Market Pulse: SunPower, Apollo Investment, Comstock, Deere, Rockwell

Comstock Holding Companies

15/05/2013 14:15

(For more market insights, including options activity, click on STXNEWS/US; for The Day Ahead newsletter http://link.reuters.com/mex49s; for the Morning News Call newsletter http://link.reuters.com/saf28t) May 15 (Reuters) - Some U.S. stocks to watch on Wednesday: FUTURES LITTLE CHANGED BEFORE FLURRY OF DATA U.S. stock index futures were little changed, indicating the S&P 500 may hold near its most recent record high, ahead of data on inflation and manufacturing. Futures for the S&P 500  SPc1  were down 1.2 points, the Dow Jones  DJc1  down 3 points and the Nasdaq 100  NDc1  down 0.75 point.  .N  ** SUNPOWER CORP  SPWR.O , Tuesday close $19.03, up 7.3 pct premarket The company, which makes solar panels and builds solar power plants, said it expects to post an adjusted profit for the current quarter, boosted by strong margins.  ID:nL3N0DW56J  ** COMSTOCK HOLDING COS INC  CHCI.O , Tuesday close $2.51, up 32 pct premarket The homebuilding and real estate development company late on Tuesday reported a 256 percent jump in first-quarter revenue and raised its sales forecast for 2013, buoyed by a recovering U.S. housing market.  ID:nBw88Z07Ya  ** EXONE CO  XONE.O , Tuesday close $48.60, down 11.3 pct premarket The 3-D printer maker, which went public in February, reported a bigger-than-expected first-quarter loss because of higher operating expenses. Revenue also fell short of analysts' average estimate as customers in regions such as Europe delayed orders. The company forecast full-year revenue of $48 million to $52 million that fell short of analysts' average estimate of $53.25 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. ** DEERE & CO  DE.N , Tuesday close $93.77, down 4 pct premarket  The world's largest farm equipment maker reported higher-than-expected quarterly results on Wednesday and forecast a record profit for the full year, but it said it was cautious because of weakness in the construction market.  ID:nL2N0DW1KZ  ** MOSAIC CO  MOS.N , Tuesday close $61.64, up 2 pct premarket A takeover of the U.S. fertilizer producer is unlikely in the near term and would be affordable to only a handful of players, executives said in an interview on Tuesday. ID:nL2N0DV2ZF  ** ROCKWELL MEDICAL INC  RMTI.O , Tuesday close $3.59, down 9 pct premarket The company, which develops drugs to treat kidney diseases, on Wednesday priced a public offering of about 11.5 million shares of its common stock at $3.05 per share. The company, which expects to raise $35 million through the offering, will use the proceeds for general corporate purposes and to fund clinical trials for its iron compound, soluble ferric pyrophosphate, which is intended to replace iron lost during dialysis treatment in patients with kidney disease. ID:nGNXc7MQg8  ** SONY CORP  SNE.N   6758.T , Tuesday close $20.76, down 1.54 pct premarket A surge in option market bets on Sony just before a large hedge fund investor announced a big stake and called for a major restructuring of the company on Tuesday has raised concerns that some traders may have had advance word of the news. ID:nL2N0DV3ZT  Billionaire hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb also said on Wednesday Sony reminds him of Yahoo Inc  YHOO.O  before he waged a bitter proxy fight that triggered a boardroom shake-out at the Internet company last year.  ID:nT9N0CH08T  ** APOLLO INVESTMENT CORP  AINV.O , Tuesday close $8.87, down 4 pct premarket The business development company announced a public offering of 18 million common shares and said it would use the proceeds to repay debt.  ID:nASA05BT5  ** VIVUS INC  VVUS.O , Tuesday close $13.59, down 3 pct premarket The drugmaker, known for its diet pill Qsymia, said it would offer $200 million of convertible senior unsecured notes in a private placement.  ID:nGNXUXUNAa  ** AEROPOSTALE INC  ARO.N , Tuesday close $15.38, up 3 pct premarket Brokerage BMO Capital Markets raised its rating on the teen clothing retailer to "outperform" from "market perform," according to Theflyonthewall.com.  ID:nWNBB020IG  ** GAP INC  GPS.N , Tuesday close $40.88, up 1.64 pct premarket Citigroup raised its rating on the clothing retailer to "buy" from "neutral" and said it expects consistency in comparable store sales to continue due to improved merchandise and a recovering economy. "Our confidence in Gap's comps, combined with a new chapter in inventory control, should drive positive earnings revisions and upward stock movement," analyst Oliver Chen wrote in a note titled "Mind the New Gap". Chen raised his price target on the stock to $48 from $40. ** CLOROX CO  CLX.N , Tuesday close $88.11, down 0.50 pct premarket Credit Suisse downgraded the stock of the consumer product maker to "neutral" from "outperform," saying it sees limited catalyst driving the shares further in an environment where consumer spending is low and competition from private label is high. The brokerage said Clorox's full-year sales outlook is realistic and "surprises to the upside are unlikely going forward for the time being." ** ACADIA PHARMACEUTICALS INC  ACAD.O , Tuesday close $12.95, down 3 pct premarket The pharmaceutical company said it will offer its common stock in an underwritten public offering. The size and terms of the offering were not disclosed.  ID:nBw82106Za  ** APPLE INC  AAPL.O , Tuesday close $443.86, down 0.7 pct premarket The iPhone maker responded to Justice Department accusations it conspired with publishers to push up electronic book prices, saying it negotiated with a number of publishing companies separately and crafted different agreements with each. ID:nL2N0DV44F  ** CELANESE CORP  CE.N , Tuesday close $48.41 The chemicals maker said it signed a joint venture agreement with Japanese trading company Mitsui and Co Ltd  8031.T  to produce methanol at Celanese's Clear Lake, Texas facility at an investment of about $800 million. Celanese said its portion of the investment was about $300 million.  ID:nBw79RqN0a  ** SANOFI SA  SNY.N , Tuesday close $54.78 ** REGENERON PHARMACEUTICALS  REGN.O , Tuesday close $282.80 French drugmaker Sanofi  SASY.PA  said it and U.S. firm Regeneron have started recruiting patients for two new trials of their arthritis treatment sarilumab.  ID:nASA05BYG  ** FREEPORT-MCMORAN COPPER & GOLD INC  FCX.N , Tuesday close $31.57  The Indonesian unit of Freeport-McMoRan suspended operations at the world's second-largest copper mine on Wednesday, a source with knowledge of the matter said, after a training tunnel collapsed the previous day.  ID:nL3N0DW4GI  ** TIME WARNER INC  TWX.N , Tuesday close $61.27  ** CENTRAL EUROPEAN MEDIA ENTERPRISES  CETV.O , Tuesday close $2.92 Time Warner has sought European Commission approval to exercise voting rights in proportion to its 49.9 percent stake in broadcaster Central European Media Enterprises  CETV.PR , CME said on Wednesday.  ID:nL6N0DW11A  ** GOOGLE INC  GOOG.O , Tuesday close $887.10, up 1 pct premarket The world's No. 1 search engine has signed licensing deals with Universal Music Group  VIV.PA  and Sony Music Entertainment 6758.T  to launch a subscription music service that would compete with fast-growing start-up Spotify, according to a report on Tuesday in technology blog The Verge.  ID:nL2N0DV3XN  ** J.C. PENNEY CO INC  JCP.N , Tuesday close $18.62 J.C. Penney's stores, distribution centers and headquarters are worth a total of $4.06 billion, according to an appraisal conducted for the department store chain and disclosed on Tuesday in a presentation to potential lenders that was also filed with U.S. regulators.  ID:nL2N0DV3DY  ** RIO TINTO  RIO.N , Tuesday close $45.33, down 1.3 pct premarket Australia approved on Wednesday miner Rio Tinto's  RIO.AX  RIO.L  $1 billion-plus South of Embley bauxite mine and port project in Queensland after a year's delay due to concerns about ships harming the Great Barrier Reef.  ID:nL3N0DW19F  ** LOCKHEED MARTIN CORP  LMT.N , Tuesday close $102.87  The Pentagon's plans to put most of its 800,000 civilian employees on unpaid leave for 11 days could lead to delays on Lockheed Martin's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and other weapons programs, a top company official said on Tuesday. ID:nL2N0DV3SS  ** AGILENT TECHNOLOGIES INC  A.N , Tuesday close $43.97, up 1 pct premarket The medical device maker said late on Tuesday it would cut about 450 jobs, or 2 percent of its global workforce, and doubled its stock repurchase program to $1 billion. Agilent also reported earnings of 77 cents per share, excluding items, for the second quarter. Analysts on average had expected earnings of 67 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. ** MACY'S INC  M.N , Tuesday close $47.39, up 1 pct premarket The department store chain reported higher first-quarter profit and sales despite cool weather in much of the country that delayed spring shopping for many customers, and the department store chain raised its quarterly dividend 25 percent. ID:nL2N0DU1HT  ** AT&T INC  T.N , Tuesday close $37.23, up 0.21 pct premarket AT&T expects a much better results in its wireless business in the second quarter compared with the first quarter, according to Chief Executive Randall Stephenson.  ID:nL2N0DW1R7  ** COMPUTER SCIENCES CORP  CSC.N , Tuesday close $49.49, up 2.6 pct premarket The technology services provider reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings and raised its profit forecast for 2013.  ID:nBw7ggpPHa  (Compiled by Sruthi Ramakrishnan in Bangalore; Editing by Maju Samuel) ((sruthi.ramakrishnan@thomsonreuters.com)(Within U.S.+1 646 223 8780, outside U.S. +91 80 4135 5800)(Reuters Messaging: sruthi.ramakrishnan.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)) Keywords: MARKETS USA STOCKS/PULSE