Happy Customers Lead to Positive Results for Wal-mart (WMT); Cowen Reiterates Market Perform

Streetinsider.com's Hot Lunchtime Reads 11/17: (GE) (VRX) (GOGO) (WMT)

November 17, 2015 12:14 PM EST

The following is a list of notable articles to help get you through the lunch hour:General Electric (GE) says asset sales proceeding ahead of plan ->... More

UPDATE: Wal-mart's (WMT) Strong Traffic Growth Keeps Piper Jaffray Bullish on Target (TGT); Reiterates Outperform

November 17, 2015 11:44 AM EST

(Updated - November 17, 2015 11:57 AM EST)

Piper Jaffray reiterated an Overweight rating and $88.00 price target on Target (NYSE: TGT) following Wal-mart's (NYSE: WMT) 3Q comps. Walmart reported a +1.5% comp for its U.S. business, in-line with... More

Pre-Open Stock Movers 11/17: (OCRX) (NUAN) (HD) Higher; (OSIR) (DKS) (URBN) Lower (more...)

November 17, 2015 9:26 AM EST

Ocera Therapeutics (NASDAQ: OCRX) 38.5% HIGHER; announced positive results from the Company's Phase 1 study of the oral formulation of OCR-002, ornithine phenylacetate, in healthy subjects. OCR-002 exhibited encouraging extended-release properties, demonstrated a desirable pharmacokinetic (PK) profile and was well-tolerated.

Osiris Therapeutics (NASDAQ: OSIR) 28% LOWER; Brean Capital downgraded from Hold to Sell with a price target of $8.00.

Dick's Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS)... More

U.S. inflation turning corner; factory output rises

November 17, 2015 8:35 AM EST

By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. consumer prices increased in October after two straight months of declines as the cost of healthcare and other services rose, evidence of firming inflation that further supports views that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates next month.

The economic outlook also got a boost from other data on Tuesday showing a fairly solid increase in manufacturing output in October after dropping for two consecutive months.

"There is nothing that derails a December Fed rate hike in today's data. Inflation is starting to turn a corner and manufacturing production... More

Wall Street gives up gains after Germany bomb scare

November 17, 2015 7:20 AM EST

By Noel Randewich

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks forfeited gains on Tuesday after a soccer match between Germany and the Netherlands was called off over fears of a bombing.

All three major U.S. indexes had ventured into positive territory following upbeat earnings reports from Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) and Home Depot (NYSE: HD). But they quickly relinquished those gains after the friendly match was canceled less than two hours before its start due to indications of a planned attack with explosives at the stadium in Hanover.

That added to... More

Wal-mart (WMT) Tops Q3 EPS by 1c; U.S. Comps Rose 1.5%

November 17, 2015 7:03 AM EST

(Updated - November 17, 2015 7:05 AM EST)

Wal-mart (NYSE: WMT) reported Q3 EPS of $0.99, $0.01 better than the analyst estimate of $0.98. Revenue for the quarter came in at $117.4 billion versus the consensus estimate of $117.79 billion.

Profit from continuing operations was $1.03 in the quarter.

Comp sales at Walmart U.S. were positive for the fifth consecutive quarter, up 1.5%. Traffic increased 1.7%. Customer experience scores continued to strengthen. Neighborhood Market comps increased approximately 8%, with strong growth from newer stores.Walmart International net... More

Mall Traffic 'Fell off a Cliff' Amid Paris Attacks - Detwiler Fenton

November 16, 2015 8:57 AM EST

According to analysts at Detwiler Fenton feedback over the weekend suggest that mall traffic fell off a cliff, blame being assigned to fear stemming from the Paris terror attacks.

Related stocks:

Hudson's Bay Company (HBC.T)Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN)Macy's (NYSE: M)Wal-mart (NYSE: WMT)
... More

Wal-mart (WMT) Perishable Grocery Lagging Peers - Detwiler Fenton

November 16, 2015 8:53 AM EST

Detwiler Fenton said their price and channel checks raise concerns with Walmart's (NYSE: WMT) ability to gain traction from perishable grocery categories which continue to lag peers.

... More

Buffett's Berkshire cuts crisis-era Goldman stake

November 16, 2015 8:21 AM EST

By Jonathan Stempel

(Reuters) - Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc on Monday said it reduced its stake in Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE: GS) by 13 percent during the third quarter, paring a successful investment it made during the height of the global financial crisis.

In a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Berkshire said it owned 10.96 million Goldman shares worth about $1.9 billion as of Sept. 30, down from 12.63 million shares worth $2.64 billion three months earlier.

Buffett told CNBC television he sold the Goldman shares and 7 percent of his stake in... More

Buffett not selling stocks as a result of Paris attacks: CNBC

November 16, 2015 8:00 AM EST

(Reuters) - Billionaire investor Warren Buffett is not selling any securities from his portfolio as a result of Friday's attacks in Paris, CNBC said on Monday.

Buffett's remarks were reported by CNBC anchor Rebecca Quick, who spoke with him after Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway posted its quarterly filing of securities... More

Nomura Highlights Wal-Mart (WMT) as Defensive Play in Retail Ahead of Q3 Print

November 16, 2015 7:56 AM EST

Nomura analyst, Robert Drbul, highlighted Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) as a defensive play in Retail. The company is due to report 3Q15 earnings on November 17, BMO.

He believes investments in payroll and price are necessary to improve long-term positioning, we believe... More

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) Says it Trimmed Wal-mart (WMT), Goldman (GS) Stakes for Precision Castparts (PCP) Deal - CNBC

November 16, 2015 7:42 AM EST

Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-A) said the reason for cutting Wal-mart (NYSE: WMT) and Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) stakes was to pay for its Precision Castparts (NYSE: PCP) deal, according to CNBC.

For the full rundown of Buffett's Q3 moves, click here.

... More

Wall St. surges over 1 percent, looks past Paris attacks

November 16, 2015 6:39 AM EST

By Noel Randewich

(Reuters) - Wall Street had its strongest session in three weeks on Monday, with sizeable gains in energy shares as investors bet Friday's deadly attacks in Paris would have little long-term impact on the U.S. economy and corporate earnings.

U.S. oil prices rose after French air strikes in Syria in reaction to multiple attacks in Paris on Friday that killed 129 people, with Islamic State claiming responsibility.

Exxon's (NYSE: XOM) shares jumped 3.58 percent and Chevron (NYSE: CVX) rallied 4.38 percent.

... More

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Shows New Stake in AT&T (T), Pares Wal-mart (WMT), Goldman (GS) Positions - 13F

November 16, 2015 6:22 AM EST

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway filed its 13F for Q315 today.

In part, Berkshire took a new stake in AT&T and increased positions in Twenty-First Century Fox and Philips 66. The firm pared-back its Wal-mart, Goldman Sachs, and Deere & Co. stakes.

New Stakes
AT&T Inc (NYSE: T) new 59,320,756 share position
Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ: KHC) new 325,634,818 share position

Raised Stakes
Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE: AXTA) raised from 20,000,000 shares to 23,199,474 shares
CHARTER COMM-A (NASDAQ: CHTR) raised from 8,514,678 shares to 10,281,603 shares
General Motors (NYSE:... More

Notable Analyst Rating Changes 11/13: (BBG) (WMT) (YELP) Upgraded; (FFIV) (FME) (RBY) Downgraded

November 13, 2015 11:02 AM EST

UPGRADES
Scotia Howard Weil upgrades Bill Barrett (NYSE: BBG) from Sector Perform to Outperform and moves its price target from $6 to $11.

Northcoast Research lifts Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) from Neutral... More

Northcoast Research Upgrades Wal-Mart (WMT) to Buy

November 13, 2015 9:30 AM EST

Northcoast Research upgraded Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) from Neutral to Buy.

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Wal-Mart click here. For more ratings news on Wal-Mart click here.

Shares of Wal-Mart closed at $56.95 yesterday.

... More