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GLW | Corning GLW Down 9 7 Since Last Earnings Report Can It Rebound | It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Corning GLW Shares have lost about 9 7 in that time frame underperforming the S P 500
Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release or is Corning due for a breakout Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late let s take a quick look at its most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers Corning Q1 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates Up Y YCorning reported solid first quarter 2019 financial results led by investments in product development and manufacturing capacity driving sales and profit growth across markets Net IncomeOn a GAAP basis net income for the quarter improved significantly to 499 million or 55 cents per share from net loss of 589 million or loss of 72 cents per share in the year ago quarter primarily due to top line growth translated earnings contract gain and lower provision for income tax Core earnings came in at 365 million or 40 cents per share compared with 299 million or 31 cents per share in the year earlier quarter Adjusted earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1 cent RevenuesQuarterly GAAP net sales were up 12 5 year over year to 2 812 million driven by revenue growth in all businesses particularly Display Technologies Optical Communications and Environmental Technologies Core sales increased 13 4 to 2 850 million surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 2 813 million Segmental PerformanceNet sales of Display Technologies segment were 818 million compared with 745 million reflecting improving pricing climate and Corning s extended global leadership by successfully ramping Gen 10 5 production which allowed it to grow volume faster than the overall market The segment s net income was 208 million compared with 185 million in the prior year quarter Net sales of Optical Communications increased 20 1 year over year to 1 064 million driven by solid demand from data center and carrier customers The business remains on track to exceed its goal of 5 billion in 2020 sales The segment s net income was 142 million compared with 109 million in the prior year quarter Environmental Technologies segment s net sales increased 12 4 to 362 million driven by growth in all product categories and sales of gasoline particulate filters The segment s net income was 55 million compared with 52 million in the prior year quarter The Specialty Materials segment s net sales climbed 11 2 to 309 million driven by strong pull for Corning s portfolio of mobile consumer electronics glass solutions The segment s net income was 49 million compared with 46 million in the prior year quarter Net sales of Life Sciences segment were up 4 7 to 243 million as the business continued to outpace market growth The segment s net income was 31 million compared with 27 million in the prior year quarter Other DetailsDespite 10 9 year over year rise in cost of sales to 1 713 million operating income increased to 420 million from 194 million owing to top line growth Gross profit increased to 1 099 million from 955 million Core gross profit was 1 139 million compared with 1 010 million in the prior year quarter During the reported quarter Corning announced 518 U S patents issued in 2018 bolstering its leadership in glass ceramics optical physics and proprietary manufacturing technology Cash Flow and LiquidityDuring the first quarter Corning utilized 29 million of net cash from operating activities against cash generation of 320 million in the year ago period As of Mar 31 2019 the company had 1 456 million in cash and equivalents with 6 018 million of long term debt 2019 OutlookCorning expects growth in 2019 and beyond driven by benefits from its investments as well as adoption of technologies aligned to key industry trends and the company s cohesive portfolio Optical Communications is expected to be up about 10 revised from previous expectation of a low teens percentage In Display Technologies glass market volume is likely to rise at mid single digit percentage as television screen size growth continues For Specialty Materials the company expects growth by a mid single digit percentage year over year Life Sciences sales are expected to increase by a low to mid single digit percentage continuing to outpace overall market growth The company is progressing well on Strategy and Capital Allocation Framework Since the program began it has returned 12 3 billion to shareholders and aims to return more than 12 5 billion Going ForwardCorning is making encouraging progress on its focused portfolio objectives remaining well poised to achieve its Strategy and Capital Allocation Framework goals Standing at an inflection point the company is gaining momentum
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then
In the past month investors have witnessed a downward trend in fresh estimates The consensus estimate has shifted 6 36 due to these changes
VGM Scores
Currently Corning has a poor Growth Score of F however its Momentum Score is doing a bit better with a D Charting a somewhat similar path the stock was allocated a grade of C on the value side putting it in the middle 20 for this investment strategy
Overall the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of D If you aren t focused on one strategy this score is the one you should be interested in
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift Notably Corning has a Zacks Rank 3 Hold We expect an in line return from the stock in the next few months |
GLW | Corning s New Facility Boosts Potential To Tap Auto Market | Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW has recently unveiled its new Automotive Glass Solutions manufacturing facility in the Hefei Xinzhan Hi Tech Industrial Development Zone in Anhui province China The noble move reiterates the specialty glass maker s commitment to the Chinese auto market and marks its third investment in Hefei within the past four years In July 2018 Corning announced plans to invest in an existing production hub in the aforementioned location in order to expand its Automotive Glass Solutions business with support from the local government This apart Corning Environmental Technologies recently unveiled a new emissions control facility focused on its gasoline particulate filter product line Last year Corning Display Technologies opened the world s first Gen 10 5 LCD glass substrate facility to supply BOE China s leading panel maker Markedly the company s new high volume manufacturing facility will help deliver AutoGrade Gorilla Glass parts for Automotive Interiors straight to automakers worldwide It brings more capacity for the growth of Corning s automotive glass solutions business In addition it supports the company s goal to double sales in the automotive market as specified in Corning s 2020 2023 Strategy and Growth Framework The facility enables the company to deliver technical glass solutions that address and accelerate the adoption of more dynamic and visually appealing in vehicle infotainment systems Corning s cover glass innovation offers superior performance compared to commodity materials driving significant pull for the products Corning continues to be a leader in the display mobile consumer electronics and automotive markets which better positions it to deliver advanced technical glass solutions and an extensive partner ecosystem to its auto glass customers Management believes this facility to be crucial to meet automotive interior trend demands and double market sales by 2023 The company has more than 40 years of OEM market presence in the automotive industry with its cellular ceramic substrates that take harmful emissions out of vehicle exhaust systems It will begin fulfilling customer orders from this facility in third quarter 2019 Corning has long term earnings growth expectation of 10 9 Driven by diligent execution of operational strategies the stock has rallied 16 9 compared with the s rise of 11 5 in the past year Corning currently has a Zacks Rank 3 Hold Better ranked stocks in the industry include Harmonic Inc NASDAQ HLIT Airgain Inc NASDAQ AIRG and EXFO Inc NASDAQ EXFO While Harmonic sports a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy Airgain and EXFO carry a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see Harmonic has long term earnings growth expectation of 8 8 Airgain surpassed earnings estimate in each of the trailing four quarters the average positive surprise being 119 4 EXFO surpassed earnings estimate twice in the trailing four quarters the average positive surprise being 9 4 Breakout Biotech Stocks with Triple Digit Profit PotentialThe biotech sector is projected to surge beyond 775 billion by 2024 as scientists develop treatments for thousands of diseases They re also finding ways to edit the human genome to literally erase our vulnerability to these diseases Zacks has just released Century of Biology 7 Biotech Stocks to Buy Right Now to help investors profit from 7 stocks poised for outperformance Our recent biotech recommendations have produced gains of 98 119 and 164 in as little as 1 month The stocks in this report could perform even better |
GLW | Corning GLW Earnings Expected To Grow Should You Buy | Corning GLW is expected to deliver a year over year increase in earnings on higher revenues when it reports results for the quarter ended June 2019 This widely known consensus outlook gives a good sense of the company s earnings picture but how the actual results compare to these estimates is a powerful factor that could impact its near term stock price
The stock might move higher if these key numbers top expectations in the upcoming earnings report which is expected to be released on July 30 On the other hand if they miss the stock may move lower
While the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management s discussion of business conditions on the earnings call it s worth handicapping the probability of a positive EPS surprise
Zacks Consensus Estimate
This specialty glass maker is expected to post quarterly earnings of 0 44 per share in its upcoming report which represents a year over year change of 15 8
Revenues are expected to be 2 97 billion up 7 8 from the year ago quarter
Estimate Revisions Trend
The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 0 39 lower over the last 30 days to the current level This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period
Investors should keep in mind that the direction of estimate revisions by each of the covering analysts may not always get reflected in the aggregate change
Price Consensus and EPS Surprise
Earnings Whisper
Estimate revisions ahead of a company s earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out This insight is at the core of our proprietary surprise prediction model the Zacks Earnings ESP Expected Surprise Prediction
The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter the Most Accurate Estimate is a more recent version of the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate The idea here is that analysts revising their estimates right before an earnings release have the latest information which could potentially be more accurate than what they and others contributing to the consensus had predicted earlier
Thus a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate However the model s predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only
A positive Earnings ESP is a strong predictor of an earnings beat particularly when combined with a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy 2 Buy or 3 Hold Our research shows that stocks with this combination produce a positive surprise nearly 70 of the time and a solid Zacks Rank actually increases the predictive power of Earnings ESP
Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss Our research shows that it is difficult to predict an earnings beat with any degree of confidence for stocks with negative Earnings ESP readings and or Zacks Rank of 4 Sell or 5 Strong Sell
How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for Corning
For Corning the Most Accurate Estimate is the same as the Zacks Consensus Estimate suggesting that there are no recent analyst views which differ from what have been considered to derive the consensus estimate This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of 0
On the other hand the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of 3
So this combination makes it difficult to conclusively predict that Corning will beat the consensus EPS estimate
Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue
Analysts often consider to what extent a company has been able to match consensus estimates in the past while calculating their estimates for its future earnings So it s worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number
For the last reported quarter it was expected that Corning would post earnings of 0 39 per share when it actually produced earnings of 0 40 delivering a surprise of 2 56
Over the last four quarters the company has beaten consensus EPS estimates four times
Bottom Line
An earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors Similarly unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss
That said betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success This is why it s worth checking a company s Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they ve reported
Corning doesn t appear a compelling earnings beat candidate However investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release |
VZ | Verizon Sees 2020 Earnings up 2 4 Amid High Investment Costs | Investing com Verizon NYSE VZ said it expects underlying earnings this year to grow by between 2 and 4 as the company plows the revenue from a growing user base back into upgrading its mobile and fiber networks
The company reported earnings per share of 1 13 for the fourth quarter just shy of consensus estimates for 1 14 on revenue of 34 78 billion a figure boosted by the highest net growth in wireless subscribers in six years The figures were still only flat compared to last year due to impairments of 2 8 billion that weren t quite offset by a 2 2 billion tax benefit from asset disposals
Verizon NYSE VZ said it gained a net 1 2 million retail customers in the quarter including 790 000 phone net additions the highest fourth quarter phone net additions in six years The 969 000 net increase in postpaid smartphone subscribers was up 11 on the year
Verizon NYSE VZ said it gained a net 1 2 million retail customers in the quarter including 790 000 phone net additions the highest fourth quarter phone net additions in six years The 969 000 net increase in postpaid smartphone subscribers was up 11 on the year
We entered 2020 with great momentum chairman and chief executive Hans Vestberg said in the accompanying release
Analysts are forecasting EPS of 1 24 and revenue of 32 73 billion in the next quarter
The company meanwhile said it expects low to mid single digit percentage growth in consolidated revenues for the full year while capital spending dominated by the roll out of 5G networks is expected to be between 17 and 18 billion
We entered 2020 with great momentum chairman and chief executive Hans Vestberg said in the accompanying release
Verizon share s are down 3 05 from the beginning of the year still down 4 32 from its 52 week high of 62 22 set on December 20 2019
Verizon follows other major Services sector earnings this monthOn Wednesday AT T reported fourth quarter EPS of 0 89 on revenue of 46 82B compared with a forecasts for EPS of 0 88 on revenue of 46 95B
Comcast earnings beat analysts expectations on January 23 with fourth quarter EPS of 0 79 on revenue of 28 4B Investing com analysts anticipated EPS of 0 77 on revenue of 28 17B
Stay up to date on all of the upcoming earnings reports by visiting Investing com s earnings calendar |
VZ | Does Verizon Deserve More Credit for Its Q4 Report | Verizon Communications Inc NYSE VZ reported its most recent quarterly results before the markets opened on Thursday The telecom giant posted 1 13 in earnings per share EPS and 34 8 billion in revenue while consensus estimates had called for 1 14 in EPS and 34 6 billion in revenue Last year s fourth quarter reportedly had 1 12 in EPS and 34 28 billion in revenue Verizon Consumer revenues for the latest quarter were 24 2 billion an increase of 2 0 year over year driven by continued strong growth in wireless and Fios service offerings offset by declines in wireless equipment revenue and copper based wireline services There were 852 000 retail postpaid net additions including 588 000 phone net additions Verizon Business revenues were 8 1 billion relatively year over year due to growth in phone net additions and other connected device net additions There were 396 000 retail postpaid net additions including 202 000 phone net additions div connatix margin bottom 1 5em div connatix img margin unset In terms of the Wireless and Wireline segment breakdown within the business and consumer segments Verizon reported the following
Wireless total revenue growth of 3 5 year over year to 25 3 billion in fourth quarter was driven by a 2 7 increase in service revenue There were 1 2 million retail postpaid net additions including 790 000 phone net additions the highest fourth quarter phone net additions in six years and 969 000 postpaid smartphone net additions up 11 0 year over year
Wireline revenues decreased 4 1 year over year to 7 1 There were 39 000 Fios Internet net additions and Fios total revenue growth was up 0 8 year over year
Looking ahead to the 2020 full year Verizon expects to see EPS growth in the range of 2 to 4 and low to mid single digit percentage growth in consolidated revenues Consensus estimates call for 4 94 in EPS and 133 65 billion in revenue for the year Hans Vestberg board chair and chief executive commented Verizon delivered strong operational performance in the fourth quarter highlighted by continued wireless customer growth in both Consumer and Business In 2019 Verizon drove innovation in 5G established a new operating structure and delivered solid financial results We entered 2020 with great momentum as we expand our network leadership and remain focused on the customer to provide a best in class experience Our 5G footprint continues to grow as we lead this era of transformational change by building these next generation networks the right way Verizon stock traded down more than 1 early Thursday at 58 82 in a 52 week range of 53 02 to 62 22 The consensus price target is 61 67
By Chris Lange |
GLW | Corning jumps as Verizon agrees to fiber deal of at least 1 05B | Verizon NYSE VZ has agreed to a 1 05B deal with Corning NYSE GLW to buy millions of miles of fiber to grow its FiOS platform GLW is spiking on the news up 0 8 Corning will provide and Verizon will buy up to 12 4M miles of optical fiber per year in 2018 through 2020 The 1 05B is a minimum commitment The goal is to improve Verizon s 4G LTE coverage speed the deployment of 5G and deliver high speed broadband to homes and businesses of all sizes Verizon says |
GLW | Corning 3 8 after swinging to profit on strong sales growth | Corning NYSE GLW is up 3 8 after logging a Q1 earnings report where it swung to a profit in GAAP terms and core EPS rose 39 Financial measures grew across the board and the company pointed to continued rapid adoption of Gorilla Glass 5 as it pursues doubling sales in mobile consumer electronics The company works to stabilize returns in its Display Technologies unit it says Q1 LCD glass price declines were the most moderate in the past six years and full year LCD glass prices are expected to decline by about 10 or even less GAAP net sales by segment Display Technologies 736M up 4 Optical Communications 818M up 34 Environmental Technologies 275M up 4 Specialty Materials 300M up 32 Life Sciences 210M up 3 The company says it s off to a strong start and expects year over year sales and earnings growth in the second quarter Press Release Now read Corning The Glass Is More Than Half Full |
GLW | Corning beats by 0 02 beats on revenue | Corning NYSE GLW Q2 EPS of 0 42 beats by 0 02 Revenue of 2 59B 6 1 Y Y beats by 50M Press ReleaseNow read |
GLW | Verizon in talks to buy WideOpenWest s Chicago network sources | By Liana B Baker Reuters U S wireless carrier Verizon Communications Inc N VZ is in talks to acquire cable operator WideOpenWest Inc s N WOW fiber network in the Chicago area for more than 200 million according to people familiar with the matter There has been a flurry of dealmaking for fiber assets as growing demand from U S businesses for data transmission has fueled a revival in fiber optic services and is pushing large telecommunication companies to bulk up in fiber Earlier this month tower operator Crown Castle International Corp N CCI said it would buy Lightower Fiber Networks for 7 1 billion in a bid to boost its data traffic capabilities No deal between WideOpenWest and Verizon is certain and negotiations could still fall apart said the sources who asked not to be identified because the negotiations are confidential Another buyer could still emerge for the asset the sources added WideOpenWest which has market capitalization of around 1 4 billion and went public in May is working with a financial adviser to explore a sale of the unit the people said WideOpenWest did not respond to a request for comment Verizon declined to comment Since 2014 WideOpenWest has built about 1 200 miles of fiber in the Chicago market for a leading wireless carrier according to a corporate filing The sources identified this carrier as Verizon Verizon uses WideOpenWest s fiber system in Chicago for backhaul which is the data transfer of mobile traffic over wired lines according to the sources While it is under a long term contract with the wireless carrier WideOpenWest had said it expected it would find more business customers to use the fiber Verizon views fiber as critical for its next generation 5G wireless technology and has been testing a 5G fixed wireless service with equipment maker Ericsson ST ERICb before a commercial launch as early as 2018 Verizon has also said it would evaluate opportunities to build out or buy fiber on a market by market basis In April it struck a deal to buy optical fiber from Corning Inc N GLW for at least 1 05 billion over the next three years In February it closed on its acquisition of XO Communications fiber optic network business for about 1 8 billion
Verizon reported quarterly revenue that topped analyst expectations on Thursday adding 614 000 subscribers who pay a monthly bill including tablet customers |
WMB | Canadian oil pipeline congestion sets up lucrative storage play | By Nia Williams NYSE WMB and Devika Krishna Kumar CALGARY Alberta NEW YORK Reuters Upheavals in the Canadian crude market are providing unique opportunities for firms with sizeable long term leases on Alberta storage tanks a cluster that sources say includes Mercuria Energy Group and oil major BP LON BP Plc s trading arm Canada holds the world s third largest crude reserves but years of delay in building new pipelines has led to oil production outpacing takeaway capacity A glut of crude has thus been created increasing demand for storage tanks in the oil sands province of Alberta which this year introduced production cuts to deal with the oversupply The opportunity for traders comes from monthly pipeline apportionment when demand to ship crude on certain pipelines exceeds capacity forcing pipeline operators to ration the number of barrels each shipper can move The practice is a long standing source of frustration for Canadian producers but offers a lucrative though risky play for traders able to swoop in and capitalize on post apportionment price volatility Bulging storage tanks are contributing to high apportionment on Canada s main conduit to the United States the 2 85 million barrel per day bpd Enbridge Mainline network Even with the Alberta cuts oil inventories in western Canada hit a record 37 1 million barrels in April and are close to 34 million barrels in May according to energy information provider Genscape One Calgary based trader said that 37 million barrels is as full as storage can get and that anybody with tankage has been making money Genscape monitors roughly 62 million barrels of storage in western Canada but at most only 67 is utilized because of pipeline operations and the need to separate grades Some traders and storage companies are benefiting Mercuria holds leases on about 3 million barrels of western Canadian storage capacity according to a source familiar with the matter Mercuria declined to comment BP does not disclose its storage lease position in Canada but the company owns large refineries in the U S Midwest which run Canadian heavy crude BP also declined to comment Traders with access to space in tanks can snap up cheap barrels store them for a month and sell them on at the start of the next trade cycle when prices are typically stronger Storage rates are not publicly disclosed and vary widely with long term tankage cheaper than short term One trading source said three month deals were being offered at around 2 per barrel per month A four year deal in Canada costs about 1 50 a barrel a month compared to 30 40 cents per barrel in the U S Gulf Coast other sources said Monthly storage rates at the U S futures hub of Cushing Oklahoma are about 30 cents a barrel Rates in Canada are expensive said another source but I guess if you can make that all back after apportionment it s well worth it Companies including Gibson Energy Inc Enbridge Inc and TC Energy Corp own most of the storage in western Canada and are also benefiting from high demand to lease their tanks Gibson is the dominant storage owner in Hardisty with 10 million barrels built and this year sanctioned another 2 5 million barrels Its storage contracts are all long term leases averaging 10 years and its main customers are large oil sands producers We get requests all the time for short term storage but we do not have tanks to do that Gibson Chief Executive Officer Steve Spaulding said Delays building pipelines mean Canadian production is likely to remain above takeaway capacity keeping tanks in high demand said Genscape analyst Mike Walls
Storage is so valuable because you need somewhere to put barrels right now That s what Gibson is taking advantage of Walls said |
WMB | WWC roundup Cristiane s hat trick boosts Brazil | Cristiane s hat trick powered Brazil to a 3 0 win Sunday over first time Women s World Cup participant Jamaica in Group C play in Grenoble France She scored in the 15th 50th and 64th minutes to become the ninth woman with at least 10 career World Cup goals It was the first hat trick since 1999 for the Brazilians who played without six time world player of the year Marta due to a left thigh injury Jamaican goalkeeper Sydney Schneider saved a penalty shot by Andressa in the 38th minute to keep the match close in the first half Italy 2 Australia 1 Two second half goals by Barbara Bonansea including the stoppage time winner lifted Italy to an upset of Australia in Group C action in Valenciennes France The sixth ranked Matildas struck first on Sam Kerr s 22nd minute goal Bonansea scored the equalizer for the 15th ranked Italians in the 56th minute and headed home the winner past goalkeeper Lydia Williams NYSE WMB in the fifth minute of stoppage time Italy is competing in the World Cup for the first time since 1999 England 2 Scotland 1 Nikita Parris and Ellen White scored first half goals to help England post the Group D win in Nice France
Parris tallied on a penalty kick in the 14th minute that occurred after a Scotland handball White made it 2 0 in the 40th minute when she sent a left footed shot into the net Scotland avoided the shutout when Claire Emslie scored in the 79th minute marking the country s first ever goal in Women s World Cup play Field Level Media |
WMB | Age matters more than sexual orientation to U S presidential voters Reuters Ipsos poll | By Chris Kahn NEW YORK Reuters In a sign that a presidential hopeful s sexual orientation has diminished as a concern for voters Americans are more likely to say they would reject a candidate older than 70 than a candidate who is gay according to a Reuters Ipsos poll on Monday The national opinion poll conducted with the Williams NYSE WMB Institute at UCLA ahead of the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising and the birth of the LGBT rights movement highlighted a steady trend toward acceptance of gay politicians The survey also called attention to one of the challenges facing President Donald Trump who will be turning 73 next week as he seeks re election in 2020 Democrats will select their nominee from a field that so far includes 24 candidates and a record number of women and non white candidates Among those running are two septuagenarians former Vice President Joe Biden and U S Senator Bernie Sanders as well as Pete Buttigieg the openly gay mayor of South Bend Indiana A decade ago it was controversial just to see a presidential candidate who s supportive of gay rights said Andrew Flores a government professor at American University in Washington D C Now there s a gay candidate who s actually running for the office So there has been a vast change in what the country views as acceptable Overall the poll found that 48 of adults in the United States said they were much or somewhat less likely to support someone for the White House if the person was older than 70 while 34 were less likely to vote for someone who is gay And 12 said they were more likely to vote for a gay candidate compared with 11 who said they were more likely to support a candidate who is over 70 The poll measured the public s general acceptance of various demographics rather than gauging support for individual presidential candidates People might say in a poll that they want a younger candidate but that may not be what will actually determine their vote said Kyle Kondik a political analyst at the University of Virginia s Center for Politics STONEWALL S LEGACY Acceptance of gay and lesbian politicians has grown over the past 40 years amid a worldwide movement for LGBT equality Historians trace its genesis to the Stonewall Uprising in June 1969 when gay people protested police harassment at a gay bar in New York s Greenwich Village Despite this trend as of 2007 Americans were still more likely to want a septuagenarian in the White House than they were a gay or lesbian politician This year Reuters Ipsos and other national polls including Gallup and Public Opinion Strategies showed that public preferences had flipped as Americans became much more supportive of gay candidates Events underpinnning the shift included the 2010 repeal of the Don t Ask Don t Tell rule that banned openly LGBTQ people from serving in the U S military and the 2015 U S Supreme Court decision in 2015 that same sex marriage is a right guaranteed by the Constitution Trump also has presented himself as an ally of the LGBTQ community Buttigieg may be part of the reason for the shift in acceptance Flores said It s now a reality that there s an out gay candidate who s a Democrat who may become president he said You may see a greater level of legitimacy among Democratic voters because of that Democrats who will decide whether to nominate Buttigieg at state voting contests in 2020 are clearly more supportive of gay presidential candidates than Republicans According to the poll 20 of Democrats said they were more likely to vote for a gay candidate compared with 6 of Republicans A representative for Buttigieg said he was not available to comment When it came to their support for gay candidates the poll also found that minorities were generally more supportive than whites Millennials were more supportive than Baby Boomers and people living in urban areas were more supportive than people living in rural communities
The Reuters Ipsos poll was conducted online on May 29 and June 5 in English throughout the United States It gathered responses from 2 237 adults and has a credibility interval a measure of precision of two percentage points |
WMB | Venus Williams to make Birmingham debut | PARIS Reuters Five times Wimbledon champion Venus Williams NYSE WMB will play in the Birmingham grasscourt event later this month after accepting a wildcard The American 38 has never played in the competition before but will join French Open champion Ashleigh Barty and world number one Naomi Osaka in the draw as the build up to Wimbledon continues I m really excited to be playing in Birmingham for the first time I always love playing on grass in front of British crowds and have heard wonderful things about the tournament the seven times Grand Slam singles champion said
Czech Petra Kvitova a double Wimbledon champion is also playing Spain s former Wimbledon champion Garbine Muguruza has withdrawn because of a left leg injury The tournament runs from June 15 22 |
WMB | Germany may ban conversion therapies for gays | BERLIN Reuters Germany is considering a ban of so called conversion therapies aimed at changing the sexual orientation of gay people the health minister said on Tuesday Homosexuality is not an illness and therefore there is no need for therapy said Health Minister Jens Spahn expressing support for a prohibition that his department and the Justice Ministry are working on Conversion therapy which can include hypnosis or electric shocks is based on the belief that being lesbian gay bisexual or transgender is a curable mental illness It is normally carried out by relatives life coaches therapists or religious counselors We have to convince parents to accept their children the way they are and we must take away the worries from young people to feel ashamed Spahn said That s why in my view we need a strong message from the state and a legislation to protect homosexuals from pathologization discrimination stigmatism and therefore from suffering In Germany there are an estimated 1 000 attempts a year to change the sexual orientation of homosexuals according to the Magnus Hirschfeld Foundation a Berlin based organization that fights discrimination Spahn a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel s center right Christian Democrats CDU pointed to two recent studies showing a ban was medically necessary and legally possible One of the studies concluded that the sexual orientation of a human being could not be changed through therapy and that such methods could harm the soul of patients Germany s Lesbian and Gay Association welcomed the proposal saying treatments can cause isolation mental illness and suicide Malta Ecuador and just over a dozen U S states have outlawed conversion therapy according to the ILGA a network of LGBT rights groups Countries including Britain New Zealand and Australia are considering bans Some 700 000 Americans have been forced to undergo a form of conversion therapy according to the Williams NYSE WMB Institute at the University of California In Britain a fifth of gay lesbian and bisexual people who have tried to change their sexuality have attempted suicide according to a study released in February |
WMB | Americans perception of LGBTQ rights under federal law largely incorrect Reuters Ipsos | By Maria Caspani Reuters Almost half of all Americans incorrectly believe that federal law protects lesbian gay and bisexual people from discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation according to a Reuters Ipsos opinion poll released this week A month ago the Democratic controlled U S House of Representatives passed the Equality Act which would codify anti discrimination protections for LGBTQ people in areas such as healthcare and housing into federal law But the bill faces stiff opposition in the Republican controlled Senate and the administration of President Donald Trump a Republican opposes the bill on the grounds that it threatened to undermine parental and conscience rights Some supporters of the bill say the disconnect between the public perception and the actual protections afforded to LGBTQ people shows a need to drum up support for the legislation The public might be getting the sense that we re fully integrated in society and that we live a trouble free life and that is a challenge for my organization said Stacey Long Simmons director of advocacy and action at the National LGBTQ Task Force which works on behalf of lesbian gay bisexual transgender and other queer people The Reuters Ipsos poll conducted with the Williams NYSE WMB Institute at the University of California at Los Angeles was released as New York prepares to mark the 50th anniversary of the spontaneous rioting that erupted outside the Stonewall Inn gay bar in Greenwich Village in protest at police harassment The demonstration on June 28 1969 gave rise to the worldwide movement for LGBTQ equality Supporters of the Equality Act believe federal safeguards are necessary In 30 U S states LGBTQ people are at risk of being fired evicted from their homes and denied services because of their sexual orientation and gender identity according to the Human Rights Campaign the largest U S advocacy group for the LGBTQ community When you talk to people across the country regardless of where they stand on LGBTQ equality so many don t know that in 30 states LGBTQ people are still at are risk of being fired solely because of their gender identity or sexual orientation said Charlotte Clymer HRC s press secretary for rapid response These things are flying under the radar for most Americans HRC said in its 2018 State Equality Index that 17 states and Washington D C have robust LGBTQ non discrimination laws for employment housing and things such as obtaining credit and insurance MOSTLY WRONG PERCEPTION The Reuters Ipsos poll found that 45 of respondents believed federal anti discrimination protections already exist for lesbian gay and bisexual people including 40 of those aged 18 34 and 57 of registered Republicans Only 23 said they were not protected at the federal level Only one in three respondents knew that transgender people were not protected from gender identity discrimination under federal law The rest either said they did not know or they believed incorrectly that transgender people already had federal protections We re working so very hard to set a ground game about the Equality Act so that people understand that their common perception is mostly wrong said Long Simmons whose group is trying to build support among lawmakers and constituents Opponents of the Equality Act see legislation as unnecessary and a threat to religious freedoms such as business owners who object on religious grounds to serving same sex couples The poll indicates that most Americans do not think religious objections should be a reason to deny service to an LGBTQ person whether in business 57 healthcare 64 or employment 62 In the survey only 20 of respondents said that LGBTQ people are treated about the same in the U S military while 43 percent said they are treated worse I think that s got to be an awareness of the Pentagon and the Trump administration s decisions to make it impossible for trans people to serve authentically said Kerith Conron a research director at the Williams Institute In January the U S Supreme Court lifted lower court rulings that blocked a Trump administration ban on certain transgender people from serving in the U S military allowing the policy to go into effect The ban is one of several steps taken to curtail LGBTQ rights after a decade of change that included the legalization of same sex marriage nationwide in 2015 under the LGBTQ friendly administration of President Barack Obama a Democrat Last month the Trump administration proposed rules that would roll back protections for transgender patients under the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare and allowing homeless shelters to turn away transgender people for religious reasons In the poll 43 of Americans said LGBTQ people were treated about the same as people who do not identify as LGBTQ in obtaining access to healthcare from doctors and hospitals Only 17 say they are treated worse and about 1 in 3 said they did not know It s been a struggle and that s the weird thing about things that we take for granted HRC s Clymer said You ll see people support these issues of equality and yet maybe not be fully informed on their status
The Reuters Ipsos poll was conducted online on May 29 30 and June 5 6 in English throughout the United States It gathered responses from 2 237 adults and has a credibility interval a measure of precision of 2 percentage points |
WMB | Macron says he would back Merkel if she runs for EU leadership | GENEVA Reuters French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday that he would support German Chancellor Angela Merkel if she were to seek to succeed Jean Claude Juncker as president of the European Commission The German leader has said she will retire from politics when her fourth term runs out in 2021 But some in the bloc hope she will reconsider given her vast experience and commitment to the EU Macron asked in an interview with Swiss French language television RTS whether he would support a Merkel candidacy said that he could not speak for her But if she wanted it I would support her he said Of course I would because firstly I think we need someone strong Europe needs new faces and strong faces so we need personalities that in effect embody that Macron and outgoing Council President Donald Tusk are among those demanding that women be chosen to fill two out of four senior posts Commission chief Council president head of the European parliament and the EU s top diplomat We need parity Macron told RTS In Brussels on Tuesday Juncker who steps down on Oct 31 was asked if he thought Merkel could change her mind and go for a top EU job I don t think so he said Macron and Merkel each addressed the International Labour Organization ILO in Geneva earlier in the day but had no scheduled bilateral meeting diplomats in each delegation said Reporting and writing by Stephanie Nebehay Additional reporting by Gabriela Baczynska in Brussels Editing by Alison Williams NYSE WMB |
WMB | NBA notebook Davis wants trade to Lakers or Knicks | Klutch Sports and Anthony Davis envision the Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks as the only fitting destinations for the All Star power forward According to The Athletic Davis narrowed his official preferred list of four teams submitted to the Pelicans at the 2019 All Star break to only two Still Davis has no say in the matter based on his existing contract He could choose to instruct Rich Paul and Klutch Sports to inform suitors he will not sign beyond next season but the same message of uncertainty didn t halt the Toronto Raptors 2018 pursuit of Kawhi Leonard In the meantime the Pelicans are trying to get a grip on Davis market Davis said during the 2019 All Star break that he wouldn t turn down a trade anywhere in the NBA but described his motive as just wanting to win Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant was traveling to New York City on Tuesday for evaluations on the injury league sources told The Athletic Durant was lost in Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors on Monday and likely for months to come with a ruptured right Achilles Durant who is three weeks from another foray into free agency played for the first time since May 8 when he strained his right calf He exited in the second quarter in a game the Warriors won 106 105 to prevent Toronto from winning the series MVP finalist Paul George of the Oklahoma City Thunder underwent left shoulder surgery to repair a small tear in his labrum the team announced The surgery comes five weeks after George underwent right shoulder surgery to repair a partially torn tendon George who is also a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year established career best averages of 28 points 8 2 rebounds and 2 2 steals while sinking a career high 292 3 pointers in 77 games this season He also matched his career high of 4 1 assists per game Charlotte Hornets forward Michael Kidd Gilchrist underwent surgery for a chronic groin strain The Hornets said Kidd Gilchrist is expected to be available for the start of training camp in September The 25 year old Kidd Gilchrist averaged 6 7 points and 3 8 rebounds in 64 games last season three starts In seven seasons with the Hornets Kidd Gilchrist is averaging 8 8 points and 5 6 rebounds in 421 games 356 starts The Memphis Grizzlies hired former Milwaukee Bucks assistant Taylor Jenkins as their head coach The Grizzlies fired J B Bickerstaff at the end of the 2018 19 season Jenkins will be introduced at a Wednesday press conference Jenkins was assistant to head coach Mike Budenholzer for the past six seasons five with the Atlanta Hawks 2013 18 and last year with the Bucks Jenkins will oversee a reshaped roster in Memphis that could include dealing point guard Mike Conley as the Grizzlies hold the No 2 pick in the 2019 draft and are expected to select Murray State point guard Ja Morant The Golden State Warriors even without the injured Durant were listed as a consensus three point favorite Tuesday to win Game 6 of the NBA Finals Golden State opened as a 4 5 point favorite for Game 6 Westgate posted the Warriors with a 2 5 point edge on Tuesday Toronto leading 3 2 in the finals is at 320 to win the best of seven series according to FanDuel Golden State is 230 to win the series which would conclude Sunday in Toronto if necessary It s a two man Finals MVP race with Raptors forward Kawhi Leonard the favorite at 323 on FanDuel while Warriors guard Stephen Curry is at 240 Hornets forward Marvin Williams NYSE WMB exercised his 15 million player option for the 2019 20 season and will return to Charlotte Williams who turns 33 on June 19 was the second overall pick by the Atlanta Hawks in 2005 out of North Carolina and played for the Utah Jazz before joining the Hornets In 75 games last season Williams averaged 10 1 points and 5 4 rebounds per game He has a career average of 10 5 points and 5 3 rebounds in 1 014 games Field Level Media |
WMB | Day has severely underachieved calls for caddie Williams | PEBBLE BEACH California Reuters Former world number one Jason Day has hired caddie Steve Williams NYSE WMB with an eye toward adding to his single major victory and has told his new bag man to give him some tough love Williams best known for caddying for Tiger Woods in 13 of the American s 15 major titles had retired to his native New Zealand after adding another major to his resume with Adam Scott at the 2013 Masters But 31 year old Day lured Williams back onto the circuit starting at the U S Open at Pebble Beach this week The move comes as Day has slipped to 16th in the world and by his own description severely underachieved in his career I would like to win more than just two majors you know what I mean I ve currently got one now the 2015 PGA Championship winner said on Tuesday Now that I have someone on the bag like Steve I think in certain situations when it comes down to the crunch he ll be able to calm me down There s a lot to learn off a guy that s been out here for a very very long time who has caddied for Tiger Woods for 13 years for Greg Norman for a lot of years Raymond Floyd the list goes on Adam Scott Williams has replaced Luke Reardon Day has been a regular major contender over the past eight years but has fallen frustratingly short several times He has finished runner up at the U S Open twice Masters and PGA Championship and was also one shot out of a playoff at the 2015 British Open I told Steve look my goal is to get back to number one in the world the Australian said I want to do everything I possibly can to get there If I need to do whatever you need to tell me I ll do it He said that being number one there s a lot of sacrifice that comes along with that And we both understand what that means He s very goal oriented And I ve been that way myself And unfortunately I kind of lost my way with regard to goals Having someone that s very driven and very forward focused especially on making me a better player that only drives me to try and improve |
WMB | Thiem seeks to end Serena row with mixed doubles offer | Reuters Austria s Dominic Thiem has extended an olive branch to Serena Williams NYSE WMB after their media room misunderstanding at the French Open by offering to partner the American in mixed doubles at Wimbledon or the U S Open Thiem who finished runner up at Roland Garros was left fuming after being asked to make way for Williams at a post match news conference following her third round defeat in the first week of the tournament Williams who had just lost in straight sets to Sofia Kenin was pushing organizers to give her a room right away and Thiem accused the American of showing bad personality and treating him like a junior Probably it was not Serena s mistake he told reporters on Tuesday I find her achievements unbelievable sensational I would like to make amends with her in Wimbledon or the U S Open mixed doubles In retrospect it was funny that such an organizational mistake happened at a Grand Slam tournament What I do not understand is that it blew up so much Thiem a clay court specialist said he wanted to improve his record at Wimbledon where he has never reached the quarter finals He retired midway through his opening round match against Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis last year
Wimbledon is special the 25 year old added I want to show myself better than last year At that time I was slightly injured and had to give up in the first round Now I see good chances to get relatively far |
WMB | Should Williams Companies WMB Be On Your Radar Now | It commonly happens in stock investing that investors miss the chance of buying winning stocks that they knew would stand out Before they take the plunge others get to know the hidden potential and enter into these stocks pushing them out of reach So instead of repenting spotting the off the radar potential winners and immediately investing in them could be a smart decision One such company that looks well positioned for a solid gain but has been overlooked by investors lately is Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB This Oil Production Pipeline stock has actually seen estimates rise over the past two months for the current fiscal year by about 13 6 But that is not yet reflected in its price as the stock lost 9 8 over the same time frame WILLIAMS COS Price and Consensus You should not be concerned about the price remaining muted going forward This year s expected earnings growth over the prior year is 23 2 which should ultimately translate into price appreciation And if this isn t enough WMB currently carries a Zacks Rank 2 Buy which further underscores the potential for its outperformance See the performance of Zacks portfolios and strategies here So if you are looking for a stock flying under the radar that is well equipped to bounce down the road make sure to considerWilliams Companies Solid estimate revisions and an impressive Zacks Rank suggest that better days may be ahead for WMB and that now might be an interesting buying opportunity |
WMB | Why The Shale Revolution Could Only Happen In America | A few weeks ago we wrote Why Oil Could Be Higher for Longer and since then it has elicited quite a few comments back to us from clients and blog subscribers We won t repeat it in detail here since readers can simply click on the link above to see it But our view is that the outlook for U S crude production over the intermediate term is very constructive and certainly better than current consensus This relates to the superior economics of shale wells compared to conventional drilling and the associated ability of shale Exploration and Production E P companies to quickly respond to changing prices by adjusting drilling activity faster than their peers
Shale wells i e horizontal wells drilled into source rock and stimulated by fracking have many competitive advantages over conventional wells that give us confidence American production of Oil Natural Gas Liquids NGLs and Natural Gas will greatly exceed consensus expectations to meet new energy demand and fill the void left by depleting fields
A recent article in the Financial Times expanded on this theme A chart accompanying the article showed the break evens of twenty potential future projects and the cheapest half dozen are U S shale plays In fact shale oil development benefits from many of the advantages that are inherent in the U S Most Americans take for granted that property ownership comes with mineral rights for anything found below their property but around the world this is by far the In most countries mineral rights belong to the government Getting a farmer to agree to allow drilling on his land is easier if he s able to negotiate a monthly royalty check as opposed to a central authority simply exercising its control
Although many of the cheaper sources of new oil are U S shale Wood Mackenzie doesn t believe there s enough to satisfy the world s consumption at current prices Depletion of existing fields plus new demand create a need for roughly 6MMBD million barrels a day of additional supply annually The market will clear at the marginal cost of the most expensive barrel needed to balance the market a price that looks a good bit higher than today s spot price And for those who think offshore drilling can be attractive BP LON BP just announced the final charge of 5 2BN for the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico Their total costs for this one incident add up to 61 6BN a hit only a few global companies could absorb You can be sure that any offshore drilling in U S continental waters has to account for this possibility in its risk analysis
Critically low cost U S shale wells can be drilled much more quickly and come on with significantly higher initial production IP rates with steep decline curves In fact a new shale well can go from planning to full capital payback before most new conventional projects are even producing This fast decline rate also allows shale oil producers to hedge the bulk of their production which occurs in the first several years in the futures market which is only liquid for a few years out It s worth noting that the quicker the payback the quicker shale E Ps can plowback cash into new shale drilling The chart below from the U S Energy Information Agency highlights how IP rates have improved over the past few years click on image to expand
Geographically the U S is blessed with generally sufficient water supplies close enough to the shale plays that they support since fracking requires a lot of water Entrepreneurial drive is as strong a force in America as anywhere and that combined with highly developed capital markets make access to financing and substantial wealth accumulation possible for those who are able to profitably exploit this resource And continued technological innovation spurred by entrepreneurs is relentlessly driving costs down faster than most expected and faster than conventional plays further increasing their competitive cost advantages playing to another American strength
Even with all the American advantages and helped by the tailwind of high commodity prices it still took a decade for shale drilling to have a meaningful impact on output Major shale drilling anywhere outside the U S is a long way off providing a huge first mover advantage
In other words the shale revolution is occurring because of all these inherent strengths in the U S On top of which energy independence which is where we re heading as a result is in our national interest and highly likely to remain that way The entire story is built on U S advantages and oriented towards U S interests From a strategic perspective given what we know today it seems to us that perhaps the best secular investment theme available is the continuation of this trend to the obvious benefit of the midstream infrastructure Master Limited Partnerships MLPs whose support is critical
It s no longer the case that a distribution cut is bad for an MLP In April Crestwood Equity Partners LP NYSE CEQP cut its distribution at the same time as announcing a JV with Con Edison and steps to reduce its leverage see Crestwood Delevers and Soars Last week Plains GP Holdings LP NYSE PAGP announced a simplified structure with its Plains All American Pipeline LP NYSE PAA and an 11 distribution cut at PAGP Both stocks moved sharply higher on a perceived lower cost of capital and therefore improved growth prospects Williams Companies NYSE WMB is likely to cut its dividend so as to reduce leverage but at a 12 yield there can be few who would be surprised by this A distribution cut in support of a stronger balance sheet seems to attract more buyers than sellers nowadays
Lastly we note that Shell LON RDSa Chemicals is investing 6BN in a new ethylene facility in SW Pennsylvania near Pittsburgh artist s impression from Shell at left It s located there to be close to its supply of ethane in the Marcellus and Utica shale areas of which it expects to consume 90 100 thousand barrels a day The facility will in turn produce 1 5 million tonnes per annum MTPA of ethylene and 1 6 MTPA of polyethylene widely used in everything from food packaging to automotive components This is not a region that has seen a new large industrial project such as this in living memory It s another example of the tangible results of the shale revolution
We are invested in CEQP PAGP and WMB |
WMB | Coals To Newcastle | The expression like sending coals to Newcastle can be back to the 17th century reflecting the insight that whatever else Newcastle needed in those days did not include coal This windswept port on the North Sea was conveniently located near some of the biggest coalfields of northern England
During its heyday American trader Timothy Dexter defied common sense and sent a shipment of coal to Newcastle causing anticipation of a substantial loss However perhaps by luck he had the good fortune for his cargo to arrive during a miners strike thereby profiting from unusual and temporary demand
Coal exports have long since ceased along with local coal production Today s Newcastle possesses little of note beyond an English football stadium with capacity well in excess of their local team s ability they were just relegated from the Premier League Meanwhile Newcastle in the Australian state of New South Wales has become the world s most prolific coal exporting port
LNG to the UAE doesn t quite roll off the tongue as easily as Coals to Newcastle but it might be a modern day equivalent The Middle East has 2 8 quadrillion cubic feet of proved natural gas enough to meet current global demand for 23 years OPEC that the United Arab Emirates UAE holds around 10 of this And yet earlier this year the Energy Atlantic LNG tanker 3 38 BCF billion cubic feet of natural gas at the port of Jebel Ali near Dubai following an almost seven week journey from the Sabine Pass LNG terminal in Louisiana
Somehow the power of economics see has overwhelmed the logic of geographic proximity to make such a delivery commercially reasonable in spite of abundant local resources To show this was no fluke more recently the Creole Spirit unloaded a similar amount in Kuwait also sourced from Sabine Pass The region hasn t developed sufficient energy infrastructure to properly exploit its resource domestically
The story of America s Shale Revolution was built on the single minded pursuit of unconventional fracking technology by many independent exploration and production E P companies as well as some extraordinary chutzpah by a few by Greg Zuckerman memorably tells the story of some of them
Cheniere Energy NYSE LNG under then President Charif Souki was once intent on importing LNG into the U S to take advantage of relatively high domestic prices Cooling natural gas to a near liquid state at 260 F so it can be moved in a condensed form by ship requires a substantial investment i e US BNs to create such a facility as does the construction of a regasification plant on the receiving end
Souki s career wasn t obviously suited to leading Cheniere on this journey having been primarily focused on raising money for banking clients in his native Lebanon and elsewhere in the Middle East His past also included a stint as restaurant owner of Mezzaluna the now infamous Los Angeles eatery where Nicole Simpson ate her last meal on June 12 1994 before being slain by O J Simpson ahem allegedly
Undaunted by the absence of any relevant experience President of Cheniere Souki set out to use his former banking ties to finance their new business The Shale Revolution led to a collapse in domestic natural gas prices and turned the economics upside down causing Cheniere to turn from prospective LNG importer to exporter
The facility that can regassify LNG for normal use is not the same one that can liquify it for long distance transport Converting an LNG import facility to an export one is not the same as reversing a pipeline and many more billions were required for Cheniere to be ready for business
Just as export operations began Souki was pushed out by its board of directors which included Carl Icahn The boss s substantial risk appetite was by now well known but his latest plan to add a gas trading business was a risk too far for investors who could finally see actual cashflows on the horizon Souki s compensation over the years had matched his ego but recognizing that his risk appetite didn t match ours we have never invested in Cheniere
The Sabine Pass facility began exporting late last year and is eventually expected to handle 3 8BCF per day Some of its supply travels from the Marcellus shale in Pennsylvania along the Transco pipeline network owned by Williams Companies NYSE WMB in which we are invested
A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to be presenting in Laceyville Pennsylvania to a group that included landowners receiving royalty checks from the production of natural gas under their property As we noted last week few countries assign mineral rights to the owner of the land beneath which they sit
For just a moment step away from the prosaic question of the market s near term direction and consider this an Egyptian born Lebanese former restaurant owner raised billions to export liquefied natural gas over 11 000 miles to a region of the world whose wealth is totally reliant on hydrocarbons It couldn t have happened anywhere else except America
We are invested in WMB |
WMB | Williams Companies WMB What To Expect In Q2 Earnings | Energy infrastructure provider Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB is set to release second quarter 2016 financial results after the closing bell on Aug 1 The company delivered an average negative earnings surprise of 37 94 for the last four quarters In the preceding three month period the company posted a negative earnings surprise of 70 00 Let s see how things are shaping up for this announcement Factors Likely to Influence This QuarterWilliams is a premier energy infrastructure provider in North America The company boasts a widespread pipeline system and is one of the largest domestic natural gas transporters by volume Hence the company s size and diversity are likely to drive earnings in the to be reported quarter The company s midstream assets which are less sensitive to commodity price fluctuations help it maintain a steady stream of revenues and cash flows in spite of low natural gas prices Despite these positives we remain concerned about the company s high debt levels that make it vulnerable to an extended drop in commodity prices The company s exposure to commodity price volatility has also taken a toll on its volume and distribution growth potential Earnings WhispersOur proven model does not conclusively show that Williams Companies is likely to beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate this quarter This is because a stock needs to have both a positive and a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy 2 Buy or 3 Hold for this to happen Unfortunately this is not the case here as elaborated below Zacks ESP Earnings ESP which represents the difference between the Most Accurate estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate is 10 53 for Williams Companies This is because the Most Accurate estimate is pegged at 17 cents while the Zacks Consensus Estimate stands at 19 cents Zacks Rank Williams Companies has a Zacks Rank 3 which increases the predictive power of ESP However a negative ESP makes surprise prediction difficult Conversely the Sell rated stocks Zacks Rank 4 or 5 should never be considered going into an earnings announcement
WILLIAMS COS Price and EPS Surprise
Stocks to ConsiderThough an earnings beat looks uncertain for Williams here are some companies that you may want to consider on the basis of our model which shows that they have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter Legacy Reserves LP NASDAQ LGCY has an Earnings ESP of 31 58 and a Zacks Rank 1 Northern Oil and Gas Inc NYSE NOG has an Earnings ESP of 20 00 and a Zacks Rank 1 Spectra Energy Corp NYSE SE has an Earnings ESP of 12 00 and a Zacks Rank 2 |
WMB | 3 Things To Watch When Williams Companies Reports On Monday | by Clement Thibault
Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB is an energy infrastructure and transportation company with an emphasis on natural gas It is composed of multiple companies including the MLP Williams Partners NYSE WPZ which operate separately and together on pipelines natural gas gathering and other midstream activities It reports Q2 earnings on Monday August 1 after the market closes
1 Revenue and Earnings Forecast
The consensus EPS estimate for Williams is 0 23 on 1 92B in sales It s clear this company has hit a rough patch which isn t surprising given the sector in which it operates Energy commodity prices have been severely depressed for quite some time and market volatility high The company has missed estimates in the past two quarters by a lot it reported earnings per share of 0 01 and 0 03 in Q4 15 and Q1 16 respectively while estimates were at 0 22 in both cases
2 Disastrous Past Quarter
Williams was to merge with rival pipeline operator Energy Transfer Equity NYSE ETE in a deal that was valued at 33B when it was signed last September But on June 29th the deal fell through when ETE pulled out after it said it discovered a problem that would likely trigger unexpected taxes Wiliams is currently fighting ETE s decision but the deal wasn t unanimously liked on Williams end either
Its board approved the merger but the company s CEO Alan Armstrong opposed the deal Consequently six of Williams 13 board members resigned The deal s termination doesn t end Williams problems either According to the company the collapse in negotiations will likely reflect a loss of between 4B and 10B in shareholder value Add to that a 1 48B termination fee the company now owes ETE and you ve got a significant hit to the company s already shaky bottom line
3 Future Outlook
The company s large quarterly dividend of 0 64 which has been paid regularly since 1974 will likely be history quite soon The company is already highly leveraged it has a debt to EBITDA ratio that s hovering above 12x earnings compared to between 4x to 8x for competitors so adding more debt to protect the dividend isn t an option at this time The company s Canadian assets are for sale in an attempt to reduce their leverage
It s difficult to predict what s next with the company in relative turmoil as of this writing Investors are looking for today s earnings release to provide a modicum of reassurance but recent events and this past year s earnings history suggest shareholder comfort may be hard to come by |
GLW | Corning s 10 Plants Meet EPA Energy Efficiency Standards | Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW recently announced that 10 of its global manufacturing plants have surpassed energy efficiency standards established by the U S Environmental Protection Agency s EPA Energy Star Challenge for Industry Companies have to increase their industrial sites energy efficiency by at least 10 in five years or less time to meet this challenge Following the news its equity price increased 1 19 during the trading session to eventually close at 30 63 on Jan 18 Notably 10 of Corning s production facilities improved their energy efficiency by 10 4 to 52 4 in less than five years These include its Environmental Technologies facilities in Erwin NY and Life Sciences facilities in Salt Lake City UT Durham NC and Warsaw Poland In addition Optical Communications facilities in Hickory NC Winston Salem NC Reynosa Mexico Shanghai China Strykow Poland and Vordingborg Denmark received the accreditation The diversity of these sites which represent three Corning businesses in five countries underscores that energy savings is a priority for the company A number of companies including Corning are making their industrial sites more efficient while reducing carbon emissions with EPA s program They have collectively saved more than 76 trillion British thermal units Corning s Global Energy Management GEM program researches and implements projects at each of the company s manufacturing plants worldwide to meet energy saving objectives These include manufacturing process innovation facility design and maximizing energy efficiencies in the plant and through improved supply chain initiatives Since Corning created its GEM program in 2006 it has won recognition as an Energy Star Partner of the Year every year since 2014 delivering more than half a billion dollars in savings and cutting greenhouse gas emissions by more than 2 3 million metric tons Earlier Corning was also recognized by the European Commission for developing an innovative solution that helps clean the air It received the Horizon 2020 Materials for Clean Air Award for its Air Purification Technology which helps reduce particulate matter in the air to levels below the guidelines set by the World Health Organization underscoring the collaborative work of its R D and engineering teams in Europe and China Existing Business ScenarioBeing a leading innovator in the glass substrate industry Corning has been developing formulations that are aptly suited for imparting superior picture quality with environment friendly production process The company has several products focusing on the datacenter with a portfolio consisting of optical fiber hardware cable and connectors that helps it create solutions to meet varying consumer needs The expanding fiber optic market should drive Corning s growth in the long haul Further the company aims to move forward in the value chain beyond glass and tap the immense potential of the automotive market for future growth Owing to operational efficiency Corning s shares have rallied 23 7 over the past two years on an average outperforming the s growth of 21 1 Corning currently has a Zacks Rank 4 Sell Better ranked stocks in the industry include Spirent Communications plc OTC SPMYY Acacia Communications Inc NASDAQ ACIA and Vocera Communications Inc NYSE VCRA each carrying a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see Spirent has a long term earnings growth expectation of 11 Acacia has a long term earnings growth expectation of 12 4 Vocera has a long term earnings growth expectation of 18 3 Zacks Top 10 Stocks for 2019In addition to the stocks discussed above would you like to know about our 10 finest buy and holds for the year Who wouldn t Our annual Top 10s have beaten the market with amazing regularity In 2018 while the market dropped 5 2 the portfolio scored well into double digits overall with individual stocks rising as high as 61 5 And from 2012 2017 while the market boomed 126 3 Zacks Top 10s reached an even more sensational 181 9 |
GLW | Corning GLW Q4 Earnings And Revenues Surpass Estimates | Corning GLW came out with quarterly earnings of 0 59 per share beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 0 57 per share This compares to earnings of 0 49 per share a year ago These figures are adjusted for non recurring items
This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 3 51 A quarter ago it was expected that this specialty glass maker would post earnings of 0 48 per share when it actually produced earnings of 0 51 delivering a surprise of 6 25
Over the last four quarters the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates four times
Corning which belongs to the Zacks Communication Components industry posted revenues of 3 08 billion for the quarter ended December 2018 surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2 10 This compares to year ago revenues of 2 74 billion The company has topped consensus revenue estimates four times over the last four quarters
The sustainability of the stock s immediate price movement based on the recently released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management s commentary on the earnings call
Corning shares have added about 0 5 since the beginning of the year versus the S P 500 s gain of 5 5
What s Next for Corning
While Corning has underperformed the market so far this year the question that comes to investors minds is what s next for the stock
There are no easy answers to this key question but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company s earnings outlook Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter s but also how these expectations have changed lately
Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried and tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions
Ahead of this earnings release the estimate revisions trend for Corning was unfavorable While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company s just released earnings report the current status translates into a Zacks Rank 4 Sell for the stock So the shares are expected to underperform the market in the near future You can see the complete list of today s Zacks 1 Rank Strong Buy stocks here
It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and current fiscal year change in the days ahead The current consensus EPS estimate is 0 44 on 2 84 billion in revenues for the coming quarter and 2 05 on 12 08 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year
Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank Communication Components is currently in the top 25 of the 250 plus Zacks industries Our research shows that the top 50 of the Zacks ranked industries outperform the bottom 50 by a factor of more than 2 to 1 |
GLW | Corning GLW Surges Stock Moves 11 1 Higher | Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW was a big mover last session as the company saw its shares rise more than 11 on the day The move came on solid volume too with far more shares changing hands than in a normal session This breaks the recent trend of the company as the stock is now trading above the volatile price range of 28 03 to 30 63 in the past one month time frame The move came after the company reported solid fourth quarter 2018 financial results The company has seen a mixed track record when it comes to estimate revision of no increase and one decrease over the past few weeks while the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current quarter has remained unchanged The recent price action is encouraging though so make sure to keep a close watch on this firm in the near future Corning currently has a Zacks Rank 4 Sell while its is negative Corning Incorporated Price
Investors interested in the Communication Components industry may consider Altice USA Inc NYSE ATUS which has a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy You can see the complete list of today s Zacks 1 Rank stocks here Is GLW going up Or down Predict to see what others think Up or DownZacks Top 10 Stocks for 2019In addition to the stocks discussed above wouldn t you like to know about our 10 finest buy and holds for the year From more than 4 000 companies covered by the Zacks Rank these 10 were picked by a process that consistently beats the market Even during 2018 while the market dropped 5 2 our Top 10s were up well into double digits And during bullish 2012 2017 they soared far above the market s 126 3 reaching 181 9 This year the portfolio features a player that thrives on volatility an AI comer and a dynamic tech company that helps doctors deliver better patient outcomes at lower costs |
GLW | Corning GLW Reports Next Week Wall Street Expects Earnings Growth | Wall Street expects a year over year increase in earnings on higher revenues when Corning GLW reports results for the quarter ended March 2019 While this widely known consensus outlook is important in gauging the company s earnings picture a powerful factor that could impact its near term stock price is how the actual results compare to these estimates
The earnings report which is expected to be released on April 30 2019 might help the stock move higher if these key numbers are better than expectations On the other hand if they miss the stock may move lower
While the sustainability of the immediate price change and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management s discussion of business conditions on the earnings call it s worth handicapping the probability of a positive EPS surprise
Zacks Consensus Estimate
This specialty glass maker is expected to post quarterly earnings of 0 39 per share in its upcoming report which represents a year over year change of 25 8
Revenues are expected to be 2 81 billion up 12 from the year ago quarter
Estimate Revisions Trend
The consensus EPS estimate for the quarter has been revised 0 85 lower over the last 30 days to the current level This is essentially a reflection of how the covering analysts have collectively reassessed their initial estimates over this period
Investors should keep in mind that an aggregate change may not always reflect the direction of estimate revisions by each of the covering analysts
Price Consensus and EPS Surprise
Earnings Whisper
Estimate revisions ahead of a company s earnings release offer clues to the business conditions for the period whose results are coming out This insight is at the core of our proprietary surprise prediction model the Zacks Earnings ESP Expected Surprise Prediction
The Zacks Earnings ESP compares the Most Accurate Estimate to the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarter the Most Accurate Estimate is a more recent version of the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate The idea here is that analysts revising their estimates right before an earnings release have the latest information which could potentially be more accurate than what they and others contributing to the consensus had predicted earlier
Thus a positive or negative Earnings ESP reading theoretically indicates the likely deviation of the actual earnings from the consensus estimate However the model s predictive power is significant for positive ESP readings only
A positive Earnings ESP is a strong predictor of an earnings beat particularly when combined with a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy 2 Buy or 3 Hold Our research shows that stocks with this combination produce a positive surprise nearly 70 of the time and a solid Zacks Rank actually increases the predictive power of Earnings ESP
Please note that a negative Earnings ESP reading is not indicative of an earnings miss Our research shows that it is difficult to predict an earnings beat with any degree of confidence for stocks with negative Earnings ESP readings and or Zacks Rank of 4 Sell or 5 Strong Sell
How Have the Numbers Shaped Up for Corning
For Corning the Most Accurate Estimate is higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate suggesting that analysts have recently become bullish on the company s earnings prospects This has resulted in an Earnings ESP of 3 90
On the other hand the stock currently carries a Zacks Rank of 4
So this combination makes it difficult to conclusively predict that Corning will beat the consensus EPS estimate
Does Earnings Surprise History Hold Any Clue
While calculating estimates for a company s future earnings analysts often consider to what extent it has been able to match past consensus estimates So it s worth taking a look at the surprise history for gauging its influence on the upcoming number
For the last reported quarter it was expected that Corning would post earnings of 0 57 per share when it actually produced earnings of 0 59 delivering a surprise of 3 51
Over the last four quarters the company has beaten consensus EPS estimates four times
Bottom Line
An earnings beat or miss may not be the sole basis for a stock moving higher or lower Many stocks end up losing ground despite an earnings beat due to other factors that disappoint investors Similarly unforeseen catalysts help a number of stocks gain despite an earnings miss
That said betting on stocks that are expected to beat earnings expectations does increase the odds of success This is why it s worth checking a company s Earnings ESP and Zacks Rank ahead of its quarterly release Make sure to utilize our Earnings ESP Filter to uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they ve reported
Corning doesn t appear a compelling earnings beat candidate However investors should pay attention to other factors too for betting on this stock or staying away from it ahead of its earnings release |
GLW | Corning GLW Q1 Earnings Revenues Top Estimates Up Y Y | Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW reported solid first quarter 2019 financial results led by investments in product development and manufacturing capacity driving sales and profit growth across markets Net IncomeOn a GAAP basis net income for the quarter improved significantly to 499 million or 55 cents per share from net loss of 589 million or loss of 72 cents per share in the year ago quarter primarily due to top line growth translated earnings contract gain and lower provision for income tax Core earnings came in at 365 million or 40 cents per share compared with 299 million or 31 cents per share in the year earlier quarter Adjusted earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1 cent Corning Incorporated Price Consensus and EPS Surprise
RevenuesQuarterly GAAP net sales were up 12 5 year over year to 2 812 million driven by revenue growth in all businesses particularly Display Technologies Optical Communications and Environmental Technologies Core sales increased 13 4 to 2 850 million surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 2 813 million Segmental PerformanceNet sales of Display Technologies segment were 818 million compared with 745 million reflecting improving pricing climate and Corning s extended global leadership by successfully ramping Gen 10 5 production which allowed it to grow volume faster than the overall market The segment s net income was 208 million compared with 185 million in the prior year quarter Net sales of Optical Communications increased 20 1 year over year to 1 064 million driven by solid demand from data center and carrier customers The business remains on track to exceed its goal of 5 billion in 2020 sales The segment s net income was 142 million compared with 109 million in the prior year quarter Environmental Technologies segment s net sales increased 12 4 to 362 million driven by growth in all product categories and sales of gasoline particulate filters The segment s net income was 55 million compared with 52 million in the prior year quarter The Specialty Materials segment s net sales climbed 11 2 to 309 million driven by strong pull for Corning s portfolio of mobile consumer electronics glass solutions The segment s net income was 49 million compared with 46 million in the prior year quarter Net sales of Life Sciences segment were up 4 7 to 243 million as the business continued to outpace market growth The segment s net income was 31 million compared with 27 million in the prior year quarter Other DetailsDespite 10 9 year over year rise in cost of sales to 1 713 million operating income increased to 420 million from 194 million owing to top line growth Gross profit increased to 1 099 million from 955 million Core gross profit was 1 139 million compared with 1 010 million in the prior year quarter During the reported quarter Corning announced 518 U S patents issued in 2018 bolstering its leadership in glass ceramics optical physics and proprietary manufacturing technology Cash Flow LiquidityDuring the first quarter Corning utilized 29 million of net cash from operating activities against cash generation of 320 million in the year ago period As of Mar 31 2019 the company had 1 456 million in cash and equivalents with 6 018 million of long term debt 2019 OutlookCorning expects growth in 2019 and beyond driven by benefits from its investments as well as adoption of technologies aligned to key industry trends and the company s cohesive portfolio Optical Communications is expected to be up about 10 revised from previous expectation of a low teens percentage In Display Technologies glass market volume is likely to rise at mid single digit percentage as television screen size growth continues For Specialty Materials the company expects growth by a mid single digit percentage year over year Life Sciences sales are expected to increase by a low to mid single digit percentage continuing to outpace overall market growth The company is progressing well on Strategy and Capital Allocation Framework Since the program began it has returned 12 3 billion to shareholders and aims to return more than 12 5 billion Going ForwardCorning is making encouraging progress on its focused portfolio objectives remaining well poised to achieve its Strategy and Capital Allocation Framework goals Standing at an inflection point the company is gaining momentum Zacks Rank Stocks to ConsiderCorning currently has a Zacks Rank 4 Sell Better ranked stocks in the industry include Knowles Corp NYSE KN Acacia Communications Inc NASDAQ ACIA and Spirent Communications plc OTC SPMYY While Knowles sports a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy Acacia and Spirent carry a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see Knowles has long term earnings growth expectation of 10 Acacia has long term earnings growth expectation of 18 5 Spirent has long term earnings growth expectation of 6 Is Your Investment Advisor Fumbling Your Financial Future See how you can more effectively safeguard your retirement with a new Special Report 4 Warning Signs Your Investment Advisor Might Be Sabotaging Your Financial Future |
VZ | Deutsche Bank starts AT T at Buy Verizon at Hold | AT T T 1 4 is outpacing rival stocks today after an initiation at Deutsche Bank at Buy The bank set a 44 target implying 13 upside That s part of a generally Bullish take among sell side analysts matched by similar positivity from Seeking Alpha authors AT T has a Quant Rating of Neutral It s started key peer Verizon VZ 0 7 at Hold with a 63 target that implies 3 8 upside Sentiment on the Street is Neutral and Verizon has a Quant Rating of Neutral while Seeking Alpha authors are Bullish |
VZ | Verizon launching co branded credit card | Verizon VZ 0 4 is launching a credit card designed for its customers in partnership with Synchrony SYF 1 The co branded card is expected to launch in the first half of the year There are no details about card features so far though Verizon has launched a site where it will reveal details Verizon s loyal customers expect the best possible experiences and today s announcement extends that commitment to the credit card market says Verizon s Ronan Dunne |
VZ | Malaysian rights group sues Singapore minister over fake news directive | KUALA LUMPUR Reuters A Malaysian rights group filed a suit in a domestic court against a Singapore minister on Friday seeking to challenge his order to attach a correction to an article on its blog that accused the city state of illegal execution practices
Last week the group Lawyers for Liberty LFL said Singapore prison officers were allegedly instructed to snap prisoners necks by kicking them in the event of a rope breaking during hangings
It said the report was based on information from an unidentified prison officer in Singapore
On Wednesday Singapore s minister for home affairs K Shanmugam denied the accusations as untrue baseless and preposterous and ordered the group and several websites to attach fake news notices to posts and articles carrying them
In their suit the Malaysian lawyers say Shanmugam s directive cannot be carried out because it oversteps Singapore s jurisdiction
He gave direction asking them to publish a correction failing which Singapore s government can take action against them which includes ultimately being charged in Singapore s courts said the group s lawyer Gurdial Singh Nijar
We are saying that direction is of no effect null and void and cannot be enforced Gurdial said adding that the group hoped to serve notice on Shanmugam as soon as possible
Singapore s home affairs ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment
Not long after Shanmugam s directive Yahoo NASDAQ AABA Singapore owned by Verizon Communications NYSE VZ posted the correction notice on its Facebook NASDAQ FB page adding that it was legally required to do so by the government s order
In a statement on Thursday Singapore s communication and information ministry said it had blocked access to the rights group s website after it refused to comply with the directive
The Singapore fake news law seen as one of the most far reaching measures of its kind took effect in October amid concern among rights groups and opposition politicians that it could be used to silence government criticism
The government has denied such suggestions saying the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act only targets falsehoods and legitimate criticism and free speech would not be affected |
VZ | Verizon Dignitas team on 5G esports training facility | Verizon NYSE VZ is teaming up with Dignitas on a strategic deal to launch a state of the art 5G training facility for esports The Verizon 5G Gaming Center will be located at Verizon s 5G Lab in Los Angeles and measure up at 5 500 square feet It will serve as West Coast headquarters for Dignitas and its League of Legends teams We re thrilled to partner with the largest ownership group in esports and have our LA Lab be home to the nation s first 5G esports training facility says Verizon Chief Product Development Officer Nicki Palmer |
VZ | What Are the Odds Verizon Becomes the New King of Sports Betting | The acquisition of Yahoo by Verizon NYSE VZ hasn t paid off quite the way the telecom giant likely hoped it would but it may yet fuel some of its biggest growth opportunities
In November Verizon announced it was going to expand on the Yahoo Sports brand by making it a center for sports betting When it debuted only people using the app in New Jersey could place bets but Verizon plans to expand it this year to five more states were wagering on athletic contests is legal As more states start to allow people to bet legally on sports Yahoo could realize a good portion of its potential
Giving it a sporting chance
To monetize the Yahoo Sports app Verizon is partnering with Roar Digital a joint venture between MGM Resorts NYSE MGM and GVC Holdings to funnel sports betting through the casino operator s gambling platform BetMGM The new venture is called Yahoo Sportsbook powered by BetMGM
The telecom says it s an effort that builds on its core strategy to connect content and discovery to transactions It will also allow the online betting platform to integrate with Yahoo s fantasy sports operations and content
New Jersey was one of the first states to authorize sports wagers after the U S Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 which barred states from authorizing sports gambling The Garden State went on to become the biggest market for sports betting quickly beating out Nevada where that form of gambling has been legal for decades
The place to bet on sports
Online gambling hit almost half a billion dollars in New Jersey in 2019 driven mostly by casinos as online poker remains weak Its rise has been fueled by both FanDuel which partnered with The Meadowlands Racetrack and DraftKings which has partnered with Resorts Atlantic City and just filed for an IPO Together they control about 80 of the online market in the state but FanDuel is the biggest sportsbook in the country with about a 60 share
New Jersey generated almost 4 6 billion in sports betting handle last year and revenue of nearly 300 million In the state s gambling parlance handle is the amount that is wagered revenue is the amount the casinos keep
MGM is the third largest online betting site in the state through its Borgata casino which uses BetMGM and PartyPoker but there are 17 sportsbook apps operating in New Jersey and 10 retail books operating out of Atlantic City casinos and racetracks PartyPoker is a property of Roar Digital
Off to a roaring start
The Yahoo Sportsbook will essentially serve as an affiliate of BetMGM steering its traffic to the platform which will handle the betting transactions The partners haven t said how much compensation Verizon will receive for funneling customers to the platform but considering the telecom s desire to monetize its media outlets and its willingness to expand the partnership to more states the terms are likely favorable
Earlier this month Roar Digital gained approval from Nevada gambling regulators to operate online sports betting in the state It will be rebranding its PlayMGM digital sportsbook to BetMGM and it hopes to be operational by the time of the March Madness tournaments
Verizon has been transforming its media division away from social media and user generated content and last August sold Tumblr as part of that realignment Making its properties money generating enterprises is the new goal
A nationwide opportunity
Currently 14 states offer full service sports betting and another eight have legalized it but have yet to authorize its operation For example Michigan just legalized it in December and expects to have its system up and running in March but Connecticut which legalized it in 2017 ahead of the Supreme Court s ruling has failed to enact enabling legislation Another half dozen states or so are considering it
MGM Resorts has been building up a sports betting empire with professional sports league partnerships but with this latest deal with Verizon and Yahoo Sports could turn the telecom into the power behind the throne |
VZ | Sprint loses fewer subscribers than expected on cheaper phone plans | By Neha Malara and Arriana McLymore
Reuters Sprint Corp said on Monday it lost fewer mobile monthly postpaid phone subscribers than expected in the third quarter benefiting from cheaper plans ahead of a merger with larger rival T Mobile US NASDAQ TMUS Inc
Investors look at postpaid subscribers or people who pay a recurring monthly bill because they tend to stay with carriers longer and are more profitable than prepaid phone customers
The company said it lost 115 000 postpaid phone subscribers during the quarter ended Dec 31 Analysts were expecting a net loss of 160 000 subscribers according to research firm FactSet
Sprint reported 1 87 postpaid phone churn compared with 1 75 a year ago New Street Research analysts pointed to the pace of Sprint s decline calling the prospects of the company grim if it does not reach a merger with larger rival T Mobile US
Sprint the fourth largest U S wireless carrier by subscribers is facing a multistate lawsuit against its 26 billion proposed merger
T Mobile and Sprint have said the merger will not lead to higher prices for consumers and would allow it to compete effectively with dominant carriers Verizon Communications Inc NYSE VZ and AT T Inc
Sprint focused its 2019 efforts on aggressively deploying its network of 5G the next generation of wireless to nine major cities The company has not announced any new expansion plans as it hopes to solidify the merger with T Mobile and use the combined strength of its larger competitor s 5G network
Net loss attributable to the company fell to 120 million in the quarter ended Dec 31 from 141 million a year earlier The current quarter included a non cash tax benefit of approximately 300 million to reduce the valuation allowance related to certain historic net operating loss carryforwards
Sprint recorded 408 million in income tax benefit in the third quarter compared with 8 million a year earlier
The company reported an adjusted loss of 8 cents per share for the quarter missing analyst s forecasts for a loss of 5 cents per share according to IBES data from Refinitiv
Total net operating revenue fell 6 1 to 8 08 billion missing analysts estimate of 8 22 billion
Sprint shares were down 1 24 at 4 78 a share in early trading on the New York Stock Exchange |
WMB | Fed s Williams Says Outlook Still Solid While Risks Mounting | Bloomberg Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams NYSE WMB said the outlook for the U S economy remains solid while acknowledging that risks are rising and that investors expect the central bank to lower interest rates in response
My baseline is a very good one but at the same time we obviously as always need to be prepared to adjust our views said Williams answering questions from a moderator and the audience following a speech in New York on Thursday
Williams who s influential on monetary policy given the New York Fed chief holds a permanent vote on the Federal Open Market Committee said he understands the market s concerns He stopped short of endorsing an interest rate cut as he reinforced the openness and flexibility that Fed Chair Jerome Powell and Vice Chair Richard Clarida signaled in remarks earlier this week
He said the inverted yield curve in which long term Treasury rates have fallen below short term rates gives a pretty strong signal that markets expect borrowing costs to come down and he takes that seriously At the same time Williams said he doesn t see the indicator as the single oracle that a recession is coming even though such inversion has preceded previous downturns He added that the yield curve didn t require the Fed to cut rates
Fed officials have signaled they re open to cutting rates if an escalating trade war dims the U S economic outlook but they ve stopped short of flagging a move when they next meet June 18 19 in Washington
Powell said Tuesday he was closely monitoring the implications of trade developments and the central bank would act as appropriate to sustain the economic expansion
Investors have increased bets the Fed will ease after President Donald Trump threatened Mexico last week with additional tariffs unless it curbs the flow of migrants into the U S
Dallas Fed chief Robert Kaplan told reporters in Boston earlier on Thursday that it was premature to decide that the central bank needs to respond
I think risks to the downside have increased but I think it s too soon to make a judgment about whether any actions would be appropriate he said I want to give this a little more time and let events unfold |
WMB | West Point cadet killed when military vehicle flips at training site | By Mike Segar WEST POINT N Y Reuters One cadet from the U S Military Academy in West Point New York died and 22 cadets and soldiers were injured on Thursday when a tactical vehicle carrying them flipped over during a training mission officials said The accident occurred near the Camp Natural Bridge a summer training site for cadets the academy said Video from a news helicopter showed the vehicle overturned with its wheels up in a heavily wooded area Twenty cadets and two U S Army soldiers were injured West Point said in a statement The injuries ranged from a facial abrasion to a broken arm said Colonel Brett Venable the commander of Keller Army Community Hospital Officials did not say what caused the accident Today was a tragic day for the West Point community and our United States Army Lieutenant General Darryl Williams NYSE WMB the superintendent of the academy located on the Hudson River about 50 miles north of New York City said at a news conference The two U S Army soldiers were operating the vehicle taking the West Point cadets through mountainous terrain on the way to a training area Williams said The soldiers were in a cab and the cadets who are seniors due to graduate in 2020 were in the bed of the vehicle under a soft canopy said Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Ophardt an Army spokesman Officials provided no details on the cadet who died So sorry to hear about the terrible accident involving our GREAT West Point Cadets President Donald Trump said on Twitter We mourn the loss of life and pray for the injured God Bless them ALL New York Governor Andrew Cuomo issued a statement saying the accident is made all the more heart wrenching as we commemorate the 75th anniversary of D Day today a day where we remember those who gave their lives for our country Last year 16 U S service members died in training accidents in non hostile environments while 15 died in hostile action according to figures from the Pentagon
The story refiles to remove extraneous 20 from third paragraph |
WMB | Fed s Williams sees headwinds from tariffs open mind on rates | By Richard Leong and Ann Saphir NEW YORK SAN FRANCISCO Reuters New York Federal Reserve Bank President John Williams NYSE WMB said Thursday that concerns about escalating trade tariffs and slowing global growth are boosting uncertainty and holding back business investment but he is keeping an open mind on interest rates And while the inverted yield curve in the U S Treasuries market is informative about what markets believe the Fed should do he said he does not perceive it as an oracle on the chances of an economic recession and that it does not force the Fed to cut rates The Fed may leave interest rates where they are and may need to adjust them Williams said at an event organized by the Council on Foreign Relations in New York My baseline economic view is a very good one At the same time we obviously as always need to be prepared to adjust our views on what s happening with the economy and where the economy is likely going to go and as a consequence think about what is the right policy to keep this economy on a good strong growth path with inflation at about 2 he said Williams comments were the latest among Fed policy makers who see the risk of persistent low inflation and the trade conflict between the United States and its trading partners Interest rates futures on Thursday implied traders expect the Fed may lower key lending rates by 75 basis points by year end from its current target range of 2 25 2 50 based on CME Group s FedWatch program Williams added that he and his staff will look at the issue intensively starting next week ahead of its June 18 19 rate setting meeting in Washington Williams said his base case for U S GDP growth this year is for an above trend 2 25 to 2 5 but tailwinds from last year s tax cuts and government spending increase are fading and headwinds from trade tensions are rising Escalating trade risks have rattled stock markets and pushed 10 year Treasury yields below interest rates on three month bills The inversion between these two rates when it persists has preceded each U S recession in the past 50 years While the yield curve is a useful gauge on market sentiment Williams said a curve inversion does not automatically mean a recession is imminent
It s clearly a pretty strong signal in the market that there is perception that rates are going to be lower in the future he said But I don t take the inverted yield curve like an oracle |
WMB | Serena unlikely to play Wimbledon warmup says coach | By Danielle Rossingh PARIS Reuters Serena Williams NYSE WMB is likely to go into Wimbledon without playing a warm up event because she is still injured her coach Patrick Mouratoglou has told Reuters After a third round exit at the French Open Williams said she felt so short in matches she was considering seeking a wildcard at one of the grass court events and see what happens Williams a seven time Wimbledon champion and her older sister Venus a five time winner at the All England Club usually prepare for the world s only grass court Grand Slam event at home in Florida I don t know yet I don t think so because first the goal is for her to be injury free and pain free and then we need to work hard so if she can play great but I don t know if she can play Mouratoglou said in an interview at Roland Garros when asked if Williams would play a warmup tournament The Wimbledon Championships start July 1 Williams last played an event before Wimbledon in 2011 when she entered Eastbourne after an 11 month injury break for a foot injury during which she also had surgery for a pulmonary embolism on her lung She s a bit injured so we need to solve the problem because there is a double problem said Mouratoglou who has guided the 37 year old American to 10 Grand Slam titles since they started working together in 2012 The first problem is that she can t prepare the proper way because of the injury and the second thing is that she is playing with the pain so we have to solve that the Frenchman added Having played just nine matches before Roland Garros including just one on clay Williams quest for a record tying 24th Grand Slam singles title was ended by American teenager Sofia Kenin in straight sets at Roland Garros After her earliest defeat in Paris since 2014 Williams went to see Mouratoglou s long time doctor for a left knee injury that has been bothering her since the Miami Open in March We saw the doctor I have in Paris I m working with him for 20 years I think we re going to be fine Mouratoglou said Asked if it would have been better for the three time French Open winner to have skipped the clay altogether Mouratoglou said It s probably better not to play when you re not ready This is one way to see it but the other way to see it the one I chose Serena has been able in her career to figure out ways to win without being ready quite a number of times he added
She won Roland Garros with 40 degrees fever She won the Australian Open being completely unfit because she didn t have time to practise after injury With Serena there is no rule |
WMB | Teenager Vondrousova outwits Konta to reach French Open final | By Martyn Herman PARIS Reuters Unseeded Czech Marketa Vondrousova became the first teenager to reach a Grand Slam final for 10 years as she outsmarted Johanna Konta 7 5 7 6 2 at the French Open on Friday The 19 year old left hander lost the first 10 points of the match on a rainy Court Simonne Mathieu but had more guile than her bigger hitting opponent in testing conditions She will take on Australia s Ashleigh Barty in Saturday s final bidding to become the first Czech woman to win the French Open since Hana Mandlikova also 19 won in 1981 Eighth seed Barty prevented an all teenager final by beating 17 year old American Amanda Anisimova in three sets Caroline Wozniacki was the last teenager to reach a Grand Slam final when she lost to Kim Clijsters at the 2009 U S Open while Ana Ivanovic was the last to reach the Roland Garros final losing to Justine Henin in 2007 Vondrousova might be the latest off the Czech tennis production line but she is not from the same mould as the likes of hard hitters such as Petra Kvitova or Karolina Pliskova Her game is full of surprises and it was appropriate she finished off Konta with her favorite drop shot It s amazing I never imagined this It s the best week of my life so far said Vondrousova who moved alone to Prague from the small western town of Sokolov as a 15 year old Konta who has lost all three of her Grand Slam semi finals will rue missed opportunities but praised her wily opponent She s consistently there asking questions and I think that s a real gift of hers she said Vondrousova has won more matches than any player on the WTA Tour since the Australian Open and has swept through to the final in Paris without conceding a set LOST FIRST 10 POINTS Her compatriot Lucie Safarova was the last woman player to achieve that in 2015 when Vondrousova won the junior doubles final before rushing over to watch her lose to Serena Williams NYSE WMB Fast forward four years and she is on the cusp of joining the list of illustrious Czech Grand Slam champions Things did not look good when she opened with two double faults and lost the opening 10 points in a flash on a half empty court its atmosphere flat as a result of a weather enforced move to the complex s third showcourt Konta bidding to become the first British woman to reach a Grand Slam final since 1977 will be kicking herself The 28 year old who had never won a round at Roland Garros before this year had three set points when she led 5 3 in the opener but on the first lashed an easy volley well over the baseline with the court at her mercy From that point on Vondrousova began to use her splendid array of drop shots lobs and superb anticipation to take charge helped by regular errors off the Konta racquet She broke the Konta serve to level at 5 5 and then held with an exquisite drop shot and lob volley combination Vondrousova claimed the first set with a defensive lob that landed plumb on the baseline The Czech who has a tattoo reading no rain no flowers an appropriate message considering the conditions and the court s setting surrounded by greenhouses trailed 5 3 in the second set but again Konta s game disintegrated Serving for the set she lost a volleying exchange at 15 30 and then double faulted at 30 40
Konta bashed away a forehand winner to take the set into a tiebreak but Vondrousova showed remarkable calm to move 6 2 ahead and then clinch victory by conjuring another dropshot to leave her opponent stranded on the baseline |
WMB | In Harlem and on Broadway The Temptations get their due | By Alicia Powell NEW YORK Reuters The Temptations whose string of hits in the 1960s and 1970s are being celebrated in a Tony nominated show on Broadway got a star on the Apollo Theatre s Walk of Fame in Harlem on Friday It s like breaking all records of all the things that we ve done said Otis Williams NYSE WMB the only surviving member of the five man group behind such classics as Just My Imagination and Papa Was a Rollin Stone The Apollo honoring The Temptations phew Unheard of But I m loving it because this is our home Williams told Reuters Television The Temptations performed at the Apollo as part of the Motortown Revue in the early 1960s along with other Motown artists like The Supremes Stevie Wonder and the Four Tops More than fifty years on the band s story and music is enjoying a revival with the Broadway musical Ain t Too Proud The Life and Times of the Temptations which got 12 Tony award nominations including best musical Friday s ceremony took place ahead of the Tony awards ceremony on Sunday where the cast of the show will perform Williams said watching the musical was an emotional experience Every time I ve seen it it s been a tear jerker he said We were at the right place at the right time And we kept polishing up our act he said Williams 77 said although it was hard to choose a favorite song he would have to go with My Girl in 1964 which gave the band its first U S number one chart hit Once they hear that boom boom boom boom people start standing up like trees growing out of the ground They love that song he said |
WMB | Barty s parents to miss the Paris party | SYDNEY Reuters While millions of their compatriots will stay up late into the night to watch Ash Barty try and win the French Open on Saturday her parents will be stranded just a couple of hundred miles away from Roland Garros Australian media reported on Saturday that Rob and Josie Barty were already in the air on their way to England when their 23 year old daughter sealed her epic semi final victory over teenager Amanda Anisimova in Paris Flights from Queensland to London take a good 24 hours however so the proud parents will not have enough time to touch down and then make the dash across the English Channel in time to watch Saturday s final against Marketa Vondrousova That will not of course diminish their pride at Barty s astonishing run to the final where she will be aiming to bring Australia its first French Open women s singles title in 46 years Over the last three years Ash has worked hard to get to this position and deserves every success that comes her way father Rob told the Herald Sun That her parents had planned their trip to support Barty during the grasscourt season is an indication of just how surprising her run on the red clay of the Roland Garros courts has been There were though a few signs that something special was brewing this year for the 23 year old who famously quit the sport in her teens and took up professional cricket Since swapping bat for racket again in 2016 Barty has risen from 325th to eighth in the world going into the French Open a ranking that will improve to second if she beats Czech Vondrousova Barty reached the final of her first tournament of the year in Sydney and her first Grand Slam quarter final at the Australian Open two weeks later Two singles victories over American opponents helped Australia into the final of the Fed Cup and the wins kept coming on the WTA tour with her fourth career title secured in March at the Miami Open She has had some help along the way over the last two weeks in Paris with potential opponents Serena Williams NYSE WMB Naomi Osaka and Simona Halep all removed from her path to a first Grand Slam final by upsets Barty has impressed many with her cool demeanor in a sport where mental fragility is commonplace though and she needed every bit of that composure in her rollercoaster ride of a semi final against Anisimova which she won 6 7 4 6 3 6 3 I m just proud of myself the way I was able to fight and scrap and hang in there and find a way she told reporters in Paris
Australians like nothing better than a battler and win or lose Barty s surprise bid for the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen is sure to knock even their beloved cricketers currently defending their World Cup title in England off the back pages |
WMB | Moldovan parties agree to form government after months of deadlock | By Alexander Tanas and Matthias Williams NYSE WMB CHISINAU KIEV Reuters Moldovan parties on Saturday agreed to form a government and appoint Maia Sandu a former education minister and World Bank adviser as prime minister with a mandate to curb the power of oligarchs in one of Europe s poorest countries Sandu s pro European Union ACUM bloc formed a working coalition with the Russian backed Socialist party breaking months of deadlock after a parliamentary election in February produced a hung parliament But their alliance set up a clash with the Democratic Party of Moldova and the Constitutional Court which earlier said parliament should be dissolved and any decision taken by lawmakers on forming a government would be void Sandu is a fierce opponent of the Democratic Party which formed the last government and its leader Vladimir Plahotniuc a wealthy tycoon she accuses of corruption and abuse of power Plahotniuc was the target of street protests but in 2016 he told Reuters that negative perceptions about him were down to lies spread by his opponents after he entered politics Injustice has come to an end today in Moldova Sandu said Today begins the process of the purification of Moldova The Democrats accuse ACUM and the Socialists of usurping power at Russia s behest and deputy chairman Andrian Candu said they would challenge the formation of the government in court In a parliament session convened on Saturday Sandu and the Socialists also signed a declaration calling Moldova a captured state A nation of 3 5 million the tiny ex Soviet republic is squeezed between Ukraine and EU member Romania Politically divided some of its voters favor closer ties with the EU or even reunification with Romania while others prefer closer ties to Russia THEFT OF THE CENTURY Moldova has been dogged by political instability and corruption especially since a scandal known as the theft of the century emerged in 2014 2015 where 1 billion around an eighth of its economic output was pilfered from three banks We must free the captured state institutions depoliticize the Constitutional Court get rid of the oligarchs said Andrei Nastase who leads ACUM alongside Sandu We will form a government today Candu told Reuters by phone the Socialists had ignored a ruling by the Constitutional Court stipulating that if a government was not formed by June 7 there would have to be another election The Russian Federation is trying to force the creation of the pro Russian government illegally in Moldova Candu said He said Moldovan President Igor Dodon who used to be the Socialist party chief had approached Candu s Democratic Party with a coalition offer on conditions set by Moscow including turning Moldova into a federal state Opponents of the move say it would give the separatist region of Transdniestria which wants to merge with Russia an outsize say in how Moldova is run To all these conditions we said no We are not betraying our country Candu said And rather we go for the snap elections in the future than to create a coalition and a majority and to empower a government under such conditions Dodon has said the idea to federalize Moldova had come from Plahotniuc which the latter had offered Moscow in exchange for Russian criminal cases against him being dropped Also on Saturday lawmakers voted to appoint the Socialist party s Zinaida Greceanii as the new parliament speaker The Constitutional Court declared the appointment illegal Ambassadors from Russia the European Union and the United States observed proceedings in the parliament The United States supports efforts by Moldova s political parties to negotiate an agreement and overcome the ongoing political impasse the U S embassy said The Russian Embassy urged all responsible political forces to avoid destabilization adding We support efforts by parliamentary parties to form a functioning coalition and create a government capable of ensuring lasting civil peace and sustainable development of Moldova in line with established democratic norms
The EU forged a deal on closer trade and political ties with Moldova in 2014 and showered it with aid but it has become increasingly critical of Chisinau s track record on reforms |
WMB | Motor racing Chadwick extends W Series lead with second win in three races | Reuters British driver Jamie Chadwick s second win in three races allowed her to extend her lead over Dutch rival Beitske Visser in the all female W Series in Misano Italy on Saturday Starting second on the grid Chadwick took the lead going into the first corner from Liechtenstein s Fabienne Wohlwend who had qualified on pole for the first time Chadwick appointed development driver for British Formula One team Williams NYSE WMB last month increased her lead in the inaugural championship to 68 points 13 ahead of Visser who finished second It felt like a long race for me said Chadwick who also won in Hockenheim last month I just didn t want to make any mistakes In the previous races I ve always made like one or two mistakes so I just wanted to be really disciplined not make a mistake Behind Chadwick fellow Briton Alice Powell crashed out of the race with a broken suspension and wheel after colliding with the slow starting Wohlwend and going briefly airborne The incident brought out the safety car but when racing resumed Chadwick comfortably pulled away with Visser and Wohlwend close behind the trio clearly benefiting from starting on fresh tires The six race series which uses identical Formula Three cars for all the drivers is aimed at helping women up the motorsport ladder The overall winner will collect 500 000 with prize money down to 18th place |
WMB | Fraser Pryce blazes world leading 10 88 | By Kayon Raynor KINGSTON Reuters Shelly Ann Fraser Pryce s steady return to her best form continued at the Racers Grand Prix on Saturday when the twice Olympic champion blazed to a world leading 10 88 seconds in the 100 meters at the National Stadium in Kingston Running in lane four Fraser Pryce had the lead at the 30 metre mark and powered away to beat fellow Jamaican Jonielle Smith and Trinidad and Tobago s Michelle Lee Ahye who were both timed at 11 20 The time which bettered her meet record of 11 09 from 2016 left Fraser Pryce delighted with her form two weeks before the Jamaican trials with her bid for a fourth 100m world title to come in Doha later this year Honestly 10 88 Of course I mean what more could I have asked for tonight the 32 year old told Reuters I m pleased not only with the victory but because I broke my meet record that I ve always wanted so I m giving God thanks for that as I look forward to the national championship The last time I ran 10 88 was 2016 so it is just the work I continue to work hard and continue to trust the process because it s not just about winning it s about taking my time to get back to my best Despite running her fastest time since her return from having a baby in 2017 the three times sprint world champion said she was determined not to look too far ahead this season My next aim is to make the team to the Doha World Championships Fraser Pryce said The run came two days after her training partner Elaine Thompson the 2016 Olympic double sprint champion showed her improving form by running a world leading 10 89 seconds at the Rome Diamond League meet
Britain s Zarnel Hughes won the men s 100 meters in the fourth edition of the Racers Grand Prix in 9 97 ahead of Jamaica s former world champion Yohan Blake 10 01 with American Kendal Williams NYSE WMB well back in third 10 13 |
WMB | Energy Transfer ETE Terminates Merger Deal With Williams | Texas based pipeline company Energy Transfer Equity L P NYSE ETE reported the termination of its merger agreement with natural gas pipeline company Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB The announcement came on the heels of the ruling by the Delaware Court of Chancery Last week the Delaware Court of Chancery ruled in favor of Energy Transfer Equity Notably the ruling came in a lawsuit filed by Williams to hold Energy Transfer Equity to the deal In May Williams took the legal step when Energy Transfer Equity expressed concerns over the merger citing that the deal had not secured the necessary legal opinion to make it tax free for shareholders However much to the dismay of Williams the Delaware Court of Chancery concluded that Energy Transfer Equity is contractually entitled to end the merger with Williams if the counsel of the former Latham Watkins LLP were unable to deliver a required tax opinion prior to the merger deadline date of Jun 28 2016 Williams however has appealed against the decision of the Delaware Court of Chancery to the Delaware Supreme Court The move came after the company received approval from its investors to close this troubled deal on Monday Jun 27 Last September Energy Transfer Equity had valued its acquisition agreement with Williams at 33 billion and had agreed to pay 6 billion in cash to Williams as part of the cash and stock acquisition However the deal became less attractive due to a sharp decline in oil prices later The cash payment of 6 billion made this pending merger a nightmare for Energy Transfer Equity given that borrowing this amount in a down market exposed the company to the risk of being overleveraged ENERGY TRAN EQT Price Energy Transfer Equity through its subsidiaries provides diversified energy related services in the U S The company sells natural gas to electric utilities independent power plants local distribution companies industrial end users and other marketing companies Tulsa OK based Williams is a premier energy infrastructure provider in North America The company s core operations include finding producing gathering processing and transportation of natural gas Both the companies currently carry a Zacks Rank 3 Hold which implies that the stocks will perform in line with the broader U S equity market over the next one to three months Some better ranked players in the energy sector include Sasol Ltd NYSE SSL and World Point Terminals LP NYSE WPT Both these stocks sport a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy |
WMB | Williams WMB To Ask Energy Transfer For Compensation | Natural gas pipeline company Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB announced that it will seek compensation from Texas based pipeline firm Energy Transfer Equity LP NYSE ETE as the latter has terminated the merger accord In fact Williams believes that Energy Transfer Equity has no right to breach the deal It is to be noted that following the termination of the merger deal by Energy Transfer shareholders of Williams Companies might witness a loss in value of as high as 10 billion Last week the Delaware Court of Chancery ruled in favor of Energy Transfer Equity Notably the ruling came in response to a lawsuit filed by Williams to hold Energy Transfer Equity to the deal In May Williams took the legal step when Energy Transfer Equity expressed concerns over the merger citing that the deal had not secured the necessary legal opinion to make it tax free to shareholders However much to the dismay of Williams the Delaware Court of Chancery concluded that Energy Transfer Equity is contractually entitled to end the merger with Williams as the counsel of the former Latham Watkins LLP was unable to deliver a required tax opinion prior to the merger deadline of Jun 28 2016 Let us have a look at the prime reason why Energy Transfer Equity backed out from the accord Last September Energy Transfer Equity had valued its acquisition agreement with Williams at 33 billion and had agreed to pay 6 billion in cash as part of the cash and stock acquisition However the deal became less attractive due to the sharp decline in oil prices that ensued The cash payment of 6 billion made this pending merger a nightmare for Energy Transfer Equity given that borrowing this amount in a down market exposed it to the risk of being overleveraged Tulsa OK based Williams is a premier energy infrastructure provider in North America The company s core operations include finding producing gathering processing and transportation of natural gas WILLIAMS COS Price Energy Transfer Equity through its subsidiaries provides diversified energy related services in the U S The company sells natural gas to electric utilities independent power plants local distribution companies industrial end users and other marketing companies Both pipeline players currently carry a Zacks Rank 3 Hold which implies that the stocks will perform in line with the broader U S equity market over the next one to three months Some better ranked players in the oil gas production pipeline sector include Boardwalk Pipeline Partners LP NYSE BWP and Rose Rock Midstream LP NYSE RRMS Both stocks sport a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy |
WMB | Stone Energy Inks Deal With Williams Ends Ensco Contract | Stone Energy Corporation NYSE SGY has entered into a contract with Williams Co NYSE WMB and terminated an agreement with Ensco plc NYSE ESV on Jun 29 The terminated drilling services contract between Stone Energy and Ensco was valued at 20 million of which about 5 million was a deposit earlier provided to the latter Moreover Stone Energy has given Ensco the opportunity to carry out certain drilling services started before Dec 31 2019 The company also paid Ensco a 5 million deposit to be used as a credit against future drilling activities commenced before Mar 31 2017 This however is subject to extension in certain circumstances The ENSCO 8503 deep water rig was contracted at a dayrate of 341 000 and was scheduled to expire in Aug 2017 Separately Stone Energy entered into an interim agreement with Williams The deal pertains to gas gathering and processing at the Mary field in Appalachia STONE ENERGY CP Price The interim agreement will offer near term respite for Stone Energy by allowing it to continue production at the Mary field The deal will also benefit Williams by generating higher volumes Currently the Mary field produces about 45 million cubic feet equivalent MMcfe per day and the level is expected to increase to over 60 MMcfe per day in July and finally reach over 100 MMcfe per day in August These volumes are substantially higher than the 20 MMcfe per day produced from the Heather and Buddy fields The impact of this agreement on annual guidance including production volumes and associated costs is still being evaluated Updates to annual guidance will be provided with Stone Energy s second quarter 2016 earnings release Stone Energy holds a Zacks Rank 2 Buy Another well ranked player from the energy sector is FutureFuel Corp NYSE FF with a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy |
WMB | Company News For June 30 2016 | PrivateBancorp Inc s shares jumped 23 3 after the company agreed to be acquired by Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce for 3 8 billion in cash and stock
Shares of Sony Corporation increased 4 3 after raising its sales target from the earlier range of 1 4 trillion yen and 1 6 trillion yen to 1 8 trillion yen and 1 9 trillion yen
Energy Transfer Equity L P s shares rose 2 on news that the company has cancelled its 33 billion merger with Williams Companies NYSE WMB Inc
Shares of Blue Buffalo Pet Products Inc advanced 1 7 after announcing a secondary offering of 15 million shares of common stock at 22 per share |
WMB | Will Energy Transfer Act With Integrity | As regular readers know the proposed merger between Energy Transfer Equity LP NYSE ETE and Williams Companies NYSE WMB has been a rich source of material Last week a judge s ruling enabled ETE to cancel the deal since a needed tax opinion was not forthcoming
WMB found it convenient to say the least that ETE s tax counsel Latham Watkins having originally provided informal guidance that no adverse tax outcome was likely later changed their minds coincident with their client souring on the deal However Judge Sam Glasscock III found no coincidence and absent a tax opinion that the deal was tax free ETE had its escape hatch
We didn t think the deal would get done but we remain interested in the fate of the convertible preferred securities ETE issued in March
As we wrote a select group of ETE insiders representing 31 of the common units outstanding was given the opportunity to swap their units for preferred securities with a guaranteed dividend which could be reinvested in more common units at 6 56 per share ETE closed Friday at 13 80
Ostensibly this was to shore up ETE s balance sheet given the 6BN cash payout they had agreed to under the merger But it had the additional result of devaluing ETE units for all the other holders including WMB investors who would be receiving new securities linked in value to ETE
WMB naturally sued This looked like a very aggressive almost scorched earth negotiating strategy by ETE in their efforts to force a renegotiation on WMB However as we noted in May ETE CEO Kelcy Warren indicated that these securities would remain outstanding even if the merger was cancelled
WMB s lawsuit of these securities didn t receive a ruling from Judge Glasscock He recognized his ruling on the tax opinion was likely to scupper the deal anyway rendering WMB no longer an injured party However the same judge is hearing a lawsuit on this issue from other plaintiffs
Without doubt the abovementioned securities represent fraud by ETE s management Every ETE investor would welcome the opportunity to swap their common units for the ones Kelcy and his friends own He has a fiduciary obligation to other ETE investors which this action clearly violates transferring substantial value we estimated 1 3BN from investors in the same class of units to the insiders
Since ETE no longer faces the prospect of finding 6BN the apparent need for the securities themselves has disappeared and we await their cancellation
So we re watching to see if ETE acts with integrity and voluntarily cancels the convertible preferreds Or will they seek to retain this wealth transfer with a different justification It s going to be hard for ETE to negotiate future deals credibly following the WMB experience but especially so if they choose wrong on this issue
One can forgive the second thoughts on the merger because the market moved sharply against MLPs last year This was an issue of judgment But a CEO who openly defrauds his public partners has lost his reputation for good What use to the world is a dishonest billionaire beyond donating his money to have a couple of buildings named after him
In future dealings with Kelcy and the other insiders including John McReynolds President of ETE s General Partner Matthew Ramsey President of Energy Transfer Partners Marshall McCrea III Group Chief Operating Officer and Ray Davis retired co founder you d always have to assume that they could once again fail to act in good faith having done so before
Based on the data we analyze about our blog subscribers we know senior managers at ETE are reading this
It may surprise but we remain invested in ETE We believe Kelcy Warren will cancel these securities He and his team have built a fantastic business They are enormously talented They can avoid any loss of face by simply saying the securities are no longer needed This is the right thing to do You won t find any sell side analysts asking tough questions on this issue out of fear of causing offense
At SL Advisors we are free to say what many other analysts are merely thinking because our only interest in ETE is that its value appreciate and its stock price rise In this way we are completely aligned with our clients and free to call it as we see it
Kelcy do the right thing
Full disclosure We are invested in ETE and WMB |
GLW | Zayo s ZAYO Earnings And Revenues Miss Estimates In Q1 | Zayo Group Holdings Inc NYSE ZAYO reported lackluster first quarter fiscal 2019 results wherein both the top line and bottom line missed the respective Zacks Consensus Estimate Quarterly earnings came in at 22 1 million or 9 cents per share compared with 23 3 million or 9 cents per share in the year earlier quarter The year over year decrease in net income was primarily due to higher provision of income tax The reported earnings missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 12 cents Zayo Group Holdings Inc Price Consensus and EPS Surprise
Revenues remained relatively flat at 641 1 million and missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 649 million Operating income improved to 122 8 million from 95 5 million in the year ago quarter owing to lower operating expenses Adjusted EBITDA earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortization increased 3 million to 319 4 million Segmental Details Revenues from the Fiber Solutions segment totaled 220 9 million up from 198 4 million in the prior year quarter It represented 34 of the company s fiscal first quarter revenues The Transport segment generated revenues of 168 4 million relatively flat year over year It represented 26 of revenues in the reported quarter The Enterprise Networks segment s revenues were 82 6 million down from 85 4 million reported in the year earlier quarter and accounted for 13 of the company s quarterly revenues Revenues at the Zayo Colocation segment were up to 59 million from 58 4 million It represented 9 of fiscal first quarter revenues The Allstream segment generated revenues of 105 million which represented 16 of revenues in the reported quarter The Other segment s revenues were 5 2 million accounting for 1 of the company s fiscal first quarter revenues Liquidity Cash FlowAs of Sep 30 2018 Zayo s cash and cash equivalents were 353 9 million with long term debt of 5 691 3 million Net cash provided by operating activities was 241 8 million for the reported quarter compared with 268 8 million a year ago Adjusted unlevered free cash flow was 130 4 million with 241 9 million borrowing capacity under the revolving credit facility Share RepurchasesDuring the quarter the company repurchased 6 229 shares at an average price of 34 00 Subsequent to the quarter end Zayo repurchased approximately 13 million shares at an average price of 31 02 The company currently has 4 million worth of shares remaining under the 500 million share repurchase authorization Plan to Split Into Two Separate EntitiesIn concurrence with the quarterly results Zayo announced plans to separate into two publicly traded companies to better focus on its businesses One of the two entities will focus on providing core communications infrastructure while the other will leverage infrastructure to provide solutions for a broad set of enterprise customers The company expects the process to be complete in late 2019 with each Zayo shareholder owning shares of both the entities Dubbed InfraCo the infrastructure based firm will have a broad geographic reach throughout North America and Western Europe and will include the current Fiber Solutions and zColo business segments along with the Wavelength and IP Transit businesses of Zayo s current Transport segment The other division named EnterpriseCo will be centered on higher bandwidth connectivity to enterprise locations including to public cloud and SaaS providers and will comprise the current Enterprise Networks and Allstream segments along with the SONET and Ethernet businesses of Zayo s current Transport segment Zacks Rank Key PicksZayo currently has a Zacks Rank 3 Hold Some better ranked stocks in the broader industry are Arista Networks Inc NYSE ANET Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW and Knowles Corporation NYSE KN each carrying a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see Arista has a long term earnings growth expectation of 21 2 It beat earnings estimates in each the trailing four quarters the average being 13 4 Corning has a long term earnings growth expectation of 8 8 It beat earnings estimates in each the trailing four quarters the average being 4 1 Knowles has a long term earnings growth expectation of 10 It surpassed earnings estimates thrice in the trailing four quarters the average positive surprise being 11 Looking for Stocks with Skyrocketing Upside Zacks has just released a Special Report on the booming investment opportunities of legal marijuana Ignited by new referendums and legislation this industry is expected to blast from an already robust 6 7 billion to 20 2 billion in 2021 Early investors stand to make a killing but you have to be ready to act and know just where to look |
GLW | ARRIS ARRS Q3 Earnings Surpass Estimates Revenues Lag | ARRIS International plc NASDAQ ARRS reported mixed third quarter 2018 financial results wherein the bottom line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate but the top line missed the same Net IncomeGAAP net income for the reported quarter came in at 47 1 million or 26 cents per share compared with 88 3 million or 47 cents per share in the year earlier quarter The decline was primarily attributable to a fall in the revenues Adjusted earnings for the quarter came in at 68 cents per share compared with 80 cents in the year ago quarter However the figure surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 66 cents RevenuesQuarterly GAAP revenues decreased 4 5 year over year to 1 651 2 million Also the figure lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 1 710 million Quarter Details Total operating expenses increased to 412 2 million from about 347 million in the prior year quarter Adjusted gross profit was 471 2 million compared with 438 1 million in the prior year quarter for respective margins of 28 5 and 25 3 ARRIS International plc Price Consensus and EPS Surprise By segments revenues from Network Cloud fell 4 5 to 532 million in the third quarter primarily due to decline in CMTS product sales Revenues from Customer Premises Equipment declined 19 9 to 941 5 million The fall was primarily attributable to lower video sales decline in cable and telco demand in the United States Enterprise revenues in the quarter came in at 180 2 million Notably the revenues were negatively impacted by an adjustment in estimated channel rebates of about 9 million Cash Flow Balance SheetFor the first nine months of 2018 the company generated 420 2 million of cash from operations compared with 611 7 million in the year ago period As of Sep 30 2018 ARRIS had cash and cash equivalents of 480 8 million with long term debt financing lease obligations net of current portion of 2 053 4 million compared with respective tallies of 1 379 8 million and 2 112 5 million a year ago Year to date the company has repurchased approximately 13 9 million ordinary shares for 353 million Zacks Rank Stocks to Consider ARRIS currently carries a Zacks Rank 3 Hold Some better ranked stocks in the space are Arista Networks Inc NYSE ANET Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW and Knowles Corporation NYSE KN All these companies carry a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see Arista Networks surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters the average beat being 13 35 Corning exceeded estimates in each of the trailing four quarters the average beat being 4 14 Knowles surpassed estimates thrice in the trailing four quarters the average beat being 11 04 The Hottest Tech Mega Trend of All Last year it generated 8 billion in global revenues By 2020 it s predicted to blast through the roof to 47 billion Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce the world s first trillionaires but that should still leave plenty of money for regular investors who make the right trades early |
GLW | Corning GLW Up 1 4 Since Last Earnings Report Can It Continue | It has been about a month since the last earnings report for Corning GLW Shares have added about 1 4 in that time frame outperforming the S P 500
Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release or is Corning due for a pullback Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late let s take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers Corning Beats Q3 Earnings on Holistic Growth View UpCorning delivered healthy third quarter 2018 results driven by sales and profit growth in each of its businesses led by investment in innovation and capacity expansions Net IncomeOn a GAAP basis net income improved significantly to 625 million or 67 cents per share from 390 million or 39 cents per share reported in the year ago quarter primarily due to top line growth and net gain in translated earnings contract Core earnings for the quarter came in at 476 million or 51 cents per share compared with 403 million or 40 cents per share in the year earlier quarter Adjusted earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3 cents RevenuesGAAP net sales were up 15 4 year over year to 3 008 million driven by revenue growth in all businesses particularly Optical Communications Environmental Technologies and Specialty Materials Quarterly core sales increased 15 6 year over year to 3 045 million surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 2 996 million Segmental PerformanceThe Display Technologies segment net sales were 852 million compared with 795 million reflecting moderate pricing climate and continuation of the Gen 10 5 capacity ramp up Net sales in Optical Communications increased 21 8 year over year to 1 117 million driven by solid demand from both data center and carrier customers as well as the acquisition of 3M s Communication Markets Division Environmental Technologies segment net sales increased 19 to 331 million led by volume growth in all product categories as well as strong performance in manufacturing operations The Specialty Materials segment net sales climbed 23 and topped the company s expectation to 459 million driven by strong pull for glass innovations The Life Sciences business net sales were up 4 to 231 million Operating DetailsDespite 14 1 year over year rise in cost of sales to 1 776 million operating income increased to 522 million from 442 million in the year ago quarter owing to top line growth Gross profit increased to 1 232 million from 1 050 million Core gross profit was 1 280 million compared with 1 087 million in the prior year quarter with respective margins of 42 and 41 Cash Flow and LiquidityCorning generated 1 978 million of cash from operations in the first nine months of 2018 compared with 1 116 million recorded in the prior year period As of Sep 30 2018 the company had 1 903 million of cash and cash equivalents with long term debt of 5 056 million 2018 OutlookOwing to excellent results in the third quarter Corning expects solid performance for full year 2018 The company anticipates exceeding 11 3 billion sales mark in 2018 Optical Communications is likely to grow by a high teens percentage year over year while Environmental Technologies is expected to rise by mid teens In Display Technologies glass market volume is likely to rise at mid single digit percentage as television screen size growth continues For Specialty Materials the company expects growth by a mid single digit percentage year over year Life Sciences sales are expected to increase by a mid to high single digit percentage continuing to outpace overall market growth In the third quarter the company returned 542 million to shareholders as part of Capital Allocation Framework and remains well on track to deliver more than 12 5 billion to shareholders while investing 10 billion in growth opportunities by 2019 Looking ForwardCorning is making encouraging progress on its focused portfolio objectives remaining well poised to achieve its Strategy and Capital Allocation Framework goals Standing at an inflection point the company is gaining momentum We remain impressed with the solid growth potential of the company
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then
In the past month investors have witnessed a downward trend in fresh estimates
VGM Scores
At this time Corning has a strong Growth Score of A though it is lagging a lot on the Momentum Score front with an F However the stock was allocated a grade of B on the value side putting it in the second quintile for this investment strategy
Overall the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of B If you aren t focused on one strategy this score is the one you should be interested in
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock and the magnitude of this revision indicates a downward shift Notably Corning has a Zacks Rank 2 Buy We expect an above average return from the stock in the next few months |
GLW | GLW Vs VCRA Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now | Investors interested in Communication Components stocks are likely familiar with Corning GLW and Vocera Communications VCRA But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors We ll need to take a closer look to find out
There are plenty of strategies for discovering value stocks but we have found that pairing a strong Zacks Rank with an impressive grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system produces the best returns The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits
Currently both Corning and Vocera Communications are holding a Zacks Rank of 2 Buy The Zacks Rank favors stocks that have recently seen positive revisions to their earnings estimates so investors should rest assured that both of these companies have improving earnings outlooks But this is just one factor that value investors are interested in
Value investors also try to analyze a wide range of traditional figures and metrics to help determine whether a company is undervalued at its current share price levels
The Style Score Value grade factors in a variety of key fundamental metrics including the popular P E ratio P S ratio earnings yield cash flow per share and a number of other key stats that are commonly used by value investors
GLW currently has a forward P E ratio of 18 12 while VCRA has a forward P E of 80 95 We also note that GLW has a PEG ratio of 2 06 This figure is similar to the commonly used P E ratio with the PEG ratio also factoring in a company s expected earnings growth rate VCRA currently has a PEG ratio of 4 34
Another notable valuation metric for GLW is its P B ratio of 2 19 The P B ratio pits a stock s market value against its book value which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities For comparison VCRA has a P B of 7 99
These metrics and several others help GLW earn a Value grade of B while VCRA has been given a Value grade of D
Both GLW and VCRA are impressive stocks with solid earnings outlooks but based on these valuation figures we feel that GLW is the superior value option right now |
GLW | Corning GLW Offers Pioneering Automotive Glass Solutions | Continuing its rich legacy of developing pioneering products for the various industry verticals Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW recently unveiled the industry s first automotive glass solutions that deliver impeccable performance and superior system economics The products showcased to the public for the first time in 2019 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas attracted great interest from prospective manufacturers In order to tap the huge market potential for connected and immersive driver experience in the cockpit Corning developed two AutoGrade cover glass solutions for auto interiors one in 2D and the other in 3D format Both the product variants are subjected to rigorous quality checks and trial runs for the highest reliability performance These include industry approved reliability tests using Corning s system level design guidelines to have the perfect blend of authentic feel superior durability and advanced optics While the 2D cover glass is primarily suited to flat applications the 3D glass is more suitable for shaped or curved applications The 3D glass also has a unique ability to bend at room temperature thereby enabling it to cover the curved surfaces without compromising on the reliability factor The products are developed using Corning s proprietary ColdForm technology which further reduces shaped cover glass manufacturing costs by about 40 compared with other available variants in the market With such state of the arts products the stock has returned 4 4 against the decline of 6 7 for the in the past six months Corning is a leading innovator in the glass substrate industry The company has been developing formulations that are not only suitable for imparting superior picture quality but also taking care of their effects on the environment The company s fusion technology reduces glass thickness enabling panel manufacturers to do away with thinning costs that are usually necessary for making slimmer lighter and more power efficient consumer devices In addition the substrate composition makes it particularly eco friendly and thus more easily acceptable to all Multiple factors should also drive Corning s fiber optic solutions business over the next few years primarily the increasing use of mobile devices that require efficient data transfer and efficient networking systems Supporting this trend is the proliferation of clouds which is now resulting in increased storage and even computing on a virtual plane Since both consumers and enterprises are using the network more there is tremendous demand for quality networking Moreover data consumption patterns are changing For instance there is a growing propensity to consume video content thus creating the need for faster data transfer Since optical networks are more efficient and most of the existing networks are copper based the demand for optical solutions is particularly strong Corning has several products focusing on the datacenter with a portfolio consisting of optical fiber hardware cable and connectors that helps it to create optical solutions to meet varying consumer needs We believe that the expanding fiber optic market along with its growing presence in the automotive sector is likely to drive the company s growth in the long haul Corning currently carries a Zacks Rank 3 Hold Some top ranked stocks in the same space are Acacia Communications Inc NASDAQ ACIA Aerohive Networks Inc NYSE HIVE and Vocera Communications Inc NYSE VCRA each carrying a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see Acacia has long term earnings growth expectation of 12 4 It surpassed estimates thrice in the trailing four quarters average beat being 48 4 Aerohive has long term earnings growth expectation of 22 It exceeded estimates thrice in the trailing four quarters average beat being 150 Vocera has long term earnings growth expectation of 18 7 It surpassed estimates in each of the trailing four quarters the average beat being 125 8 Looking for Stocks with Skyrocketing Upside Zacks has just released a Special Report on the booming investment opportunities of legal marijuana Ignited by new referendums and legislation this industry is expected to blast from an already robust 6 7 billion to 20 2 billion in 2021 Early investors stand to make a killing but you have to be ready to act and know just where to look |
VZ | Verizon s New Pricing Goes After the Fastest Growing Segment of Pay TV | Cord cutting reached a new peak in 2019 with millions of American consumers ditching traditional pay TV for alternatives But one area of pay TV that saw considerable growth last year was among virtual multichannel video programming distributors vMVPDs Companies including Alphabet s NASDAQ GOOG NASDAQ GOOGL YouTube Disney s NYSE DIS Hulu AT T NYSE T and DISH Network NASDAQ DISH offer live TV packages streamed over the internet
Consumers are drawn to vMPVDs for a couple of reasons They typically offer smaller packages of channels that meet the entertainment needs of consumers without the bulk of typical pay TV packages Additionally consumers can pause their subscriptions from month to month giving them greater control over their entertainment bill
Verizon Communications NYSE VZ is going after the market that wants greater control over their television bill without completely cutting the cord It announced new pricing for its internet and pay TV packages offering greater transparency and removing contracts that lock in customers long term The move may help Verizon stem its pay TV subscriber losses without sacrificing profit margin
Not all vMVPDs are created equal
It s important to note that not all virtual pay TV operators grew last year AT T s AT T TV Now formerly DIRECTV Now saw a marked decline in subscribers in 2019 It lost over 700 000 of its 1 9 million subscribers over the four quarters ending last September
AT T s struggles are linked largely to its reduction in promotional activity around the product and significant price increases AT T s management has made it clear that it s focused on only the most profitable customers and expects to keep losing subscribers Management believes subscriber losses for its overall pay TV business peaked in Q3 but an additional price hike for AT T TV Now last quarter could lead to faster declines for the over the top service
Meanwhile Hulu YouTube and DISH Network s Sling TV are adding hundreds of thousands of subscribers every quarter despite also raising prices last year Sling TV added 214 000 new subscribers in the third quarter accelerating growth Hulu and YouTube don t publicly report subscriber numbers for their live TV services but estimates from MoffettNathanson peg their third quarter net additions at 400 000 and 200 000 respectively
Meanwhile traditional pay TV providers lost around 1 7 million subscribers total in the third quarter Verizon lost 66 000 subscribers Being able to emulate the offerings of virtual MVPDs may be essential to retaining subscribers
Verizon can t quite copy the competition
It s worth noting Verizon previously explored entering the vMVPD market It discussed plans publicly in 2017 but ultimately never launched a product It s likely been unable to lock down the necessary contracts with media companies to offer an over the top service
While its new pricing options emulate the flexibility offered by vMVPDs Verizon is still locked into its existing contracts with media companies Those companies include AT T and Disney which may be difficult to negotiate with considering they have competing distribution services As such Verizon may not have the rights to stream video outside of the home or at all for that matter for some popular networks
Additionally Verizon may not be able to make a package of networks that offers the greatest appeal to consumers Its lowest priced TV option is 62 when you include the required set top box and that s before any DVR options Interestingly Verizon highlights YouTube TV s 50 per month plan including DVR in its list of options So even Verizon knows it can t compete on price it might as well take a commission on sign ups then
But the inability to keep channel packages small and offer relatively low prices compared to most traditional cable packages is what led AT T TV Now to lose hundreds of thousands of subscribers in 2019 Verizon s new pricing package may have limited appeal to new subscribers
That said it could help the company retain existing subscribers that are thinking about canceling and switching to a virtual provider instead And Verizon can do so without sacrificing on price So while Verizon might not see significant gains in gross additions from the change net losses should decline and overall subscriber losses may come back to even for the telecom |
VZ | Singapore rebuts illegal hanging report serves fake news notices | SINGAPORE Reuters Singapore rebutted a report on Wednesday alleging illegal execution practices in the city state and ordered Yahoo NASDAQ AABA and others to attach fake news notices on posts and articles that shared the allegations
The report by Malaysian rights group Lawyers for Liberty last week said that Singapore prison officers were instructed to snap prisoners necks by kicking them in the event the rope breaks during hangings It said the report was based on information from an unnamed prison officer in Singapore
The wealthy city state carried out 13 hangings in 2018 the latest official data shows 11 of which were for drug offences for which it has some of the strictest laws in the world Amnesty International said it was the first year since 2003 that the number of hangings reached double digits
The statement contains untrue baseless and preposterous allegations about the use of unlawful methods in judicial executions Singapore s ministry of home affairs said adding that no such methods were taught or approved and that the rope used for executions has never broken
The ministry instructed the rights group to carry a correction notice on the article under its new fake news law It sent similar instructions to an activist and media commentator a blog and the local news site of U S web services firm Yahoo
Lawyers for Liberty founder N Surendran said he stood by the statement and would not comply with the correction order
Singapore has no jurisdiction to interfere with the rights of Malaysian citizens to freedom of expression Their attempt to extend their jurisdiction upon Malaysians across the causeway is provocative and absurd N Surendran said
Yahoo owned by Verizon Communications NYSE VZ said in response to an emailed request for comment that it was looking into the matter and will respond in due course
The fake news law seen as one of the most far reaching of its kind came into effect in October amid concern among rights groups and opposition politicians it could be used to silence criticism of the government
The government has denied such suggestions saying the law the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act POFMA only tackles falsehoods and that legitimate criticism and free speech would not be affected
Since the law was first invoked in late November most of the cases have involved political opposition figures and an opposition party
Singapore s communications minister has said it was a coincidence that the first few cases brought under the law were against political figures and parties |
VZ | AT T s Unique Scale Bumps Stock Up | By Kim Khan
Investing com AT T NYSE T enjoyed a rise Wednesday following a bullish call from the sell side
AT T NYSE T shares rose 1 3 in midday trading
Deutsche Bank DE DBKGn initiated coverage of the stock today with a buy rating and a price target of 44
AT T has unique scale across a wide range of media and communications businesses Deutsche said
It also noted that while it has underperformed rival Verizon NYSE VZ and the S P 500 in the last 3 5 and 10 year periods it s been the better stock over Verizon in the last year with its focus on containing costs
AT T NYSE T stock is up more thean 27 in the past 12 months and barely above water so far this year
The focus on costs should help the company to return to a more shareholder friendly capital allocation strategy featuring share repurchases Deutsche Bank DE DBKGn added
Wall Street currently has an average price target of a little lower than 39 per share according to a poll of 28 analysts by Investing com |
GLW | UPDATE 1 LG Display shares rise after Japan quake | Shares in No 2 LCD maker rise 2 3 pct in down market
Production halt at glass factory expected to hit Sharp
Nomura upgrades LCD sector to neutral from bearish
Adds details more analyst comments
SEOUL Aug 12 Reuters Shares in South Korean LCD maker
LG Display rose while those in Japanese competitor Sharp fell on
Wednesday after news that an earthquake had disrupted glass
production in Japan and may deepen an ongoing shortage
Corning Inc on Tuesday said it had halted production of
liquid crystal display LCD glass at a factory in Japan
following an earthquake there warning the shutdown would mean
the volume of glass shipments in the third quarter would decline
5 to 10 percent from the second quarter
Shares in LG Display the world s second biggest maker of
LCD panels rose 2 33 percent to 35 200 won at 0050 GMT
outpacing the broader market s 0 74 percent drop
By contrast Sharp Japan s only major LCD supplier fell 2 6
percent to 1 085 yen as it was expected to be directly affected
by the Corning stoppage
Glass supply was already tight and this quake will
contribute even more to that This is good news for LG Display
as a lead maker of LCDs said Moon Hyun sik an analyst at
Meritz Securities
As we believe it should take at least two months to repair
the furnaces from the disruption we expect panel prices will
maintain a stable trend in the fourth quarter of 2009 and the
first quarter of 2010 and panel makers earnings will be
positively affected Nomura analyst James Kim said in a
research report
Kim said he was planning to review the earnings of LG
Display and Taiwanese competitors AU Optronics Corp and CMO
Last week an LG Display executive told Reuters he expected
the uptrend in PC screen prices to continue into October because
of the glass shortage
Reporting by Marie France Han Rhee So eui and Jungyoun
Park Editing by Ken Wills |
GLW | GLOBAL MARKETS Asian shares hit by Shanghai fall await Fed | Asian shares ease Shanghai tumbles on profit taking
Fed statement awaited for rates and recovery prospects
Oil rises towards 70 a barrel after U S crude stocks
fall
Yen strengthens after strong gains the previous day
By Elaine Lies
TOKYO Aug 12 Reuters Asian stocks sagged on Wednesday
with Shanghai shares tumbling to a four week low as investors
locked in profits and waited to hear what the Federal Reserve
has to say about prospects for U S economic recovery
The Shanghai fall set off by worries that a surge in
Chinese shares has outrun economic recovery and that a drop off
in bank lending means less money flowing into shares also
helped the yen strengthen against the dollar
European shares were expected to be mixed following a
two session retreat though gains were seen likely for most
exchanges with investors awaiting the Fed outcome
The MSCI index of Asian markets excluding Japan
slipped 1 1 percent still in retreat from last
week s 11 month peak
China s central bank said on Tuesday that banks extended
355 9 billion yuan 52 billion in new local currency loans in
July down from 1 53 trillion yuan in June and a sharper fall
than many analysts had forecast ID nPEK158166
A sizeable share of bank loans in the first half is
believed to have gone into the stock market helping push the
Shanghai index up more than 80 percent as of last week
The rally in the Shanghai index has far exceeded the
speed of economic recovery said Western Securities analyst
Cao Xuefeng
Yesterday s mixed economic data and sharp drop in bank
lending heightened such worries while weak overseas markets
triggered the sell off
The Shanghai Composite Index fell 3 5 percent on
worries about a possible tightening of market liquidity
following the sharp drop in July bank lending The losses
pressured Hong Kong s Hang Seng index which fell 1 9
percent coming down from a 12 month closing high the previous
day
The Nikkei pulled back from 10 month highs losing
1 4 percent
Sharp Corp 6753 T fell after an earthquake forced
supplier Corning Inc to halt production of LCD glass at
a Japanese factory while Astellas Pharma 4503 T extended
losses after Novartis launch of the first generic version of
its transplant drug triggered a ratings downgrade
ID nT344249 ID nT322240
A fall in Chinese stocks tends to bring down Japanese
stocks as well Investors in Europe and the United States watch
China when making their investment decisions with the whole
world now hugely depending on the Chinese economy said
Kenichi Hirano operating officer at Tachibana Securities
In Seoul the Korea Composite Stock Price Index
shed 0 9 percent although shares in LCD maker LG Display
034220 KS rose on expectations of a glass shortage after the
Japanese earthquake disrupted production
Australian stocks edged higher boosted by
Commonwealth Bank of Australia Ltd as investors took
an optimistic view of its earnings results and outlook even
though the bank itself was cautious ID nSYD478535
AHEAD OF FED
The Fed started its two day meeting on Tuesday with
expectations that it will leave benchmark interest rates near
zero and let a 300 billion programme to buy Treasury
securities expire on schedule in September as economic gloom
lifts
But after a report showing U S firms continue to cut
inventories as they lack confidence in the economy analysts
expect the Fed will try to dampen speculation about higher
interest rates while still supporting hopes that the makings of
a recovery are at hand
Its statement is due at about 1815 GMT
Wall Street fell after a prominent banking analyst warned
the sector s fundamentals had yet to improve and the drop in
wholesale inventories raised worries about recovery as U S
wholesalers cut inventories of unsold goods for the 10th month
in a row in July N
World share markets have been moving in tandem for a while
and there s growing concern that many have been overbought
which may lead to a bit of adjustment after all the gains
said Masayoshi Okamoto head of dealing at Jujiya Securities in
Tokyo
The yen rose against the dollar extending gains of the
previous day as investors liquidated yen short positions ahead
of the Fed on the view that the Japanese currency s slide after
last week s U S jobs data had run its course for now
The dollar slipped 0 4 percent to 95 55 yen and the
Australian dollar dropped 1 percent to 78 73 yen
The euro was steady at 1 4144
U S crude futures steadied below 70 a barrel
following a surprise crude stock drawdown in weekly inventory
data from the industry group American Petroleum Institute
API S
U S Treasury debt prices held steady after rising in the
previous session with the market waiting to see if the Fed
signals it will let its Treasury buying programme expire and
pausing ahead of a 10 year note auction later
Spot gold was trading around 946 10 an ounce
Additional reporting by Charlotte Cooper Aiko Hayashi
Parvathy Ullatil and Claire Zhang
Editing by Kim Coghill |
GLW | US STOCKS Wall St rises on commods M A data supports recovery | CPI industrial output above estimates
Adobe to buy Omniture
Indexes up Dow by 0 2 pct S P 0 2 pct Nasdaq 0 3 pct
Updates to open
By Chuck Mikolajczak
NEW YORK Sept 16 Reuters U S stocks rose slightly on
Wednesday on gains in commodity prices and renewed merger and
acquisition activity
U S industrial production rose for the second straight
month in August while higher gasoline costs pushed up consumer
prices reinforcing hopes a recovery was underway For details
see ID nN16118540
It s particularly encouraging to see the manufacturing
sector of the economy recover said Hugh Johnson chief
investment officer of Johnson Illington Advisors in Albany
NY
It s like all the other numbers we ve seen in that they ve
been better than expected and that s what bull markets are all
about
The Dow Jones industrial average gained 18 21
points or 0 19 percent to 9 701 62 The Standard Poor s 500
Index rose 2 49 points or 0 24 percent to 1 055 12
The Nasdaq Composite Index added 5 95 points or 0 28
percent to 2 108 59
The S P hit a new high for the year shortly after the open
and is now up 56 percent from the March 9 low
Adobe Systems Inc said it plans to pay 1 8
billion for fast growing business software maker Omniture Inc
as Adobe the maker of Photoshop and Acrobat looks to
turn around declining sales ID nN15465772
Adobe shares fell 6 6 percent to 33 26 while Omniture
shares surged 26 percent to 21 82
M A activity is considered a positive sign for the economy
as businesses display confidence in their capital positions and
begin to spend
Gold hit an 18 month high of 1 020 50 an ounce and
helped lift silver and platinum to multi month peaks Freeport
McMoRan Copper Gold Inc shares rose 1 5 percent to
72 37
Genworth Financial Inc climbed 6 percent to 12 76
a day after it priced a common share offering ID nWEN3569
Rogers Corp rose 7 7 percent to 29 09 after the
maker of specialty materials for electronics and consumer
markets raised its outlook citing strong performance in its
printed circuit materials and high performance foams segments
ID nBNG525615
Verizon Communications Inc capped gains on the Dow
down 2 6 percent to 30 20 UBS downgraded the stock to
neutral from buy saying the telecommunications company is
likely to miss its outlook for 2009 earnings growth
Corning Inc dropped 2 2 percent to 15 45 after it
said it acquired all of the outstanding shares of Axygen
Bioscience and its subsidiaries from American Capital Ltd
for 400 million American Capital jumped 30 percent
to 3 35
Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak editing by Jeffrey
Benkoe |
GLW | US STOCKS Futures point to modest gains as dollar falls | U S dollar falls to 14 month low
Verizon shares rise after quarterly results
Futures up S P 1 50 pts Dow 13 pts Nasdaq 1 25 pts
For up to the minute market news click STXNEWS US
Adds details quote byline
By Leah Schnurr
NEW YORK Oct 26 Reuters U S stock index futures
indicated a modestly higher open on Monday after a sell off in
the previous session as investors looked to a busy week of
economic data while the U S dollar fell to a 14 month low
Verizon Communications Inc gained 1 7 percent to
29 35 before the opening bell after it reported third quarter
results For details see ID nWNAB4060
Corning Inc also rose in premarket trade after the
specialty glass maker reported better than expected profit and
forecast the market for glass for flat screen televisions to
grow by 15 percent next year Corning was up 1 7 percent at
15 91 ID nN26178374
Investors will take in the Dallas Federal Reserve survey
for October later in the morning but the highlight of the week
will likely be on Thursday when GDP data may show the U S
economy returned to growth Analysts expect the report to show
the economy grew by 3 3 percent in the third quarter according
to a Reuters survey
While the current earnings season has largely been
better than expected and there is still a slew of reports to
come the good news has been priced into the market said Peter
Cardillo chief market economist at Avalon Partners in New
York
The story of the earnings season is fading and most
people will now be looking at the economic data and the trend
of the U S currency said Cardillo
All in all this market is headed into a consolidation
phase as we get into the full swing of economic numbers this
week
The dollar fell to a 14 month low against the euro on
Monday after a Chinese report saying Beijing should increase
its holdings of euros and yen in its foreign reserves led
investors to sell the greenback For details see
ID nLQ102713
U S equities and the dollar have moved in the opposite
direction as of late as the weak dollar helps multinationals
with overseas sales It also signals improving appetite for
risk
S P 500 futures rose 1 50 of a point and were above
fair value a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into
account interest rates dividends and time to expiration on the
contract Dow Jones industrial average futures gained 13
points while Nasdaq futures added 1 25 points
U S stocks fell on Friday with the major indexes slipping
for the first week in three as industrial companies weak
results overshadowed robust earnings from tech and retail
heavy weights
The blue chip Dow average finished below 10 000 but
is still up 54 percent from the March low as investors grow
more confident that the economy will recover and as corporate
earnings beat expectations ID nN23124880
Editing by Padraic Cassidy |
WMB | Barty too hot for Kenin as Aussie s French Open run continues | PARIS Reuters Ashleigh Barty s impressive run at the French Open continued on Monday when the Australian saw off American Sofia Kenin 6 3 3 6 6 0 to reach the quarter finals The eighth seed who claimed a career boosting title at the Miami Open this year will play her second Grand Slam last eight match against another American Madison Keys The 14th seeded Keys experienced little trouble in a 6 2 6 4 victory against Czech Katerina Siniakova I just wanted to enjoy myself here play with freedom said Barty who also reached the last eight at the Australian Open this year Barty rushed to a 5 1 lead wrapping up the opening set on serve after Kenin briefly threatened a comeback by pulling a break back The American had found her range though and she went 3 0 up in the second pulling her opponent around the court just as she did in beating 23 time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams NYSE WMB in the previous round She saved two break points at 5 3 and leveled the tie at the third attempt when Barty fluffed a forehand But she had nothing left in the tank in the decider being fed a bagel that put a brutal end to her Paris run On Court Suzanne Lenglen Keys was always in control against world number 42 Siniakova advancing smoothly in light drizzle
After easing into a one set lead Keys a semi finalist here last year encountered some resistance from Siniakova who however bowed out on her serve when she sent a forehand long |
WMB | MLB roundup Bruce blasts 2 HRs in first start for Phils | Jay Bruce wasted little time in making his presence felt with the Philadelphia Phillies Two days after being acquired by the Phillies from the Seattle Mariners Bruce hit two home runs doubled and equaled his career high with six RBIs on Tuesday night to lead the Phillies to a 9 6 win over the host San Diego Padres Bruce who made his first Phillies appearance on Monday off the bench after Andrew McCutchen got injured started on Tuesday and went 3 for 4 including his 15th and 16th homers of the season the second one a grand slam The helped the Phillies snap a five game losing streak Seven homers were hit in the game Scott Kingery and pinch hitter Maikel Franco added solo home shots for the Phillies Franmil Reyes hit two tape measure blasts 426 and 438 feet off the batter s eye in center for the Padres and Eric Hosmer had a two run shot Orioles 12 Rangers 11 Pedro Severino homered three times and Dwight Smith Jr homered and drove in six runs as Baltimore hung on to defeat Texas in the opener of a three game series in Arlington Texas Severino hit two solo homers and a two run shot to finish 3 for 5 with four RBIs He and Smith who went 3 for 4 combined to drive in 10 of the Orioles runs and Baltimore also got a home run from Keon Broxton Hanser Alberto went 4 for 5 and scored twice for Baltimore The Orioles led 12 5 going to the bottom of the ninth but the Rangers scored six times Closer Mychal Givens struck out Delino DeShields and Elvin Andrus swinging with the tying run on base to end the game Dodgers 9 Diamondbacks 0 Hyun Jin Ryu continued his dominant pitching with seven scoreless innings as Los Angeles won its seventh consecutive game blanking Arizona in Phoenix Ryu 9 1 allowed three hits walked none and struck out two He retired 12 in a row at one point won his sixth consecutive start and lowered his ERA from 1 48 to 1 35 He has not allowed a run in five of his past six outings Yimi Garcia and Scott Alexander each pitched a scoreless inning of relief to complete the Dodgers eighth shutout of the season Cody Bellinger hit a two run triple off the top of the wall in center field in the first inning to stake Ryu to an early lead and extend his hitting streak to 11 games Braves 12 Pirates 5 Austin Riley Josh Donaldson and Freddie Freeman each homered in the seventh inning or later as Atlanta came from behind to down host Pittsburgh for its third straight win Melky Cabrera hit a two run homer and an RBI single for Pittsburgh which blew two three run leads and lost for the 11th time in 15 games Atlanta starter Max Fried gave up five runs and nine hits in four innings with three strikeouts and two walks Dan Winkler 2 1 pitched a scoreless sixth to pick up the win Blue Jays 4 Yankees 3 Randal Grichuk and Freddy Galvis hit home runs in a four run fifth inning and host Toronto ended a six game losing streak by defeating New York Reliever Thomas Pannone 2 3 allowed two walks in one third of an inning but picked up the win Ken Giles allowed a single and two walks and struck out three in 1 1 3 innings to earn his 11th save of the season Clint Frazier and Aaron Hicks homered for the Yankees Red Sox 8 Royals 3 Visiting Boston scored all of its runs in the sixth inning or later with seven runs charged to host Kansas City s bullpen and J D Martinez had three hits in the win Eduardo Rodriguez 6 3 picked up the victory He allowed two runs on six hits in 5 2 3 innings He didn t walk anyone and struck out seven Kansas City starter Glenn Sparkman pitched 5 1 3 innings allowing just one run on three hits He left with a 2 0 lead and a runner on second after throwing 80 pitches 59 for strikes However the Royals bullpen allowed seven runs on seven hits in 3 2 3 innings Indians 5 Twins 2 Francisco Lindor recorded his 10th career multi homer performance and Shane Bieber 5 2 tossed seven plus strong innings as host Cleveland defeated Minnesota Lindor belted a solo homer in the fourth inning and a two run shot in the fifth before capping his three hit performance with a double in the seventh Roberto Perez and Jake Bauers launched back to back homers in the seventh inning to help the Indians win for the fourth time in seven games Marlins 16 Brewers 0 Garrett Cooper went 4 for 5 and homered as Miami routed host Milwaukee Miami erupted with an 11 run fifth inning off Milwaukee relievers Taylor Williams NYSE WMB and Corbin Burnes for a 15 0 advantage Every Marlins hitter had an RBI in the inning a feat not done since the San Francisco Giants accomplished it in 1997 Harold Ramirez Starlin Castro and starting pitcher Pablo Lopez keyed the onslaught with run scoring doubles Miguel Rojas Curtis Granderson Cooper and JT Riddle each had run scoring singles and Jorge Alfaro plated two runs with a bases loaded single Cubs 6 Rockies 3 Kyle Hendricks struck out 10 in seven solid innings Kyle Schwarber and Javier Baez homered and host Chicago ended Colorado s eight game winning streak Playing in just his second game for the Cubs Carlos Gonzalez doubled and drove in two runs against his former team and Pedro Strop pitched the ninth for his fifth save of the season Daniel Murphy homered and drove in two runs and Nolan Arenado singled to extend his hitting streak to 14 games for Colorado Reds 4 Cardinals 1 Jose Peraza drove in two runs and Cincinnati ended host St Louis four game winning streak in the opener of a three game series After an 80 minute rain delay Reds starter Luis Castillo went six innings allowing one run and two hits Castillo 6 1 struck out eight and walked four Amir Garrett David Hernandez and Raisel Iglesias combined to blank the Cardinals the rest of the way Yasiel Puig homered and Peraza and Joey Votto had two hits each for the Reds who avoided their first three game losing streak since a four game skid from April 14 17 Giants 9 Mets 3 10 innings Bruce Bochy earned his 1 000th win as San Francisco manager when Stephen Vogt s two run double in the 10th inning snapped a tie and jump started a six run frame that fueled a win at New York The Giants tied a season high by winning their third straight The Mets have dropped three straight and six of eight Bochy who directed San Francisco to World Series wins in 2010 2012 and 2014 is the second Giants manager to reach 1 000 wins John McGraw totaled 2 583 wins from 1902 32 and the 25th manager to win at least 1 000 games with one club Nationals 9 White Sox 5 Anthony Rendon homered doubled and drove in five runs and host Washington rallied from a five run deficit to defeat Chicago Stephen Strasburg 6 3 gave up five runs in the first two innings but added three scoreless frames to record his 100th career win Howie Kendrick and Victor Robles also homered for Washington which has won three straight and five of six Sean Doolittle got the final two outs with two men on for his 13th save Tigers 9 Rays 6 Miguel Cabrera had three hits including a grand slam and drove in five runs to power host Detroit past Tampa Bay Cabrera blasted his fifth career grand slam to snap a 2 2 tie in the fifth inning He missed the previous two games due to knee soreness and revealed prior to the game he would become a full time designated hitter Dawel Lugo had three hits including a two run triple and Niko Goodrum rapped three hits and scored twice for Detroit Ryan Carpenter 1 2 notched his second career win by holding the Rays to two runs and seven hits in seven innings Athletics 4 Angels 2 Frankie Montas pitched six solid innings and was backed up by three scoreless innings from the Oakland bullpen in beating Los Angeles in Anaheim Calif The A s ended a five game losing streak Montas 7 2 gave up two runs on four hits and one walk with three strikeouts His one mistake was a sixth inning fastball over the heart of the plate to Shohei Ohtani who hit a two run homer his fourth of the season Ramon Laureano hit a two run home run and Khris Davis and Stephen Piscotty also drove in runs for Oakland Astros 11 Mariners 5 Alex Bregman went 2 for 4 with a double and three RBIs as visiting Houston defeated Seattle Robinson Chirinos and Tony Kemp hit solo homers for the Astros who won their fifth game in a row Pinch hitter Daniel Vogelbach s three run double in the sixth inning gave the Mariners a 5 4 lead but they nonetheless took their fourth consecutive defeat Houston scored three runs in the seventh to regain the lead and added four runs in the eighth to pull away
Astros left hander Reymin Guduan 1 0 earned his first major league victory despite giving up Vogelbach s bases clearing hit Field Level Media |
WMB | NFL notebook LT Williams reportedly wants out of D C | Seven time Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams NYSE WMB wasn t present Tuesday for the start of the Washington Redskins mandatory minicamp and it was presumed he wanted a new contract One report Wednesday however said that isn t the case Instead CBS Sports Jason La Canfora reported that Williams wants out of Washington because of how the team addressed surgery he had in April to remove a tumor from his scalp La Canfora said numerous sources confirmed that Williams issues with the Redskins are not related to money Instead he wants to be traded or released due to their handling of his recent medical situation Has vowed not to play for them La Canfora wrote on Twitter Coach Jay Gruden addressed the report with the media on Wednesday and didn t deny La Canfora s reporting He said he found out a few days ago that Williams wouldn t be showing up at minicamp and said he hopes he changes his mind and rejoins the team Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard admitted that he knew linebacker Bobby Okereke faced a sexual assault allegation in 2015 at Stanford when the team selected the linebacker in the third round of April s draft An independent student run website at Stanford called The Fountain Hopper detailed Okereke s situation on Tuesday and reported that the Colts knew of the allegation when they selected him A Title IX investigation in 2016 sided with Okereke so he didn t face discipline According to Ballard Okereke informed the Colts of the situation at the Senior Bowl in January Ballard said the team studied documents from the Title IX case and was comfortable with selecting Okereke The Cleveland Browns waived former starting left tackle Desmond Harrison a day after he missed the first practice of the team s mandatory minicamp Head coach Freddie Kitchens told reporters Harrison missed a flight and was a little late He added that the team just decided to move on Harrison 25 started the Browns first eight games in 2018 at left tackle the first player to start at the position following stalwart Joe Thomas retirement as an undrafted rookie out of West Georgia He was a late scratch in Week 9 with an illness and was inactive the rest of the year after losing the starting job to Greg Robinson The Baltimore Ravens agreed on a four year rookie contract with first round wideout Marquise Hollywood Brown Like all first round contracts the deal comes with a fifth year team option No terms were announced but the expected value based on Brown s No 25 draft slot is 11 8 million over the first four years Brown is recovering from a Lisfranc injury in his foot and has not participated in offseason practices but he is expected to be ready for training camp Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Justin Evans is recovering from a surgical procedure on his heel not on the toe that ended his 2018 season head coach Bruce Arians said on Tampa Bay WDAE radio Evans was in a walking boot when mandatory minicamp opened Tuesday with many speculating it related to last year s toe injury Arians clarified Wednesday that it is a heel issue and Evans will be in a boot for a few weeks Evans 23 has started 19 of 24 games through two seasons after he was a second round pick in 2017 Former Kansas City Chiefs defensive lineman Allen Bailey visited the Atlanta Falcons ESPN reported Bailey 30 has also visited the New England Patriots Carolina Panthers and Seattle Seahawks He had career highs of six sacks and 10 quarterback hits last season while playing mostly on the interior for the Chiefs Former Denver Broncos safety Darian Stewart visited the Indianapolis Colts earlier this week NFL Network reported Stewart 30 was released by the Broncos to save cap space in March He started 58 of 61 games over the last four seasons earning a Pro Bowl nod in 2016 The Buffalo Bills signed defensive tackle L T Walton and tight end Nate Becker releasing defensive tackle Quindarius Thagard and tight end Moral Stephens to make room on the roster Walton 27 played in 36 games four starts for the Pittsburgh Steelers over the last four years making two sacks Becker is an undrafted rookie out of Miami Ohio who spent time briefly with the Detroit Lions earlier this offseason The Panthers signed former Bucs cornerback Javien Elliott waiving guard Brendan Mahon to make room on the roster
Elliott 25 played in 36 games seven starts over the past three seasons with one interception and two pass breakups Field Level Media |
WMB | Fed s Williams says excessively low inflation a pressing problem | NEW YORK Reuters An aging population and slowing productivity growth are pushing down the level of interest rates that a healthy economy can withstand creating challenges for the Federal Reserve in fighting the next downturn an influential U S central banker said Thursday When interest rates are low central banks don t have much room to maneuver to deal with a crisis New York Fed President John Williams NYSE WMB said in remarks prepared for delivery to the Council on Foreign Relations in New York With less Fed firepower economic recoveries will likely be slower dragging down on inflation which if persistent can lower expectations for future inflation and put further downward pressure on current inflation he said If inflation falls central banks will have even less room to maneuver when faced with a slowdown Williams said While I will always be vigilant about inflation that s too high inflation that s too low is now a more pressing problem Williams did not use his prepared remarks to address whether he views the Trump administration s latest threat of trade tariffs as enough to set the stage for a potential Fed rate cut as a few of his colleagues have suggested In late May before the latest escalation in trade tensions Williams had said interest rates were in the right place
Williams used his prepared remarks to stump for central banks to review their goals and strategies to better prepare for future downturns as the Fed is currently doing He also called for fiscal authorities to put in place their own policies such as automatic stabilizers that would automatically cut taxes in a downturn to stimulate growth |
WMB | Trade war tariffs pose risks to U S and global growth IMF Fed officials | By Jason Lange and Howard Schneider WASHINGTON BOSTON Reuters Officials of the U S Federal Reserve and International Monetary Fund warned separately on Thursday that global trade tensions and rising tariffs posed an increasing risk to decades of U S expansion as well as to the global economy Developments since early May including a new 25 U S tariff on Chinese imports and threats of new U S levies on Mexico seemed to mark a turning point in the Trump administration s more than year old battle over trade policy that could undermine business confidence and investment and eventually feed through to economic performance Indeed tariffs on Mexican imports amount to the U S taxing its own products since many items that cross the border are intermediate goods used by American producers Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Robert Kaplan said in an appearance at Boston College The relationship he said has allowed companies to expand and hire in the United States while building global market share If you put sand in the gears potentially of that relationship it is going to bite said Kaplan outlining his concern that waning business confidence will have a chilling effect on capital investment That may ultimately feed in if it lasts long enough to hiring which in turn you may see later this year into next year in terms of the consumer pulling back he said Kaplan said he still felt it too soon for the Federal Reserve the U S central bank to lower interest rates because the Trump administration could just as quickly reverse course In separate remarks in New York the influential chief of the New York Fed John Williams NYSE WMB said he is seeing new headwinds from trade tensions that are slowing business investment and adding to uncertainty But on rates he said he and his staff would not start until next week to delve into the data to figure if the Fed should remain on hold or adjust rates adding he will keep an open mind The tariffs on Mexico for example are not yet in effect but due to be imposed on Monday in a bid by Trump to get the country to curb the passage of thousands of migrants across its border with the United States The Trump administration has said the tariffs on China were an effort to create a fairer trading relationship after years in which jobs and technology have migrated to the Asian nation The intensifying trade disputes have rocked financial markets over the last few weeks and analysts at the International Monetary Fund said the direction of U S policy did not bode well The escalating trade disputes or an abrupt downturn in financial markets could pose substantial material risks for the U S recovery the global lender said in a report on the U S economy The U S economy was on track to grow 2 6 this year slightly faster than its 2 3 growth forecast from April the IMF said After hitting a record high in April the benchmark Standard Poor s 500 stock index has fallen about 4 in the last month as investors fretted that the protracted trade battle and a sagging global economy might depress the U S growth outlook Bond markets have also reflected concerns the expansion may buckle under the weight of the trade war The IMF said it was especially important that the U S resolves its trade dispute with China saying the administration s use of tariffs to pressure the Chinese was undermining the global trading system The IMF raised concerns that the U S financial system was increasingly vulnerable to a reversal in easy financial market conditions saying corporate leverage was historically high and underwriting standards were weakening An abrupt reversal of this accommodative environment interacting with leveraged corporate balance sheets could create a significant downdraft to activity investment and job creation the IMF said The financial system appears healthy but medium term risks to financial stability are rising the IMF said in the report
It criticized U S regulators for offering little institutional response to counter these growing risks and instead for easing regulatory constraints |
WMB | Why Williams Companies WMB Could Be Positioned For A Surge | Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB is an energy company that could be an interesting play for investors That is because not only does the stock have decent short term momentum but it is seeing solid activity on the earnings estimate revision front as well These positive earnings estimate revisions suggest that analysts are becoming more optimistic on WMB s earnings for the coming quarter and year In fact consensus estimates have moved sharply higher for both of these time frames over the past four weeks suggesting that Williams Companies could be a solid choice for investors Current Quarter Estimates for WMBIn the past 30 days 2 estimates have gone higher for Williams Companies while none have gone lower in the same time period The trend has been pretty favorable too with estimates increasing from 16 cents a share 30 days ago to 22 cents per share today a move of 37 5 Current Year Estimates for WMB Meanwhile Williams Companies current year figures are also looking quite promising with 1 estimate moving higher in the past month compared to 1 lower The consensus estimate trend has also seen a boost for this time frame increasing from 59 cents per share 30 days ago to 67 per share today an increase of 13 6 WILLIAMS COS Price and Consensus
Bottom LineThe stock has also started to move higher lately adding 5 9 over the past four weeks suggesting that investors are starting to take note of this impressive story So investors may definitely want to consider this Zacks Rank 3 Hold stock to profit in the near future |
WMB | Why ISS Recommends Williams To Vote For 20B Deal With ETE | Shareholders of Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB have got a recommendation from premier independent proxy voting and corporate governance advisory player Institutional Shareholder Services Inc ISS to vote in favor of the merger accord with Energy Transfer Equity LP NYSE ETE According to ISS the shareholders of Williams will benefit from the 20 billion deal closure as the combined company will have a significant upside potential on an increased customer base and higher cash flows It is to be noted that Williams shareholders will vote for the pending merger on Jun 27 Under the current terms the merger will fall though if it is not closed by Jun 28 2016 Alongside on Jun 20 the deal will be placed before the Delaware Chancery Court The court will listen to both Williams and Energy Transfer Equity and will try to analyze where the players have failed to complete the accord In the meantime WILLIAMS COS Price Most importantly although Williams is trying to get the deal closed Energy Transfer Equity is reluctant The cash portion to buy Williams has become troublesome for Energy Transfer Equity as natural gas price has slipped since the deal was declared last September Hence it can be said that concerns expressed by Energy Transfer Equity that the deal had not secured the necessary legal opinion to make it tax free to shareholders is merely an excuse Tulsa OK based Williams is a premier energy infrastructure provider in North America The company s core operations include finding producing gathering processing and transportation of natural gas Currently the company carries a Zacks Rank 3 Hold which implies that the stock will perform in line with the broader U S equity market over the next one to three months Williams rival Energy Transfer Equity also has a Zacks Rank 3 Some better ranked players in the energy sector include Enbridge Inc NYSE ENB and Boardwalk Pipeline Partners LP NYSE BWP Both players sport a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy |
WMB | Williams To Shell Out Special Dividend Upon Merger With ETE | The board of directors of energy infrastructure provider Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB has offered a special dividend of 10 cents per share But the catch is that the dividend will only be paid if and only if Williams merges with its rival Energy Transfer Equity LP NYSE ETE It is to be noted that Williams shareholders will vote for the pending merger on Jun 27 Under the current terms the merger will fall though if it is not closed by Jun 28 2016 The special dividend is likely payable to shareholders of record as of the close of the last business day prior to the consummation of the probable merger Moreover the shareholders will have to hold the stock until the completion of the merger Investors should know that the special dividend is anticipated to be paid as early as possible following the closure In a separate development Williams projected that if the merger gets closed the financial benefit or the synergies will be way lower than what was thought last September when Williams agreed to being acquired by Energy Transfer Equity The company expects the synergies to be 126 million every year by 2020 almost 94 below the prior anticipation of more than 2 billion The company added that even if the market sees the levels seen in Jul 2015 when both Williams and Energy Transfer Equity were in early talks to enter into a merger deal the value of the synergies would be 543 million instead of 2 billion anticipated earlier WILLIAMS COS Price Tulsa OK based Williams is a premier energy infrastructure provider in North America The company s core operations include finding producing gathering processing and transportation of natural gas Currently the company carries a Zacks Rank 3 Hold which implies that the stock will perform in line with the broader U S equity market over the next one to three months Williams rival Energy Transfer Equity also has a Zacks Rank 3 Some better ranked players in the oil production pipeline industry include Enbridge Inc NYSE ENB and NuStar GP Holdings LLC NYSE NSH Enbridge sports a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy while NuStar carries a Zacks Rank 2 Buy |
WMB | Energy Transfer ETE Gets Permission To Exit Williams Deal | Texas pipeline company Energy Transfer Equity L P NYSE ETE is no longer bound by its agreement to buy rival natural gas pipeline company Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB according to the recent ruling by the Supreme Court of Delaware Notably the ruling came in a lawsuit filed by Williams to hold Energy Transfer Equity to the deal In May Williams took the legal step when Energy Transfer Equity expressed concerns over the merger citing that the deal had not secured the necessary legal opinion to make it tax free for shareholders This marked the third separate lawsuit filed by the company over the span of six weeks Per Williams Energy Transfer Equity was using the tax opinion as a ruse to miss the merger deadline of Jun 28 and was deliberately trying to disorganize the deal However much to the dismay of Williams the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Energy Transfer Equity The court concluded that Energy Transfer Equity had not breached the merger agreement when in March it reported a tax problem that would prevent the deal from closing on the scheduled date Last September Energy Transfer Equity had valued its acquisition agreement with Williams at 33 billion and had agreed to pay 6 billion in cash to Williams as part of the cash and stock acquisition However the deal became less attractive due to a sharp decline in oil prices later The cash payment of 6 billion made this pending merger a nightmare for Energy Transfer Equity given that borrowing this amount in a down market exposed the company to the risk of being overleveraged ENERGY TRAN EQT Price Energy Transfer Equity through its subsidiaries provides diversified energy related services in the U S The company sells natural gas to electric utilities independent power plants local distribution companies industrial end users and other marketing companies Tulsa OK based Williams is a premier energy infrastructure provider in North America The company s core operations include finding producing gathering processing and transportation of natural gas Currently both the companies carry a Zacks Rank 3 Hold which implies that the stocks will perform in line with the broader U S equity market over the next one to three months Some better ranked players in the energy sector include Sasol Ltd NYSE SSL and Braskem S A NYSE BAK Both these stocks sport a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy |
GLW | Why Is Corning GLW Up 3 4 Since Its Last Earnings Report | A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW Shares have added about 3 4 in that time frame
Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release or is GLW due for a pullback Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late let s take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts
Recent EarningsCorning delivered first quarter 2018 adjusted earnings of 31 cents per share surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a penny However earnings decreased 13 9 year over year and 36 7 sequentially Core revenues increased 3 8 year over year to 2 513 billion which came ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 2 510 billion However revenues declined 6 1 on a sequential basis The results reflect strength in the company s Optical Communications Environmental Technologies and Life Sciences business lines Segmental PerformanceDisplay Technologies segment generated around 29 8 of total revenues Revenues decreased 5 from the year ago quarter as well as sequentially to 745 million Per management sequential decline in LCD glass prices were the best first quarter since 2010 Optical Communications garnered 35 4 of total revenues Reported segment revenues increased 8 year over year on the back of strong demand for both enterprise and carrier products However it declined 5 on a sequential basis to 886 million Environmental Technologies segment generated around 12 9 of revenues Reported segment revenues were up 17 year over year and 11 sequentially to 322 million Strong demand for Corning s solutions in the automotive market and additional contract wins drove year over year growth Improvement in heavy duty diesel truck demand and new gasoline particulate filter business led to an increase in diesel sales Specialty Materials generated 11 1 of revenues Reported segment revenues declined 7 year over year and 29 sequentially to 278 million backed by penetration into developing regions and product portfolio expansion Life Sciences business accounted for around 9 3 of revenues Reported revenues were up 10 from the year ago quarter and 3 sequentially to 232 million Operating DetailsAdjusted gross margin reduced 100 basis points bps from the year ago quarter to 40 while remained flat from the previous quarter Adjusted selling general administrative expenses SG A as a percentage of revenues increased 100 bps from the year ago quarter to 15 However it remained flat on a sequential basis Moreover research development expenses R D as a percentage of revenues increased 200 bps on a year over year basis and 100 bps from the previous quarter to 10 GuidanceCorning reiterated the full year 2018 outlook For 2018 management continues to project core sales to surge 7 to 11 billion The company expects LCD glass market growth to be in the mid single digit Management anticipates Corning s volume to grow faster than the market primarily attributed to ramping production of world s first Gen 10 5 fab in Hefei It expects LCD glass prices to decline sequentially Optical Communications sales are anticipated to grow around 10 on a year over year basis Notably this growth excludes contribution from 3M s Communications MMM Markets Division For 2018 Environmental Technologies sales are expected to increase by 10 while Specialty Materials sales are anticipated to grow depending on timing and extent of new model launches and adoption of our innovations The Life Sciences business will increase in the mid single digits range For the second quarter Corning projects LCD glass market volume to grow sequentially in the low single digit range Growth is expected to pick up as company ramps production Decline in LCD glass price is projected to be lesser than the first quarter marking it as the best second quarter considering a time span of a decade Optical Communications and Environmental Technologies are envisioned to grow by low teens and high teens respectively on a year over year basis in the second quarter While Specialty Materials segment performance is expected to decline mid to high single digits from the year ago quarter Life Sciences segment is projected to up high single digits
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then
In the past month investors have witnessed a downward trend in fresh estimate There has been one revision higher for the current quarter compared to three lower
Corning Incorporated Price and Consensus
VGM Scores
At this time GLW has an average Growth Score of C however its Momentum is doing a lot better with an A However the stock was allocated a grade of C on the value side putting it in the middle 20 for this investment strategy
Overall the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of B If you aren t focused on one strategy this score is the one you should be interested in
Based on our scores the stock is more suitable for momentum investors than those looking for value and growth
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift Notably GLW has a Zacks Rank 3 Hold We expect an in line return from the stock in the next few months |
GLW | Corning Stock Could Be A Buy Before Earnings | Glass concern Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW will report earnings before the open tomorrow Oct 23 The shares have pulled back with the broader stock market of late but if recent history is any indicator it could be time to bet bullishly on GLW
Corning stock notched a 17 year high of 36 56 on Sept 21 but since then has surrendered roughly 16 to trade around 30 81 on pace for its first monthly loss since April However GLW is now within one standard deviation of its 160 day and 200 day moving averages after a lengthy stretch north of these trendlines and similar pullbacks have had bullish implications in the past
Specifically in the past three years Corning shares have experienced a similar pullback to the 160 day trendline four times after which the stock went on to average a one month gain of 4 35 and was higher 75 of the time per data from Schaeffer s Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White Meanwhile GLW has experienced similar pullbacks to the 200 day on three occasions averaging a subsequent one month gain of 5 26 and higher two thirds of the time
Along with double barreled trendline support the stock could also find a foothold in the round number 30 region This area is where GLW was trading prior to a third quarter bull gap and acted as a ceiling in the early part of 2018
In fact the aforementioned bull gap came on the heels of a well received Corning earnings report in late July with GLW shares enjoying a one day gain of 11 3 after reporting Looking back eight quarters the stock has averaged a single session post earnings reaction of 5 1 regardless of direction This time around the options market is pricing in a bigger than usual 9 1 swing for GLW per implied volatility data
Should Corning stock once again bounce off key trendlines especially in the wake of another blowout earnings report there s plenty of room on the bullish bandwagon for the oversold stock Just three of eight analysts following GLW deem it worthy of a buy or better rating and recent option buyers have been upping the bearish ante
On the International Securities Exchange ISE Chicago Board Options Exchange CBOE and NASDAQ OMX PHLX PHLX the stock s 10 day put call volume ratio of 0 78 is in the 95th percentile of its annual range While this tells us that calls bought to open have outnumbered puts on an absolute basis lately the percentile indicates GLW option buyers have demonstrated a much healthier than usual appetite for bearish bets over bullish in the past two weeks |
GLW | Watts Water WTS Beats Earnings Revenue Estimates In Q3 | Watts Water Technologies Inc NYSE WTS reported healthy third quarter 2018 results mainly driven by strong operating performance in the Americas resulting in year over year growth in sales and profitability Both the top line and the bottom line surpassed the respective Zacks Consensus Estimates in the quarter Net IncomeOn a reported basis net income increased 18 9 year over year to 31 5 million or 92 cents per share driven by higher price volume productivity lower effective tax rate and reduced non operating expenses Adjusted net income came in at 34 million or 99 cents per share compared with 27 5 million or 80 cents per share a year ago The bottom line beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4 cents Watts Water Technologies Inc Price Consensus and EPS Surprise
RevenuesOn a reported basis quarterly net sales increased 7 2 year over year to 390 9 million primarily driven by strong performance in the Americas The top line surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 380 million Organic sales jumped 8 year over year Regionally organic sales in the Americas increased 10 driven by higher demand in plumbing drains and heating and hot water products leading to incremental price and higher volume Organic sales improved 4 in Europe owing to volume growth in drains and electronics products Organic sales in Asia Pacific Middle East and Africa APMEA grew 3 driven by higher volume in the Middle East and Africa Australia and Korea Cost and MarginsCost of goods sold went up 6 8 year over year to 226 4 million Gross profit increased 7 7 to 164 5 million Operating income was 46 9 million up 5 9 Operating margin was down 10 basis points bps to 12 Adjusted operating margin was 12 9 up 30 bps Segmental PerformanceAmericas Net sales increased 9 9 to 262 7 million in the reported quarter Adjusted operating income increased 11 1 to 45 million Europe Net sales were up 2 4 year over year to 111 6 million The segment s adjusted operating income was 12 8 million compared with 14 million in the year ago quarter APMEA Net sales remained flat at 16 6 million Adjusted operating income came in at 2 5 million compared with 0 7 million in the prior year quarter Cash Flow and LiquidityIn the first nine months of 2018 Watts Water generated 66 6 million of cash from operating activities compared with 73 4 million in the year ago period As of Sep 30 2018 the company had 156 8 million as cash and cash equivalents with 350 7 million as long term debt net of current portion Net debt to capitalization ratio was 20 1 The company repurchased nearly 57 000 shares of Class A common stock for approximately 4 7 million during the third quarter Zacks Rank and Stocks to ConsiderWatts Water currently has a Zacks Rank 3 Hold Better ranked stocks in the broader industry include Badger Meter Inc NYSE BMI Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW and Harmonic Inc NASDAQ HLIT While Badger Meter sports a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy Corning and Harmonic carry a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see Badger Meter has a long term earnings growth expectation of 9 Corning has a long term earnings growth expectation of 8 8 It beat earnings estimates in each of the trailing four quarters the average positive surprise being 4 1 Harmonic has a long term earnings growth expectation of 8 8 It surpassed earnings estimates twice in the trailing four quarters the average positive surprise being 94 4 Looking for Stocks with Skyrocketing Upside Zacks has just released a Special Report on the booming investment opportunities of legal marijuana Ignited by new referendums and legislation this industry is expected to blast from an already robust 6 7 billion to 20 2 billion in 2021 Early investors stand to make a killing but you have to be ready to act and know just where to look |
GLW | Altice ATUS Beats Q3 Earnings Estimates On Record Margins | Altice USA Inc NYSE ATUS reported all time best results in third quarter 2018 with healthy year over year increase in earnings and revenues driven by improved subscriber trends highest ever margin and higher free cash flow Quarterly net income was 32 6 million or 4 cents per share against a net loss of 192 6 million or loss of 26 cents per share in the year ago quarter The radical improvement was mostly driven by higher revenues and lower depreciation and amortization charges The reported earnings comfortably beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of loss of 4 cents Altice USA Inc Price Consensus and EPS Surprise
Quarter DetailsTotal revenues increased 4 1 year over year to 2 417 8 million driven by growth across all business segments and beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 2 401 million Residential revenues were 1 945 9 million up 2 4 year over year with improving customer trends and net additions in broadband business Average revenue per user increased 2 3 year over year to 143 Business services revenues were 344 2 million up 6 with both the Enterprise and SMB units continuing to trend well due to improved value proposition with voice and data bundles and reduced churn Advertising revenues totaled 123 1 million up 37 8 owing to higher targeted data and analytics revenues During the quarter its cross section advertising firm a4 launched Athena a new self serve client application for end to end multi screen campaign management with one stop shopping for advertisers With in depth reporting measurement and analytics services Athena has become the primary growth driver of a4 Quarterly operating income improved significantly to 505 6 million from 120 6 million in the year ago quarter mainly due to decline in depreciation and amortization Adjusted EBITDA was 1 070 5 million compared with 1 012 3 million in the prior year Cash Flow Balance SheetOperating free cash flow for the quarter was down 2 8 to 736 million reflecting increased investment in new fiber to the home Free cash flow increased 28 0 year over year in the quarter to 276 million bringing the year to date figure to 937 million up 66 4 At the end of third quarter 2018 the company s net debt was 21 562 million Guidance ReiteratedFor full year 2018 Altice continues to anticipate revenue growth of 2 5 3 year over year The company also reiterated the plan to expand its adjusted EBITDA and cash flow margins over the medium to long term Zacks Rank Stocks to ConsiderAltice currently has a Zacks Rank 3 Hold Better ranked stocks in the broader industry include Arista Networks Inc NYSE ANET Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW and Knowles Corporation NYSE KN each carrying a Zacks Rank 2 Buy You can see Arista has a long term earnings growth expectation of 21 2 It beat earnings estimates in each the trailing four quarters the average being 13 4 Corning has a long term earnings growth expectation of 8 8 It beat earnings estimates in each the trailing four quarters the average being 4 1 Knowles has a long term earnings growth expectation of 10 It surpassed earnings estimates thrice in the trailing four quarters the average positive surprise being 11 Today s Stocks from Zacks Hottest StrategiesIt s hard to believe even for us at Zacks But while the market gained 21 9 in 2017 our top stock picking screens have returned 115 0 109 3 104 9 98 6 and 67 1 And this outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon Over the years it has been remarkably consistent From 2000 2017 the composite yearly average gain for these strategies has beaten the market more than 19X over Maybe even more remarkable is the fact that we re willing to share their latest stocks with you without cost or obligation |
GLW | GLW Vs ACIA Which Stock Should Value Investors Buy Now | Investors interested in Communication Components stocks are likely familiar with Corning GLW and Acacia Communications Inc ACIA But which of these two stocks is more attractive to value investors We ll need to take a closer look to find out
We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system The proven Zacks Rank puts an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions while our Style Scores work to identify stocks with specific traits
Corning and Acacia Communications Inc are sporting Zacks Ranks of 2 Buy and 3 Hold respectively right now This means that GLW s earnings estimate revision activity has been more impressive so investors should feel comfortable with its improving analyst outlook But this is only part of the picture for value investors
Value investors also try to analyze a wide range of traditional figures and metrics to help determine whether a company is undervalued at its current share price levels
The Value category of the Style Scores system identifies undervalued companies by looking at a number of key metrics These include the long favored P E ratio P S ratio earnings yield cash flow per share and a variety of other fundamentals that help us determine a company s fair value
GLW currently has a forward P E ratio of 18 91 while ACIA has a forward P E of 55 54 We also note that GLW has a PEG ratio of 2 15 This metric is used similarly to the famous P E ratio but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock s expected earnings growth rate ACIA currently has a PEG ratio of 4 47
Another notable valuation metric for GLW is its P B ratio of 2 29 The P B is a method of comparing a stock s market value to its book value which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities By comparison ACIA has a P B of 3 42
Based on these metrics and many more GLW holds a Value grade of B while ACIA has a Value grade of D
GLW stands above ACIA thanks to its solid earnings outlook and based on these valuation figures we also feel that GLW is the superior value option right now |
VZ | Verizon offers Fios Mix Match plan | Verizon NYSE VZ unveils Mix Match on Fios allowing customers to mix Internet and TV plans to match their needs
Customers get more choices and only pay for what they want when it comes to Internet and TV the company says
Verizon slips 0 6 in premarket trading
Fios Internet options start at 39 99 per month includes 100 Mbps 300 Mbps and Gigabit Connection
Includes a year of Disney streaming service with any Internet plan Gigabit Connection plan includes Fios home router with WiFi 6 technology and eligibility for a 100 Visa Prepaid Card
Choose five Fios TV channels from almost 200 available networks and Verizon will find a package that fits also includes major broadcast networks
YouTube TV offered free for first month
More Fios TV option provides more than 300 channels and Most Fios TV offers more than 425 channels
New and existing customers can switch to Mix Match on Fios plans via My Fios app or online
Verizon says the plan includes no extra fees or annual contracts |
VZ | Verizon gets rid of contracts for internet and TV | Verizon said its dropping traditional cable bundles that are often bound by annual contracts and hidden fees in an attempt to prevent customers from cutting the cord Under the new offering customers choose internet and TV plans separately and pay by the month |
VZ | Verizon Will Launch 4 Times More 5G Devices on Its Network This Year | This year Verizon NYSE VZ will try to boost its 5G technology prospects by launching four times more devices 20 in total on its new network than it did last year Verizon CEO Ronan Dunne announced the increase in 5G devices at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week and added that the devices released in the first half of the year will cost around 800 each while some released later in the year will be priced under 600
Dunne s comments were notable because releasing 20 5G devices on its network this year will help Verizon tap into pent up consumer demand for 5G devices and services
The demand is already there
A recent survey conducted by Counterpoint Research found that 81 of survey respondents said 5G was very appealing or appealing to them compared to 4G services Most importantly 59 of respondents said that they were very interested or extremely interested in buying a 5G phone
Tom Kang the research director at Counterpoint said that the study revealed there is tremendous interest in 5G and that over 30 of consumers are willing to buy a 5G device even if 5G is not yet available where they live
This pent up demand comes as consumers want two main things from 5G services faster speeds and increased reliability With Verizon s 5G network consumers will undoubtedly get the first considering that Verizon says 5G speeds will be up to 100 times faster than 4G
Good start but not a win just yet
The jury is still out on whether Verizon s 5G will be more reliable than its current network Verizon is betting on a high frequency spectrum called millimeter wave which allows for ultra fast cellular speeds but it isn t great for sending signals through large buildings
To help offset this potential problem Verizon will use what s called Dynamic Spectrum Sharing which will allow the company to put new 5G signals on its current 4G spectrum In contrast both AT T and T Mobile are focusing on the lower frequency spectrum for their 5G networks
The top U S wireless carriers are all fighting to build out the largest and fastest 5G networks right now and only time will tell which company becomes the clear leader and which one creates the truly most reliable network
Verizon hasn t yet specified which technology companies will be releasing the new 5G devices but notable smartphone makers including Apple are expected to release new 5G phones this year Research firm Gartner estimates that the installed base of 5G smartphones will increase from just 10 of the market this year to 56 in 2023
Verizon launching so many 5G devices on its network this year is significant because it will allow consumers who are ready to jump on the 5G bandwagon to have their pick of 5G phones And with some of those phones expected to be priced under 600 in the second half of this year even budget conscious buyers won t have an excuse not to upgrade |
VZ | Has Verizon Just Fired the Shot Heard Round the Pay TV Industry | For a new pricing plan that Verizon Communications Inc NYSE VZ claims will put an end to traditional cable and satellite bundle contracts Mix Match on Fios seems like a pretty lame moniker Maybe that s because the plan is not as revolutionary as the company wants consumers to believe Rather than taking dead aim at the traditional cable and satellite bundles of hundreds of channels Mix Match targets the triple play offers that pay TV providers now offer landline phone pay TV and internet service What consumers like least about the triple play bundles is paying for channels they don t want and never watch Changes to that aspect of bundling are minimal under the new Verizon plan The company is offering three plans ranging in price from 39 99 a month to 79 99 a month The cheapest offers 100 Mbps download speeds the mid price plan offers 300 Mbps speed for 59 95 a month and the gigabit plan costs 79 99 a month including the home router rental fee of 15 a month that is not included in the other two plans New subscribers to the gigabit plan also get a 100 prepaid Visa card and a year of Disney if they also sign up for any internet plan div connatix margin bottom 1 5em div connatix img margin unset So far pretty good Then it gets complicated YouTube TV free for the first month costs 49 99 a month YouTube provides more than 70 channels of live TV including local news and sports Verizon also offers other Fios TV plans including a test drive of the more than 425 channels available for 60 days after which Verizon will recommend the best plan for you for 50 a month Also priced at 50 is the Fios option that lets customers choose five out of more than 125 channels after which Verizon picks a plan based on those preferences Plans are also available that include some 300 channels 70 a month or all 425 channels for 90 a month The Home phone analog telephone adapter converts a wireline phone to a wireless service Under the Mix Match program that costs 20 a month What makes all this different from the triple play bundles is that customers don t have to take the phone part of the bundle Otherwise it looks quite similar to various other bundling plans from the pay TV companies In the latest American Customer Satisfaction Index ACSI survey cable and satellite subscription services posted an average index score of 62 out of a possible 100 in 2019 unchanged from 2018 Since 2001 these subscription services have scored a high of 68 2013 and a low of 61 2002 through 2005 No aspect of these services improved year over year The overall average ACSI index score for internet service providers was 62 unchanged year over year and a low since ACSI began tracking customer satisfaction in the industry in 2013 Because the cable TV industry is also the leading provider of broadband internet service it s no surprise that the scores for the two services match When ACSI matched Fios and AT T s U verse against traditional cable and satellite services both scored better than the traditional services with index scores of 68 and 69 respectively while Comcast s Xfinity scored a middling 57 and Altice Optimum posted a 61 Both major satellite providers Dish Network 67 and DirecTV 66 scored better than any cable service For Verizon customer dissatisfaction with its Fios video product translated into a loss of 67 000 subscribers in the third quarter of 2019 The company added 30 000 Fios internet customers Verizon is getting a clear message from customers that business under the old pay TV rules doesn t work well these days The company s Mix Match program may give it a slight edge with consumers On the whole however it s a modest change and does not threaten to put an end to bundle contracts Mix Match does eliminate the discount for buying a triple or double play contract with a pay TV service and does not charge fees for broadcast or regional sports networks What could be a bigger difference maker for Verizon this year is its deal with Disney to offer the new Disney streaming service to its Fios offerings Verizon stock traded basically flat just after noon Thursday at 59 06 in a 52 week range of 52 28 to 62 22 The stock s 12 month consensus price target is 61 61
By Paul Ausick |
VZ | Verizon Media taps Gap exec to lead technology | Verizon Media VZ 0 3 has named Rathi Murthy as its chief technology officer Murthy will oversee global tech strategy for the unit formerly known as Oath She joins from the same position at Gap where she led 2 500 employees across that company s brand portfolio She had previously held senior leadership roles at American Express Verizon says she will lead continued innovations in 5G advertising and content commerce and subscriptions |
VZ | Verizon to redeem 4 95 notes due 2047 | Verizon Communications NYSE VZ will redeem all of its outstanding 4 95 notes due Feb 11 2047 and delist the notes from the Taipei Exchange on Feb 11 2020
Initial notional amount of the notes is 1 475B
Call price is 100 of the principal amount plus accrued and unpaid interest to the redemption date |
WMB | Osaka lives to fight another day Djokovic cruising | By Martyn Herman PARIS Reuters Naomi Osaka stayed on course for a third successive Grand Slam title and Novak Djokovic a fourth at the French Open on Thursday but their paths to the third round could not be more different For the second match in a row Osaka had to battle back from a shocking start this time losing the first four games against former world number one Victoria Azarenka before winning a titanic tussle 4 6 7 5 6 3 in just under three hours The Japanese top seed struck 52 winners as she stretched her winning run in the Grand Slams to 16 matches I have this mindset that I feel like I can win if it gets down to the wire like if I have to break a person I feel like I have the ability to do that Osaka who plays Katerina Siniakova of the Czech Republic next said Djokovic bidding to hold all four Grand Slams simultaneously for the second time in his career had no such dramas as he followed Osaka on to Court Suzanne Lenglen The Serb was in cruise control as he beat Swiss lucky loser Henri Laaksonen the world number 104 6 1 6 4 6 3 to set up a third round clash with Italian qualifier Salvatore Caruso He has nothing to lose I m sure he s going to be very motivated to play his best Djokovic who won the title to complete his first Nole Slam in 2016 told reporters Serena Williams NYSE WMB moved smoothly through to the third round with a 6 3 6 2 defeat of Japanese qualifier Kurumi Nara setting up an all American tussle with Sofia Kenin who benefited from the withdrawal of 22nd seed Bianca Andreescu through injury Williams is trying again to match Margaret Court s 24 Grand Slam titles having fallen twice in finals last year on her comeback from maternity leave Defending champion and third seed Simona Halep did not have things all her own away against Poland s Magda Linette but came through a tough battle 6 4 5 7 6 3 Dominic Thiem beaten in last year s final by Rafael Nadal also had some trouble against Alexander Bublik He had to save two set points in the fourth set to avoid a decider and was relieved to win 6 3 6 7 6 6 3 7 5 He will play unseeded Pablo Cuevas next Fifth seed Alexander Zverev ninth seed Fabio Fognini and 13th seed Borna Coric all progressed with ease although Juan Martin del Potro the eighth seed needed five sets to subdue Japan s Yoshihito Nishioka Several Frenchmen survive in the draw including Gael Monfils who will face a second successive all French clash in the third round when he plays wildcard Antoine Hoang Hoang enjoyed a memorable win on the Court One Bullring against Spain s experienced 23rd seed Fernando Verdasco
No French women have reached the third round for the first time since 1986 after Caroline Garcia lost 1 6 6 4 6 4 to Russian qualifier Anna Blinkova |
WMB | Bank of Canada sees rising business investment says economy solid | By Nia Williams NYSE WMB CALGARY Alberta Reuters The Bank of Canada said on Thursday that business investment should expand gradually overall but expressed concerns over increased trade frictions between the United States and the European Union Carolyn Wilkins the bank s senior deputy governor said the expanded investment should be led by firms outside the oil and gas sector which has been hit hard by low prices and transport constraints The growing investment in other sectors will show up in the headline numbers more clearly she told a business audience in Calgary Canada s energy capital adding that attractive financing costs and government incentives should help The bank held its main overnight interest rate steady as expected on Wednesday saying there was evidence that a recent economic slowdown was temporary The bank raised rates five times between July 2017 and October 2018 but has not changed them since then citing household debt levels low oil prices and trade tensions Despite these challenges Canada s economic performance has been relatively solid over the last couple of years she said citing record low jobless levels and healthy wage growth Asked later by reporters whether the bank had wanted to push back against predictions by some analysts that its next move would be a rate cut Wilkins said nothing had changed overall since April 24 the date of the most recent rate decision before Wednesday s announcement Financial conditions are accommodative and from an overnight rate perspective they are exactly the same as they were in April she told a news conference Wilkins said the wild card in the bank s projections was the current trade war between the United States and China adding that we see the potential for more friction between Washington and the European Union Canada has been caught up in the conflict between the United States and China which is blocking imports of Canadian canola seed A big part of the bank s work ahead of updated economic forecasts in July would be understanding the implications of various trade tensions said Wilkins The bank s governing council spent some time discussing the signals it should take from a very flat or in some cases inverted yield curve which she said partly reflected a change in tone by many central banks
They nonetheless also reflect a concern about the prospects for growth that is not reflected across other asset classes We continue to be attentive to these signals she said |
WMB | Fed s Williams sees case for aggressive action when steep downturns loom | NEW YORK Reuters U S policymakers have to cut rates aggressively when deflation or a severe downturn threatens a top Federal Reserve policymaker said on Friday in remarks that did not directly address his current economic outlook New York Fed President John Williams NYSE WMB told an academic research conference that cutting rates aggressively and keeping them lower for longer in recoveries are both lessons he draws from research on how to respond to economies including much of the developed world now where low inflation and other trends have pushed rates near zero Research on those questions had important practical lessons for policymakers in the United States and abroad following the global financial crisis Williams said One lesson was that short term rates should be cut aggressively when deflation or a severe downturn threatens That is do not keep your powder dry A second lesson is that short term rates should be kept lower for longer as the economy recovers Williams said last week that he sees U S interest rates as being in the right place given a strong economy and essentially nonexistent inflation pressures He added that there was not currently a strong argument for changing rates including as a response to low inflation readings that may due to temporary factors On Friday Williams did not directly address his current economic or rates outlook But his remarks come as the Fed faces increasing market expectations that it will be forced to deliver rate cuts this year to deal with an economic slowdown and increasing U S trade tensions with China and Mexico President Donald Trump said on Thursday the United States will impose a 5 tariff on all goods coming from Mexico starting on June 10 until illegal immigration across the southern border is stopped That comes as the U S and China have clashed in their own trade negotiations The Fed is also in the midst of a policy review that may see the central bank decide to welcome inflation that is slightly and temporarily over its target to give officials better ability to respond to future downturns |
WMB | Factbox New Ukraine president picks top reformist men with oligarch ties | By Matthias Williams NYSE WMB and Pavel Polityuk KIEV Reuters Ukraine s new President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has appointed a mix of people to his core team which includes a reformist former finance minister men with ties to a controversial oligarch and people from his TV production company Zelenskiy was an actor and comedian who entered the presidential race as a political novice He defeated then incumbent Petro Poroshenko by a landslide in April but has faced scrutiny over his ties to businessman Ihor Kolomoisky Investors see how Zelenskiy handles his relationship with Kolomoisky as a test for his presidency and appetite for reform Kolomoisky has fought a running legal battle with the authorities to overturn the nationalization of PrivatBank Ukraine s largest lender which he owned until 2016 Following are some of Zelenskiy s appointments since his inauguration on May 20 Some are yet to be decided ANDRIY BOGDAN CHIEF OF STAFF Bogdan was an adviser to Kolomoisky when he was governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region in 2014 He also served as one of Kolomoisky s lawyers in the PrivatBank case During the rule of President Viktor Yanukovich prior to the 2014 Maidan protests Bogdan worked as a deputy minister of justice and then as a deputy minister responsible for anti corruption policy Dmytro Razumkov a political adviser on Zelenskiy s campaign team and now the head of his new party has previously described Bogdan as an old friend of Zelenskiy according to the Ukrainian media outlet Bihus A heavy social media user Zelenskiy s last two pictures on Instagram were of him and Bogdan once working out at the gym inside the presidential building and once eating a kebab OLEKSANDR DANYLYUK SECRETARY OF NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL A former manager at McKinsey Danylyuk was finance minister between 2016 2018 and a prominent advocate for reform and tackling entrenched corruption He was finance minister when PrivatBank was nationalized He was fired by Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman in a row after which Danylyuk accused the government of trying to co opt him into corruption schemes He joined Zelenskiy s campaign as an adviser and joined him for meetings with stakeholders including the IMF and international businesses Days before the election he also accompanied Zelenskiy to meet French President Emmanuel Macron on a whistle stop trip to Paris Danylyuk s presence in the campaign and his later inclusion in Zelenskiy s core presidential team has sent a reassuring signal to investors some of whom have been wary of the president s inexperience and business connections He is the top official of the National Security and Defense Council a powerful body responsible for coordinating national security that is chaired by Zelenskiy and comprises ministers lawmakers security officials and the central bank governor SERHIY SHEFIR CHIEF ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT Serhiy Shefir and his brother Borys are long time producers of Zelenskiy s TV shows They are also among several members of his comedy team formed in his southern hometown of Kryvyi Rih The brothers are close friends of Zelenskiy and have been involved in around 10 companies together while their wives co own property As a co owner Borys continues as a producer at Zelenskiy s Studio Kvartal 95 entertainment company MAKSYM DONETS CHIEF OF SECURITY Donets was appointed as head of Zelenskiy s bodyguard team and deputy head of Ukraine s Department of State Protection which protects senior officials including the prime minister and the Speaker of parliament Reuters has previously documented ties between Donets and Kolomoisky and found photographs from six different occasions when they were together IVAN BAKANOV DEPUTY HEAD OF STATE SECURITY SERVICE Bakanov is a trained lawyer and close childhood friend of Zelenskiy The two used to live in the same apartment block He became chief executive for Studio Kvartal 95 He was appointed as the deputy head of the powerful state security service SBU in charge of fighting corruption and organized crime After the resignation of the current SBU chief following Poroshenko s defeat Bakanov becomes the de facto head of the service Zelenskiy s team during the election campaign promised reform of law enforcement agencies so that they would no longer be used as a weapon to squeeze businesses SERHIY TROFIMOV FIRST DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF Trofimov was the executive producer at Kvartal 95 before being appointed Bogdan s first deputy chief of staff YURIY KOSTYUK DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF Kostyuk was a screenwriter at Kvartal 95 DMYTRO RAZUMKOV HEAD OF SERVANT OF THE PEOPLE PARTY Razumkov was the political advisor to Zelenskiy s campaign and a frequent spokesman for him He is now the head of Zelenskiy s Servant of the People party named after a TV comedy series where Zelenskiy played a fictional president The party is on course to win a snap parliamentary election that Zelenskiy called for July 21 but fall short of a majority He was a member of Yanukovich s Party of Regions between 2006 2010 and then worked with the tycoon Serhiy Tihipko In defiance of a push under the previous president Poroshenko for promoting the use of the Ukrainian language Razumkov insists on publicly speaking Russian RUSLAN RYABOSHAPKA DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF Ryaboshapka worked in the justice ministry rising to deputy justice minister in 2014 and led an anti corruption bureau under President Yanukovich He then had a brief stint at Transparency International before joining a newly created anti corruption agency under President Poroshenko that was responsible for checking the wealth declarations of politicians and officials He quit the agency in 2017 accusing its chief of mismanagement TO BE DECIDED Zelenskiy has yet to nominate appointments to be his new foreign minister and defense minister He is also set to formally request parliament to sack General Prosecutor Yuriy Lutsenko but has not nominated who would replace him In Ukraine s mixed political system it is the strongest party or coalition in parliament that determines the make up of most of the government including the prime minister and finance minister Zelenskiy could therefore form a government with his nominees if he wins the July election Zelenskiy s team has said it would not seek to remove Central Bank Governor Yakiv Smoliy |
WMB | Tsurenko seeks confidence boosting French Open win over Halep | Reuters Lesia Tsurenko overcame a sudden onset of self doubt after her 30th birthday with a gritty display to beat Aleksandra Krunic in the French Open second round and the Ukrainian will seek another shot in the arm when she meets Simona Halep on Saturday Tsurenko sealed the second round win by taking the deciding third set 11 9 after bad light stopped play on Thursday her birthday and said the result had helped her deal with the mental conflict I feel relieved now I said this morning to myself that probably if I m not going to win this match there would be a very big mental problem in future for me Tsurenko said But I was like you have to win this match just to prove to yourself that you can handle everything That was my goal today And I did it I m just happy that I did it It was really tough mentally to play and at the end my body was just not listening to me being a tennis player at some point you think no no no I m going to fight And this is exactly what happened Tsurenko has never beaten defending champion Halep in seven career meetings including two matches in February but she said she was looking forward to the pair s third round meeting I m actually really excited to play Simona again this year the world number 27 said We played a few times already I think that matches like it makes me better Win or lose it s always good experience and it s always like positive for your future In other matches on the main showcourts Novak Djokovic takes on unseeded Italian Salvatore Caruso while Alexander Zverev faces Dusan Lajovic
Serena Williams NYSE WMB continues her quest for a record equalling 24th Grand Slam singles title against fellow American Sofia Kenin Naomi Osaka who has endured difficult matches in her previous two rounds takes on Katerina Siniakova |
WMB | French Open bids adieu to much loved Bullring | By Richard Lough PARIS Reuters Few showcourts draw crowds as close to the thunderous power of modern day tennis as Roland Garros Bullring a brutalist but adored concrete arena that on Saturday is due to host its final singles match before being razed Inside this gladiatorial arena legends have been born top seeds undone and even shorts pulled down It was in the Bullring that Mary Joe Fernandez in 1993 blew apart Gabriela Sabatini s 6 1 5 1 lead to win 10 8 in the third set where the unseeded Gustavo Kuerten stunned Thomas Muster in the third round in 1997 on his way to an unexpected Grand Slam title and where Marat Safin memorably dropped his shorts in 2004 after winning an extraordinary point against Felix Mantilla There are prettier courts at Roland Garros including the curved stands of the Court Suzanne Lenglen which dislodged the Bullring as Roland Garros s second biggest showcourt But none delivers the up close drama of the 1970s designed Bullring It s so much smaller more intimate said American tennis fan Stefan Henryson waiting in line to enter the court with his wife and two daughters We come here for the experience And it s accessible for folks without showcase tickets who can t see the Nadals and the Serena Williams NYSE WMB For its swansong tournament the Bullring is open to holders of tickets for the outside courts But it still draws big name players in the first week and rarely suffers the lunchtime exodus of the Philippe Chatrier center court SPECTATORS LAWN In short it is a court for the real tennis fan On Saturday beads of sweat rolling off the forehead of Stan Wawrinka were visible to spectators in the front rows Linesmen stood in the line of fire so close to the player returning serve that they often had to duck out the way of a swinging racket It is though the sound of balls ricocheting off strings and the roar of the crowd that is so immediate in the Bullring even the faintest mutter of despondency carries to the stands Yet it is time for the 3 800 seat Bullring to make way for a spectators lawn not unlike Wimbledon s Henman Hill as the French Tennis Federation reinvents the compact layout of Roland Garros New to this year s tournament is the serene Simonne Mathieu court sunken into the ground and surrounded by greenhouses in the adjacent botanical gardens It is now nearly a 15 minute walk from one end of the grounds to the other Still nostalgia weighed heavily around the Bullring on Saturday It s a pity they ll tear it down said Lucasz Przyblowcz of Poland looking up at the court s plant covered drab exterior It s beautiful in its ugliness America s Amanda Anisimova s third round tie against Romania s Irina Camelia Begu on Saturday evening is the court s final scheduled singles match organizers said Doubles matches will be played on it during the second week before the demolition teams move in Not everyone however will be sorry to see the Bullring go It s a fun court above all It s a very personal court but I ve had so many tough battles out there which I ve lost Dimitrov told reporters after his defeat to Wawrinka This court has been a love hate relationship for me through the years I m pretty happy it s not going to be here next year |
WMB | Serena s pursuit of 24th major title on hold after French Open exit | By Julien Pretot PARIS Reuters Serena Williams s quest for a record equaling 24th Grand Slam singles title was put on hold on Saturday after the former world number one was knocked out of the French Open in the third round following a 6 2 7 5 defeat by fellow American Sofia Kenin Chasing Margaret Smith Court s all time record which was built over the amateur and professional eras Williams NYSE WMB failed to recover from a woeful opening set on Court Philippe Chatrier In the players first meeting world number 35 Kenin pulled Williams around the court and made the most of her opponent s unforced errors to set up a last 16 encounter with Australian eighth seed Ashleigh Barty Williams who won the last of her 23 major singles titles at the 2017 Australian Open suffered her earliest Grand Slam exit since Wimbledon 2014 It s a lot of emotion she s such a great player a true champion so much respect for her said Kenin who was booed by a fraction of the crowd while Williams left the court to a standing ovation Playing against Serena you ve got to fight for every point she s such tough player I m so happy with this win Kenin who won her maiden singles WTA title this season in Hobart made the most of Williams s shaky start breaking for 3 2 as the 10th seed sprayed the court with unforced errors WOEFUL FOREHAND Williams s forehand was woeful and her opponent piled on the pressure to move 5 2 up with another break Serving for the set Kenin thought she had bagged it when Williams returned long only for the umpire to rule her serve out Kenin smacked the netcord with her racket in frustration drawing jeers from the Paris crowd before regaining her composure and wrapping it on her second opportunity Williams was broken to love in the first game of the second set and looked nothing close to finding a solution against Kenin s pace She screamed her lungs out after winning the first two points of the following game but Kenin was not impressed and snatched her seventh consecutive game Williams was hitting short however allowing Kenin to step into the court and dictate play But in the sixth game Williams finally broke to level for 3 3 as Kenin showed more signs of nerves disputing several calls from the umpire or the linesmen It was her way to stay in the game however and she claimed the decisive break for 6 5 with a lighting quick service return that left Williams stranded
Kenin missed a forehand on her first match point and it was Williams who handed her the win when she sent a backhand long filling the youngster s eyes with tears |
WMB | Serena Osaka exits open Paris boulevard for Halep | By Julien Pretot PARIS Reuters Simona Halep s path to a second successive French Open title cleared up in spectacular fashion on Saturday after 23 time Grand Slam champion Serena Williams NYSE WMB and world number one Naomi Osaka exited Roland Garros in the third round on Saturday Williams failed to recover from a woeful start against fellow American Sofia Kenin as the 20 year old motored into the last 16 with a 6 2 7 5 win putting the former world number one s quest for a record equaling 24th singles major on hold Williams who suffered her earliest Grand Slam exit since Wimbledon 2014 was given a standing ovation as she walked off Court Philippe Chatrier while sections of the crowd jeered her conqueror The 37 year old Williams seeded 10th paid the price for her lack of match practice as she was playing in only her fifth tournament of the year and her fightback in the middle of the second set was short lived Osaka just like Williams was a possible semi final opponent for third seed Halep who is looking to become the first woman to retain the Suzanne Lenglen Cup since Justine Henin won a third consecutive title in 2007 But the Japanese top seed who had already been forced to go the distance in her first two rounds was clueless in a 6 4 6 2 defeat to Czech Katerina Siniakova The loss snapped Osaka s 16 match winning streak in Grand Slams after she won the 2018 U S Open and this year s Australian Open With Osaka gone five of the top six seeds are now out of the women s singles draw leaving Halep as the sole survivor The Romanian showed her best side in a 6 2 6 1 dismissal of Ukrainian 27th seed Lesia Tsurenko In the men s draw world number one Novak Djokovic strolled into the fourth round with a 6 3 6 3 6 2 victory against Italian qualifier Salvatore Caruso Leading the charge of the young generation Alexander Zverev continued to flirt with danger the German fifth seed advancing with a 6 4 6 2 4 6 1 6 6 2 victory over Serbian Dusan Lajovic his second five setter of the tournament The 22 year old who has now won all five set matches he has played at Roland Garros next faces Monte Carlo Masters winner Fabio Fognini after the Italian ninth seed dismissed Spain s Roberto Bautista Agut 7 6 5 6 4 4 6 6 1 Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas and Austrian Dominic Thiem both progressed with four set victories Last year s runner up Thiem will take on Gael Monfils one of two Frenchmen left in the draw
Tsitsipas will be up against a resurgent Stan Wawrinka after the 2015 champion downed Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov in three tiebreaks |
WMB | French Open draw opens up for all business Barty | PARIS Reuters Ash Barty has reached the last 16 of the French Open for the first time without dropping a set along the way and even if the Australian says she is not looking too far ahead a pathway deep into the second week opened up for her on Saturday
The 23 year old who has risen to eighth in the world on the back of a sparkling recent run of form breezed past German Andrea Petkovic 6 3 6 1 in the third round at Roland Garros
Barty would have expected the win to earn her a meeting with Serena Williams NYSE WMB in the fourth round and if she somehow managed to negotiate that formidable hurdle a date with world number one Naomi Osaka in the quarter finals
Williams though was stunned by fellow American Sofia Kenin and Osaka s 16 match winning streak in Grand Slam tournaments came to an end in straight sets at the hands of Katerina Siniakova on the red Paris clay
Although her compatriots will be hoping she can end a 46 year singles title drought for Australian women at the French Open Barty is not looking any further ahead than her next session on the practice courts
For me it s easy not to look ahead Barty said Obviously there s talk and it s unavoidable to hear what else is happening around the draw
But I can t control any of that I can only control how I prepare how I play and ultimately how we go about my next match
That match will now be against Kenin and Barty is expecting a battle as tough as if she had been facing 23 times Grand Slam singles champion Williams
Sofia is an incredible competitor she really is Barty said
She certainly respects every opponent but doesn t play their reputation She plays them just on the other side of the net and that s one of her best attributes
So I think it s going to be an extremely tough match come Monday
Barty is happy with the way she played in the first week but thinks her progress has not been as comfortable as the results might suggest
When I ve been able to execute my game I ve been able to win some matches in business like fashion but they re certainly not easy matches that s for sure Barty said
I feel like I m playing well and being able to execute to make the scorelines look a little easier than the match actually is |
WMB | Serena knew she had no chance at French Mouratoglou | PARIS Reuters Serena Williams coach Patrick Mouratoglou had written off her chances of winning this year s French Open even before she lost to fellow American Sofia Kenin in the third round on Saturday The 37 year old needing one more Grand Slam title to equal Margaret Court s record 24 was beaten 6 2 7 5 and while it surprised many Mouratoglou was not one of them Honestly if Serena didn t lose this one she would probably lose next round or when the top players would have been the other side of the court Mouratoglou talking in an interview with broadcaster Eurosport said Of course it a disappointment but in a way it had to happen She knew she had little chance of winning this year s French Open Williams time on court has been limited to a handful of matches since the Australian Open because of a knee injury First of all she knew she was not coming to this tournament being prepared the way she wanted to because of the big injury in Miami Mouratoglou said For many weeks she was not able to do anything because she had to recover so the time she had to prepare was much too short She did her best she really tried hard and she really wanted to compete People who know tennis can well see that from the first round she was not moving well enough to possibly be a winner here Had she won 10th seed Williams NYSE WMB would have faced Australian Ashleigh Barty who is seeded eighth
Williams has hinted that she could take a wildcard for one of the Wimbledon warm up events on grass |
WMB | 5 Swing Trades To Watch TRMB GME OLN AKRX WMB | Here s your swing trading watch list
Short Trimble Navigation Limited NASDAQ TRMB
Short GameStop Corp NYSE GME
Short Olin Corporation NYSE OLN
Long Akorn Inc NASDAQ AKRX
Long Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB |
WMB | Beware The Limited Rights Of Some MLP Investments | Examining the Risk Factors in a company s 10 K is not everybody s idea of light entertainment but as you ll see below it can provide useful insight about how management may treat certain of its stakeholders
Many Master Limited Partnerships MLPs share a legal structure that is similar to hedge funds and private equity funds in that the investors put their money in the fund whereas the manager gains most of his wealth from controlling the General Partner GP MLP investors don t think of themselves as private equity investors and to be sure the 9 ten year annual return on the Alerian Index is far better including as it does both the 2008 Financial Crisis and the 2015 MLP Crash
But from the perspective of governance rights MLP investors do look a lot like the passive Limited Partners LPs in these other asset classes They surrender many of the rights taken for granted by equity investors in public corporations Here are some examples lifted directly from the relevant 10 K It s one of the reasons why MLP managements typically invest in the MLP GP rather than the MLP itself and it s why we do too
Williams Partners NYSE WPZ
Our general partner has limited duties to us and it and its affiliates including Williams and Access Midstream Ventures and may have conflicts of interest with us and may favor their own interests to the detriment of us and our common unitholders
Williams directors and officers have a fiduciary duty to make decisions in the best interests of the owners of Williams which may be contrary to our best interests and the interests of our unitholders
Except in limited circumstances our general partner has the power and authority to conduct our business without unitholder approval
Our general partner may cause us to borrow funds in order to permit the payment of cash distributions even if the purpose or effect of the borrowing is to make incentive distributions
Our partnership agreement limits our general partner s duties to unitholders and restricts the remedies available to such unitholders for actions taken by our general partner that might otherwise constitute breaches of fiduciary duty
Holders of our common units have limited voting rights and are not entitled to elect our general partner or its directors which could reduce the price at which the common units will trade
Even if public unitholders are dissatisfied they have little ability to remove our general partner without the consent of Williams
Our partnership agreement restricts the voting rights of unitholders owning 20 percent or more of our common units
Explanation The management of WPZ has no fiduciary obligation to WPZ LPs can cause WPZ to borrow money in order to pay management and can t be fired
Plains All American NYSE PAA
Unitholders may not be able to remove our general partner even if they wish to do so
generally if a person acquires 20 or more of any class of units then outstanding other than from our general partner or its affiliates the units owned by such person cannot be voted on any matter
Explanation You can t fire the management of PAA either
Energy Transfer Partners NYSE ETP
Unitholders have limited voting rights and are not entitled to elect the General Partner or its directors In addition even if Unitholders are dissatisfied they cannot easily remove the General Partner
Unlike the holders of common stock in a corporation Unitholders have only limited voting rights on matters affecting our business and therefore limited ability to influence management s decisions regarding our business
Furthermore if the Unitholders are dissatisfied with the performance of our General Partner they may be unable to remove our General Partner The General Partner generally may not be removed except upon the vote of the holders of 66 2 3 of the outstanding units voting together as a single class including units owned by the General Partner and its affiliates As of December 31 2015 ETE and its affiliates held approximately 0 5 of our outstanding Common Units and our officers and directors held less than 1 of our outstanding Common Units Furthermore Unitholders voting rights are further restricted by the partnership agreement provision providing that any units held by a person that owns 20 or more of any class of units then outstanding other than the General Partner and its affiliates cannot be voted on any matter
Explanation You can t put the people you d like in senior management positions and you can t fire us
These three names were selected simply because they re well known Such provisions are not uncommon and they do at least provide plain disclosure If you re not happy with your private equity manager you have very limited recourse you can t easily fire him and you have to wait for liquidity events to get your money back At least if you dislike the management of your MLP you can sell your position
Like the management teams that run these three MLPs we are invested in the GPs of these as well as others We are generally supportive of the people that run them although we withhold judgment for now on one see Is Energy Transfer Quietly Fleecing its Investors Even if you don t expect management to fully avail themselves of the powers they ve granted themselves it s good to know what those powers really are
Disclosure We are invested in Williams Companies NYSE WMB Plains GP Holdings NYSE PAGP and Energy Transfer Equity NYSE ETE |
WMB | Should You Hold Williams Companies WMB Amid Oil Rally | We issued an updated research report on Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB on May 27 2016 The company is a premier energy infrastructure provider in North America whose midstream properties provide it with a steady flow of revenues even when natural gas prices are low However Williams Companies significant exposure to debt and weak commodity prices although crude has started seeing momentum keep us concerned This neutral view is reflected in the company s current Zacks Rank 3 Hold implying that the stock will perform in line with the broader U S equity market over the next one to three months Williams Companies midstream assets which are less sensitive to commodity prices help it to maintain a steady stream of revenues and cash flow even if natural gas prices stay low It is to be noted that Williams Companies has been focusing on lowering overall costs amid low commodity prices In fact the company slashed 10 of its workforce by the end of the first quarter of this year This reflects the company s effective cost control initiatives We also appreciate the company s enhanced natural gas delivery capacity to Brooklyn and Queens by bringing its Rockaway Delivery Lateral and Northeast Connector projects online This reflects Williams Companies objective to meet the long term clean energy needs of New York City However although crude crossed the 50 per barrel level for the first time this year the commodity is nowhere near its above 100 per barrel level two years back This ongoing weakness has taken its toll on the volumes and distribution growth potential of Williams Partners the company s largest income generating business segment Moreover we remain concerned about Williams Companies high debt level which leaves it vulnerable to an extended drop in commodity prices As of Mar 31 2016 the company had long term debt of 23 701 million representing a debt to capitalization ratio of 81 3 On top of that Energy Transfer Equity s acquisition offer to Williams Companies which was valued at 33 billion last September is now dicey Recently Williams Companies filed a suit against Energy Transfer Equity to ensure that their merger remains on track as the latter expressed concerns over it citing that the deal had not secured the necessary legal opinion to make the transaction tax free to its shareholders Stocks to ConsiderSome better ranked players in the oil production pipeline sector include Enbridge Inc NYSE ENB Pembina Pipeline Corporation NYSE PBA and Columbia Pipeline Group Inc NYSE CPGX Enbridge and Pembina Pipeline sport a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy while Columbia Pipeline carries a Zacks Rank 2 Buy |
WMB | Williams Energy Transfer Receives Merger Approval With Conditions | Williams Companies Inc NYSE WMB and Energy Transfer Equity LP NYSE ETE merger was recently approved by the U S Federal Trade Commission subject to certain conditions The approval is contingent on the combined entity agreeing to sell Williams 50 stake in an interstate natural gas pipeline that serves Florida its electric power companies in particular The antitrust approval was the last regulatory hurdle for the closure of this 20 billion deal Notably Williams shareholders will vote for the pending merger on Jun 27 Under the current terms the merger will fall though if it is not closed by Jun 28 2016 Last September Williams and Energy Transfer Equity signed the merger agreement to help both companies brave the low oil prices In fact the deal was estimated to close by the first half of 2016 However both players have been embroiled in a legal tussle suing each other for months Recently Williams filed a suit against Energy Transfer Equity to ensure that their merger remains on track The company took the legal step when Energy Transfer Equity expressed concerns over the merger citing that the deal had not secured the necessary legal opinion to make it tax free for shareholders The companies will be facing each other in Delaware s chancery court on Jun 20 to get declaratory judgment on tax issues and settle claims by each party that the other had breached their contract WILLIAMS COS Price Tulsa OK based Williams is a premier energy infrastructure provider in North America The company s core operations include finding producing gathering processing and transportation of natural gas Currently the company carries a Zacks Rank 3 Hold which implies that the stock will perform in line with the broader U S equity market over the next one to three months Energy Transfer Equity also has a Zacks Rank 3 Some better ranked players in the energy sector include PetroChina Co Ltd NYSE PTR and Braskem S A NYSE BAK Both these stocks sport a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy |
GLW | Corning GLW Beats On Q4 Earnings Revenues | We ve come to take for granted that our smartphones and tablets will have quality glass displays that will be scratch resistant break resistant and touch responsive And that s exactly what Corning Inc NYSE GLW promises with its glass substrates Corning is behind the displays in TVs smartphones etc Receding inventory and stabilizing prices in the LCD TV market are positives for this business It also offers cover glass in the form of Gorilla Glass and is expanding applications for this technology And that isn t all the company also offers fiber optics for communications networks auto products for environmental compliance and other glass products for life science applications Corning has a strong history when it comes to recent earnings reports as the stock has beaten estimates in all the last four quarters Currently Corning has a Zacks Rank 3 Hold You can see However the Zacks Rank could definitely change following the company s fourth quarter 2017 report which was just released We have highlighted some of the key stats from this just revealed announcement below Earnings Corning s core earnings of 49 cents per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimates of 47 cents but declined 2 from the year ago quarter Revenues Corning beat revenues which at 2 739 billion was ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 2 633 billion Revenues increased 7 on a year over year basis Key Stats The revenue growth was driven by robust performance from Optical Communications up 13 Environmental Technologies up 19 and Specialty Material up 17 Corning Incorporated Price Stock Price Shares are up almost 1 5 in the pre market session Check back for our full write up on this Corning earnings report later Don t Even Think About Buying Bitcoin Until You Read ThisThe most popular cryptocurrency skyrocketed last year giving some investors the chance to bank 20X returns or even more Those gains however came with serious volatility and risk Bitcoin sank 25 or more 3 times in 2017 Zacks has just released a new Special Report to help readers capitalize on the explosive profit potential of Bitcoin and the other cryptocurrencies with significantly less volatility than buying them directly |
GLW | Corning Drops On Earnings Here s The Trade | Corning Incorporated NYSE GLW manufactures and sells specialty glasses ceramics and related materials throughout the world The company is best known as the maker of gorilla glass which is used in many mobile devices Yesterday the stock plunged lower by 7 5 percent after reporting earnings Today the stock is trying to bounce back a bit but this is common after a sharp flush Traders and investors should note that the stock is now trading below its important 50 day moving average This puts the equity in a weak technical position The stock should have major chart support around the 29 00 level This is where the equity broke out in September 2017 Often prior breakout levels will serve as major chart support when retested |
GLW | Corning GLW Beats On Q1 Earnings Revenues Down Y Y | We ve come to take for granted that our smartphones and tablets will have quality glass displays that will be scratch resistant break resistant and touch responsive And that s exactly what Corning Inc NYSE GLW promises with its glass substrates Corning is behind the displays in TVs smartphones etc Receding inventory and stabilizing prices in the LCD TV market are positives for this business It also offers cover glass in the form of Gorilla Glass and is expanding applications for this technology And that isn t all the company also offers fiber optics for communications networks auto products for environmental compliance and other glass products for life science applications Corning has a strong history when it comes to recent earnings reports as the stock has beaten estimates in all the last four quarters Currently Corning has a Zacks Rank 3 Hold You can see However the Zacks Rank could definitely change following the company s first quarter 2018 report which has just released We have highlighted some of the key stats from this just revealed announcement below Earnings The Zacks Consensus Estimate remained steady at 30 cents per share in the last 7 days Corning s core earnings of 31 cents per share beat this estimate by a penny but declined 13 9 from the year ago quarter Revenues Corning reported revenues of 2 51 billion which was in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate but decreased 6 on a year over year basis Key Stats The revenue decline was attributed to weak performance from Optical Communications down 5 and Specialty Material down 29 Corning Incorporated Price Stock Price Shares are down almost 0 40 in the pre market session Check back for our full write up on this Corning earnings report later Will You Make a Fortune on the Shift to Electric Cars Here s another stock idea to consider Much like petroleum 150 years ago lithium power may soon shake the world creating millionaires and reshaping geo politics Soon electric vehicles EVs may be cheaper than gas guzzlers Some are already reaching 265 miles on a single charge With battery prices plummeting and charging stations set to multiply one company stands out as the 1 stock to buy according to Zacks research It s not the one you think |
VZ | FCC chair to propose 9 billion in funding for rural wireless coverage over 10 years | By David Shepardson WASHINGTON Reuters Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai said on Wednesday he will propose 9 billion in funding over 10 years to boost next generation 5G wireless coverage in rural U S areas That figure is about twice what Pai proposed last year over the same period and would be aimed at helping to bring 5G networks to sparsely populated rural areas that often struggle to obtain access to wireless services or the internet We must ensure that 5G narrows rather than widens the digital divide and that rural Americans receive the benefits that come from wireless innovation Pai said in a statement Pai plans to formally propose rules for the funding early next year and he said he would set aside at least 1 billion for precision agriculture Farmers around the world are deploying next generation wireless for such agricultural uses as monitoring crops and gauging water temperature and salt concentration The funding will come from the FCC s Universal Service Fund derived from surcharges on telephone service It also provides subsidies to schools and libraries Last month the FCC voted 5 0 to bar funding for equipment from companies it has deemed national security threats including Huawei Technologies Co and ZTE Corp HK 0763 Pai had proposed a 4 5 billion fund over the same period but canceled that last year until the FCC could extensively review 4G LTE coverage maps An FCC staff report released Wednesday said coverage maps submitted by Verizon Communications NYSE VZ Corp U S Cellular Corp and T Mobile Us Inc likely overstated each provider s actual coverage and did not reflect on the ground performance in many instances Verizon said it was not responsible for the agency s coverage mapping problem The industry told the FCC more than two years ago how to build a coverage map that better aligns with real world experiences For policy reasons the FCC rejected the industry s consensus proposal in favor of a more expansive definition of coverage Verizon simply followed the FCC s instructions The other carriers did not immediately comment The FCC found that minimum download speeds were achieved in just 62 of staff tests and staff was unable to obtain any 4G LTE signal in many drive tests The FCC told reporters on a conference call Wednesday that Pai did not plan to bring any enforcement actions against the carriers as a result of the findings
The FCC said it plans to award the funds in a reverse auction |
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