19:22 WRAPX After Hours Summary: TXN -3.9% (lowers Q1 EPS and revs below consensus); MFA +0.1% (announces reduction in leverage through asset sales; co guides Q1 EPS); BSC +0.1% (confirms that it denies liquidity rumors)
Companies moving in after hours trading in reaction to earnings: Trading Up: IPAR +16.4%; FACE +7.6%; CMGI +3.6%; NEON +3.6%; SYKE +3.6%; CECE +2.8%… Trading Down: JSDA -27.0%; GAIA -3.4%… Companies moving in after hours trading in reaction to news: Trading Up: ACCL +4.4% (and Agilent Technologies extend their relationship with OEM agreement); USNA +2.3% (announces that ‘large’ third-party clinical study has confirmed that lifestyle change, involving diet, supplementation and exercise, can improve the metabolic syndrome); FWRD +1.9% (announces agreement to acquire certain assets of Pinch Holdings and AFTCO ENTERPRISES); UHAL +1.8% (Shareholder Rights Plan Terminated); ICFI +1.1% (selected for a $200 million award); BSC +0.1% (confirms that it denies liquidity rumors); BSC +0.1% (confirms that it denies liquidity rumors); MFA +0.1% (announces reduction in leverage through asset sales; co guides Q1 EPS)… Trading Down: TXN -3.9% (lowers Q1 EPS and revs below consensus)
19:13 MFA MFA Mortgage announces reduction in leverage through asset sales; co guides Q1 EPS (7.26 -0.27) -Update-
Co announced an adjustment in its balance sheet strategy. Co says, while we have consistently maintained an assets-to-equity multiple of ~9x-10x (or a debt-to-equity multiple of ~8x-9x), we have determined that in this period of financial industry stress the proper strategy is to generally lower our target debt-to-equity multiple to 7x-9x. Our focus will continue to be in high quality assets as the vast majority of our assets are agency MBS, which are liquid and financeable. To effect this change in leverage strategy, we have, since Friday, March 7, 2008, sold ~$1 bln in MBS. The assets sold consist of ~$950 mln of agency MBS and $50 mln of AAA-rated non- agency MBS at a realized loss of ~$15 mln. Concurrently, we have terminated repurchase agreements at no cost and ~$525 mln of associated interest rate swap agreements at a cash cost of ~$31 mln. We have made this strategy adjustment because it is our view that credit conditions are tightening, rapidly and indiscriminately. After analyzing recent credit events impacting other leveraged public and private companies investing in high quality MBS, we believe that while these companies utilized substantially higher levels of leverage than MFA, our interpretation of their public disclosure and other information available to us increases the probability of increased margin requirements in the future for all repurchase agreement borrowers, including MFA. Additionally, recent news about potential security liquidations has increased our concerns about declining values for many financial assets including agency and AAA-rated MBS. As a result, we have proactively reduced leverage to decrease the potential negative impact of increased margin requirements and falling asset values. We currently estimate our book value per share to be in the range of $5.75-$6.00. As of tonight, March 10, 2008, MFA’s available cash balance totaled ~$348 mln and our unpledged agency MBS had a value of ~$19 mln, both of which are available to meet future margin calls. To date, MFA has satisfied all of its margin calls. On a positive note, while we will be generally utilizing lower levels of leverage, the spread MFA expects to earn on its assets is expected to increase in 2008.” Excluding the realized losses from asset sales and swap terminations, based on current estimates, co expects MFA’s earnings will ~$0.18 per share of common stock in Q1 of 2008 may not be comparable to $0.24 First Call consensus.
19:11 RSCR Res-Care beats by $0.02, misses on revs; guides FY08 EPS in-line, revs in-line (19.390 +0.1 
Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.36 per share, $0.02 better than the First Call consensus of $0.34; revenues rose 8.9% year/year to $367.2 mln vs the $377.5 mln consensus. Co confirms in-line guidance for FY08, sees EPS of $1.44-1.50 vs. $1.49 consensus; sees FY08 revs of $1.55-1.62 bln vs. $1.59 bln consensus.
18:59 LMDIA Liberty Media board of directors has authorized the repurchase of up to $1 bln of Liberty Entertainment common stock and up to $300 mln of Liberty Capital common stock (24.27 -1.13)
Co announced that its board of directors has authorized the repurchase of up to $1 bln of Liberty Entertainment (LMDIA) common stock and up to $300 million of Liberty Capital (LCAPA) common stock. This authorization replaces the prior repurchase authorization of Liberty Capital common stock. The existing Liberty Interactive repurchase authorization remains in effect and was not affected by this action.
18:53 SEH Spartech Corp reports Q1 (Jan) results, misses on revs; gives outlook (1.70 -0.4
Reports Q1 (Jan) loss of $0.12 per share, may not be comparable to the First Call consensus of $0.13; revenues fell 3.5% year/year to $335.1 mln vs the $355.2 mln consensus. Co gives outlook saying, “We continue to see weak demand in our end markets coupled with a particularly aggressive resin pricing environment. The resin pricing environment has been impacted by (i) high oil and natural gas prices, (ii) consolidation of resin suppliers, (iii) a weakening U.S. economy which has made resin exporting more attractive to domestic suppliers, and (iv) relatively better international end market demand. While the resin pricing environment has recently improved to some degree, we are moving forward with initiatives that address our current state and assume that the weak demand and resin environment continue for the remainder of our year. These initiatives include more deliberate actions to recover our profit margin on certain products, reducing our cost structure, and changing our organizational structure to improve our performance. The positive impact from these initiatives coupled with the adverse impact of certain items that we believe are specific to our first quarter (e.g., seasonably slowest quarter and inventory liquidation) bode well for an improvement in margins and return to profitability in the near term. Actions will be taken during the next quarter to demonstrate our resolve to improve short-term performance and we will provide further discussion of our more comprehensive plans by the end Q2.
18:12 ESCC Evans & Sutherland reports Q4 EPS of ($0.71) vs ($0.8 yr ago; revs rise 75% to $26.2 mln (1.02 -0.06)
17:57 GPK Graphic Packaging Intl anounces in an 8-K the co enters new $1.2 bln term loan (2.98 +0.01)
In an 8-K, on March 10, 2008, Graphic Packaging International, Inc. (”GPI”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Co, entered into an Amendment No. 1 to its existing senior secured Credit Agreement dated as of May 16, 2007 (the “Credit Agreement”). Pursuant to Amendment No. 1, GPI obtained (i) a new $1,200 mln senior secured term loan facility to refinance the outstanding amounts under BCH’s existing first and second lien credit facilities and (ii) an increase to GPI’s existing revolving credit facility to $400 mln from $300 mln. GPI’s existing $1,055 mlnterm loan facility will remain in place.
17:54 MKTIN Market Internals -Update-
The Dow was down 1.29% at 11740, the Nasdaq was down 1.95% at 2169, and the S&P was down 1273% to close at 1334. Leading sectors included: Education Services +2.8%, Restaurants +1.6%, Office Electronics +1.5%, Healthcare Services +1.2%, Brewers +1.0. Lagging sectors included: Thrifts and Mortgages -9.4%, Coal and Consumable Fuels -6.2%, Diversified Metals and Mining -6.1%, Construction and Engineering -5.3%, Specialized Finance -5.3%. Today’s movement came from higher than avg volume on the NYSe and lower than avg on the Nasdaq (NYSE 1612, vs. 1608 avg, Nasdaq 2152, vs. 2309 avg), with decliners outpacing advancers (NYSE advance/decline 539/2787, Nasdaq 689/2317) with new lows outpacing new highs (NYSE new high/new low 20/361, Nasdaq 32/478).
17:53 UHAL AMERCO Shareholder Rights Plan Terminated (47.87 -1.82)
Co announced today that as part of the Company’s continuing efforts to employ best practices in corporate governance, its Board of Directors has voted to terminate the shareholder rights plan (commonly known as a “poison pill”) effective as of March 5, 2008.
17:49 WLP WellPoint on Conference Call (65.92 -1.20) -Update-
Seeing an increase in high dollar claims and pyshician trends higher than expected which cause co to revise cost trend assumptions… says will tyake pricing actions in certain markets… total medical enrollments have been waited more towards sel f funded customers than the co had planned… national account membership has exceeded expectations but enrollment in fully insured products was below expectations… says will remain disciplined in pricing… cash flow from ops expected to be $3.7 bln in 2008…. stock trading at $54.50 in after hours.
17:25 DRH Diamondrock Hospitality announces 4.8 mln share stock buy back program (11.50 -0.2
17:22 AA Alcoa files mixed securities shelf offering in an S-3ASR (35.64 -0.96)
17:19 LFL Lan Airlines S.A. airlines monthly statistics report for February 2008 (12.51 -0.26)
Co reported its preliminary monthly traffic statistics and punctuality indicators for February 2008. System passenger traffic for February increased 15.8% as capacity rose 15.1%. As a result, the Co’s load factor increased 0.5 points to 81.0%. International passenger traffic accounted for ~85% of total passenger traffic. International passenger traffic for February rose 13.3% as capacity increased 14.8%. Accordingly, the international passenger load factor for the month decreased 1.1 points to 81.1%. Long-haul capacity grew due to an increase in operations to the United States, Europe, the South Pacific and the Caribbean. Short-haul capacity grew mainly as a result of an expansion in regional operations, as well as expansions in the Argentine and Peruvian domestic markets. Domestic passenger traffic in Chile rose 32.6% as capacity increased 17.3%. As a consequence, the domestic load factor for the month increased 9.3 points to 80.2%. Growth in domestic traffic primarily resulted from the implementation of the Co’s new business model for short haul operations. In this way, during 2007 and at the beginning of 2008, LAN has successfully fulfilled is commitment to enable more people to fly, offering passengers more convenient pricing. Cargo traffic increased 11.7% as capacity rose 14.5%. As a consequence, the cargo load factor decreased 1.8 points to 72.9%…
17:17 BBW Build-A-Bear Workshop completes review of strategic alternatives; board increases share repurchase authorization to up to $50 mln (10.94 -0.11)
17:14 ATK Alliant Tech selected for U.S. Air Force BattleAxe follow-on contract (100.73 -2.02)
Co announced it was selected by Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to receive a $1.6 mln contract to continue development of an innovative small, lightweight warhead that will provide a unique battlefield solution to stop an enemy target.
17:08 FWRD Forward Air announces agreement to acquire certain assets of Pinch Holdings and AFTCO ENTERPRISES (30.90 -1.15)
Co announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Forward Air has entered into an agreement to acquire certain assets of Pinch Holdings and its related co AFTCO ENTERPRISES and certain of their respective wholly-owned subsidiaries. The transaction is scheduled to close on or about March 17, 2008 and is subject to the receipt of applicable consents and the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.
17:08 STP Suntech Power announces proposed offering of $425 mln convertible senior notes (32.07 -2.00)
17:05 FXEN FX Energy reports Q4 (3.98 -0.20)
Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.17 per share, incl items, may not be comparable to the First Call consensus of $0.00; revenues rose 28.0% year/year to $4.1 mln vs the $5.15 mln consensus.
17:04 PEIX Pacific Ethanol announces delay in reporting Q4 and 2007 results (4.68 +0.17)
The co. announced a delay in the filing of its annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007. As a result, the co will file a Form 12b-25 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for an automatic extension of time to file the Form 10-K and will make the filing by March 31, 2008. The company also announced it will release its fiscal year 2007 results pre-market on Monday, March 31, 2008. The company will host a live conference call and webcast at 10:00 AM EDT / 7:00 AM PDT on Monday, March 31, 2008
17:04 BSC Bear Stearns confirms that it denies liquidity rumors (62.30 -7.7 -Update-
The co announces it has denied market rumors regarding the firm’s liquidity. The co stated that there is absolutely no truth to the rumors of liquidity problems that circulated today in the mkt. Alan Schwartz, President and CEO of the co, said, “Bear Stearns’ balance sheet, liquidity and capital remain strong.”
17:02 PNX The Phoenix Cos: Oliver Press Partners sends letter to Phoenix Companies’ 225,000 shareholders (10.60 -0.31)
Oliver Press Partners (owns ~5% of PNX common stock) sends the following letter to the 225,000 shareholders of The Phoenix Companies in which it announced the commencement of its campaign to elect three independent director nominees at co’s 2008 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, scheduled for May 2, 2008. “We are very concerned about the direction in which Phoenix is heading as discussed in this letter and believe that this year it is particularly important that you vote for the election of new Directors to halt any further decline in the company’s fortunes and to prevent further deterioration in the ratings of Phoenix Life Insurance Company or its affiliates.”
17:00 AFN Alesco reports Q4 results (2.71 +00.39)
AFN reports Q4 EPS of $0.31 vs $0.30 two analyst estimate, EPS has been adjusted to include items, may not be comparable.
16:56 FL Foot Locker reports Q4 (Jan) results, revs in-line; guides FY08 EPS above consensus (11.15 -0.09)
Reports Q4 (Jan) earnings of $0.55 per share, includes multiple items, may not be comparable to the First Call consensus of $0.44; revenues fell 10.3% year/year to $1.48 bln vs the $1.48 bln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY08, sees EPS of $0.65-0.85 vs. $0.64 consensus.
16:54 AVD American Vanguard announces the appointment of David Johnson as the CFO (13.47 -1.2
The co announces that it has appointed David Johnson as Chief Financial Officer and that James Barry, the co’s CFO for the past 22 years, will continue with the co in his new role as Chief Administrative Officer, Treasurer and Assistant Secretary, effective immediately.
16:54 FL sees FY08 $0.65-0.85 vs $0.64 First Call consensus
16:53 FL prelim $0.55, incl items, may not be comparable to $0.44 First Call consensus; revs $1.48 bln vs $1.48 bln First Call consensus
16:46 HOV Hovnanian Entrpr reports Q1 (Jan) results, beats on revs; continues to project positive cash flow from operations in excess of $100 mln (8.59 +0.09)
Reports Q1 (Jan) loss of $2.07 per share, including the effect of a $21 mln FAS 109 deferred tax valuation allowance charge, may not be comparable to the First Call consensus of ($1.96); revenues fell 6.2% year/year to $1.09 bln vs the $911.4 mln consensus. The Co continues to project positive cash flow from operations in excess of $100 mln for FY08. Co says, “Market conditions remain challenging across many of our markets. We continue to focus on reducing our inventories, maximizing cash flow and shrinking our overhead to ensure that we properly manage the difficult market conditions we currently face. Despite the persistence of negative factors impacting the homebuilding industry, we are diligently working to position the company to take advantage of the stronger demand for new homes that will inevitably return once the current housing correction end.”
16:43 NVS Novartis AG: Sanofi sues Novartis’s Sandoz unit to block generic Ambien CR - Bloomberg (47.32 -0.57)
16:41 HOV prelim ($2.07) vs ($1.96) First Call consensus; revs $1.09 bln vs $911.37 mln First Call consensus
16:40 CMGI CMGI reports Q2 results; guides FY08 revs in-line (10.62 -0.45)
Reports Q2 (Jan) earnings of $0.58 per share, includes items, may not be comparable to the First Call consensus of $0.01; revenues fell 14.4% year/year to $278.0 mln vs the $315.0 mln consensus. Co sees FY08 revs of $1.1-1.15 bln vs $1.14 bln consensus.
16:37 CECE CECO Environ. misses by $0.03, beats on revs (7.24 -0.69)
Co reports Q4 EPS of $0.12 vs $0.15 First Call consensus; revs $67.98 mln vs $66.12 mln two analyst estimate. “We anticipate that both gross and operating margin percentages will increase in the future as the large project is completed and anticipated new higher margin contracts are completed.”
16:37 TIS Orchids Paper Products reports Q4 EPS of $0.13 vs $0.15 yr ago; revs rise 17% to $20.3 mln (7.26 -0.55)
16:35 RAME RAM Energy Resources announces update to operating activity, Q4 production increased 37% YoY (4.67 +0.01)
Co announced an update to operating activity. Co says production for Q4 2007 was ~436,000 barrels of oil eqivalent (BOE), an increase of 37% over last year’s Q4, raising the company’s total oil and gas production for 2007 to 1.4 million BOE, an increase of 10% over the prior year total of 1.3 million BOE, average daily production for Q4 2007 was 4,739 BOE compared to 3,446 BOE for the same quarter in 2006, raising average daily production for the 2007 year to 3,895 BOE, average daily production for the month of December 2007, the first full month of production following the acquisition of Ascent, was 6,580 BOE.
16:35 BCR C.R. Bard signs agreement to acquire Specialized Health Products International for $1.00 in cash; BCR’s financial guidance remains unchanged (91.77 -1.0
Co announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire all the outstanding shares of Specialized Health Products International (SHPI) for a purchase price of $1.00 per share in cash, totaling approximately $68 mln. The co expects to complete the transaction following approval by the shareholders of Specialized Health Products and customary closing conditions, including Hart-Scott-Rodino clearance. SHPI manufactures and markets vascular access products. BCRs 2008 financial guidance remains unchanged as a result of this
transaction.
16:32 CECE prelim $0.12 vs $0.15 First Call consensus; revs $67.98 mln vs $66.12 mln First Call consensus
16:31 TXN Texas Instruments lowers Q1 EPS and revs below consensus (29.65 0.35) -Update-
Co lowers Q1 EPS to $0.41-0.45 vs $0.46 First Call consensus, down from prior $0.43-0.49. Co lowers Q1 revs guidance; co sees revs of $3.21-3.35 bln vs $3.34 bln First Call consensus, down from $3.27-3.55 bln. Semiconductor revenue between $3.14-3.26 bln, compared with the prior range of $3.20-3.46 bln; and Education Technology revenue between $70-90 mln, unchanged from the prior range.
16:31 TBL Timberland announces authorization of an additional six million share repurchase program (13.76 -0.45)
16:24 FTEK Fuel-Tech Deputy Chairman bought 20K shares at $17.16 on 3/10 (17.31 -0.64)
Purchase was disclosed in a Form 4 filing after the close.
16:20 Equity markets finish lower for the third consecutive session, Dow Industrials down last 7 out of 8 sessions
The major stock market averages suffered heavy selling pressure for the second consecutive session and all settled with lower lows for the third session in a row. The Dow Industrials (INDU) are now down in the last 7 out of 8 sessions with the last three closing at or near their worst levels. averages. With little in the way of economic figures after last weeks barrage of data, traders and investors are digesting more record high oil prices and continued talk of recession after two consecutive months of negative payroll growth. Crude oil futures for Apr delivery (CL J hit 108.21 during NYMEX floor trading before backing off to settle @ 107.94. More negative news coming from the financial space is also keeping sentiment bearish as LEH (-7.30%) recently announced a 5% slash in its global workforce effective immediately. This follows weekend developments in CFC (-14.0%) which now faces an FBI investigation into securities fraud, and a negative Barron’s article calling out FNM (-13.00%) claiming its balance sheet is filled with soft assets and understated liabilities that would leave the co ill-equipped to weather a serious financial. Also, BSC (-11.10%) plunged after Moody’s Investors Service downgraded the ratings of 163 tranches of credit securities issued by the bank and put another 155 on watch for possible downgrades in the future. From a technical perspective, the Nasdaq Comp (COMPQ), Nasdaq 100 (NDX), and Russell 2000 (RUT) all traded to & settled at new 52Wk closing lows, and also closed beneath the Jan22/23 intraday lows. Unofficially, the INDU ended @ 11740.15 -153.55 or -1.30%, SPX @ 1273.35 -20.00 or -1.55%, COMPQ @ 2169.35 -43.15 or -1.95%, NDX @ 1673.05 -34.45 or -2.00%, and RUT @ 643.95 -16.15 or -2.45%. Sector strength in today’s session came from Oil (USO +2.25%), Commodities (DBC +1.85%, DBA +1.8%, GSG +1.75%), Semis (SMH +0.20%), and Software names (SWH +0.20%). Leading sector weakness was noticeable in Coal (KOL -5.8%), Broker Dealers (IAI -4.75%), Biotech names (IBB -4.45%), Clean Energy (PBW -4.15%), Energy names (OIH -2.85%), and Financials (XLF -2.85%, IYF -2.55%).
16:20 Health insurers AET, UNH, CI, HNT are trading lower in after-hours after WLP lowered guidance
See 16:08 comment for WLP news. (AET, UNH, CI, HNT)
16:19 OKS ONEOK Partners announces 2.5 mln common units public offering and 5.4 million common units private placement (59.66 -0.70)
The co announces a public offering of 2.5 mln of its common units, representing limited partner interests, subject to market and other conditions. The units will be offered by ONEOK Partners pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement on file with the SEC. In addition, the partnership will concurrently sell 5.4 mln of its common units to ONEOK (OKE) in a private placement. ONEOK and a subsidiary, which is the sole general partner of the partnership, currently own an aggregate 45.7%interest in the partnership.
16:18 SYKE Sykes Enterprises reports Q4 (Dec) results, beats on revs; guides Q1 EPS in-line, revs above consensus; guides FY08 EPS in-line, revs above consensus (15.92 -0.01)
Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.26 per share, excluding $0.03 provision for regulatory penalties related to two outbound telemarketing contracts in Spain, including $0.04 related to a higher than expected effective tax rate, vs the First Call consensus of $0.26; reports revs up 24.7% yr/yr to $197.7 mln vs $189.9 mln consensus. Co issues guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $0.25-0.27 vs. $0.26 consensus; sees Q1 revs of $200-205 mln vs. $190.70 mln consensus. Co issues guidance for FY08, sees EPS of $1.12-1.20 vs. $1.15 consensus; sees FY08 revs of $800-820 mln vs. $781.75 mln consensus.
16:16 EMC EMC Corp acquires IT Service Management software provider, not expected to have a material impact on revenues or EPS for 2008 (14.70 -0.33)
Co announces that it has acquired privately-held Infra Corporation Pty Limited, a provider of IT Service Management software. The acquisition is not expected to have a material impact on revenues or EPS for 2008.
16:16 SYKE sees FY08 $1.12-1.20 vs $1.15 First Call consensus; sees revs $800-820 mln vs $781.75 mln First Call consensus
16:16 ICFI ICF International selected for a $200 million award (24.37 -1.90)
The co is one of six cos to be awarded a blanket purchase agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense to provide IT solutions and program and performance management and evaluation, the co announces. The agreement has a $200 mln total ceiling value for all awardees and a term of one-year base period with four option years. The BPA represents an effort by the department to increase competition and efficiency through strategic sourcing.
16:16 SYKE sees Q1 $0.25-0.27 vs $0.26 First Call consensus; sees revs $200-205 mln vs $190.70 mln First Call consensus
16:15 SYKE prelim $0.26 vs $0.26 First Call consensus; revs $197.7 mln vs $189.88 mln First Call consensus
16:11 CSR China Security and Surveillance reports EPS in-line, beats on revs; issues Q1 & FY08 guidance (14.95 +0.10)
Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.38 per share, excluding non-recurring items, in-line with the First Call consensus of $0.38; revenues rose 105.9% year/year to $84.2 mln vs the $82.1 mln consensus. Co sees Q1 EPS of $0.31-0.34, revs of $68-70 mln (no ests). Co sees FY08 EPS of $1.50-1.75, FY08 revs of $350-370 mln (no ests).
16:11 CVP Centerplate reports Q4 EPS of ($0.09) vs ($0.06) single estimate; reports revs up 6.6% yr/yr to $168.4 mln vs $171.4 mln single estimate (11.22 -0.0
16:11 ACCL Accelrys and Agilent Technologies extend their relationship with OEM agreement (5.50 -0.30)
Accelrys (ACCL) and Agilent Technologies (A) announce they have entered into an agreement to allow Agilent to distribute an embedded version of Accelrys’ SciTegic Pipeline Pilot with Agilent OpenLAB software solution. Agilent expects to have a commercial version of Embedded Pipeline Pilot available in the first half of 2008.
16:10 SAFT Safety Insurance misses by $0.24, reports revs in-line (35.80 +0.06)
Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $1.05 per share, $0.24 worse than the First Call consensus of $1.29; revenues fell 2.6% year/year to $165 mln vs the $164.6 mln consensus.
16:09 DWRI Design Within Reach beats by $0.02, beats on revs; guides FY08 EPS in-line, revs in-line (2.88 +0.13)
Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.16 per share, $0.02 better than the First Call consensus of $0.14; revenues rose 3.6% year/year to $52 mln vs the $49.1 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY08, sees EPS of $0.03-0.05 vs. $0.05 consensus; sees FY08 revs of $200 mln vs. $198.52 mln consensus.
16:08 IPAR Inter Parfums beats by $0.07, reports revs in-line; guides FY08 EPS above consensus, revs above consensus (16.10 -0.6
Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.41 per share, $0.07 better than the First Call consensus of $0.34; revenues rose 32.4% year/year to $119.4 mln vs the $119.2 mln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY08, sees EPS of approx $1.25, compared to previous guidance of $1.16, vs. $1.14 consensus; sees FY08 revs of approx $442 mln, compared to previous guidance of $437 mln, vs. $439.31 mln consensus.
16:08 WLP WellPoint sees full year 2008 net income to be in the range of $5.76 to $6.01 vs $6.41 consensus (65.92 -1.20)
Co announces it now expects full year 2008 net income to be in the range of $5.76 to $6.01 per share vs $6.41 consensus, assuming net realized investment gains of approx $0.06 per share, which is a revision from the previous forecast of $6.41 per share. This revised growth outlook represents an increase of approximately 4 to 8% over net income of $5.56 per share reported for the year ended December 31, 2007. Net income for first quarter ending March 31, 2008, is now expected to be in the range of $1.16 to $1.26 per share vs $1.44 consensus, assuming net realized investment gains of approx $0.06 per share, compared with the prior forecast of $1.44 per share and the $1.26 per share reported for the first quarter of 2007. “We are making these revisions to our prior earnings guidance due to higher than expected medical costs, lower than expected fully insured enrollment and, to a lesser extent, the changing economic environment in which we are operating… While we are disappointed with having to revise our 2008 outlook, we are still expecting growth this year, with record levels of membership, revenue and earnings per share. We are taking actions and making investments in our business to further improve our performance during the balance of this year and beyond.”
16:08 GAIA Gaiam beats by $0.01, beats on revs, guides FY08 revs above consensus (19.35 -1.27)
Reports Q4 EPS of $0.17 vs $0.16 two analyst estimate; revs $81.8 mln vs $72.80 mln two analyst estimate. “Gaiam expects its revenues for 2008 to be approximately $300 mln” vs $284.65 mln two analyst estimate.
16:07 SAFT prelim $1.05 vs $1.29 First Call consensus; revs $164.9 mln vs $164.56 mln First Call consensus
16:07 CSR prelim $0.38 vs $0.38 First Call consensus; revs $84.2 mln vs $82.10 mln First Call consensus
16:07 DWRI reaffirms FY08 $0.03-0.05 vs $0.05 First Call consensus; reaffirms revs $200 mln vs $198.52 mln First Call consensus
16:06 USNA USANA announces that ‘large’ third-party clinical study has confirmed that lifestyle change, involving diet, supplementation and exercise, can improve the metabolic syndrome (27.46 -1.69)
Co announces that a large, third-party clinical study recently completed at the University of Colorado Denver has confirmed that lifestyle change, involving diet, supplementation and exercise, can improve the metabolic syndrome. The results of this study verified those from an earlier study conducted by USANA in 2005. Both clinical trials employed a lifestyle program that included exercise, USANA’s nutritional supplements, and a low-glycemic diet including USANA’s nutritional shakes and bars. Metabolic syndrome is a pre-diabetic state that involves multiple symptoms including central obesity, insulin resistance, elevated blood lipids, elevated blood glucose, and high blood pressure. Dr. Ray Strand, a family-practice physician, member of USANA’s Scientific Advisory Council and distributor, developed the Internet-based lifestyle program.
16:06 IPAR sees FY08 $1.25 vs $1.14 First Call consensus; sees revs $442 mln vs $439.31 mln First Call consensus
16:06 DWRI prelim $0.16 vs $0.14 First Call consensus; revs $52 mln vs $49.09 mln First Call consensus
16:06 IPAR prelim $0.41 vs $0.34 First Call consensus; revs $119.4 mln vs $119.20 mln First Call consensus
16:06 OIS Oil States secures land lease for new lodge serving oil sands customers (39.88 -1.05)
The co announces that the co’s Canadian subsidiary, PTI Group, has received all necessary land lease approvals to begin the construction of its fourth major lodge in the oil sands region of northern Alberta, Canada. The Company’s Board of Directors has authorized PTI to spend approximately $22.7 mln in 2008 to initially develop the 376-room, PTI Conklin Lodge. These capital expenditures were included in the Company’s already announced 2008 capital expenditures budget of $282 mln.
16:06 LAZ Lazard elects Dominique Ferrero to Board of Directors (32.83 -1.8
Co announces it has elected Dominique Ferrero, Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Executive Board of Natixis, to the firm’s Board of Directors, effective immediately.
16:05 JSDA Jones Soda reports Q4 (Dec) results, revs in-line (4.37 -0.24)
Reports Q4 (Dec) loss of $0.18 per share, excluding non-recurring items, may not be comparable to the First Call consensus of ($0.03); revenues fell 6.0% year/year to $9.8 mln vs the $9.7 mln consensus.
16:05 FACE Physicians Formula beats by $0.06, beats on revs; guides FY08 EPS below consensus, revs below consensus (7.90 -0.10)
Reports Q4 (Dec) earnings of $0.33 per share, $0.06 better than the First Call consensus of $0.27; revenues rose 27.9% year/year to $33.9 mln vs the $31.6 mln consensus. Co issues downside guidance for FY08, sees EPS of $0.65-$0.69 vs. $0.72 consensus; sees FY08 revs of $123-$125 mln vs. $126.46 mln consensus.
16:04 TCM Tongjitang Chinese Medic reports Q4 net income per ADS of $0.08 may not compare to $0.20 consensus; reports revs of $24.6 mln vs $24.6 mln consensus (8.90 +2.30) -Update-
16:04 NEON NEON Systems reports Q4 EPS of ($0.10) vs ($0.14) in 4Q06; revs rose to $1.5 mln from $221K in 4Q06 - no ests (1.93 -0.22)
16:04 SYX Systemax reports Q4 EPS of $0.53 ex items vs $0.22 YoY revs rose 19% YoY to $769 mln (9.01 -0.37) -Update-
16:03 FACE sees FY08 $0.65-0.69 vs $0.72 First Call consensus; sees revs $123-125 mln vs $126.46 mln First Call consensus
16:02 SYX Systemax announces special $1.00 per share dividend (9.01 -0.37)
16:02 MCO Moody’s to provide updated guidance at Bear Stearns 21st annual media conference on 3/11 (35.50 -0.47) -Update-
16:01 GAIA prelim $0.17 vs $0.16 First Call consensus; revs $81.8 mln vs $72.80 mln First Call consensus
16:01 FACE prelim $0.33 vs $0.27 First Call consensus; revs $33.9 mln vs $31.58 mln First Call consensus
16:01 CPF CPB Inc announces retirement of CEO (16.99 +0.06)
Central Pacific Financial, parent co of Central Pacific Bank, today announces the retirement of Clint Arnoldus, its President and Chief Executive Officer and member of the Board of Directors of both cos, effective December 31, 2008. The co’s Board of Directors expects to commence a search immediately for a new President and CEO which will include both internal and external candidates.
16:01 CPF CPB Inc announces retirement of CEO Clint Arnoldus effective December 31, 2008 (16.99 +0.06)
16:01 CW Curtiss-Wright awarded $4.3 mln contract (40.64 -0.29)
Co announces that it has received a contract from Northrop Grumman (NOC) to provide radar processing subsystems for use in the U.S. Marine Corps’ Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar Program. The initial contract, valued at $4.3 mln, is for development which is expected to be completed in 2010. The production phase of the program will be executed as an option under the current contract, and is planned to start in 2010.
16:00 JSDA prelim ($0.1 vs ($0.03) First Call consensus; revs $9.75 mln vs $9.73 mln First Call consensus
