Jim Cramer Blog

General Motors (GM): Hit with its first nationwide strike in 37 years, and the crew at Fast Money was focused on what it means to the market. Adami: has been consistently negative on GM and would rather own Ford (F). Macke agrees that GM is a sell, unless they take a huge hit on health care without giving job guarantees.
Online Ad Play: Microsoft (MSFT) made headlines today as rumors floated around Wall Street that the firm is planning on taking a 5% stake in Facebook.com. Kourosh Karimkhany, manager of wired digital at Conde Naste, sees Microsoft's play for Facebook as one for software development. Macke: time to get long MSFT. Najarian prefers ValueClick (VCLK) and Focus Media (FMCN). Tuesday will be a big day for Microsoft as they will release the hyped up Halo 3 game which is predicted to be the biggest selling game ever.Macke proposes investors play Halo 3 with trades in Gamestop (GME) and Activison (ATVI). He advises getting out of Sony (SNE).
Drug Trade: The UBS health care industry conference could help jump start some of the pharmaceutical and biotech stocks this week. Adami suggests Pfizer (PFE). Najarian: Myraid Genetics (MYGN) and Quest Diagnostics (DGX). Macke: Johnson & Johnson (JNJ).
Burning Down the House: The homebuilders sector was annihilated on Monday, as investors fear more bad news is on the way when the government reports existing home sales data Tuesday. Adami advises not to trade this sector unless you have to. Finerman: stay away from WCI Communities (WCI) and Hovnanian (HOV).
Chartology: Technical analysis expert Jeff DeGraaf was on the show. DeGraaf likes the technology sector right now and he thinks it will outperform in the coming months. He feels positive about tech because the sector was strong in the summer when it normally tends to trade down. DeGraaf looked at Fedex (FDX) and the chart isn't showing bullish trends. Adami: doesn't like FDX until it trades above $121 and DeGraaf agreed. DeGraaf: loves the pattern in gold and continues to be bullish longer term on the yellow metal. He would look to buy gold on pullbacks.
Word on the Street: Target (TGT) lowered same-store sales on Monday. SABMiller reported an 11% jump in beer volumes on Monday. Macke likes Molson Coors (TAP). Najarian likes BHP Billiton (BHP) and copper and gold producer Freeport McMoRan (FCX).
Alternative Energy: NRG Energy (NRG) submitted its first application for a new US nuclear reactor in 30 years. Najarian would play this news with (BHP) Billiton and Cameco (CCJ). Finerman: Flowserve (FLS) and Adami likes Fluor Corp (FLR). Macke would just play NRG Energy (NRG). Trina (TSL) traded higher 8% as solar stocks were active with a major solar conference started. Najarian likes TSL.
Pops & Drops
Pops- Crocs (CROX) traded up 9%. Adami thinks a big short was forced to cover on Monday. He would take profits on CROX.
NYSE Euronext (NYX) traded up 2% off a JP Morgan upgrade. Finerman continues to be long this stock and she feels it has more room to run higher.
Las Vegas Sands (LVS) traded up 7% off a Jeffries upgrade. Macke says time to get out.
PrimeWest Energy Trust (PWI) exploded 32% on news that Abu Dhabi National Energy Co. bought them out. Finerman hopes we keep seeing deals like this.
EMC Corporation (EMC) traded up 8% after Citigroup and Bear Stearns upgraded the name. Adami still likes it.
Drops- AMR Corp (AMR) fell 14% after revenue forecasts missed Wall Street expectations. This drop took down all the airline companies for the day.
Harman (HAR) dropped 6% after the company said profits would miss Wall Street expectations. Finerman wouldn't touch it.
Adtran (ADTN) plunged 14% after the telecom company warned on 3rd quarter earnings and revenue. Macke suggests avoiding these guys on the telecom side.
Final Trade:
Finerman: likes NYMEX (NMX)
Najarian: ValueClick (VCLK).
Adami: Pfizer (PFE) for its cheap valuation.
Macke: Short Dow30 ProShares (DOG).

Labels: ATVI, CNBC, CROX, DGX, EMC, Fast Money, FDX, FMCN, GM, GME, HOV, JNJ, MSFT, MYGN, NYX, pfe, SNE, VCLK, WCI

Here are 7 options to watch for today. This list comes directly from the TradingMarkets Options Indicators page. The list is created using OptionVue options analysis software.
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.
Mastercard Inc. Oct 180 Calls (NYSE:MA - News). MA's PowerRating is 7.
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.
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. Sep 90 Puts (NYSE:CMG - News). CMG's PowerRating is 3.
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.
American International Group, Inc. Aug 65 Calls (NYSE:AIG - News). AIG's PowerRating is 5.
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.
Goldman Sachs Sep 160 Puts (NYSE:GS - News). GS' PowerRating 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.
Unilever (NYSE:UN - News). UN's PowerRating is 6.
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.
Myriad Genetics Inc. (NasdaqGS:MYGN - News). MYGN's PowerRating is 6.
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.
AMR Corp. (NYSE:AMR - News). AMR's PowerRating is 5.
PowerRatings are courtesy of TradingMarkets.com

Labels: AIG, AMR, CMG, GS, MA, MYGN, stock options, UN

Celanese Corp. (NYSE:CE - News) said it plans to buy back up to $400 million worth of its common stock in a modified Dutch auction tender offer. The chemical company, which is based in Dallas, also disclosed plans to a refinancing of its existing senior credit facilities, senior subordinated notes and senior discount notes. The company expects the plan to reduce debt by more than $200 million.
Myriad Genetics (NasdaqGS:MYGN - News) said a follow-on Phase 2 study of Flurizan shows that it may be capable, not only of slowing the decline of Alzheimer's disease, but of halting the disease in its tracks. "This analysis of patient response to Flurizan in the Phase 2 trial suggests that the drug may, in many patients, actually halt disease progression over a 24-month time frame. Since Flurizan appears to slow the biological progression of the disease, this is an exciting and novel finding, and if replicated in the ongoing Phase 3 trials will be extraordinarily important," the company said.
Shares of Pathmark Stores (NasdaqGM:PTMK - News) rallied after the company agreed to be acquired by Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. (NYSE:GAP - News) for $1.3 billion in cash, stock and assumed debt.
Published By MarketWatch

Labels: CE, GAP, MYGN, PTMK

BioCryst Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:BCRX - News) named Jon Stonehouse its chief executive. BioCryst, a Birmingham, Ala., drug development company, said Stonehouse succeeds Charles Bugg, the company's founder and CEO. Bugg will become nonexecutive chairman. Stonehouse had been senior vice president of corporate development at Merck KGaA.
Caremark Rx (NYSE:CMX - News) rejected an unsolicited merger proposal from Express Scripts (NASDAQ:ESRX - News) and affirmed its support for a deal with CVS (NYSE:CVS - News).
Compucredit Corp. (NASDAQ:CCRT - News) said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it now expects earnings for the fourth quarter to come about 20% below its previous projections.
Delta Apparel Inc. (AMEX:DLA - News) said it expects second-quarter sales of $72 million to $73 million, down from a previous estimate of $74 million to $78 million, and earnings of 5 cents to 7 cents a share, down from a prior projection of 14 cents to 18 cents a share. Delta Apparel also cut its forecast for the year's sales and earnings.
Dynavax Technologies Corp. (NASDAQ:DVAX - News) shares fell after the Berkeley, Calif.-based biotech company said interim one-year data from its two-year ragweed allergy trial indicated that "no meaningful ragweed-specific allergic disease was observed in the study population," making it impossible for the company to measure the impact of its Tolamba treatment. "This result was unexpected, though these challenges are well known to occur in allergy drug development," said Dino Dina, president and chief executive, in a statement. "Due to the fact that no clinically significant disease was seen in the study population, it was impossible to measure the effect of our intervention."
Fastenal (NASDAQ:FAST - News) was downgraded to hold from buy at BB&T Capital Markets.
Garmin (NASDAQ:GRMN - News) was downgraded to neutral from buy at D.A. Davidson due to valuation concerns.
GOL Linhas Aéreas Inteligentes (NYSE:GOL - News) said its passenger traffic rose 48% in December while its capacity rose 65% for the month, compared to the same period last year. That caused its load factor, or percentage of seats filled with paying passengers, to fall to 67.4% from 75.2%. The Brazilian low-cost airline also forecast a drop in fiscal year earnings to 3.15 to 3.30 reals a share, down from 3.40 to 3.65 reals a share.
Heartland Payment (NYSE:HPY - News) was downgraded to underweight from market weight at Thomas Weisel Partners.
Hertz (NYSE:HTZ - News) plans to cut roughly 200 jobs in the first of "a series of initiatives" to improve its competitiveness. The layoffs will come at headquarters in Park Ridge, N.J., a service center in Oklahoma City, and in U.S. field operations. The car-rental company expects to save as much as $15.8 million annually from the job cuts and expects restructuring charges of $3.3 million to $3.8 million in the first quarter.
MarineMax Inc. (NYSE:HZO - News) sees a first-quarter loss of 20 cents to 25 cents a share; the First Call-derived average forecast stands at a loss of 6 cents. The company also lowered its profit outlook for fiscal 2007.
Medecision (NASDAQ:MEDE - News) shares plunged after the Wayne, Pa.-based a provider of software and services to healthcare payers said late Friday it expects fourth-quarter revenue of $10.3 million to $10.6 million. MEDecision said it signed five contracts during the quarter, resulting in lower-than expected term license revenue of between $1.1 million and $1.3 million.
Methanex Corp. (NASDAQ:MEOH - News) was downgraded to sector underperformer from sector performer at CIBC World Markets.
Microsemi (NASDAQ:MSCC - News) was downgraded to equal weight from overweight at Lehman Bros. The firm cited a lack of catalysts for the stock.
Molex Inc. (NASDAQ:MOLX - News) lowered its second-quarter earnings and sales outlook citing lower-than-anticipated gross margins, which is due primarily to lower sales and higher price erosion in its mobile phone business. The Lisle, Ill. electronics components maker now expects to earnings of 34 to 37 cents a share vs. its previous forecast of 39 to 43 cents a share. Revenue is expected to be $830 million to $840 million, revised from a previous projection of $830 million to $850 million. The company also sees new orders slowing to $770 million to $780 million.
Myriad Genetics (NASDAQ:MYGN - News) said a clinical trial of MPC-7869, designed to evaluate its safety and potential efficacy in slowing the rate of progression of prostate cancer, didn't show statistical significance in either endpoint. The primary clinical endpoints of the trial were the time to systemic disease progression and the change in velocity of prostate specific antigen levels. The company said it does not intend to pursue further development of the compound in cancer. Myriad said it will continue to concentrate its efforts on the compound's activity in Alzheimer's disease.
Newmont Mining (NYSE:NEM - News) was downgraded to underweight from neutral weight at Prudential, which cited weak earnings power even at optimistic assumptions for metals prices. Analyst John Tumazos also lowered his stock price target to $40 from $50. "While heretofore we have 'disbelieved' how badly the company's costs deteriorated, and expected a future cost turnabout, we have given up hope in large part," Tumazos said in a research note to clients. "We expect a higher gold price outlook owing in part to higher gold mining costs and output erosion, but the profit margin at those higher prices is much lower than envisioned several years ago."
Northwest Airlines Corp. (Other OTC:NWACQ.PK - News) said traffic in December rose 1.1% to 6.38 billion revenue passenger miles. Load factor, or the percentage of the plane filled with passengers, increased by 0.7 percentage points to 80.7%. Capacity rose 0.1% to 7.9 billion available seat miles, the Eagan, Minn.-based carrier said.
Novastar Financial (NYSE:NFI - News) was downgraded to market perform from market outperform at JMP Securities.
Nu Horizons Electronics (NASDAQ:NUHC - News) said net income rose 59% to $2.4 million, or 13 cents a share, for its fiscal third quarter ended Nov. 30 with sales up 26% to $186 million. From the last quarter, however, sales fell at the electronic components distributor, due to a decline in the company's systems business related to a substantial customer-specific decrease, as well as to market weakness related to some end customer and manufacturing channel inventory builds.
Panacos Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:PANC - News) named Alan Dunton M.D. its new chief executive. Dunton has also been added to the company's board of directors. Dunton replaces Peyton Marshall, Panacos' chief financial officer, who had served as interim CEO since the sudden death of former Chief Executive Samuel "Skip" Ackerman last June.
P.F. Chang's China Bistro (NASDAQ:PFCB - News) was downgraded to underperform from peer perform at Bear Stearns.
Schnitzer Steel Industries (NASDAQ:SCHN - News) reported first-quarter earnings of $21 million, or 69 cents a share, down from a year-ago profit of $42 million, or $1.34 a share. The year-ago results included a gain of $34 million related to an asset disposition as well as a charge of $11 million from an investigation reserve. Excluding items, Portland, Ore.-based Schnitzer earned $19 million, or 61 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue rose in the latest three months to $510 million from $341 million in the same period a year earlier. The average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson First Call was for a profit of 99 cents a share in the November period on revenue of $511.9 million. The company said it saw lower volumes and higher costs per ton in the latest quarter due to the installation of mega-shredders at its metals recycling facilities in the Oakland and Boston areas. In addition, margins were hurt by higher raw material costs in the quarter, and its auto parts business saw lower vehicle purchases due to higher prices.
Targeted Genetics Corp. (NASDAQ:TGEN - News) agreed to sell 2.18 million shares to institutional investors at a price of $4 each. The transaction includes warrants to purchase up to 763,000 shares, exercisable at price of $5.41 per share. The Seattle-based biotechnology company expects net proceeds of $8.1 million from the transaction, which is expected to close Jan. 11. Targeted Genetics plans to use the funds for working capital and general corporate purposes.
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Labels: BCRX, CCRT, CMX, CVS, DLA, DVAX, ESRX, FAST, GOL, GRMN, HPY, HTZ, HZO, MEDE, MEOH, MYGN, NEM, NFI, SCHN, TGEN