MarketWatch.com - MarketPulse

Crude turns up as supplies rise less than forecast

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:43:54 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Crude oil futures returned above $82 a barrel in mid-morning trade Wednesday after the Energy Information Administration reported a smaller-than-expected increase in U.S. crude supplies and a big drop in gasoline supplies. Crude oil for April delivery was up 54 cents, or 0.6%, at $82.03 a barrel in electronic trade, recovering from earlier losses that saw the contract trade to a morning low of $81.05. Crude oil supplies were up 1.4 million barrels in the week ended March 5, the EIA said. Analysts polled by Platts expected an increase of 2.1 million barrels. The EIA also reported a drop of 2.9 million barrels in gasoline stocks. Analysts polled by Platts expected a decline of 338,000 barrels.

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Fortune Brands to sell Cobra brand to Puma

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:18:12 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Fortune Brands Inc. said Wednesday it reached an agreement to sell its Cobra golf brand, including related intellectual property and endorsement contracts, to Puma AG. Fortune Brands did not provide the financial terms of the deal but said it expects the sale to dilute 2010 earnings by about 2 cents a share before a one-time gain of 5 cents a share. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter. "Divesting the Cobra brand will enable us to drive shareholder value by concentrating our golf investments behind Titleist and FootJoy, which represent our highest return growth opportunities in golf," said Bruce Carbonari, chairman and chief executive officer, in a statement.

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Weber criticizes "shortcomings" of Volcker rule

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:10:22 GMT

FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- German Bundesbank President Axel Weber said Wednesday the so-called "Volcker rule," which aims to bar banks from certain forms of risk trading, has "significant shortcomings." One shortcoming of the Volcker rule is that it most likely would not apply to investment vehicles, such as hedge funds or investment banks, said Weber, who is also a member of the European Central Bank's governing council. "The most fundamental problem of the Volcker rule lies in the fact that a complete prohibition of certain activities -- activities that are perhaps more risky but not necessarily economically inefficient -- is a very far-reaching market intervention," Weber said in a speech in Dublin, according to a transcript published of the Web site of the Bundesbank. The Volcker rule is named after former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, who chairs President Obama's economic-advisory panel and is a key backer of the proposed measures. Weber said the Volcker rule may have "unintended and unfavourable consequences." "It could, for example, have undesirable effects on the transmission of monetary policy," he said.

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Facet, InterMune lead biotech stocks north

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:07:33 GMT

BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Facet Biotech Corp. and InterMune Inc. were the lead advancers among biotech stocks Wednesday, with both stocks rocketing over 60% in early trading. Facet shares shot up to $26.95, the morning after Abbott Laboratories said it plans to buy the drug developer for $27 a share in cash. InterMune shares, meanwhile, soared to $38.11 on news that an advisory panel of the U.S. Food And Drug Administration had voted Tuesday to recommend that agency approve its new pulmonary drug. The NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index jumped 4.6% to 1221.35, pushed higher by component InterMune. The NYSE Arca Pharmaceutical Index was largely flat at 306.00.

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Goldman Sachs adds Bucyrus to conviction buy list

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:00:07 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Mining-equipment provider Bucyrus International Inc. was added to Goldman Sachs buy list on Wednesday on higher capital spending among mining companies and due to its acquisition of Terex. Mining company capital expense budgets will likely be revised higher in coming quarters, Goldman Sachs said in a note, particularly for iron ore and seaborne coal operations due to higher commodity prices. Further, the company's cost-savings from its purchase of Terex is likely to exceed earlier targets. Goldman Sachs gave Bucyrus a 12-month price target of $80. Shares recently traded at $66.73, up 1.6%.

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Goldman shuffles conviction buy list

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:00:13 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Analysts at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. on Wednesday upgraded Evercore Partners Inc. to its conviction buy list, while at the same time downgrading Lazard Ltd. from the list to a buy rating. Shares of both firms responded in early Wednesday trading, with Evercore stock up roughly 5% and Lazard shares off more than 4%. "We view Evercore as an attractive way to maximize exposure [to improving mergers and acquisitions trends] without the near-term overhang of secondary share issuance and lingering concern surrounding compensation headwinds at Lazard," said the Goldman analysts in a research note.

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Crude oil turns lower ahead of supplies data

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:58:46 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Crude oil futures turned lower on Wednesday, with traders adopting a cautious tone ahead of the release of weekly U.S. petroleum supplies data. Crude oil for April delivery was last down 6 cents at $81.43 a barrel in electronic trade, losing earlier gains that saw the contract trade as high as $81.95 a barrel. Crude rose earlier after OPEC raised its forecast for global oil demand and China reported strong trade data.

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Miller Industries offers 10-cent yearly dividend

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:56:27 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Miller Industries Inc. said Wednesday that it has approved an annual cash dividend of 10 cents a share payable on March 25 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on March 18.

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American Eagle, J. Crew pace mixed retail sector

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:49:30 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- American Eagle Outfitters shares gained 8% while J. Crew Group lost 4% to highlight mixed trading action in the retail sector Wednesday. The S&P Retail Index was getting pulled in both directions early and remained flat at 435 points. American Eagle benefited from higher fourth-quarter earnings. J. Crew, however, failed to catch a lift from its improved fourth-quarter performance.

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Portugal raises $1.35 billion in bond auction

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:46:29 GMT

MADRID (MarketWatch) -- Portugal's debt agency on Wednesday announced it has raised 990 million euros ($1.35 billion) in a bond auction in which it sold more bonds than it planned. The bonds were sold at an average yield of 4.171%, with a bid-to-cover ratio of 1.6. The plans were originally to sell 750 million euros in debt. The Portuguese government on Monday revealed austerity plans involving spending cuts, public pay freezes and plans to raise money via privatizations, all aimed at lowering the budget deficit below 3% of GDP by 2013 from 9% in 2009.

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Bank rally leads financials higher

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:43:52 GMT

U.S. financial stocks headed higher on Wednesday morning, led by banks large and small. Citigroup shares rose 4.6% amid a few bits of news, including reports of strong demand for an issue of trust preferred securities it is selling, and plans that it has to double its private banker staff in North America in the next few years. Other banks atop the gainers list included Zions Bancorp , Huntington Bancshares , SunTrust , Fifth Third , Regions Financial and Bank of America . American International Group was the only non-bank in the top 10 sector gainers. The insurer, which rose sharply on Tuesday, added another 7.7% in early action. The Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF , which tracks all the financial stocks in the S&P 500, added 0.6%. The KBW Bank ETF added 1.5% while its sibling the KBW Regional Banking ETF added 0.6%.

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Tech stocks put in early market gains

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:42:53 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Technology stocks took to the high ground in early trading Wednesday. Gains came from Apple Inc. , Google Inc. , Microsoft Corp. and Intel Corp. . The Nasdaq Composite Index rose 7 points to 2,347 and the Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index and the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index also advanced.

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Airline stocks climb with Delta, US Airways

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:42:06 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Airline stocks leapt higher Wednesday with US Airways and Delta Air Lines taking the lead. The NYSE Arca Airline Index rose 1.5% to 37.64 points with all of its 13 components in the green. Shares of American Airlines parent AMR Corp. added nearly 2% to $9.96, US Airways rose 2.2% to $7.87 and Delta Air Lines climbed 2.5% to $13.13. In prior-day trading, the sector benchmark jumped nearly 2% as legacy-airline executives talked up their year-to-date unit-revenue as business- and premium-class travel picked up.

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U.S. stocks open modestly up as financials advance

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:37:33 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks opened slightly higher on Wednesday, with financial shares including Citigroup Inc. and American International Group Inc. paving the way. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 14.36 points to 10,578.74. The S&P 500 Index climbed 1.99 points to 1,142.44. The Nasdaq Composite gained 4.32 points to 2,345.

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Energy stocks flat-to-higher ahead of supply data

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:36:58 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Energy stocks traded flat-to-higher on Wedneseday ahead of key weekly inventory data. The NYSE Arca Oil Index rose 0.2% to 1,065 points. The NYSE Arca Natural Gas Index rose fractionally to 553 points. The Philadelphia Oil Service Index rose 0.2% to 210.

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B. of A. to scrap debit overdraft charges

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:31:20 GMT

BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Bank of America Corp. said Wednesday that starting this summer it will eliminate overdraft fees on debit-card transactions by only authorizing transactions if a customer has enough cash in the account to cover the purchase. "This change will help customers by reducing the likelihood they may inadvertently overdraw their account and thus eliminate unexpected overdraft fees on these transactions," the Charlotte, N.C.-based bank said in a press release. Reports surfaced ahead of B. of A.'s announcement that the company would end the $35 overdraft fee in an effort to stay in front of new regulations.

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Goodrich added to Goldman conviction buy list

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:10:20 GMT

LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Goldman Sachs put Goodrich on its conviction buy list at the expense of Textron though it kept a buy rating on both stocks. "The expected timing of an aftermarket recovery has been pushed out more than once, but companies are finally indicating that order activity has picked up," the broker said of Goodrich. On Texton, there are no near-term catalysts, first-quarter EPS consensus views seem "aggressive," and Cessna orders are likely to remain weak until the second half of this year.

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U.S. makes $15.4 million from Wash. Fed. warrants

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:03:53 GMT

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- The Treasury Department announced Wednesday that it received net proceeds of $15.39 million from its sale of warrants to purchase common stock of Washington Federal Inc. Treasury said it sold 1.71 million warrants at $9.15 per warrant. The offerings were priced through a modified Dutch auction. The minimum bid was $5 per warrant. Treasury acquired the Washington Federal warrants in return for taxpayer assistance under the Troubled Asset Relief Program. The warrants have a strike price of $17.57. They expire on Nov. 14, 2018.

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EQT Corp. shares fall after stock offering

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 14:03:03 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Shares of EQT Corp. fell 6% to $44.50 in pre-market trades on Wednesday after the Pittsburgh-based energy company said it plans to offer 12.5 million shares of its common stock. Based on the price of $44.50 a share, EQT will raise about $556 million. EQT said it'll use the proceeds of the offering to increase its activities in the Marcellus Shale and other shale gas plays. The company boosted its proposed 2010 capital spending budget to $1.2 billion, from $850 million, and lifted its targeted production increase to 26% from 20%.

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Gold, copper rise after strong Chinese data

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:55:37 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Gold, copper and other metals futures rose on Wednesday after strong economic data from China lifted expectations for demand. Gold for April delivery was last up $1, or 0.1%, at $1,123.10 an ounce in electronic trade. Copper for May delivery was up 1 cent at $3.41 a pound. China's trade surplus narrowed further in February to $7.6 billion from $14.2 billion in January because of soaring imports, reflecting growing domestic consumption in mainland China.

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Valero may soon sell Delaware City refinery

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:56:17 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Valero Corp. CEO Bill Klesse said late Tuesday the refining giant may sign a contract this month to sell its Delaware City refinery to PBF, a European refiner, according to reports. PBF Investments has been in talks with Valero for the refinery, which was shut down last year. PBF Investments may also buy Valero's Paulsboro, N.J., refinery in a separate deal, Klesse said. Valero plans to weigh the purchase of Chevron's Pembroke refinery to gain access to the European market, Klesse said.

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Daimler says global truck market has bottomed

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:37:55 GMT

FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- Germany's Daimler AG said Wednesday the global truck market has most likely bottomed out, but 2010 will still be a challenging year. Worldwide sales at Daimler Trucks dropped 45% in 2009 to 259,328 vehicles. The division's revenue fell 36% to 18.36 billion euros ($24.9 billion). "Many regions show indications of at least the beginnings of a market recovery," said Andreas Renschler, member of the board of management of Daimler AG with responsibility for Daimler Trucks and Daimler Buses. Still, "the general mood concerning the global economy is reserved, and it will take years before we once again reach the level we had attained before the crisis," Renschler said. For 2010, Daimler Trucker targets earnings before interest and taxes of 200 million euros, after a pre-tax loss of 1 billion euros in 2009.

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Treasurys lower before auction of 10-year notes

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:30:20 GMT

NEW YORK (Marketwatch) -- Treasury prices slid in early trading on Wednesday, pushing yields up, amid concern that the government's sale of 10-year notes during the session won't be as well-received as Tuesday's 3-year auction . Yields on the current 10-year notes increased 3 basis points to 3.73%. "The 10-year won't have the same ease that the 3-year did yesterday, but this isn't likely to be a tough auction either," said strategists at RBS Securities.

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Bank of America cuts Chevron to neutral from buy

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:20:35 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Doug Leggate on Wednesday cut his rating on Chevron to neutral from buy and set a price target of $90 a share for the stock. The oil giant's meeting with Wall Street analysts on Tuesday, "had little new to influence an investment case that has been reassuringly consistent in recent years," Leggate said in a note to clients. He added that Exxon Mobil looks like a "better value" in the near-term. (Updated to correct Doug Leggate's affiliation.)

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American Eagle Outfitters earnings higher

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:19:04 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- American Eagle Outfitters Inc. said Wednesday that it earned $59 million, or 28 cents a share in the fourth-quarter compared to $33 million, or 16 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Sales were $972 million compared to $906 million. Adjusted earnings per share for the quarter were 33 cents a share. Analysts polled by FactSet Research estimated, on average, earnings per share of 33 cents. For the first quarter American Eagle sees earnings per share in the range of 15 cents to 17 cents. FactSet's average estimate was for 15 cents.

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Brown-Forman posts smaller quarterly profit

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:17:31 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Brown-Forman Corp. said Wednesday its fiscal third-quarter income fell 13% to $107.9 million, or 73 cents a share, from $123.4 million, or 81 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Sales rose 10% to $861.7 million. Analysts polled by FactSet Research were looking for earnings of 70 cents a share, on average. The Louisville, Ky., supplier of wines and spirits narrowed its 2010 outlook to a range of $2.98 to $3.08 a share, from its prior forecast of $2.95 to $3.15 a share. The Wall Street consensus is for fiscal-year earnings of $3.08 a share. B-class shares of Brown-Forman closed Tuesday at $55.89.

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B. of A. to end debit overdraft fee:reports

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:05:50 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Bank of America Corp. is expected to say on Wednesday that it is eliminating overdraft fees on debit card purchases, according to published reports. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that the bank is ending the $35 fee in an effort to keep ahead of new regulations. According to the report, after the new plan goes into effect, bank clients with insufficient funds will be denied the purchase. The paper said that the new policy will take effect for new accounts beginning June 19, and for existing customers in August.

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Children's Place profit dips 12%

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:16:05 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- The Children's Place Retail Stores Inc. said Wednesday its fourth-quarter net income fell to $34.1 million, or $1.23 a share, from $38.8 million, or $1.31 a share, in the year-ago period. Adjusted net income for the retailer rose to $1.03 a share, from 72 cents a share. Revenue rose to $462.8 million from $441.5 million. Wall Street analysts expected the company to earn $1.04 a share on revenue of $462.8 million, according to a survey by FactSet Research. The Children's Place expects first-quarter earnings of 85-90 cents a share and 2010 earnings of $2.90 a share to $3.10 a share, assuming positive low-single digit comparable retail sales. Analysts expect first-quarter profit of 88 cents a share and 2010 profit of $2.70 a share.

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OPEC raises world oil demand forecast for 2010

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:12:05 GMT

FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries said Wednesday it raised its forecast for global oil demand this year. In its monthly oil report, OPEC said it now expects world oil demand to grow by 900,000 barrels a day in 2010. This represents an upward revision of 100,000 barrels a day from the previous assessment. World oil demand has been highly dependent on the world economy, supported by government-led stimulus plans, OPEC said. "These stimulus plans have already done a great job of jump-starting many sectors of the economy, including energy," the cartel said. "However, questions remain as to how long governments will be able to afford supporting their economies. Should this support diminish, then world oil demand would of course be impacted."

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Abbott wins OK for cataract lens implant

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 12:07:38 GMT

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Abbott Laboratories said Wednesday it received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for the Tecnis Multifocal 1-Piece intraocular lens for cataract patients with and without presbyopia. Intraocular lenses are implanted in a patient's eye after the removal of the natural lens that has become clouded by a cataract.

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