US Financial News - Gzibordi

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Wednesday, February 13th 8:04--Ivax met estimates for Q4 of 27c/sh. Revenues, however, were $329.8M vs. $348.7M expected. 8:02--MBNA was upgraded to strong buy from outperform at Morgan Stanley. Credit sector was also upgraded to market weight from underweight. 8:01--News Corp was removed from the recommended list at Goldman Sachs. 8:00--Fed President Poole said that lending slowdown gave an early recession warning. Said that lags in economic data complicate Fed policy job. 7:55--Johnson & Johnson’s board approved a stock buyback program worth $5B. 7:32--Advanced Energy reported Q4 loss of -29c/sh vs. -33c/sh expected. Revenue was $34M vs. $30M consensus. Company said that there is some stabilization in its markets. 7:30--January Retail Sales -0.2% vs. -0.2% expected. Ex-autos were +1.2% vs. +0.3% expected. December retail sales were revised to +0.2% from -0.1% in December. Ex-Autos were revised to +0.7% vs. -0.1% previously. This number is clearly negative for the credit markets. It should be slightly positive for stocks through the suggestion that the economy is recovering (even though interest rates should now rise). 7:15--Stocks are: S&P +2.00, Nasdaq +14.00. -S&P put Japan’s debt on credit watch for possible downgrade. -Euro down slightly based on Eichel said that German cannot meet the goals of its budget outlook. Positive: -Network Appliances posted Q3 pro forma profits ex-items of 4c/sh vs. 2c/sh expected. -Applied Materials earned 2c/sh vs. expectations of break-even. Revenue was $1.0B vs. $1.01B expected. Lehman was cautious on the company. -News Corp posted Q4 EPS of 17c/sh vs. 16c/sh expected. -AON earned 33c/sh vs. 31c/sh expected. -Office Depot posted Q4 EPS of 19c/sh vs. 18c/sh consensus. Company raised 2002 guidance to $0.97-$1.03/sh vs. current consensus of 83c/sh. -Viacom reported Q4 net loss of -8c/sh vs. -10c/sh expected. Revenues were $6.04B vs. $6.05B expected. Company said there is potential to outperform. Negative: -Sun Microsystems is being sued by Kodak for patent infringement. Sun believes the suit is without merit. -Microsoft being probed by the SEC regarding whether the company improperly hoarded cash in some quarters in the ‘90’s in order to report it as revenue in later quarters to smooth out earnings. -British Airways will cut 5,800 jobs and cut routes in order to save $931 mln per year. -Nortel Networks said that Q1 revenues would be 10% below Q4 levels. Said gradual revenue growth should begin in Q2. -Qwest highlighted in WSJ as performing “creative accounting” in deals with KMC. Qwest booked equipment sales as revenue when the company does not make or sell equipment. -Marriot reported Q4 net of 22c/sh vs. 25c/sh consensus. Also guided lower for Q1 while reaffirming 2002 & 2003. -ABN Amro negative on investment banks. Names mentioned include GS, LEH, MWD.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Tuesday, February 12th 9:57--Intraday comments will be more sporadic today and this week as we continue work on our quarterly report. 8:42--McGraw-Hill was cut to outperform from buy at Salomon. EPS estimate was cut as well. 8:39--Krispy Kreme expects FY03 EPS of 61c/sh which was as expected. 8:15--The bus terminal was reopened in New York. 7:55--The south wing of the NY Port Authority bus terminal was closed due to a suspicious package. The bus terminal is in mid-town Manhatten. 7:49--Merrill Lynch upgraded to market perform at Bernstein. 7:47--MetLife Q4 earned 59c/sh vs. 58c/sh expected. Company said it was confident it would deliver on its 3 yr plan to produce growth in operating earnings of 15% per year. 7:45--CNN said the New York Port Authority has closed the terminal area. We’ll update when we get more information. 7:15--Stocks are: S&P -4.00, Nasdaq -14.00. -BOJ said that exports should start to rise and factory production will moderate as inventories are drawn down. -The FBI issued a general terror threat warning for an attack that could take place today. No other details were announced. Positive: -3M raised its dividend 2c/sh to 62c/sh. -Aon Q4 profits ex-items were 33c/sh vs. 31c/sh expected. -IDEC Pharmaceutical upgraded to strong buy from buy at Lehman. -Bob Evans Q3 EPS was 46c/sh vs. 42c/sh expected. Revenues were $262.8M vs. $260.9M consensus. Negative: -Nortel CFO resigned amid questions concerning his trades in his 401K plan. Company reaffirmed its profitability target issued on Jan 17th. However, said that customer’s resolve to minimize spending will make it difficult to make profit target. -Checkpoint Systems will cut 342 employees, or 8% of its workforce. -Harley Davidson is highlighted in WSJ as having questionable growth prospects. -Leap Wireless downgraded to hold from buy at CSFB. Neutral: -Cox Communications Q4 loss was -18c/sh, which was as expected.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Tuesday, February 5th 8:10--EMC confirmed that it fired two managers of its technical services staff in Chicago after irregularities were found in the way that customer orders were booked. 8:06--Charles Schwab was upgraded to buy from hold at CIBC. 8:04--Sirius Satellite was upgraded to attractive from neutral at Bear Stearns. 8:02--Ciena said it expects Q1 loss in 19c-22c range. The market currently expects -10c/sh. Using GAAP accounting, the loss would be 21c-24c/sh. Sees Q1 revenue of $160M vs. $230M expected. This is negative for the market, and counters the positive news from GE. Also plans to reduce workforce by 12%. 7:58--General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin were downgraded to buy from strong buy at Merrill Lynch. 7:55--GE reaffirmed 2002 EPS targets. 7:55--Veritas Software was upgraded to outperform from neutral by Morgan Stanley. 7:49--Tyco Capital was put on watch negative at Fitch. 7:45--Palm was downgraded to neutral from attractive by Bear Stearns. 7:40--Myriad Genetics Q2 loss was -10c/sh vs. -13c/sh expected. Said that their collaboration on the research phase with Bayer was near conclusion. 7:15--Stocks are: S&P -1.00, Nasdaq -3.00. -Yen down after a 3.23% selloff in the Nikkei. -Argentinean banks remain closed today as they prepare for tomorrow’s scheduled reopening. The currency has been allowed to freely float, and runs on banks are expected. Positive: -Dell reaffirmed its Q4 EPS and revenue targets of 17c/sh and $8.0B respectively. Company will report earnings on Feb 14th. -Microtune lost -12c/sh vs. -13c/sh expected. Revenue was $15.98M vs. $15.89M expected. -Oxford Healthcare Q4 EPS was 85c/sh vs. 78c/sh consensus. -Limited Stores said it will bring back Intimate Brands under the Limited Name. Limited also guided higher for both stores for their Q4 earnings period. Negative: -Tyco’s debt was cut yesterday afternoon by S&P and by Fitch. Worries over bad accounting have hit Tyco hard in the last week. -Emerson Electric’s debt was cut yesterday afternoon by S&P. -Infonet Services Q3 EPS was -2c/sh vs. 0c/sh consensus. Revenue was $155.1M vs. $173.0M consensus. -Sprint (FON) Q4 EPS was -27c/sh vs. -31c/sh consensus. Revenues were $4.01B vs. $4.03B consensus. -Qwest is raising $2.5B in debt and equity securities to strengthen its balance sheet. -Whirlpool is cutting 770 jobs in Europe. Neutral: -Kenneth Lay has resigned from Enron’s board, after resigning his chairmanship several weeks ago. CNN is reporting that Lay’s attorney said he does not know where to find Lay before the 10am deadline to be served with a subpoena to testify before the House of Representatives.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Monday, February 4th 7:15--Stocks are: S&P -5.00, Nasdaq -15.00. -Euro is up slightly this morning after EU January business confidence rose to -14 from -17. Consumer confidence, however, remained near a 4-year low at -11 vs. -10. -Argentina faces turbulence today. On Friday, the Supreme Court said that it was unlawful to freeze bank accounts. That opens the possibility of a run on the banks when they open again. The government responded by closing the banks today and Tuesday. -Afghanistan’s interim government brokered a peace between two rival tribes in the eastern town of Gardez. Fighting restarted in Mazar-e-Sharif. -The fate of WSJ reporter Daniel Pearl remains uncertain. A body discovered on Sunday in Karachi Pakistan was said to not be that of Pearl’s. Positive: -AK Steel mentioned in Barron’s as a recommended stock. Also mentioned were Beazer Homes and Winnebago Industries. -Cendant and Compaq were mentioned as picks on Wall Street Week by Barbara Marcin. -Verizon and BellSouth were recommended by Adam Quinton of Merrill Lynch in the NYT. -The Semiconductor group was upgraded at DB Alex Brown. Names mentioned for upgrade were AMAT, TER, LTXX. The group was also upgraded at Goldman to overweight from market weight. Names upgraded were ASML, ATMI, KLAC, TER, LIST, and NVLS. -Liberate was upgraded to buy from market perform. -JC Penny was upgraded to strong buy from buy at Merrill Lynch. Negative: -Bill Gates said that he doesn’t see a dramatic improvement for technology companies or the economy in 2002. -Tyco said it purchased more than 700 companies in the past three years that it did not make public. The company also said it will repurchase $4.5B in commercial paper using part of its $5.9B line of credit. -Ciena received negative comments from ABN Amro which was worried about its competitive position. It was downgraded from add to hold. -Kimberly Clark said it will reduce last year’s profit by $27M due to costs related to closing an Alabama pulp mill. That will cut last year’s EPS to $3.02 from $3.05 previously reported. -Williams Cos. debt is up for review at S&P for possible downgrade. -AMR will lay off 500 workers at its American Eagle commuter carrier. -Enterasys said it was being investigated by the SEC due to accounting problems. -Goodyear is closing a tire plant in the Philippines that produced 1,200 tires per day and employed 175 due to low cost imports. -Nucor downgraded to neutral from buy at Bear Stearns. -Elan met Q4 EPS target of 56c/sh ex-items, but cut its 2002 view to $1.55-1.65 from $2.35/sh. -Calpine downgraded to neutral from strong buy at Merrill Lynch. -Power Generators were downgraded at DB Alex Brown. Names mentioned were CPN, RRI, and MIR.

Bush’s speech’s points to increased government spending. The peace dividend is history and the US is on the path to boost spending on defense and security. Domestic proposals were also aggressive. Holding other factors the same, the speech should weigh on prices, although rhetoric was in line with expectations. The differences in Congress and the election year will also make it difficult to pass significant legislation. GDP data will provide a reason to buy equities, but the data is already reflected in corporate profits. A huge gain in government spending accounted for the increase. The economy is likely to improve, but the results do not necessarily equate with a stronger equity market. Argentina may pass a law that could lead to $30 bln in corporate defaults. Foreign creditors would receive the brunt of the default. The MBA purchase index fell 11.6% to 328.5. The refinance index fell 36.3%. The data is slightly friendly for debt prices, although activity is very supportive to economic growth. GM is pressuring the Bush Administration to weaken the dollar and check the yen’s weakness. Corporate Events AOL has reported results and is going to pursue further cost reduction programs. Revenues are expected to be flat in Q1 vs a year ago. AT&T posted better than expected results, but revenue forecasts were mixed. ChevronTexaco is looking to buy either Conoco or Phillips. Beazer Homes has agreed to acquire Crossman Communities for $603M in cash and stock. Bullish Events Kraft foods EPS was in line with expectations. Company guided higher for next qtr. Linens ‘n Things Q4 EPS was 78c/sh vs. 75c/sh expected. Revenues were $587.9M vs. $557M consensus. FY02 guidance was for sales of $2.1B vs. $2.1B expected. Said that they are comfortable with $1.46-$1.60/sh (consensus is $1.52). Q1 guidance is 8c-10c/sh vs. 9c/sh expected. Guidant may get approval for a new product to treat heart failure. Black and Decker is getting upgraded. IL Toolworks was upgraded at Prudential Cisco’s profit estimate for the April Quarter is being raised by Merrill Lynch. Darden Restaurants was raised at Lehman Nordstrom’s is being raised by Prudential Merck is being raised by Lehman Bearish Events Anadarko said its Q3 charge should be $1.7 bln higher – another accounting error popping up in the market. Veritas Software reported disappointing profit results CNET Q4 loss was -10c/sh vs. -12c/sh expected. Revenues were $70.2M vs. $71.5M expected. Company was downgraded to market perform from outperform by Goldman Sachs. Foundry Networks Q4 pro forma EPS was 1c/sh vs. 3c/sh expected. Q4 revenue was $65.4M vs. $75.0M expected. Said it expects Q1 EPS of 2c-3c/sh vs. consensus of 3c/sh. Revenues are expected $30.0M-$30.5M vs. $28.2M expected. The company was downgraded to market perform from strong buy at Robertson Stephens. Elan was highlighted by the WSJ for possible accounting problems. The article cited unusually structured deals that contributed to earnings. The article also said that questionable accounting has dogged the company for years. Tommy Hilfiger beat Q3 expectations, but warned for next year. EPS was 41c/sh vs. 38c/sh expected. Revenue was $474.8M vs. $475.8M expected. Company said it was comfortable with Q4 estimates. The warning came when the company said it expects FY03 revenue and operating income to be unchanged from FY02. The market is currently expecting gains of 5.4% and 36% respectively. Man Power warned of poor profits CheveronTexico is being downgraded.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Wednesday, January 30th 8:00--Treasury refunding announcement. 5yr was $16.00B, 10yr was $13.00B. 5yr is reopening of Nov 2001. The buybacks are all being done in April and of $3-$5B because receipt situation is favorable. It suggests that buybacks may soon end. It is constructive for the 5yr because they didn’t go to a monthly auction. The size of the 5yr is $1B higher than expected. Overall, the numbers are slightly negative for the credit markets. 7:55--Kraft Foods upgraded to buy at Banc of America. 7:48--Sonic Innovation was raised to market outperform at Goldman Sachs. 7:43--Guidant was upgraded to buy at Banc of America. 7:30--Q4 GDP was +0.2% vs. -1.2% expected. The implicit deflator was ? vs. +1.8% expected. Consumption expenditures accounted for most of the gain with a +$84.5B increase. Government spending also helped the strength by adding $36.1B in dollars to GDP (+9.2%). Inventories fell $120B. Net Exports also subtracted from GDP. 7:28--Beazer Homes has agreed to acquire Crossman Communities for $603M in cash and stock. 7:15--Stocks are: S&P +1.00, Nasdaq -2.00. -Japanese yen is up after the head of the MOF said Japan should not use weaker yen to solve its economic problems. -U.S. stocks are relatively neutral today following yesterday’s selloff led by accounting scares. Technically, yesterday’s selloff Positive: -Kraft foods EPS was in line with expectations. Company guided higher for next qtr. -Veritas software Q4 EPS were 15c/sh vs. 13c/sh consensus. Revenue was $374M vs. $359M expected. -Advance PCS reported 32c/sh net, vs. 31c/sh expected. Revenues were $3.4B vs. $3.3B expected. -AT&T Q4 EPS was 5c/sh vs. 4c/sh consensus. Expects Q1 EPS of 2-5c/sh. There is no consensus yet on Q1. Revenue was $12.59B vs. $9.4B expected. -CNET Q4 loss was -10c/sh vs. -12c/sh expected. Revenues were $70.2M vs. $71.5M expected. Company was downgraded to market perform from outperform by Goldman Sachs. -ChevronTexaco is looking to buy either Conoco or Phillips. -The EU is set to approve the HP-Compaq merger. -Linens ‘n Things Q4 EPS was 78c/sh vs. 75c/sh expected. Revenues were $587.9M vs. $557M consensus. FY02 guidance was for sales of $2.1B vs. $2.1B expected. Said that they are comfortable with $1.46-$1.60/sh (consensus is $1.52). Q1 guidance is 8c-10c/sh vs. 9c/sh expected. Negative: -Foundry Networks Q4 pro forma EPS was 1c/sh vs. 3c/sh expected. Q4 revenue was $65.4M vs. $75.0M expected. Said it expects Q1 EPS of 2c-3c/sh vs. consensus of 3c/sh. Revenues are expected $30.0M-$30.5M vs. $28.2M expected. The company was downgraded to market perform from strong buy at Robertson Stephens. -Elan was highlighted by the WSJ for possible accounting problems. The article cited unusually structured deals that contributed to earnings. The article also said that questionable accounting has dogged the company for years. -Anadarko said Q4 charge will be $1.7B higher due to an error they made accounting for an acquisition. -Tommy Hilfiger beat Q3 expectations, but warned for next year. EPS was 41c/sh vs. 38c/sh expected. Revenue was $474.8M vs. $475.8M expected. Company said it was comfortable with Q4 estimates. The warning came when the company said it expects FY03 revenue and operating income to be unchanged from FY02. The market is currently expecting gains of 5.4% and 36% respectively. Neutral: -IDEC Pharmaceutical Q4 EPS was 16c/sh, which was in line with expectations. Revenues were $81.7M vs. $84.4M expected. -AOL TimeWarner Q4 EPS was 33c/sh, which was as expected. Revenues were $10.63B vs. $10.69M expected.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Tuesday, January 29th 8:07--Speculation late last week on PeopleSoft was that it would announce a merger with Accenture in a special conference call on Monday. Dow Jones is reporting that the deal is actually with HP. The call was cancelled due to technical problems. A CSFB analyst said he thought the deal would be with Accenture. 8:05--BTM/UBS weekly sales were +0.2%, while the Redbook was +4.0%. 8:04--Barr Labs reported Q2 EPS of $1.40/sh, which was 9c/sh better than expected. 8:01--Payroll processors ADP and CEN were downgraded to underperform from neutral at Morgan Stanley. Price targets were also lowered. 8:00--Limited and Intimate Brands were both upgraded to buy from hold at Prudential. 8:00--Raytheon was upgraded to buy from neutral at Merrill Lynch. 7:48--Argosy Gaming Q4 70c/sh vs. 69c/sh expected. Revenue was $228.2M vs. $227M expected. Sees Q1 net of 79c-83c/sh vs. 78c/sh current consensus. 7:47--Valero Energy Q4 net was 82c/sh vs. 60c/sh expected. 7:40--Kellogg’s Q4 EPS was 33c/sh vs. 30c/sh expected. 7:30--December Durable goods orders were +2.0% vs. +1.0% expected. Orders ex-transportation were +1.4%, orders ex-defense were +1.7%. November orders were revised to -6.0% from -4.8%. We’ve seen expectations numbers closer to the 2.0% increase, which would make this number neutral. Based on our expectations numbers, the December number is slightly negative for bonds while the revision to November is slightly positive. 7:15--Stocks are: S&P +1.00, Nasdaq -5.00. -Japanese Yen slightly higher this morning after a Bank of Japan Governor said that a weaker yen will not help the economy. -A U.S. helicopter crashed near Khost in eastern Afghanistan, which injured 16 soldiers. -Pres. Bush gives his State-of-the-Union speech tonight. Positive: -TicketMaster Q4 EPS was 6c/sh vs. 4c/sh expected. Revenue was $159.6M vs. $151M consensus. -Station Casinos Q4 earned 13c/sh, which was above the 6c/sh expected. Said FY02 it expects 40c/sh, which is in the upper end of the range of estimates. -Level 3 Communications lost -$1.24/sh, which was less than prior projections of -$1.74/sh. They also signed a $100M pact with SBC Internet Services to provide internet services. -Honeywell said Q4 EPS ex-items was 55c/sh, which was as expected. Revenues were also as expected. Expects FY02 EPS of $2.36/sh vs. $2.32/sh expected. Negative: -Charming Shoppes was placed on debt review down by Moody’s. -Thermawave lost 45c/sh in Q3, which was 20c/sh below expectations. Revenues were $11.1M vs. $12.2M consensus. Company guided Q4 slightly lower as well. -Three Five Systems reported 12c/sh vs. 7c/sh expected. Revenues were $31.9M vs. $29.3M consensus. While those numbers were positive, guidance wasn’t. Warned that Q1 net loss would be between 20c-25c/sh vs. -14c/sh current consensus. Sees revenues of $20M-$22M vs. $30.2M expected. -AT&T Wireless Q4 loss was 14c/sh which was 8c/sh worse than consensus. -Fujitsu is seen cutting another 1,000 jobs on top of the 21,000 already announced. -FleetBoston plans to take a $500-$550M charge due to exposure to Argentina. It will be released with its earnings report later today. -Qwest Communications said it lost -7c/sh vs. -6c/sh expected. -Campbell’s Soup downgraded to market perform from underperform at Banc of America. -UPS Q4 EPS was 57c/sh vs. 50c/sh expected. Revenue was $8.1B vs. $8.0B expected. Q1 guidance was 40-47c/sh vs. 48c/sh expected. Neutral: -Merck said it will spin-off its Medco prescription drug unit by mid-2002 through a new IPO. -ABN Amro recommends selling TLAB and buying SFA as a spread. -Texas Instruments said Q4 loss was -7c/sh vs. -9c/sh expected. Revenue was $1.79B vs. $1.70B expected. Said Q1 pro-forma would be about break-even vs. -0.06c/sh expected. Inventory was cut by $149M to $751M. While those numbers were all positive, TXN said capex would be cut in 2002 to $800M vs. $1.8B in 2001. TXN was upgraded by Merrill Lynch. -Coca-Cola reported Q4 EPS of 37c/sh, which was in line with expectations. For 2002, company expects neutral earnings.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Monday, January 28th 8:06--NVidia estimates were upgraded at Merrill Lynch. Q1 EPS is now expected to be 34c/sh vs. 30c/sh previously and FY02 is $1.46c/sh vs. $1.28c/sh. 8:04--Lockheed Martin was upgraded to buy from hold at Prudential. Said visibility is better due to a robust backlog and consistent operating performance. 8:03--Genesis Microchip is SG Cowen’s bottom line action idea. Strong buy rating was maintained. 8:01--Adaptec announced an initiative with Cisco to develop IP storage solutions. 8:00--Western Digital Drives are now being shipped in Tivo units. 7:40--Tyson Foods Q1 36c/sh vs. 35c/sh consensus. Company boosted FY02 EPS to $1.10-$1.20/sh vs. $1.10/sh consensus. Sees Q2 EPS of 17c-20c/sh vs. 26c/sh expected. Revenue was $5.86B vs. $6.4B consensus. 7:15--Stocks are: S&P +3.00, Nasdaq +13.00. -Euro down based on German IFO. The sentiment index was the strongest in five months (86.3 vs. 85.8). The ECB may no longer be able to cut rates. There are also credibility concerns due to speculation that Duisenberg will be replaced. -Afghan and U.S. forces operating together killed six al-Qaida members that were barricaded in a hospital in Kandahar. Positive: -Xerox best Q4 EPS consensus with 15c/sh vs. 0c/sh expected. Company also said it was ‘comfortable’ with Q1 consensus EPS. -Johnson & Johnson was recommended Frank Cappiello on Wall Street Week. -Washington Mutual and Valero Energy were recommended in Barron’s. -Texas Instruments upgraded to buy at CSFB. -Viacom upgraded to buy from market perform by Robertson Stephens. -Veritas Software was upgraded to buy from hold by ABN Amro. -Ford and GM were upgraded to outperform from neutral by Morgan Stanley. Daimler Chrysler was held at neutral. Negative: -Regional Airlines downgraded at Merrill Lynch. Names downgraded were SKYW & ACAI. -Lending Tree was mentioned in Business Week saying that a hedge-fund manager thinks the company is an acquisition candidate by Ebay or Yahoo. The company was cut at Merrill Lynch to neutral from strong buy. -Genzyme downgraded to buy from strong buy at SG Cowen. -Cigna was cut to neutral from outperform at Morgan Stanley. Neutral: -Phillip Morris reportedly interested in selling Miller Brewing. -Hynix is reportedly asking Micron to ‘pay up’ if it wants to buy the S. Korean memory chip maker.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Friday, January 25th 8:05--Verisign was downgraded to attractive from buy at Thomas Weisal. 8:03--Goldman Sachs also downgraded Schering-Plough and upgraded Pfizer. 8:02--Bristol Myers downgraded to market perform from buy at Goldman Sachs. 8:00--Gateway was downgraded to neutral from outperform at Morgan Stanley. 7:59--Alaska Air Group Q4 loss ex-items was $2.37/sh, which was higher than estimates of a $2.21/sh loss. 7:58--Newsweek is reporting that several terrorist attacks were thwarted in Kabul during Sec. Of State Powell’s visit. 7:47--Taiwan Semiconductor Q4 net profit was $129M vs. $430M in Q4 last year. Estimates were for a profit of $94.6M. The company said they expect recovery momentum to continue throughout 2002. TSM is slightly positive. 7:35--Lockheed Martin Q4 EPS was 49c/sh pro forma, which beat estimates by a penny. Revenues were 7.33B vs. $7.1B expected. Guidance on 2003 sales was $25.0B-$25.8B which is generally above current consensus of $25.2B. LMT is positive. 7:15--Stocks are: S&P -1.00, Nasdaq -9.00. -Euro down sharply this morning based on Italian CPI numbers. Jan CPI was +0.5% m/m vs. +0.1% m/m in Dec. It appears that the strength in CPI was due to retailers rounding prices up to the nearest euro during the conversion from lira to euros. There is also talk that the ECB needs to be reformed, which is hurting credibility of the bank. -One interesting story out about the euro is a firm called M-Sat SA, which said that it owns the satellite photo of Europe on the back of euro notes. It wants production of euro notes halted until its lawsuit with the ECB is settled. It also wants the 10 billion notes already in circulation to be destroyed. It could be negative for the euro because of confidence, but it also could be positive based on shortness of supply. -Stocks are down mostly on Ericsson and Qualcomm earnings overnight. Positive: -Starbucks Q1 EPS was 17c/sh vs. 15c/sh consensus. Company said FY02 EPS would be 54c-55c/sh vs. 53c/sh expected by the market. Revenue was $805M vs. $795.5M expected. -PeopleSoft reported net income of 18c/sh vs. 16c/sh expected. Revenue was $528M vs. $521.7M expected. -BMC Software reported 8c/sh vs. 7c/sh expected. Revenue was $317.6M vs. $299.2M expected. -Lam Research earned 3c/sh ex items vs. break-even expected. Revenue was $259.2M vs. $257M expected. -Sybase beat pro forma expectations. It posted EPS of 31c/sh vs. 24c/sh consensus. Company raised FY02 EPS guidance to $1.08-$1.10 from $1.02. -Adaptec reported Q3 earnings of 8c/sh, which beat estimates by a penny. Revenue was $105.3M vs. 101.0M consensus. -Western Digital reported Q2 pro forma of 5c/sh, which beat by a penny. Revenues also beat at $575M vs. $545.1M consensus. No guidance was given. -McData reported Q4 EPS of 3c/sh vs. break-even expected. Reported revenues of $93.5M vs. $87.1M. Updated guidance for Q1, but guidance was near current consensus. -First Data was upgraded to buy from market perform at Robertson Stephens. -Storage Computer Corp (SOS) is cited by an analyst in Business Week as having the potential to quadruple over the next 18 months. Part of the gain would be attributable to settlement of a lawsuit with Hitachi. -ABN Amro is positive on Vegas gamers. Upgraded MGG, PPE, and MBG. -Banc of America is positive on oil drillers. Upgraded BJS, NBR, and SII. Negative: -Ericsson said that its Q1 loss would be twice what analysts expected. -Qualcomm reported Q1 EPS of 23c/sh, which was as expected. Revenues were $693M vs. $700.9M expected. Company warned for Q2, saying that revenues would be $651M-$672M vs. $723M consensus. EPS is expected to be 19c-21c/sh vs. 24c/sh consensus. -RSA Security said that it expects Q1 revenue of $63M-$65M vs. $66.1M currently expected. -Lehman is negative on Grocers. Downgraded Safeway and Kroger to buy from strong buy. Neutral: -Biovail reaffirmed its comfort with projected EPS growth rates. That affirmation, however, keeps EPS in line with estimates. -JDS Uniphase lost -19c/sh pro forma (-$1.60 net) vs. -2c/sh expected. Revenue was $286M vs. $284M expected. They reaffirmed December guidance for March sales. The company said its wide miss was attributable to costs associated with a realignment program and tax deferrals. They said analysts estimates did not take this into account. The company did not provide a number that would account for these factors. -Gateway reported Q4 EPS of 2c/sh vs. 1c/sh expected by the market. Revenue was $1.14B vs. $1.28B expected. Company said it will continue to focus on cost reductions and close some sites. -MedImmune reported Q4 EPS of 45c/sh vs. 46c/sh consensus. Revenue was guided higher, while EPS guidance was near expectations. -BroadVision said Q4 was -3c/sh, which was above estimates of -5c/sh. Revenues, however, were $48M vs. $50.9M expected. -PMC-Sierra reported Q4 loss of 15c/sh, which was a penny better than expectations. Revenues were $47.2M vs. $49.8M expected. The company did not provide guidance. Company was upgraded by Goldman Sachs.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Thursday, January 24th Positive: -EMC lost -3c/sh in Q4, which beat the -7c/sh estimates. Revenues were $1.51B vs. $1.31B consensus. No guidance was given. -KLA-Tencor Q2 net was 25c/sh vs. 24c/sh expected. Revenue was $404.1M vs. 380M expected. Company remains cautious about near-term. Company said they cut inventory by $26M in Q2. -Siebel net income was 13c/sh vs. 9c/sh consensus. Upgraded to buy from add at ABN Amro. Also upgraded at JP Morgan and received positive comments from CS First Boston. -Cirrus Logic reported Q3 loss of -21c/sh, which beat by a penny. Revenues were $77.0M vs. $73.3M consensus. Guided Q4 revenues and EPS higher. -Boeing received an order for 100 737-800s from Ryan Air with an option for 50 more. The deal is valued at $9.1B. -Nokia Q4 EPS was 21c/sh, which beat consensus by 3c/sh. -Citrix Systems earned 21c/sh before items vs. 20c/sh consensus. Revenues were $158M vs. $156M consensus. Citrix was cut to neutral at First Albany. -Broadcom Q4 EPS was -11c/sh vs. -12c/sh expected. Revenue was $226.8M vs. $222M expected. -Flextronics earned 17c/sh vs. 16c/sh expected. -Varian Semiconductor lost -37c/sh vs. -39c/sh expected. -Activision made 66c/sh, which beat expectations by 8c/sh. Company also guided higher. -LSI reported Q4 loss of -20c/sh, which beat expectations for a -24c/sh loss. Company said Q1 pro forma loss should be around -14c/sh vs. -20c/sh expected. Also said that they are on track to return to profitability in 2H 2002. -Qlogic reported Q3 EPS of 20c/sh, which beat by a penny. Revenues matched expectations. Company did not provide guidance. -Immunex reported Q4 pro forma of 8c/sh, which was in line with estimates. Revenue beat estimates with $277.7M vs. $272.9M consensus. -SBC Communications Q4 EPS was 64c/sh vs. 62c/sh consensus. Revenue was $14.05B vs. $13.4B consensus. Capex in 2002 is expected to be $9.2B-$9.7B, which is lower than 2001’s $11.2B. -MGM Mirage was upgraded to strong buy from buy at Merrill Lynch. -International Game Technology reported Q1 profit of 70c/sh vs. 65c/sh expected. Revenues were as expected. -CDW was upgraded at Goldman Sachs to recommended list from outperform. Negative: -Corning pro forma loss was -28c/sh vs. -29c/sh expected. Q4 revenue was $974M vs $997M expected. Said they won’t provide guidance for ’02 at this time, but said that they are sensing a settling in the market. -Amgen made Q4 net 30c/sh before items. It was expected to make 31c/sh. Revenues were $1.12B vs. $1.1B expected. -Halliburton’s long-term debt rating was cut by Moody’s to Baa2. -AMD will offer $500M in senior debt. -Emulex will be offering $300M in convertible notes in a private placement. -Silicon Storage reported Q4 profit ex-items of 1c/sh, which matched First Call. Revenues were $70.8M vs. $76.9M expected. Company warned for Q1. -Applied Biosystems downgraded to hold from buy at CSFB. -Ely Lilly met Q4 estimates, but warned on Q1. Company said in Q1 it expects 56c-58c/sh vs. 61c/ash consensus. -Kodak Q4 profit was 12c/sh vs. 11c/sh expected. Guidance, however, was negative. Said it expects continued economic weakness to depress earnings in 2002. Q1 EPS guidance was 5c-15c/sh vs. 16c/sh expected. Neutral: -Enron CEO Kenneth Lay resigned last night. -Schering-Plough met Q4 EPS forecast of 36c/sh. -American Home Products Q4 earned 53c/sh, which was as expected. -Baxter Q4 profit was 53c/sh, which was as expected. Modificato da - Giorgia (webmaster) on 1/24/2002 18:19:54

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Wednesday, January 23rd 7:57--Motorola’s conference call revealed that they are looking for Q1 loss of 11-14c/sh, which is near 12c/sh loss expected. Revenue outlook is below expectations, however, at $6.0B-$6.2B vs. $6.48B expected. Said full year profit consensus of 4c/sh is not only achievable but can be exceeded. Motorola looks neutral-to-positive overall. 7:52--Amgen was upgraded to strong buy from buy at Merrill Lynch due to recent price weakness. 7:51--BellSouth was upgraded to buy from add at ABN Amro. 7:48--DuPont reported Q4 EPS of 12c/sh vs. 11c/sh expected. Revenues missed expectations. Revenues were $5.35B vs. $6.08B expected. Company said they expect Q1 EPS to be substantially above Q4. Market consensus on Q1 is currently only 8c/sh. DuPont should be positive for the market. 7:47--Mercury Interactive was upgraded by Robertson Stephens to buy from market perform. 7:46--Tellabs Q4 EPS was 3c/sh vs. 2c/sh expected. Revenue was $470M vs. $445M expected. Company said they are seeing signs of stability in their optical networking products. 7:44--Motorola was upgraded by JP Morgan following its earnings release. On the flip side, CSFB was cautious on the company, but did not change its rating on MOT. 7:42--Merrill Lynch Q4 was 3c/sh, which was as expected. 7:41--Dynegy Q4 was in line with forecasts. Company reaffirmed EPS for Q1 and FY02. 7:41--General Dynamics matched EPS forecasts. 7:38--Sepracor Q4 loss was $1.31/sh vs. -$1.24/sh consensus. 7:37--Pfizer Q4 EPS was 34c/sh which was as expected. Said it expects revenue growth in double digits in 2002. 7:35--JP Morgan is raising chip names AMAT, KLAC, NVLS, TER, VSEA to buy from outperform. 7:30--Israel is blaming Arafat for yesterday’s shooting in Jerusalem which killed 2 and injured 14. 7:25--Stocks are: S&P +3.00, Nasdaq +12.00. -Bonds down on minor strength in stocks and on expectations tomorrow’s Greenspan speech will be bond-negative. -Stocks up on profit news and Dec semiconductor book-to-bill ratio, which rose to 0.78 vs. 0.73 in Nov. Consensus was 0.75. For the first time in a long time, the ratio was up after bookings increased and not because billings fell. Positive: -Emulex Q2 made 13c/sh vs. 9c/sh consensus. Revenue was $62.2M, which exceeded $54.0M expectations. Company guided higher to 13c/sh vs. 9c/sh consensus, revenue to 66M vs. 56M consensus. The stock was boosted by JP Morgan. -Mercury Interactive earned 14c/sh vs. 12c/sh expected. Revenue also beat at $90.3M vs. $86.62M consensus. -Altera reported Q4 profit of 3c/sh before items, which was as expected. Said Q4 marks the bottom of the cycle. Sees modest sequential growth in Q1. -Integrated Device Tech reported Q3 loss of 11c/sh, which beat consensus by 2c/sh. Revenues were as expected. Said Q4 was low point for revenues. Reaffirmed guidance. -Cadence Design Q4 earned 27c/sh, which beat by a penny. Revenues were as expected. Company guided Q1 and FY02 higher by a penny. -Compuware reported Q3 EPS of 13c/sh, which beat by 2c/sh. Revenue also beat at $450.6M vs. $435.2M. No guidance was given. -Vitesse Semiconductor lost -12c/sh vs. -13c/sh expected. Revenues were as expected. Said they are seeing signs of stability in their markets. -Computer Associates Q3 profit was 71c/sh vs. 60c/sh expected by market. Revenues were as expected. -Fairchild Semiconductor broke even in Q4 on a pro forma basis. Consensus was for a 4c/sh loss. Revenues also beat consensus. -FreeMarkets earned 9c/sh, vs. 6c/sh expected. Revenues, however, were $44.8M vs. $45.5M consensus. Company reaffirmed FY02 guidance. Negative: -AOL filed an anti-trust lawsuit against Microsoft. -Novellus Systems Q4 net 12c/sh vs 11c/sh consensus. Sales were $200M vs. $201M expected. Novellus CEO said he expects Q1 loss of -10c/sh vs. -0.4c/sh consensus and Q1 revenue of $150M vs. Q4 of $200M. -Archer Daniels missed EPS consensus by a penny. Q2 EPS was 23c/sh vs. 24c/sh consensus. -Cummins Q4 8c/sh vs. 7c/sh expected. Revised full-year profit forecast lower. Said there would be no significant improvement in 2002 revenue. -Applied Microcircuits Q3 pro forma loss was 4c/sh, which was as expected. Revenue was $40.2M vs. $40.92M consensus. Company said it is still trying to work through revenue at a time when there is little demand. “Yet to see signs of recovery.” -CDW reported Q4 EPS of 47c/sh, which beat consensus by a penny. Revenues were $988M vs. $981M consensus. Guidance was negative, however. Expects 43c-47c/sh in Q1, which is below expectations of 47c/sh. Expects revenue of $975M-$1.025B vs. $1.01B consensus. -Openwave posted Q2 loss of 7c/sh, which beat the 4c/sh expected. Revenue was 93.4M vs. 95.18M consensus. Said they expect Q3 loss of 12c-4c/sh vs. market consensus of 5c/sh loss. -Hutchinson Tech reported Q1 EPS of 11c/sh, which beat by a penny. Revenues were as expected. Guidance, however was for 0c/sh-10c/sh vs. expectations of 10c/sh. -Earthlink Q4 operating loss was -13c/sh vs. -11c/sh expected. Sees Q1 loss of 10c-13c/sh vs. 8c/sh loss expected. Sees 2002 loss of 5-25c/sh. -Alliance Semiconductor said Q3 loss was -27c/sh vs. -14c/sh consensus. Revenues also missed at $6.3M vs. $6.7M. -Millenium Pharmaceutical lost -23c/sh vs. -19c/sh consensus. Neutral: -Motorola lost 4c/sh before items (55c/sh net) vs. -5c/sh expected. Revenues were $7.3B vs. $7.5B consensus. Said next two quarters would show losses, but expected to return to profitability in 2H 2002. -Storage Technology. Beat consensus by 4c/sh with 36c/sh in Q4. However, Revenues were $566.4M vs. $569.1M consensus. -Microchip Technology reported EPS and revenues that were in-line with consensus. -STMicroelectronics Q4 reported 5c/sh, which was as expected. Revenues were $1.45B vs. $1.41B expected. However, said they will cut Capex to $1.2B in FY02 from $1.7B in FY01.

Aggiorniamo il commento americano finanziario migliore che abbiamo: Monday January 22nd 9:09--JDA Software reported Q4 earnings of 20c/sh, which was 2c/sh better than expected. 9:04--Openwave and AT&T Wireless have extended their 5-yr relationship for mobile internet service. 9:00--Leading Economic Indicators +1.2%, vs. +0.5% expected. The Conference Board said that the recession could be over soon. 8:50--Fed Pres McTeer said that Greenspan was not as negative as many believed. 8:20--Crude oil higher this morning on indications that Russia is following through with its promise to cut production to fall in line with OPEC quotas. 8:18--Tyco trading sharply higher in pre-open trade. Conference call discussing 4-way split starts at 8:30 and can be heard at: 800-260-0719, #624746. 8:16--Georgia Pacific downgraded to market perform from buy at JP Morgan. Increased the risk of debt downgrade and said that focus would return to asbestos. 8:15--Walmart upgraded at Bernstein to outperform from perform based on potential gains from KMart. 8:14--Reebok upgraded by Merrill Lynch to buy from neutral. 8:13--Pentagon said that an unmanned spyplane was shot down over Pakistan. 8:08--KMart secured $2B in financing. Targeting emergence from Chaprter 11 in 2003. Cited rapid decline in liquidity for problems. Said it will invest in key merchandising initiatives. Cites below-plan sales. Will reorganize on fast-track basis. Said pension and savings plans are independent and protected. Will seek court okay to terminate 350 store leases. 8:06--Eaton reported Q4 earnings of 65c/sh, which is better than the 61c/sh consensus. Revenue was $1.7B vs. $1.76B consensus. Guidance was negative, however, saying Q1 net would be 85c-95c/sh vs. $1.03 consensus. 8:04--Cypress Semiconductor received negative comments from Merrill Lynch, which said that the company had booked only about 50% of the orders that Merrill expected it to. Cypress releases earnings on Thursday and is expected to miss Merrill’s expectations. 8:02--Symantec rumored to be offering $600M in convertibles. 8:02--Metromedia Fiber upgraded to outperform from market perform by Piper Jaffray. 7:53--Merrill analyst Rich Bernstein said the tech sector is selling at the highest relative P/E in the history of his data while the drug industry is selling at one of the lowest. He recommends moving out of tech and into drugs. 7:51--Next Level Communications will cut its workforce by one-third, or 120 jobs. It is the Motorola-backed maker of video networking equipment. It also said Q4 revenue would be below expectations. 7:47--Hewlett-Packard accused Walter Hewlett of misleading investors on its Compaq merger and that he is a musician and acedemic who never worked at the company. 7:41--Ameritrade earned 4c/sh vs. 1c/sh consensus. 7:39--Johnson & Johnson Q4 pro forma was 39c/sh, which was as expected. 7:38--KMart could file for bankruptcy as early as today according to both the WSJ and NYT. The move by Fleming to stop shipments will be a key factor. 7:36--Motorola received cautious comments from Lehman and Bear Stearns based on negative wireless sales outlooks. 7:35--Verisign and IBM entered into a multi-year contract for services, market, and technology. 7:30--Stocks are: S&P -5.00, Nasdaq -22.00. -Bonds are down based on talk that Greenspan will be less concerned about the economy in his Thursday speech. The prediction was made by John Berry in Saturday’s Washington Post. -Yen down sharply this morning based on comments from O’Neill, who said that he still supports the strong dollar policy. Shiokawa said the yen’s price should be left up to the market. Moody’s also lowered five Japanese lenders. -British Pound down on speculation of euro-entry. -Gunmen have attacked a U.S. cultural center in Calcutta India. Four were killed and 14 injured. Positive: -Amazon.com reported Q4 profit of 1c/sh according to GAAP principles and 9c/sh on a pro forma basis. Both numbers beat the 7c/sh loss consensus. Amazon raised guidance on Q1 pro forma to around -4c/sh-0c/sh vs. consensus -10c/sh. -Tyco will split into four separate companies and will eliminate $11B in debt. The four divisions will include electronics, healthcare, fire protection, and financial services. -Lucent lost 14c/sh vs. -24c/sh expected. Company said sales would rise 10%-15% in Q2 vs. Q1. Also said they could break even by the end of the fiscal year. -Health Management Associates reported profit of 20c/sh vs. 19c/sh expected. -McKesson reported Q3 profit of 38c/sh vs. 36c/sh expected. -Merck earned 81c/sh in Q4, which matched consensus. Revenue was $12.6B and beat $12.47B consensus. Said they were comfortable with previous guidance. -Bank of America made $1.28/sh, which beat $1.24/sh expected. -International Paper said Q4 net was -$1.19/sh. Before charges, profit was 12c/sh which beat consensus 3c/sh. Anticipates a weak Q1 and improved Q2. -BellSouth reported Q4 income of 63c/sh, which beat 60c/sh consensus. -Centex Construction earned 63c/sh vs. 61c/sh expected. Negative: -Emerson Electric said it would close 50 plants in the U.S. and move operations to countries with lower labor costs. -KMart-Fleming Companies said it did not receive a regular weekly payment from KMart and will therefore stop food deliveries to the stores. Fleming also submitted a notice of reclamation that would allow it to recover most of the $78M in receivables. -KMart’s debt was downgraded by Moody’s to Caa3. Ratings were left on review for potential further downgrade. -Nokia downgraded to underperform from neutral at Morgan Stanley. Price target cut to $13. -Barron’s is negative on semiconductor stocks. They reviewed Intel’s capital spending cut and said similar cuts are likely at other firms. -Schlumberger Q4 missed by a penny. Was 32c/sh vs. 33c/sh expected. Said it still expects recovery to take hold around mid-year. Neutral: -AOL Time Warner is reportedly in talks to buy Red Hat, according to the Washington Post.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Friday January 18th 8:10--TJX was upgraded to buy from hold at UBS Warburg. 8:06--Taiwan Semiconductor plans to cut 2002 Capex spending from the $2.19B level budgeted in 2001. 8:00--Duke Energy downgraded to hold from add at ABN Amro due to uncertainty on 2003 earnings. 7:33--Sun Microsystems reported Q2 loss of -3c/sh vs. -2c/sh expected. Revenue was $3.12B vs. $5.12B previously. Said “we are showing signs of progress.” 7:30--Nov Trade Deficit was $27.89B vs. $28.5 consensus. October gap revised to $29.33B from $29.43B. Exports were 78.2B vs. 77.64B and Imports were 106.09B vs. 106.97B. The number should have no effect-to-slightly positive effect on credit markets. 7:15--Stocks are: S&P -5.00, Nasdaq -22.00. -Israel bombed part of the Gaza strip in retaliation for the shooting deaths of 6 Israelis. -The Saudi Arabian government said they want the U.S. military out of their country according to the Washington Post. Positive: -Scientific Atlanta earned 26c/sh in Q2 vs. 21c/sh expected. Revenue was $418.2 vs. $390.2M expected. -Network Associates said Q4 pro forma was 23c/sh vs. 8c/sh expected. -Xilinx beat expectations. Said Q3 was 7c/sh vs. 4c/sh expected (net was 3c/sh). Revenue was $228.1M vs. $450.1M previous. -Cisco was named the “top global pick” by ABN Amro. Reiterated buy rating and $25 target. -Vodafone PLC upgraded to strong buy from buy at Merrill Lynch. -Sports Authority expects Q4 EPS to exceed prior guidance of 35c-39c/sh. -Johnson Controls earned $1.27/sh, which was 16c/sh better than expected. Negative: -Microsoft posted Q2 EPS of 49c/sh, which beat consensus of 43c/sh. They also said Q3 EPS would be 50c-51c/sh vs. 47c/sh expected. However, FY02 guidance was lowered to $1.57-$1.60 vs. $1.80 expected. Q3 revenue guidance was lowered to $7.3B-$7.4B vs. $7.5B expected. -IBM beat Q4 EPS expectations with $1.33/sh vs. $1.32/sh consensus. However, revenue was $22.8B vs. $23.9B consensus. -EDS will cut 1,000 jobs. -Dataquest said PC shipments will decline 4.6%. -Nortel Networks reported Q4 loss of 16c/sh before items, which was as expected. Net was -57c/sh. Sees Q1 below Q4. Sees Q1 revenue 10% below Q4. Sees 2002 revenue growth beginning in Q2. Said market visibility is still limited. Sees return to profit in Q4. -3M Q4 was 96c/sh vs. 98c/sh expected. Said they expect $1.05-$1.20/sh in Q1, which is a lower guidance. -Avaya said it may cut jobs and take further steps to lower expenses. -FDA dealt a blow to Bristol-Myers when it recommended against approval of its new Avapro drug. -Callaway Golf lost 14c/sh vs. -8c/sh expected by the market. -Molex said that its Q3 profit will be 9c-11c/sh, which was below 16c/sh consensus. -Read-Rite said that it expects a “significant decline” in revenue in Q2. -Silicon Storage warned for Q4, saying that revenues would be $70M vs. $77.4M consensus. -FleetBoston said they are considering a complete withdrawal from Argentina due to the deepening financial crisis. -AOL Time Warner downgraded to buy from strong buy at CIBC as they changed analysts. -Hanover Compressor downgraded to market perform from recommended list. -Elan Corp. downgraded to market perform from buy at DB Alex Brown. Price target lowered to $42.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Thursday January 17th 8:12--Argosy gaming raised guidance for Q4 to $0.67-$0.70 from $0.48-$0.52. 8:12--Home Depot downgraded to accumulate from buy at Jeffries. 8:11--Sears reported Q4 earnings of $2.02/sh, which was 4c/sh better than expected. 8:08--Elan upgraded to outperform from neutral at Salomon. 8:05--Xilinx received positive comments from Merrill Lynch, saying that inventory correction is nearly complete. Upped revenue estimate. 8:03--Apple Computer upgraded to buy at Salomon. 8:02--Aetna cut to neutral at Salomon. 8:00--Calpine cut to neutral at Salomon. 7:35--IBM was upgraded to buy at Lehman. 7:30--Dec Housing Starts were 1.570M vs. 1.610M expected. The housing number is bullish for credit markets, while the claims number is bearish. 7:30--Initial Claims -14K to 384K vs. 430K expected. Last week was revised to 398K from 395K. 7:23--GE reported Q4 EPS of 39c/sh, which was as expected. 7:15--Stocks are: S&P +6.00, Nasdaq +22.00. -There are reports that Spain is selling euro positions today to cover Argentine losses. -The Argentine Central Bank President has resigned. Positive: -Symantec yesterday reported Q3 earnings of 78c/sh, which was 14c/sh better than expected. They also guided higher revenue expectations for Q4. -Compaq reported Q4 EPS of 6c/sh, which was above 1c/sh expectations. Revenues were $8.5B vs. $8.05B consensus. Company projected moderate first-half growth and a stronger recovery in the second half. Guided higher for Q1 to $7.6B vs. $7.3B on revenue and +1c/sh vs. breakeven on EPS. -Redback networks posted Q4 pro forma loss of 20c/sh, which was a penny better than expected. -Inktomi reported Q1 loss of 6c/sh, which was 5c/sh better than expected. Revenues were in line with consensus. -Sonus Networks posted Q4 loss of 4c/sh, which was a penny better than expected. -Mercury Computer reported Q2 EPS of 16c/sh, which was a penny better than expected. Revenues were $37.4M vs. 36.5M consensus. -Photon Dynamics reported Q1loss of 22c/sh, which was 5c/sh better than consensus. -Yahoo beat earnings with 3c/sh vs. 1c/sh expected. Revenue beat as well with $188.9M vs. $170.9M consensus. -Extreme networks Q2 earnings were 2c/sh, which was a penny above expectations. -Travelocity reported Q4 earnings of 9c/sh, which was a penny below expectations. Company guided 2002 EPS higher, to 65c-75c/sh vs. 66c/sh currently expected. -Conexant reported Q1 pro forma EPS of 42c/sh, which was 2c/sh better than the consensus. -McAfee.com reported Q4 earnings of 9c/sh, which was 4c/sh better than expectations. -Genentech reported Q4 EPS of 20c/sh, which was as expected. The company said that revenues were $600.2M, which was above $544.1M consensus. -Redback Networks said that the downward revenue cycle is stabilizing and does not see the need for more job cuts. -Citigroup earned 74c/sh vs. 73c/sh expected. -United Technologies earned 69c/sh vs. 67c/sh expected. -EDS upgraded to strong buy from buy at Lehman. -Siebel Systems upgraded to buy from outperform at Salomon. -AMD beat estimates lost 5c/sh vs. 18c/sh. Revenues were $900M vs. $850M expected. Sees Q1 processor shipments at Q4 levels. Company was upgraded by UBS Warburg. Negative: -Macromedia posted Q3 loss of 17c/sh, which was 2c/sh below expectations. Revenue beat consensus at $73.3M vs. $72.2M. Company sees flat revenues in Q4 and a return to profitability in the June quarter. -Federated warned for Q4, saying EPS would be $1.80-$1.90/sh vs. current consensus of $1.92/sh. -Kulicke and Soffa reported Q1 loss of 32c/sh, which was 12c/sh below expectations. Revenue was near consensus. -Northwest Airlines Q4 loss was 1c/sh wider than expected at $3.02/sh. -Southwest Airlines EPS ex-items was 4c/sh, which bested consensus of breakeven. Guidance was uncertain, with mgmt saying it was difficult to predict whether they would make a profit or not in Q1. Consensus is for profit of 5c/sh. -Teradyne downgraded to neutral from buy at Merrill Lynch. Neutral: -SouthTrust reported Q4 earnings of 42c/sh, which was in line with estimates. -Apple Computer reported Q1 earnings of 11c/sh, which was in line with estimates. Revenues were below estimates at $1.375B vs. $1.432B. -There is a story out that Micron will pay $2B for Hynix’s DRAM business. That is based on the price that Micron agreed to pay last month for Toshiba’s business. -Ford Motor lost 48c/sh before charges, which was 2c/sh above expectations. Net was -$2.81.

Aggiorniamo il commento finanziario americano migliore che abbiamo: Tuesday January 15th 15:22--Juniper Q4 made 5c/sh, which was as expected. 15:15--Intel Q4 net before items was 15c/sh vs. 11c/sh expected. Net after charges was 7c/sh. Q4 revenue was $6.98B. Sees Q1 revenue at $6.4B-$7.0B vs. $6.8B previous guidance. Capital spending plans for 2002 are $5.5B vs. $7.3B in 2001. Plans Mar 7th business update. The Revenue guidance appears tilted downward. Capital Spending is bearish for the stock. Overall, the report looks negative. 15:15--Ebay made 9c/sh. 15:13--Treas. Sec. O’Neill has suggested that the market’s read too much into Greenspan’s comments last Friday predicting gloom. O’Neill believes that Greenspan was trying to be more positive. 15:09--Arthur Andersen accountant fired today said that he was only following orders from Andersen’s own attorneys. His attorney said that he did nothing wrong. 15:08--RF Microdevices earned 2c/sh, which was as expected. 14:50--Cooper Tire credit rating cut to BBB by S&P. 14:06--The U.S. will charge Johnny ‘Jihad’ Walker with aiding terrorism and not treason. They will not seek the death penalty. The crime is punishable by 15 years in prison per count and could be considered a capital crime if it resulted in someone’s death. 14:06--Sprint (PCS) dropped to outperform at Salomon. 13:39--There is a Market News story by Steve Beckner saying that the Fed is undecided on a 12th rate cut. 12:15--Bonds getting a lift from the Enron de-listing and Arthur Andersen dismissal of three partners. Other news was bearish, including retail sales and Fed comments that the economy will strengthen. 11:41--Andersen put 3 partners on administrative leave. They dismissed lead partner on Enron audit. Said they found “expedited effort to destroy documents.” 11:24--Rumor that MetLife is interested in buying A.G. Edwards. 11:22--Enron trading suspended. NYSE said they will de-list the company. 9:06--Qualcomm received cautious comments from Banc of America. 9:00--Sprint (FON) is guiding estimates up to 31c-33c/sh from 30c/sh expected. However, they reduced revenue outlook to $4.0B from $4.1-$4.2B. 8:54--Fitch upgraded Mexico’s long-term foreign currency to BBB-. 8:19--3Com will cut 500 workers. 8:18--Linear Technology downgraded to buy from strong buy at Merrill Lynch. Revenue and EPS targets were also cut. 8:16--Charles Schwab reported Q4 net of 8c/sh, which was as expected. 8:15--Nike FY03 estimates raised at Merrill Lynch to $2.85 from $2.74. 8:15--Microsoft is having problems distributing security patch for Windows XP. 8:10--Delphi Financial Group upgraded to buy from hold at ABN Amro. 8:00--Bank of Canada cut rates 25 bps to 2.00%. 8:00--BTM/UBS Warburg sales +0.6% in w/e Jan 12th. 7:57--Redbook retail sales were +4.3% in the first retail week of January. 7:54--Argentina’s President Duhalde promised to release new measures to loosen restrictions on bank withdrawals this week. He called the limits a “time bomb.” 7:53--Forest Labs Q3 EPS was 47c/sh vs. 44c/sh expected and 36c/sh year ago. 7:52--America West upgraded to market outperform at Goldman Sachs. 7:47--Parametric Technology reported net loss ex-items of 3c/sh, which was as expected. However, revenue fell below expectations to $198.6M vs. $202.8M expected. 7:46--Sun Microsystems’ 2002 estimates cut by CSFB due to “lethargic” demand outlook. 7:45--AmSouth reported Q4 net income of 38c/sh, which was as expected. 7:43--Morgan Stanley lowered 2002 estimates on oil companies. Names mentioned were ExxonMobil, ChevronTexaco, Amerada Hess, Marathon Oil, and Occidental Petroleum. Estimates were cut based on lower oil prices and lower refining margins. 7:30--Fed Pres Guynn expects economic recovery to be underway by mid-2002. He looks for negative GDP for another quarter or two, but a recovery after that. He said nearly all of the adjustments we’ve been witnessing since Q4 of 2000 will be completed by midyear. Inflation should remain in check. Inventories in most industries have been reduced to low levels and production will soon have to be increased to accommodate even a continuation of current demand conditions. His comments are a little economy-stronger than Greenspan’s on Friday. Nonetheless, Guynn’s comments are a little bearish for credit markets. 7:30--December Retail Sales -0.1% vs. -1.2% expected. November sales were revised to -3.0% from -3.7%. Sales ex-autos -0.1% vs. unchanged expected. November was revised to -0.2% from -0.5%. The numbers are a little stronger than expected, which will be slightly bearish for bonds. 7:30--Wells Fargo beat Q4 estimates by a penny. 7:15--Stocks are: S&P +2.00, Nasdaq +8.00. -The CIA said that they believe bin Laden escaped Afghanistan and Pakistan by sea. -Yen up on comments by the Chinese central bank chief and the Korean Finance minister, which criticized Japan’s weak yen policy saying it harms Asia. -Euro down on Austrian Finance Minister’s comments that the ECB has room to cut rates. Positive: -E*Trade beat estimates when it earned 7c/sh vs. 4c/sh expected. The company, however, was downgraded by Robertson Stephens. -Alliance Gaming said that Q2 profits were 54c/sh, which beat the 46c/sh estimate. -Rent A Center said that Q4 earnings would be 68c-70c/sh vs. consensus of 58c/sh. -Checkpoint Software said Q4 net was 30c/sh, which beat estimates by a penny. No guidance was issued. -IVAX received a positive judgment from a U.S. district court concerning a patent dispute with American BioScience. -Accenture being defended by UBS Warburg against some claims that the company is tied to Arthur Anderson/Enron scandal. -Intel earnings news making the rounds again. This time by Merrill Lynch. Analyst Joe Osha thinks estimates are too low and that company will beat. That story has made the rounds in each of the last two days. -NVidia received positive comments from Morgan Stanley and Prudential. -Microsoft-In Prudential’s comments on NVidia, they mentioned a possible new Microsoft product called “Home Station.” It is a convergence of XBox, PC, and WebTV. -UAL upgraded to buy from hold at CSFB. Negative: -Corning said that it lost 28c-29c/sh vs. its previous forecast of a loss of 20c-25c/sh. -Gap Stores’ debt rating was lowered by Moody’s. -Tyco Q1 net was 74c/sh, which was 2c/sh better than expectations. However, it said it will earn 80c-82c/sh in Q2, which is lower than the 86c/sh expected by the market. -HB Fuller said that it will cut its production capacity by 20% as Q4 sales fell 11%. -Marconi PLC will cut 4,000 jobs. -Dollar General downgraded to neutral from outperform at Morgan Stanley.