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Dow Announces $2.16 Billion Award in K-Dow Arbitration
by Insider Scoop - May 24th, 2012 8:39 am
Courtesy of Benzinga.
The International Court of Arbitration of the International Chamber of Commerce this morning released its findings in the arbitration case between The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: DOW) and Petrochemical Industries Company of Kuwait (PIC) relating to the K-Dow transaction.
The ICC award holds that PIC was liable, and awards damages to Dow of $2.16 billion, not including interest and costs. Dow and PIC mutually agreed to resolve their contractual disputes through arbitration before the ICC, which is comprised of preeminent legal experts with experience in high-value commercial litigation. The award is final and binding.
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O2Micro Receives Patent for Charging Systems Invention
by Insider Scoop - May 24th, 2012 8:32 am
Courtesy of Benzinga.
O2Micro® International Limited (Nasdaq: OIIM) was issued 20 claims under United States patent number 8,148,942 for its Charging Systems with Cell Balancing Functions invention.
O2Micro’s patented invention provides a charging system, creating floating power supplies that may be used to charge high cell count battery packs. During charging, the set of battery cells may be balanced automatically, with minimal power loss.
“This technology makes possible higher efficiency charging systems for high cell count battery packs,” remarked Bill Densham, strategic marketing director, O2Micro.
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Teva Sees 2012 EPS of $5.30-5.40 vs $5.59 Est
by Insider Scoop - May 24th, 2012 8:28 am
Courtesy of Benzinga.
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NASDAQ: TEVA) provided its current outlook for non-GAAP financial performance for the full year ending December 31, 2012. This outlook is summarized below.
Total net sales of approximately $20-$21 billion, consisting of total U.S. net sales of $10.5 billion, total European net sales of $5.8 billion, and total ROW net sales of $4.2 billion. These figures include the following major business lines: — Generic product (including API) net sales of approximately $10.7 billion, consisting of U.S. generic sales of $4.6 billion, European generic sales of $3.4 billion, and ROW generic sales of $2.7 billion.
-- Brand product net sales of approximately $8.0 billion including estimated global net sales of the following products:
-- Other net sales, mostly distribution of third party products, of approximately $800 million.
Non-GAAP gross profit margin (which excludes amortization of intangible assets of approximately $1.4 billion) between 59% and 61%.
Net R&D expenses between 6.8% and 7.2% of net sales. This includes clinical support of 30 late stage innovative drug candidate programs.
Non-GAAP selling & marketing expenses (which excludes amortization of intangible assets) between 18% and 20% of net sales. This includes royalties of approximately $400 million.
General and administrative expenses between 5.4% and 6.0% of net sales. Non-GAAP net financial expenses of approximately $350 million. Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share between $5.30 and $5.40. Estimated fully diluted average number of shares between 870 and 876 million. Tax provision on our non-GAAP pretax income between 13% and 14.5%.
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UPDATE: Signet Jewelers Posts Upbeat Q1 Profit, Issues Downbeat Q2 Forecast
by Insider Scoop - May 24th, 2012 8:07 am
Courtesy of Benzinga.
Signet Jewelers Ltd (NYSE: SIG) reported a stronger-than-expected Q1 profit.
Signet’s sales rose 1.4% to $900 million, versus analysts’ estimates of $912.2 million.
U.S. same-store sales gained 1.2% in the quarter.
Signet’s quarterly net income gained to $82.5 million, or $0.96 per share, versus $75.4 million, or $0.87 per share, in the year-ago period. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.91 per share.
Signet projects earnings between $0.78 and $0.84 per share for the current quarter, versus analysts’ estimates of $0.90 per share.
Signet shares dipped 10.47% to $42.75 in pre-market trading.
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