Broader Markets Look Strong
Stocks appear set to open higher
Wednesday.
Oracle Corp
(
ORCL |
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PowerRating) was upgraded
by Thomas Weisel from Market Perform to Buy citing a more positive risk-to-reward outlook.
ABN Amro upgraded SAP AG
(
SAP |
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PowerRating)
from Hold to Add.
Bear Stearns had some cautious
comments on Sprint PCS
(
PCS |
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PowerRating) due to an increase in churn rates from the
Clear Pay system and a decrease in subscribers.
Accenture
(
ACN |
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PowerRating) posted a Q1 net of
25 cents a share, beating analysts’ estimates by a penny. The company also said
it is comfortable with estimates for Q2 and that it feels estimates for the
remaining fiscal year are obtainable.
Hyseq Inc
(
HYSQ |
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PowerRating) has entered into
an agreement with Amgen
(
AMGN |
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PowerRating) to develop a treatment for peripheral
arterial occlusions and other cardiovascular problems. The agreement grants AMGN
warrants to purchase HYSQ common shares at a premium.
Lehman Brothers upgraded insurance
company Aetna
(
AET |
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PowerRating) from Market Perform to Strong Buy.
Skechers USA
(
SKX |
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PowerRating) raised Q4
guidance. The company sees net sales coming in between $200 – $215 million vs. analysts’ consensus of $181 million.
Dupont Photomask
(
DPMI |
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PowerRating) raised Q2
guidance, stating it foresees earnings of about zero cents vs. a loss between
10 and 40 cents.
Salomon Smith Barney upgraded ASML
Holding
(
ASML |
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PowerRating) from Outperform to Buy and raised the price target on the
company from $22 to $27.
Merrill Lynch
(
MER |
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PowerRating) raised
guidance for Q4. The company sees earnings coming in between 48 and 50
cents a share. MER also said it will take a charge of $1.7 million as part of a
restructuring which incorporates 9,000 layoffs.