Jim Cramer Blog

Dow Chemical (NYSE:DOW) announced its decision to raise prices on all products by as much as 20% by the first of June to deal with rising commodity costs. The Short Term PowerRating for DOW is 7.
Hedge fund manager David Einhorn claimed that the $6 billion raised by Lehman Brothers (NYSE:LEH) will not be enough to cover the company's credit-related losses. The Short Term PowerRating for LEH is 5.
Reporting earnings before the bell on Thursday, Costco (NasdaqGS:COST) is expected to announce earnings per share of $0.65. The Short Term PowerRating for COST is 5.
Shares of Dryships (NasdaqGS:DRYS) were up more than 9% on Wednesday as the business of transporting commodities across international waters continues to benefit shippers. The Short Term PowerRating for DRYS is 7.
Fears of sluggish advertising sales growth led investors and traders to sell shares of Viacom (NYSE:VIA) on Wednesday. The stock was down by more than 4% on the day. The Short Term PowerRating for VIA is 5.
Dell (NasdaqGS:DELL) is scheduled to report earnings on Thursday after the close. Analysts are expecting EPS of $0.33. The Short Term PowerRating for DELL is 5.
Expedia (NasdaqGS:EXPE) moved higher by more than 4% on Wednesday as speculation grew that Barry Diller, chairman of the company, would seek to take the company private. The Short Term PowerRating for EXPE is 4.

Labels: COST, DELL, DOW, DRYS, EXPE, Hot Stocks, LEH, VIA

Bullish calls:
Walt Disney (DIS): 'Again, I don't play for DIS, but I'm certainly not going to blast it. I think it's a good company.' Brookfield Asset Management (BAM): 'They've got terrific, terrific management … BAM will come back!' Hewlett-Packard (HPQ): 'HPQ has the business model and the leverage!' SunPower (SPWR) First Solar (FSLR) Johnson Controls (JCI): 'There was a man who just downgraded it … He's taken a very short-term approach. JCI has an unbelievably good business in climate control and, when autos come back, that stock's going to roar.' J. Crew (JCG) Costco (COST)
Bearish calls:
Wolseley (WOS): 'I can't endorse that company. Those companies are all doing badly.' Lowe's (LOW): 'I don't even recommend Lowe's anymore on this show.' Fannie Mae (FNM): 'It's just too hard to value right now...They just cut the dividend. Guys are going to sell it. I'm not there...' Automatic Data Processing (ADP): 'No. It's just a flatlined name. You need a stronger economy for that play.' Dell (DELL): 'DELL can buyback as many shares as it wants. HPQ has the business model and the leverage!' LDK Solar (LDK): 'No, c'mon man! The finances are unclear!' Cabela's (CAB): 'That company is just simply one of the worst publicly-traded companies I've ever seen.' South Financial Group (TSFG): 'Good stock in a really bad neighborhood … I can't touch the darn thing. Sorry to be so negative.' Home Depot (HD): 'That group is too darn hard.' Solarfun Power (SOLF)
Published By SeekingAlpha.com

Labels: ADP, BAM, CAB, COST, DELL, DIS, FNM, FSLR, HD, HPQ, JCG, JCI, Jim Cramer, LDK, Lightning Round, LOW, Mad Money, SPWR, TSFG, WOS

Here are 7 stocks for traders for Monday from TradingMarkets.com:
When Isle of Capri (NasdaqGS:ISLE - News) reports earnings on Monday before the market opens, watch for $-$0.04 EPS. ISLE's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
Phillips-Van Heusen (NYSE:PVH - News) should report $1.03 EPS on Monday morning. PVH's PowerRating (for Traders) is 3.
Analysts are expecting Sharper Image (NasdaqGM:SHRP - News) to announce -$1.44 EPS in quarterly results on Monday morning. SHRP's PowerRating (for Traders) is 3.
Cost Plus (NasdaqGS:CPWM - News) reports earnings on Monday before the bell, with analysts looking for $0.77 EPS. CPWM does not have a PowerRating (for Traders) due to volume constraints.
Big Lots (NYSE:BIG - News) fell 7% Friday after missing expectations, and cutting Q4 revenue forecasts. BIG's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
Dell (NasdaqGS:DELL - News) fell 14% today after missing estimates and a downgrade at Goldman Sachs. DELL's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
J. Crew Group (NYSE:JCG - News) rallied 15% after beating earnings expectations. JCG's PowerRating (for Traders) is 3.

Labels: BIG, CPWM, DELL, Hot Stocks, ISLE, JCG, PVH, SHRP

Dell shares plunged Friday after the computer maker posted third-quarter results, though at least one analyst called the 13-percent drop in the shares a "buying opportunity."
"We also see several near-term catalysts, including an aggressive buyback beginning next week, cost reductions and additional retail partnerships," wrote Citi Investment Research's Richard Gardner in a note to clients.
On Thursday, Dell posted quarterly results just short of Wall Street's expectations. And in its first earnings conference call in more than a year, executives predicted more restructuring costs as the company reshapes its business through acquisitions, more layoffs and a focus on fast-growing markets and products.
Dell has been struggling to turn its business around since last summer, when it announced a slew of bad news, including an internal accounting probe and a huge recall of laptop batteries. Rival Hewlett-Packard Co. has also been gaining market share ever since ousting Dell from its spot as the world's No. 1 PC vendor late last year.

Labels: DELL, Dell Inc.

Stocks were mixed in trading on the final day of a volatile week, with the Dow and S&P each posting gains. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq closed lower on the day as earnings from Dell (Nasdaq: DELL - News) fell short of expectations. The Dow added 60 points to close at 13,372, with the S&P added 11 points to end at 1,481 for the day. The Nasdaq closed down -7 points to close at 2,661 for the week. Light, sweet crude dipped on the day to settle at $88.71 for January delivery. Treasury and gold prices both fell, while the dollar gained against the euro and the yen.
In economic news, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke fueled speculation of a December rate cut during a speech last night when he said the central bank will have to be "exceptionally alert and flexible" as consumers are likely to face headwinds in the coming months due to the credit environment, housing market, and high energy costs. Adding to rate-cut predictions is a report from the Commerce Department that showed individual income and spending slowed in October. According to the report, income earned by individuals rose 0.2%, which was below the 0.4% economists had predicted. Spending by consumers was also weaker than expected gaining just 0.2% in October, compared to the 0.3% rise economists had forecasted.
On the earnings front, shares of Tiffany (NYSE: TIF - News) were off -4.8% in trading despite reporting third-quarter earnings that more than tripled. For the quarter, the company posted net income of $98.9 million, or 71 cents per share, up from $29.1 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding a gain of 48 cents a share resulting from the sale-leaseback of its Tokyo store, the company would have earned 23 cents per share. Sales for the quarter jumped to $627.3 million, up 18% from $531.8 million, in 2006. Analysts, on average, were looking for a profit of 25 cents per share on revenue of $616.2 million.
After yesterday's close, J. Crew (NYSE: JCG - News) posted third-quarter profits that beat Wall Street expectations. The apparel maker recorded net income of $26.8 million, or 42 cents per share, up from $26.0 million, or 40 cents per share, last year. Revenue for the quarter climbed to $332.7 million, up 21% from $275.6 million, a year ago. Analysts had expected earnings of 36 cents per share on $312.3 million in revenue. Shares of J. Crew soared in trading and were up 19.2% at the bell.
After the bell yesterday, Dell reported third-quarter earnings of $766 million, or 34 cents per share, up 27% from $601 million, or 27 cents per share, last year. Excluding a series of one-time charges and gains, Dell would have reported a profit of 35 cents per share. Revenue in the quarter rose 9% to $15.64 billion. On average, analysts were looking for Dell to post profits of 35 cents per share on $15.34 billion in revenue. Shares of Dell tumbled -12.8% on the day, as the company also warned that future earnings may be affected by market shifts, although no specific guidance was given.
In other corporate news, Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS - News) announced Thursday that its co-presidents Zoe Cruz and Robert Scully will be stepping down. The move is the latest in a series of restructuring announcements following mortgage-related losses that have plagued the financial sector. According to the announcement, Cruz, who was once considered a potential CEO candidate, will be retiring, and Scully will move to a newly created position. Shares of Morgan Stanley were up 0.7% at the bell.
Elsewhere, shares of Motorola (NYSE: MOT - News) traded 2.0% higher today after the company announced that its CEO, Ed Zander, will be stepping down at the end of the year. Taking his place will be the company's current president and COO, Greg Brown.
By the BullMarket.com Staff

Labels: DELL, Dell Inc., Morgan Stanley, MOT, Motorola Inc., Robert Scully, Zoe Cruz

Here are 7 stocks for traders for Friday from TradingMarkets.com:
Brocade (NasdaqGS:BRCD - News) beat earnings on Thursday after the bell, announcing $0.17 EPS over an expected $0.13 EPS. BRCD's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
Dell (NasdaqGS:DELL - News) matched earnings on Thursday with $0.35 EPS. DELL's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
OmniVision (NasdaqGS:OVTI - News) beat earnings expectations on Thursday afternoon with $0.51 EPS over $0.43 EPS. OVTI's PowerRating (for Traders) is 7.
J. Crew (NYSE:JCG - News) beat earnings on Thursday with $0.42 EPS over $0.36 EPS. JCG's PowerRating (for Traders) is 3.
Big Lots (NYSE:BIG - News) reports earnings on Friday before the bell, with analysts looking for $0.12 EPS. BIG's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
Tiffany & Co. (NYSE:TIF - News) announces earnings on Friday morning before the market opens; analysts expect 0.25 EPS. TIF's PowerRating (for Traders) is 4.
Knightsbridge Tankers (NasdaqGS:VLCCF - News) expects to report $0.44 EPS on Friday after the close. VLCCF's PowerRating (for Traders) is 3.

Labels: BIG, BRCD, DELL, Hot Stocks, JCG, OVTI, TIF, VLCCF

Dell Inc. said earnings grew 27 percent in the third quarter, buoyed by growth in overseas markets like Brazil and by prices falling for memory chips and other components.
The results fell just shy of analyst expectations.
Dell, which posted results after markets closed Thursday, earned $766 million, or 34 cents per share, in the three months ended Nov. 2. That was up from $601 million, or 27 cents per share, in revised figures from the same quarter a year ago. Revenue grew 9 percent to $15.64 billion.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial were expecting the Round Rock company to post profits of 35 cents per share on revenue of $15.34 billion.

Labels: DELL, Dell Inc.

Citigroup (C) fell 5% Monday after news of more write-downs and CEO Chuck Prince’s departure. Charlie Gasparino joined the show to give his opinion on Citigroup. He thinks that Citigroup didn’t pop on the news of Prince leaving because Chairman Robert Rubin failed to communicate the new Citigroup vision that everyone on Wall Street was looking for. Macke thinks that Citigroup has to clear the deck and bring in somebody new to run the company.
Chartology: Technical analyst John Roque of Natexis Bleichroeder was on the show to give his analysis on the technical signs in the market. Roque still likes the longer term trend line on the S&P moving average. He predicts that the financials will be under performers for a long time. Roque also points out that the trend for oil, silver and gold remains up and if history is a guide that up trend will continue. He is positive about Newmont Mining (NEM) and thinks the stock can trade into the high $80’s.
Ethanol: Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) is set to report earnings on Tuesday. Najarian tells investors to look to at Deere (DE) and Bunge (BG) instead. Adami would rather be in Potash (POT) for an ethanol play.
IAC/InterActive Corp (IACI) announced plans Monday to split up into 5 separate companies. Also, Kraft (KFT) is looking to sell its Post cereal business for $2.8 billion. Finerman is happy with the news. Macke also likes Kraft's plans, but he wasn’t a big fan of IAC/InterActive’s plans to spin off divisions. Najarian thinks that Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) could benefit from a break up.
Technology: Google (GOOG) announces plans to create an open platform, Android, for the mobile phone market. Sun Microsystems (JAVA) falls after hours on lighter then expected revenue numbers. Macke thinks companies like VMware (VMW) and its technology could put JAVA out of business in the future. Dell (DELL) announced plans on Monday to buy virtualization software maker EqualLogic for $1.4 billion. Activision (ATVI) reports a second quarter profit as revenue soars.
Word on the Street: Time Warner (TWX) CEO Richard Parsons will step down on January 1st and be replaced by Chief Operating Officer Jeffrey Bewkes. Finerman likes the retail stocks better than financials. She bought call options on Friday and Monday on Crocs (CROX) and also thinks Under Armour (UA) and Dick’s Sporting Goods (DKS) are interesting here. PetroChina (PTR) topped $1 trillion in market cap surpassing Exxon Mobil (XOM). Adami likes that Chevron (CVX) preformed okay in a lousy tape today.
Pops & Drops
Pops -First Solar (FSLR) traded up 10% after hours on news of a $1 billion module supply contract.
Marvel Entertainment (MVL) traded up 16% on a strong profits report.
Mattel (MAT) traded up 4%
Ballard Power Systems (BLDP) traded up 12%
WellCare Health Plans (WCG) popped 22% on a 67% increase in profits.
Sysco (SYY) traded up 2% after reporting a 16% rise in profits.

Labels: ADM, ATVI, BG, BLDP, CROX, DE, DELL, DKS, Fast Money Recap, GOOG, IACI, JAVA, JNJ, MAT, MVL, NEM, POT, TWX, UA, VMW

Crude Oil: Crude oil declined 3% today as investors now fear that the global growth story might be in jeopardy. Finerman said that if you feel the US economy is going to slow down, then demand for oil will also drop. She would look to short the United States Oil Fund (USO). Adami said that shorting Exxon Mobil (XOM) ahead of earnings is a gutsy trade that could pay off big. Dylan Ratigan mentions one more way to short oil is to buy the UltraShort Oil & Gas ProShares (DUG).
Technology: Adami liked hearing that Dell (DELL) is announcing a big buyback, while the stock is at a 52 week high. Najarian says this plays well for Dell, as well as Apple (AAPL), Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and Microsoft (MSFT). The Wall Street Journal reported that Verizon (VZ) and Google (GOOG) are discussing a mobile phone partnership.
Video Games: International Game Technology (IGT) and Electronic Arts (ERTS) are both set to report earnings this week. Macke thinks the trade is to buy Activison (ATVI), Nintendo (NTDOY) and Microsoft. Najarian noted monster options activity in the November $17.50 calls for Take-Two Interactive (TTWO). The action makes him think that TTWO is set to move higher.
Word on the Street
Procter & Gamble (PG) reports a 14% rise in profits but disappoints Wall Street on its full-year outlook. Najarian favors Colgate-Palmolive (CL) overseas.
Merrill Lynch (MER) drops after former CEO Stan O'Neal leaves. Finerman doubts the CO-CEO arrangement will work. Adami continues to like Raymond James (RJF).
Wynn Resorts (WYNN) fell in after-hours trading. Najarian would look to buy the stock on selloff. Adami would rather be long Las Vegas Sands (LVS) and Boyd Gaming (BYD).
Under Armour (UA) trades up 7% on strong earnings.
Masco also traded up 4% on strong earnings.
Pops & Drops
Pops - Goodyear Tire (GT) traded up 8%.
Colgate-Palmolive (CL) traded up 1%
Avon Products (AVP) traded up 4% on strong profits from emerging market strength. Finerman favors Estee Lauder (EL).
Sohu.com (SOHU) traded up 8% on a 47% rise in profits.
Yum! Brands (YUM) traded up 3% on no news.
AGCO (AG) popped 9%
Sepracor (SEPR) exploded up 16%
Drops- US Steel (X) fell 7% after reporting a 35% drop in profits.
WellCare Health Plans (WCG) plunged 33%
Sirius Satellite Radio (SIRI) dropped 9%
Final Trade
Macke suggests buying the pullback in Yahoo! (YHOO). He currently owns YHOO.
Adami recommends Dell.
Finerman says buy Cadbury Schweppes (CSG) for a Halloween candy trade.
Najarian favors Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS).

Labels: AAPL, ATVI, CNBC, Crude Oil, DELL, Fast Money, Fast Money Recap, GOOG, HPQ, MSFT, USO, VZ, XOM

Intel (INTC) reported strong quarterly earnings and traded up after hours on the robust numbers. Macke likes Intel's margins and revenue estimate bump, and Adami suggests buying Intel above $27 with a stop at $26.50. Their CFO, Andy Bryant, joined the show to discuss their numbers. Bryant says the company saw the highest quarter-to-quarter revenue growth in 10 years. Adami favors Dell (DELL) off this worldwide demand. Macke suggests getting into Microsoft (MSFT). Najarian thinks the trade off of Intel is Apple (AAPL). Yahoo (YHOO) also traded higher after hours. Adami says IBM (IBM) fell short a bit on gross margins and hardware revenue in other tech earnings.
Word on the Street
Tuesday the Dow dropped 71 points and oil hit another high above $88 a barrel on geopolitical concerns that Turkey might attack Iraq. The crew offered up their trades based on these events. In the health care sector, Bristol-Myers (BMY) received Food and Drug Administration approval for breast cancer treatment Ixempra. Najarian likes Bristol. Adami likes Pfizer (PFE) into earnings. Finerman bought some Biogen Idec (BIIB). Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) reported a drop in profits off of poor heart stent sales. In regards to oil Adami likes Apache (APA) and he believes it'll go to $105. Adami doesn't think the $80-to-$90 move in oil is a good thing for the overall stock market. Finerman still likes ConocoPhillips (COP) for a play on rising oil prices.
Banking: Najarian noticed some unusual options activity in some regional banks on Tuesday. He saw heavy trading in PNC Bank (PNC) options.
CSX Corp (CSX) reported strong third-quarter earnings after the bell. Macke says the railroad stocks have pulled back and could offer a decent entry here. Adami believes CSX is a buy. Finerman has been looking at FreightCar America (RAIL).
AT&T (T) has hired Goldman Sachs to look into buying EchoStar (DISH).
Ericsson (ERIC) crashed 24% after issuing an earnings warning.
Dennis Gartman, author of The Gartman Letter, joined the show to discuss his take on crude oil. He doesn't believe we will get $100 oil, but if it does move that high it won't last long. He would play natural gas with United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG), San Juan Basin Royalty Trust (SJT) and Pengrowth Energy Trust (PGH).
eBay (EBAY) is set to report earnings on Wednesday after the bell.
Kraft (KFT): Wall Street whale and activist shareholder Nelson Peltz could be ready to make some noise at Kraft.
Pops & Drops
Pops: Supervalu (SVU) traded up 6% on a strong profits report.
Bear Stearns (BSC) traded up 2% after a Chinese investment firm expressed interest in acquiring a stake in the brokerage.
Marriott (MAR) traded up 4% on rumors of a takeover.
E.W. Scripps (SSP) traded up 9% after the company announced plans to split into two companies. Macke advises selling the pop.
Saks (SKS) traded up 5% on takeover speculation. Finerman isn't buying the rumors.
Robbins & Myers (RBN) exploded up 18% on strong fourth-quarter profits. Finerman believes this is a great earnings story.
Drops: Amylin (AMLN) fell 5% after the FDA said diabetes drug Byetta might cause pancreatitis. Najarian says this is negative news.
Domino's Pizza (DPZ) crashed 14% after taking a hit on profits from the rising costs of cheese and declining customer visits. Macke advises getting long beer stocks shorting pizza stocks.
Final Trade
Macke recommends Microsoft.
Adami suggests buying Intel.
Finerman favors Kraft.
Najarian says the options activity in EchoStar has him bullish on the satellite firm.

Labels: AAPL, ATT. T, BIIB, BMY, CNBC, COP, DELL, ERIC, Fast Money, Fast Money Recap, IBM, INTC, MSFT, pfe, RAIL, YHOO

Technology
Technology stocks continued to shine with big moves this week out of Apple (AAPL), Google (GOOG) and Research In Motion (RIMM). Finerman said her favorite is Microsoft (MSFT) and she has a bullish options trade on the stock in her hedge fund. Najarian points out the strength in gadget makers with RIMM as an example. He also favors Nokia (NOK), Apple, Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) and Dell (DELL). Videogame makers Activision (ATVI), Electronic Arts (ERTS) and Nintendo (NTDOY) all had strong weeks as well. Macke: has not sold a single share of ATVI yet and advises other investors to get long all the videogame makers mentioned.
Blackstone (BX) traded up 15% as investors sense deal making is back. Najarian agrees that deals are getting done and is bullish on the exchange stocks. He bought Nasdaq (NDAQ) on Friday. Finerman agrees with NDAQ.
China
Despite the Chinese stock market being closed; the iShares FTSE/Xinhua China 25 Index (FXI) and the IShares MSCI Hong Kong Index Fund (EWH) closed the week in the green. China Finance Online (JRJC) was up 20% on the week and KongZhong (KONG) was up 15%.
Consumer Products
This week some interesting earnings reports are expected from Pepsi (PEP), Yum! Brands (YUM), Costco (COST) and GE (GE). Macke: likes Pepsi for a play on the weak dollar and China exposure, but less than enthused about Costco. Finerman favors Yum Brands for its china exposure and strong brands.
Luxury Stocks
CNBC's Margaret Brennan joined the crew to discuss luxury stocks. She said that companies such as Gucci (GUCG) and LVMH (LVMUY) are recession proof. She feels that brands like Tiffany (TIF) and Coach(COH) could have more problems if we see a drop in bonuses.
Options Activity
Najarian noticed unusual options activity in ValueClick (VCLK) with the $22 and $25 call options. Market rumors are swirling that ValueClick could be a takeover target. He also mentioned he took a position in ValueClick two weeks ago. Another stock that he saw with unusual options activity was McAfee (MFE).
Pops & Drops
Pops- Google (GOOG) traded up 5%.
Home Depot (HD) traded up 5%. Finerman is long HD.
TIVO (TIVO) exploded up 17%. Macke still prefers DISH over TIVO.
Vimpel-Communications (VIP) popped 7% after winning a shareholder lawsuit.
Drops- Walgreen (WAG) dropped 17% after missing Wall Street profit targets. Macke says get out.
USEC (USU) fell 15% after the U.S. Energy Department declined its $9.5 billion bid to restore uranium plants.
Sealy (ZZ) plunged 8% after profits fell for the mattress maker.
Quicker than the Ticker
Finerman: Centex (CTX) She was right and the stock went up 7% since her call.
Macke: Electronic Arts and Activision. Macke was a winner as both stocks went up significantly from his call.
Seymour iShares MSCI Brazil Index (EWZ): flying up 20% since his call.
Najarian: Manitowoc (MTW): soaring 21% since his recommendation.
Fast Fire
Past picks that didn't do so well.
Last Thursday, Macke made bullish comments on Yahoo! (YHOO) and Palm (PALM). Macke missed the mark as Palm fell 5% since his call…but maintains that Palm is a solid long term play.
Najarian said he liked Wynn Resorts (WYNN) better than Las Vegas Sands (LVS). Wynn fell 8% the next day.
Finerman told investors to sell Skechers (SKX). Since her advice, Skechers has soared 16%.

Labels: AAPL, ATVI, CNBC, DELL, Fast Money, Fast Money Recap, FXI, GOOG, HPQ, MSFT, NDAQ, RIMM

Najarian: the weak dollar is bullish for technology stocks, which will benefit off of global growth. Finerman: buying S&P 500 and Russell put options to hedge her portfolio.
Oil was above $83 again for the fourth record close in a row. Finerman suggests buying ConocoPhillips (COP). Najarian says to buy oil service stocks like Baker-Hughes (BHI), Halliburton (HAL) and Schlumberger (SLB).
Word on the Street
Goldman Sachs (GS): Record numbers on Thursday. Najirian would sell on the news.
FedEx (FDX): reported a 4% rise in profits, but cut forecasts. Macke thinks FedEx's problems are company-specific. He also reminded investors to never own a stock where the CEO blames the economy on a bad quarter, which FedEx did. Adami said Fed Ex isn't at the level he would buy, but it's getting close.
Oracle (ORCL): traded up after hours on strong earnings and revenue. Macke thinks Oracle is a very good company hitting on all cylinders. Adami and Najarian like the acquisitions that Oracle has made recently.
Cree (CREE) and Brightpoint (CELL): Najarian saw huge monster volume on the CREE September $35 calls and the CELL April $20 calls.
Nike (NKE): reported bullish earnings and revenues after the close on Thursday. Finerman thinks the news gives a buy signal for Brown Shoe (BWS), which sells a lot of Nike shoes. Macke disagreed. Najirian says to watch Under Armor (UA), because if they are doing well than Nike will do well.
PC Growth: Morgan Stanley raised PC growth forecasts by 4%. This adds momentum for technology stocks and will be bullish for Dell (DELL), Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), Apple (AAPL), Intel (IMTC), and AMD (AMD).
Stem Cell: Najarian says the pure play in the stem cell space is Geron (GERN). For other big caps look at Celgene (CELG), Amgen (AMGN) and AstraZeneca (AZN).
Dubai announced on Thursday a 20% stake in both the NASDAQ and London Stock Exchange. Higher oil prices have left the Gulf state flush with cash. Macke says look at Tiffany's (TIF) and Saks (SKS) and get ahead of the possibility of Dubai taking a stake in these firms. Adami says buy Fluor (FLR) and McDermott (MDR). Finerman would play the exchange names like NASDAQ (NDAQ), NYMEX (NMX), and NYSE (NYX).
POPS & DROPS
POPS: Athenahealth (ATHN), Monolithic Power Systems (MPWR), Carnival Cruise (CCL), Motorola (MOT).
Drops: CKE Restaurants (CKR), Pier One Imports (PIR), Lowe's (LOW), Infosys (INFY), Pacific Ethanol (PEIX).
Face2Face
First writer said, "Lee Raymond, the former CEO of Exxon Mobil (XOM) has said that the price of oil shouldn't be $80 per barrel. If so, perhaps there is no "real" inflation at all. Finerman disagrees with the idea that speculators can control prices in the longer term.
Another writer asked why EMC Corp (EMC) hasn't broken out of its current trading range, while VMware (VMW). Adami recalls that traders sold EMC to buy VMW, but those traders will be coming back to EMC. He expects EMC to go over $20.
Final Trade
Macke: Added to his position in Activision (ATVI).
Adami: says buy Oracle (ORCL) as long as it stays above $20.50.
Finerman: going long on BEA Systems (BEAS).
Najarian: buy Sohu.com (SOHU)

Labels: CELL, CNBC, COP, DELL, Fast Money, FDX, GS, HAL, HPQ, IMTC, Jim Cramer, NKE, ORCL, SLB

Here are 7 options to watch for Today from www.tradingmarkets.com.
Most Underpriced Calls: These are the most under priced calls of all stocks in our database. While the Equities Explosion List finds groups of calls for individual equities that are under priced, this list finds the most under priced individual calls. Thus, the options listed here will tend to be more severely under priced.

BHP Billiton Nov 80 Calls (NYSE:BHP - News). BHP's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
Most Underpriced Puts: These are the most under priced puts of all stocks in our database. While the Equities Explosion List finds groups of puts for individual equities that are under priced, this list finds the most under priced individual puts. Thus, the options listed here will tend to be more severely under priced.
Biogen Idec Sep 65 Puts (NasdaqGS:BIIB - News). BIIB's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
Most Overpriced Calls: These are the most overpriced calls of all stocks in our database. While the Equities Implosion List finds groups of calls for individual equities that are overpriced, this list finds the most overpriced individual calls. Thus, the options listed here will tend to be more severely overpriced.
SanDisk Oct 60 Calls (NasdaqGS:SNDK - News). SNDK's PowerRating (for Traders) is 6.
Most Overpriced Puts: These are the most overpriced puts of all stocks in our database. While the Equities Implosion List finds groups of puts for individual equities that are overpriced, this list finds the most overpriced individual puts. Thus, the options listed here will tend to be more severely overpriced.
CME Group Sep 520 Puts (NYSE:CME - News). CME's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
Stocks with Abnormal Call Volume: These are stocks which showed unusual call option volume not easily explained by arbitrage operations. The appearance of a stock on the Call Volume Alerts list suggests a possible takeover, extraordinarily good earnings report, or other news which may favorably affect the stock.
None today.
Stocks with Abnormal Put Volume: These are stocks which showed unusual put option volume not easily explained by arbitrage operations. The appearance of a stock on the Put Volume Alerts list suggests an extraordinarily negative earnings report, or other news which may negatively affect the stock.
Tyson Foods (NYSE:TSN - News). TSN's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.
Abnormal Put/Call $ Volume: These stocks have the highest dollar put volume in relation to their call volume. These high ratios are indicative of extreme bearish sentiment in the underlying stock.
Dell (NasdaqGS:DELL - News). DELL's PowerRating (for Traders) is 5.

Labels: BHP, BIIB, CME, DELL, SNDK, stock options, TSN

Bullish Calls:
Mueller Water Products (NYSE: MWA - News): 'A very inexpensive stock. I remember when this thing was first spun off from Becker, the fertilizer company... It shouldn't be at $14. I have to buy that. That is a very consistent grower.'Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB - News): 'We've had a nice pullback here... I know that, if you own it, it doesn't feel nice... It's, at one point, a 10-point pullback ... I would pull the trigger on SLB ... Best quarter I have seen of the whole oil complex...'Costco (NasdaqGS: COST - News): 'Oh man, look at that... That was a 52-week high today ... I know why that hit a 52-week high... Because some of us are Gold Star members!'Goldcorp (NYSE: GG - News): 'why am I not backing away from gold? I think gold belongs in everyone's portfolio, so I am not saying anything bad about GG.'Yamana (NYSE: AUY - News): 'I know Yamana's been bad ... I'm sticking with AUY. It's a growth stock.'Apple (NasdaqGS: AAPL - News): 'I think that phone - despite the fact that everyone is blasting it - is a fantastic phone! I still like AAPL. I like the new Apple computers. I think AAPL's had its pullback, and is ready to rock again.'Dell (NasdaqGS: DELL - News)Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ - News)Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NasdaqGS: GMCR - News): 'Now, up $4 bucks, I'm like reluctant to hit this (bull button), because then people t say he's just chasing momentum... But I've got to tell you, I think this is a pretty good stock...'Bankrate (NasdaqGS: RATE - News): 'That was unfairly knocked down this week. That was a clean quarter.'Cisco (NasdaqGS: CSCO - News): 'I think Cisco Systems is going to be a good quarter. At one point, that stock was down 50 cents today. I was surprised.'Microsoft (NasdaqGS: MSFT - News): ' I want to own MSFT, and I want to own tech... 'CV Therapeutics (NasdaqGM: CVTX - News): 'You found the gem. It's a little $8 buck stock. It's really down on its luck... I'd pull the trigger. I think you're right. I think there's value there.'
Bearish calls:
Movado Group (NYSE: MOV - News):'You know, there's been insider buying of MOV... I know that the last quarter was good. I felt personally burned by MOV... I cannot get behind MOV.'Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (NYSE: TSM - News): 'TSM is a supplier. I want to buy the finished guys.'Infineon Technologies (NYSE: IFX - News) The Knot (NasdaqGM: KNOT - News): 'I've got some internet companies that are en feugo and KNOT is not one of them... '
Published By SeekingAlpha

Labels: AAPL, AUY, COST, CSCO, CVTX, DELL, GG, GMCR, HPQ, IFX, Jim Cramer, KNOT, Lightning Round, Mad Money, MOV, MSFT, MWA, RATE, SLB, TSM

Dell Inc. has struck a deal to buy ASAP Software Inc. for $340 million.
The Round Rock computer maker says the buyout will strengthen Dell's existing software business by integrating ASAP's complementary expertise in managing software licensing, purchasing, renewals and compliance.

ASAP provides information technology products and services to corporations and government organizations. Its subsidiary, License Technologies Group, specializes in licensing and e-commerce services for software publishers and their partners.
Dell (NASDAQ: DELL - News) says its corporate, government and institutional customers are increasingly demanding that Dell simplify software management. Buying ASAP is a key step toward doing that, Dell says.
"Merging Dell's software business with ASAP is part of our effort to re-invent and simplify the way our customers get access to IT," says Paul Bell, senior vice president and president, Dell Americas.
Dell has never been big on buyouts. Although it has made a few small purchases over the years, few have been large enough to trigger federal securities laws requiring it to disclose the purchase price.
Dell recently reached an agreement to buy privately held SilverBack Technologies Inc.SilverBack is a Billerica, Mass.-based provider of software and services to manage applications, systems and networks. Terms of that deal were not disclosed.
Executives of Dell have said their biggest buyout to date was in 2002, when they bought a small technology services company called Plural Inc. But even that deal wasn't large enough to require price disclosure because Dell had $30 billion in sales that year.
Dell hasn't reported its latest annual sales figures because of an internal investigation into its accounting practices. For its fiscal year that ended 2006, Dell reported $56 billion in revenue.
Published August 2, 2007 by the Austin Business Journal

Labels: DELL, Dell Inc.

Bull Meat Barbecue
Although Thursday's selloff resembled a "bull meat barbecue," Cramer encouraged viewers not to lose heart and reiterated his principle that there is always a bull market somewhere. He made a checklist of three kinds of stocks to avoid: Stocks, such as housing, which need low interest rates to go higher, stocks (restaurants, retail etc.) with too much leverage to the domestic economy, and companies which must borrow to make an acquisition. Cramer emphasized the importance of selling these stocks, especially for those who did not lighten their portfolios before the selloff and those who cannot take the pain and wait for these sectors to recover.
Game Plan for Next Week: Pepsi (NYSE: PEP - News), Colgate (NYSE: CL - News), Kellogg (NYSE: K - News), Kimberly Clark (NYSE: KMB - News), Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT - News), Foster-Wheeler (NasdaqGS: FWLT - News), Freeport McMoRan (NYSE: FCX - News), Schlumberger (NYSE: SLB - News), Halliburton (NYSE: HAL - News), Boeing (NYSE: BA - News), Bunge (NYSE: BG - News), Monsanto (NYSE: MON - News), Dell (NasdaqGS: DELL - News), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ - News), Cisco Systems (NasdaqGS: CSCO - News), Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News), Merck (NYSE: MRK - News), Medco Health (NYSE: MHS - News)
Because on The Street, a trauma does not usually follow a trauma, Cramer expects a bounce at least by Monday, and would get rid of financials, retail and restaurants and buy soft goods, such as PEP, CL, K and KMB. Dismissing worries of a potential worldwide slowdown, Cramer likes machinery and mining, particularly CAT, FWLT and FCX. He also recommends oil, although natural gas has been tricky, and his picks are SLB and HAL. Cramer's favorites among aerospace and agriculture include BA, BG and MON, and he adds the tech sector has been hot and would buy DELL, HPQ and CSCO. In the healthcare sector, he especially likes CELG and MHS and doesn't mind MRK.
Pscyhed Up with Sycamore Networks (NasdaqGM: SCMR - News)
After the selloff devastation, there is still one thing Cramer can count on; that tech will continue to thrive in the late summer as it does every year. Cramer likes SCMR as a speculative telecom tech stock, since the company has almost a pure play on optical services. SCMR is not best-of-breed, but he is still bullish because SCMR does not yet have any analysts covering it and he likes SCMR's floor; it's at $4 a share but has the equivalent of $3.23 a share. In addition, the company's sales have been rising and 60% of its revenue is international. While SCMR is not as strong as Cisco or Cienna it could make investors more money.
Mad Money: Hoku Scientific (NasdaqGM: HOKU - News), Genzyme (NasdaqGS: GENZ - News), Celgene (NasdaqGS: CELG - News)
When a mailer asked about Hoku, Cramer recalls having recommended it at $6, and it has recently dropped from $11 to $8. At this level, Cramer says, it is too speculative, but he thinks it will repeat its upward trend after it falls back to $7 or $6. Another mailer wanted to know Cramer's opinion of GENZ; while the fall is good for biotech in general, he prefers Celgene to GENZ. On the issue of whether Freeport McMoRan's report of strong cash flow will be good for Caterpillar, Cramer says he likes CAT, but it has been hit hard for its North American exposure. While he says CAT is "your best play" he adds currently he is "loathe to buy more."
Published By SeekingAlpha

Labels: BA, BG, CAT, CELG, CL, CSCO, DELL, FCX, FWLT, HAL, HPQ, Jim Cramer, K, KMB, Mad Money, MHS, MON, MRK, PEP, SLB