News about

Dick’s Isn’t Getting Dicked by Amazon: Here’s Why

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 10:39:58 -0400

Short Sellers Load Up on Best Buy and Sears (BBY, RAD, SHLD)

Sat, 15 Jun 2013 08:06:27 -0400

Overall, the short interest moves in troubled retail companies were mixed again during the final weeks of May. But Best Buy (NYSE: BBY), Rite Aid (NYSE: RAD) and Sears Holdings (NASDAQ: SHLD) saw especially large upswings in the period.

The number of

Microsoft and Best Buy In Pact to Open 600 Store Within Stores

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 13:43:29 -0400

Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) and Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) announced Thursday that the two companies have entered a pact to open 600 Windows stores within Best Buy stores across North America. Microsoft will sponsor 500 Windows stores in the U.S. and 100 in Canada.

Stores Within Stores

The companies

Target Hikes Dividend – Analyst Blog

Thu, 13 Jun 2013 11:00:01 -0400

The Minneapolis, Minn-based company, Target, raised its annual dividend by 19.4% to $1.72.

RadioShack Remains Neutral – Analyst Blog

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 14:40:01 -0400

We reaffirm our long-term Neutral recommendation on RadioShack.

Target Boosts Dividend 19.4 Percent But Shares Remain Lower

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 14:21:03 -0400

Target (NYSE: TGT) announced Wednesday that it was boosting its quarterly dividend 19.4 percent. Target announced that it will pay its next quarterly dividend in September.

Dividend Growth

The company has grown its dividend at a regular rate in recent years in an effort to keep the yield fairly constant.

Target Raises Quarterly Dividend 19.4% (TGT)

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 13:18:26 -0400

Discount retailer, Target Corporation (TGT) reported on Wednesday that its board has approved a 19.4% increase to its quarterly dividend. Target has raised its dividend by 19.4% from 36 cents per share to 43 cents per share, or $1.72 annually. The dividend will be paid on September 10 to shareholders of record on August 21. [...]

TJX: Super-Achieving Retailer Taking Big Risk

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 11:33:56 -0400

How Long Have You Waited In Line for Something?

Tue, 11 Jun 2013 13:23:54 -0400

Nearly 13 years ago, thousands of consumers lined up to purchase Sony's (NYSE: SNE) second game console, PlayStation 2. On a per store basis, the lines were rather short. Most Target (NYSE: TGT) locations, for example, received no more than a couple dozen people who were willing

Costco Stays Neutral – Analyst Blog

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 18:20:01 -0400

We reaffirm our long-term Neutral recommendation on Costco with a target price of $115.00, as risk and reward balances itself.

Stock Market News for June 10, 2013 – Market News

Mon, 10 Jun 2013 10:06:01 -0400

The official jobs numbers report that met expectations reassured investors that the Federal Reserve will not curb its bond buying program, lifted major indices higher on Friday

Retail Sales for May Better Than Expected

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 07:10:00 -0400

DailyFinance.com: Retailers are announcing May same-store sales figures today. Research firm Retail Metrics projected an overall gain of 2.8% year-over-year, compared with a 1.4% gain in March and a 3% gain in April. Retail sales gained 2% in May of 2012. Early ... Read more

New York & Co. Crafts New 52-Week High – Analyst Blog

Wed, 05 Jun 2013 11:20:01 -0400

Gathering momentum from the better-than-expected first-quarter fiscal 2013 bottom-line results, shares of New York & Company surged to attain a new 52-week high of $5.87 on Jun 4, 2013

Target Corp. Call Options Active As Shares Hit Record Highs

Tue, 04 Jun 2013 20:07:12 -0400

Today’s tickers: TGT, ONNN & CVS

TGT - Target Corp. – Weekly call buyers homed in on Target Corp. options during morning trading on Tuesday, a sign some traders are positioning for shares in the name to extend gains in the near term. The stock is trading up 1.7% at $72.23 just before midday in New York, after earlier rallying as much as 2.4% to a new all-time high of $72.77. Target’s shares have gained more than 25% since this time last year. The most active weekly contracts in play on TGT during the first half of the session are the Jun 07 ’13 $72.5 strike calls, with upwards of 1,800 contracts in play versus open interest of 640 contracts. It looks like most of the calls were purchased near the open for an average premium of $0.40 each, thus positioning buyers to profit at expiration in the event that shares settle above the average breakeven price of $72.90. Time and sales data indicates that the $72.5 weekly calls attracted buyers yesterday as well. On Monday around 600 of the $72.5 calls appear to have been purchased for an average premium of $0.11 apiece. Traders paying $0.11 per contract yesterday are seeing sizable overnight gains, with premium on the call options currently up four-fold at $0.48 each as of 12:10 p.m. ET.

ONNN - ON Semiconductor Corp. – Shares in ON Semiconductor rose 2.8% to a new 52-week high of $8.73 on Tuesday morning, extending the more than 30% upside move in the price of the underlying since this time last year. Options changing hands on ONNN in the early going today suggests at least one trader is positioning for shares to falter during the next four months. The buyer of roughly 900 puts at the Oct $7.0 strike for a premium of $0.25 apiece during the first 15 minutes of the session may be securing downside protection to hedge a position in the underlying shares, or may be initiating an outright bearish stance on ONNN through October expiration.…

Bulls and Bears Converge on Target Corporation (TGT) Amid New High

Tue, 04 Jun 2013 14:22:00 -0400

Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) climbed to a new record peak of %2472.77 this morning, after analysts at S&P Capital IQ named the retailer its "Focus Stock of the Week" yesterday...(Read More)

PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 to Receive Price Cut Ahead of Next-Gen

Thu, 30 May 2013 11:30:53 -0400

Now that Sony's (NYSE: SNE) PlayStation 4 and Microsoft's (NASDAQ: MSFT) Xbox One have been announced, the two companies are gearing up for the end of a very long console cycle.

Microsoft's last console, Xbox 360, was released in 2005 and PlayStation 3 came out a year

Costco Earnings Preview: Another Beat Expected

Wed, 29 May 2013 16:46:52 -0400

Where do you go if you want a trio pack of Plaza De Caviar? Three types of sturgeon for the bargain price of $199.99 is sitting at Costco (NYSE: COST) waiting for you along with 12 pounds of Anna’s All-Natural Honey for $54.99.

Maybe you think there’s something a

Fresh Stock Picks From Market-Beating Managers

Wed, 29 May 2013 09:29:47 -0400

Dividend Highlights/Lowlights for May 24

Fri, 24 May 2013 17:07:23 -0400

These were some of the biggest dividend stock performers on the upside and the downside in today’s market action. Highlights Procter & Gamble (PG) – up 4% Blackstone Group L.P. (BX) – up 2% Sherwin Williams (SHW) – up 2% Public Storage (PSA) – up 2% Target (TGT) – up 1.5% Lowlights Icahn Enterprises L.P. [...]

Toronto-Dominion Posts Robust Earnings – Analyst Blog

Fri, 24 May 2013 09:50:01 -0400

Toronto-Dominion reported its fiscal second-quarter 2013 (ended Apr 30) adjusted earnings of C$1.98 per share, which compared favorably with the year-ago earnings of C$1.82.

Can Sears Sales Overcome Its Old Stores Problem?

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:30:00 -0400

DailyFinance.com: Earnings from Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD) were so awful that Wall Street pushed its stock price down close to 10%. The question is whether the company can overcome the lack of attraction created largely because of its aged stores. Probably ... Read more

Stay on Target: Stock Still Shows Upside Potential

Thu, 23 May 2013 11:22:00 -0400

Although some earnings figures were lower than what analysts were expecting, CEO Gregg Steinhafel still believes that the company's Canadian expansion will prove profitable.

UBS Cuts Price Target, Estimates on Target (TGT)

Thu, 23 May 2013 09:45:10 -0400

Citing the higher-than-expected cost of rolling out Canadian store locations, UBS analysts lowered the price target and earnings estimates on discount retailer Target Corporation (TGT) on Thursday. The analysts now see shares of TGT reaching $73. This price target suggests a 7% upside to Wednesday’s closing price of $68.40. Target shares were down 40 cents, [...]

Benzinga Market Primer: Thursday May 23

Thu, 23 May 2013 06:06:38 -0400

Things went from euphoric to worrisome on Wednesday as the Dow saw a 200 point swing. Technicians note that the charts show an outside reversal. In other words—cause for concern.

There is a global selloff taking place this morning with the Dow poised to print a triple digit loss at the

Dividend Highlights/Lowlights for May 22

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:57:20 -0400

These were some of the biggest dividend stock performers on the upside and the downside in today’s market action. Highlights Mead Johnson Nutrition Company (MJN) – up 6% Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) – up 5% Staples (SPLS) – up 3% Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) – up 2% Pfizer (PFE) – up 2% Lowlights Herbalife Ltd. (HLF) [...]

Mid-Afternoon Market Update: MannKind Posts Huge Rally as Markets Plummet

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:18:20 -0400

Toward the end of trading Wednesday, the Dow traded down 0.72 percent to 15,276.86, while the NASDAQ fell 1.53 percent to 3,448.99. The S&P was also down, falling 1.14 percent to 1,650.98.

Top Headline Target (NYSE: TGT) reported a drop in its first-quarter profit.

Target's quarterly profit declined to $498 million,

Market Wrap-Up for May 22 (TGT, NTAP, AEO, INTU, more)

Wed, 22 May 2013 16:00:52 -0400

Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke’s testimony in front of the Congress’ Joint Economic Committee was closely watched by investors and Wall Street analysts, as most are curious about the future of the Fed’s quantitative easing (QE) program. As expected, Bernanke’s comments mostly mirrored his dovish policies, pleasing most investors who shot the averages into positive [...]

Summary of Important Points from Target's Q1 Conference Call

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:49:12 -0400

Below are some highlights from Target's (NYSE: TGT) Q1 conference call:

challenging environment caused by unfavorable weather and payroll tax increase

Comparable store sales decline 0.6% from last years 5.3% increase, transactions down 1.9%

Traffic in seasonal categories were soft in US due to cold and wet spring

Sales of

Target Decreases FY2013 Guidance, Shares Drop

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:07:46 -0400

Target (NYSE: TGT) reported Q1 FY2013 earnings Wednesday for the quarter that ended May 4, 2013.

The company reported GAAP earnings of $498 million, or $0.77 per share, and adjusted GAAP earnings of $1.05 per share, down 5.0 percent from $1.11 in year-earlier adjusted EPS. Revenue came in

Danger Zone: Amazon.com

Wed, 22 May 2013 13:28:08 -0400

Check out this week’s Danger Zone interview with Chuck Jaffe of Money Life and MarketWatch.com.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) is in the Danger Zone. The belief that Internet retail is or will be more profitable than traditional retail is untrue. Amazon is in a

Mid-Day Market Update: Dycom Gains On Upbeat Results, CVR Partners Drops

Wed, 22 May 2013 12:56:39 -0400

Midway through trading Wednesday, the Dow traded up 0.70 percent to 15,494.86, while the NASDAQ rose 0.48 percent to 3,518.99. The S&P was also up, gaining 0.65 percent to 1,679.98.

Top Headline Target (NYSE: TGT) reported a drop in its first-quarter profit.

Target's quarterly profit declined to $498 million, or $0.77

Closing Bell for Wednesday on Wall Street: Markets Blunted on Fed Comments, Minutes

Wed, 22 May 2013 12:06:00 -0400

DailyFinance.com: U.S. equity markets opened barely higher this morning following a report that mortgage loan applications had fallen by 9.8% from the previous week, on top of a 7% decline for the prior period. In Asia, the Bank of Japan said it would maintain its key ... Read more

Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Surge, Target Posts Lower Profit

Wed, 22 May 2013 10:14:18 -0400

Following the market opening Wednesday, the Dow traded up 0.55 percent to 15,472.44, while the NASDAQ rose 0.52 percent to 3,520.40. The S&P was also up, gaining 0.59 percent to 1,678.95.

Top Headline Target (NYSE: TGT) reported a drop in its first-quarter profit.

Target's quarterly profit declined to $498 million, or

U.S. stocks creep up before Bernanke testifies

Wed, 22 May 2013 09:41:41 -0400

U.S. stocks move up modestly in Wednesday’s early going before Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s much-anticipated appearance in front of lawmakers.

Target Q1 Profit Falls 29% on Lower Sales; Trims Full Year Outlook (TGT)

Wed, 22 May 2013 09:28:02 -0400

Before the opening bell on Wednesday, discount retailer Target Corporation (TGT) reported a decline in first quarter profits and revenues due to worse-than-expected sales in apparel and other weather-related products. Adjusted earnings were able to top analysts’ estimates, but revenues came up short. The Minneapolis, Minnesota-based company posted a first quarter net income of $498 [...]

PreMarket Info Recap for May 22, 2013

Wed, 22 May 2013 09:17:00 -0400

Have you ever woken up to find that a stock in your portfolio made a dramatic move overnight? Are you interested in learning how to understand each day's post-market and pre-market moves? Veteran traders Joel Elconin and Dennis Dick will give you all of the insights that you'll need to get

Updates, advisories and surprises

Wed, 22 May 2013 08:31:09 -0400

A roundup of the latest corporate earnings reports and what companies are saying about future quarters.

Stock futures edge up ahead of Bernanke, data

Wed, 22 May 2013 06:50:18 -0400

U.S. stock market futures are pointing to a slightly firmer start for Wall Street on Wednesday ahead of key testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, along with minutes of the latest Fed meeting and data that’s expected to show a jump in sales of existing homes.

Benzinga Market Primer: Wednesday, May 22

Wed, 22 May 2013 06:34:04 -0400

The markets reached another record high Tuesday as the Dow added 50 points and the S&P, nearly three points. All eyes will be on Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s testimony at 10:00 am EST Wednesday.

Morning News

S&P 500 futures are up 1.75 points to 1667.25. The EUR/USD was up at 0.19 percent to

US Stock Futures Up, All Eyes On Bernanke

Wed, 22 May 2013 06:23:25 -0400

US stock futures are slightly higher this morning. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 12 points to 15,367.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 1.40 points to 1,667.00. Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 3 points to 3,024.50.

US stocks closed higher on Tuesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising

H-P, Target, Saks are Wednesday’s stocks to watch

Wed, 22 May 2013 05:30:35 -0400

Dow component Hewlett-Packard and Target are among the high profile companies in queue to report quarterly results on Wednesday. But the scene stealer may be Saks which reportedly hired Goldman Sachs to shop around the luxury retailer.

Earnings Scheduled For May 22, 2013

Wed, 22 May 2013 04:40:37 -0400

American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE: AEO) is expected to report its Q1 earnings at $0.17 per share on revenue of $678.41 million.

Lowe's Companies (NYSE: LOW) is projected to report its Q1 earnings at $0.51 per share on revenue of $13.46 billion.

Citi Trends (NASDAQ: CTRN) is

Stocks To Watch For May 22, 2013

Wed, 22 May 2013 04:25:32 -0400

Some of the stocks that may grab investor focus today are:

Wall Street expects Lowe's Companies (NYSE: LOW) to report its Q1 earnings at $0.51 per share on revenue of $13.46 billion. Lowe's shares rose 0.47% to $42.65 in after-hours trading.

Saks (NYSE: SKS) has hired Goldman Sachs

Target Company Earnings Overshadowed by Forecast

Wed, 22 May 2013 04:00:00 -0400

DailyFinance.com: Target Corp. (NYSE: TGT) reported first-quarter 2013 results before markets opened this morning. The big-box retailer posted adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.05 on $16.71 billion in revenues. In the same period a year ago, the company ... Read more

Closing Bell for Tuesday on Wall Street: Markets Open Higher, Manage to Hold Decent Gain

Tue, 21 May 2013 12:04:00 -0400

DailyFinance.com: U.S. equity markets opened slightly higher this morning on another day when very little economic data was released anywhere around the globe. There was no data released at all in the U.S., and in Asia, Hong Kong's inflation rate rose to 4% in the ... Read more

Target Drops Wii U Price Ahead of Xbox Unveiling

Tue, 21 May 2013 11:17:03 -0400

Is the timing coincidental or a sign of things to come?

Target.com (NYSE: TGT) has lowered the price of Nintendo's (OTC: NTDOY) latest console, Wii U, from $299.99 to $239.99.

According to GameSpot, Target has only chosen to reduce the price of the basic 8GB

Bad News for Wal-Mart's Future?

Mon, 20 May 2013 13:00:00 -0400

New report shows that even Wal-Mart's own employees are pessimistic about the company's future.

Earnings Expectations for the Week of May 20

Sun, 19 May 2013 11:22:39 -0400

The start of the retail earnings season last week was a mixed bag.

Quarterly results from Walmart (NYSE: WMT), Kohl's (NYSE: KSS) and Nordstrom (NYSE: JWN) ranged from so-so to disappointing, while J.C. Penney (NYSE: JCP) posted a larger-than-expected net loss. Macy's

Stock rally’s breadth is a sign of strength, froth

Sun, 19 May 2013 11:19:42 -0400

Stock indexes rallying to new highs have put investors on alert for a correction. Now they have something else to worry about: Too many individual stocks touching highs.

A stock market correction will yield trading opportunities

Sat, 18 May 2013 10:27:39 -0400

We are searching for stocks that aren't too over-extended in this bull market.