ABM Industries Inc. (NYSE:
ABM -
News) said fourth-quarter net income rose to $61.6 million, or $1.24 a share, from $8.43 million, or 17 cents a share, during the same period in the prior year. Quarterly revenue rose to $776.7 million from $658.7 million in the prior year. For fiscal 2007, the facility services contractor said it sees income from continuing operations of $1 to $1.05 per share, and earnings before items of $1.10 to $1.15 per share. Also, ABM's board raised the quarterly cash dividend 9% to 12 cents per share. The dividend is payable Feb. 5 to shareholders as of Jan. 12. The board has also authorized a buyback for up to two million ABM shares.
AmerisourceBergen Corp. (NYSE:
ABC -
News) backed its full-year 2007 profit forecast ahead of its annual investor meeting.
Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:
AMGN -
News) said it has authorized the buyback of an additional $5 billion in shares. The Thousand Oaks, Calif.-based biotechnology company has $1.5 billion remaining under its previous stock repurchase authorization.
Apple Computer Inc. (NASDAQ:
AAPL -
News) shares rose after Morgan Stanley analyst Rebecca Runkle raised her price target on Apple's stock to $110 from $90. Runkle said new products in 2007 would add to Apple's revenue growth, and she also raised her 2007 earnings estimate for the company to $3.13 a share from $2.58.
Atlas Energy Resources (NYSE:
ATN -
News) shares rose in the company's initial public offering.
Atmel Corp. (NASDAQ:
ATML -
News) shares surged after the chipmaker said it plans to restructure its operations, which includes the sale of two factories in Europe and job cuts. "This is the restructuring announcement that investors have been patiently awaiting," wrote Wedbush Morgan analyst Craig Berger, who lifted his price target on Atmel shares to $8 and reiterated his buy rating. Atmel, in an announcement Tuesday evening, said the restructuring will slash costs by $70 million to $80 million in 2007. Approximately 1,300 employees will cut from its 8,000-person workforce worldwide. Atmel, of San Jose, Calif., makes microcontroller and radio-frequency chips used in cell phones, disk drives, car alarms, camcorders and other applications.
Buckle Inc. (NYSE:
BKE -
News) said its board has authorized a one-time cash dividend of $3 per share. The dividend is payable Jan. 2 to shareholders as of Dec. 22, according to the Kearney, Neb.-based retailer.
Celanese Corp. (NYSE:
CE -
News) said it is relocating strategic management of the company's Acetyls business to Shanghai, China, as early as spring 2007. The chemical company added that it expects to derive 45% to 55% of its earnings from Asia by 2010, compared with the current level of 30%. The company also said it expects 2007 adjusted earnings of $2.60 to $2.90 a share. That view surrounds the average analyst estimate compiled by Thomson First Call of $2.85 a share. The company also said it was reorganizing into three business groups -- advanced engineered materials, consumer and industrial specialties and acetyl intermediates -- as it moves to improve earnings and reach its target of adding $300 million to $350 million to EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) growth by 2010. The company is also selling its oxo products and derivatives businesses to private equity firm Advent International for 480 million euro, or about $630 million.
CPI International (NASDAQ:
CPII -
News) shares rose after the Palo Alto, Calif.-based provider of microwave and radio frequency products late Tuesday reported fiscal fourth-quarter net earnings of $6.19 million, or 35 cents a share. In the same quarter last year, the company posted a net loss of $2.4 million, or 19 cents a share. Revenue rose to $82.6 million from $74.9 million. Analysts polled by Thomson First Call had forecast a per-share profit of 25 cents on revenue of $83.3 million. In fiscal 2007, CPI expects earnings of $1.24 to $1.30 a share on revenue of $350 million to $355 million.
Depomed (NASDAQ:
DEPO -
News) shares rose after the company said it's received a commitment for up to $30 million in common stock equity financing from Azimuth Opportunity Ltd.
Exact Sciences Corp. (NASDAQ:
EXAS -
News) shares leapt after the Marlborough, Mass.-based biotech company said a study of stool DNA testing found that the test demonstrated an 88% sensitivity for colorectal cancer, with equal detection across all stages, regardless of the cancer's location in the colon. The study was published online in the American Gastroenterological Association's journal, Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology. Exact Sciences has licensed certain of its technologies to Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings (NYSE:
LH -
News) for a stool-based DNA screening test.
Gander Mountain Co. (NASDAQ:
GMTN -
News) shares rose after the St. Paul, Minn.-based outdoor products retailer late Tuesday said David Pratt, its new chairman, has agreed to buy 5.7 million newly issued shares, for $8.77 each, for a total purchase price of $50 million. The company also said it plans to open more than a dozen new stores in fiscal 2007 and upgrade a number of existing stores.
Guidance Software Inc. (NASDAQ:
GUID -
News) shares surged in the company's initial public offering.
Health Net Inc. (NYSE:
HNT -
News) lifted its full-year 2007 earnings forecast above Wall Street's average expectation due to its share buyback program.
Home Depot (NYSE:
HD -
News) is taking its first steps into the China market with its acquisition of 12 home-improvement stores, the retailer said. Home Depot will buy the stores in six cities from Home Way, China's first home-improvement retailer.
IPG Photronics Corp. (NASDAQ:
IPGP -
News) shares leapt in the company's stock market debut.
Lumera Corp. (NASDAQ:
LMRA -
News) shares jumped after the Bothell, Wash.-based company reported "encouraging" results for its multi-band millimeter wave wireless bridge. Lumera said data rates from 2.5 Gbps to 10 Gbps were successfully tested and that the company expects the system will have the capacity to operate at a range of up to three miles per data link. "In the next 12 to 18 months, we will continue to improve the functionality of the system, optimize the design, and continue testing as we work to create a commercial ready product," said Dr. Raluca Dinu, director of Lumera's Electro-Optics business unit, in a statement.
Martek Biosciences (NASDAQ:
MATK -
News) said fourth-quarter net earnings dropped to $641,000, or 2 cents a share, compared with $4.89 million, or 15 cents a share, in the same period last year.
MEDecision Inc. (NASDAQ:
MEDE -
News) shares rose in the company's opening day of trading.
Midwest Air Group (AMEX:
MEH -
News) shares surged after AirTran Holdings Inc. (NYSE:
AAI -
News) unveiled an offer to buy Midwest for $290 million.
Pixelworks (NASDAQ:
PXLW -
News) said Allen Alley plans to resign from the president and chief executive officer positions, effective Dec. 31. Hans Olsen, currently an executive vice president and chief operating officer, will serve in both roles on an interim basis until a successor is named. The Tualatin, Ore., semiconductor maker has formed a search committee to fill the positions of president and CEO. Also, the company said it now expects revenue of $28 million to $30 million for the fourth quarter, a forecast that's within its previously disclosed outlook.
Progen Industries Ltd.'s (NASDAQ:
PGLA -
News) shares soared after the Australia-based pharmaceutical company announced positive preliminary results from its Phase II clinical trial of PI-88 for the treatment of patients with primary liver cancer following surgical resection of the tumor. The trial demonstrated that PI-88 increased time to tumor recurrence by 76%, the company said. "These results offer excellent support as we proceed to Phase III development, with the guidance of the FDA, as rapidly as possible," said Justus Homburg, Progen's chief executive, in a statement. Progen said it's preparing for a much larger Phase III trial of PI-88 for the treatment of liver cancer.
Tibco Software (NASDAQ:
TIBX -
News) shares gained after the Palo Alto, Calif., maker of business process software said it expects revenue of about $158 million for the fourth quarter, ahead of a prior projection for revenue of between $140 million and $144 million. The company expects earnings for the quarter to exceed its prior view by more than 2 cents a share.
UAL Corp. (NASDAQ:
UAUA -
News) and Continental Airlines (NYSE:
CAL -
News) are reportedly in talks about a possible merger, according to The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.
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