Daily US Opening News And Market Re-Cap: July 22

From RunSquawk

US Stock futures turned negative following a disappointing earnings report from Caterpillar. The company missed Wall Street projections for the quarter but raised its full year guidance. Corporate earnings remain the catalyst for investors, but they will keep a watchful eye on the European debt situation and the domestic debt ceiling talks which are likely to remain centre stage today with a light economic data calendar.

Pre-market activity following earnings release earlier on:
- McDonalds: up 3%
- General Electric: up 2.3%
- Verizon: down 0.3%
- Microsoft: down 0.8%
- Honeywell: down 1.1%
- Caterpillar: down 5.3%

DJIA

Earnings:

McDonald's - Q2 EPS USD 1.35 vs. Exp. USD 1.28, Q2 Revenue USD 6.91bln vs. Exp. USD 6.65bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Q2 global comp sales up 5.9% vs. Exp. 4.1%
- Q2 sales by co.-operated restaurants USD 4.7bln
- Q2 revenue from franchised restaurants USD 2.21bln
- July global comps sales seen at 4%-5%
- Q2 US comp sales up 4.5%
- Q2 Europe comp sales up 5.9%
- Q2 Asia/Pacific, Mideast, Africa comp sales up 5.2%
Caterpillar - Q2 EPS adjusted 1.72 USD vs. Exp. USD 1.74, Q2 Revenue USD 14.2bln vs. Exp. USD 13.23bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Co. raises 2011 EPS view to USD 6.75-7.25, saw USD 6.25-6.75 vs. Exp. USD 6.96
- Co. raises 2011 revenue view to USD 54-56bln, saw USD 52-54bln vs. Exp. USD 55.72bln
- Co. says 2011 outlook improved for sales, revenues and profits excluding Bucyrus-related impacts
- Co. says economic recovery in the US continues to be weaker than many expected
- Co. sees dealers add inventory in H2
- Co. sees deciding future on external logistics by Q3 end
- Co. says Japan Q2 crisis hurt sales by about USD 200mln
- Co. sees China growth over 9% in 2011
- Co. says world economic growth 3.5% in 2011
- Co. sees further growth in H2 2011
- Co. says final Q2 revenue USD 675mln, up 4%
- Co. sees Bucyrus hurting year profit by about USD 0.50 a share
Verizon - Q2 EPS USD 0.57 vs. Exp. USD 0.55, Q2 Revenue USD 27.53bln vs. Exp. USD 27.42bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Q2 wireless service revenue USD 14.7bln, up 6.6%
- Co. targets 2011 capital expenditure in line with 2010
- Co. still sees year Capex similar to USD 16.5bln
- Co. says cash flow outlook remains very strong
Microsoft - Q4 EPS USD 0.69 vs. Exp. USD 0.57, Q4 Revenue USD 17.37bln vs. Exp. USD 17.22bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Co. reaffirms fiscal 2012 operating expense guidance of 3-5% growth
- Co. sees FY12 CapEx approximately USD 2.5bln
- Co. sees Q1 unearned revenue growth lagging historical patterns
- Co. sees business PC growth outpacing consumer PC growth in FY12
- Co. says Q4 tax rate 7% vs. 25% a year ago
- Co. Q4 Business Division revenue USD 5.78bln vs. USD 5.38bln a year ago
- Co. Q4 Server and Tools revenue USD 4.64bln vs. USD 4.15bln a year ago
- Co. Q4 Windows revenue USD 4.74bln vs. USD 4.78bln a year ago
General Electric - Q2 operating EPS USD 0.34 vs. Exp. USD 0.33, Q2 revenue USD 35.6bln vs. Exp. USD 34.701bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Co. says indicators are pointing to a stronger H2 in 2011 for energy
- Co. says industrial earnings should improve in H2
- Co. are very encouraged by Q2 orders and earnings momentum across the company
- Co. says industrial earnings should improve in the second half of 2011
- Co. says quarterly industrial sales of USD 23.0bln decreased 6% versus 2010
- Co. says quarterly industrial segment revenue growth of 10%
- Co. says cash generated from industrial operating activities was USD 4.4bln

Other news:

3M – Co. to acquire do-it-yourself and professional business of GPI Group, terms of the transaction were not disclosed and the deal is expected to
close in Q4 2011.
Boeing/EADS – Companies will share a jumbo order from Air France with a list price of as much as USD 25bln. (La Tribune)
Disney - NFL team owners have reached a new 10-year labor agreement, opening the way for the upcoming scheduled. (WSJ)

Johnson & Johnson – Co. announces FDA recommends approval for REMICADE. (RTRS)
Hewlett-Packard – Co. announces additional USD 10bln share repurchase program for future repurchases of its outstanding shares of common
stock. (RTRS)
AT&T - The FCC said it would need more than the allotted six months to review AT&T's proposed merger with Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile.
(Washington Post)
Merck – Co. and China's Simcere Pharmaceutical Group announced the signing of a framework agreement to establish a joint venture focused on
serving China's rapidly expanding healthcare needs. (theflyonthewall.com)
Intel – Barrons report co. execution has been strong, and forecasts suggest things will only continue in that direction. (Barrons)

S&P 500

Earnings:

Schlumberger - Q2 adjusted EPS USD 0.87 vs. Exp. USD 0.85, Q2 revenue USD 9.62bln vs. Exp. USD 9.190bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Co. says recorded charges of USD 0.05 per share in Q2 of 2011
Honeywell International - Q2 cont ops EPS USD 1.00 vs. Exp. USD 0.98, Q2 Revenue USD 9.09bln vs. Exp. USD 9.26bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Co. sees good organic growth continuing in H2
- Co. sees FY11 free cash flow USD 3.5-3.7bln
- Co. sees FY11 sales USD 36.1-36.7bln vs. Exp. USD 36.83bln
- Co. raises FY11 EPS view to USD 3.85-4.00 from USD 3.80-3.95 vs. Exp. USD 3.97
SunTrust Banks - Q2 EPS USD 0.33 vs. Exp. USD 0.31, Q2 revenue USD 2.2bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Co. says Tier 1 Capital and Tier 1 common ratios were estimated to be 11.1% and 9.2%
Xerox - Q2 adjusted EPS USD 0.27 vs. Exp. USD 0.24, Q2 revenue USD 5.6bln vs. Exp. USD 5.63bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Co. sees FY11 operating cash flow USD 2-2.3bln
- Co. expects to resume buyback program in Q3
Chubb - Q2 EPS USD 1.27 vs. Exp. USD 0.99, boosts forecast. (RTRS)
Air Products - Q3 EPS USD 1.46 vs. Exp. USD 1.46, Q3 revenue USD 2.60bln vs. Exp. USD 2.53bln. (RTRS)
Western Digital - Q4 adjusted EPS USD 0.81 vs. Exp. USD 0.65, Q4 revenue USD 2.4bln vs. Exp. USD 2.26bln. (RTRS/Sources)
AMD - Q2 non-gaap EPS USD 0.09 vs. Exp. USD 0.08, Q2 revenue USD 1.57bln vs. Exp. USD 1.58bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Co. sees Q3 revenue up 8%-12% sequentially vs. consensus $1.71B
- Co. Q2 gross margin 46%

Other news:

Goldman Sachs - US District Judge Barbara Jones threw out a 13-month-old suit filed against Goldman by Basis Yield Alpha Fund which sought
over USD 1bln in damages from Goldman. (WSJ)
Bristol-Myers – Co. to acquire Amira Pharmaceuticals in an all-cash transaction for a purchase price of USD 325mln upfront and potential additional
milestone payments totalling USD 150mln. Co. will secure Amira Pharmaceuticals' fibrosis program, including the lead asset AM152. (Sources)
Express Scripts - Analysts predict that the proposed merger between pharmacy benefit managers Express Scripts and Medco will be met with strong
opposition, according to sources. (NY Times)
Eastman Kodak – Co. H1 ODM orders to Taiwan makers down 8% on year. (DigiTimes)
Companies going ex-dividend: Colgate-Palmolive (USD 0.5800)

Nasdaq 100

Earnings:

SanDisk - Q2 EPS USD 1.14 vs. Exp. USD 0.98, Q2 Revenue USD 1.38bln vs. Exp. USD 1.34bln. (RTRS/Sources)
- Co. sees Q3 revenue $1.375B-$1.425B vs. consensus $1.49B
- Co. sees FY11 revenue $5.6B-$5.7B vs. consensus $5.78B
- Co. sees Q3 adjusted gross margin 42%-44%

Other news:

Apple – Co. is considering a bid for Hulu, California based online video company, according to sources familiar with talks. (WSJ) In other news co.
announced Lion downloads have toped 1mln in first day, faster than any other OS release in the co.’s history. (theflyonthewall.com)
Google – Co.’s YouTube looks to bring two of America’s large music festivals to digital screens. (Associated Press) In other news in a move that
could make Facebook "very, very nervous," Google is close to launching a social game network. According to sources, Google will take less than a
30% cut of the revenues, breaking the standard pricing Facebook and Apple have set on downloadable apps. (All Things Digital)

Qualcomm - Piper Jaffray believes the co. is working on reference designs for a set-top box following its acquisition of Atheros, which the firm notes
will bring the company in direct competition with Broadcom. (Sources)
News Corp – A USD 2bln takeover by co.’s part-owned pay-TV business Foxtel for rival Austar was headed for failure after Australia’s competition
watchdog warned the deal will create a pay-TV monopoly. (RTRS) In other news, co. sold its 79% stake in Moscow-based outdoor advertising group,
News Outdoor. (Kommersant)
Dell – Co. temporarily pulls Streak to perform update, expected to be back sometime in August. (Engadget)

Broker moves

Upgrades:

Autodesk – Co. upgraded to Buy from Hold at Jefferies, Price target raised to USD 44 from USD 40
Blackstone – Co. added to Top Picks Live list at Citigroup and raised its price target for shares to USD 24 from USD 22
AMD – Co. upgraded to Market Perform from Underperform at Wells Fargo, firm has a USD 6.00-7.50 target range for shares

Downgrades:

Medco Health – Co. downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Bernstein
Microsoft – Co. downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at William Blair
Chubb – Co. downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman, Price target lowered to USD 67 from USD 76
Western Digital – Co. downgraded to Hold from Buy at ThinkEquity, Price target lowered to USD 38 from USD 45

Full report

Daily Us Equity Opening News

Comments

[wsmith]

Stocks are negative?

What a surprise!

They will continue to do their thing till the American people step up.

We must change our ideas.  Or we will continue to be serfs.

But fuck it all in the ass.

http://geraldcelente.proboards.com