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T | AT T T Expected To Beat Earnings Estimates Should You Buy | AT T T is expected to deliver flat earnings compared to the year ago quarter on higher revenues when it reports results for the quarter ended March 2019 This widely known consensus outlook gives a good sense of the company s earnings picture but how the actual results compare to these estimates is a powerful factor that could impact its near term stock price
The earnings report which is expected to be released on April 24 2019 might help the stock move higher if these key numbers are better than expectations On the other hand if they miss the stock may move lower
While management s discussion of business conditions on the earnings call will mostly determine the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations it s worth having a handicapping insight into the odds of a positive EPS surprise
Zacks Consensus Estimate
This telecommunications company is expected to post quarterly earnings of 0 85 per share in its upcoming report which represents no change from the year ago quarter
Revenues are expected to be 45 09 billion up 18 6 from the year ago quarter
Estimate Revisions Trend
The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 0 08 lower over the last 30 days to the current level This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period
Investors should keep in mind that the direction of estimate revisions by each of the covering analysts may not always get reflected in the aggregate change
Price Consensus and EPS Surprise
Earnings Whisper
Estimate revisions ahead of a company s earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out Our proprietary surprise prediction model the Zacks Earnings ESP Expected Surprise Prediction has this insight at its core
The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter the Most Accurate Estimate is a more recent version of the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate The idea here is that analysts revising their estimates right before an earnings release have the latest information which could potentially be more accurate than what they and others contributing to the consensus had predicted earlier
Thus a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate However the model s predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only
A positive Earnings ESP is a strong predictor of an earnings beat particularly when combined with a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy 2 Buy or 3 Hold Our research shows that stocks with this combination produce a positive surprise nearly 70 of the time and a solid Zacks Rank actually increases the predictive power of Earnings ESP
Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss Our research shows that it is difficult to predict an earnings beat with any degree of confidence for stocks with negative Earnings ESP readings and or Zacks Rank of 4 Sell or 5 Strong Sell
How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for AT T
For AT T the Most Accurate Estimate is higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate suggesting that analysts have recently become bullish on the company s earnings prospects This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of 0 49
On the other hand the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of 3
So this combination indicates that AT T will most likely beat the consensus EPS estimate
Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue
While calculating estimates for a company s future earnings analysts often consider to what extent it has been able to match past consensus estimates So it s worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number
For the last reported quarter it was expected that AT T would post earnings of 0 85 per share when it actually produced earnings of 0 86 delivering a surprise of 1 18
Over the last four quarters the company has beaten consensus EPS estimates two times
Bottom Line
An earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors Similarly unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss
That said betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success This is why it s worth checking a company s Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they ve reported
AT T appears a compelling earnings beat candidate However investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release |
PFE | European stocks edge higher E Z PMIs in focus Dax up 0 16 | Investing com European stocks edged higher on Thursday after the release of positive German manufacturing and service sector data while investors still awaited reports for the entire euro zone
During European morning trade the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 rose 0 35 France s CAC 40 added 0 28 while Germany s DAX edged 0 16 higher
Markit research group said that Germany s preliminary manufacturing purchasing managers index slipped to 52 0 this month from a reading of 52 4 in July compared to expectations for a fall to 51 8
Markit said that Germany s preliminary services PMI ticked down to 56 4 in August from a reading of 56 7 last month confounding expectations for a fall to 55 7
Financial stocks were mixed as French lenders BNP Paribas PARIS BNPP and Societe Generale PARIS SOGN dropped 0 50 and 0 25 while Germany s Deutsche Bank XETRA DBKGn rose 0 22
Among peripheral lenders however Italy s Intesa Sanpaolo MILAN ISP and Unicredit MILAN CRDI added 0 14 and 0 20 respectively while Spanish banks Banco Santander MADRID SAN and BBVA MADRID BBVA edged up 0 11 and 0 17
Elsewhere Nobel Biocare SIX NOBN surged 2 10 after the dental implant manufacturer raised its 2014 profit margin forecast
On the downside Air Berlin XETRA AB1 dove 7 55 after posting a quarterly profit and saying it will reduce its capacity
In London FTSE 100 edged up 0 18 led by Astrazeneca LONDON AZN up 1 46 amid reports that under new U K takeover rules Pfizer NYSE PFE can make the first steps toward a renewed bid on August 26 August for the British drugmaker
Pfizer had abandoned a 69 5 billion effort to buy London based AstraZeneca on May 26 The U S company was also said to be looking at other possible targets including Ireland s Actavis
Meanwhile mining stocks were broadly lower Shares in Glencore Xstrata LONDON GLEN slipped 0 19 and Rio Tinto LONDON RIO declined 0 61 while rivals Randgold Resources LONDON RRS and Fresnillo LONDON FRES tumbled 1 11 and 2 16 respectively
In the financial sector stocks were also mostly lower The Royal Bank of Scotland LONDON RBS inched down 0 06 and Lloyds Banking LONDON LLOY fell 0 10 while Barclays LONDON BARC slumped 0 29 HSBC Holdings LONDON HSBA overperformed however adding 0 15
In the U S equity markets pointed to a steady open The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0 09 gain S P 500 futures signaled a 0 05 uptick while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0 01 dip
Later in the day the euro zone was to publish preliminary data on private sector activity while the U S was to produce data on unemployment claims manufacturing activity and existing home sales |
PFE | U S judge won t toss insider trading conviction of SAC s Martoma | By Joseph Ax NEW YORK Reuters A federal judge on Thursday refused to throw out the insider trading conviction of former SAC Capital portfolio manager Mathew Martoma saying the trial evidence overwhelmingly demonstrated Martoma s guilt
The decision from U S District Judge Paul Gardephe who oversaw the trial earlier this year was in response to a request from Martoma and came ahead of his sentencing on Monday on conspiracy and securities fraud convictions
A jury found Martoma 40 guilty in February of engaging in what prosecutors claimed was the most lucrative insider trading scheme in history enabling SAC to make profits and avoid losses of 275 million in trades in Elan Corp and Wyeth
Elan was acquired last year by Perrigo Company Plc N PRGO while Wyeth is now a unit of Pfizer Inc N PFE
SAC itself pleaded guilty last year to insider trading and agreed to pay 1 8 billion to settle criminal and civil charges
Martoma was convicted of trading on confidential tips from two doctors about a clinical trial for an Alzheimer s drug that was eventually deemed ineffective
In addition to refusing to toss Martoma s conviction Gardephe denied his request for a new trial The judge rejected his contention that the key government witness Sidney Gilman a doctor who testified as part of a cooperation deal that he had given Martoma the clinical results was unreliable
To the contrary Dr Gilman s account was as to the key issues supported by strong circumstantial evidence Gardephe wrote
Martoma also claimed the jury was tainted by widespread media reports regarding his expulsion from Harvard for doctoring a transcript
But Gardephe said there was no evidence any juror had been exposed to that information
Martoma s defense lawyer Richard Strassberg did not immediately respond to a request for comment
Manhattan U S Attorney Preet Bharara has recommended a substantial prison term beyond the eight years recommended by probation officers according to court filings
An eight year term would be among the stiffest insider trading penalties handed down in recent years Lawyer Matthew Kluger received the longest U S insider trading sentence at 12 years after pleading guilty in 2011 to participating in a 37 million scheme
Martoma is one of eight SAC employees to be convicted of insider trading SAC s founder Steven A Cohen has not been criminally charged
The firm has changed its name to Point72 Asset Management and no longer manages outside money instead focusing on Cohen s family fortune
The case is U S v Martoma U S District Court for the Southern District No 12 973
Reporting by Joseph Ax editing by Andrew Hay |
PFE | SAC s Martoma gets nine years prison for insider trading | By Nate Raymond NEW YORK Reuters Mathew Martoma a former portfolio manager at billionaire Steven A Cohen s SAC Capital Advisors LP hedge fund was sentenced on Monday to nine years in prison for engaging in what authorities called the most lucrative insider trading scheme in U S history
U S District Judge Paul Gardephe in New York said he had to account for the enormous 275 million gain SAC obtained as a result of illegal trades in pharmaceutical stocks Prosecutors said the trades were based on tips Martoma received about a clinical trial for an Alzheimer s drug
I cannot and will not ignore that the gain is hundreds of millions of dollars more than ever seen in an insider trading prosecution Gardephe said
The sentence came despite appeals for leniency by Richard Strassberg Martoma s lawyer who cited fragile family circumstances Gardephe also ordered Martoma to forfeit 9 3 million including his Boca Raton Florida home
While Martoma 40 faced up to 19 1 2 years in prison under federal sentencing guidelines Gardephe said such punishment should be reserved for repeat offenders or criminal enterprise leaders
But the judge said a severe sentence was nonetheless necessary saying there was nothing accidental about Mr Martoma s conduct or the gain realized
Martoma whom a jury convicted in February of securities fraud and conspiracy made no comment as he left the court holding his wife s hand
The ex trader and his family were devastated by the outcome said Lou Colasuonno a spokesman for Martoma saying an appeal is planned
The nine year sentence is among the longer prison terms in U S insider trading cases reflecting a trend of increasingly lengthy sentences in recent years
In 2012 corporate lawyer Matthew Kluger was sentenced in New Jersey to 12 years for trading on information from law firms about mergers A year earlier Galleon Group hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam was sentenced in New York to 11 years
Manhattan U S Attorney Preet Bharara whose office is engaged in a broad crackdown on insider trading called the nine year sentence well suited to the audacity of the illegal trading in this case
The case against Martoma who worked in SAC s CR Intrinsic Investors unit stemmed from a long running insider trading investigation of the hedge fund
Eight employees have been convicted and SAC last year agreed to pay 1 8 billion in criminal and civil settlements and plead guilty to fraud charges
SAC recently changed its name to Point72 Asset Management and the Stamford Connecticut firm was transformed into a family office managing Cohen s fortune
Prosecutors said Martoma sought confidential information from doctors involved in a clinical trial of an Alzheimer s drug being developed by Elan Corp since acquired by Perrigo Co N PRGO and Wyeth now a unit of Pfizer Inc N PFE
Based on a tip Martoma received from Sidney Gilman a former University of Michigan professor who chaired the drug s safety monitoring committee SAC Capital in July 2008 began selling its 700 million position in Elan and Wyeth prosecutors said
They said most of the trading occurred in accounts controlled by Cohen who had a 20 minute phone call with Martoma after receiving information about the negative results of the study
Cohen has not been criminally charged
He faces a U S Securities and Exchange Commission civil action seeking to bar him from the financial services industry for failing to supervise Martoma and Michael Steinberg an SAC portfolio manager convicted of insider trading in a separate trial in December
Cohen denies wrongdoing A spokesman declined to comment
The case is U S v Martoma U S District Court Southern District of New York 12 cr 00973
Additional reporting by Jonathan Stempel |
AMD | AMD 5 5 after 7nm GPU unveil Nvidia CEO comments | Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ AMD gains 5 5 after unveiling the first 7nm GPU The Radeon Vega prototype chip will become part of the Instinct line targeting accelerated machine learning Specs weren t disclosed but the chip does have four stacks of high bandwidth memory totaling 32GB AMD shares are likely also benefitting from Nvidia s CEO saying its next gaming GPUs won t arrive for a long time AMD shares are up 44 5 YTD Previously Nvidia CEO says next gaming GPUs won t come for a long time June 6 Now read |
AMD | Analysts Concerned About Crypto Mining Impact on AMD Share Price | While Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ AMD Inc s AMD shares have seen substantial growth in the past month due to a cryptocurrency mining boom two analysts warn that investors could be disappointed should mining die down MarketWatch reported June 20
In the past month AMD s stock has gained around 30 percent thanks to the graphic processing units GPUs produced by the company which have established themselves as effective hardware for crypto mining Some analysts however have expressed concern that the recent success of AMD s stock may not last long if crypto mining quiets down or if miners choose GPUs by other manufacturers |
T | Novartis has ended contract with firm linked to Trump lawyer | By John Miller ZURICH Reuters Swiss drugmaker Novartis S NOVN has ended a contract with a firm linked to U S President Donald Trump s lawyer Michael Cohen saying it was now seen as a mistake Novartis which has not been accused of any illegal activity made payments totaling nearly 1 2 million to the U S firm It was approached last year by the U S special counsel who wanted to know about the money while probing potential meddling in the 2016 U S election The company said it had ended the one year contract with Cohen s firm struck in February 2017 An attorney for porn star Stormy Daniels named Novartis among companies that made payments to Cohen s Essential Consultants outfit until early this year The contract with Cohen who is the subject of a criminal investigation was struck before Novartis Chief Executive Vas Narasimhan was promoted on Feb 1 from Novartis s chief drug developer to CEO The Harvard trained doctor has vowed to burnish Novartis s reputation as a maker of innovative drugs and leave allegations of wrongdoing behind In hindsight this must be seen as a mistake senior Novartis spokesman Michael Willi told Reuters He did not elaborate Narasimhan was among business leaders who dined with Trump in January at Switzerland s World Economic Forum annual meeting In February 2017 Novartis inked the one year pact with Essential Consultants that the Swiss company said was focused on U S healthcare policy The terms were consistent with the market The agreement expired in February 2018 The consulting contract called for monthly payments of 100 000 each though wire transfer fees reduced the amounts slightly Novartis said Novartis said it engaged Essential Consultants at a time when the Swiss company was led by CEO Joe Jimenez adding Dr Narasimhan had no involvement whatsoever Jimenez did not return a message seeking comment Michael Avenatti Daniels attorney speaking in U S television interviews with ABC and MSNBC on Tuesday declined to say where he received the information about the payments He also said AT T NYSE T and Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd made separate payments Novartis was contacted last year by Special Counsel Robert Mueller s office regarding the Essential Consultants pact it said Novartis cooperated fully with the Special Counsel s office and provided all the information requested Novartis considers this matter closed Avenatti raised questions about the companies actions including Novartis telling MSNBC it was unclear what healthcare expertise Cohen could provide to a global drug firm In March shareholders criticized Novartis executives at its annual meeting urging them to exert greater moral influence amid allegations of corruption in Greece Since 2015 Novartis has paid hundreds of millions in settlements and fines after kickback allegations in South Korea the United States and China Daniels whose real name is Stephanie Clifford maintains Cohen paid her 130 000 to hush up a 2006 sexual encounter with Trump He denies any affair with Daniels
Russia denies election interference allegations and Trump has denied any collusion |
T | AT T payments to Trump lawyer more than reported source | By Diane Bartz WASHINGTON Reuters AT T Inc NYSE T paid Essential Consultants a company set up by President Donald Trump s lawyer Michael Cohen more than the 200 000 that came to light late on Tuesday a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday AT T confirmed the 200 000 payment late on Tuesday saying it hoped to gain insights into the new administration at a time when the telecommunications company sought approval for a major merger among other issues Payments by AT T which could total as much as 600 000 were revealed by porn actress Stormy Daniels lawyer Michael Avenatti who also said a company owned by Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg and other corporations had paid Essential Consultants for certain services It is not clear how Avenatti knew about the payments His client Daniels whose real name is Stephanie Clifford has said Cohen paid her 130 000 in October 2016 a month before the election to buy her silence about a 2006 sexual encounter with Trump Trump has denied the affair Avenatti s document said that AT T paid Essential Consultants 50 000 in October November and December of 2017 and another 50 000 in January of 2018 for a total of 200 000 However the contract was for a year the source told Reuters meaning AT T likely paid more than 200 000 to Cohen s company A full year contract for 50 000 per month would total 600 000 The source declined to give a total for the payments made by AT T to Cohen s company Shares of AT T were down slightly at 31 50 at 1 30 p m EDT on Wednesday While most major American corporations have a range of issues on which they lobby AT T has more than most At the time of the first payment to Cohen it had a major merger the purchase of Time Warner for 85 billion under review by the Justice Department The department sued in November to stop that deal AT T is also fighting the Federal Trade Commission in court over allegations that the company throttled data for online consumers who used over a certain amount even after the company s data plan was advertised as unlimited Additionally AT T had fought net neutrality and supported tax reform AT T hired Cohen when it was looking for a way to understand the new administration after seeing him on television doing interviews to advocate for Trump the source said Cohen served as a long time legal adviser to Trump in his real estate business The Trump Corporation During the presidential campaign Cohen functioned as a spokesman and point person on inquiries that related to the company in particular In previous interviews Cohen described his role as a fixer for Trump who handled personal legal matters Senator Richard Blumenthal a Democrat said at a press conference that the Judiciary Committee should review the payments AT T and other companies made to Cohen
Blumenthal said those payments may well have been used to influence the president of the United States using Michael Cohen and his shell company as a conduit |
T | CNBC AT T paid Trump lawyer Cohen up to 600K for actual work | Amplifying reports from earlier Dow Jones says that AT T T 1 paid President Trump s personal lawyer up to 600 000 much higher than previously reported The company said before that it paid 200 000 for insights into the administration but that it got no legal or lobbying work in return and that contract ended in December A source tells CNBC that Cohen actually got up to 600 000 from AT T as part of a consulting contract to get insight on Trump s thinking and that it was for actual work done And it wasn t to pay for access to the president The news and the accusations of pay to play come in the context of AT T s involvement in a landmark antitrust trial over its 85B deal to acquire Time Warner NYSE TWX Now read |
T | Daniels attorney questions Trump lawyer dealings firms defend payments | By Susan Heavey WASHINGTON Reuters An attorney for porn star Stormy Daniels said on Wednesday he has more evidence of ties between a Russian oligarch sanctioned by the United States and a payment to U S President Donald Trump s personal lawyer Michael Cohen and questioned other companies dealings with Cohen s firm In television interviews attorney Michael Avenatti also called for the release of bank records detailing hundreds of thousands of dollars in payments to Cohen s Essential Consultants LLC made by AT T NYSE T Novartis AG Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd and Columbus Nova LLC a New York based investment firm linked to businessman Viktor Vekselberg who has ties to the Kremlin Avenatti s comments followed a statement he made on Tuesday about payments to Cohen s firm in 2017 and 2018 after Trump won the November 2016 presidential election The companies later confirmed the payments New questions being raised about Cohen s role and work for Trump could further pressure Cohen after the FBI raided his home and office last month as part of a criminal investigation of his business dealings and a payment to Daniels The porn star said she had sex with Trump once in 2006 and kept in touch with him for a while which Trump has denied The White House referred questions to Trump s outside lawyers Trump attorney Jay Sekulow said the outside legal team had no comment on Avenatti s allegations The revelation also drew attention to another potential line of inquiry in U S Special Counsel Robert Mueller s investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 U S election and potential collusion by Trump s campaign Moscow has denied U S intelligence agency conclusions of tampering and Trump denies any coordination with Russian officials and his campaign Cohen on Wednesday told reporters Avenatti s report was inaccurate It was not immediately clear how Avenatti knew about the payments and he declined to say how in TV interviews with ABC and MSNBC His client Daniels whose real name is Stephanie Clifford has said Cohen paid her 130 000 a month before the election to stay quiet about the sexual encounter Daniels has filed two related lawsuits against Trump and Cohen BANK RECORD INVESTIGATION The U S Treasury Department s inspector general s office said it had opened an investigation into whether confidential banking records involving Cohen may have been leaked Spokesman Rich Delmar said the office was looking into whether so called bank suspicious activity reports or SARs or Bank Secrecy Act information had been improperly disseminated The Washington Post first reported the investigation Avenatti has repeatedly called for SARs relating to Cohen to be released Avenatti declined to comment on the probe and Stephen Ryan an attorney for Cohen did not immediately respond to a request for comment AT T on Tuesday said it sought insights into the new administration from Essential Consultants but did not engage in lobbying A source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday that AT T paid more than 200 000 to Cohen s company On Wednesday Korea Aerospace Industries KAI said it paid for accounting related services while Novartis cited healthcare consulting Michael Cohen appears to be selling access to the president of the United States Avenatti told MSNBC A lawyer for Columbus Nova has said Russian businessman Vekselberg had nothing to do with the transaction which Avenatti said amounted to 500 000 We have significant evidence to the contrary Avenatti told ABC without giving any details We haven t released all the evidence that we have
Vekselberg who according to the New York Times has been questioned by Mueller s team could not be reached for comment Peter Carr the special counsel s spokesman declined to comment |
T | Companies detail payments to Trump lawyer Daniels attorney says there s more | By Diane Bartz and John Miller WASHINGTON ZURICH Reuters An attorney for porn star Stormy Daniels said he has additional evidence linking a Russian businessman to U S President Donald Trump s personal lawyer Michael Cohen as international and U S companies on Wednesday acknowledged large payments to Cohen s consulting firm Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG and U S telecommunications company AT T Inc NYSE T said they made payments to Cohen s firm Essential Consultants in efforts to gain intelligence into the Trump administration s thinking on issues affecting them South Korea s Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd KAI said it hired the consultancy for services on accounting matters Novartis and AT T said they were contacted by the office of U S Special Counsel Robert Mueller about the situation in late 2017 and provided all the information requested Both companies said they now consider the matter closed A senior official at Novartis told NBC News that Cohen reached out shortly after Trump s November 2016 election win promising access to the new administration Boston based Stat News also reported that then Novartis Chief Executive Officer Joe Jimenez instructed his team to strike a deal with Cohen A Democratic U S senator called for hearings about the company payments to the firm run by Cohen a longtime attorney and self described fixer for Trump Payments to the companies may well have been used to influence the president of the United States using Michael Cohen and his shell company as a conduit Senator Richard Blumenthal said at a news conference White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders at a regular press briefing referred questions about the reported payments to Trump s outside counsel Asked whether Trump had taken any action to benefit Novartis AT T or KAI Sanders said Not that I m aware of The payments were first mentioned on Tuesday by Michael Avenatti the lawyer for Daniels who says she had a one time sexual encounter with Trump in 2006 and was paid 130 000 by Cohen in October 2016 shortly before the elections in November to stay quiet about it Trump denies having sex with Daniels whose real name is Stephanie Clifford She has sued both Trump and Cohen In television interviews with ABC News and MSNBC Avenatti declined to say how he obtained information about the payments Cohen said a report published on Tuesday by Avenatti s law firm detailing the payments was inaccurate In a court filing Cohen s lawyer Stephen Ryan said Avenatti appears to have Cohen s actual bank records and questioned how he could have obtained them lawfully Bank records of the company payments to Cohen s firm and payments from Columbus Nova LLC a New York based investment firm linked to Russian businessman Viktor Vekselberg should be released Avenatti said in the interviews Vekselberg who has ties to the Kremlin and his Renova Group conglomerate were sanctioned by the United States in April freezing assets of up to 2 billion A lawyer for Columbus Nova has said Vekselberg had nothing to do with the transaction Avenatti said amounted to 500 000 Novartis admitted it made a costly mistake in making payments totaling nearly 1 2 million to Cohen s firm Trump took office in January 2017 and Novartis signed a one year contract a month later After meeting with Cohen in March 2017 Novartis determined the firm was not going to be able to provide the type of U S healthcare policy information it was seeking In hindsight this must be seen as a mistake Novartis spokesman Michael Willi told Reuters making sure to note that the arrangement was struck under former CEO Jimenez and in no way connected to new CEO Vas Narasimhan GAINING INSIGHTS AT T confirmed payments of 200 000 to Essential Consultants although a source familiar with the matter told Reuters it likely paid more than that and could total as much as 600 000 South Korea s KAI said on Wednesday it paid 150 000 to Cohen s firm AT T said it hoped to gain insights into the new administration at a time when it sought approval from antitrust regulators for an 85 billion purchase of Time Warner Inc NYSE TWX U S Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Representative David Cicilline of Rhode Island the top Democrats on antitrust subcommittees wrote to the Department of Justice on Wednesday urging investigation of the payments including whether there were efforts to influence the department This is not the first time that questions have arisen regarding potential interference by this administration in antitrust law enforcement the lawmakers said Washington s influence industry is jammed with consultants hired by corporations and trade associations to provide government intelligence about elected officials Often they provide information about the inner workings of an important government office such as the White House and leadership in Congress By choosing not to communicate directly with elected officials on behalf of corporate clients consultants are not required to register with the government and report lobbying This form of consulting grew dramatically under former President Barack Obama who imposed regulations barring lobbyists from taking government jobs or entering the White House The U S Treasury Department s inspector general s office said on Wednesday it opened an investigation into whether confidential banking records involving Cohen may have been leaked The Washington Post first reported the investigation U S Special Counsel Robert Mueller is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 U S election and possible collusion by people associated with Trump who denies any coordination between Moscow and his campaign The Kremlin denies meddling in the election Trump took to Twitter on Wednesday to once again decry news coverage about him One post said that despite the tremendous success we are having with the economy all things else 91 of the Network News about me is negative Fake
Report published by Aventatti and Associates |
T | BT to cut 13 000 jobs as it tackles bloated legacy | By Paul Sandle and Kate Holton LONDON Reuters BT L BT will cut 13 000 managerial and back office jobs and move to a smaller London base in the latest attempt by the boss of Britain s biggest telecoms group to rebuild from an accounting scandal and multiple pressures on its business Chief Executive Gavin Patterson said radical action was absolutely critical to ensure BT could deliver the next generation fiber and mobile networks Britain needed We need to make ourselves more efficient we need to create oxygen within the business he told reporters on Thursday Despite outlining measures to save 1 5 billion pounds 2 billion a year by 2020 21 the initial market reaction was negative A failure to hit a revenue target over the latest three months and a disappointing outlook for no profit growth for a couple of years sent BT shares down 9 percent to five year lows Losing long standing fixed line voice revenue many legacy telecom firms have expanded into more profitable areas AT T N T in the U S is trying to buy entertainment group Time Warner N TWX while BT s own push into sports broadcasting was designed to defend its customer base Since he took the top job in 2013 Patterson has spent billions of pounds on sports rights network investment and customer service improvements all while trying to keep regulators pension fund trustees and investors on side On top of that fraud was discovered in Italy while the group was also blindsided by a downturn in corporate and public sector markets undermining confidence in his leadership Patterson 50 tried to placate shareholders by maintaining the dividend on Thursday and pledging to keep it flat for the next two years and he also agreed a new pension funding plan to plug its 11 3 billion pound deficit Bernstein analysts called the update disappointing BT has now firmly gone from being a reasonably predictable growth story an outlier in the incumbent landscape across Europe to becoming a cost restructuring story they said Quite a remarkable shift in fortunes with an outlook that is well shy of our expectations MOVING HOME Traders said guidance for the current financial year was lower than expected while fourth quarter revenue fell short of targets showing the challenges facing Patterson as he seeks to rebuild a group that employs more than 100 000 staff BT which owns Britain s biggest mobile operator EE said it would hire about 6 000 new engineers and front line customer service staff to support its roll out of fiber and 5G networks Around two thirds of jobs cuts will fall in Britain The company has been based at the BT Centre near St Paul s Cathedral and the London Stock Exchange in the City of London since it was privatized in 1984 but will now move to smaller premises in the capital If we compare how we manage the business with our peers we re frankly too complex and overweight This is a big deal said Patterson The convergence of different technologies means BT has faced growing competition from nimble young rivals including Sky L SKYB which has expanded from being a pay TV company to offer a range of broadband services UNDER PRESSURE One top 50 investor said there was no question Patterson was under pressure but it was not clear how replacing the chief executive would change the dynamics Any growth option they pursue is potentially going to have no return on it because the regulator just wants to regulate your returns away from you the shareholder said Pretty much the only thing you can do is to attack your cost base Under Patterson s leadership BT has had a fractious relationship with the regulator Ofcom Patterson who previously worked at consumer goods group P G and cable TV company Telewest said the hit from regulation would double from about 500 million pounds to 1 billion pounds a year as new controls on its faster wholesale broadband kick in My biggest concern is more that they need to clear the air with the regulator the investor said BT faces caps on how much it charges rivals to use its fast broadband service as Ofcom seeks to promote the development of new networks THROW OF THE DICE The job cuts the highest number by the former monopoly since 2008 will cost 800 million pounds to implement Some of the proceeds from the savings will go towards increasing capital expenditure on new fiber fixed line connections and 4G and next generation 5G mobile networks to about 3 7 billion pounds over the next two years The new strategy is the latest throw of the dice from Patterson who won early plaudits from investors when he moved BT into sports TV and mobile That goodwill evaporated when the group delivered a major profit warning in January 2017 due to problems at its multi national Global Services division and the discovery of the Italian scandal The shares are down 30 percent in a year Patterson gained some breathing space on BT s pension which had a deficit of 11 3 billion pounds at the end of June on Thursday by agreeing a 13 year funding plan It will pay 2 1 billion pounds into the scheme by 2020 and a further 2 billion pounds will be funded by bonds
BT said its outlook for the current financial year to end March would see a 2 percent drop in underlying revenue while adjusted core earnings would be in the range 7 3 billion 7 4 billion pounds down from 7 5 billion pounds in the last year 1 0 7388 pounds |
T | Report Nashville leading candidate for 2019 NFL Draft | The city of Nashville is the leading candidate to host the 2019 NFL Draft according to a report from ESPN A decision is expected to be announced during the league s spring meeting May 22 23 in Atlanta according to the report and if not selected Nashville would be the favorite for the 2020 event The other candidates to host the 2019 and 2020 NFL drafts are Las Vegas Denver Kansas City and a combination bid from Cleveland Canton Ohio A winning city cannot host the draft in both years
The 2018 NFL Draft was held at AT T NYSE T Stadium in Arlington Texas The event was held in New York City from 1965 2014 before being moved to Chicago for 2015 16 Philadelphia hosted the 2017 draft Field Level Media |
PFE | Roche Announces Data On Perjeta Alecensa And Tecentriq | Roche Holdings AG OTC RHHBY announced data from the phase III study APHINITY on breast cancer drug Perjeta The data from the study showed that the combination of Perjeta Herceptin and chemotherapy the Perjeta based regimen significantly reduced the risk of breast cancer recurrence or death invasive disease free survival iDFS by 19 in patients suffering from HER2 positive early breast cancer eBC compared with Herceptin and chemotherapy alone
94 1 of people treated with the Perjeta based regimen did not experience the recurrence of cancer compared with 93 2 treated with Herceptin and chemotherapy at the end of three years The results will be presented in an oral session today at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology ASCO
We remind investors that Roche has a strong presence in the oncology market The company dominates the breast cancer space with strong demand for HER2 franchise drugs like Herceptin Perjeta and Kadcyla
However competition is becoming stiff in the breast cancer market with companies like Novartis NYSE NVS getting a boost with approval of new drugs like Kisqali
Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE also announced data from its phase II study ABRAZO which is evaluating talazoparib in advanced breast cancer patients with germline BRCA 1 2 positive gBRCA mutations showing anti tumor activity at the ASCO
Roche s share price shows that the company has outperformed the Zacks classified industry year to date The stock is up 14 6 compared with the industry s gain of 10 8
Coming back to the ASCO meet Roche also announced positive data from the phase III study ALEX on lung cancer drug Alecensa The data from the study showed that Alecensa significantly reduced the risk of disease worsening or death progression free survival PFS by more than half 53 compared with crizotinib when given as initial first line treatment for people with anaplastic lymphoma kinase ALK positive advanced non small cell lung cancer NSCLC The primary endpoint of the study was not reached
Alecensa lowered the risk of tumour spread or growth in the brain or central nervous system We note that Alecensa is approved as a monotherapy for patients suffering from ALK positive NSCLC who have progressed on or are intolerant to crizotinib in Europe and the U S
Alecensa was granted conditional marketing authorisation in Feb 2017 in the EU as a monotherapy for patients suffering from ALK positive advanced NSCLC previously treated with crizotinib Hence Roche is submitting the data from the ALEX study as the specific obligation to obtain full approval of Alecensa as an initial treatment for ALK positive advanced NSCLC
New drug launches such as Tecentriq Cotellic and Alecensa boosted sales and are expected to continue to do so in the upcoming quarters
Earlier Roche also presented new encouraging data on immunotherapy drug Tecentriq along with updates from its cancer immunotherapy development program at ASCO 2017
Data from a study on Tecentriq plus Avastin in metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma mRCC highlight the combination s potential to increase infiltration trafficking of T cells into tumors and other immune modulatory properties
Alongside two phase Ib studies in melanoma combining Tecentriq plus Cotelic and Tecentriq plus Cotellic plus Zelboraf showed that the addition of Zelboraf and or Cotellic may alter the tumor micro environment enhancing the anti tumor activity of Tecentriq
Immuno oncology is a key focus area for Roche with the company currently having multiple candidates under development The FDA granted accelerated approval to immuno oncology drug Tecentriq in May 2016 for the treatment of patients suffering from locally advanced or metastatic urothelial carcinoma Initial uptake of the drug has been encouraging
Zacks Rank Key Pick
Roche currently carries a Zacks Rank 3 Hold
A better ranked stock in the health care sector is VIVUS Inc NASDAQ VVUS The stock currently sports a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy You can see
VIVUS loss per share estimates narrowed from 50 cents to 39 cents for 2017 over the last 60 days The company posted positive earnings surprises in each of the trailing four quarters with an average beat of 233 69
Looking for Stocks with Skyrocketing Upside
Zacks has just released a Special Report on the booming investment opportunities of legal marijuana
Ignited by new referendums and legislation this industry is expected to blast from an already robust 6 7 billion to 20 2 billion in 2021 Early investors stand to make a killing but you have to be ready to act and know just where to look |
PFE | Pfizer s PFE Tafamidis Gets Fast Track Status In The U S | Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE has been granted with fast track status by FDA for treating patients with transthyretin cardiomyopathy TTR CM This rare disease is associated with progressive heart failure and is universally fatal Currently tafamidis is in phase III study for TTR CM Incidentally in 2011 tafamidis was first approved in the EU for treatment of transthyretin familial amyloid polyneuropathy TTR FAP in adult patients under the brand name Vyndaqel Presently the drug is approved for TTR FAP in 40 countries including Europe Japan Brazil Mexico Argentina Israel Russia and South Korea Shares of Pfizer have underperformed the Zacks classified industry so far this year The stock has lost 1 3 compared to the broader industry s 10 4 gain Investors should be reminded that in Jun 2012 FDA had issued a complete response letter to Pfizer with respect to its application to approve tafamidis for TTR FAP The FDA has asked for additional information on the data within the current tafamidis new drug application NDA Subsequently in Dec 2013 the company had initiated a global phase III study to evaluate safety and tolerability profiles of tafamidis in patients with TTR CM This category also comprised those with TTR FAC and wild type cardiomyopathy WT CM Data from the study is expected in 2018 Notably tafamidis became a part of Pfizer s portfolio with its October 2010 acquisition of FoldRx Per the company s press release approximately 1 000 patients are diagnosed with TTR CM globally However the disease is still believed to be largely under diagnosed Hence approval of the concerned drug for TTR CM will cater to the development of critically needed treatment options for people living with this rare disease In an attempt to boost its rare disease and gene therapy pipelines Pfizer has entered into an exclusive worldwide collaboration and license agreement with Sangamo Therapeutics Inc NASDAQ SGMO for developing and commercializing gene therapy programs for hemophilia A in May 2017 This deal covers SB 525 one of Sangamo s four lead pipeline candidates slated to enter the clinic this quarter Pfizer Inc Price Zacks Rank Key PicksPfizer currently carries a Zacks Rank 3 Hold Better ranked stocks in healthcare sector include VIVUS Inc NASDAQ VVUS and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc NASDAQ REGN While VIVUS sports a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy Regeneron carry a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see VIVUS s loss per share estimates narrowed down from 50 cents to 39 cents for 2017 in last 60 days The company posted positive earnings surprises in all four trailing quarters with average beat of 233 69 Regeneron s earnings per share estimates increased from 10 16 to 10 52 for 2017 and from 10 90 to 12 10 over the last 60 days The company posted positive earnings surprises in two of the four trailing quarters with average beat of 0 45 3 Stocks to Ride a 588 Revenue ExplosionAt Zacks we re mostly focused on short term profit cycles but the hottest of all technology mega trends is starting to take hold By last year it was already generating 8 billion in global revenues By 2020 it s predicted to blast through the roof to 47 billion Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce the world s first trillionaires but that should still leave plenty of money for those who make the right trades early |
AMD | 6 Stocks To Watch AMD AXSM CGC EOLS NLNK RCKT | It was a volatile session on Tuesday First it was up then it was down and had a snapback at the end of the day The bottom line is Charts of the Day show stocks that are movers and shakers and charts that may have made a significant move or a technical move that I want to show you Here s a few of those highlighted
Advanced Micro Devices Inc AMD
AMD made a monster move on Tuesday jumping 2 75 or 11 83 to 26 00 from a low of 23 59 on 151 million shares on a breakout from a consolidation zone that took 5 6 weeks to develop In particular the last four session it formed a mini wedge and exploded on Tuesday It closed at the high end of the range On that kind of volume it will immediately go to test the 28 1 2 area If it really runs to the very top of the channel you re looking at 33 33 1 2
Axsome Therapeutics Inc AXSM
AXSM a swing trade of ours is working great It popped up pulled back ran up formed a little bit of a corrective flag made a 5 wave move down then it took off and was up 12 days in a row and then spiked up 1 48 or 12 9 to 12 95 with a high of 14 24 on 3 5 million shares It may continue the momentum An all time high was reached back at the end of 2015 at 15 74 Can it get up there At this point I m thinking that it s getting up toward the upper end of the range at key overhead resistance It has already made a 5 wave move up So keep an eye on this one
Canopy Growth Corporation CGC
CGC which I put a new swing on Tuesday looks good I m convinced that after the consolidation pattern that looks textbook perfect can explode On Tuesday it was up 42 cents or 1 to 46 11 on 5 million shares Now I m looking for it to head to the 56 59 zone and then 68 75 and on up
Evolus Inc EOLS
EOLS made a pop off Tuesday s low There could have been a little wedge with a triple bottom in there and held at 23 1 4 1 2 and then popped and went straight up 2 72 or 11 4 to 26 57 with a high of 27 96 on 3 2 million shares That s the best volume in 6 7 weeks All it needs to do now is get past 30 30 1 4 and then it should take off
NewLink Genetics Corporation NLNK
NLNK a low priced biotech stock was a big winner for us in late 2016 at nearly 60 dollars It rolled over and was in a big down trend formed a little mini base popped wedged and broke out on Tuesday gaining 25 cents or 13 23 to 2 14 with a high of 2 27 on 3 2 million shares I think it will follow through Targets are 2 55 and 3 20
Rocket Pharmaceuticals Inc RCKT
NASDAQ RCKT after a 2 3 day pullback it held support It ran right back to the top of the channel on Tuesday and jumped 1 84 or 11 to 18 50 with a high of 18 90 on 334 272 shares traded A follow through here and I m looking for 20 22 and maybe more
Stocks on the long side
Advanced Micro Devices Inc AMD Axsome Therapeutics Inc AXSM Bausch Health Companies Inc BHC Canopy Growth Corporation CGC Dermira Inc DERM Evolus Inc EOLS Glu Mobile Inc GLUU HEXO Corp HEXO NewLink Genetics Corporation NLNK Omeros Corporation OMER Rocket Pharmaceuticals Inc RCKT Sorrento Therapeutics Inc SRNE StoneCo Ltd STNE The Green Organic Dutchman Holdings Ltd TGODF Zosano Pharma Corporation ZSAN and Zynerba Pharmaceuticals Inc ZYNE
Watch video here |
PFE | Lawsuits Against Pfizer s Lipitor Spike In Past 5 Months | By New York based pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE saw a steep hike in the number of lawsuits filed against it by American women claiming that the company knew about the side effects of its blockbuster cholesterol drug Lipitor but did not issue an official warning
The number of federal court filings against the company has reportedly increased from 56 to 1 000 in the last five months where plaintiffs claim that the use of Lipitor for lowering cholesterol levels gave them type 2 diabetes The recent spike in lawsuits against the company follows an order from a federal judicial panel to bring all the cases filed across the U S against Pfizer into a single courtroom Pfizer which plans to contest the claims has reportedly declined to follow the order claiming it will trigger copycat lawsuits
We will ask a jury to decide what it s worth to take five years of someone s life H Blair Hahn of Mount Pleasant South Carolina and the plaintiffs lead lawyer said according to Reuters Hahn also said that the 1 000 cases filed so far represent nearly 4 000 women and estimated that the number of cases could rise ten fold to 10 000
Lipitor belongs to a class of drugs called statins which work in the liver to reduce the production of cholesterol while diabetes takes away the body s ability to produce insulin which helps convert food to energy
In 2012 the U S Food and Drug Administration or FDA reportedly issued a warning that the use of statin drugs like Lipitor could increase the risk of diabetes and memory loss In January the FDA warning was updated to provide a detailed list of side effects including muscle damage and liver injury in extreme cases
Clearly we think that the heart benefit of statins outweighs this small increased risk Amy G Egan deputy director for safety in FDA s Division of Metabolism and Endocrinology Products said in the FDA statement adding that the patients might have to be tested for their blood sugar levels regularly after they begin treatment with statins
A recent report by the World Health Organization stated that heart disease was the leading cause of deaths in 2011 and 2012 while one out of three children have high cholesterol |
AMD | Cowen initiates AMD at 40 upside shares 2 7 | Cowen starts Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ AMD at Outperform with an 18 price target a 40 upside to yesterday s close Analyst Matthew Ramsay expects a 2H inflection of server sales when OEM sales should complement cloud growth and says the firm is confident in the impressive roster of cloud and OEM engagements AMD shares are up 2 7 premarket to 13 17 Now read |
AMD | AMD 3 7 on Stifel price target increase | Stifel raises its Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ AMD price target from 14 to 17 Analyst Kevin Cassidy sees end demand forecasts for PCs servers and graphics add in cards as increasing Cassidy was also encouraged by the introduction of a Cisco platform using AMD s Epyc 7000 series processors and thinks other OEMS have realized Epyc s benefits and will be making similar announcements soon Rating reiterated at Buy Advanced Micro Devices shares are up 3 7 to 14 24 Now read |
T | Democratic lawmakers express serious concerns about T Mobile purchase of Sprint | WASHINGTON Reuters Senators Amy Klobuchar Elizabeth Warren and other Democratic lawmakers expressed serious concerns on Monday about T Mobile US Inc s DE DTEGn plan to buy rival Sprint Corp N S focusing on the planned deal s effect on lower cost wireless plans Klobuchar s office said in a press statement In a letter sent to the Justice Department s antitrust chief Makan Delrahim and Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai the senators said that they worried that the deal between the No 3 and No 4 wireless service providers would lead to higher prices for consumers T Mobile and Sprint have led the way in offering wireless products and service options that are more appealing to lower income consumers including no contract plans prepaid and no credit check plans and unlimited text voice and data plans the lawmakers wrote While AT T NYSE T and Verizon dominate the U S wireless market overall T Mobile is the most popular among customers who make less than 75 000 per year and Sprint s prepaid brand Boost counts 83 percent of its users in that income range according to data from Kagan S P Global Market Intelligence data T Mobile has 38 percent of the U S prepaid market while Sprint has 16 percent which would give the combined company 54 percent according to S P In addition to Klobuchar and Warren the letter was signed by Democratic Senators Richard Blumenthal Mazie Hirono Tina Smith Tom Udall and Ed Markey according to the press statement
Also signing was former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders an independent |
T | AT T says it hired firm linked to Cohen for advice on Trump | By Sheila Dang and Diane Bartz Reuters AT T Inc N T said on Tuesday it had hired Essential Consultants a company linked to Donald Trump lawyer Michael Cohen to advise it on working with the new administration in early 2017 around the time of Trump s inauguration The business arrangement illustrates efforts by the telecommunications company to work with an influential adviser to the new president as his administration took up major industry issues and considered its 85 billion proposal to buy Time Warner Inc NYSE TWX Payments by AT T were described earlier on Tuesday by Michael Avenatti a lawyer for porn star Stormy Daniels who released a report alleging that a company owned by Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg AT T and other corporations had made payments to Essential Consultants Avenatti s report said AT T had paid 200 000 in four equal payments to Essential Consultants between Oct 3 2017 and Jan 3 2018 Essential Consultants was one of several firms we engaged in early 2017 to provide insights into understanding the new administration AT T said in a statement They did no legal or lobbying work for us and the contract ended in December 2017 it said without commenting further Reuters could not immediately verify Avenatti s claim and it was not clear how he would have knowledge of any payment from Vekselberg to Cohen Cohen and Avenatti did not respond immediately to requests for comment from Reuters Daniels had previously said she was paid 130 000 by Cohen to stay quiet about a sexual encounter with Trump an encounter which Trump has denied The Wall Street Journal released a 2016 Delaware certificate of formation for Essential Consultants that was signed by Michael Cohen A person familiar with the matter said AT T engaged with Essential Consultants around the time of the inauguration to understand how the company would be affected by several issues from the new administration including tax reform and net neutrality
The payments from AT T in late 2017 and early 2018 came as it was advocating for its proposed takeover of Time Warner which the U S Justice Department is trying to stop The deal announced in October 2016 was quickly denounced by Trump who as a candidate and later as president has been critical of Time Warner s CNN |
T | Stormy Daniels lawyer says Russian firm s U S affiliate paid Trump attorney 500 000 | By Nathan Layne
NEW YORK Reuters An attorney for porn star Stormy Daniels said on Tuesday that President Donald Trump s lawyer Michael Cohen was paid 500 000 by a company with ties to a Russian oligarch who was hit last month with U S sanctions to punish Moscow for activities that included suspected meddling in the 2016 U S election
In a tweet and a report Daniels attorney Michael Avenatti said a U S based company controlled by Viktor Vekselberg a businessman with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin sent Cohen the payment
It was not immediately clear how Avenatti would know of any payments made to Cohen Daniels whose real name is Stephanie Clifford has said Cohen paid her 130 000 in October 2016 to stay quiet about a 2006 sexual encounter she had with Trump
Neither Avenatti nor Cohen responded to requests from Reuters for comment
The disclosures could add to pressure on Cohen whose house office and hotel room were raided by the FBI a month ago as part of a criminal investigation into the hush payment and other business dealings
EIGHT PAYMENTS
Avenatti said Vekselberg and his cousin Andrew Intrater made eight transfers to Cohen between January and August 2017 through a U S based company called Columbus Nova LLC for a total of 500 000
A lawyer for Columbus Nova said Vekselberg had nothing to do with the transactions
Columbus Nova was listed by Renova Group as one of its companies as of November 2017 according to an archived webpage for Renova whose website now says it is under construction Renova Group is a conglomerate controlled by Vekselberg
The United States imposed sanctions last month on Vekselberg and Renova to retaliate for the Kremlin s suspected meddling in the 2016 U S election and other malign activity
The New York Times reported last week that Vekselberg was questioned by U S agents this year as part of Special Counsel Robert Mueller s investigation into Russian interference and possible collusion by Trump s campaign
Russia denies U S intelligence agencies accusations it meddled in the election and Trump has denied any collusion He also denies having had an affair with Daniels
COMPANY HIRED COHEN
Vekselberg and Intrater could not be reached for comment but Richard Owens a lawyer for Columbus Nova said in a statement the company hired Cohen after Trump s January 2017 inauguration as a business consultant regarding sources of capital and potential investments in real estate and other ventures
Owens said Columbus Nova was solely owned by Americans and that any claim that Vekselberg was involved in providing funding for the payments to Cohen was patently untrue
Avenatti also detailed payments he said were made to Cohen by U S telecommunications company AT T NYSE T Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG and Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd He said all the payments were made in late 2017 and early 2018
There are too many unknowns to reach conclusions as to whether anything involved with these transactions was illegal said Michael Zeldin a money laundering expert and former federal prosecutor who is now a legal analyst on CNN
AT T confirmed the payments saying they were aimed at gaining insights into the new administration AT T has been pursuing an 85 billion takeover of Time Warner Inc NYSE TWX which the U S Justice Department is trying to stop
Avenatti also said he discovered four payments of just under 100 000 each by Novartis to Essential Consultants the same company used by Cohen to make payments to Daniels
A Novartis representative said Any agreements with Essential Consultants were entered before our current CEO taking office in February of this year and have expired
AT T said Essential Consultants was one of several firms it engaged in early 2017 to provide insights into understanding the new administration but that it received no legal or lobbying services from Cohen s firm
AT T said the contract ended in December 2017
A spokesman for Korea Aerospace Industries said the company had signed a contract with Essential Consultants last year for legal consulting concerning accounting standards on production costs and upon the expiration of the contract made a payment in November
Report published by Avenatti Associates |
PFE | Sanofi Regeneron s Kevzara Gets FDA Approval For Arthritis | Sanofi PA SASY NYSE SNY and partner Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc NASDAQ REGN announced that the FDA has approved their pipeline candidate sarilumab to be marketed under the trade name of Kevzara Kevzara has been approved for the treatment of moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis RA in adult patients who have had an inadequate response or intolerance to one or more disease modifying anti rheumatic drugs DMARDs such as methotrexate MTX We remind investors that Kevzara was approved in Canada in February this year for the same indication while it is under review in the EU So far this year Sanofi s share price has risen 21 5 better than an 8 6 increase for the Zacks classified industry We remind investors that in Oct 2016 the companies got a Complete Response Letter CRL from the FDA for sarilumab While the CRL did not raise any issues regarding sarilumab s efficacy or safety the agency cited certain deficiencies observed during a routine good manufacturing practice inspection of the Sanofi Le Trait facility in France where sarilumab is filled and finished Last month the FDA accepted the resubmission of the Biologics License Application for Kevzara following the successful inspection of the Le Trait manufacturing site The U S approval was supported by data from the global SARIL RA clinical study conducted in approximately 2 900 adults with moderate to severely active RA who had an inadequate response to previous treatment regimens Kevzara demonstrated statistically significant clinically meaningful improvements in combination with conventional DMARDs including methotrexate in two pivotal phase III studies Sanofi projects that Kevzara and five other new drugs Toujeo diabetes Praluent Dengvaxia vaccine Soliqua and Dupixent dupilumab to generate aggregate peak sales of 12 billion 14 billion by 2025 while up to 18 new products are on track to be launched by 2020 Dupixent was also recently approved by the FDA for treating atopic dermatitis in March and is now available to adult patients in the U S The drug is under review in the EU for the same indication We are optimistic on the sales prospects of Dupixent which could prove to be an important growth driver for the company Soliqua a once daily titratable fixed ratio combination of Lantus and Lyxumia was launched in the U S this year in January and is expected to be launched in Europe later this year The list price of Kevzara is 39 000 year for the 200 mg and 150 mg doses which is at a discount of approximately 30 to that of the two most widely used competitive drugs in a highly crowded space Pfizer Inc s NYSE PFE Xeljanz is already approved for the treatment of moderate to severely active RA in patients who respond inadequately or are intolerant to methotrexate Other drugs approved for RA include Roche Holding SIX ROG AG s OTC RHHBY Actemra AbbVie s Humira and Bristol Myers Orencia Sanofi currently has a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see Zacks 2017 IPO Watch List Before looking into the stocks mentioned above you may want to get a head start on potential tech IPOs that are popping up on Zacks radar Imagine being in the first wave of investors to jump on a company with almost unlimited growth potential This Special Report gives you the current scoop on 5 that may go public at any time One has driven from 0 to a 68 billion valuation in 8 years Four others are a little less obvious but already show jaw dropping growth |
PFE | 3 Hot Biotech Stocks To Buy In June | The biotech sector which started the year on a strong note has been witnessing a decline especially from March year to date YTD the Zacks categorized industry is down 1 1 while the overall market is up 8 2 A key concern for the sector remains the drug pricing issue which remains an overhang Given the intense political and media focus on this issue investors remain jittery about putting their money in this corner of the market
With the industry currently ranked among the bottom 40 of the 256 Zacks ranked industries should one avoid stocks in this segment of the market Not really while we admit that the sector is facing challenges like declining sales of legacy products biosimilar competition mixed earnings results high profile pipeline setbacks and slower than expected new product launches there are some factors that provide upside potential The industry will continue to witness demand for its products given an aging population and the increasing prevalence of a wide variety of diseases Strong late stage pipelines innovative treatments impressive results and increased health care spending should support growth According to a report issued by the QuintilesIMS Institute medicine spending through 2021 is expected to grow in mid single digits Trump s pro business stand is also expected to benefit the sector A faster drug approval process and the proposed removal of outdated regulations that drive up costs and slow down innovation should also work in favor of the sector While drug pricing will remain a headline risk until some plan is announced by the administration here are a few biotech stocks that have performed well YTD and look well positioned First on our list is Tarrytown NY based Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc NASDAQ REGN While eye drug Eylea the company s key growth driver continues to perform well Regeneron has been working on diversifying its portfolio and gained FDA approval for two drugs this year Dupixent moderate to severe atopic dermatitis and Kevzara moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis Both drugs have blockbuster potential with Dupixent already off to a strong start The company also has a strong pipeline comprising 16 candidates including for cancer Regeneron a Zacks Rank 2 Buy stock has outperformed the Zacks categorized Medical Biomedical Genetics industry with shares gaining 25 YTD Estimated earnings growth for the current year is 27 4
Next on the list is Richmond CA based Sangamo Therapeutics Inc NASDAQ SGMO Sangamo got a shot in the arm last month with Pfizer NYSE PFE collaborating with the company for the development and commercialization of gene therapy programs for hemophilia A The agreement covers SB 525 one of Sangamo s four lead pipeline candidates and will see Sangamo getting an upfront payment of 70 million Sangamo could also get milestone payments of up to 475 million including up to 300 million related to SB 525 and up to 175 million for additional hemophilia A gene therapy candidates that may be developed under the collaboration Tiered double digit royalties on net sales also form a part of the deal This deal bodes well for the long term prospects of the company Shares of this Zacks Rank 2 stock are up a whopping 123 9 YTD
Another Zacks Rank 2 biotech stock that has had a strong run so far this year is Puma Biotechnology Inc NASDAQ PBYI Puma s shares are up 149 4 YTD with the company receiving a huge boost with an FDA advisory panel voting in favor of its experimental breast cancer treatment neratinib The FDA s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee voted 12 4 in favor of approving neratinib for the extended adjuvant treatment of HER2 positive early stage breast cancer based on a favorable risk benefit profile Given the favorable vote chances of gaining approval look pretty high FDA approval would be a major boost for Puma which currently has no marketed products in its portfolio While all three stocks mentioned above are Zacks Rank 2 stocks you can see Will You Make a Fortune on the Shift to Electric Cars Here s another stock idea to consider Much like petroleum 150 years ago lithium power may soon shake the world creating millionaires and reshaping geo politics Soon electric vehicles EVs may be cheaper than gas guzzlers Some are already reaching 265 miles on a single charge With battery prices plummeting and charging stations set to multiply one company stands out as the 1 stock to buy according to Zacks research It s not the one you think |
PFE | Universal Display Hewlett Packard Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Sangamo Therapeutics And Puma Biotechnology Highlighted As Zacks Bull And Bear Of The Day | For Immediate Release
Chicago IL June 02 2017 highlights Universal Display Corporation NASDAQ as the Bull of the Day Hewlett Packard Enterprise NYSE as the Bear of the Day In addition Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc NASDAQ Sangamo Therapeutics Inc NASDAQ and Puma Biotechnology Inc NASDAQ
Here is a synopsis of all five stocks
One of the best purchases for my somewhat new place was an OLED TV If you aren t familiar with the technology OLED or Organic Light Emitting Diode and does not require backlighting
This allows displays made with this technology to be thin and flexible and it gives a huge contrast ratio including blacker blacks and whiter whites relative to many other types of displays The TV looks great
But from an investment perspective this technology is sweeping not only across TVs but various other devices in the tech world such as phones and computer screens And the company behind much of this technology Universal Display Corporation NASDAQ is looking like an especially intriguing investment these days
OLED Stock in Focus
In the company s most recent earnings report the company easily beat expectations and actually posted a pretty incredible beat The stock was expected to see earnings of one cent per share and actually posted 22 cents per share instead The firm also said there was building for products using OLED displays so guidance is looking pretty promising as well
Thanks to this strength analysts have been raising their estimates for OLED stock pretty much across the board In fact we haven t seen any estimate cuts in the past sixty days to the current quarter current year or next year consensus We have actually seen a surging consensus for the full year as analysts clearly believe in the momentum too The company s consensus has moved higher by about 27 in the past month while we are seeing a seven percent increase for the following year
There is a lot to like about the story in the OLED market these days and that is further backed up by the impressive industry and sector rank for the stock Shares have a top 40 rank for both the industry and the sector while Universal Display Corporation has a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy rating itself
Bear
One of the big stories so far this year has been the incredible performance of the tech sector at large Many of the big caps in this space have dominated the market and have put up double digit percentage gains in the process too
But it hasn t been that way for every name in the space Take Hewlett Packard Enterprise NYSE for example Sure the company had a spin off so the chart for this year might look incredibly bad but the recent earnings report and price performance signal that HPE investors might want to get used to seeing red in their positions
Recent Earnings Report
Hewlett Packard Enterprise just released earnings and the numbers left much to be desired from the company Revenues plunged 12 5 for the continuing operations part of the business and was led by a double digit percentage slump in revenues for servers storage and a 30 slump for networking Earnings were also pretty weak as they easily missed estimates on the bottom line too
And worst of all things don t appear as though they are going to be turning around anytime soon Guidance was also sluggish and it isn t like the competitive pressures are going to diminish in the coming quarters either
Analysts have already taken note of these trends and we saw several cuts to HPE s consensus estimate heading into the report And now with the weak outlook and tough position against peers it isn t unreasonable to think that this trend will continue in the weeks ahead too No wonder HPE currently has an F growth score and why we have a Zacks Rank 5 Strong Sell on the company too
Other Choices
Though things aren t looking great for HPE in the near term there are plenty of other choices out there for investors Sure the computer integrated systems industry has a rank in the bottom 25 but the tech sector has a rank in the top 40 So investors just have to look outside of HPE s industry for some better options in the tech space
Additional content
3 Hot Biotech Stocks to Buy in June
The biotech sector which started the year on a strong note has been witnessing a decline especially from March year to date YTD the Zacks categorized industry is down 1 1 while the overall market is up 8 2 A key concern for the sector remains the drug pricing issue which remains an overhang Given the intense political and media focus on this issue investors remain jittery about putting their money in this corner of the market
With the industry currently ranked among the bottom 40 of the 256 Zacks ranked industries should one avoid stocks in this segment of the market Not really while we admit that the sector is facing challenges like declining sales of legacy products biosimilar competition mixed earnings results high profile pipeline setbacks and slower than expected new product launches there are some factors that provide upside potential
The industry will continue to witness demand for its products given an aging population and the increasing prevalence of a wide variety of diseases Strong late stage pipelines innovative treatments impressive results and increased health care spending should support growth According to a report issued by the QuintilesIMS Institute medicine spending through 2021 is expected to grow in mid single digits Trump s pro business stand is also expected to benefit the sector A faster drug approval process and the proposed removal of outdated regulations that drive up costs and slow down innovation should also work in favor of the sector
While drug pricing will remain a headline risk until some plan is announced by the administration here are a few biotech stocks that have performed well YTD and look well positioned
First on our list is Tarrytown NY basedRegeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc NASDAQ While eye drug Eylea the company s key growth driver continues to perform well Regeneron has been working on diversifying its portfolio and gained FDA approval for two drugs this year Dupixent moderate to severe atopic dermatitis and Kevzara moderately to severely active rheumatoid arthritis Both drugs have blockbuster potential with Dupixent already off to a strong start The company also has a strong pipeline comprising 16 candidates including for cancer Regeneron a Zacks Rank 2 Buy stock has outperformed the Zacks categorized Medical Biomedical Genetics industry with shares gaining 25 YTD Estimated earnings growth for the current year is 27 4
Next on the list is Richmond CA basedSangamo Therapeutics Inc NASDAQ Sangamo got a shot in the arm last month with Pfizer NYSE PFE collaborating with the company for the development and commercialization of gene therapy programs for hemophilia A The agreement covers SB 525 one of Sangamo s four lead pipeline candidates and will see Sangamo getting an upfront payment of 70 million Sangamo could also get milestone payments of up to 475 million including up to 300 million related to SB 525 and up to 175 million for additional hemophilia A gene therapy candidates that may be developed under the collaboration Tiered double digit royalties on net sales also form a part of the deal This deal bodes well for the long term prospects of the company Shares of this Zacks Rank 2 stock are up a whopping 123 9 YTD
Another Zacks Rank 2 biotech stock that has had a strong run so far this year is Puma Biotechnology Inc NASDAQ Puma s shares are up 149 4 YTD with the company receiving a huge boost with an FDA advisory panel voting in favor of its experimental breast cancer treatment neratinib The FDA s Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee voted 12 4 in favor of approving neratinib for the extended adjuvant treatment of HER2 positive early stage breast cancer based on a favorable risk benefit profile Given the favorable vote chances of gaining approval look pretty high FDA approval would be a major boost for Puma which currently has no marketed products in its portfolio
While all three stocks mentioned above are Zacks Rank 2 stocks you can see Will You Make a Fortune on the Shift to Electric Cars
Here s another stock idea to consider Much like petroleum 150 years ago lithium power may soon shake the world creating millionaires and reshaping geo politics Soon electric vehicles EVs may be cheaper than gas guzzlers Some are already reaching 265 miles on a single charge
With battery prices plummeting and charging stations set to multiply one company stands out as the 1 stock to buy according to Zacks research
It s not the one you think
About the Bull and Bear of the Day
Every day the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform Bull or underperform Bear the markets over the next 3 6 months
About Zacks Equity Research
Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long term
Continuous analyst coverage is provided for a universe of 1 150 publicly traded stocks Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance Recommendations and target prices are six month time horizons
Strong Stocks that Should Be in the News
Many are little publicized and fly under the Wall Street radar They re virtually unknown to the general public Yet today s 220 Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buys were generated by the stock picking system that has nearly tripled the market from 1988 through 2015 Its average gain has been a stellar 26 per year
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AMD | AMD Stock Carries More Risk Than Reward Near 25 | Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ AMD stock is up almost 34 since the start of 2019 beating the year to date return of the S P 500 three times over Shares fell to 16 04 on Dec 26 when the bulls finally managed to fight back Yesterday the stock closed at 24 71 following an intraday high of 25 51
Most people anticipating the rally to continue would often buy a stock after it has risen substantially But as Warren Buffett once put it the investor of today does not profit from yesterday s growth So let s take a look at AMD through an Elliott Wave perspective and see if it is still a good stock to pick up for 2019
The 2 hour chart shows that the sharp selloff from 34 14 to 16 17 can actually be seen as a textbook five wave impulse in wave A whose wave 5 is extended
According to the Elliott Wave theory a three wave correction in the opposite direction follows every impulse pattern And indeed the rest of the chart reveals an A B C expanding flat correction in wave B up to 25 51 so far
If this count is correct there is a complete 5 3 cycle to the south from the September 2018 top at 34 14 Unfortunately for AMD shareholders this means another decline to under 16 a share can be expected in wave C down from now on
The MACD indicator further supports the negative outlook It shows a bearish divergence between waves iii and v of C of B highlighting the bulls hidden vulnerability near the 50 Fibonacci level In our opinion this is definitely not the time to join the bulls in AMD stock
Original post |
AMD | Advanced Micro Devices AMD Dips More Than Broader Markets What You Should Know | Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ AMD closed at 22 01 in the latest trading session marking a 0 32 move from the prior day This change lagged the S P 500 s daily loss of 0 21 Elsewhere the Dow lost 0 09 while the tech heavy Nasdaq lost 0 18
Coming into today shares of the chipmaker had lost 2 6 in the past month In that same time the Computer and Technology sector gained 2 89 while the S P 500 gained 1 81
Investors will be hoping for strength from AMD as it approaches its next earnings release On that day AMD is projected to report earnings of 0 02 per share which would represent a year over year decline of 75 Meanwhile our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of 1 26 billion down 23 78 from the prior year quarter
Looking at the full year our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of 0 52 per share and revenue of 6 79 billion These totals would mark changes of 47 5 and 4 82 respectively from last year
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for AMD These revisions help to show the ever changing nature of near term business trends As a result we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company s business outlook
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near term stock prices Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple actionable rating system
Ranging from 1 Strong Buy to 5 Strong Sell the Zacks Rank system has a proven outside audited track record of outperformance with 1 stocks returning an average of 25 annually since 1988 The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 1 43 lower within the past month AMD is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of 3 Hold
In terms of valuation AMD is currently trading at a Forward P E ratio of 34 28 This represents a premium compared to its industry s average Forward P E of 17 58
Investors should also note that AMD has a PEG ratio of 1 61 right now This metric is used similarly to the famous P E ratio but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock s expected earnings growth rate Electronics Semiconductors stocks are on average holding a PEG ratio of 1 61 based on yesterday s closing prices
The Electronics Semiconductors industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 185 putting it in the bottom 28 of all 250 industries
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups Our research shows that the top 50 rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1
Make sure to utilize Zacks Com to follow all of these stock moving metrics and more in the coming trading sessions |
T | AT T T Stock Moves 1 What You Should Know | In the latest trading session AT T T closed at 31 63 marking a 1 move from the previous day This move lagged the S P 500 s daily of 0 Elsewhere the Dow lost 0 3 while the tech heavy Nasdaq added 0 25
Heading into today shares of the telecommunications company had gained 6 57 over the past month outpacing the Computer and Technology sector s gain of 3 92 and the S P 500 s gain of 2 36 in that time
Wall Street will be looking for positivity from T as it approaches its next earnings report date This is expected to be April 24 2019 In that report analysts expect T to post earnings of 0 86 per share This would mark year over year growth of 1 18 Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of 45 27 billion up 19 from the year ago period
T s full year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of 3 58 per share and revenue of 184 51 billion These results would represent year over year changes of 1 7 and 8 05 respectively
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for T Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near term business trends As a result we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company s business outlook
Based on our research we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near team stock moves We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear actionable rating model
Ranging from 1 Strong Buy to 5 Strong Sell the Zacks Rank system has a proven outside audited track record of outperformance with 1 stocks returning an average of 25 annually since 1988 Over the past month the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0 16 lower T is holding a Zacks Rank of 3 Hold right now
Valuation is also important so investors should note that T has a Forward P E ratio of 8 93 right now This represents a discount compared to its industry s average Forward P E of 31 16
Meanwhile T s PEG ratio is currently 1 36 This metric is used similarly to the famous P E ratio but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock s expected earnings growth rate The Wireless National industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 2 93 as of yesterday s close
The Wireless National industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 170 which puts it in the bottom 34 of all 250 industries
The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors Our research shows that the top 50 rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1
You can find more information on all of these metrics and much more on Zacks com |
PFE | Shire AbbVie to announce 53 billion merger by Friday sources | By Olivia Oran and Soyoung Kim Reuters Shire Plc and U S drugmaker Abbvie Inc plan to announce a 53 billion merger as soon as Friday morning two people said on Thursday
Dublin based Shire which sells drugs for rare diseases said earlier this week it was ready to recommend a deal to shareholders after AbbVie increased its offer
AbbVie which is based in Chicago and makes top selling arthritis drug Humira boosted its bid for Shire to 53 20 pounds per share on Sunday Shire has rejected four previous bids
The people cautioned the deal could still take longer to complete and the deadline for an offer could be extended
Under British takeover rules AbbVie has until July 18 to announce a firm offer for Shire extend the deadline for an offer or walk away
AbbVie is eager to buy Shire both to reduce its U S tax bill by moving its tax base to Britain a tactic known as inversion and to diversify its drug portfolio AbbVie currently generates nearly 60 percent of its revenue from Humira the world s top selling medicine which loses U S patent protection in late 2016
AbbVie s move is the second attempt by a U S drugmaker to buy a London listed rival after Pfizer Inc s 118 billion pursuit of AstraZeneca Plc failed in May over price
Reuters reported on Saturday that Shire had asked AbbVie to sweeten its offer to near 53 pounds per share so it could recommend the deal Shire confirmed the news on Monday
Representatives for Shire and AbbVie declined to comment
This version of the story corrects paragraph 7 to show failed bid for AstraZeneca happened in May not June
Reporting by Olivia Oran Editing by Andre Grenon |
PFE | Pfizer s need for deal looms larger with earnings report | By Ransdell Pierson NEW YORK Reuters Pfizer Inc s vulnerability to cheaper generics and its weak roster of experimental medicines will be on display Tuesday when the company reports quarterly earnings reviving interest in its pursuit of AstraZeneca Plc or other deals to fortify its pipeline
The largest U S drugmaker whose laboratories have not come up with any big selling new medicines for a decade is expected to report significantly lower second quarter revenue
While many industry watchers expect Pfizer to re engage with Britain s AstraZeneca in coming months some say the U S drugmaker should consider targets more focused on biotechnology a strategy that has paid off for Merck Co and Bristol Myers Squibb Co
Although Pfizer is conducting trials of promising products including breast cancer drug palbociclib and vaccines against meningitis and staph aureus it needs far more drugs to generate meaningful sales growth said Ori Hershkovitz analyst with the Tel Aviv based Sphera Fund which holds Pfizer shares
Pfizer is in a very desperate spot having seen most of its pipeline disappoint and facing multiple patent expirations he said It needs growth it needs to buy a pipeline
Pfizer on May 26 officially abandoned its six month quest for AstraZeneca after its final 118 billion offer was spurned Investors still see a rationale for the deal which would allow Pfizer to enjoy lower corporate tax rates as a UK based company and a promising pipeline of new cancer treatments
Under British takeover law AstraZeneca could reach out to Pfizer in August and Pfizer could make renewed overtures to its smaller rival in November
I definitely think Pfizer will come back for Astra at a somewhat higher bid Hershkovitz said But he recommended Pfizer consider smaller targets whose treatments might broaden its existing research priorities such as Belgium s UCB SA and Switzerland s Actelion Ltd
UCB which makes treatments for epilepsy rheumatoid arthritis and Parkinson s disease has annual sales of 5 billion and a market value of 17 billion Actelion sells lucrative drugs for orphan diseases rare and often life threatening conditions that command high prices It has annual sales of 2 billion and a market capitalization of 15 billion
Leerink Swann analyst Jason Gerberry has said it might make sense for Pfizer to buy Dublin based generic drugmaker Actavis which itself just bought U S specialty drugmaker Forest Laboratories for 25 billion
Disappointment with Pfizer is reflected in its stock price which has fallen 1 4 percent this year against a 11 percent gain for the ARCA Pharmaceutical Index of large U S and European drugmakers Over the past two years its shares have risen 27 percent versus a 44 percent jump for the drug sector
A fresh wave of patent expirations on Pfizer s top drugs is approaching Its Celebrex painkiller faces generics in the United States late this year while impotence treatment Viagra goes generic in 2017 The company s biggest product Lyrica for nerve pain loses U S patent protection by 2018 The three drugs have combined annual sales of almost 9 billion and account for almost 20 percent of Pfizer s total revenue
Biotechs with drugs already on the market and which also have exciting technologies should be on Pfizer s wish list said Navid Malik analyst with London based Cenkos Securities He cited companies such as Celgene Inc and Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc
Roger Pomerantz who headed business development at Merck from 2010 until last summer said the potential of Merck s immuno oncology drugs medicines which train the immune system to recognize cancer cells was not recognized even within the company for several years after it acquired them
It s who you have on the inside helping you understand the science that counts he said
Reporting by Ransdell Pierson Editing by Michele Gershberg and Lisa Shumaker |
PFE | Pfizer rallies 1 4 in pre market after upbeat Q2 earnings | Investing com U S pharmaceutical giant Pfizer NYSE PFE reported better than expected second quarter earnings ahead of Tuesday s opening bell sending its shares higher in pre market trade
Pfizer said adjusted earnings per share came in at 58 cents in the second quarter above expectations for adjusted earnings of 57 cents per share
The company s second quarter revenue totaled 12 8 billion beating forecasts for revenue of 12 5 billion
Ian Read Chairman and Chief Executive Officer stated I am pleased with our operating performance to date
I continue to see Pfizer as well positioned to effectively execute on our strategy to further strengthen each of our businesses on a global basis and deliver value to all of our stakeholders Mr Read concluded
Pfizer said it expected full year adjusted revenue to come in a range between 48 7 billion and 50 7 billion compared to expectations for full year revenue of 49 4 billion
Following the release of the report shares in Pfizer NYSE PFE rose 1 4 in pre market trade
Meanwhile the outlook for U S equity markets was higher The Dow indicated a gain of 0 2 at the open the S P 500 pointed to an increase of 0 15 while Nasdaq 100 added 0 2 |
AMD | AMD 8 6 on Q1 beats upside guidance | AMD NASDAQ AMD shares pop 8 6 aftermarket on Q1 results that beat EPS and revenue estimates with a 40 Y Y revenue growth Upside Q2 guidance has revenue from 1 675B to 1 775B consensus 1 58B Revenue breakdown Computing and Graphics segment revenue was up 95 on the year to 1 12B 23 Q Q driven by strong sales of Radeon and Ryzen products Enterprise Embedded and Semi Custom segment was 12 Y Y to 532M 23 Q Q Key metrics Gross margin 36 4 percentage points Y Y operating margin 27 4 pp R D spend 343M 72M MG A spend 134M 11M cash and equivalents 1 1B Earnings call is scheduled for 5 30 PM Eastern with a webcast available here Press release Previously Advanced Micro Devices beats by 0 02 beats on revenue April 25 Now read |
T | Sprint sinks as regulatory uncertainty weighs on its T Mobile merger | in a deal that values the combined company at 146 billion Current T Mobile US CEO John Legere retain his role at the combined company which will keep the T Mobile name tanked 12 as investors worried that the deal might not pass anti trust scrutiny on the news while is down slightly Shares of fell as much as 12 in early trading Monday amid growing concern the wireless carrier s proposed its merger with T Mobile in a deal that values the combined company at 146 billion may not pass regulatory scrutiny T Mobile USA CEO a seven minute video breaking down the merger while also including a link to a further explaining the combination Germany s Deutsche Telekom DE DTEGn owns two thirds of T Mobile and will control the newly formed entity The announcement on Sunday marks the culmination of between T Mobile and Sprint and was the third time the two rivals had tried to merge With 127 million customers between them the two newly teamed companies are expected to compete directly with the nation s number one carrier and second place That s where the concern comes in For evidence that the deal which will combine the third and fourth largest US wireless carriers is expected to come under serious scrutiny from antitrust regulators that one need not look further than how fervently the In November the US Department of Justice sued to block AT T s proposed 84 5 billion takeover of the cable giant President Trump himself said on the campaign trail in October 2016 that such deals would result in too much concentration in the hands of too few and deals like this destroy democracy However Sprint and T Mobile face a different challenge While AT T s proposed merger was a so called vertical deal in that the two firms aren t direct competitors and the new company would be vertically integrated to combined film TV production with distribution T Mobile and Sprint are direct competitors and consumers will have one less competitive choice if the deal goes through I think it s very hard to imagine DOJ just giving this deal a pass given how much it would increase concentration in key segments of the wireless market Gene Kimmelman former DOJ official and CEO of Public Knowledge T Mobile and Sprint s proposed deal involves T Mobile exchanging 9 75 Sprint shares per unit of T Mobile Deutsche Telekom will own 42 of the combined company while SoftBank which controls 85 of Sprint will own 27 The remaining 31 will be held by the public Sprint s stock has surged 26 since the on April 10 that the two companies had rekindled merger talks T Mobile s stock has risen 8 over the same period The all stock transaction values Sprint at 0 10256 per T Mobile share or 6 62 a share based on T Mobile s last closing price That valued Sprint at around 26 billion T Mobile had a market value of 55 billion as of Friday s close and the two companies have roughly 60 billion of combined debt Shares of Sprint are up 9 since the beginning of 2018 while T Mobile is flat year to date Joe Ciolli contributed to this report |
T | U S commerce secretary says 5G priority for Trump administration | WASHINGTON Reuters The U S commerce secretary said on Tuesday that building a next generation 5G mobile network was a priority for President Donald Trump s administration boosting the argument behind the proposed merger of wireless carriers Sprint Corp N S and T Mobile US Inc O TMUS I think the pitch that Sprint and T Mobile are making is an interesting one that their merger would propel Verizon and AT T NYSE T into more active pursuit of 5G Wilbur Ross told CNBC Whoever pursues it whoever does it we re very much in support of 5G We need it We need it for defense purposes we need it for commercial purposes he added T Mobile and Sprint said on Sunday they had agreed on a 26 billion all stock merger capping four years of on and off talks between the third and fourth largest U S wireless carriers Regulators are expected to grill the firms on how they will price their combined wireless offerings T Mobile majority owned by Deutsche Telekom AG DE DTEGn and Sprint controlled by Japan s SoftBank Group Corp T 9984 said the combined company would invest 40 billion over the next three years to upgrade networks to accommodate 5G The Federal Communications Commission said in February it planned new auctions of high band spectrum starting later this year to speed the launch of next generation 5G networks Carriers have spent billions of dollars acquiring spectrum and are beginning to develop and test 5G networks which are expected to be at least 100 times faster than current 4G networks and cut latency or delays to less than one thousandth of a second from one hundredth of a second in 4G the FCC has said Policymakers and mobile phone companies have said the next generation of wireless signals needs to be much faster and far more responsive to allow advanced technologies like virtual surgery or controlling machines remotely Shares for Sprint closed down 3 6 percent while T Mobile was off 1 8 percent T Mobile Chief Executive John Legere met with two FCC commissioners in Washington on Tuesday to discuss the merits of the deal Democratic Senator Ed Markey called for a hearing on the proposed combined company that would have more than 120 million subscribers and be 42 percent owned by Deutsche Telekom
Without sufficient alternatives to the other two major wireless providers consumers may be left with no option to switch to a provider offering better more affordable services he said |
T | U S considering restrictions on China s telecoms companies sources | WASHINGTON Reuters The Trump administration is considering issuing an executive order that would restrict some Chinese companies ability to sell telecommunications equipment in the United States two industry officials said an action likely aimed at Huawei Technologies Co Ltd HWT UL and ZTE Corp President Donald Trump s administration has already targeted Huawei and ZTE two of the world s major telecommunications equipment manufacturers with a number of recent actions to restrict their businesses in the United States based on national security concerns The news reported earlier by the Wall Street Journal came as Washington despatched a team to Beijing headed by Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to hold talks over an ever worsening economic relationship with China The relationship has seen Trump threaten to impose tariffs on up to 150 billion of Chinese imports a move that could trigger a trade war between the world s two largest economies U S lawmakers and the Trump administration have pressured U S companies to not sell Huawei or ZTE products saying they potentially could be used to spy on Americans Earlier this year they pushed AT T NYSE T to drop a deal with Huawei to sell its smartphones in the United States A White House National Security Council spokesman said While we have no comment on individual actions protecting critical infrastructure including the supply chains associated with such infrastructure is a critical part of protecting America s national security and public safety Representatives of Huawei and ZTE could not be reached immediately for comment on the possible executive action though both have denied allegations their products are used to spy A U S official familiar with ongoing administration talks about Huawei and ZTE said These two companies in particular are of concern because of the kind of equipment they produce and their overall market penetration In April Assistant Secretary for International Markets and Investment Heath Tarbert said the United States is considering ways to restrict sensitive Chinese investments in the United States by invoking an emergency powers law and bringing forward some security review reforms for corporate acquisitions Any executive action would come on the heels of a series of U S moves aimed at stopping or reducing access by Huawei and ZTE to the U S economy including recent restrictions on U S suppliers of ZTE set by the Commerce Department amid allegations the companies could be using their technology to spy on Americans The Federal Communications Commission in April proposed barring the use of funds from a government program to purchase equipment or services from companies that pose a security threat to U S communications networks FCC Chairman Ajit Pai told Congress in March he shared the concerns of U S lawmakers about espionage threats from Huawei Hidden back doors to our networks in routers switches and virtually any other type of telecommunications equipment can provide an avenue for hostile governments to inject viruses launch denial of service attacks steal data and more Pai said at the time The U S Department of Defense has already stopped selling mobile phones and modems made by Huawei and ZTE in stores on its military bases citing potential security risks As of April 25 the Pentagon ordered that these and related products be removed from its stores worldwide according to Pentagon spokesman Major Dave Eastburn These devices may pose an unacceptable risk to the department s personnel and mission Eastburn said A Huawei spokesman said the company s products meet the highest standards of security privacy and engineering in every country we operate globally including the U S and added that no government has ever asked us to compromise the security or integrity of any of our networks or devices
The Army and Air Force have more than 3 100 stores around the world and also sell goods online to military personnel The Navy Exchange has more than 300 stores worldwide as well as stores aboard more than 100 ships |
T | Poorest U S consumers seen hit hard by T Mobile Sprint merger | By Sheila Dang and Diane Bartz Reuters The poorest U S consumers would lose most from the proposed tie up of wireless carriers T Mobile US Inc O TMUS and Sprint Corp N S according to consumer advocates who warned the combined company would raise fees for pre paid and other low cost mobile phone plans T Mobile and Sprint announced a 26 billion all stock deal on Sunday saying they believed they could win over skeptical regulators because the merger would create thousands of jobs and help the United States beat China in creating 5G the next generation mobile network But consumer groups complained the deal would lead to higher prices hitting low income people the hardest and leaving them fewer alternatives for communication Amparo Calcawell knows this well The 62 year old hairdresser has already lost her 50 per month Boost Mobile service due to a missed payment and fears higher prices will force her to find a new provider The New York City resident speaking outside a Boost Mobile store in Manhattan holding a fistful of cash needs her phone to keep in touch with family This is why a phone is so important The Federal Communications Commission and Justice Department will likely review the proposed deal to determine if it would harm competition or if it is in the public interest While AT T NYSE T and Verizon dominate the U S wireless market overall T Mobile is the most popular among customers who make less than 75 000 per year and Sprint s pre paid brand Boost counts 83 percent of its users in that income range according to data from Kagan S P Global Market Intelligence data T Mobile has 38 percent of the U S pre paid market while Sprint has 16 percent which would give the combined company 54 percent according to S P Lower income consumers are likely to lose the most options and face stiff price hikes because Sprint and T Mobile are the only game in town for them said Gene Kimmelman president of advocacy group Public Knowledge and a former chief counsel for the U S Justice Department s Antitrust Division In its antitrust review the Justice Department would likely view the prepaid market as a separate market and if they do the companies could be in for a tough review experts said It s clearly putting a more than 50 percent leader in the market That will draw serious scrutiny said Caroline Holland a Mozilla tech policy fellow who formerly served as chief counsel for competition and intergovernmental relations in DOJ s antitrust division Sprint Chief Executive Marcelo Claure told Reuters during a post earnings call with reporters that customers will benefit from the stronger network of a combined Sprint and T Mobile and pricing will improve because of the network s increased capacity You ll see this company be the best in pre paid and post paid Claure said adding that by creating a better network it will make the industry more competitive I think we have everything we need to lower prices and also grow market share Consumers are already questioning the fewer choices among the major carriers Sharron Cannon 60 who lives in Harlem New York said she had canceled her Sprint plan because she was unhappy with the service and moved to T Mobile only to find out the companies were combining Now Cannon an entrepreneur who depends on her phone to run her business said she is concerned her bill will go up Spokespeople for T Mobile had no immediate comment AT T and Verizon declined comment WHOLESALE WOES T Mobile and Sprint sell their airwaves to smaller wireless carriers that also serve low income and budget conscious customers and a merger could hurt those carriers ability to negotiate for lower prices said Stephen Stokols chief executive of FreedomPop which offers a free phone plan and uses Sprint s network Retail wireless prices have declined over the past year and a half but Stokols predicts price cuts will end after the merger FreedomPop has more than 2 million customers and about 20 percent make less than 40 000 per year Stokols said adding about half of users are on the free phone service plan Since T Mobile and Sprint have their own branded pre paid users and also power smaller pre paid operators the control the company would have over the market is concerning Stokols said
The deal is good for the market but bad for consumers Stokols said T Mobile and Sprint have been driving down pricing previously you won t have competition at the bottom level anymore |
PFE | Sangamo s SGMO Hemophilia A Drug Gets Fast Track Status | Sangamo Therapeutics Inc NASDAQ SGMO announced that the FDA has granted fast track designation to pipeline candidate SB 525
Sangamo s shares declined 145 9 year to date compared with the Zacks classified industry s gain of 2 1
SB 525 is Sangamo s clinical stage cDNA gene therapy candidate for hemophilia A
The fast track designation from the FDA will facilitate the development and expedite the review of drugs and biologics to treat serious conditions and fill an unmet medical need
We remind investors that SB 525 already enjoys orphan drug status in the U S The FDA has cleared an Investigational New Drug application for this program and a phase I II clinical trial evaluating SB 525 in adults with hemophilia A is expected to open and begin screening subjects for enrolment by the end of second quarter 2017 Data from this study are expected in late 2017 or early 2018
SB 525 is one of Sangamo s four lead product candidates The candidate is being developed as part of an exclusive global collaboration and license agreement with Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE Earlier in this month Sangamo announced an exclusive global collaboration and license agreement with Pfizer for the development and commercialization of gene therapy programs for Hemophilia A
Hemophilia A is a monogenic rare bleeding disorder in which the blood does not clot normally As per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention hemophilia occurs in about one of every 5 000 male births with an estimated 20 000 males in the U S living with the disorder
Meanwhile Sangamo also has a collaboration agreement with Shire International GmbH NASDAQ SHPG to develop therapeutics for Huntington s disease
Zacks Rank Key Picks
Sangamo currently carries a Zacks Rank 3 Hold
A better ranked stock in the health care sector is VIVUS Inc NASDAQ VVUS which sports a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy You can see
VIVUS s loss per share estimates narrowed from 50 cents to 39 cents for 2017 over the last 30 days The company posted positive earnings surprises in all of the four trailing quarters with an average beat of 233 69
Will You Make a Fortune on the Shift to Electric Cars
Here s another stock idea to consider Much like petroleum 150 years ago lithium power may soon shake the world creating millionaires and reshaping geo politics Soon electric vehicles EVs may be cheaper than gas guzzlers Some are already reaching 265 miles on a single charge
With battery prices plummeting and charging stations set to multiply one company stands out as the 1 stock to buy according to Zacks research
It s not the one you think |
PFE | Glycomimetcs Shares Shoot Up On Announcement Of FDA Breakthrough | Glycomimetc NASDAQ GLYC
GlycoMimetics Inc GLYC a national clinical stage biotechnology company yesterday announced that they received FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designations for treatment of adult relapsed refractory acute myeloid leukemia AML of the company s drug candidate GMI 1271
During a Phase 2 study the drug GMI 1271 achieved better than expected mortality rates in patients with relapsed refractory AML as well as newly diagnosed patients
GlycoMimetics Inc CMO s Comments
The FDA s granting to GMI 1271 of Breakthrough Therapy designation will further help GlycoMimetics to accelerate the development of GMI 1271 as a treatment for this very difficult to treat patient population said MD Chief Medical Officer of GlycoMimetics We believe GMI 1271 when combined with chemotherapy has the potential to address an unmet therapeutic need for individuals living with AML We are encouraged by our clinical results to date and look forward to working closely with the FDA to bring this novel therapy to patients as quickly as possible
GLYC Technical Analysis
GlycoMimetics Chart
GLYC opened trading yesterday at 5 38 which was up from the previous day s trading close of 5 37 GLYC closed trading yesterday at 5 37 and spiked up after market to 7 52 equivalent to a 40 increase from the closing price Taking a look at the daily chart we can see the last time GLYC traded above these levels we have to go back to September 20th 2016 when it traded at highs of 7 58
Taking a closer look at the daily chart we can see that before the spike up GLYC had already been in an overall downward trend dating back to August 1st 2016 when it traded at 8 84 GLYC has a float of 12 22 million shares and traded 1 77 times the normal daily trading volume on Wednesday
For trading purposes I would like to see GLYC open trading on Thursday above 6 80 and if it does I would be looking to take a long position at the bell My stop loss would be 0 20 from my entry position fearing anything more than that and the stock would start to fill in the gap up
Company Profile
GlycoMimetics Inc a clinical stage biotechnology company focuses on the discovery and development of glycomimetic drugs to address unmet medical needs resulting from diseases in the United States
The company is developing its lead product candidates include rivipansel a pan selectin antagonist which is in Phase III clinical trials for the treatment of vaso occlusive crisis a debilitating and painful condition that occurs periodically throughout the life of a person with sickle cell disease and GMI 1271 an E selectin antagonist to treat acute myeloid leukemia and other hematologic cancers It is also developing GMI 1359 a drug candidate targeting E selectin and CXCR4 and galectin 3 and galectin 9 inhibitors
The company has a collaborative research and development agreement with Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE GlycoMimetics Inc was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Rockville Maryland |
PFE | Shire SHPG Up On Positive Phase III Study Data On HAE Drug | Shire plc NASDAQ SHPG announced positive top line results from the phase III study HELP on pipeline candidate lanadelumab
Shire s shares have rallied 10 6 so far this year outperforming the Zacks classified industry s 7 0 rise
The global multi center randomized double blind placebo controlled parallel group trial evaluated the efficacy and safety of subcutaneously administered lanadelumab versus placebo over 26 weeks in patients 12 years of age or older with Hereditary Angioedema HAE
The study met its primary endpoint and all secondary endpoints with highly statistically significant and clinically meaningful results for all three lanadelumab treatment arms compared to placebo
The study results showed that 300 mg dose administered once every two weeks resulted in a statistically significant reduction in mean HAE attack frequency of 87 compared to placebo p 0 001
Consequently Shire plans to submit a biologics license application BLA to the FDA by late 2017 or early 2018 We note that lanadelumab enjoys both Orphan Drug Designation and Breakthrough Therapy Designation in the U S and Orphan Drug Designation in the EU Following the news shares moved up 7 8 in session
The successful development and commercialization of lanadelumab will boost Shire s HAE portfolio which currently boasts Cinrzye and Firazyr Shire had earlier acquired the biotech company Dyax Corp to strengthen its position in the HAE market further The acquisition added an approved HAE treatment Kalbitor to Shire s portfolio
Concurrently Shire announced that results from a phase II study NCT01620255 investigating an anti mucosal addressin cell adhesion molecule 1 MAdCAM 1 antibody SHP647 formerly PF 00547659 for the treatment of moderate to severe ulcerative colitis in adults were published in The Lancet
The results from the phase II study showed that candidate met its primary endpoint demonstrating significantly greater remission rates in patients receiving anti MAdCAM antibody compared to placebo in three of four tested dose groups
Shire plans to initiate a phase III trial on SHP647 in the second half of 2017 We note thet Shire had licensed the global rights to all indications for SHP647 from Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE in Jun 2016 to strengthen its GI portfolio Shire s efforts to develop its GI franchise are encouraging The Feb 2015 NPS Pharma acquisition worth 5 2 billion added Gattex Revestive short bowel syndrome and Natpara Natpar an adjunct to calcium and vitamin D to control hypocalcemia in patients with hypoparathyroidism to Shire s portfolio
Zacks Rank Key Picks
Shire currently carries a Zacks Rank 3 Hold
Some better ranked stocks in the health care sector include VIVUS Inc NASDAQ VVUS and Aeglea BioTherapeutics NASDAQ AGLE While VIVUS sports a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy Aeglea carries a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see
VIVUS s loss per share estimates narrowed from 50 cents to 39 cents for 2017 over the last 30 days The company posted positive earnings surprises in all of the four trailing quarters with an average beat of 233 69
Aeglea s loss per share estimates narrowed from 3 64 to 2 48 for 2017 over the last 60 days The company posted positive earnings surprises in three of the four trailing quarters with an average beat of 20 75
Zacks Hidden Trades
While we share many recommendations and ideas with the public certain moves are hidden from everyone but selected members of our portfolio services Would you like to peek behind the curtain today and view them
Starting now for the next month I invite you to follow all Zacks private buys and sells in real time from value to momentum from stocks under 10 to ETF to option movers from insider trades to companies that are about to report positive earnings surprises we ve called them with 80 accuracy You can even look inside portfolios so exclusive that they are normally closed to new investors |
PFE | This Big Pharma Stock Is Nearing A Buy Level | Traders and investors should note that Pfizer NYSE PFE has been steadily declining since late February 2017 Back then PFE was trading above 34 a share today it s around 32 The pharmaceutical giant is now trading below the important 200 and 50 day moving averages which puts it in a weak technical position on the daily chart
Buy Levels
Pfizer will have major chart support around 30 which is where the stock was defended in April and November 2016 Quite often past breakout levels serve as major chart support when retested The 30 level should be an area where PFE can be bought Traders should look for a move back up to the 34 area If you buy the stock place a stop loss below 27 50 using a weekly chart close |
T | AT T Averts Viacom Blackout In DirecTV With Renewed Contract | AT T Inc NYSE T has averted a potential blackout of Viacom Inc NASDAQ VIA channels like MTV Nickelodeon and Comedy Central in DirecTV by inking a renewed contract well past the official deadline The deal has put to rest potential conflicts between the two powerhouses that jeopardized the uninterrupted delivery of popular shows and contents across the telecom carrier s pay TV service Viacom had previously accused AT T of highhandedness and abuse of powers as it bargained high to set the fees to beam the channels On its part AT T argued that Viacom was losing its mass appeal and no longer warranted annual fees in the vicinity of 1 billion The potential crisis could have led to AT T s 24 5 million subscribers losing out on Viacom content Consequently the two companies continued their negotiations past the set deadline of Mar 22 midnight to stave off a shutdown and a deal for an undisclosed amount was finally reached Meanwhile amid high subscriber churn for video enabled services AT T has revamped its video content lineup at competitive prices The strategic move is likely to increase its subscriber base and augment overall revenues as lower video packages are offset by higher digital ad revenues AT T is currently offering DirecTV Now Plus package with HBO and about 40 channels for as little as 50 a month while DirecTV Now Max package will offer more than 50 channels including HBO for 70 per month In addition to live TV channels including local options the DirecTV Now Max package will provide an extensive on demand library of movies and TV shows The revamped lineup seems to be the call of the hour as DirecTV Now reportedly lost more than 267 000 net subscribers as discounted introductory offers ended while traditional video subscribers fell 391 000 Moreover revenues from the entertainment group which included video services fell from 12 6 billion to 12 2 billion in fourth quarter 2018 The new packages will provide quality driven video contents at competitive prices and with no annual contract Over the past year the stock has lost 11 3 while the has rallied 8 4 With a focused roadmap AT T appears poised to turn the tables in 2019 which is likely to be a decisive year for the company Whether this Zacks Rank 3 Hold stock can indeed deliver on its set targets and perform to its full potential in the year remains to be seen A couple of better ranked stocks in the industry are CenturyLink Inc NYSE T and Telenav Inc NYSE T each carrying a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see CenturyLink has a long term earnings growth expectation of 5 3 It topped estimates in each of the preceding four quarters average positive earnings surprise being 23 4 Telenav beat earnings estimates in each of the last four quarters the average being 23 7 Is Your Investment Advisor Fumbling Your Financial Future See how you can more effectively safeguard your retirement with a new Special Report 4 Warning Signs Your Investment Advisor Might Be Sabotaging Your Financial Future |
PFE | Asian shares edge higher on Wall Street lead Hang Seng up 0 83 | Investing com Asian shares followed Wall Street s lead from overnight gaining on Wednesday after the S P 500 closed at its second straight record
The gains in Asia however were modest with the Hang Seng index up 0 83 the Shanghai Composite gaining 0 16 and the Nikkei 225 edging 0 04 in morning trade
Ahead China s official manufacturing purchasing managers index due at the weekend will be crucial for regional bourses
Australia s S P ASX 200 was up 0 2 as Sydney hit a four week high and South Korea s KOSPI added 0 4
In corporate news Mitsui Fudosan Co Ltd TOKYO 8801 sank 6 4 in Japan after the real estate firm announced that it would raise up to 325 billion via a share offering the company s first in three decades
Overnight U S stocks rose on upbeat economic indicators and on mergers and acquisitions news
The Dow 30 rose 0 42 the S P 500 index rose 0 60 while the NASDAQ Composite Composite index rose 1 22
The Conference Board reported earlier that its consumer confidence index rose to 83 0 this month from 81 7 in April in line with market expectations
Elsewhere the Standard Poor s Case Shiller house price index rose 12 4 in March from a year earlier beating forecasts for a gain of 11 8 and following a rise of 12 9 in February
Healthy wholesale pricing data firmed the greenback as well
The Commerce Department reported earlier U S durable goods orders rose 0 8 in April confounding expectations for a 0 5 fall after a 3 6 increase in March whose figure was revised up from a previously estimated 2 9 rise
Mergers and acquisitions news moved stock prices as well
Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE shares rose after the pharmaceutical giant abandoned its 116 billion bid to acquire Astrazeneca Plc
Separately poultry producer Pilgrims Pride Corp NASDAQ PPC offered to buy Hillshire Brands Company NYSE HSH in a 5 6 million deal |
PFE | FDA Approval Of MannKind s Inhaled Insulin A Breath Of Fresh Air | By Almost seven years since inhaled insulin appeared to have been an idea whose time had come and gone the MannKind Corporation s NASDAQ MNKD success in securing U S Food and Drug Administration marketing approval for its Afrezza Inhalation Powder has breathed new life into this class of treatments for adults with diabetes mellitus
The first inhaled insulin offering to win FDA marketing approval did not have a happy history Pfizer Inc s NYSE PFE Exubera was available in the U S between September 2006 and October 2007 but the major drug manufacturer pulled the plug when it failed in the marketplace where competing products historically have been administered by injection
Alfred E Mann MannKind s founder chairman and CEO seems unlikely to follow in Pfizer s footsteps should Afrezza s sales falter in its first year or so on the market Announcing its FDA approval on Friday Mann said in a statement We are excited for patients as we believe that Afrezza s distinct profile and noninjectable administration will address many of their unmet needs for mealtime insulin therapy and has the potential to change the way that diabetes is treated
Afrezza is a rapid acting inhaled insulin that is administered either at the beginning of each meal or within 20 minutes of starting it
About 29 1 million Americans or 9 3 percent of the U S population are believed to have diabetes according to the National Diabetes Statistics Report 2014 prepared by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Accordingly Afrezza s addressable market is massive
Equity investors and trader appeared to be focusing on the size of this addressable market after the close of trading on Friday when MNKD s share price advanced in the postmarket session to 11 00 from 10 00 a gain of 1 00 or 10 percent following the FDA announcement of Afrezza s approval
Animal spirits in the stock market may have been restrained a little or a lot by the FDA s noting that Afrezza has a Boxed Warning advising that acute bronchospasm has been observed in patients with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease COPD As a result the agency pointed out Afrezza should not be used in patients with chronic lung disease such as asthma or COPD
Based in Valencia Calif MannKind is also being required to conduct four postmarketing studies for Afrezza According to the FDA the drug s efficacy and safety were evaluated in a total of 3 017 clinical trial participants 1 026 with type 1 diabetes and 1 991 with type 2 diabetes |
T | AT T T Dips More Than Broader Markets What You Should Know | AT T T closed the most recent trading day at 30 54 moving 0 47 from the previous trading session This change lagged the S P 500 s 0 29 loss on the day At the same time the Dow lost 0 55 and the tech heavy Nasdaq gained 0 07
Prior to today s trading shares of the telecommunications company had gained 0 16 over the past month This has lagged the Computer and Technology sector s gain of 4 76 and the S P 500 s gain of 2 14 in that time
T will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release In that report analysts expect T to post earnings of 0 86 per share This would mark year over year growth of 1 18 Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of 45 32 billion up 19 15 from the year ago period
For the full year our Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of 3 58 per share and revenue of 184 51 billion which would represent changes of 1 7 and 8 05 respectively from the prior year
It is also important to note the recent changes to analyst estimates for T These revisions help to show the ever changing nature of near term business trends With this in mind we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company s business outlook
Based on our research we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near team stock moves We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear actionable rating model
The Zacks Rank system ranges from 1 Strong Buy to 5 Strong Sell It has a remarkable outside audited track record of success with 1 stocks delivering an average annual return of 25 since 1988 Within the past 30 days our consensus EPS projection has moved 0 23 higher T is holding a Zacks Rank of 3 Hold right now
Looking at its valuation T is holding a Forward P E ratio of 8 57 Its industry sports an average Forward P E of 28 58 so we one might conclude that T is trading at a discount comparatively
We can also see that T currently has a PEG ratio of 1 3 This metric is used similarly to the famous P E ratio but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock s expected earnings growth rate T s industry had an average PEG ratio of 2 99 as of yesterday s close
The Wireless National industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 166 putting it in the bottom 35 of all 250 industries
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups Our research shows that the top 50 rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1
To follow T in the coming trading sessions be sure to utilize Zacks com |
PFE | European stocks mixed to lower eyes on Draghi Dax down 0 05 | Investing com European stocks were mixed to lower on Tuesday as the U K FTSE re opened after a public holiday while investors eyed further comments by European Central Bank President Mario Draghi later in the day
During European morning trade the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 slipped 0 21 France s CAC 40 fell 0 31 while Germany s DAX dipped 0 06
On Monday ECB President Draghi said the bank saw a risk of a deflationary cycle taking hold in the euro zone
Draghi said the ECB is ready to act should it see signs of a negative inflation spiral taking hold and indicated that the bank is weighing a wide range of policy options including interest rate cuts and liquidity injections or broad based asset purchases to help shore up the fragile recovery in the euro area
The comments were made at the new ECB annual conference in Sintra Portugal
Financial stocks were mixed as French lenders BNP Paribas PARIS BNPP slid 0 34 and Societe Generale PARIS SOGN gained 0 80 while Germany s Deutsche Bank XETRA DBKGn edged up 0 08
Among peripheral lenders Italy s Unicredit MILAN CRDI and Intesa Sanpaolo MILAN ISP added 0 04 and 0 12 respectively while Spain s Banco Santander MADRID SAN and BBVA MADRID BBVA slipped 0 09 and 0 35
Elsewhere Accor PARIS ACCP rallied 2 16 after agreeing to buy hotels in Germany and the Netherlands for about 900 million The hotel operator added that is in exclusive talks to buy another 11 hotels in Switzerland
In London FTSE 100 rose 0 26 supported by gains in the financial sector
Shares in the Royal Bank of Scotland LONDON RBS added 0 30 and Barclays LONDON BARC climbed 0 55 while Lloyds Banking LONDON LLOY and HSBC Holdings LONDON HSBA advanced 0 95 and 1 08 respectively
Lloyds Banking earlier said that it will sell a 25 stake in its TSB consumer bank in an initial public offering next month The decision came as the European Commission ruled in 2009 that the lender should have to sell part of its business in response to its U K government bailout
Meanwhile mining stocks were mixed as Vedanta Resources LONDON VED and Glencore Xstrata LONDON GLEN gained 0 56 and 0 60 while Bhp Billiton LONDON BLT and Rio Tinto LONDON RIO slid 0 38 and 0 48
On the downside Astrazeneca LONDON AZN plummeted 2 35 after Pfizer NYSE PFE ended its six month effort to buy the U K drugmaker after offering 69 4 billion saying the rejected public bid represented full value
In the U S equity markets pointed to a higher open The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0 26 rise S P 500 futures signaled a 0 31 gain while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0 35 increase
Later in the day the U S was to produce data on durable goods orders house price inflation and consumer confidence |
PFE | European stocks turn broadly higher Dax gains 0 35 | Investing com European stocks turned broadly higher on Tuesday as the U K FTSE re opened after a public holiday while investors eyed further comments by European Central Bank President Mario Draghi later in the day
During European afternoon trade the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 added 0 18 France s CAC 40 inched up 0 05 while Germany s DAX gained 0 35
On Monday ECB President Draghi said the bank saw a risk of a deflationary cycle taking hold in the euro zone
Draghi said the ECB is ready to act should it see signs of a negative inflation spiral taking hold and indicated that the bank is weighing a wide range of policy options including interest rate cuts and liquidity injections or broad based asset purchases to help shore up the fragile recovery in the euro area
The comments were made at the new ECB annual conference in Sintra Portugal
Financial stocks turned broadly higher as French lenders BNP Paribas PARIS BNPP and Societe Generale PARIS SOGN gained 0 23 and 0 95 while Germany s Deutsche Bank XETRA DBKGn jumped 1 05
Among peripheral lenders Italy s Unicredit MILAN CRDI and Intesa Sanpaolo MILAN ISP advanced 0 99 and 1 08 respectively while Spain s BBVA MADRID BBVA and Banco Santander MADRID SAN rose 0 20 and 0 42
Elsewhere Accor PARIS ACCP rallied 2 after agreeing to buy hotels in Germany and the Netherlands for about 900 million The hotel operator added that is in exclusive talks to buy another 11 hotels in Switzerland
In London FTSE 100 rose 0 46 still supported by gains in the financial sector
Shares in Barclays LONDON BARC climbed 0 50 and the Royal Bank of Scotland LONDON RBS advanced 0 70 while HSBC Holdings LONDON HSBA and Lloyds Banking LONDON LLOY rallied 1 25 and 1 36 respectively
Lloyds Banking earlier said that it will sell a 25 stake in its TSB consumer bank in an initial public offering next month The decision came as the European Commission ruled in 2009 that the lender should have to sell part of its business in response to its U K government bailout
Meanwhile mining stocks remained mixed as Vedanta Resources LONDON VED and Glencore Xstrata LONDON GLEN added 0 09 and 0 27 while Rio Tinto LONDON RIO and Fresnillo LONDON FRES declined 0 60 and 0 70
Astrazeneca LONDON AZN continued to lead losses on the index plummeting 2 09 after Pfizer NYSE PFE ended its six month effort to buy the U K drugmaker after offering 69 4 billion saying the rejected public bid represented full value
In the U S equity markets pointed to a higher open The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0 39 rise S P 500 futures signaled a 0 40 gain while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0 49 increase
Later in the day the U S was to produce data on durable goods orders house price inflation and consumer confidence |
AMD | AMD chips may have security flaws report says | Reuters Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ AMD is investigating a report that some of its processors have security vulnerabilities the U S chipmaker said on Tuesday
Israel based cybersecurity firm CTS Labs said it found 13 critical security vulnerabilities and manufacturer backdoors in AMD s EPYC Ryzen Ryzen Pro and Ryzen Mobile lines of processors The flaws could put organizations at increased risk of cyber attacks the report said
CTS Labs did not immediately respond to a request for further comment |
AMD | AMD s statement on alleged chip flaws | AMD NASDAQ AMD releases a statement about its alleged chip vulnerabilities We have just received a report from a company called CTS Labs claiming there are potential security vulnerabilities related to certain of our processors We are actively investigating and analyzing its findings This company was previously unknown to AMD and we find it unusual for a security firm to publish its research to the press without providing a reasonable amount of time for the company to investigate and address its findings At AMD security is a top priority and we are continually working to ensure the safety of our users as potential new risks arise The researchers gave AMD less than a day to respond to the potential flaws instead of the standard 90 day notice AMD will update the blog here with any further information AMD shares are up 1 4 to 11 68 Previously CNET Researchers find 13 vulnerabilities in AMD chips March 13 Now read |
AMD | More on the research firm behind the AMD chip flaw reveal | CTS the cybersecurity research firm that alleges flaws in AMD NASDAQ AMD chips tells Reuters it shared the findings with clients paying for proprietary research on hardware vulnerabilities The firm declines to name the clients Short seller Viceroy Research published a 25 page report on the vulnerabilities today and outlined its substantial short position in AMD Trail of Bits another cybersecurity firm verifies the CTS findings to Reuters AMD shares are up 0 3 aftermarket to 11 68 Previously CNET Researchers find 13 vulnerabilities in AMD chips March 13 Previously AMD s statement on alleged chip flaws March 13 Now read |
AMD | AMD will fix security issues with firmware patches | AMD NASDAQ AMD will release a series of firmware patches in the coming weeks to address the recently disclosed security issues The processor issues first came to light through a white paper from security firm CTS Labs which gave AMD less than a day to respond to the findings AMD now acknowledges the problems for the first time but says that an attacker would have to gain administrative access to the system to take advantage of the flaws AMD doesn t expect the patches to impact performance Read more about the fixes and the problem at AMD s blog AMD shares closed the day down 2 8 but are now up 1 1 aftermarket Previously CNET Researchers find 13 vulnerabilities in AMD chips March 13 Previously AMD s statement on alleged chip flaws March 13 Previously More on the research firm behind the AMD chip flaw reveal March 13 Now read |
AMD | Stocks U S Futures Point to Weak Opening Bell Ahead of Fed Meeting | Investing com U S Futures pointed to a flat opening bell on Wednesday as investors look ahead to a Federal Reserve interest rate decision later in the day
The S P 500 futures was flat at 2 723 50 as of 6 43 AM ET 10 43 GMT while Dow futures increased two points or 0 01 to 24 767 0 Meanwhile tech heavy Nasdaq 100 futures was down over seven points or 0 26 to 6 899 75
The Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates by 25 basis points at 2 00 PM ET 18 00 GMT Fed chair Jerome Powell gives his first press conference a half hour later Investors are expecting two more interest rate hikes this year but will be watching closely for any hawkish signs from Powell that rates will raise more than expected The Fed is also expected to release the new forecasts for economic growth and interest rates known as the dot plot
Facebook NASDAQ FB continued to be among the biggest losers in pre market data falling 1 87 amid a data breach scandal that has shook the company The social media giant has fallen more than 9 in the last two days losing nearly 60 million off its market value since news that Cambridge Analytica used data from over 50 million users to target political ads without their knowledge
Meanwhile Nokia HE NOKIA Corp ADR NYSE NOK decreased 1 04 while public relations firm Cision NYSE CISN was down 2 19
Elsewhere Twitter Inc NYSE TWTR gained 1 47 while Advanced Micro Devices Inc NASDAQ AMD was up 1 26 and Jd Com Inc Adr NASDAQ JD rose 2 27
In data news Existing Home Sales for February come out at 10 00 AM ET 14 00 GMT while crude oil inventories is released at 10 30 AM ET 14 30 GMT
In Europe stocks were mixed Germany s DAX rose three and a half points or 0 03 while in France the CAC 40 decreased six points or 0 13 and in London the FTSE 100 was down 39 points or 0 56 Meanwhile the pan European Euro Stoxx 50 lost five points or 0 14 while Spain s IBEX 35 increased three points or 0 04
In commodities gold futures were up 0 34 to 1 316 30 a troy ounce while crude oil futures surged 0 82 to 64 06 a barrel The U S dollar index which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies was down 0 33 to 89 71 |
AMD | Susquehanna downgrades AMD | Susquehanna downgrades AMD NASDAQ AMD from Neutral to Negative Price target drops from 13 to 7 50 a 29 downside to Friday s close AMD shares are up 0 5 premarket to 10 68 Now read |
T | Global stocks set for second week of gains commodities ease | By Ritvik Carvalho LONDON Reuters World stocks dipped on Friday but were set for a second week of gains after a strong start to the global corporate earnings season while a rally in commodity prices fizzled out The MSCI All Country World Index MIWD00000PUS which tracks shares in 47 countries was down 0 3 percent Losses by the tech sector in Asia and profit taking among mining stocks in Europe contributed to the overall losses The index is still on track for a 1 percent gain this week as global markets recover from a turbulent first quarter which saw the return of volatility trade tensions between the U S and China and tensions in the Middle East Our base case is that investor focus will shift back to economic growth as some of the current uncertainties ease UBS strategists wrote in a note to clients In our base case we do not expect current tensions between NATO and Russia to escalate further than issues in the past such as Crimea and expect the trade dispute between the U S and China to be negotiated without escalating to a trade war Shares in Europe were down 0 2 percent but remain up half a percent on the week and set for their fourth straight week of gains STOXX EU Dovish remarks overnight from Bank of England Governor Mark Carney weakened the pound helping the internationally exposed FTSE 100 FTSE index outperform with a gain of nearly half a percent Sterling continued to fall against the dollar hitting its lowest level against the greenback since April 6 Expectations of a UK interest rate increase in May has shrunk to around 40 percent from 70 percent earlier this week Elsewhere in currencies the Swiss franc was slightly stronger against the euro after falling to a three year low of 1 20 per euro on Thursday That was past the level which was defended by the Swiss National Bank SNB during the brief era of its currency peg with the euro abandoned in January 2015 The dollar index which measures the greenback against a basket of peer currencies was up 0 1 percent TECH STOCKS RATTLED IN ASIA Earlier in Asia shares slipped as a warning from the world s largest contract chipmaker slugged the tech sector Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing TW 2330 cut its revenue target to the low end of forecasts and blamed softer demand for smartphones Stocks in South Korea KS11 took a 0 5 percent dip MSCI s broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan MIAPJ0000PUS shed 1 1 percent again led by a 1 6 percent fall in technology Japan s Nikkei N225 eased 0 1 percent as the drop is tech outweigh the gains in energy and financials T Brent crude futures LCOc1 were down 0 1 percent to 73 68 a barrel while U S crude CLc1 slipped 0 1 to 68 23 A global oil glut has been virtually eliminated according to a joint OPEC and non OPEC technical panel two sources familiar with the matter said thanks in part to an OPEC led supply cut deal in place since January 2017 Analysts at CBA noted market measures of inflation expectations had spiked higher this week as oil prices surged with some hitting highs not seen since mid 2014 That in turn pressured fixed income debt with yields on 10 year Treasuries US10YT RR jumping to a one month top at 2 93 percent They had last eased slightly to 2 91 percent Yields are up 10 basis points in just two days the sharpest move since early February London aluminum prices ticked higher as a rally driven by fears of supply disruptions caused by U S sanctions on Russia s United Company Rusal HK 0486 the world s second biggest aluminum producer regained momentum Spot gold was down 0 2 percent at 1 342 56 an ounce by 0832 GMT |
AMD | Breakout And Anticipation Stock Setups | I research the strongest stocks when I look for swing trade ideas I sift through the top 1 or 2 in terms of relative strength in the current market and look for two basic types of setups breakouts which I can buy intraday and anticipation setups which I can buy the next trading day if they trigger
Breakout
A 2 3 move that might be the beginning of another leg higher that could continue several days to several weeks and deliver 5 to 20 gain There were quite a few signals on Friday A few examples EVBG AMD NASDAQ FIVN EXAS STAA etc
Anticipation
There is a tight range of contraction that can potentially lead to a breakout You buy on a new 3 day high and either sell on strength or trail your profits The nicest feature of anticipation setups is that all research can be done after the market close and the entries can be automated via conditional orders buy or sell stop limit orders so you don t need to sit in front of your screen all day Today s anticipation setups after often tomorrow s breakout setups Some current examples WWE RARX etc
The most important thing is to know when to play those setups They don t work all the time and in every market environment In fact the same high relative strength stocks can offer great shorting opportunities during corrective markets when most breakouts fail and lead to a quick move lower |
AMD | Advanced Micro Devices AMD Misses Q4 Earnings And Revenue Estimates | Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ AMD came out with quarterly earnings of 0 08 per share missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 0 09 per share This compares to earnings of 0 08 per share a year ago These figures are adjusted for non recurring items
This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 11 11 A quarter ago it was expected that this chipmaker would post earnings of 0 13 per share when it actually produced earnings of 0 13 delivering no surprise
Over the last four quarters the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates two times
Advanced Micro which belongs to the Zacks Electronics Semiconductors industry posted revenues of 1 42 billion for the quarter ended December 2018 missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1 48 This compares to year ago revenues of 1 48 billion The company has topped consensus revenue estimates two times over the last four quarters
The sustainability of the stock s immediate price movement based on the recently released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management s commentary on the earnings call
Advanced Micro shares have added about 9 3 since the beginning of the year versus the S P 500 s gain of 5 5
What s Next for Advanced Micro
While Advanced Micro has outperformed the market so far this year the question that comes to investors minds is what s next for the stock
There are no easy answers to this key question but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company s earnings outlook Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter s but also how these expectations have changed lately
Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried and tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions
Ahead of this earnings release the estimate revisions trend for Advanced Micro was mixed While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company s just released earnings report the current status translates into a Zacks Rank 3 Hold for the stock So the shares are expected to perform in line with the market in the near future You can see the complete list of today s Zacks 1 Rank Strong Buy stocks here
It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and current fiscal year change in the days ahead The current consensus EPS estimate is 0 08 on 1 45 billion in revenues for the coming quarter and 0 62 on 6 83 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year
Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank Electronics Semiconductors is currently in the top 33 of the 250 plus Zacks industries Our research shows that the top 50 of the Zacks ranked industries outperform the bottom 50 by a factor of more than 2 to 1 |
T | AT T Aims To Focus More On European Markets With New Hires | According to some media reports AT T Inc NYSE T is currently focusing more on the European markets with strategic hires as it aims to concentrate on the digital ad market Per the reports the AppNexus division which forms an integral part of its advertising unit Xandr is hiring about 60 persons across the U K France Germany Spain and Italy to augment the company s position within the digital ad realm Over the years AT T has evolved from a telecom firm to a leading player in the U S communications sector with significant media assets The company now aims to leverage the inherent potential of Xandr and WarnerMedia s Turner business to offer enriching advertising content and data analysis to customers in 2019 Xandr is AT T s advertising and analytics firm which provides targeted advertising services leveraging data insights The company boasts an advanced cross platform technology enabling marketers to trade premium inventory in a transparent and automated environment This new of its kind advertising entity has imbibed four key advantages from its parent firm data premium content advanced advertising technology and distribution network to more than 170 million direct to consumer entities across wireless video and broadband Meanwhile WarnerMedia is the new business division of AT T formed through the acquisition of Time Warner assets in June 2018 AT T realized that a vertical merger was the perfect way to move forward as neither a core communications firm could rely exclusively on content nor a media firm could solely depend on wholesale distribution models to sustain in a dynamic environment With assets like HBO CNN and TNT AT T s acquisition of Time Warner has created new kinds of online videos and opened up avenues for targeted advertisements The two business entities have collaborated to improve the relevancy of advertising by pooling a unique set of assets valuable consumer data and insights advanced advertising capabilities and engaged passionate fanbases With such integrated business platforms AT T aims to reinvent advertising for the next generation and give a new dimension to its business model Europe has been a key market for digital advertisers and AT T aims to tap this huge potential to foster growth within the region and boost client support and reach With wide expansion plans including programmatic media trading and marketplace tools AppNexus enterprise technology and advertising marketplace will likely help diversified firms better reach consumers and monetize their content However over the past year the stock has lost 16 2 while the has rallied 3 2 With a focused roadmap AT T appears poised to turn the tables in 2019 which is likely to be a decisive year for the company Whether this Zacks Rank 3 Hold stock can indeed deliver on its set targets and perform to its full potential in the year remains to be seen Some better ranked stocks in the industry are Gogo Inc NASDAQ GOGO CenturyLink Inc NYSE T and Telenav Inc NYSE T each carrying a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see Gogo beat earnings estimates in each of the trailing four quarters average being 34 4 CenturyLink has a long term earnings growth expectation of 5 3 It topped estimates in each of the preceding four quarters average positive earnings surprise being 23 4 Telenav beat earnings estimates in each of the last four quarters average being 23 7 Is Your Investment Advisor Fumbling Your Financial Future See how you can more effectively safeguard your retirement with a new Special Report 4 Warning Signs Your Investment Advisor Might Be Sabotaging Your Financial Future |
PFE | AstraZeneca Leaves Door Ajar To Pfizer Despite Hurdles | By Astrazeneca s LONDON AZN boss said on Wednesday he would engage with Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE if the price was right and the risks posed from forcing the British drugmaker s operations into the U S company s new three unit model were addressed
Chief Executive Pascal Soriot stressed his company had a bright future as a stand alone firm but acknowledged that shareholders would expect AstraZeneca s board to negotiate if terms were sufficiently attractive in a sweetened offer
Every shareholder says at the right level with the right offer you should consider it that is very clear But there is nobody who has told us a specific price at which we should engage he told Reuters in an interview
If the offer was reflecting the value of the company but also addressing some of the integration aspects the operating model and execution risks we are concerned about then we certainly should engage there s no doubt
Soriot and his team have held talks with the group s leading investors during a round of meetings in London Sweden and the United States over the past week
Pfizer made a cash and stock takeover approach on May 2 worth 50 pounds a share to create the world s largest drugs company valuing AstraZeneca at 106 billion The bid was promptly dismissed by the British group s board a decision that Soriot said had the firm backing of investors
There is no single shareholder who has told me or our CFO chief financial officer or our chairman that we should have accepted the offer he said
Buoyed by progress with its new drug pipeline including a lung cancer medicine called AZD9291 for which data was released late on Wednesday Soriot believes AstraZeneca can enjoy a strong independent future but he has left the door ajar to a compelling offer
In addition to price and the share of cash in any increased offer Soriot said AstraZeneca would also need assurances about the risks faced by Pfizer in implementing a complex merger and integrating operations across two sprawling organizations
In particular he highlighted the problems posed by the fact
that Pfizer is now separating its operations into three business units a structure that would clash with AstraZeneca where the MedImmune biotech unit for example serves all parts the group
Pfizer provided detailed financial results for its three business units for the first time last week when it reported first quarter results as a prelude to possibly divesting one or more of them in 2017
Soriot is also worried about diluting the focus on science in the new group and the risk to reputation in Pfizer s controversial plan to re domicile in Britain in order to minimize its tax payments
All those issues will need to be discussed but step one is to get to an offer that reflects the value of the company Soriot said
He was speaking after being questioned for two days by British politicians who are concerned about the impact of a Pfizer takeover on British science jobs
CANCER DRUG HOPES
Soriot stressed there was no inevitability to a deal with Pfizer since AstraZeneca s improving pipeline of new drugs was transforming its prospects following a lean period in its research labs and a wave of patent expiries
AstraZeneca predicted last week that its sales would increase by 75 percent to more than 45 billion a year by 2023
Much of the hope for the pipeline hinges on the company s suite of experimental cancer drugs further details of which are due at the annual American Society of Clinical Oncology ASCO conference on May 30 June 3
One of those drugs lung cancer treatment AZD9291 has produced promising results in an early stage clinical trial details of which were released ahead of the ASCO meeting The drug which shrank tumors in more than half of patients is a potential replacement for established lung cancer pills Tarceva and Iressa
Soriot also highlighted the potential of MEDI4736 a medicine designed to boost the immune system and a promising combination of two other cancer drugs olaparib and cediranib
We think we can succeed because we have innovative products not because we have a large commercial offering Soriot said
At ASCO we will show Phase I clinical trial results but also share some information about our development plans which will show people where we think we can be first and where we think we can potentially come up with treatment algorithms that will totally change the way some types of cancer are treated |
PFE | Pfizer Raises Bid For AstraZeneca To 117B | By LONDON U S drugmaker Pfizer NYSE PFE said on Sunday it had raised its offer for British rival Astrazeneca LONDON AZN to 69 3 billion pounds 116 6 billion or 55 pounds a share and would walk away if AstraZeneca did not accept it
Pfizer wants to create the world s largest drugs company with a headquarters in New York but a tax base in Britain where corporate tax rates are lower than in the United States It has met entrenched opposition from AstraZeneca as well as many politicians and scientists who fear cuts to jobs and research
The U S group said its new offer was final and could not be increased It said it would not make a hostile offer directly to AstraZeneca shareholders and would only proceed with an offer with the recommendation of the AstraZeneca board
Pfizer also increased the cash element in its offer to 45 percent with AstraZeneca shareholders set to receive 1 747 shares in the enlarged company for each of their AstraZeneca shares and 24 76 pounds in cash
The new offer represents a 15 percent premium over the current value of a cash and share approach made on May 2 worth 50 pounds a share at the time which was swiftly rejected by AstraZeneca
Nonetheless two analysts Raghuram Selvaraju of Aegis Capital and ISI Group s Mark Schoenebaum said they believed the sweetened offer would boost Pfizer s earnings quickly with Schoenebaum predicting an uplift from 2015
Pfizer also revealed it had written to AstraZeneca s chairman on May 16 offering 53 50 pounds a share 40 percent in cash but had been told that this still substantially undervalued the company prompting it to make the latest last ditch offer
We believe our proposal is compelling for AstraZeneca s shareholders and that a Pfizer AstraZeneca combination is in the best interests of all stakeholders Pfizer Chief Executive Ian Read said in a statement
He expressed frustration at AstraZeneca s refusal to engage in talks and urged the British company s shareholders to pressure its board to start discussions
Following a conversation with AstraZeneca earlier today we do not believe that the AstraZeneca board is currently prepared to recommend a deal at a reasonable price Read said We remain ready to engage in a meaningful dialogue but time for constructive engagement is running out
Two banking sources earlier described 55 pounds a share as the magic number at which a deal could get done and Selvaraju of Aegis said Pfizer s declaration that its offer was final would concentrate minds at AstraZeneca
The main thing that will be likely to get AstraZeneca to engage is that Ian Read who is a tough guy has basically said this is our final offer he said
In the absence of further discussions or an extension of the deadline for making a firm offer under British takeover rules Pfizer s proposal will expire at 5 p m London time on May 26
An AstraZeneca spokeswoman said she had no immediate comment on Pfizer s latest proposal which would see Pfizer shareholders owning 74 percent of the combined company with AstraZeneca shareholders holding 26 percent
The increased offer had been widely expected Pfizer said last week it would consider a higher offer as it urged AstraZeneca s board to enter talks
DRUG PIPELINE HOPES
The British firm has laid out details of its pipeline of new drugs and argues there is no inevitability about a Pfizer deal although its management also acknowledges the board would have to consider a compelling bid Investors have backed AstraZeneca in rejecting 50 pounds a share but many have said they would want it to engage in discussions if Pfizer came back with an improved offer They fear AstraZeneca shares will tumble if Pfizer walks away
There has been a mounting political backlash against the proposed deal in Britain the United States and Sweden where AstraZeneca has half its roots
The Swedish government launched a concerted effort on Friday against a merger it fears will lead to cuts in science jobs and research echoing concerns aired by British lawmakers at two parliamentary hearings last week and fears for U S jobs in states where AstraZeneca has a large presence
Pfizer s bid would be the largest foreign takeover of a British firm and is opposed by many scientists and politicians who fear it will undermine Britain s science base
British Prime Minister David Cameron has said he wants more assurances from Pfizer and science minister David Willetts said last week he would like to see longer guarantees on investment than the five years currently promised by Pfizer
The UK government has held exploratory discussions with Brussels about strengthening its ability to force Pfizer to honor commitments on jobs and research under European Union rules
But Cameron head of the free market Conservative Party has also said Britain does not want to be seen to be pulling up the drawbridge to foreign companies
Although Pfizer has given a five year commitment to complete AstraZeneca s new research centre in Cambridge retain a factory in northern England and put a fifth of its research staff in Britain it has said this could be adjusted if circumstances change significantly
Pfizer s Read said on Sunday We stand by our unprecedented commitments to the UK government
The tax aspects of the deal meanwhile have sparked anger in the United States where lawmakers are now considering legislation to prevent so called corporate inversions under which U S companies re incorporate overseas to avoid U S taxes
Inversions have helped fuel a wave of deals in the pharmaceuticals sector in recent months but buying AstraZeneca would allow Pfizer to carry out the largest such deal yet |
PFE | AstraZeneca rejects Pfizer s final offer | Investing com U K drugs company Astrazeneca LONDON AZN said Monday that it had rejected a final offer from U S drugmaker Pfizer NYSE PFE saying the increased offer failed to recognize its full value
On Sunday Pfizer had made a new offer of 55 per share valuing AstraZeneca at approximately 70 billion and said the new offer was final
AstraZeneca chairman Leif Johansson said the final proposal was inadequate and undervalues the company and its attractive prospects
We have rejected Pfizer s Final Proposal because it is inadequate and would present significant risks for shareholders while also having serious consequences for the Company our employees and the life sciences sector in the U K Sweden and the U S he said
Mr Johansson said Pfizer s motivation for a merger had been fundamentally driven by corporate financial benefits
Pfizer planned to create the world s largest pharmaceuticals company with its headquarters in New York but based in the U K for tax purposes
That plan met with opposition from unions politicians and scientists amid fears over cuts to employment and research |
PFE | European stocks edge lower in cautious trade Dax down 0 20 | Investing com European stocks edged lower on Monday as investors remained cautious amid sustained expectations for further easing measures by the European Central Bank
During European morning trade the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 slipped 0 22 France s CAC 40 eased 0 08 higher while Germany s DAX fell 0 20
European equities strengthened last week amid mounting expectations that the ECB will ease monetary policy at its upcoming June meeting to safeguard the recovery in the euro zone and stop inflation from falling too low
Recent comments by ECB officials have indicated that the bank is open to easing and is prepared to act swiftly if necessary
Financial stocks were broadly lower as French lenders BNP Paribas PARIS BNPP and Societe Generale PARIS SOGN declined 0 29 and 0 80 while Germany s Deutsche Bank XETRA DBKGn slid 0 46
Germany s biggest lender came under pressure after selling about 60 million shares to the Qatari royal family as it announced plans to raise 8 billion in its second biggest capital increase
Among peripheral lenders Italy s Unicredit MILAN CRDI and Intesa Sanpaolo MILAN ISP plummeted 2 14 and 2 25 respectively while Spain s Banco Santander MADRID SAN and BBVA MADRID BBVA retreated 0 32 and 0 49
Sporting goods giant Adidas XETRA ADSGN was also on the downside with shares dropping 0 54 after Chief Executive Officer Herbert Hainer said in an interview that the company will probably need more time to meet its 2015 sales and margin targets because of the strong euro
In London FTSE 100 declined 0 48 led by Astrazeneca LONDON AZN down 13 63 after rejecting a sweetened 69 4 billion takeover offer from Pfizer NYSE PFE considered as too low
Financial stocks were also mostly lower as Lloyds Banking LONDON LLOY slipped 0 25 and HSBC Holdings LONDON HSBA retreated 0 55 while Barclays LONDON BARC tumbled 1 40 The Royal Bank of Scotland LONDON RBS hold steady with shares easing up 0 06
On the upside Ryanair LONDON RYA surged 5 28 after the discount airline company said that sales rose 3 to 85 04 billion in the year ending March 31
Adding to gains services and maintenance company Mitie Group LONDON MTO climbed 0 64 after saying full year sales rose to 2 22 billion pounds beating expectations for 2 12 billion
In the U S equity markets pointed to a lower open The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0 18 fall S P 500 futures signaled a 0 18 decline while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0 17 loss |
PFE | Forex Pound little changed vs dollar in sluggish trade | Investing com The pound was almost unchanged against the dollar in sluggish trade on Monday as investors awaited Federal Reserve minutes later in the week while signs that a major U K merger deal will fail looked likely to weigh on sterling
GBP USD was trading at 1 6820 up fractionally from 1 6812 late Friday
Cable was likely to find support at 1 6750 and resistance at 1 6873 the high of May 14
Sterling s strong performance this year has been boosted by talk of a merger between U K drug company Astrazeneca LONDON AZN and one of the world s largest pharmaceutical companies Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE
The merger looked likely to fail after AstraZeneca said Monday that it had rejected a final offer from Pfizer saying the increased bid failed to recognize its full value
Demand for the pound continued to be underpinned by expectations that the Bank of England will raise interest rates ahead of other central banks as the recovery in the U K continues to deepen
Investors remained cautious as they looked to the minutes from the Fed s latest monetary policy meeting due for release on Wednesday for insight on the central bank s view of the economy
Data on Friday showed that U S housing starts recorded the largest increase in five months in April indicating that the economy is shaking off the effect of a weather related slowdown over the winter
However the upbeat housing data was overshadowed by a report showing that consumer confidence in the U S deteriorated this month
Elsewhere Monday the euro edged higher against the pound EUR GBP eased 0 11 to 0 8155 but was still close to last week s 16 month trough of 0 8125
The euro s gains looked likely to remain limited amid growing expectations for fresh monetary easing by the European Central Bank at its next meeting in June to safeguard the recovery in the euro zone and stop inflation from falling too low
Recent comments by ECB officials have indicated that the bank is open to easing and is prepared to act swiftly if necessary
Data late last week showing that the euro zone economy grew at a slower than expected rate in the first three months of the year added to pressure on the bank to act |
PFE | European stocks push lower in cautious trade Dax down 0 35 | Investing com European stocks pushed lower on Monday as investors remained cautious amid sustained expectations for further easing measures by the European Central Bank and amid growinc concerns over the outlook for growth in China
During European afternoon trade the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 declined 0 44 France s CAC 40 edged 0 12 lower while Germany s DAX slid 0 35
Market sentiment was hit after China s financial regulators tightened rules on bank lending on Friday sparking fears that limited credit could act as a drag on growth
Meanwhile data on Sunday showing that property prices in Beijing fell at the fastest rate in two years in April added to signs of a slowdown in the world s second largest economy
European equities had strengthened last week amid mounting expectations that the ECB will ease monetary policy at its upcoming June meeting to safeguard the recovery in the euro zone and stop inflation from falling too low
Financial stocks extended losses as French lenders BNP Paribas PARIS BNPP and Societe Generale PARIS SOGN plummeted 1 51 and 2 95 while Germany s Deutsche Bank XETRA DBKGn tumbled 1 30
Germany s biggest lender came under pressure after selling about 60 million shares to the Qatari royal family as it announced plans to raise 8 billion in its second biggest capital increase
Among peripheral lenders Italy s Intesa Sanpaolo MILAN ISP and Unicredit MILAN CRDI plunged 3 92 and 4 33 respectively while Spain s Banco Santander MADRID SAN and BBVA MADRID BBVA lost 1 88 and 2 06
Sporting goods giant Adidas XETRA ADSGN was also on the downside with shares dropping 0 63 after Chief Executive Officer Herbert Hainer said in an interview that the company will probably need more time to meet its 2015 sales and margin targets because of the strong euro
In London FTSE 100 declined 0 32 led by Astrazeneca LONDON AZN down 12 14 after rejecting a sweetened 69 4 billion takeover offer from Pfizer NYSE PFE considered as too low
Financial stocks also remained broadly lower as HSBC Holdings LONDON HSBA retreated 0 40 and Lloyds Banking LONDON LLOY tumbled 1 44 while Barclays LONDON BARC and the Royal Bank of Scotland LONDON RBS plummeted 1 93 and 1 52 respectively
On the upside Ryanair LONDON RYA surged 6 30 after the discount airline company said that sales rose 3 to 85 04 billion in the year ending March 31
Adding to gains services and maintenance company Mitie Group LONDON MTO edged up 0 16 after saying full year sales rose to 2 22 billion pounds beating expectations for 2 12 billion
In the U S equity markets pointed to a lower open The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0 40 decline S P 500 futures signaled a 0 38 drop while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0 37 loss |
AMD | Takeover chatter sends AMD flying | There s a big pop with Advanced Micro Devices AMD 6 4 after takeover rumors circulate around trading desks Bloomberg reports options trading on AMD is elevated as March calls in particular get snapped up AMD has traded as high as 12 54 today Now read |
T | AT T economist argues Time Warner merger is good for consumers | By Diane Bartz WASHINGTON Reuters AT T s N T proposed merger with Time Warner Inc N TWX would save consumers money because the marriage of a pay TV provider with a movie and TV giant would create a more efficient company an economist testifying for AT T said in court on Thursday Dennis Carlton from the University of Chicago sought to rebut testimony on Wednesday from an economist for the government Carl Shapiro of the University of California at Berkeley who said the 84 5 billion deal would cost American consumers some 286 annually in higher prices The government filed a lawsuit in November to block the deal citing antitrust concerns U S District Judge Richard Leon will order the deal stopped if he determines it would raise prices for pay TV consumers or threaten the development of online video Shapiro had argued that the proposed deal would spur AT T which owns DirecTV to charge its pay TV rivals more for Time Warner content in particular the Turner family of news and sports shows He also said the combined company would have an incentive to decline to offer content to cheaper online video services Carlton attacked the assumptions in Shapiro s testimony and used newer data to show that by his tally the deal would provide a net benefit to consumers of 52 cents per pay TV subscriber a month There is an efficiency from vertical integration argued Carlton The proposed transaction is considered a vertical deal since AT T which owns satellite television company DirecTV is buying a content supplier Time Warner Carlton said Shapiro underestimated how many people were dropping pay TV altogether and overestimated how many people would leave their pay TV provider if they lost access to Turner s channels On cross examination government attorney Craig Conrath sought unsuccessfully to push Carlton to concede that a previous vertical deal Comcast s purchase of NBCU led to more expensive TV shows and movies when NBCU negotiated new contracts with other pay TV companies The trial which began in mid March in U S District Court in Washington is expected to wrap up this month In a sign of the high stakes of the trial the head of the Justice Department s antitrust division Makan Delrahim sat at the government counsel s table on Thursday prompting a reaction from Leon who said My goodness gracious when Delrahim introduced himself |
T | China s Huawei Tech retrenches in U S after years of criticism | By Diane Bartz WASHINGTON Reuters China s Huawei Technologies Co Ltd HWT UL viewed with suspicion in congress as a potential threat to U S national security has laid off five employees at its Washington office and slashed lobbying expenditures according to sources familiar with the matter and government filings Huawei the world s third largest smartphone maker let go its vice president of external affairs Bill Plummer and four other people in the Washington office sources said The New York Times was first to report the shake up The company also slashed lobbying expenditures to 60 000 in 2017 from 348 500 in 2016 according to Huawei filings Like every company we continually evaluate our organization and align our resources to support our business strategy and objectives a Huawei spokesman said Any changes to staffing size or structure are simply a reflection of standard business optimization The retrenchment comes amid a steady drip of bad news for the Chinese telecommunications company prompted by concerns by U S national security experts and China hawks who are loath to see equipment made by a Chinese firm installed in the U S telecommunications network In February two Republican U S senators introduced legislation that would block the government from buying or leasing telecommunications equipment from Huawei or China s ZTE Corp citing concerns that the companies might use their access to spy on U S officials Such concerns have extended to handsets In January AT T Inc NYSE T was forced to scrap a plan to offer its customers Huawei handsets after some members of Congress lobbied against the idea with federal regulators The United States this week banned American firms from selling parts and software to ZTE for seven years Washington accused ZTE of violating an agreement on punishing employees after the company illegally shipped U S goods to Iran
Despite being hampered in getting a foothold in the U S market Shenzhen based Huawei saw net profit rise to 47 5 billion yuan 7 3 billion in 2017 sharply up from a 0 4 percent increase in 2016 The rise was partly the result of a 85 percent drop in net financing expenses and partly due to higher revenue |
T | Nafta Trio Meets as Telecom Said to Be Latest Issue Resolved | Bloomberg Nafta negotiators are said to have wrapped up another chapter of the deal as the three ministers leading talks meet again in Washington amid a push for a deal in principle within weeks
U S Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer met Canada s Chrystia Freeland and Mexico s Ildefonso Guajardo in sessions Thursday in Washington The sessions which could continue Friday come amid the latest technical talks what Freeland called an intensive phase after the ministers last session on April 6
They meet as negotiators are said to have finished work on the telecommunications chapter according to two people familiar with the discussions who asked to remain anonymous because the discussions are private The telecom chapter is the seventh completed out of about 30 under consideration for a final deal
Freeland speaking to reporters in Washington on Thursday said Nafta talks are in period of intensified engagement and that so called rules of origin for the automotive sector will be among the things discussed in her meetings
We are very committed to getting a deal to getting a modernized Nafta she said We also think we need to take the time it takes to get a good deal to get details right on complicated issues like rules of origin So we ll see how today s talks go
Read more These Are Five Sticking Points to a New Nafta Deal QuickTake
Nonetheless a few key disputes such as autos agriculture and investor state dispute panels will determine whether a deal is possible said Flavio Volpe head of an industry group representing Canadian auto parts makers
On balance we may be close enough on all of them to get a deal done he said in an interview
The countries haven t publicly confirmed an agreement on the telecom chapter A request for comment from USTR wasn t immediately returned Alex Lawrence a spokesman for Freeland declined to comment The U S had sought assurances to promote competition in Mexico s telecom industry where companies including AT T Inc NYSE T have been investing and Carlos Slim s carrier America Movil SAB is the top mobile phone player
Talks have shifted gears to what Guajardo called a permanent round of negotiations as the Trump administration eyes a stopgap deal U S Vice President Mike Pence and Guajardo have both said a deal could be reached in the coming weeks though there are signs that there could be a deal that leaves the fine print to further talks between bureaucrats
Big gaps remain and the Thursday meeting is unlikely to be a final step The ministers meeting will be closely watched for signs of breakthroughs on some of the key divides such as the auto sector But no statement or announcement is expected at this time said a U S administration official speaking on condition of anonymity
The ministers are scheduled to hold a series of bilateral and trilateral talks Thursday and Friday Mexico Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray is also said to be planning to come to Washington to try to break a Nafta impasse
Updates with telecom chapter details in sixth final paragraphs |
PFE | Why Is Pfizer PFE Up 8 7 Since The Last Earnings Report | It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE Shares have added about 8 7 in that time frame outperforming the market
Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to the stock s next earnings release or is it due for a pullback Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late let s take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers Pfizer Fourth Quarter Earnings Lag Sales Top 2017 Sales View SoftPfizer s fourth quarter adjusted earnings per share of 0 47 missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 0 50 by 6 Earnings also declined 11 year over year due to lower revenues and higher costs and taxes than year ago quarter Foreign exchange negatively impacted fourth quarter adjusted earnings by approximately 0 04 per share Pfizer posted revenues of 13 63 billion slightly higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 13 55 billion However revenues declined 3 from the year ago period Fewer selling days compared to the year ago quarter hurt sales in the fourth quarter Sales in DetailWhile currency movement impacted Pfizer s fourth quarter revenues by 2 228 million operational declined 1 191 million Pfizer s standalone business excluding the impact of foreign exchange and the legacy Hospira and Medivation operations recorded revenues of 12 32 billion down 2 year over year on an operational basis Hospira contributed 1 17 billion to sales Lower sales of the Prevnar Prevenar 13 vaccines franchise and loss of exclusivity for some products offset strong performance of key products like Ibrance breast cancer Lyrica neuropathic pain and Xeljanz rheumatoid arthritis International revenues declined 7 4 on an operational basis to 6 82 billion Meanwhile the U S revenues rose 1 to 6 81 billion Segment DiscussionFrom the second quarter of 2016 Pfizer has reorganized its reporting segments to Pfizer Innovative Health IH and Pfizer Essential Health EH Pfizer IH sales grew 1 up 2 operationally from the year ago period to 7 73 billion Pfizer IH revenues were driven by persistently strong momentum of Ibrance in the U S robust operational growth of Eliquis globally and growth of Lyrica and Xeljanz primarily in the U S Also revenues from the blockbuster prostate cancer drug Xtandi added to Pfizer s portfolio following the Sep 2016 Medivation acquisition also propelled U S revenues This was partially offset by continued decline in revenues from Prevnar 13 for adults in the U S and lower revenues of Enbrel down 22 in key European markets due to biosimilar competition The 2015 expiration of the collaboration agreement to co promote Rebif in the U S also hurt revenues Prevnar revenues tanked 33 in the U S due to high initial capture rate of the eligible adult patient population following Prevnar 13 s successful 2014 launch which resulted in a smaller remaining catch up opportunity in the fourth quarter compared to the year ago quarter Meanwhile the unfavorable timing of government purchases for the pediatric indication also hurt Prevnar sales In 2017 the company expects global Prevnar 13 revenues to remain flat to slightly down with sales declining in the U S While Consumer Healthcare revenues rose 2 to 950 million Global Oncology revenues surged 46 to 1 36 billion driven by Xalkori and Ibrance Ibrance received EU approval in Nov 2016 and will begin to launch across Europe in 2017 This should boost revenues further primarily in the second half of the year Global Vaccine revenues declined 22 to 1 5 billion While Internal Medicine rose 9 to 2 30 billion the Inflammation Immunology franchise declined 7 to 1 02 billion Additionally the portfolio of Rare Disease declined 7 to 602 million Pfizer EH segment sales recorded a decline of 8 down 6 operationally to 5 90 billion EH revenues were hurt by the loss of exclusivity and associated generic competition from products like Zyvox Celebrex Lyrica as well as lower revenues from legacy Hospira products Pfizer launched Inflectra a biosimilar version of Remicade in November last year While Inflectra recorded sales of 4 million in the U S and 61 million globally all other biosimilars brought in sales of 30 million down 8 from outside the U S markets Adjusted selling informational and administrative SI A expenses declined 4 during the quarter to 4 40 billion while adjusted R D expenses rose 8 to 2 51 billion on the other 2016 ResultsFull year sales rose 8 to 52 82 billion falling short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 52 83 billion However sales were within the guidance range of 52 billion to 53 billion Adjusted earnings for 2016 were 2 40 per share missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 2 41 Nevertheless earnings were up 9 year over year Earnings were within the guided range of 2 38 2 43 per share The Hospira acquisition contributed 4 6 billion to revenues in 2016 2017 GuidancePfizer s 2017 sales outlook fell short of expectations Revenues are expected in the range of 52 billion to 54 billion This was lower than the then Zacks Consensus Estimate of 54 26 billion Adjusted earnings per share are expected in the range of 2 50 2 60 The sales guidance includes the negative impact of 0 9 billion from foreign exchange headwinds 1 2 billion from the pending sale of the Hospira infusion systems business to medical device maker ICU Medical and 2 4 billion from loss of exclusivity on products The adjusted EPS guidance includes the negative impact of product losses of exclusivity as well as currency headwinds At the mid point of the ranges revenues are expected to be slightly above 2016 level while adjusted EPS is expected to increase 6 Excluding negative impacts of the pending disposition of HIS and foreign exchange revenues and earnings are expected to record operational growth of 4 and 10 respectively R D expenses are expected in the range of 7 5 8 0 billion while SI A spending is projected in the range of 13 7 14 7 billion In 2017 the company expects to buy back shares worth 5 billion In 2017 Pfizer is expecting pivotal top line study results in oncology and biosimilars
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then
Analysts were quiet during the last one month period as none of them issued any earnings estimate revisions Pfizer Inc Price and Consensus
VGM Scores
At this time Pfizer s stock has an average Growth Score of C though it is lagging a bit on the momentum front with a D However the stock was allocated a grade of B on the value side putting it in the second quintile for this investment strategy
Overall the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C If you aren t focused on one strategy this score is the one you should be interested in
Our style scores indicate that the stock is more suitable for value investors than growth investors
Outlook
The stock has a Zacks Rank 3 Hold We are looking for an inline return from the stock in the next few months |
PFE | Pfizer Falls On Department Of Justice Subpoena | Pfizer NYSE PFE didn t have the best of times in the market last week and for good reason The company was served subpoenas on Wednesday leading to investor fears Today we ll talk about the subpoena s why investors pushed the stock down as a result and what traders should be watching for ahead So let s get right to it
Pfizer Served Subpoenas In US Antitrust CaseAs mentioned above Pfizer had a rough week in the market last week and a good portion of the declines can be attributed to subpoenas the company was served by the United States Department of Justice The subpoenas are part of a widespread antitrust investigation surrounding saline fluids during the flu season about 3 years ago
You see during this season saline fluids are in high demand as more and more consumers find themselves ill and dehydrated As the law of supply and demand tells us when supplies are low and demand is high the price of the product must rise Well rise it did However there s a strong argument that the price of saline fluids went far above natural supply and demand growth In fact those prices went up by around 200 and 300 at Hospira a company that Pfizer acquired and is now dealing with the backlash surrounding
While normal supply and demand based growth in price is completely legal the Department of Justice is investigating to see if the gains in the price were legal or an illegal activity known as price gouging Of course if price gouging did take place with regard to a product as important as saline fluid chances are that there will be quite a bit of legal recourse as a result
Why This Is Leading To Fear Among InvestorsAt the end of the day the reason that Pfizer is down is a big deal You see Pfizer is one of the many companies that has centered its business around saving lives and improving the quality of life among the ill While price gouging alone is a bad thing price gouging with regard to products that are needed in the medical community is a major concern
As a result investors are expecting that Pfizer will have quite a bit of money coming out of its pockets in relation to this issue After all even if the company didn t do anything wrong these investigations usually lead to legal expenses that can reach into the millions On the other hand if Hospira previously acquired by Pfizer did price gouge on such an important product well the cost to Pfizer could prove to be a major one
What Traders Should Be Watching For AheadMoving forward traders should be keeping a close eye on Pfizer as the stock is likely to present several opportunities ahead However if you d like to take advantage of these opportunities it s important that you pay very close attention to the news In particular keep a close eye on the antitrust case that Pfizer is facing at the moment As mentioned above if this thing goes the wrong way it could prove to be an incredibly large cost to the company and ultimately lead to declines However that s not the only story to watch Continue to watch the company s work with regard to its pipeline sales and other key business metrics as any news with regard to these will likely cause movement as well |
T | AT T Aims To Woo Customers With Slimmer Content Lineup | Amid high subscriber churn for video enabled services AT T Inc NYSE T has revamped its video content lineup at competitive prices The strategic move is likely to increase its subscriber base and augment overall revenues as lower video packages are offset by higher digital ad revenues AT T is currently offering DirecTV Now Plus package with HBO and about 40 channels for as little as 50 a month while DirecTV Now Max package will offer more than 50 channels including HBO for 70 per month In addition to live TV channels including local options the DirecTV Now Max package will offer an extensive on demand library of movies and TV shows The revamped lineup seems to be the call of the hour as DirecTV Now reportedly lost more than 267 000 net subscribers as discounted introductory offers ended while traditional video subscribers fell 391 000 Moreover revenues from the entertainment group which included video services fell from 12 6 billion to 12 2 billion in fourth quarter 2018 The new packages will provide quality driven video contents at competitive prices and with no annual contract AT T is also restructuring its WarnerMedia business to focus more on video streaming service and fine tune its operating model with the evolving needs of customers As part of the overhaul process of the newly minted WarnerMedia unit AT T aims to consolidate all its affiliates and add sales groups under a unified platform with its units organized under entertainment networks live programming content production and affiliate and advertising sales The restructured WarnerMedia Entertainment will include premium cable network HBO Turner cable channels TNT TBS Tru TV and the upcoming video streaming service WarnerMedia News and Sports will include CNN Turner Sports Bleacher Report and regional sports networks Furthermore AT T is reorganizing the management structure within WarnerMedia with former NBC Entertainment chairman Robert Greenblatt now being at the helm of Entertainment unit and CNN chief Jeff Zucker overseeing the operations of News and Sports division Kevin Tsujihara will continue to run Warner Bros Hollywood and TV studios along with the licensed consumer products business and a newly created kids and young adult group The affiliate and advertising sales unit will be run by Gerhard Zeiler who earlier served as the president of Turner InternationalThe business restructuring has led to intense speculations of massive layoffs within the company However AT T seems to be keen to generate additional revenues from more video content and subsequent ads through these videos rather than saving costs through layoffs This in turn would enable the company to capture a greater market share in the digital ad business and augment its position as a media behemoth with significant presence in the telecommunication sector as well Despite such innovative products and services the stock has lost 17 3 over the past year while the rallied 0 9 With a focused roadmap AT T appears poised to turn the tables in 2019 which is likely to be a decisive year for it AT T presently has a Zacks Rank 3 Hold Some better ranked stocks in the industry are Gogo Inc NASDAQ GOGO and CenturyLink Inc NYSE T carrying a Zacks Rank 2 Buy and Telenav Inc NYSE T sporting a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy You can see Gogo beat earnings estimates in each of the trailing four quarters the average being 34 4 CenturyLink has a long term earnings growth expectation of 5 3 It topped estimates in each of the trailing four quarters the average positive earnings surprise being 23 4 Telenav beat earnings estimates in each of the last four quarters the average being 23 7 Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2019In addition to the stocks discussed above wouldn t you like to know about our 10 finest buy and holds for the year From more than 4 000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank these 10 were picked by a process that consistently beats the market Even during 2018 while the market dropped 5 2 our Top 10s were up well into double digits And during bullish 2012 2017 they soared far above the market s 126 3 reaching 181 9 This year the portfolio features a player that thrives on volatility an AI comer and a dynamic tech company that helps doctors deliver better patient outcomes at lower costs |
PFE | Pfizer Presses AstraZeneca Case As CEO Faces UK Grilling | By U S drugmaker Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE pressed the scientific case for its controversial plan to acquire Astrazeneca LONDON AZN on Monday as its chief executive prepared for a grilling from British lawmakers
In the latest phase of Pfizer s campaign to counter critics of its proposed 106 billion deal research head Mikael Dolsten said he had been through five different mergers and acquisitions and denied such big transactions disrupted drug research
If you keep your sense of curiosity and an open mind you can learn tremendously he said in a video posted on the company s website
We must stay laser focused on our important projects And that s of course true for Pfizer scientists and AZ scientists and will be true also if we can make a potential combination come together
British lawmakers are due to quiz Dolsten s boss Scottish born Chief Executive Ian Read on May 13 about his plans to acquire Britain s second biggest pharmaceuticals business a deal driven in large part by Pfizer s wish to cut its tax bill
They will also interrogate AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot and business minister Vince Cable
A second parliamentary committee on May 14 will question both CEOs again about the science aspects of the deal along with Pfizer s Dolsten and science minister David Willetts
Buying AstraZeneca would be the largest foreign takeover of a British firm Pfizer s approach has been rejected by AstraZeneca and the idea of a merger is opposed by many scientists and some politicians who fear it would damage the country s science base
Dolsten said there was a really great fit with the products that AstraZeneca had in its portfolio with potential for combining drugs in areas such as lung cancer to offer much more effective treatments
Pfizer has given a five year commitment to complete AstraZeneca s new research center in Cambridge retain a factory in the northwestern English town of Macclesfield and put a fifth of its research staff in Britain if the deal goes ahead
But the U S firm has also said it could adjust those promises if circumstances change significantly prompting demands for more watertight pledges
Prime Minister David Cameron said on Sunday he had made very good progress in securing guarantees from Pfizer However Dolsten s remarks contained no new pledges on preserving British science jobs
SWEETENED OFFER
Pfizer is widely expected to come back with a sweetened offer for AstraZeneca this week though people familiar with the matter said it was likely to wait until after the parliamentary select committee hearings
The British group rejected a May 2 cash and stock offer worth 50 pounds a share from its larger American rival and CEO Soriot has been on a roadshow to meet leading investors and lay out his strategy for a prosperous independent future
Soriot has secured the backing of several high profile shareholders but others have told Reuters they would like him to engage with Pfizer if the U S group makes an improved offer
In addition to wanting a higher price many analysts think Pfizer will have to offer around 55 pounds a share investors are also keen to increase the proportion of cash in any deal from 32 percent at present
Pfizer is limited in the amount of cash it can offer since in order to keep the tax advantages of re domiciling to Britain it must ensure at least 20 percent of the enlarged group is British owned
Under British takeover rules Pfizer has until May 26 to make a firm bid for AstraZeneca or walk away
A slide in Pfizer s share price following its first quarter results last week has reduced the current value of its May 2 offer to just under 48 pounds AstraZeneca shares traded barely changed at 46 pounds early on Monday
Political concerns about the proposed takeover have been fuelled by Pfizer s record of making big job cuts after past acquisitions It also has a tarnished reputation in Britain after shutting down most of its drug research in Sandwich southern England where Viagra was invented with the loss of some 1 700 jobs
Pfizer s Read also laid out the case for a merger in videos posted by the U S group on Saturday when he said strong British research was a key reason for the deal |
AMD | Argus upgrades AMD to 31 upside | Argus upgrades AMD NASDAQ AMD from Hold to Buy with an 18 price target a 31 upside on yesterday s closing price Analyst Jim Kelleher says this week s earnings report made it clear that AMD s business model has a sustainable path towards profitability top line and bottom line growth Kelleher notes that AMD continues to improve execution in high cost and high performance products which positions AMD to take advantage of multiple categories experiencing global momentum The categories include client and server computing consumer gaming and electronics graphics processing cloud data center AI and blockchain The analyst thinks AMD s profit margins will eventually close the gap with stronger peers to become industry competitive AMD shares are down 0 7 Previously AMD down despite Q4 beats upside guidance Jan 30 Now read |
T | At Time Warner trial Dish executive says AT T arbitration offer not sufficient | By Jessica Toonkel Reuters A proposal AT T N T made to the U S government last year to avoid going to trial over its 85 billion deal to buy Time Warner Inc N TWX would not sufficiently protect competitors a Dish executive testified on Tuesday The U S government is seeking to stop the 85 billion deal arguing that it would hurt consumers because AT T which owns pay TV service DirecTV would have more leverage to raise prices by owning Time Warner s Turner networks which include CNN TBS and TNT Tuesday s testimony was the third day of the trial in U S District Court in Washington D C that is due to last six to eight weeks AT T proposed that for seven years it would submit to third party arbitration any disagreement with distributors over the pricing for Time Warner s networks and promise not to black out programming during arbitration However such concessions would not address the risks to companies like Dish because the language is vague and it is unclear who would have the expertise to arbitrate said Warren Schlichting group president of Dish s Sling TV in his second day of testimony It s a high risk proposition to put your business in the hands of an arbitrator who may or may not understand your business Also HBO was not part of that proposal which is a huge issue given that one in five of Dish s customers subscribe to HBO Schlichting said On cross examination AT T lawyer Daniel Petrocelli pointed out that Dish had asked the Justice Department to impose the arbitration arrangement as part of the Time Warner deal Under the proposal the arbitrator would look at comparable services and what they pay for programming at fair market value which Schlichting said was too vague My reading is there is nothing preventing them from pushing more networks on us he said meaning forcing distributors to carry networks they do not want He noted that Dish s Sling online streaming service tries to keep costs low by offering fewer networks U S District Judge Richard Leon asked Schlichting if Dish has data to prove that certain networks are not popular with viewers When Schlichting said Dish does have that data but it does not affect negotiations Judge Leon showed surprise Before the trial on Tuesday the judge held closed talks with attorneys about what testimony Schlichting could give in open court
The U S Department of Justice called Turner CEO John Martin as a witness late in the day and his testimony will continue Wednesday |
T | AT T judge warns parties to hurry to make June 21 deadline | By Jessica Toonkel Reuters U S judge Richard Leon on Wednesday warned attorneys for the Department of Justice and AT T Inc NYSE T to speed up the trial over the proposed merger of the large telecommunications company and Time Warner Inc NYSE TWX or risk missing the June 21 deadline to complete the deal Under the agreement which had been extended from April 22 either company can pull out if the deal announced in October 2016 is not completed by the deadline Both sides need to sit down with their clients and their teams and make sure the have down what they need versus what they want Leon said If we are going to get this done prior to that date we have to move The U S government opposes the 85 billion deal arguing that it would hurt consumers because AT T which owns pay TV service DirecTV would have more leverage to raise prices by owning Time Warner s Turner networks Wednesday was the fourth day of the trial in U S District Court in Washington that is due to last six to eight weeks It has been delayed by one snow day In testimony that began late Tuesday and ended on Wednesday Turner networks Chief Executive John Martin said the company had no incentive to hold back its CNN TBS and TNT content from other distributors if parent Time Warner was bought by AT T The government however claims Time Warner would hold back Turner content from distributors that compete with AT T and DirecTV I would like every distributor to carry every network I have and carry it at 100 percent penetration Martin said when cross examined by AT T attorney Daniel Petrocelli Online streaming services such as Dish Network Corp s Sling TV and Hulu which cost subscribers 20 to 40 a month for a select number of networks live and on demand are important for Turner because revenue cable and satellite companies is slowing down he said The Department of Justice also asked Marty Hinson a marketing executive at Cox Communications about HBO Time Warner s premium channel He said it was vital to attract new customers and keep old ones When asked about government estimates that if AT T bought Time Warner each subscriber s average monthly cable bill would rise by 45 cents Hinson said Cox customers would end up paying tens of millions of dollars a year for the exact same content
In his cross exam Petrocelli asked Hinson if he had ever seen documentation or been told that prices would go up or that it would withhold its programming Hinson said No |
T | DOJ brings programming blackout study into AT T trial | Today at DOJ v AT T T 0 3 brought the government s expert witness and the foundation to its case that an 85B buyout of Time Warner TWX 0 7 would sharply crimp subscribership at AT T s competitors MIT professor John Hauser said that other TV providers could lose 12 of their customer base in a hypothetical drawn out programming dispute with a combined AT T Time Warner Hauser s testimony is based on online surveys conducted across 1 600 people under cross questioning he conceded he hadn t analyzed real world programming disputes that sometimes show much smaller declines A Time Warner attorney pointed for example to a one month blackout between Dish Network and Turner Broadcasting that led to a loss of 30 000 subs 0 25 of Dish s customer base Hauser s data suggest 29 of subscriber contemplating a permanent blackout would switch providers vs a baseline likelihood of 16 switching Now read |
T | U S says AT T wants Time Warner deal to save pay TV cash cow | WASHINGTON Reuters The U S Justice Department presented evidence on Thursday to show that AT T N T owner of DirecTV viewed buying Time Warner N TWX as a way to make viewers stick with their pay TV service instead of moving to cheaper online providers The department has sued to block AT T s 85 4 billion acquisition of Time Warner saying the deal could raise prices for pay TV rivals and subscribers while hampering the development of online video In a hearing before U S Judge Richard Leon Justice Department attorney Julie Elmer cited an email and report in which Gregory Manty a director of corporate strategy for AT T indicated that buying Time Warner s content would allow AT T to slow the decline of pay TV which was described as a cash cow Elmer pushed Manty to agree that the report had been sanitized noting that some phrases were removed by AT T executives or outside counsel I wouldn t use the word sanitized Manty said noting that the powerpoint deck had been used in discussions with Time Warner about potential integration Companies are limited by law in what they can discuss publicly before closing a merger Breaking those rules can cause companies to face accusations of gun jumping It s highly regulated Manty said under cross examination That s why it s overseen by lawyers
The trial which began in mid March in the U S District Court in Washington is expected to wrap up this month |
PFE | Roche Launches Antibody Test To Diagnose Prostate Cancer | Roche Holding SIX ROG AG OTC RHHBY announced that it has launched the anti p504s SP116 Rabbit Monoclonal Primary Antibody for prostate cancer diagnosis on a world wise basis
Roche s share price shows that the company has outperformed the Zacks classified industry year to date The stock rallied 12 9 compared with the industry s gain of 5 9
The antibody is designed in a way that it can be used in a dual stain with the VENTANA Basal Cell Cocktail 34 E12 p63 This enables it to differentiate morphologically difficult cases as benign a typical or cancerous on a single slide In fact elevated expression of p504s has become a useful biomarker in the diagnosis of prostate adenocarcinoma It helps in reducing the need for multiple slides to make a diagnosis Also it aids the clinicians in making a more accurate diagnosis with a smaller tissue sample
Roche is expanding its presence in the diagnostics market The division added nine key instruments and tests to its portfolio in 2016 In 2016 revenues at the Diagnostics division climbed 7 on the back of solid performance of the Centralised and Point of Care Solutions 9 unit
In addition the company also launched four new medicines Cotellic advanced melanoma Alecensa lung cancer Venclexta chronic lymphocytic leukemia jointly commercialised with AbbVie and Tecentriq bladder and lung cancer In addition five FDA breakthrough therapy designations were granted for Roche medicines in 2016
We note that the company has a strong presence in the oncology market It dominates in the breast cancer space with strong demand for HER2 franchise drugs like Herceptin Perjeta and Kadcyla We are also impressed by the company s efforts to develop its portfolio immunology Evidently new drug launches such as Tecentriq Cotellic and Alecensa boosted sales and are expected to continue to do so in the upcoming quarters as well
Recently Roche presented encouraging results from the phase III study ALUR evaluating its lung cancer drug Alecensa The study met its primary endpoint as Alecensa significantly improved progression free survival PFS in patients In fact patients suffering from anaplastic lymphoma kinase ALK positive advanced metastatic non small cell lung cancer NSCLC and had progressed following treatment with one prior line of both platinum based chemotherapy and Pfizer s NYSE PFE Xalkori compared with chemotherapy are likely to benefit from the same
Notably Alecensa received conditional marketing authorization from the European Commission for patients suffering from ALK positive NSCLC who were treated with Xalkori in Feb 2017 Also it is approved as a monotherapy for patients suffering from ALK positive NSCLC who have shown progress or are intolerant to Xalkori Roche Holding AG Price
Zacks Rank Other Stocks to Consider
Roche currently carries a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy Other top raked stocks in the health care sector include Heska Corporation NASDAQ HSKA and Galena Biopharma Inc NASDAQ GALE You can see
Heska s earnings estimates moved up from 1 53 to 1 65 for 2017 and from 1 90 to 2 01 for 2018 over the last 60 days The company posted a positive earnings surprise in all of the last four quarters with an average beat of 291 54 Its share price increased 40 7 year to date
Galena Biopharma s loss estimates narrowed from 2 27 to 58 cents for 2017 and from 92 cents to 73 cents for 2018 over the last 60 days The company posted a positive earnings surprise in two of the four trailing quarters with an average beat of 53 83
The Best Worst of Zacks
Today you are invited to download the full up to the minute list of 220 Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buys free of charge From 1988 through 2015 this list has averaged a stellar gain of 25 per year Plus you may download 220 Zacks Rank 5 Strong Sells Even though this list holds many stocks that seem to be solid it has historically performed 6X worse than the market |
PFE | Roche s Hemophilia A Drug Positive In Second Phase III Study | Roche Holding SIX ROG AG s OTC RHHBY unit Genentech announced positive interim results from the Phase III HAVEN 2 study evaluating its pipeline candidate emicizumab prophylaxis Emicizumab was being assessed in children less than 12 years of age with hemophilia A and inhibitors to factor VIII
The study revealed that emicizumab reduced the number of bleeds in children with hemophilia A and inhibitors to factor VIII after 12 weeks of treatment over time
Roche s share price shows that the company has outperformed the Zacks classified industry year to date The stock rallied 11 8 compared with the industry s gain of 5 4 during the period
Notably the results were in line with data from the phase III HAVEN 1 study in adults and adolescents 12 years of age or older for the same indication The data from the study announced in Dec 2016 showed a statistically significant reduction in the number of bleeds over time in patients treated with emicizumab prophylaxis as compared to those patients who do not receive prophylactic treatment
Going forward data from both HAVEN 1 and the interim results from HAVEN 2 studies will be presented at an upcoming medical meeting and submitted toregulatory authorities in order to get an approval
Roche has been in the news this month for data readouts and regulatory updates
Last week Roche announced that the global randomized phase III study ALEX on lung cancer drug Alecensa met its primary endpoint as an initial first line treatment According to the evaluation Alecensa significantly reduced the risk of disease worsening or death progression free survival PFS compared with Pfizer s NYSE PFE Xalkori in patients suffering from anaplastic lymphoma kinase ALK positive advanced non small cell lung cancer NSCLC
Also earlier this month Roche announced encouraging results from another phase III study ALUR Alecensa This study also met its primary endpoint as data from the study demonstrated that Alecensa significantly improved progression free survival PFS in patients Importantly last month Roche received FDA approval for its highly awaited multiple sclerosis MS drug Ocrevus which is expected to have blockbuster potential Roche Holding AG Price
Zacks Rank Key Picks
Roche currently sports a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy Other top ranked stocks in the health care sector include Heska Corp NASDAQ HSKA and Galena Biopharma Inc NASDAQ GALE Both the companies carry Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy You can see
Heska s earnings estimates moved up from 1 53 to 1 65 for 2017 and from 1 90 to 2 01 for 2018 over the last 60 days The company posted a positive earnings surprise in all of the last four quarters with an average beat of 291 54 Its share price increased 41 9 year to date
Galena Biopharma s loss estimates narrowed from 2 27 to 58 cents for 2017 and from 92 cents to 73 cents for 2018 over the last 60 days The company posted a positive earnings surprise in two of the four trailing quarters with an average beat of 53 83
Sell These Stocks Now
Just released today s 220 Zacks Rank 5 Strong Sells demand urgent attention If any are lurking in your portfolio or Watch List they should be removed immediately These are sinister companies because many appear to be sound investments However from 1988 through 2016 stocks from our Strong Sell list have actually performed 6X worse than the S P 500 |
AMD | Advanced Micro Devices AMD Stock Moves 0 2 What You Should Know | Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ AMD closed at 20 23 in the latest trading session marking a 0 2 move from the prior day This change was narrower than the S P 500 s daily loss of 0 53 Elsewhere the Dow lost 0 36 while the tech heavy Nasdaq lost 0 94
Heading into today shares of the chipmaker had gained 2 06 over the past month outpacing the Computer and Technology sector s loss of 1 88 and the S P 500 s loss of 1 47 in that time
Wall Street will be looking for positivity from AMD as it approaches its next earnings report date This is expected to be January 29 2019 In that report analysts expect AMD to post earnings of 0 09 per share This would mark year over year growth of 12 5 Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of 1 44 billion down 2 68 from the year ago period
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for AMD should also be noted by investors These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short term business trends With this in mind we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company s business outlook
Based on our research we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near team stock moves We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear actionable rating model
The Zacks Rank system ranges from 1 Strong Buy to 5 Strong Sell It has a remarkable outside audited track record of success with 1 stocks delivering an average annual return of 25 since 1988 Over the past month the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 5 39 lower AMD is holding a Zacks Rank of 3 Hold right now
Digging into valuation AMD currently has a Forward P E ratio of 32 39 For comparison its industry has an average Forward P E of 13 82 which means AMD is trading at a premium to the group
It is also worth noting that AMD currently has a PEG ratio of 2 31 This popular metric is similar to the widely known P E ratio with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company s expected earnings growth rate Electronics Semiconductors stocks are on average holding a PEG ratio of 1 02 based on yesterday s closing prices
The Electronics Semiconductors industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 81 which puts it in the top 32 of all 250 industries
The Zacks Industry Rank includes is listed in order from best to worst in terms of the average Zacks Rank of the individual companies within each of these sectors Our research shows that the top 50 rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1
You can find more information on all of these metrics and much more on Zacks com |
T | Netgear NTGR Down 7 3 Since Last Earnings Report Can It Rebound | It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Netgear NTGR Shares have lost about 7 3 in that time frame underperforming the S P 500
Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release or is Netgear due for a breakout Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late let s take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers NETGEAR Misses on Q4 Earnings Despite Top Line GrowthNETGEAR reported mixed fourth quarter 2018 results wherein the top line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate but the bottom line missed the same The networking equipment maker s financial performance was driven by strength in its Orbi Nighthawk Pro Gaming cable modems and gateways as well as SMB switching portfolio particularly PoE and ProAV switches Net LossOn a GAAP basis net loss for the reported quarter was 12 9 million or loss of 39 cents per share compared with loss of 31 9 million or loss of 1 02 per share in the year ago quarter The year over year improvement was primarily driven by top line growth and lower provision for income taxes For full year 2018 net loss was 2 6 million or loss of 8 cents per share against net income of 19 4 million or 61 cents per share in 2017 Quarterly non GAAP net income from continuing operations came in at 22 3 million or 68 cents per share missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 6 cents RevenuesThe company generated quarterly net revenues of 288 9 million up 5 4 year over year owing to growth for both the Connected Home and SMB segments The top line surpassed the consensus estimate of 288 million For full year 2018 net revenues increased 1 9 year over year to 1 058 8 million Geographically quarterly net revenues reflect the company s continued strength in North America Revenues for the Americas were 190 3 million or 65 9 of net revenues up 7 6 year over year EMEA revenues were 58 8 million or 20 3 of net revenues slightly down year over year due to decline in service provider revenues APAC revenues were 39 8 million or 13 8 of net revenues up 4 6 Segmental PerformanceThe Connected Home segment which includes Nighthawk Orbi Nighthawk Pro Gaming and Meural brands generated net revenues of 215 6 million up 5 9 year over year The improvement was primarily driven by growth in Orbi mesh Nighthawk Pro Gaming routers and cable modems and gateways Notably NETGEAR continues to hold more than 50 market share in U S retail WiFi products which include mesh routers gateways and extenders Net revenues from the SMB segment increased 3 8 year over year to 73 3 million driven by NETGEAR s strength in switching portfolio particularly PoE and ProAV switches Other Quarterly DetailsGross margin improved to 31 4 from 27 8 in the year ago quarter Total operating expenses were 73 2 million up 3 8 Operating margin was 6 compared with 2 a year ago On Dec 31 2018 NETGEAR completed the spin off of the Arlo business through a distribution of 62 500 000 shares of Arlo Technologies stock to NETGEAR s shareholders Prior to that the company owned approximately 84 2 of Arlo s stock Following the completion the company no longer owns any shares of Arlo NETGEAR launched two products during the quarter marking significant technology inflection points in wireless The company unveiled its first WiFi fixed routers and debuted the world s first millimeter wave 5G mobile routers with AT T NYSE T Cash Flow and LiquidityDuring the fourth quarter NETGEAR utilized 56 1 million of cash from continuing operations As of Dec 31 2018 the company had 201 million of cash and cash equivalents with 199 5 million of accrued current liabilities compared with the respective tallies of 202 7 million and 149 8 million a year ago First Quarter 2019 GuidanceFor the first quarter of 2019 NETGEAR expects revenues between 235 million and 250 million which reflects normal post holiday seasonality The company anticipates GAAP operating margin to be in the range of 4 5 5 5 Non GAAP operating margin is projected to be 8 9 While GAAP tax rate is expected to be approximately 27 non GAAP tax rate is expected to be around 24 5 Looking ForwardNETGEAR is confident that it will remain a leader in new product introduction based on the Wi Fi 6 standards The company is excited to be part of AT T s commitment to be the first to introduce mobile 5G services in the United States It intends to launch more 5G related products in 2019 Furthermore it released the third generation Meural Canvas Notably Meural is the world s leading smart digital canvas NETGEAR also announced an exciting new Meural content partnership with National Geographic The company continues to capitalize on technology inflections create new categories and build recurring service revenues in order to maintain its market leadership position and drive future growth We remain impressed with its solid growth potential
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then
In the past month investors have witnessed a downward trend in fresh estimates The consensus estimate has shifted 20 49 due to these changes
VGM Scores
At this time Netgear has an average Growth Score of C though it is lagging a lot on the Momentum Score front with an F However the stock was allocated a grade of A on the value side putting it in the top 20 for this investment strategy
Overall the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of B If you aren t focused on one strategy this score is the one you should be interested in
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock and the magnitude of this revision indicates a downward shift Notably Netgear has a Zacks Rank 2 Buy We expect an above average return from the stock in the next few months |
T | AT T T Gains As Market Dips What You Should Know | AT T T closed the most recent trading day at 29 98 moving 0 2 from the previous trading session The stock outpaced the S P 500 s daily loss of 0 21 At the same time the Dow lost 0 09 and the tech heavy Nasdaq lost 0 18
Prior to today s trading shares of the telecommunications company had gained 1 6 over the past month This has lagged the Computer and Technology sector s gain of 2 89 and the S P 500 s gain of 1 81 in that time
Wall Street will be looking for positivity from T as it approaches its next earnings report date In that report analysts expect T to post earnings of 0 86 per share This would mark year over year growth of 1 18 Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of 45 31 billion up 19 12 from the year ago period
T s full year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of 3 60 per share and revenue of 184 48 billion These results would represent year over year changes of 2 19 and 8 04 respectively
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for T should also be noted by investors These revisions typically reflect the latest short term business trends which can change frequently With this in mind we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company s business outlook
Based on our research we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near team stock moves We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear actionable rating model
The Zacks Rank system ranges from 1 Strong Buy to 5 Strong Sell It has a remarkable outside audited track record of success with 1 stocks delivering an average annual return of 25 since 1988 Over the past month the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0 3 higher T is currently a Zacks Rank 3 Hold
Investors should also note T s current valuation metrics including its Forward P E ratio of 8 35 For comparison its industry has an average Forward P E of 27 46 which means T is trading at a discount to the group
It is also worth noting that T currently has a PEG ratio of 1 27 This popular metric is similar to the widely known P E ratio with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company s expected earnings growth rate Wireless National stocks are on average holding a PEG ratio of 2 23 based on yesterday s closing prices
The Wireless National industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 100 which puts it in the top 40 of all 250 industries
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups Our research shows that the top 50 rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1
Be sure to follow all of these stock moving metrics and many more on Zacks com |
PFE | European stocks mixed to lower after Spanish PMI Dax down 0 14 | Investing com European stocks were mixed to lower on Friday weighed by the release of disappointing Spanish manufacturing data while investors eyed an upcoming U S nonfarm payrolls report to be published later in the trading session
During European morning trade the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 slid 0 35 France s CAC 40 declined 0 44 while Germany s DAX fell 0 14
Markit research group said Spain s manufacturing purchasing managers index ticked down to 52 7 in April from a reading of 52 8 the previous month compared to expectations for a rise to 53 4
Meanwhile global equitiy markets remained under pressure after the Federal Reserve on Wednesday said it would reduce its bond purchases by 10 billion to a total of 45 billion a month in a widely expected decision
Investors were looking ahead to the upcoming April nonfarm payrolls report which was expected to show that the recovery in the labor market was continuing
Financial stocks were mixed as BNP Paribas BNPP PARIS plummeted 2 24 and Societe Generale SOGN PARIS gained 0 54 in France while Germany s Deutsche Bank DBKGn XETRA slid 0 41
Among peripheral lenders Intesa Sanpaolo ISP MILAN dipped 0 01 and Unicredit CRDI MILAN advanced 0 58 in Italy while Spanish banks Banco Santander SAN MADRID and BBVA BBVA MADRID shed 0 16 and 0 53 respectively
Elsewhere Pernod Ricard PERP PARIS was down 0 06 after saying it doesn t plan to acquire additional wineries in the U S following last week s agreement to buy Kenwood Vineyards in California
In London FTSE 100 inched up 0 08 led by the Royal Bank of Scotland RBS LONDON whose shares surged 10 18 after the bank said its first quarter profit tripled as impairments fell and its Irish unit posted its first profit since the financial crisis
Meanwhile other U K lenders were mixed as Lloyds Banking LLOY LONDON climbed 0 70 while Barclays BARC LONDON and HSBC Holdings HSBA LONDON lost 0 03 and 0 34
Mining stocks were also mixed with Glencore Xstrata GLEN LONDON and Bhp Billiton BLT LONDON down 0 19 and 0 15 respectively while Rio Tinto RIO LONDON added 0 16 and Vedanta Resources VED LONDON gained 0 43
On the downside Astrazeneca AZN LONDON slipped 0 13 after U S drugmaker Pfizer NYSE PFE raised ts bid for the company to about 63 1 billion
In the U S equity markets pointed to a steady open The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0 06 gain S P 500 futures signaled a 0 10 rise while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0 07 uptick
Later in the day the euro zone was to produce data on the unemployment rate |
PFE | Pfizer Q1 2014 Sales Disappoint Profit Down 15 | By Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE the biggest U S drugmaker on Monday reported revenues well below Wall Street expectations hurt by falling sales of generic medicines it calls established pharmaceuticals
Pfizer which is trying to take over Britain s Astrazeneca Plc LONDON AZN earned 2 33 billion or 36 cents per share in the first quarter ended March 31 That compared with 2 75 billion or 38 cents in the year earlier period when the company reported gains from the transfer of product rights
Excluding special items Pfizer earned 57 cents per share Analysts on average expected 55 cents per share according to Thomson Reuters I B E S Total revenues fell 9 percent to 11 35 billion which was 730 million below Wall Street expectations
Pfizer pulled its prior 2014 forecast saying it will update its outlook its outlook as soon as practicable |
T | Special Report Private equity star s picks shine until cash out time | By Lawrence Delevingne and John Tilak NEW YORK TORONTO Reuters Canadian financier Newton Glassman has long told his private equity firm s clients that his big bet on casinos would yield a financial jackpot Others haven t been so sure At the end of 2011 a year after Glassman s Catalyst Capital Group Inc took control of Gateway Casinos Entertainment Ltd Catalyst told investors in a report seen by Reuters that it already had more than doubled their money and that its majority stake was worth US 475 million for an implied equity value of the gaming company as a whole of US 699 million But Catalyst was forced to abandon a planned initial public offering of Gateway in 2012 after investors balked at the firm s valuation according to two people familiar with the effort In the ensuing years Catalyst s implied valuation of Gateway continued to climb to more than US 1 billion as of Sept 30 2017 according to investor communications all while Glassman repeatedly told clients to expect a sale that never happened Now under increasing pressure to liquidate a past due private equity fund Glassman is again attempting a Gateway IPO at a valuation of as high as US 1 95 billion according to a Feb 28 Bloomberg report Under Catalyst s direction British Columbia based Gateway has expanded its operations and just restructured its debt Even so Catalyst s assessment of the impact of those moves on the company are more optimistic than those of ratings agencies Moody s and Standard Poor s both of which still rate Gateway debt as junk Michael Lewitt chief investment officer at hedge fund firm Third Friday Management in Boca Raton Florida reviewed Catalyst s valuation of Gateway and called it extremely aggressive High valuations and delayed sales apply to more than just Gateway Reuters has found with potentially worrying implications for Catalyst s four currently active funds and their big money investors Catalyst follows a loan to own strategy acquiring the discounted debt of troubled companies mostly in Canada and the United States taking over the business in the case of a default or by other means and then selling at a profit after improving operations Early success using that strategy with Catalyst s first fund established Glassman s reputation as a savvy investor It also has helped Catalyst attract enough investors to make it Canada s third largest private equity firm with about C 6 billion US 4 6 billion in assets under management according to data tracker Preqin Since Catalyst launched its second fund in 2006 however the firm s record of double digit annual returns has been based largely on its own assessments of improvements to its stable of distressed companies When put to the test at least four of Catalyst s major assets have been unable to find buyers at the firm s valuations based on a Reuters review of Catalyst s portfolio multiple communications from Catalyst to its clients and regulatory filings as well as interviews with people familiar with Catalyst s operations academics and financial analysts Those major assets plus expected payouts from pending litigation made up US 3 3 billion or more than two thirds of the overall US 4 7 billion of unrealized value across all Catalyst funds at the end of 2016 according to an April 5 2017 report for clients The assets include Gateway and Callidus Capital Corp TO CBL Catalyst s publicly listed subsidiary that specializes in high interest loans to distressed companies and that is itself a major holding of Catalyst funds Failure to cash out can put additional pressure on Catalyst as funds approach the end of their lifespan typically eight or 10 years by which time all money principal and profits is expected to be returned to investors Catalyst Fund Limited Partnership II for example was supposed to mature in April 2014 after starting to invest in 2006 But Catalyst has extended the deadline at least three times The contrast between the picture Catalyst paints of its fund assets in communications with clients and how those assets perform when a sale is attempted shows that investors may not be able to count on the returns they expect For now though any harm to Catalyst s big investors is potential rather than actual Glassman could still repeat his early success with his current funds by managing to sell a handful of major assets at big gains Glassman did not respond to repeated requests for comment Catalyst and Callidus did not respond directly to requests for comment In a letter to Reuters David Moore a lawyer for the two companies disputed that Catalyst overvalues assets or has had trouble selling them Reuters reporting he said is based upon false and unreliable allegations In keeping with the industry norm Moore said Catalyst s proposed valuations were reviewed by outside accountants PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP They were then separately reviewed by KPMG LLP Catalyst s independent auditor which had issued unqualified audit opinions on Catalyst every year Moore noted KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers declined to comment Moore stressed that Catalyst management s pay is derived from proceeds from asset sales and that valuations do not in any way affect Catalyst s compensation He also pointed out that Catalyst had sold 23 assets in its history 13 of them in accord with applicable valuations He did not provide specifics on those sales However of the 17 completed sales showcased on Catalyst s website most were substantially realized in 2010 or earlier often for US 50 million or less according to a Reuters review of information Catalyst sent to clients Nine of the sales were for the firm s small first fund which was largely wound down several years ago Catalyst investors generally locked in for the duration of a fund s lifespan include endowments for the University of Michigan McGill University and the University of Toronto public employee pension funds in Montana and New Jersey and major philanthropies such as the Rockefeller Foundation They did not respond to requests for comment or declined to comment on the record citing confidentiality agreements Some said on condition of anonymity that they feared getting on the wrong side of Glassman who has launched dozens of lawsuits in his career most with Catalyst or Callidus as plaintiff While in college he successfully sued his father to force child support payments according to Ontario court records Gateway and some other major Catalyst fund holdings examined for this article are among the assets alleged to have been overvalued in two whistleblower complaints submitted in the past 18 months to the Ontario Securities Commission OSC according to documents seen by Reuters and people familiar with the submissions CARS AND PHARMACEUTICALS Private equity holdings can be difficult to value because they often lack ready markets to test their worth Even when reviewed by third parties a fund manager s valuations are nonetheless open to interpretation Private equity experts said that in general a pattern of delayed sales can indicate valuations that are too high Lewitt the hedge fund manager said of Gateway and other assets examined in this article I wouldn t invest a penny with any manager that employs these types of valuations Advantage Rent A Car is a case in point Catalyst started investing in the Orlando Florida company with a US 22 2 million bet in 2013 and its total investment stood at US 310 5 million as of Sept 30 2017 according to client reports As Catalyst s exposure to Advantage through Funds III and IV has risen so has its valuation of the company even as larger rental car businesses have come under pressure from increased competition and the rise of ride sharing outfits like Uber Catalyst has long promised dramatic improvements at Advantage that would lead to a successful sale In a 2014 letter to investors it projected that within two or three years earnings would top US 100 million But for 2015 Advantage had a loss of US 31 million according to an April 2017 presentation to Catalyst clients A more recent investor letter put projected 2018 earnings at about US 20 million Advantage has less than 1 percent of the U S market and was expected to generate revenue of US 327 7 million in 2017 according to market research firm IBISWorld That puts Catalyst s valuation of US 542 9 million as of Sept 30 contained in a recent letter to investors at a whopping 1 7 times revenue Hertz Global Holdings Inc and Avis Budget Group Inc the two biggest publicly traded car rental operators in the United States trade at less than half their 2017 revenue of US 8 8 billion each Advantage did not respond to requests for comment Another major Catalyst asset is Therapure Biopharma Inc Glassman s firm started investing in the Mississauga Ontario biotechnology company in 2006 and the commitment totaled US 82 million by the end of 2011 That year Catalyst valued Therapure at US 202 million In early 2016 it tried to take Therapure public at a valuation of C 867 million according to a Reuters analysis of the offering documents The same documents show that Therapure had operating losses in 2012 2013 and 2014 The effort failed in part because Catalyst s valuation was too high for most investors and in part because of difficult market conditions according to two people with direct knowledge of the IPO process In September 2017 Catalyst announced it had agreed to sell Therapure s contract manufacturing business for US 290 million which would result in a proportional payout for Fund II investors That sale price the deal has yet to close is less than half the US 662 million at which Catalyst valued Therapure at year end 2016 according to a Catalyst document provided to clients in April 2017 Therapure s remaining business plasma based drug development and protein therapeutics products probably isn t worth more than US 100 million according to two sources with direct knowledge of the company The unsold business is not generating profits one of the sources said Therapure did not respond to requests for comment Since Gateway Casinos IPO flopped in 2012 Catalyst has continually raised the valuation of its controlling stake to levels that yield an imputed value for the gaming company as a whole of as much as US 1 95 billion according to the Feb 28 Bloomberg article That article attributed to anonymous sources appeared as Reuters was seeking comment from Catalyst on the firm s valuations of Gateway and other assets Reuters could not independently verify that an IPO was imminent or determine the calculus underlying the US 1 95 billion valuation Gateway operates about two dozen casinos concentrated in western Canada and more recently Ontario the country s most populous province It plans to invest more than C 300 million by 2020 to improve existing properties and build new ones according to a February 2018 Gateway investor presentation In mid March Gateway completed a sale leaseback of some properties yielding net proceeds to Catalyst of C 483 million Catalyst said the transaction and a parallel debt refinancing would reduce Gateway s debt from C 953 million to C 702 million or 4 5 times earnings according to a recent investor presentation That s in line with the typical debt to earnings ratio of between 4 and 5 for middle market companies based on Thomson Reuters LPC institutional loan data However it s more optimistic than Moody s assessment The ratings agency estimated in early March that under the new financial plan Gateway s debt to earnings ratio wouldn t drop below 5 for 12 to 18 months And Standard Poor s said the number would climb to as high as 7 5 through 2018 Both ratings agencies still judge Gateway bonds to be non investment grade junk By comparison rival Great Canadian Gaming Corp had a debt to earnings ratio of 2 as of Dec 31 according to a financial filing Moody s also projects lower profits than Catalyst for Gateway It did not elaborate on the full assumptions behind its numbers A spokeswoman said the ratings agency s calculations reflect our conservative view of the earnings potential of the company s assets Standard Poor s and Gateway did not respond to requests for comment Moore the Catalyst lawyer said in a letter to Reuters that the firm s work to improve Gateway had been highly successful EARLY SUCCESS Now in his mid 50s Glassman established Catalyst in 2002 after sharpening his skills at Cerberus Capital Management LP the New York based distressed investment powerhouse Catalyst s first fund started investing in 2003 Within several years it had scored big wins through private sales of its positions in companies like Cable Satisfaction International Inc AT T NYSE T Canada Inc later known as Allstream and Royal Group Technologies Ltd The US 185 million fund tiny by private equity standards ended up producing an average annual return of 32 percent over its lifespan according to client reports That s far better than a benchmark return of about 17 percent for funds of the same 2003 vintage tracked by investment consultants Cambridge Associates Catalyst s early triumph helped drive billions of dollars to the firm over four additional funds raised between 2006 and 2015 Glassman has yet to successfully wind up any of those newer funds and return all money to investors though the most recent one Fund V has returned hundreds of millions of dollars since 2015 It is not unusual for private equity firms to hold investments until near the end of a fund s lifespan However data from Cambridge and Preqin show that three of Catalyst s four active funds lag behind similarly aged funds in paying proceeds from asset sales to investors With Fund II already past due Funds III and IV are to mature in December 2019 and June 2022 respectively Most of the value of these funds about US 1 42 billion for Fund III and US 1 36 billion for Fund IV is unrealized according to an April 2017 client report That s more than 60 percent of the total value of each Some of that unrealized value would come from payouts from litigation whose outcome remains uncertain Catalyst filed two lawsuits against longtime rival and frequent adversary West Face Capital Inc and others after it lost a bidding process to buy Canadian wireless carrier Wind Mobile from VimpelCom NASDAQ VEON Ltd in 2014 Catalyst claimed that it had an exclusive agreement with VimpelCom to buy Wind Mobile and that West Face and others engaged in improper conduct to win the deal and ultimately sell at a big profit Judge Frank Newbould originally hearing both cases in Ontario Superior Court dismissed one of them concluding that West Face and others contrary to Catalyst s allegations had not used confidential information from a former Catalyst employee to make its winning bid In his August 2016 ruling Newbould wrote that he had difficulty accepting as reliable much of the evidence submitted by Glassman He described the financier as aggressive argumentative and more of a salesman than an objective witness Catalyst appealed Newbould s dismissal That appeal was dismissed Feb 21 The second Wind related lawsuit seeking C 1 3 billion in damages was on hold pending the outcome of Catalyst s appeal of Newbould s dismissal of the other case In a report to clients Catalyst told investors that its remaining Wind related claim was worth US 446 9 million at the end of 2016 and that the firm has a reasonable likelihood of success at trial Newbould who has retired from the bench and now works as an arbitrator was targeted by an undercover agent last autumn in a sting orchestrated by Israeli investigative firm Black Cube on behalf of Catalyst according to West Face court submissions in separate litigation The sting West Face alleges was designed to discredit Newbould and his dismissal of one of the Wind related lawsuits Newbould declined to comment Black Cube gained attention last year for its work on behalf of Harvey Weinstein to undermine women and journalists in their efforts to go public with allegations of sexual harassment and assault against the Hollywood mogul A spokesman for Black Cube declined to comment on questions related to Catalyst and Callidus He said Black Cube always operates ethically and legally In an April 2017 presentation to investors Catalyst told clients of Fund III that without the expected litigation payouts net annual returns as of end 2016 would fall to 8 9 percent from 11 7 percent Ludovic Phalippou a private equity expert at the University of Oxford in England said Catalyst s expected return on the Wind litigation was extraordinarily high given that one of the cases was dismissed and that money that would have been used to buy the Wind assets were presumably deployed elsewhere RELATED PARTIES One company Catalyst succeeded in selling on the stock market is Callidus a distressed lending business Glassman invested in took over and made a core holding Glassman s team took Callidus public in April 2014 raising C 252 million while still keeping big positions in the company for its four current funds Catalyst funds provide guarantees for some of Callidus s risky loans to distressed businesses But those guarantees mean that investors in Catalyst funds can end up saddled with Callidus investments gone bad such as Xchange Technology Group an information technology company that went bankrupt The relationship between Catalyst and Callidus doesn t end there In May 2017 Callidus said in its first quarter earnings report that a recent acquisition struggling Canadian slot machine maker Bluberi Gaming Technologies Inc was worth about C 110 million In footnotes it said that figure was based largely on an agreement for Bluberi to supply 7 000 slot machines to a commonly controlled enterprise Callidus did not identify that enterprise But it appears to be Gateway Casinos which fits the description in a recent Callidus earnings report of a large diversified gaming company in Canada that is controlled in common with Catalyst Catalyst did not respond to requests for comment Such an order is large for Bluberi a small company that recently emerged from bankruptcy Bluberi has about 1 000 machines in use today according to a third quarter 2017 ranking by industry consultants Eilers Krejcik Gaming LLC The top three companies have nearly 40 000 each Gateway operates 9 500 slot machines according to its website Stephen Casey a lawyer and accountant in New York with private equity experience reviewed Callidus s Bluberi holding for Reuters and called it a very aggressive valuation based on a related party order and some pretty speculative assumptions The risks Casey said include whether Bluberi s casino clients can get the required regulatory approvals for expansion and whether Bluberi is able to produce all the machines required Callidus acknowledged both of those risks in earnings reports last year Bluberi did not respond to requests for comment Callidus s Bluberi valuation now at C 113 million is based on a potential sale using an accounting method the company calls yield enhancement which is not recognized under International Financial Reporting Standards IFRS In a May shareholder report Callidus said it would give greater prominence to calculations based on IFRS in its public disclosures in response to an Ontario Securities Commission review of its financial reporting The OSC declined to comment Catalyst has said it would like to find a buyer to take Callidus private again suggesting in a press release last year a price of C 18 to C 22 a share The stock now trades around C 7 down more than 60 percent over the past 12 months Callidus said in October 2016 that it had hired Goldman Sachs Co to handle a sale process that would be completed by June 2017 Goldman declined to comment No buyer has yet emerged
For graphic on Catalyst and its peers click Edited by Carmel Crimmins and John Blanton |
T | AT T Mobility Southeast workers ratify four year labor deal | AT T T 0 4 employees represented by the CWA in the Southeast have voted to ratify a new labor deal the company says The new four year deal for Mobility Southeast Mobility Black covers about 10 000 workers in the district Previously AT T in tentative labor deal with Southeast mobility workers Feb 15 2018 Now read |
T | Time Warner looks appealing as antitrust trial underway Barron s | Reuters Shares of Time Warner Inc N TWX look appealing based on their underlying value and on the strong chance that AT T Inc N T will win approval for its 85 billion acquisition of the company according to the March 26 edition of Barron s AT T squared off with the U S Justice Department on Thursday in a long anticipated antitrust trial as the two sides disputed whether the company s purchase of Time Warner would be good for consumers or an expensive drag on innovation Time Warner s stock price ended Friday around 11 below AT T s bid price of 103 60 a share Barron s said That s a 12 percent spread which is appealing given that many observers see AT T prevailing over the U S government and completing their merger around mid year the financial newspaper said Even if the government ends up winning and the deal dies Time Warner shares might fall 5 but some analysts think they would quickly recover to their current value given the company s earnings power Barron s said Time Warner investors could end up even better off if the deal does not go through because the company s earnings power could support a higher stock price than the deal s current value the newspaper said It added that a Deutsche Bank DE DBKGn analyst has a 12 month price target of 120 for the company on a stand alone basis
The antitrust trial is expected to last six to eight weeks |
PFE | BeiGene To Build Biologics Plant In China | Fast growing biotechnology company BeiGene Ltd NASDAQ BGNE recently announced that they will be constructing a new biologics manufacturing plant in Guangdong Province in China This would make the project one of the biggest manufacturing ventures for the year
The company which would be working with the Guangzhou Development District is set to build the state of the art biologics manufacturing plant worth 330 million The joint venture to construct the commercial scale biologics facility will also be allocating funding for the research and development of biologic drug candidates in China
Beigene which is known for their focus on developing a portfolio of immuno oncology is set to compete with Western companies in the same field and will be prioritizing the production of high quality and large scale products that will be distributed not just in China but in the global markets as well
It is our strategic priority to secure high quality large scale manufacturing capacity based on the increasing biologics opportunity We believe the joint venture will provide a valuable asset for our long term growth said Beigene CEO John Oyler
Beigene currently is developing PARP inhibitors which can compete with Astrazeneca s NYSE AZN Lynparza and Pfizer s NYSE PFE latest Medivation
Biologics represent an important part of BeiGene s overall R D and manufacturing capabilities This joint venture will enable BeiGene to keep pace with a growing demand for the development and use of biologics in China and global markets said BeigeneCo founder and director Dr Wang Xiaodong Wang also serves as the Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board of Beigene
The company which would be receiving 30 million from Beigene Hong Kong and another 150 million from the Guangzhou GET Technology Development Co Ltd would include an equity investment in cash from JV Company An additional funding of 150 million will also be given to the manufacturing factory from a subsidiary of the JV company
The announcement of the project has been received positively by both investors and the Chinese government who stated that the venture will help biotechnology in the area and therefore promote growth
We attach great importance to this project and believe that the successful introduction of BeiGene Biologics will transform Guangzhou Development District into a center for the innovative biopharmaceutical industry promote the development of the biotechnology industry in the region and provide a powerful driving force for economic transformation and upgrade The government will provide strong support in funding management service and creating a good business environment said the Administrative Committee of Guangzhou Municipal Government and Guangzhou Development District |
PFE | Roche s Lung Cancer Drug Alecensa Meets Primary Endpoint | Roche Holdings OTC RHHBY announced that the global randomized phase III study ALEX on lung cancer drug Alecensa met its primary endpoint as an initial first line treatment Alecensa significantly reduced the risk of disease worsening or death progression free survival PFS compared with Pfizer s NYSE PFE Xalkori in patients suffering from anaplastic lymphoma kinase ALK positive advanced non small cell lung cancer NSCLC
We remind investors that Alecensa was granted accelerated approval by the FDA in Dec 2015 for the treatment of patients with ALK positive NSCLC who have progressed on or are intolerant to Xalkori Roche is conducting the ALEX study to convert the current accelerated approval of Alecensa in patients with ALK positive metastatic NSCLC who have progressed on or are intolerant to Xalkori to a full approval as an initial treatment
Meanwhile this is the second phase III trial to show that Alecensa was better as an initial treatment compared to Xalkori The FDA also has granted Alecensa Breakthrough Therapy Designation BTD for advanced ALK positive NSCLC without prior treatment with an ALK inhibitor
Roche expects to present full data from the study later at an upcoming medical meeting
Roche s share price shows that the company has outperformed the Zacks classified industry year to date The stock rallied 11 1 compared to the industry s gain of 5 7
We remind investors that Novartis NYSE NVS is also evaluating Zykadia ceritinib as a first line treatment for patients with metastatic non small cell lung cancer NSCLC whose tumors are ALK positive as detected by an FDA approved test
Roche has a strong presence in the oncology market The company dominates the breast cancer space with strong demand for HER2 franchise drugs like Herceptin Perjeta and Kadcyla We are also impressed by the company s efforts to develop its portfolio beyond oncology into immunology New drug launches such as Tecentriq Cotellic and Alecensa boosted sales and are expected to continue to do so in the upcoming quarters as well
Zacks Rank Stock to Consider
Roche currently sports a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy
Another top stock in the healthcare sector is Heska Corp NASDAQ HSKA You can see
Heska s earnings estimates increased from 1 53 to 1 65 for 2017 and from 1 90 to 2 01 for 2018 over the last 60 days The company posted a positive earnings surprise in all the four trailing quarters with an average beat of 291 54
Zacks Hidden Trades
While we share many recommendations and ideas with the public certain moves are hidden from everyone but selected members of our portfolio services Would you like to peek behind the curtain today and view them
Starting now for the next month I invite you to follow all Zacks private buys and sells in real time from value to momentum from stocks under 10 to ETF to option movers from insider trades to companies that are about to report positive earnings surprises we ve called them with 80 accuracy You can even look inside portfolios so exclusive that they are normally closed to new investors |
AMD | Silver Outperforms Key Markets Metals And Energy | While December was a horrible month for the broader markets that wasn t the case for the precious metals As the Dow Jones and S P 500 Indexes suffered the worst December since the Great Depression the silver price enjoyed quite a healthy rally The notion of rising precious metals prices during a market selloff ran counter to most analysts who forecasted falling asset values across the board
However that s exactly what took place in December I stated since the beginning of 2018 that when the markets really started to decline the precious metals would likely disconnect and rally higher Over the past month the silver price jumped by 10 and gold 5 while most of the broader indexes base metals and energy suffered declines
For example the Dow Jones Index fell 9 since December 1st even though it has rallied from its low on Christmas Eve
At its low on Christmas Eve the Dow Jones Index fell a stunning 16 in a little more than three weeks Currently the Dow is attempting to retest its 25 Day moving average MA and the 24 000 resistance level that I have shown in previous charts If we look at the graph below we can see that the Dow finally touched the 25 Day MA today
It will be interesting to see what the Dow does tomorrow but at some point the broader markets will reverse and continue to sell off
I must say watching Intra Day trading of the markets stocks metals commodities and energy has been quite eye opening Yes I still follow the fundamentals as they are the true factors that guide the markets but technical analysis provides us a crystal ball on price trend movements I will explain at the end of the article but let s look at the next following charts
The oil price has also been falling along with the broader markets Even though the U S West Texas Intermediate oil price peaked at the beginning of October it dropped another 8 over the past month
Now it is quite amazing how the oil price also fell to its low along with the Dow Jones on Christmas Eve and then shot up higher the next trading day I believe the oil price will attempt to move back up to 52 before reversing lower
Please note these charts were done early today before the market close so the metals and energy prices are reflective of January 7th Monday trading
The next chart is quite surprising because it usually trends with silver Because copper is the king base metal and a major indicator of the industrial sector it provides an important gauge of the health of the economy The silver and copper prices tend to move together as they are both industrial metals However the copper price has fallen 7 since December 1st while silver rose by 10
What a disconnect As I mentioned the majority of technical analysts forecasted that the precious metals would fall with the broader markets but as we can see quite the opposite took place While gold s increase of 5 over the same period was half that of silver at least it also outperformed the majority of assets in the market
While the precious metals have done relatively well compared to most other assets this past month I believe we are just seeing the beginning stages of much higher gold and silver prices over the next few years The broader markets are just beginning their massive correction lower even though some analysts are suggesting the BOTTOM is in
How on earth can the bottom of the Dow Jones Index be in when it hasn t even fallen back to its 50 Month MA BLUE LINE
As I have mentioned in previous articles and videos the Dow will likely fall back at least to its 300 MMA ORANGE LINE When the Dow starts ripping down through its lower moving averages that is when fear will begin to really motivate investors into gold and silver
Revealing The Crystal Ball Of How The Markets Trade
The reason I have been adding charts and technical analysis in my work over the past few months is that I have become amazed at how the markets trade By studying INTRA DAY TRADING I now understand more of the mystery behind price movements in stocks commodities metals and energy
Now what happens on an Intra day chart also takes place on a daily weekly and monthly chart They ALL FOLLOW technical levels When you understand what takes place intra day you can even understand what happens over a more extended period
I say it s essential to start with the Intra day 1 2 5 15 30 minute charts trading because you can watch it take place right in front of you If you actually view a 1 minute chart and how the tickers move up and down off technical levels then you can translate that to long term daily weekly and monthly charts
For example I have been using the Intra day technical levels to understand how stocks trade When you have a good idea when a stock price peaks or is at a low then you can make a more confident trade or investment Today I was focused on AMD Advanced Micro Devices NASDAQ AMD AMD is a good stock to trade because it has a great deal of volume and price movement
Here is a chart of AMD with 5 minute candlestick tickers
As we can see AMD traded off its Linear Regression Lines Blue Red dashed lines and moving averages However AMD finally bottomed and moved higher about 11 am Why did AMD bottom at 11 am shown by the arrow and move higher There we no moving averages at that level
To be able to spot when a stock reverses we must look at many different chart intervals I use StockCharts to provide me with additional moving averages and clues to when a stock price will reverse The chart below is a 1 hour chart each ticker is 1 hour and the chart has twenty days trading The red highlighted area is trading today January 8th
AMD bounced higher on Jan 4th and 7th with no real correction By the end of trading on Jan 7th AMD was becoming overbought You can see that by the high RSI reading in GREEN You will also notice that AMD was oversold the day after Christmas Dec 26th when the RSI went into the RED
I placed a short trade want the price to go lower early this morning on AMD and covered as it sold off shown in the large red candlesticks However I wanted to know how far AMD might fall before it would reverse Of course there are no guarantees in trading or investing but nothing goes up or down in a straight line Stocks correct up and down off technical levels ALL DAY LONG
Because the first chart did not provide me with some sort of technical support level I used my StockCharts to give me a pretty good idea that AMD would fall to that GREEN LINE moving average And that is precisely where AMD reversed
I share this because the markets and traders use these technical levels to determine price trends When you understand these price trends then you have more a crystal ball in trading and investing in the markets This will become very handy when knowing when to invest in precious metals or mining stocks
Original post |
PFE | Pfizer Chasing AstraZeneca In Potential 100B Deal | By Reuters U S drugmaker Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE is working on its next move in a potential 100 billion bid battle for Britain s Astrazeneca Plc AZN LONDON after having two bids rejected as deal making grips the healthcare industry
Pfizer said on Monday it made a 58 8 billion pounds 98 9 billion bid approach to AstraZeneca in January and had contacted its British rival again on April 26 seeking further discussions about a takeover
AstraZeneca shares jumped 15 percent in early trade
The cash and shares takeover if it happens would be the biggest ever foreign takeover of a British company and one of the largest ever pharmaceuticals deals
The renewed approach comes amid a wave of mergers and acquisitions in the sector as the industry restructures in the face of healthcare spending cuts and cheap generic competition
In a statement to the London stock market Pfizer said AstraZeneca had declined to engage in discussions on both occasions and the U S group said it was now considering its options
Pfizer s original proposal made to the board of AstraZeneca on January 5 included a combination of cash and shares and would have valued AstraZeneca shares at 46 61 pounds each a premium of around 30 percent at the time
Pfizer said it was now considering a possible transaction in which AstraZeneca shareholders would again receive a significant premium above the value of their shares on April 17 before takeover rumors started
Citi analyst Andrew Baum said he believed there was now a 90 percent chance that Pfizer would acquire AstraZeneca for at least around 49 pounds a share
Shares in the British group shot up to 46 54 pounds by 0805 GMT 4 05 a m EDT on Monday after touching an all time high of 47 14
Given that Pfizer is likely to have to offer more this time due to a run up in AstraZeneca shares since January the final value of any deal could be above 100 billion
An AstraZeneca spokeswoman said the company had no immediate comment on the Pfizer statement adding the company would be considering its response
Under British takeover rules Pfizer has until May 26 to announce a firm intention to make an offer for AstraZeneca or back away
CANCER DRUG DRAW
Buying AstraZeneca would give Pfizer a number of promising though still risky experimental cancer medicines known as immunotherapies that boost the body s immune system to fight tumors It could also generate significant cost savings for the U S group
Acquiring a foreign company also makes sense for Pfizer because it has tens of billions of dollars accumulated through foreign subsidiaries which if repatriated to the United States would be heavily taxed
Pfizer has a long track record of making major acquisitions with the 68 billion purchase of Wyeth in 2009 its last major deal after earlier acquisitions of Pharmacia and Warner Lambert
The drugmaker has more recently been divesting certain operations while mega mergers had fallen out of fashion in the pharmaceuticals industry following skepticism about how well some of them have worked
But Chief Executive Ian Read said he was ready to consider large deals that made sense adding that buying AstraZeneca would maintain the flexibility for the potential future separation of our businesses
The transaction would complement both Pfizer s innovative drug businesses and also its established products business comprising older and off patent medicines which many analysts expect to be eventually spun off
We believe that a transaction would further strengthen our ability to generate strong and consistent cash flow targeted for both investment in our business and return to shareholders while at the same time offering an efficient operating structure and the anticipated realization of attractive synergies Read said
The suggested deal which first surfaced a week ago in the Sunday Times has triggered worries about jobs in Britain s pharmaceuticals sector which is viewed as a key industry by the government
AstraZeneca has already laid off thousands of scientists and other staff as it shrinks its cost base to cope with a fall in sales due to patent losses on blockbuster medicines while Pfizer has shuttered a large research site in Sandwich southern England
However Britain s finance minister George Osborne has indicated a hands off approach to any deal which he described on Friday as a commercial matter between the companies
Pfizer said the transaction if completed was expected to result in the combination of the two companies under a new UK incorporated holding company although the head office would remain in New York
Bank of America Merrill Lynch JP Morgan and Guggenheim Securities are advising Pfizer |
PFE | Dollar broadly lower as euro and sterling strengthen | Investing com The dollar moved lower against a basket of other major currencies on Monday as the euro gained ground ahead of euro zone inflation data later in the week and the pound surged to multi year highs
EUR USD touched highs of 1 3876 the most since April 11 and was last up 0 22 to 1 3864
The euro was supported by hopes that Wednesday s report on euro zone inflation would show that consumer prices ticked higher this month easing pressure on the European Central Bank to implement additional monetary policy measures
The single currency received an additional boost after ECB Governing Council member Christian Noyer said Monday that while the strong euro was weighing on consumer prices the euro area was not at risk of falling into deflation
Meanwhile sterling rose to fresh four and a half year peaks of 1 6853 against the dollar and GBP USD was last up 0 22 to 1 6836
Demand for the pound continued to be underpinned by expectations that the Bank of England could raise interest rates in the early part of next year
Market participants were looking ahead to preliminary data on U K first quarter growth due for release on Tuesday amid expectations that growth accelerated in the first three months of this year
Sterling was also boosted by expectations for merger and acquisition inflows after U S drugs giant Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE confirmed Monday that wanted to take over Britain s Astrazeneca Plc AZN LONDON in a deal worth almost 60 billion
Elsewhere USD JPY was up 0 16 to 102 34 ahead of monetary policy statements by the Bank of Japan and the Federal Reserve later in the week The BoJ was expected to keep the size of its stimulus program unchanged while the Fed was expected to stick to its current timetable for tapering its asset purchase program
Meanwhile Friday s U S nonfarm payrolls report for April was expected to indicate that the recovery in the labor market is continuing
USD CHF was down 0 42 to trade at 0 0 8778
The Australian dollar was higher with AUD USD rising 0 22 to 0 9289 while NZD USD slipped 0 23 to 0 8559 The Canadian dollar was slightly higher with USD CAD losing 0 17 to trade at 1 1019
The US Dollar Index which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies was at 79 65 down 0 23 |
PFE | European stocks push higher on aquisition news Dax up 0 77 | Investing com European stocks pushed higher on Monday boosted by news Britain s Astrazeneca could be aquired by U S drugmaker Pfizer while markets continued to eye developments in the Ukraine
During European afternoon trade the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 gained 0 74 France s CAC 40 climbed 0 51 while Germany s DAX advanced 0 77
Investors remained cautious as hostilities between Russia and Ukraine continued On Friday U S Secretary of State John Kerry warned that Washington was ready to step up sanctions on Russia
The West is accusing Russia of leading a separatist revolt in eastern Ukraine after it annexed Crimea last month
In a joint statement on Monday G 7 nations said they would move swiftly to impose additional sanctions on Russia because the latter has not moved to comply with the Geneva accord
Financial stocks turned broadly higher as French lenders BNP Paribas BNPP PARIS and Societe Generale SOGN PARIS gained 1 23 and 0 23 while Germany s Deutsche Bank DBKGn XETRA climbed 0 40
Among peripheral lenders Italy s Unicredit CRDI MILAN and Intesa Sanpaolo ISP MILAN gained 0 51 and 1 12 respectively while Spanish banks Banco Santander SAN MADRID and BBVA BBVA MADRID advanced 0 68 and 0 86
Elswhere Bayer BAYGN XETRA surged 4 33 after the German pharmaceutical and chemicals conglomorate said it is exploring a sale of its 10 billion plastics unit to focus on boosting its health business
The news came after the company reported a 12 rise in first quarter profit helped by new medicines and a rebound at its plastics unit
In London FTSE 100 rose 0 33 still led by Astrazeneca AZN LONDON up 14 63 after Pfizer NYSE PFE confirmed that it is interested in acquiring the U K drugmaker for about 58 8 billion The acquisition would be one of the largest takeovers in the industry s history
Meanwhile financial stocks turned mixed as Barclays BARC LONDON inched up 0 01 and HSBC Holdings HSBA LONDON gained 0 46 while Lloyds Banking LLOY LONDON retreated 0 43 and the Royal Bank of Scotland RBS LONDON plummeted 1 86
In the mining sector stocks remained mostly lower Bhp Billiton BLT LONDON declined 0 89 and Glencore Xstrata GLEN LONDON lost 1 while rival company Rio Tinto RIO LONDON saw shares plunge 2 01
In the U S equity markets pointed to a higher open The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0 35 increase S P 500 futures signaled a 0 33 rise while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0 32 gain
Later in the day the U S was to release private sector data on pending home sales |
PFE | Dollar mixed market looks past housing data eyes Friday jobs report | Investing com The dollar gave back gains and traded mixed to lower against most major currencies on Monday after investors applauded robust housing data and later jumped to the sidelines to prep for Friday s April jobs report
In U S trading on Monday EUR USD was up 0 14 at 1 3853
The dollar firmed earlier after the National Association of Realtors reported that pending home sales jumped 3 4 in March far surpassing expectations for a 1 gain
Pending home sales for February were revised to a 0 5 drop from a previously reported decline of 0 8
On a year over year basis pending home sales were still down 7 9 in March though the data firmed the dollar by reminding investors that the Federal Reserve will continue tapering monthly asset purchases as the year unfolds
Profit taking nudged the greenback down later in the session as investors jumped to the sidelines to prepare for Friday s April jobs report
The euro meanwhile saw support from expectations that euro zone inflation data due out on Wednesday will reveal an uptick in consumer prices
An increase in the euro zone s consumer price index would ease pressure on the European Central Bank to implement additional monetary policy measures
In March the euro zone s annual inflation rate slowed to 0 5 the lowest since November 2009 The ECB targets an inflation rate of close to but just under 2 The consensus forecast is for the inflation rate to rise to 0 8
The dollar was up against the yen with USD JPY up 0 34 at 102 54 and down against the Swiss franc with USD CHF down 0 17 at 0 8801
The greenback was down against the pound with GBP USD up 0 07 at 1 6811
Sterling rose on expectations for merger and acquisition inflows after U S drugs giant Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE confirmed Monday that it wanted to take over Britain s Astrazeneca Plc AZN LONDON in a deal worth almost 60 billion
The dollar was mixed against its cousins in Canada Australia and New Zealand with USD CAD down 0 13 at 1 1024 AUD USD down 0 12 at 0 9258 and NZD USD down 0 48 at 0 8539
The US dollar index which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies was down 0 08 at 79 77
On Tuesday the U S is to a report compiled by the Conference Board on consumer confidence |
PFE | Pfizer Chases AstraZeneca For Potential 100 Billion Deal | By Reuters U S drugmaker Pfizer Inc approached Britain s AstraZeneca Plc two days ago to reignite a potential 100 billion takeover and was rebuffed raising investor expectations it will have to increase its offer to close the deal
Pfizer said on Monday it proposed a takeover to AstraZeneca in January worth 58 8 billion pounds 98 9 billion or nearly 47 pounds per share It had contacted its British rival again on Saturday seeking to discuss further a takeover
The chase was welcomed by investors in both companies as deal making grips the healthcare industry Astrazeneca Plc AZN shares were up 11 7 percent at 76 69 in New York on news of the latest offer which would be the biggest foreign acquisition of a British company and one of the largest pharmaceutical deals Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE shares were up 3 8 percent at 31 92 on the New York Stock Exchange on Monday afternoon
AstraZeneca said Pfizer s suggested offer undervalued the company very significantly adding that Pfizer wanted to pay 70 percent in shares and only 30 percent in cash AstraZeneca urged its shareholders to take no action and said it remained confident of its independent strategy
I feel pretty confident of a higher bid coming said Neil Veitch global and UK investment director at SVM Asset Management which owns AstraZeneca shares I think it s more likely than not that we ll see an agreed deal somewhere in that 52 to 53 pound range
Buying AstraZeneca would boost Pfizer s pipeline of cancer drugs and create significant cost and tax savings Under British takeover rules Pfizer has until May 26 to announce a firm intention to make an offer or back away
The renewed approach comes amid a wave of mergers and acquisitions in the sector pushing the value of deals to 153 billion so far this year as the industry restructures amid healthcare spending cuts and competition from cheap generics
Society wants products faster they want more products and they want value Pfizer Chief Executive Ian Read told reporters Industry is responding to society s request for increased efficiencies and productivity
Read said AstraZeneca had declined to engage in talks and the U S group was now considering how to proceed but he remained convinced that combining the two companies made strategic sense and would benefit AstraZeneca investors
NEW DRUG PIPELINES
Pfizer s original proposal made to the board of AstraZeneca on January 5 would have valued AstraZeneca shares at 46 61 pounds each a premium of around 30 percent at the time
AstraZeneca said the proposal comprised 13 98 pounds in cash and 1 758 Pfizer shares for each AstraZeneca share
My guess is it will go for somewhere between 50 and 55 pounds a share said Dan Mahony a fund manager at Polar Capital who raised his stake in AstraZeneca in February last year I doubt Pfizer will want to go completely hostile
Most of Pfizer s past deals have been conducted on a friendly basis including its 2009 purchase of Wyeth for 68 billion But it has been willing to play hardball if needed as it did in 2000 with its 90 billion purchase of U S rival Warner Lambert with which it won full ownership of cholesterol fighter Lipitor the best selling drug of all time
Read told U S analysts that since the initial approach to AstraZeneca both companies had seen experimental drugs fare well in trials At the same time Pfizer concluded it was too difficult to pursue big deals domestically while being on the hook for higher U S tax rates
We re coming from a position of strength on our near term pipeline of experimental drugs Read said
Recent favorable data includes results for Pfizer s experimental breast cancer medicine palbociclib
INDEPENDENT FUTURE
Pfizer s declaration turns up the heat under AstraZeneca Chief Executive Pascal Soriot who has been in the job since October 2012 and who made clear last week he saw an independent future for the group flagging spin offs of two noncore units as one option to create more value
Soriot has been credited with reviving AstraZeneca s previously thin pipeline of new drugs badly needed to offset a wave of patent expiries on older drugs and shares in the group have now risen more than 60 percent under his tenure
However his overhaul including an ambitious plan to move the company s research and corporate headquarters to Cambridge England is still a work in progress and he has also come under fire from some shareholders over executive pay
Read said it was premature to say who would lead a combined company
Buying AstraZeneca would give Pfizer a number of promising though still risky experimental cancer medicines known as immunotherapies that boost the body s immune system to fight tumors It could also generate significant cost savings for the U S group
Acquiring a foreign company also makes sense for Pfizer as it has tens of billions of dollars accumulated through foreign subsidiaries which if repatriated would be heavily taxed
The drugmaker has more recently been divesting certain operations while mega mergers had fallen out of fashion in the pharmaceuticals industry following skepticism about how well some of them have worked
HEFTY RETURN
But CEO Read said large deals could also make good sense and buying AstraZeneca would maintain the flexibility for the potential future separation of our businesses
The transaction would complement both Pfizer s innovative drug businesses and also its established products business comprising older and off patent medicines which many analysts expect to be eventually spun off
In addition to using offshore cash buying AstraZeneca would be tax efficient since Pfizer could redomicile to Britain and enjoy lower tax rates thanks to attractive incentives to companies that manufacture and hold patents in the country
Pfizer envisages combining the two drugmakers under a new UK incorporated holding company although the head office and stock market listing would remain in New York But the suggested deal has triggered worries about jobs in Britain s drug sector viewed as a key industry by the government
AstraZeneca has already laid off thousands of staff as it shrinks its cost base to cope with a fall in sales due to patent losses on blockbuster medicines while Pfizer has shuttered a research site in Sandwich southern England
Read said Pfizer had contacted the British government about its plans on Monday after Finance Minister George Osborne said on Friday that any deal was a commercial matter between the companies
A spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron told reporters on Monday that any Pfizer takeover bid would be assessed by independent procedures and frameworks
Bank of America Merrill Lynch JP Morgan and Guggenheim Securities are advising Pfizer while Goldman Sachs Morgan Stanley and Evercore Partners are working for AstraZeneca |
PFE | Asian shares end weaker markes in Japan shut for holiday | Investing com Asian shares edged out gains on Tuesday with markets in Japan closed and otherwise thin trade ahead of the May 1 holiday
China s Shanghai Composite rose 0 16 and the Hang Seng index gained 0 39 in morning sessions
In China among actives Shanghai Port rose 0 7 Chongqing Gangjiu was up 2 3 and Wuhu Port 600575 SS gained 0 6 as Premier Li Keqiang urged the invigoration of businesses along the Yangtze River
Overnight upbeat U S home sales data and a possible mega merger of pharmaceutical giants Pfizer Inc NYSE PFE and Astrazeneca Plc AZN LONDON sent U S stock prices with the Dow 30 up 0 53 the S P 500 index gaining 0 32 while the NASDAQ Composite Composite index fell 0 03
Stocks rose after the National Association of Realtors reported that pending home sales jumped 3 4 in March far surpassing expectations for a 1 gain
Pending home sales for February were revised to a 0 5 drop from a previously reported decline of 0 8
On a year over year basis pending home sales were still down 7 9 in March though stocks applauded the improvement
Elsewhere U S drugs giant Pfizer confirmed Monday that it wanted to take over Britain s AstraZeneca in a deal worth almost 60 billion which sent large cap U S stocks rising
In other news the U S slapped fresh sanctions on Russia earlier with this the third round targeting seven individuals and 17 companies
Still reports that Russian troops were returning to their bases after conducting military exercises on the Ukrainian border sparked relief buying on Wall Street
After the close of European trade the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 rose 0 46 France s CAC 40 rose 0 38 while Germany s DAX rose 0 48 Meanwhile in the U K the FTSE 100 rose 0 22
On Tuesday the U S is to a report compiled by the Conference Board on consumer confidence |
PFE | European stocks rise focus on inflation data Dax up 0 91 | Investing com European stocks were higher on Tuesday despite disappointing Spanish employment data as investors eyed a highly anticipated inflation report due on Wednesday as well as the Federal Reserve s upcoming policy statement
During European morning trade the DJ Euro Stoxx 50 advanced 0 63 France s CAC 40 rose 0 26 while Germany s DAX jumped 0 91
Official data earlier showed that Spains unemployment rate ticked up to 25 9 in the first quarter from 25 7 in the fourth quarter of 2013 whose figure was revised from a previously estimated rate of 26 0
Anlaysts had expected the unemployment rate to fall to 25 6 in the last quarter
Separately an uptick in the euro zone s inflation rate would ease pressure on the European Central Bank to implement additional monetary policy measures
Last month the annual rate of inflation in the euro zone slowed to 0 5 the lowest since November 2009 The ECB targets an inflation rate of close to but just under 2 The consensus forecast is for the euro zone inflation rate to rise to 0 8
Financial stocks were broadly higher as French lenders BNP Paribas BNPP PARIS and Societe Generale SOGN PARIS gained 0 22 and 2 50 while Germany s Deutsche Bank DBKGn XETRA surged 3 10
Among peripheral lenders Italy s Intesa Sanpaolo ISP MILAN and Unicredit CRDI MILAN climbed 0 58 and 0 74 respectively while Spanish banks BBVA BBVA MADRID and Banco Santander SAN MADRID rose 0 30 and 0 47
Elswhere Italian oil company Eni Spa EIPAF PK rallied 1 53 even after saying that first quarter profit fell 14 due to weakening demand in its European businesses and declining refining margins
Peugeot PEUP PARIS added to gains with shares soaring 5 57 after the French carmaker said it is offering stock to investors at 6 77 a share after selling stakes to Chinese partner Dongfeng Motor DNFGF PK and the French state
In London FTSE 100 climbed 0 53 led by Shire SHP LONDON up 3 64 amid reports Allergan NYSE AGN is preparing to approach the Dublin based biopharmaceutical company again about a potential takeover after being rebuffed in recent months
BP BP LONDON was also on the upside jumping 1 03 even as the oil and gas giant said profit fell due to lower output and a drop in earnings at refineries Earnings were in line with analysts estimates however
In the financial sector stocks were mostly higher The Royal Bank of Scotland RBS LONDON saw shares gain 0 46 and Lloyds Banking LLOY LONDON advanced 0 64 while HSBC Holdings HSBA LONDON rallied 1 08 Barclays BARC LONDON underperformed on the other hand dropping 0 92
Meanwhile Astrazeneca AZN LONDON shares plummeted 1 37 after skyrocketing over 11 on Monday when Pfizer NYSE PFE confirmed that it is interested in acquiring the U K drugmaker for about 58 8 billion The acquisition would be one of the largest takeovers in the industry s history
Mining stocks were also broadly lower as Bhp Billiton BLT LONDON slid 0 37 and Rio Tinto RIO LONDON declined 0 69 while rivals Randgold Resources RRS LONDON and Fresnillo FRES LONDON lost 1 02 and 1 74 respectively
In the U S equity markets pointed to a higher open The Dow 30 futures pointed to a 0 25 rise S P 500 futures signaled a 0 27 gain while the Nasdaq 100 futures indicated a 0 35 increase
Later in the day Germany was to release preliminary data on consumer price inflation while the U S was to publish a report compiled by the Conference Board on consumer confidence |
AMD | AMD 2 2 on price target increase ahead of earnings | MKM Partners raises its AMD NASDAQ AMD price target from 13 to 14 50 a 12 upside on Friday s closing price Analyst Ruben Roy maintains a Neutral rating but feels more upbeat on the company s immediate prospects and the earnings report tomorrow Roy s optimism comes from recent positive data points around the PC server and cryptocurrency mining markets with most of the upside delta coming from crypto Roy expresses long term caution From a longer term perspective we continue to view the crypto market from a conservative stance and while we continue to appreciate AMD s recent execution we have yet to see evidence of meaningful share gains with the company s recently introduced product families AMD shares are up 2 2 premarket to 13 24 Now read |
T | Former DOJ officials urge probing possible Trump agenda on AT T Time Warner | In an amicus briefing a set of former Justice Dept officials is weighing in with concern over whether President Trump had improper influence over the DOJ s decision to pursue blocking the 85B merger of AT T T 0 1 and Time Warner TWX 0 1 The group includes Preet Bharara the Manhattan U S attorney removed by Trump and John Dean former Nixon White House counsel and attorney general They re asking the court to review whether there was a possible agenda at work behind the decision to sue President Trump has urged a criminal investigation of his political rivals he has suggested that he can instruct the Department to halt investigations into his associates and he has claimed an absolute right to do what I want to do with the Justice Department the filing says Indeed this case is being pursued under a cloud with a perception at least by some that DOJ brought this case at the behest of President Trump in order to punish CNN for what he viewed as unfavorable coverage of his administration Now read |
T | HC2 Broadcasting taps veterans to spur over the air growth | Phil Falcone s HC2 Holdings HCHC 0 4 has brought in Kurt Hanson and Louis Libin to speed up growth of its HC2 Broadcasting toward becoming a premier over the air distribution platform it says Hanson will be chief technology officer while Libin will oversee revenue and growth as managing director of strategy Hanson is a 30 year broadcast veteran who previously was VP of Engineering Services and Systems Support at ABC TV Libin has been senior director of advanced technology at Sinclair Broadcast Group Now read |
T | U S judge says AT T Time Warner merger trial may last 8 weeks | By David Shepardson and Jessica Toonkel WASHINGTON Reuters U S District Judge Richard Leon said on Thursday a trial to decide if AT T s N T 85 billion acquisition of Time Warner Inc N TWX is legal under U S antitrust law may last six to eight weeks significantly longer than previously forecast At a pre trial hearing Leon said he will hear up to two days of motions before hearing opening arguments on Wednesday Lawyers for the government and both companies did not comment on Leon s estimate on the length of the trial they had previously suggested it would last three weeks The U S Justice Department filed a lawsuit in November to stop AT T which owns DirecTV and other products with 25 million subscribers from buying movie and TV show maker Time Warner which owns HBO and CNN among many other channels saying it could raise prices for rivals and pay TV subscribers while hampering the development of online video The judge will hear arguments on a number of objections including whether some emails can be introduced as evidence and how to handle potentially confidential information during the trial Shares of AT T closed nearly unchanged at 37 04 while Time Warner closed up 0 5 percent to 96 88 Leon warned reporters not to use electronic devices and said they could be banned from the courtroom and held in contempt of court if they violated the prohibition He also discouraged the government and companies from attempting to try the case in the press saying his goal was to ensure both sides receive a fair trial The case will be tried in this room Leon said
After the hearing Leon told both sides to Get your rest before the start of a lengthy trial |
T | Report Snowstorm pushes AT T Time Warner opening arguments a day later | Opening arguments have been delayed to Thursday in the Justice Dept s trial over the merger of AT T NYSE T and Time Warner NYSE TWX Bloomberg reports The arguments had been set for Wednesday but the judge has cited the area snowstorm in the postponement The trial s under way but with evidentiary discussions going on as the opening arguments had been set to kick it off in earnest tomorrow AT T closed down 0 7 in market action today Time Warner finished up 0 1 Now read |
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