MARKET CURRENTS
real-time news and commentary for investors
MARKET CURRENTS
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Today - Saturday, December 8, 2012
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12:14 AM Apple (AAPL) and Google (GOOG) have teamed up for the reported $500M-plus bid for bankrupt Kodak's (EKDKQ.PK) patents, Bloomberg reports. The two companies - part of rival consortiums this summer in an auction for the patents - are likely working together with a goal of neutralizing infringement lawsuits. [Tech, Top Stories, M&A;] Comment!
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Friday, December 7, 2012
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9:21 PM Ellington Financial (EFC) estimates its book value to be $24.02 as of Nov. 30 after accounting for the $0.70 quarterly dividend (stock went ex-dividend on Nov. 28). Book value at the end of October was $24.50. The stock closed today at $22.02 - an 8.3% discount to book. (PR) [Financials] Comment!
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8:15 PM Abbott (ABT) says the SEC has declared effective the Form 10 Registration Statement filed by AbbVie, its research-based pharmaceuticals business, clearing the way to spin the company out. Abbott expects to complete the separation of AbbVie on January 1, 2013, whereupon the special dividend, declared on November 28, will be distributed. [Healthcare] 3 Comments
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8:02 PM Zogenix (ZGNX) resumes trading following its earlier trading halt ahead the FDA announcement on Zohydro, and quickly craters 38%, currently at $1.50. [Healthcare, On the Move] Comment!
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7:48 PM Boeing's (BA) engineers union appears to be preparing workers for a strike, as both sides remain far apart on terms and called in the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, a Washington, D.C., agency that facilitate labor talks. 23K engineers held picket-line training this week, while union representatives call the likelihood of a strike "very high." A walkout however, is not likely to take place until January. 2 Comments
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7:30 PM Genentech, a member of the Roche Group (RHHBY.PK), gives updated survival results from Phase III studies showing that using Perjeta in combination with Herceptin and docetaxel chemotherapy significantly extended the overall survival of people with previously untreated HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer, and that the risk of death was reduced by 34%. [Healthcare] Comment!
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7:14 PM AppliedMicro (AMCC -2.8%) thinks its ARM server CPUs have a 12-18 month lead on rivals, notes Williams Financial. Moreover, AMCC's history as a telecom chipmaker has let it develop interconnects and switch fabric chips to connect its CPUs, and a slew of value-added features. It hopes to commence sales by Q413 or Q114. Marvell and AMD are also going after (I, II) the ARM server CPU market, expected to grow quickly thanks to demand from Internet companies looking to make their hardware as dense and power-efficient as possible. (Intel Centerion) [Tech, Quick Ideas] Comment!
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6:51 PM Some Chinese ADRs were among the biggest tech losers today, possibly thanks to ongoing de-listing fears stemming from the SEC's lawsuits against the Chinese arms of the Big-4 accounting firms. SPRD -8.2%. YOKU -6.9%. AMAP -5.7%. On the other hand, some Chinese solar names posted huge gains, likely on hopes JinkoSolar's $1B financing deal with China Development Bank indicates government support for the cash-burning industry remains strong. TSL +9.6%. LDK +12.1%. [Tech, On the Move] 1 Comment
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6:40 PM Universal Display (PANL +5%) rallied strongly for the second day in a row. Likely helping was a Digitimes report noting Taiwanese display manufacturers AU Optronics (AUO) and Innolux continue to invest in ramping OLED production, albeit while struggling with near-term yield and resource issues. For now, PANL remains very dependent on Samsung' OLED panel output. (yesterday) [Tech, On the Move] Comment!
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6:27 PM Prices for just about anything solar-related continue to tumble. Digitimes reports the average price of cells with "mid-range" (16.2%-16.6%) efficiency has fallen to just $0.25-$0.30/watt - cell prices were around $0.48/watt at the beginning of Q3. Meanwhile, polysilicon contract prices have fallen to $17-$18/kg from $20/kg in Q3, putting it further below the variable cost of Western producers. The troubled industry received a piece of good news this week courtesy of the Indian government, which has set a goal of building 9GW of plants by 2017. [Tech] 2 Comments
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6:11 PM Western Gas Equity Partners (WGP) jumped 27% in its stock market debut, another sign of strength for new offerings from energy partnerships. The IPO priced at $22 and closed at $28.17; the company raised $378M. WGP's cash-generating assets are its interests in Western Gas Partners (WES), which transports and gathers natural gas for its parent, Anadarko Petroleum (APC). [Energy] Comment!
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6:09 PM Aided by a big product refresh, EMC's storage system share grew 150 bps Y/Y in Q3 to 30%, estimates IDC. Whereas NetApp's (NTAP) share fell 30 bps to 11.9%, IBM's 110 bps to 11.7%, and H-P's (HPQ) 150 bps to 9.7%. Industry sales rose 3.3% - nothing special, but better than what the server and networking industries are doing. H-P is counting on new hardware and price cuts from its fast-growing 3PAR unit to lift growth; NetApp has also been busy updating its lineup. (Q2 figures) [Tech] Comment!
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6:00 PM Portland General Electric (POR) discloses in a regulatory filing that it's been awarded damages by a U.S. Court in a complaint filed by co-owners of the Trojan Nuclear Power Plant against the U.S. Department of Energy. The judgment does not state the precise amount of the damages award, but directs the parties to propose a final amount by January 7. PGE estimates that the total amount of the award will range from approximately $60M to $70M, of which it would receive 67.5%. [Energy] Comment!
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6:00 PM On the hour: S&P; +0.28%. 10-yr -0.16%. Euro -0.34% vs. dollar. Crude -0.29% to $86.01. Gold +0.21% to $1705.35. Comment!
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5:52 PM Sprint (S) has reportedly approached Dish Network (DISH) about a deal in which Sprint would gain access to Dish's 4G spectrum, and Dish would provide mobile services leveraging Sprint's network. A revenue-sharing agreement for Dish's services could be implemented, or Dish could simply pay Sprint a fee. Either way, Dish would save on capex and be able to offer services more quickly. Dish and the FCC remain at odds over how its spectrum can be used. (Dish/Google talks) [Tech] Comment!
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