Chesapeake Energy (CHK) released its second quarter results recently. The company posted a good improvement in the revenue, but oversupply in the U.S. North east caused oil, gas, and liquid prices to fall that eroded Chesapeake�� earnings. This impacted the stock price, leading to a drop in the shares soon after it posted its second quarter results. On the other hand, management of the company is anticipating that the higher than expected costs and the increase in the production taxes ate away at Chesapeake�� profit margins. It will be interesting to know how Chesapeake manages to gain market share and impress investors. Let us have a look.
Steady performance
Chesapeake�� revenue rose by 10% to $5.15 billion. This was better than last year�� same quarter revenue. The revenue reported by the company also topped analysts��estimates of $4.6 billion on top line. The weakness within the company eroded its profits to half as compared to what it posted a year ago in the same quarter. The company was most disappointing on the earnings front with EPS of just $0.22 as compared to $0.66 per share a year ago. This also couldn�� meet the consensus estimates of $0.44 per share.
Top Cheap Companies For 2015: Geron Corporation (GERN)
Geron Corporation, a biopharmaceutical company, develops therapies for cancer. Its clinical development product candidates include Imetelstat, a telomerase inhibitor, which is in Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer, advanced non-small cell lung cancer, thrombocythemia, and myeloma. The company was founded in 1990 and is based in Menlo Park, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jon C. Ogg]
Geron Corp. (NASDAQ: GERN) is a continuation of one the dumbest stories out there. This company has developed severe trust issues for causing losses galore in the past. Then its test results almost created a double to a high of $7.79, before falling all the way down to $5.21 in the same day. Then shares were down 10% more at $4.67 on active volume yet again on Friday. Those who did not take the warning about trust here yesterday probably feel pretty dumb.
- [By Monica Gerson]
Breaking news
Energy XXI (NASDAQ: EXXI) and EPL Oil & Gas (NYSE: EPL) today announced the signing of a definitive merger agreement pursuant to which Energy XXI will acquire all of EPL's outstanding shares for total consideration of $2.3 billion, including the assumption of debt. To read the full news, click here. Achaogen (NASDAQ: AKAO) announced today the pricing of its initial public offering of 6,000,000 shares of its common stock at a price to the public of $12.00 per share. To read the full news, click here. Geron (NASDAQ: GERN) announced today that the company has received verbal notice from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that its Investigational New Drug (IND) application for imetelstat has been placed on full clinical hold, affecting all ongoing company-sponsored clinical trials. To read the full news, click here. VeriFone (NYSE: PAY) jumped 9.5% in pre-market trading after the company reported its first quarter results. The firm reported a Q1 EPS of $0.31 versus the Street estimate of $0.27. To read the full news, click here.Posted-In: Credit Suisse US Stock FuturesNews Eurozone Futures Global Pre-Market Outlook Markets
- [By Paul Ausick]
The most heavily traded and wildly swinging Nasdaq stock today is Geron Corp. (NASDAQ: GERN). Shares are down 61.70% at $1.69 in a 52-week range of $0.98 to $7.79. The company has been ordered to put a hold on an investigational new drug application. Geron�� share volume was more than 11-times the daily average of around 4.5 million shares traded.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: Spansion Inc(CODE)
Codere, S.A. engages in the management of gaming machines, bingo halls, horse racing tracks, casinos, and off-track betting facilities in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Panama, and Uruguay. As of December 31, 2008, the company managed 54,818 slot machines and electronic bingo terminals, 137 bingo halls with 30,803 seats, 106 off-track betting facilities, 3 horse racing tracks, and 6 casinos. It also operated 15,963 AWP machines in approximately 10,886 bars and restaurants in Spain. Codere, S.A. was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Alcobendas, Spain.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By GuruFocus]
George Soros (Trades, Portfolio) just reported his first quarter portfolio. He buys Citrix Systems Inc, Baker Hughes Inc, Comcast Corp, Spansion Inc, etc during the 3-months ended 03/31/2014, according to the most recent filings of his investment company, Soros Fund Management LLC. As of 03/31/2014, Soros Fund Management LLC owns 305 stocks with a total value of $10.1 billion. These are the details of the buys and sells.New Purchases: BHI, CODE, CTRP, CLI, AVB, COMM, CNQ, AGO, AUY, ATML, ASH, BXMT, CSTM, AEM, CMA, ARE, CHKP, AUQ, BEAV, CX, ADSK, AALCP, BLK, AIG, BIIB, ADEP, AMRI, ARWR, ATHX, BALT, BCRX, BEAT, CFX, CLFD, CUR, CODE,Added Positions: CTXS, CMCSA, CNP, ALTR, BRCD, CBS, CRM, CHTR, CCJ, CIEN, BIDU, ALLE, ABT, CDNS, ACT,Reduced Positions: AAPL, CCI, AMT, ABBV, AAL, BITA, AL, ANGI, ARIA, CBST, BA, BIRT, EXAR,Sold Out: C, BAC, CRI, AMZN, AGN, CF, BRCM, COTY, BMY, AMCX, CAR, A, ADBE, AFL,For the details of George Soros (Trades, Portfolio)'s stock buys and sells, go to http://www.gurufocus.com/StockBuy.php?GuruName=George+SorosThis is the sector weightings of his portfolio:Technology18.9%Energy14%Healthcare8.3%Consumer Defensive8.2%Communication Services8.1%Consumer Cyclical5.4%Industrials5.1%Basic Materials4.9%Financial Services2.5%Real Estate1.9%Utilities0.5%These are the top 5 holdings of George Soros (Trades, Portfolio)1. Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (TEVA) - 10,310,041 shares, 5.4% of the total portfolio. Shares added by 10.67%2. Herbalife Ltd (HLF) - 4,901,337 shares, 2.8% of the total portfolio. Shares added by 52.9%3. EQT Corp (EQT) - 2,573,814 shares, 2.5% of the total portfolio. Shares added by 3.27%4. Adecoagro SA (AGRO) - 25,915,076 shares, 2.1% of the total portfolio.5. Halliburton Co (HAL) - 3,596,353 shares, 2.1% of the total portfolio. Shares reduced by 20.73%New Purchase: Baker Hughes Inc (BHI)George Soros (Trades, Portfolio) initiated holdings in Baker Hughes Inc. His purchase prices were between $51.82 and $65.27, with an estimated
- [By Jon C. Ogg]
Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) was up over 4% at $14.59 and hit a new multiyear high of $15.27 earlier on Wednesday. SanDisk Corp. (NASDAQ: SNDK) is up right at 3% at $56.95 against a 52-week range of $38.47 to $63.97. Jefferies also reiterated its Buy rating and $21 price target for Micron. We are seeing similar gains in Spansion Inc. (NYSE: CODE), up 2.3% at $10.69, but we would warn that its 52-week range is $9.96 to $14.54. Wells Fargo initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and a $12 to $14 valuation.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: Novatel Wireless Inc.(NVTL)
Novatel Wireless, Inc. provides wireless broadband access solutions for the mobile communications market worldwide. It operates in two segments, Mobile Computing Products and machine-to-machine (M2M) Products and Solutions. The Mobile Computing Products segment offers MiFi Intelligent Mobile Hotspots, which provide connectivity option for Wi-Fi-enabled devices, such as the iPad, Kindle, tablets, PCs, MP3 players, and gaming devices; USB and PC-Card modems for wireless access; and embedded modules for use in laptop PCs, netbooks, tablets, and other electronic products to provide wireless broadband access. This segment also offers MobiLink mobile communications software suite, an object-oriented application that enables access to connectivity features, such as SMS, multimedia messaging, and virtual private networking, as well as provides video telephony and wireless local area networks management capabilities; and MiFi DLNA Server, which operates on MiFi hotspots and enables user to access and play movies, music, and photos. It serves wireless operators, laptop PC and other original equipment manufacturers, distributors, and various companies in other vertical markets. The M2M Products and Solutions segment provides asset-management solutions utilizing wireless technology and M2M communications devices. It offers Spider MT, SA, and AT integrated solutions and accessories for monitoring and managing mobile and fixed assets, vehicle tracking and telemetric, and workforce tracking and management; Enabler III and HS embedded solutions for various products or equipment to communicate with other computers; and N4A software and design services, including software and design services primarily for asset management solutions. This segment serves transportation companies, industrial companies, manufacturers of medical devices and geographical-location aware devices, and providers of security systems. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered i n San Diego, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Monica Gerson]
Novatel Wireless (NASDAQ: NVTL) appointed Tom Allen as its interim Chief Financial Officer. Novatel Wireless shares gained 3.74% to close at $1.94 on Friday.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings(AAWW)
Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc. provides air cargo and outsourced aircraft operating solutions worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance, and Insurance (ACMI); Air Mobility Command (AMC) Charter; Commercial Charter; and Dry Leasing. The ACMI segment offers aircraft that is crewed, maintained, and insured by the company for lease. The AMC Charter segment provides full planeload charter flights to the U.S. military. The Commercial Charter segment provides planeload of capacity charter services to charter brokers, freight forwarders, direct shippers, and airlines. The Dry Leasing segment provides for the leasing of aircraft and/or engines to customers. The company operates a fleet of Boeing 747 freighters. Its customers include airlines, express delivery providers, freight forwarders, the U.S. military, and charter brokers. It operates in Asia, the Middle-East, Australia, Europe, South America, Africa, and North America. As of Decem ber 31, 2009, the company operated a fleet of 747-400 freighter aircraft. Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings was founded in 1992 and is based in Purchase, New York.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Anders Bylund]
Jet chartering service Atlas Air Worldwide (NASDAQ: AAWW ) started a poison pill in 2009 "during a period of turmoil," only to cancel it a year later when the risk of hostile takeover attempts had waned. Shares of Atlas have fallen 20% since the cancellation, while the S&P 500 surged 66% higher, but Atlas is most certainly an independent company today.
- [By Ben Levisohn]
Atlas Air Worldwide (AAWW) has plunged 21% to $38.63 following its announcement that it would earn less this year than it had previously expected.
Oshkosh has dropped 12% to $46.25 after it reported a profit of 49 cents a share, missing forecasts for 590 cents, as sales of military vehicles plunged.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: Trinity Industries Inc.(TRN)
Trinity Industries, Inc. provides products and services to the industrial, energy, transportation, and construction sectors primarily in the United States, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Singapore, and Sweden. The company?s Rail Group manufactures and sells railcars, including auto carrier, box, gondola, hopper, intermodal, specialty, and tank cars; and railcar components, such as couplers and axles. This group also offers repair and coating services. It primarily serves railroads, leasing companies, and industrial shippers of various products. Trinity Industries? Railcar Leasing and Management Services group leases tank cars and freight cars to industrial shippers and railroads operating in petroleum, chemical, agricultural, and energy industries with a fleet of 54,595 owned or leased railcars; provides management and administrative services; and manages railcar fleets on behalf of third parties. The company?s Construction Products group produces ready mix concret e; produces and distributes construction aggregates, including crushed stone, sand and gravel, asphalt rock, and specialty sands and gravel; manufactures highway products and other steel products for infrastructure related projects; supplies ready mix concrete; and provides hot-dip galvanizing services for fabricated steel materials. It primarily serves contractors and subcontractors in the construction and foundation industry. Trinity Industries? Inland Barge group manufactures inland barges; and fiberglass reinforced lift covers. It serves commercial marine transportation companies. The company?s Energy Equipment group manufactures structural wind towers, tank containers, and tank heads for pressure vessels; fertilizer containers; and tank heads for non-pressure vessels, LPG tanks, and utility, traffic, and lighting structures. It serves turbine producers, as well as industrial plants, utilities, residences, and small businesses. The company was founded in 1933 and is he adquartered in Dallas, Texas.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Shauna O'Brien]
On Friday, Trinity Industries Inc (TRN) announced that it has raised its dividend by 15.4%.
The company’s board has approved an increase in its quarterly dividend from 13 cents to 15 cents per share, or 60 cents annually.
The dividend will be paid on October 31 to shareholders of record on October 15. The stock will go ex-dividend on October 10.
Trinity Industries shares were mostly flat during premarket trading Friday. The stock is up 20% YTD.
- [By Aaron Levitt]
Finally, any new tank-car regulation will benefit those firms that actually build and supply all those new cars. So our last pick in the wide world of railroad stocks is�Trinity Industries (TRN). The firm already has seen its tank-car order backlog surge so much — currently sitting at 40,000 cars — that it has shifted much of its capacity at its wind turbine tower business towards the manufacture of rail cars.
- [By Vera Yuan]
��ailroad service company Trinity Industries, Inc. (TRN) reported better than expected revenue and profitability based on continued strength in demand for tank cars coupled with a meaningful positive impact from a large new customer (Element Financial).
- [By Holly LaFon]
Another area that is intriguing to us is the North American energy sector which looks to have a number of interesting catalysts currently. While the energy sector is at present only a modest overweight in the portfolios, we have been encouraged by several trends taking place for a number of years. These positive developments are also having an impact that goes far beyond the energy sector itself. Many believe that the U.S. will become energy independent and possibly a net exporter of natural gas and oil (currently restricted by law) in the next decade. This opinion is based primarily on the development of new drilling techniques (i.e. horizontal drilling, and high pressure fracking) that have enabled companies to access oil and natural gas reserves in shale formations that were previously not economically viable. The ability to tap into this acreage is a game-changer in our view and is already having a tremendous impact on the economy. Employment rates in these mostly rural areas surrounding the shale basins are very high and companies thus find hiring extremely competitive. Strong labor markets tend to create strong local economies. Oil States International (OIS) has been able to capitalize on this trend by providing housing and other services to oil service workers that are in demand in the area. CST Brands (CST) operates gas stations in Texas, but it is increasingly looking to broaden its product offering beyond fuel. Rail companies like Union Pacific (UNP), Canadian Pacific (CP), Kansas City Southern (KSU) and Genesee and Wyoming (GWR) have also benefited substantially. Given that shale areas are rural and often lacking infrastructure, substantial investment must be made to support drilling and production activities. Without pipelines in place, railroads have been the primary takeaway mechanism for moving production to the various clusters of refining capacity around the United States. In order to serve this demand, massive investment in railcars has been nee
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: STAAR Surgical Company(STAA)
STAAR Surgical Company, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, development, manufacture, and sale of implantable lenses for the cataracts and refractive surgery. It offers intraocular lenses (IOL) that include silicone Toric IOL, which is used in cataract surgery to treat preexisting astigmatism; Preloaded Injector, a three-piece silicone or acrylic IOL preloaded into a single-use disposable injector; Aspheric IOLs that provide a clearer image than traditional spherical IOLs; and nanoFLEX IOL, a single-piece collamer aspheric IOL. The company also provides implantable collamer lenses (ICL) comprising VISIAN ICL and VISIAN Toric ICL to treat refractive disorders, such as myopia, hyperopia, and astigmatism. In addition, it sells surgical products and other related instruments, as well as manufactures AquaFlow device for the treatment of glaucoma. The company markets its products to health care providers, including surgical centers, hospitals, managed care pro viders, health maintenance organizations, group purchasing organizations, and government facilities primarily under the STAAR, Visian, Collamer, nanoFLEX, nanoPOINT, CentraFLOW, AquaPORT, Epiphany, and AquaFlow names. It distributes its products through directly employed representatives, independent sales representatives, and local distributors in the United States and internationally. The company was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Monrovia, California.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Jake L'Ecuyer]
Leading and Lagging Sectors
Monday morning, the healthcare sector proved to be a source of strength for the market. Leading the sector was strength from Sarepta Therapeutics (NASDAQ: SRPT) and STAAR Surgical Company (NASDAQ: STAA). In trading on Monday, basic materials shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 0.45 percent.
Top 10 Up And Coming Stocks To Watch Right Now: iRobot Corp (IRBT)
iRobot Corporation (iRobot), incorporated in August 1990, designs and builds robots. The Company�� home care robots perform time-consuming domestic chores while its government and industrial robots perform tasks, such as battlefield reconnaissance and bomb disposal, multi-purpose tasks for local police and first responders, and long-endurance oceanic missions. It sells its robots to consumers through a range of distribution channels, including chain stores and other national retailers, and through its on-line store, and to the United States military and other government agencies globally. It designs and builds robots for the consumer and government and industrial markets. It sells its products through distinct sales channels to the consumer and government and industrial markets. In the United States and Canada, it sells its consumer products through a network of national retailers. As of December 31, 2011, this network consisted of more than 30 retailers, which often sell either one or some combination of its products. Its smaller domestic retail operations are supported by distributors to whom it sells product directly. It sells its government and industrial products directly to end users and indirectly through prime contractors and distributors. During the year ended December 31, 2011, sales to non-the United States customers accounted for 45.5% of total revenue.
Consumer Products
The Company sells various products, which are designed for use in and around the home. Its consumer products are focused on both indoor and outdoor cleaning applications. It offers multiple Roomba floor vacuuming robots and Scooba floor washing robots. Its Roomba robot�� compact disc shape allows it to clean under beds and other furniture, resulting in cleaner floors. In addition, it cleans automatically upon the push of a button. Its Scooba robot�� cleaning process allows the robot to simultaneously sweep, wash, scrub and dry hard floors, all at the touch of a button. Its Verro Pool Cleani! ng Robot is used to clean a residential pool and removes debris as small as two microns from the pool floor, walls and stairs. Verro is brought to market under the iRobot brand through a relationship with the Aqua Products Group companies, including AquaJet LLC and Aquatron, Inc., which developed the pool cleaning robots.
The Company�� Looj Gutter Cleaning Robot cleans an entire stretch of gutter. The Looj also features a detachable handle that doubles as a wireless remote control, providing control of the robot while cleaning.
Government and Industrial Products
In government and industrial product markets, the Company offers both ground and maritime unmanned vehicles. Its tactical ground robots include the combat-tested 510 PackBot line of small, unmanned ground robots, the 310 small unmanned ground vehicle (SUGV) and XM1216 SUGV (Small Unmanned Ground Vehicle) multi-purpose ground robots, the 110 FirstLook small, light, throwable robot, and the 710 Warrior multi-purpose robot capable of carrying heavy payloads. The PackBot, SUGV, FirstLook, and Warrior robot series make up a family of robots using many common platform components and offer its flipper technology, which enables robots to climb stairs, navigate rubble, and penetrate inaccessible areas. These robots keep war fighters and public safety officials out of harm�� way and are designed for performing search, reconnaissance, mapping, bomb disposal and other dangerous missions. As of December 31, 2011, more than 4,500 robots had been delivered to military and civil defense forces globally. Its Aware 2 software is incorporated into the 510 PackBot chassis and operator control unit. As a result, PackBot can support multiple configurations and payloads with the same chassis and operator control unit, providing customers with a single robot capable of performing multiple missions.
Contract Research and Development Projects
The Company is involved in several contract development pr! ojects wi! th the United States governmental agencies and departments. The durations of these projects range from a few months to several years. These projects are usually funded as either cost-plus, firm fixed price, or time and materials contracts. In a cost-plus contract, it is allowed to recover its actual costs plus a fixed fee. Under a firm fixed price contract, it receives a fixed amount upon satisfying contractually defined deliverables. On its time and materials contracts, it recovers a specific amount per hour worked based on a bill rate schedule, plus the cost of direct materials, subcontracts, and other non-labor costs, including an agreed-upon mark-up.
Advisors' Opinion:- [By Susan J. Aluise]
ISRG is considered expensive by several value metrics, including a price/earnings-to-growth ratio of well more than 3, but the expectations for growth are warranted. Intuitive Surgical’s place among top robotics healthcare stocks is all but cemented right now.
Robotics Stocks to Buy: iRobot (IRBT)The first thing you notice about iRobot (IRBT) — the name is pretty cool. The second thing you notice is its significant track record in the robotics business. Over the past 24 years, iRobot has carved out a strong presence delivering robotics to homes, in defense and security, and other applications.
- [By Steve Symington]
On Thursday,�iRobot (NASDAQ: IRBT ) announced it has been awarded a new four-year, $30 million indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract by the U.S. Army's Robotic Systems. The contract, which replaces an expiring IDIQ, enables the delivery of PackBot FasTac robotic units and their respective spare parts.
- [By Steve Symington]
Last week, I posed three questions for iRobot (NASDAQ: IRBT ) going into its second-quarter earnings report.
But even though the company answered each of my inquiries with its report yesterday after the market close, the stock traded down more than 13% today.
- [By Rich Smith]
This series, brought to you by Yahoo! Finance, looks at which upgrades and downgrades make sense, and which ones investors should act on. Today, our headlines feature a downgrade for ITT Educational (NYSE: ESI ) , an upgrade for Facebook (NASDAQ: FB ) , and a much improved price target for tiny iRobot (NASDAQ: IRBT ) . Let's dive right in, beginning with why one analyst just...
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