U.S. Hot Stock Futures: Hot Stocks to Watch By
Post# of 94270
Posted On: 01/13/2014 7:33:26 AM
U.S. Hot Stock Futures: Hot Stocks to Watch
By Tess Stynes
Among the companies with shares expected to actively trade in Monday's session are Hhgregg Inc. (HGG), Select Comfort Corp. (SCSS) and Walgreen Co. (WAG).
The first retailer out with holiday results, Hhgregg, expects that its fiscal third-quarter results will be well below estimates. Same-store sales slumped 11% amid a 20% tumble for consumer electronics and 25% for computing/wireless. The weakness will result in a profit miss for the quarter, but Chief Executive Dennis May adds the retailer didn't partake in the race to the bottom--selling product regardless of profitability--in an effort to hold up its bottom line. Shares were down 13% at $11.78 premarket.
Select Comfort said its fourth-quarter results won't meet its forecast thanks to December not being up to snuff. That "reflected a tepid retail holiday-shopping season," Chief Executive Shelly Ibach stated. "We expect this challenging environment to continue in 2014 and are planning accordingly." Shares were down 13% at $18.60 premarket.
Walgreen reported that after two months of increased same-store traffic away from the pharmacy, that measure fell again in December at Walgreen. But last month's 1.3% drop from a year earlier was more than offset by the average purchase size rising 3.8%, pushing front-end same-store sales up 2.5% alongside a 5.3% jump in prescriptions filled. Overall same-store sales jumped 6.1%, the biggest gain since September despite the front-end underperformance. Shares were up 1.6% at $57.75 premarket.
Watchlist:
Private-equity firm Carlyle Group LP (CG) named former Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski as managing director and partner in its U.S. buyout team, with Mr. Genachowski returning to the private sector where he previously worked as a venture capitalist.
CommonWealth REIT (CWH) said Monday that it had invited activist investor Keith Meister of Corvex Management LP to join its board as the company also appointed two independent directors to the board.
General Electric Co.'s (GE) healthcare unit agreed to acquire several of Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.'s (TMO) life-sciences businesses for roughly $1.06 billion.
Men's Wearhouse Inc. (MW) commenced a cash tender offer to buy Jos. A. Bank Clothiers Inc. (JOSB) for about $1.6 billion, the latest bid in a months-long acquisition battle between the rival men's clothing retailers.
T-Mobile US Inc. (TMUS) agreed to buy a block of airwave rights from rival VerizonWireless to bolster its network in major cities. T-Mobile--the fourth-largest U.S. carrier behind Verizon, AT&T Inc. (T) and Sprint Corp. (S)--intends to pay $2.365 billion in cash and transfer spectrum licenses valued at about $950 million to Verizon. The larger carrier originally bought the spectrum for about $2.4 billion.
Verint Systems Inc. (VRNT) agreed to buy customer-service software firm Kana Software Inc. from private equity firm Accel-KKR for about $514 million in cash, as the data-analysis company seeks to expand its offerings.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires
By Tess Stynes
Among the companies with shares expected to actively trade in Monday's session are Hhgregg Inc. (HGG), Select Comfort Corp. (SCSS) and Walgreen Co. (WAG).
The first retailer out with holiday results, Hhgregg, expects that its fiscal third-quarter results will be well below estimates. Same-store sales slumped 11% amid a 20% tumble for consumer electronics and 25% for computing/wireless. The weakness will result in a profit miss for the quarter, but Chief Executive Dennis May adds the retailer didn't partake in the race to the bottom--selling product regardless of profitability--in an effort to hold up its bottom line. Shares were down 13% at $11.78 premarket.
Select Comfort said its fourth-quarter results won't meet its forecast thanks to December not being up to snuff. That "reflected a tepid retail holiday-shopping season," Chief Executive Shelly Ibach stated. "We expect this challenging environment to continue in 2014 and are planning accordingly." Shares were down 13% at $18.60 premarket.
Walgreen reported that after two months of increased same-store traffic away from the pharmacy, that measure fell again in December at Walgreen. But last month's 1.3% drop from a year earlier was more than offset by the average purchase size rising 3.8%, pushing front-end same-store sales up 2.5% alongside a 5.3% jump in prescriptions filled. Overall same-store sales jumped 6.1%, the biggest gain since September despite the front-end underperformance. Shares were up 1.6% at $57.75 premarket.
Watchlist:
Private-equity firm Carlyle Group LP (CG) named former Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski as managing director and partner in its U.S. buyout team, with Mr. Genachowski returning to the private sector where he previously worked as a venture capitalist.
CommonWealth REIT (CWH) said Monday that it had invited activist investor Keith Meister of Corvex Management LP to join its board as the company also appointed two independent directors to the board.
General Electric Co.'s (GE) healthcare unit agreed to acquire several of Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.'s (TMO) life-sciences businesses for roughly $1.06 billion.
Men's Wearhouse Inc. (MW) commenced a cash tender offer to buy Jos. A. Bank Clothiers Inc. (JOSB) for about $1.6 billion, the latest bid in a months-long acquisition battle between the rival men's clothing retailers.
T-Mobile US Inc. (TMUS) agreed to buy a block of airwave rights from rival VerizonWireless to bolster its network in major cities. T-Mobile--the fourth-largest U.S. carrier behind Verizon, AT&T Inc. (T) and Sprint Corp. (S)--intends to pay $2.365 billion in cash and transfer spectrum licenses valued at about $950 million to Verizon. The larger carrier originally bought the spectrum for about $2.4 billion.
Verint Systems Inc. (VRNT) agreed to buy customer-service software firm Kana Software Inc. from private equity firm Accel-KKR for about $514 million in cash, as the data-analysis company seeks to expand its offerings.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires
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