'Fertility van' hits streets of New York City

More than 150 women lined up on a New York City street on Wednesday to take a "fertility test" inside a yellow-and-white branded van.

To promote the launch of the company, startup Kindbody drew their blood for an anti-mullerian hormone test, which does not predict overall fertility but can be a useful measure for the outcome of IVF and egg freezing. Kindbody offered to send the test results via a secure email seven days later.

The new women's wellness startup provides follow-up consultations and offers treatments such as vitro fertilization, known as IVF, and egg freezing, at its midtown Manhattan brick-and-mortar location.

The women, who ranged in age from 20 to 55, climbed into the Kindbody van to learn more about their options for conceiving.

"I've thought about egg freezing, but I've never looked into it," said Kenya Noel, a real estate-agent who decided to visit the van as she walked by.

In her late 30s, Noel -- who has a 15-year-old son -- said she's curious to see what her odds are for having another child in the future.

Another woman, who asked to remain anonymous, said she and her husband have started to discuss family planning.

"With fertility, it seems like people wait to see if there's a problem [conceiving]," the 29-year-old told CNNMoney.

The idea of taking a test was intriguing, she said, because even if she's able to conceive naturally for a first child, she may need to think ahead about a second or third.

However, experts caution anti-mullerian hormone (AMH) tests aren't a good predictor of a woman's fertility.

"It really has little implication for most women," said Dr. Anne Steiner of Duke Fertility Center, noting it tests for egg count and does not predict how easy or hard it is to get pregnant. She added that testing for it, without cause, may cause unnecessary stress and anxiety about fertility.

Steiner's research, published last year, found biomarkers, such as the anti-mullerian hormone thought to be associated with diminished ovarian reserve, were not directly related to reduced fertility.

Joanne Schneider, Kindbody's head of product, said the vision behind the van is to make it easier and less intimidating for women to start the conversation about fertility.

"We've been intentionally clear that this is not some binary 'Are you fertile? Yes or no' test," she said. "Your 'fertility' is based on many factors that never land at a yes or no answer."

KindBody ran an Instagram campaign to spread awareness of the one day pop-up truck.

Outside the van, founder Gina Bartasi greeted women. Known in the fertility space, Bartasi previously founded a company called FertilityAuthority in 2009 to help educate women having trouble conceiving. It ultimately merged with life sciences firm Auxogyn, and was renamed Progyny, where she served as CEO until she left over one year ago.

In 2014, FertilityAuthority spawned parent company Eggbanxx, a fertility clinic network, known for hosting "egg freezing parties" with booze for women to learn more about the process. Eggbanxx helped to break the stigma around egg freezing -- something Bartasi said has come along way.

Bartasi plans to eventually roll out a greater range of health services, including mental health and gynecological services. Dr. Fahimen Sasan, an obstetrician-gynecologist affiliated with Mt. Sinai, is the startup's first clinical hire.

The company plans to start accepting insurance starting next year.

"The stigma is gone -- we're not chasing women anymore," said Bartasi. "The biggest thing is to raise awareness about diminishing ovarian reserve. No two women are the same."

Dr. Christos Coutifaris, chief of the reproductive endocrinology and infertility division at University of Pennsylvania's Perelman School of Medicine, said not every woman needs to get their AMH tested. Although he's generally supportive of increased access to fertility services, he said tests that may not be appropriately predictive of fertility could add costs to the healthcare system for women who may not actually need or want egg freezing or IVF.

Egg freezing can cost $12,000 to $20,000 for a single round of treatment, which doesn't always produce enough eggs. That's in addition to what women may later pay for IVF, which costs between $10,000 and $15,000 for one round.

Inside the KindBody van

Women who have taken proactive fertility measures report mixed feedback on their decision to do so. According to a recent study conducted between 2012 to 2016 by researchers at UC San Francisco, one in six women who proactively froze their eggs for non-medical reasons became regretful after undergoing the process for various reasons, such as lack of emotional support or not having a lot of eggs retrieved.

"Although this study doesn't reveal all the reasons behind regret, this is a critical finding, and we have followup studies underway to better understand what women are going through," study co-author Dr. Eleni Greenwood, an obstetrician-gynecologist at UCSF said in a statement. "What is clear is that egg freezing is more than just your standard insurance transaction for many women."

Kindbody has attracted attention from investors and already raised several millions of dollars in seed funding, according to Bartasi. "We're leaning into the women's movement and putting the women back in women's healthcare," she said.

Its main competitors -- Sprint Fertility and Prelude Fertility -- are both founded by men. (Prelude Fertility is now run by a female CEO). Halle Tecco, an active startup investor and cofounder of health tech fund Rock Health, is an investor in Kindbody. "Our needs are currently unaddressed by the healthcare establishment," said Tecco, who has been vocal about her own fertility struggles.

Kindbody's van is gearing up for a tour. It will visit the Hamptons in New York on Sunday and San Francisco in the coming weeks.

Why Terex Corporation Stock Dropped 10%

What happened

Shares of Terex Corporation (NYSE:TEX) closed 10.1% lower on Wednesday, even as the construction equipment maker reported Q2 earnings that met or exceeded Wall Street's expectations.

Sales for the fiscal quarter came in at $1.4 billion, in line with expectations. GAAP profits for the quarter were only $0.75 per share, but Terex said its pro forma number was better -- $0.98 per share -- and ahead of analysts' expected �$0.90 profit.

Terex makes cranes -- but it couldn't lift its own share price today. Image source: Getty Images.

So what

Year over year, Terex's earnings dropped, falling 28% from the $1.04 per share it earned in Q2 last year. Sales for the quarter leapt 19%, however. Even better, Terex said its backlog of new orders awaiting fulfillment grew 31%, which implies further sales growth down the line.

Now what

Terex updated its guidance for the rest of this year, raising the floor on the range of earnings it expects to make. Earnings are now expected to come in between $2.80 and $3 per share, adjusted for one-time items (i.e., pro forma).

That range neatly brackets the $2.90 per share that analysts were already predicting �the company would earn before this report came out. So with Terex beating on earnings, growing sales strongly, and raising guidance, I can't for the life of me figure out what investors are so upset about.

Hot Oil Stocks To Watch For 2019

tags:RRC,HAL,APA,WPZ,

Some options traders are betting on $100 oil again.

Whether it’s the specter of sanctions on Iran, Venezuela’s output plunge, or a momentum play on the back of the past year’s 46 percent surge in Brent, there are now the equivalent of about 93 million barrels wagering on the global benchmark hitting $100 at some point in the next 12 months.

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While triple-digit oil may be a way off in practice, talk that prices could top that barrier over the next 12 months is gaining traction. Bank of America said earlier this month that oil could rally to $100 by the middle of next year, a view echoed by veteran developing-nation investor Mark Mobius. Meanwhile Pierre Andurand, one of the most prominent hedge fund managers in the oil market, recently said that $300 a barrel was “not impossible”. Among the rationale behind those views are shrinking global oil stockpiles and more hawkish U.S. foreign policy.

Hot Oil Stocks To Watch For 2019: Range Resources Corporation(RRC)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Range Resources Corp. (NYSE:RRC) – Equities research analysts at Seaport Global Securities raised their Q4 2018 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Range Resources in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, May 23rd. Seaport Global Securities analyst M. Kelly now anticipates that the oil and gas exploration company will post earnings per share of $0.12 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $0.11. Seaport Global Securities has a “Neutral” rating on the stock. Seaport Global Securities also issued estimates for Range Resources’ Q1 2019 earnings at $0.36 EPS, Q3 2019 earnings at $0.18 EPS, Q4 2019 earnings at $0.26 EPS and FY2019 earnings at $0.98 EPS.

• [By Chris Lange]

  The stock posting the largest daily percentage gain in the S&P 500 ahead of the close Monday was Range Resources Corp. (NYSE: RRC) which rose about 6% to $16.05. The stock��s 52-week range is $11.93 to $25.96. Volume was 8.6 million compared to the daily average volume of 7.4 million.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Range Resources (RRC)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

Hot Oil Stocks To Watch For 2019: Halliburton Company(HAL)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. decreased its position in shares of Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) by 2.9% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 43,482 shares of the oilfield services company’s stock after selling 1,312 shares during the period. Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Halliburton were worth $2,035,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

• [By Todd Shriber, ETF Professor]

  IEZ is also a top-heavy fund. Just two stocks — Schlumberger NV (NYSE: SLB) and Halliburton Inc. (NYSE: HAL) — combine for almost 26 percent of the fund's weight. Underscoring the correlation to oil prices, IEZ has a three-year standard deviation of 30 percent, indicating this ETF is far more volatile than standard diversified energy funds.

• [By ]

  Houston-based Halliburton Co. (HAL) stock fell during premarket trading Monday, April 23, despite reporting a 34% increase in revenue driven by expanding U.S. production, as the oilfield service provider experienced sand delivery challenges and took a charge related to its business in Venezuela.

• [By Tyler Crowe]

  Even though Haliburton's (NYSE:HAL) bottom line got hit yet again by the continued turmoil in Venezuela, the company was able to churn out a respectable profit for the first quarter of 2018. The number that pops out is that it grew revenue a whopping 34%. That's quite an accomplishment for such a large business, but management still thinks it has a few more quarters of growth like this left in it.�

• [By Chris Lange]

  Haliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL) is expected to reveal its fourth-quarter results on Monday. The consensus forecast calls for $0.46 in EPS, as well as $5.63 billion in revenue. Shares were trading at $53.01 on Friday��s close. The consensus price target is $55.09. The stock has a 52-week range of $38.18 to $58.78.

Hot Oil Stocks To Watch For 2019: Apache Corporation(APA)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By ]

  Presto, West Texas Intermediate crude rose 3% to $71.18, the highest since December 2014, boosting shares of oil companies including Occidental (OXY) , which gained 4.8%, Marathon (MRO) , up 3.8%, and Apache (APA) , which gained 2.5%. Spot gasoline also rose 2.7% to $2.17 a gallon, boding ill for the summer driving season in the U.S. and potentially eroding any gains middle-class Americans received from the Trump tax cuts.

• [By VantagePoint]

  Apache Corporation (NYSE: APA) has been ripping since March 2nd, when it hit a two-year low of $33.60. Since then it's up 25 percent. 

  The three-month chart below shows that this trend is likely to continue. The blue line is generated via VantagePoint's intermarket analysis, and represents a prediction of what APA's moving average will be in three days. The black line is a simple 10-day moving average. Note the bullish crossover that occurred in early March. That was a signal that the stock was entering an uptrend. 

• [By Matthew DiLallo]

  Kinder Morgan announced that it signed a letter of intent with private equity-backed EagleClaw Midstream Ventures and Apache Corporation (NYSE:APA) to develop the Permian Highway Pipeline Project. The proposed $2 billion, 430-mile pipeline would move 2 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day from the Permian to the Gulf Coast. However, the partners are evaluating the feasibility of building a larger pipeline that could move even more gas. Kinder Morgan and EagleClaw would each initially own a 50% stake in the project, though Apache has the option to acquire a 33% interest from those partners. Apache has committed to supply the pipeline with about a quarter of its initial capacity, while EagleClaw has also agreed to be a significant shipper on the proposed line, which could enter service by the end of 2020.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Apache Co. (NYSE:APA) by 4.6% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,132,014 shares of the energy company’s stock after buying an additional 94,324 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Apache were worth $82,040,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

• [By Matthew DiLallo]

  Both Apache (NYSE:APA) and Noble Energy (NYSE:NBL) have signed on to the private-equity-backed EPIC Pipeline, which will move 590,000 barrels of crude per day to the Texas coast when it starts operations in the second half of next year.

• [By Chris Lange]

  Apache Corp. (NYSE: APA) fourth-quarter results are scheduled for Thursday. The consensus forecast is for $0.22 in EPS on $1.55 billion in revenue. Shares were trading at $38.11. The consensus price target is $50.43. The 52-week range is $35.70 to $56.51.

Hot Oil Stocks To Watch For 2019: Williams Partners L.P.(WPZ)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shane Hupp]

  SG Americas Securities LLC lowered its holdings in Williams Pipeline Partners LP (NYSE:WPZ) by 27.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 37,682 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 14,458 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Williams Pipeline Partners were worth $1,297,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

• [By Matthew DiLallo]

  Natural gas pipeline giant Williams Companies (NYSE:WMB) announced today that it agreed to acquire the rest of its master limited partnership (MLP) Williams Partners (NYSE:WPZ) that it didn't already own in a $10.5 billion deal. Not to be outdone, Canadian energy infrastructure giant Enbridge (NYSE:ENB) made an offer to acquire its namesake MLP Enbridge Energy Partners (NYSE:EEP), along with the rest of its publicly traded entities, including Spectra Energy Partners (NYSE:SEP). These transactions have big implications not only for investors in these entities but for those who own other pipeline companies, too.

• [By Lisa Levin]

  Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Williams Partners L.P. (NYSE: WPZ) from Buy to Hold..

  Williams Partners shares fell 0.63 percent to close at $41.23 on Friday.

Thursday’s Biggest Winners and Losers in the S&P 500

July 19, 2018: The S&P 500 closed down 0.4% at 2,804.56. The DJIA closed down 0.5% at 25,064.97. Separately, the Nasdaq was down 0.4% at 7,825.30.

Thursday was a down day for the broad U.S. markets, with the Nasdaq pulling back slightly from its all-time highs. Crude oil made a solid gain in the session. The S&P 500 sectors were more or less split down the middle. The most positive sectors were real estate and utilities up 1.0% and 0.9%, respectively. The worst performing sectors were financials and healthcare down 1.3% and 0.5%, respectively.

Crude oil was last seen trading up 0.8% at $69.34.

Gold was last seen trading down % at $1,221.60.

The stock posting the largest daily percentage loss in the S&P 500 ahead of the close was eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) which fell over 9% to $34.33. The stock��s 52-week range is $33.95 to $46.99. Volume was about 49 million compared to the daily average volume of 9.1 million.

The S&P 500 stock posting the largest daily percentage gain ahead of the close was Dover Corp. (NYSE: DOV) which traded up 5% at $78.05. The stock��s 52-week range is $66.16 to $88.09. Volume was nearly 4 million compared to the daily average volume of 1.7 million.

 

0xcert (ZXC) Reaches 1-Day Trading Volume of $674,596.00

0xcert (CURRENCY:ZXC) traded down 0.3% against the US dollar during the 24-hour period ending at 15:00 PM E.T. on July 21st. 0xcert has a market cap of $0.00 and approximately $674,596.00 worth of 0xcert was traded on exchanges in the last 24 hours. During the last seven days, 0xcert has traded 9.7% lower against the US dollar. One 0xcert token can currently be bought for approximately $0.0342 or 0.00000461 BTC on major cryptocurrency exchanges.

Here is how other cryptocurrencies have performed during the last 24 hours:

Get 0xcert alerts: XRP (XRP) traded up 2.3% against the dollar and now trades at $0.46 or 0.00006150 BTC. Stellar (XLM) traded up 5.3% against the dollar and now trades at $0.29 or 0.00003926 BTC. IOTA (MIOTA) traded up 3.4% against the dollar and now trades at $1.02 or 0.00013701 BTC. Tether (USDT) traded down 0.2% against the dollar and now trades at $1.00 or 0.00013457 BTC. TRON (TRX) traded 3.4% higher against the dollar and now trades at $0.0362 or 0.00000488 BTC. NEO (NEO) traded 3.7% higher against the dollar and now trades at $34.87 or 0.00469923 BTC. Binance Coin (BNB) traded up 2.3% against the dollar and now trades at $12.33 or 0.00166230 BTC. VeChain (VET) traded up 8.2% against the dollar and now trades at $1.81 or 0.00024424 BTC. 0x (ZRX) traded 9% higher against the dollar and now trades at $1.18 or 0.00015936 BTC. Zilliqa (ZIL) traded 4% higher against the dollar and now trades at $0.0745 or 0.00001004 BTC.

0xcert Token Profile

0xcert’s total supply is 500,000,000 tokens. The Reddit community for 0xcert is /r/0xcert and the currency’s Github account can be viewed here. 0xcert’s official Twitter account is @0xcert and its Facebook page is accessible here. 0xcert’s official message board is medium.com/0xcert. 0xcert’s official website is 0xcert.org.

Buying and Selling 0xcert

0xcert can be purchased on the following cryptocurrency exchanges: IDEX. It is usually not possible to purchase alternative cryptocurrencies such as 0xcert directly using U.S. dollars. Investors seeking to acquire 0xcert should first purchase Bitcoin or Ethereum using an exchange that deals in U.S. dollars such as Coinbase, Changelly or GDAX. Investors can then use their newly-acquired Bitcoin or Ethereum to purchase 0xcert using one of the exchanges listed above.

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Surge Components (SPRS) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Surge Components (OTCMKTS:SPRS) posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, Bloomberg Earnings reports. The company had revenue of $7.26 million during the quarter. Surge Components had a net margin of 3.28% and a return on equity of 22.13%.

Shares of Surge Components opened at $1.01 on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The stock has a market cap of $6.53 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.94 and a beta of 0.48. Surge Components has a twelve month low of $0.56 and a twelve month high of $1.40.

Get Surge Components alerts:

Surge Components Company Profile

Surge Components, Inc supplies electronic products and components in the United States. The company offers capacitors, which are electrical energy storage devices; and discrete components, such as semiconductor rectifiers, transistors, diodes, and circuit protection devices, as well as audible components, including audible transducers, buzzers, speakers, microphones, resonators, alarms, chimes, filters, and discriminators, as well as fuses, printed circuit boards, and switches.

Recommended Story: Short Selling Stocks, A Beginner��s Guide

What to Expect When Microsoft Reports After the Close

Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) is scheduled to release its fiscal fourth-quarter financial results after the markets close on Thursday. The consensus estimates call for $1.08 in earnings per share (EPS) and $29.21 billion in revenue. In the same period of last year, the company posted EPS of $1.06 and $24.7 billion in revenue.

It was recently announced that Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) has inked a five-year deal with Microsoft that provides the world��s largest retailer with cloud solutions and services. In fact, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella called the two companies�� battle with Amazon ��absolutely core�� to the just-signed deal. In an interview reported by The Wall Street Journal, Nadella elaborated: ��How do we get more leverage as two organizations that have depth and breadth and investment to be able to outrun our respective competition?��

Walmart already uses Microsoft technology, and the new deal extends Walmart��s ties to include Microsoft Azure and 365 products. The retailer sees Azure as a continuation of its use of cloud computing and expects to move ��hundreds of existing applications to cloud-native architectures.��

By scaling up its cloud integration, Walmart says it will build a global Internet of Things platform on Azure to reduce energy use in thousands of U.S. stores. The expansion also will enable Walmart to apply machine learning to routing trucks in its supply chain.

Over the past 52 weeks, Microsoft has outperformed the broad markets, with its stock up about 43%. In just 2018 alone, the stock is up only 23%.

A few analysts weighed in on Microsoft ahead of earnings:

KeyCorp has a Buy rating with a $110 price target. Raymond James has a Strong Buy rating with a $124 target. Bank of America has a Buy rating with a $130 price target. Piper Jaffray has an Overweight rating and a $123 price target. Goldman Sachs has a Buy rating with a $114 price target. Barclays has a Buy rating with a $108 price target.

Shares of Microsoft were last seen at $104.73, with a consensus analyst price target of $113.47 and a 52-week trading range of $71.28 to $106.50.

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Deutsche Bank Likes 5 Chip Stocks Into Q2 Results

Under the Radar: The Supreme Court Decision Brett Kavanaugh Is Most Likely to Overrule

By William A. Galston of the Brookings Institution

Brett Kavanaugh, President Trump’s nominee to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, is less likely to override Roe v. Wade than to rein in the agencies at the heart of the modern administrative state. Here’s why:

During the 1930s, President Franklin Roosevelt proposed��and the Congress ratified��the creation of new agencies to help implement the expansive legislation at the heart of the New Deal. After years of bipartisan fact-finding and deliberation, Congress codified the activities of the agencies in the Administrative Procedure Act (1946), which sets forth the processes through which regulations and other forms of legislative implementation may proceed.

This statute gives formal and, in the eyes of many, quasi-constitutional status to the modern administrative state. It also raises enduring questions about the relationship between agencies and the three constitutionally established branches of government. For example, when an agency claims authority to promulgate a regulation, who has the power to limit the exercise of this authority? When someone takes an agency to court asserting that a regulation lacks legislative justification, what standards should the courts use to weigh this claim?

Nearly a quarter of a century ago, in Chevron v. NRDC (1984), the Supreme Court offered a clear answer: unless Congress has spoken clearly on the subject of a regulation, the courts should defer to an agency’s decision as long as it is reasonable, even if the courts would have reached a different interpretation. Whenever a statute is ambiguous, the agency enjoys wide discretion. Anything that is not unreasonable lies in the zone of the permissible.

As both an appellate judge and legal commentator, Mr. Kavanaugh has been critical of this decision. In a 2016 article in the Harvard Law Review, he states that Chevron “has no basis in the Administrative Procedure Act” and represents “an atextual invention by courts.” In fact, he adds, the decision is “nothing more than a judicially orchestrated shift of power from Congress to the Executive Branch.”

Mr. Kavanaugh objects not only to the jurisprudence underlying the decision, but also to its consequences. “From my more than five years of experience in the White House,” he declares, “I can confidently claim that Chevron encourages the Executive Branch (whichever party controls it) to be extremely aggressive in seeking to squeeze its policy goals into ill-fitting statutory authorizations and restraints.”

In short, this decision unleashes presidents’ incentives to push their executive authority to the limit, often beyond. The reason, Kavanaugh says, is rooted in today’s partisan and legislative gridlock: “Presidents run for office on policy agendas and it is often difficult to get those agendas through Congress. So it is no surprise that presidents and agencies often will do whatever they can within existing statutes. And with Chevron in the mix, that inherent aggressiveness is amped up significantly.”

Because Kavanaugh sees this decision as a source of constitutional distortion, he is determined to limit its scope. To this end, his Harvard Law Review article offers three proposals. First: keeping with a proposal first offered by Stephen Breyer before he joined the Court, and subsequently endorsed by the Court in King v. Burwell (2015), Chevron should not apply in cases involving questions of major significance. Second: as suggested in United States v. Mead (2001), Chevron should not apply unless Congress has delegated authority to the agency to make rules carrying the force of law and the agency is making rules pursuant to that authority.

Third (and here Kavanaugh breaks new ground): courts should hesitate to expand agency discretion by determining that statutes are ambiguous. Given the imperfections of language, a topic James Madison discusses in Federalist #37, most sentences will contain an element of indeterminacy. How can Congress limit the scope of agency discretion? Some judges will discern clarity where others see ambiguity. The idea of ambiguity is itself ambiguous. But if nearly everything can be deemed ambiguous, what’s the point of drafting legislation?

Kavanaugh proposes to escape this cul de sac by adopting a new presumption: when there is a high probability that a certain interpretation of the statute represents the best reading, the court should adopt this reading, even if the matter is not entirely free from doubt. The legislative will of Congress should prevail over executive power, at least when the courts are prepared to interpret statutes authoritatively.

Along with many conservatives, Kavanaugh believes that the administrative state has run amok, empowering policy judgments that lack statutory warrant and escape judicial review. And he has a plan, or perhaps two plans, to rein in runaway agencies. Whenever circumstances permit, he will interpret the scope of Chevron as narrowly as possible. And if the occasion presents itself, he may well vote to overrule it. Yes, the decision has the force of precedent. But if it lacks statutory authority, as Kavanaugh contends, the doctrine of stare decisis may not be enough to protect it.

A post-Chevron world would expand judicial power in the administrative sphere at the expense of both Congress and the executive. More regulations probably would fail judicial tests. The regulatory process, already more like a marathon than a sprint, would slow further. In response, Congress might work harder to make its legislative intentions clear, and the White House might work harder to remain within the four corners of congressional intent.

This article appeared originally at the Brookings website, along with links to other materials that may be of interest.

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8 Top Picks From Credit Suisse With Implied Upside of 50% or More

Papa John’s Needs to Fire Founder Schnatter (Update)

Update: Schnatter made a public apology for his comments.

Founder and former Papa John’s International Inc. (NASDAQ: PZZA) CEO John Schnatter is costing the company’s shareholders more money, this time for allegedly using racial slurs and graphic descriptions of violence against minorities in a May conference call with the firm’s media agency. Schnatter resigned in December as CEO but retained his position as the company’s board chair following similar statements made last December related to the controversy over NFL players kneeling during the playing of the national anthem.

The company’s stock dropped nearly 6% Wednesday morning following a report from Bloomberg that the agency involved, Laundry Service, ended its relationship with Papa John’s following the May phone call. Papa John’s shares are trading at their lowest level since February of 2016.

The board’s lead independent director, Olivia F. Kirtley, failed to send Schnatter packing in December, and she should be replaced as well for failing to do what clearly needed doing months ago.

Schnatter’s comments last year about kneeling NFL players were whines about how the league’s ratings had dropped due to players’ protests and how lower ratings were costing Papa John’s money because fewer fans were watching the games and ordering his company’s heavily advertised pizza. They were also aimed squarely at the predominantly black players who were protesting.

Kirtley, in addition to being the lead independent director, serves as chair of the compensation committee. She is also on the boards of U.S. Bancorp and Delta Dental, both of which do business with Papa John’s. In the company’s latest proxy statement, both of Kirtley’s relationships with the other companies were reviewed by the board and determined to have no impact on her independence or her business judgment. She was named to Papa John’s board in 2003.

If that faith in her judgment was not impaired last December, it should be now. Schnatter’s statements then were nothing but a preview of coming attractions, and the first episode happened in May. If Schnatter doesn’t go, Papa John’s investors will get to watch more episodes. It’s Kirtley’s job to see that that doesn’t happen.

But��and there’s always a but��Schnatter appointed Kirtley to the board and has kept her on board for 15 years. That kind of loyalty needs to be repaid.

During 2017, Kirtley was paid $117,000 in cash for her services as a director and received a restricted stock award valued at $87,513 and an option award valued at $85,507, for total annual compensation of $292,020.

Schnatter was paid $2.75 million in total compensation last year, of which $900,000 was his salary. The company also paid his wholly owned airline, Hampton Airways, $445,600 for charter aircraft services for company business travel.

Schnatter owns about 30% of Papa John’s outstanding stock and is the company’s largest shareholder, with about 9.9 million shares. Kirtley is the second-largest shareholder with 193,110 shares.

ALSO READ: RBC Raises 2018 and 2019 Oil Price Estimates: 6 Top Picks to Buy Now

Papa John CEO Steve Ritchie had these words for company employees regarding Schnatter’s latest rant:

The past six months we’ve had to take a hard look in the mirror and acknowledge that we’ve lost a bit of focus on the core values that this brand was built on and that delivered success for so many years. We’ve got to own up and take the hit for our missteps and refocus on the constant pursuit of better that is the DNA of our brand.

The board can start by booting Schnatter, followed soon after that with an offer for Kirtley to spend more time with her family.

Papa John’s shares traded down about 3.2% Tuesday afternoon, at $49.17 in a 52-week range of $47.80 to $81.09. The low was posted this morning, and the stock’s consensus price target is 59.80.

Shares of RIL, GAIL & Gujarat Gas gain 2-4% as 9th round of City Gas Distribution Scheme gets un

Reliance Industries�(RIL), Aegis Logistics, GAIL and Gujarat Gas rallied 2-4 percent intraday on Tuesday as the bidding for the ninth round of City Gas Distribution Scheme closes later today.

Oil marketing companies (OMCs) has put their bids aggressively under 9th round of City Gas Distribution (CGD) Scheme and 10 new companies have also shown interest in city gas distribution, reports CNBC-TV18 quoting unnamed sources.

Sources further said bids by OMCs will be evaluated between July 12-18.

Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) expects to award CGD contracts well before October schedule and expects atleast one bid in all 86 geographical areas. 60 geographical areas will have multiple bids, sources added.

related news D-Street Buzz: BSE Energy outshines with RIL up 2.8%; Ujjas Energy spikes 20%, leads smallcap rally PVR stock up 1% on JV with Al-Futtaim for business in West Asia & North Africa L&T Infotech gains 3%; board to consider Q1 results on July 23

Meanwhile, India Gas Solutions Pvt Ltd, the 50:50 JV of UK's BP plc and Reliance Industries, is making its maiden foray in city gas distribution as it put in bid for 15 cities, reports PTI quoting sources.

Indraprastha Gas (IGL), which retails CNG in the national capital region, is also putting in bids for 13 cities, they said. Essel Infraprojects has put in a total of seven bids.

Bidding for the biggest city gas distribution licensing round, offering 86 permits for selling CNG and piped cooking gas in 174 districts in 22 states and union territories, closes this evening.

As many as 86 geographical areas (GAs), made by clubbing adjacent districts, are on offer in the 9th city gas distribution (CGD) bidding round. The GAs cover 24 percent of the country's area and 29 percent of its population.

The round is likely to attract investments of Rs 70,000 crore, according to the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB).

The government is targeting to raise the share of natural gas in primary energy basket to 15 percent from 6 percent at present, within a few years.

The bid round is also aimed at meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's target of giving piped cooking gas connection to 1 crore households, roughly triple the current size, by 2020.

The CGD licences on offer are for Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh; Ahmednagar in Maharashtra; Ludhiana and Jalandhar in Punjab; Barmer, Alwar and Kota in Rajasthan; Coimbatore and Salem in Tamil Nadu; Allahabad, Faizabad, Amethi and Rai Bareli in Uttar Pradesh; Dehradun in Uttarakhand and Burdwan in West Bengal.

At 14:42 hours IST, the stock price Aegis Logistics was trading up 3.62 percent at Rs 236.25, GAIL India up 3.82 percent at Rs 360.50, Gujarat Gas up 1.29 percent at Rs 753 and Reliance Industries rallied 2.65 percent at Rs 1,022 on the BSE.

However, oil marketing companies' share prices are under pressure as sources said piped natural gas (PNG) and compressed natural gas (CNG) distribution in cities may affect OMCs' LPG & retail fuel business.

At 14:42 hours IST, the stock price of Bharat Petroleum Corporation was down 0.29 percent at Rs 375.25, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation down 0.99 percent at Rs 269.60 and Indian Oil Corporation down 0.67 percent at Rs 156.35.

Mahanagar Gas was also trading down 1.62 percent at Rs 819.05 and Indraprastha Gas down 0.83 percent at Rs 263.45.

Disclosure: Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd.

(With inputs from PTI) First Published on Jul 10, 2018 03:18 pm

Odonate Therapeutics (ODT) Downgraded by Zacks Investment Research

Odonate Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ODT) was downgraded by Zacks Investment Research from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday.

According to Zacks, “Odonate Therapeutics, LLC is a pharmaceutical company. It engaged in the development of therapeutics to improve and extend the lives of patients with cancer. The company focused on the development of tesetaxel, a novel chemotherapy agent. It has completed Phase-II studies in patients with metastatic breast cancer. Odonate Therapeutics, LLC is based in SAN DIEGO, United States. “

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Separately, ValuEngine raised shares of Odonate Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Odonate Therapeutics presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $31.00.

Odonate Therapeutics opened at $23.43 on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. Odonate Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $15.15 and a 1-year high of $32.00. The company has a market capitalization of $623.53 million and a PE ratio of -10.14.

Odonate Therapeutics (NASDAQ:ODT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 3rd. The company reported ($0.69) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.85) by $0.16. sell-side analysts forecast that Odonate Therapeutics will post -3.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Tang Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Odonate Therapeutics by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Tang Capital Management LLC now owns 12,412,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,893,000 after purchasing an additional 210,000 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Odonate Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,437,000. Sabby Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Odonate Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $20,636,000. Redmile Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Odonate Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $14,923,000. Finally, Rock Springs Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Odonate Therapeutics during the 4th quarter worth approximately $10,250,000. 83.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Odonate Therapeutics Company Profile

Odonate Therapeutics, Inc, a pharmaceutical company, develops therapeutics for the treatment of cancer. It focuses on the development of tesetaxel, an orally administered chemotherapy agent for patients with advanced or metastatic breast cancer (MBC). Odonate Therapeutics, Inc also conducting a Phase III study in MBC, which is known as CONTESSA.

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FibroGen Inc (FGEN) Shares Sold by Verde Servicos Internacionais S.A.

Verde Servicos Internacionais S.A. reduced its holdings in shares of FibroGen Inc (NASDAQ:FGEN) by 12.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,922 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,315 shares during the period. Verde Servicos Internacionais S.A.’s holdings in FibroGen were worth $558,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of FGEN. PointState Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of FibroGen during the 1st quarter worth approximately $19,492,000. Artal Group S.A. bought a new stake in shares of FibroGen during the 1st quarter worth approximately $11,550,000. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in shares of FibroGen by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 6,326,075 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $299,855,000 after acquiring an additional 244,617 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in shares of FibroGen by 87.3% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 373,555 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $17,704,000 after acquiring an additional 174,126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of FibroGen by 6,046.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 170,943 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,897,000 after acquiring an additional 168,162 shares during the last quarter. 63.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on FGEN shares. Zacks Investment Research lowered FibroGen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, May 14th. Mizuho reissued a “hold” rating and set a $61.00 price target on shares of FibroGen in a research note on Thursday, March 29th. BidaskClub raised FibroGen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 24th. Finally, ValuEngine raised FibroGen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $68.83.

In other FibroGen news, Director Jorma Routti sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.59, for a total transaction of $279,540.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 133,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,235,605.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Pat Cotroneo sold 14,987 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.04, for a total value of $824,884.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 272,182 shares of company stock worth $14,513,406 over the last 90 days. 8.96% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

FibroGen opened at $63.45 on Friday, according to Marketbeat. FibroGen Inc has a 52 week low of $32.20 and a 52 week high of $65.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 8.61 and a current ratio of 8.61.

FibroGen (NASDAQ:FGEN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 9th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($0.50) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.51) by $0.01. The company had revenue of $31.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $29.07 million. FibroGen had a negative return on equity of 27.70% and a negative net margin of 102.86%. FibroGen’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.48) EPS. sell-side analysts expect that FibroGen Inc will post -1.58 earnings per share for the current year.

About FibroGen

FibroGen, Inc, a research-based biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes therapeutic agents to treat serious unmet medical needs. It is developing Roxadustat, an oral small molecule inhibitor of hypoxia inducible factor prolyl hydroxylases (HIF-PHs) that is in Phase III clinical development for the treatment of anemia in chronic kidney disease; Pamrevlumab, a human-monoclonal antibody that inhibits the activity of connective tissue growth factor, which is in Phase II clinical development for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, pancreatic cancer, liver fibrosis, and Duchenne muscular dystrophy; and FG-5200, a corneal implant medical device for the treatment of corneal blindness resulting from partial thickness corneal damage.

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Comparing Xplore Technologies (XPLR) & Echelon (ELON)

Xplore Technologies (NASDAQ: XPLR) and Echelon (NASDAQ:ELON) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership and valuation.

Profitability

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This table compares Xplore Technologies and Echelon’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Xplore Technologies	0.54%	3.73%	1.96%
Echelon	-15.15%	-21.24%	-15.49%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Xplore Technologies and Echelon’s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Xplore Technologies	$77.93 million	0.57	-$2.55 million	($0.23)	-17.61
Echelon	$31.67 million	1.19	-$4.62 million	($1.04)	-8.01

Xplore Technologies has higher revenue and earnings than Echelon. Xplore Technologies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Echelon, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Xplore Technologies has a beta of 0.72, indicating that its stock price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Echelon has a beta of -0.89, indicating that its stock price is 189% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

24.1% of Xplore Technologies shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.9% of Echelon shares are owned by institutional investors. 13.2% of Xplore Technologies shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 13.0% of Echelon shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Xplore Technologies and Echelon, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Xplore Technologies	0	0	2	0	3.00
Echelon	0	0	0	0	N/A

Xplore Technologies currently has a consensus target price of $4.93, suggesting a potential upside of 21.60%. Given Xplore Technologies’ higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Xplore Technologies is more favorable than Echelon.

Summary

Xplore Technologies beats Echelon on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Xplore Technologies

Xplore Technologies Corp. develops, integrates, and markets rugged mobile personal computer systems in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company's products enable the extension of traditional computing systems to a range of field personnel, including energy pipeline inspectors, public safety personnel, warehouse workers, and pharmaceutical scientists. It offers a line of iX104 tablet PCs that are designed to operate in various work environments, such as extreme temperatures, constant vibrations, rain, and blowing dirt and dusty conditions; and are fitted with a range of performance matched accessories comprising multiple docking station solutions, wireless connectivity alternatives, global positioning system modules, and biometric and smartcard modules, as well as traditional peripherals, such as keyboards, mice, and cases. The company's products also consist of XSlate B10 and XSlate D10 rugged tablets; XSLATE R12 and Motion F5m/C5m tablets; and Bobcat, a rugged tablet that has a Windows operating system. It serves public safety, utility, telecommunications, field service, warehousing logistics, transportation, oil and gas production, manufacturing, route delivery, military, and homeland security markets. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.

About Echelon

Echelon Corporation develops, markets, and sells embedded components, modules, edge servers, and software. The company offers chips, gateways, and design and management software to original equipment manufacturers under the LONWORKS and IzoT brands. It also provides a range of control networking solutions under the LumInsight and Lumewave by Echelon brands that consist of wired and wireless control nodes; smart gateways for interconnecting the control nodes; and a software-based Central Management System, which is used for startup, commissioning, management, and monitoring of the lighting network. The company markets its products in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific/Japan through direct sales organization, third-party electronics representatives, value-added resellers, and distributors. Echelon Corporation was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in Santa Clara, California.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (GILD) Expected to Announce Quarterly Sales of $5.15 Billion

Wall Street analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) will report $5.15 billion in sales for the current fiscal quarter, Zacks reports. Seven analysts have issued estimates for Gilead Sciences’ earnings, with the highest sales estimate coming in at $5.22 billion and the lowest estimate coming in at $5.06 billion. Gilead Sciences reported sales of $7.14 billion in the same quarter last year, which indicates a negative year-over-year growth rate of 27.9%. The business is expected to issue its next quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 25th.

On average, analysts expect that Gilead Sciences will report full year sales of $20.75 billion for the current fiscal year, with estimates ranging from $20.23 billion to $21.49 billion. For the next year, analysts forecast that the business will post sales of $21.25 billion per share, with estimates ranging from $19.38 billion to $22.74 billion. Zacks Investment Research’s sales calculations are an average based on a survey of analysts that cover Gilead Sciences.

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Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 1st. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.19). Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 45.49% and a net margin of 14.03%. The firm had revenue of $5.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.23 EPS. Gilead Sciences’s revenue for the quarter was down 21.8% on a year-over-year basis.

GILD has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Investment Research cut Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 11th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, May 2nd. BidaskClub cut Gilead Sciences from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday. ValuEngine cut Gilead Sciences from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 2nd. Finally, Credit Suisse Group set a $80.00 price target on Gilead Sciences and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. The company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.00.

In other Gilead Sciences news, Director John Francis Cogan sold 5,833 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.47, for a total value of $434,383.51. Following the transaction, the director now owns 58,452 shares in the company, valued at $4,352,920.44. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director John C. Martin sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.14, for a total value of $3,657,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,067,762 shares in the company, valued at approximately $224,376,112.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 179,168 shares of company stock worth $12,789,233. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.4% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 105,236,053 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $7,933,746,000 after purchasing an additional 1,438,806 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Gilead Sciences by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 30,542,928 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,188,095,000 after buying an additional 446,263 shares during the last quarter. Parnassus Investments CA increased its position in Gilead Sciences by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Parnassus Investments CA now owns 19,159,748 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,372,604,000 after buying an additional 464,609 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Gilead Sciences by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,849,063 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,133,346,000 after buying an additional 379,867 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC increased its position in Gilead Sciences by 102.9% in the fourth quarter. Sanders Capital LLC now owns 9,910,493 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $757,119,000 after buying an additional 5,026,015 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.60% of the company’s stock.

Shares of GILD stock traded down $0.45 on Thursday, hitting $71.07. The company had a trading volume of 6,118,885 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,177,516. The stock has a market cap of $92.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.30, a PEG ratio of -6.22 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a current ratio of 2.84, a quick ratio of 2.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. Gilead Sciences has a twelve month low of $64.27 and a twelve month high of $89.54.

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 15th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 14th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently 26.64%.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

Gilead Sciences, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company, which engages in the research, development, and commercialization of medicines in areas of unmet medical need. The firm offers antiviral products under Harvoni, Genvoya, Epclusa, Truvada, Atripla, Descovy, Stribild, Viread, Odefsey, Complera/Eviplera, Sovaldi, and Vosevi brands.

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How Canadian Investors Can Seek Shelter From the Trade War

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Seeking shelter from the escalating global trade war? For investors in Canadian markets, technology, health care and real estate stocks, along with government bonds, are the places to park money until the storm passes, strategists say.

Canada’s S&P/TSX Composite Index retreated Tuesday, joining most equity markets lower, as the U.S. and China threatened punishing tariffs on each other’s imports. The loonie also tumbled while government bonds rallied.

Canada may not seem like the safest place to invest in the middle of the global trade spat, given stalled Nafta talks and new U.S. tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum exports. But investors shouldn’t flee the market entirely, said Luc Vallee, chief strategist at Laurentian Bank Securities.

“Keeping some funds in the Canadian index is not such a bad idea,” Vallee said in a phone interview. “The world economy is still growing fast, demand for commodities, demand for oil -- I think they will compensate over the next year for any fallout in the other sectors.”

He recommends exposure to technology companies like CGI Group Inc., a fast-growing IT provider that has operations on both sides of the border and won’t be seriously affected by potential tariffs. He also likes health-care stocks, real estate investment trusts and insurance companies like Power Corp. of Canada that have growing exposure to China.

Canada Rebound

These sectors don’t have much impact on the broader S&P/TSX, with technology and health care accounting for 4.2 percent and 1.4 percent of the benchmark’s weight respectively. But that doesn’t mean the Canadian market as a whole will underperform. In fact, Vallee sees the S&P/TSX doing better than the S&P 500 Index in 2018, forecasting a total gain of 11 percent for the Canadian benchmark and about 5 percent for U.S. stocks. Canada’s main equity gauge has risen less than 1 percent this year, trailing the 3 percent U.S. gain.

“A lot of companies on the U.S. stock market are exposed to trade as well, much more than the economy itself,” he said. A stronger U.S. dollar will take a bite out of those companies’ earnings, and U.S. stocks are also trading at higher multiples than their Canadian counterparts, he added.

High Tolerance

Canadian investors “are going to have to be tolerant of a lot of uncertainty, particularly as it relates to the trade negotiations,” but the market still looks reasonably valued and earnings expectations continue to accelerate, said Candice Bangsund, vice president and portfolio manager of global asset allocation at Fiera Capital Corp.

“We still think there’s opportunity here, particularly in those later-stage sectors of the marketplace” like resources and financials, said Bangsund, who sees the S&P/TSX hitting 17,300 by year-end as oil prices rise to $72 a barrel. That implies a 5.8 percent gain for Canadian stocks from current levels.

Canadian companies with a high percentage of foreign revenue have outperformed domestic-focused companies this year and should continue to do so, Brian Belski, chief investment strategist at BMO Capital Markets, wrote in a recent note.

“We believe the passage of U.S. tax reform and the associated surge in U.S. growth are likely the main drivers,” he wrote.

Onex, Boyd

S&P/TSX firms with the highest foreign revenue exposure, excluding resource companies, include Dream Global Real Estate Investment Trust, Enghouse Systems Ltd., Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc., Onex Corp. and Mitel Networks Corp. Other potential winners include Boyd Group Income Fund, the auto-repair operator that gets almost 90 percent of its revenue from the U.S. market. Boyd, based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, jumped to a record high Tuesday of C$119.60.

Canadian firms with U.S. revenue will also benefit from a weaker loonie, which has tumbled more than 5 percent this year. The Canadian dollar slipped to a one-year low of 75.24 U.S. cents Tuesday, and is the second-worst performer among major currencies against the U.S. greenback over the past month.

Even the loonie may be finding a bottom, as most of the damage from the trade war rhetoric has been done, according to Juan Perez, a Washington-based senior foreign exchange trader and strategist at Tempus Inc. He was among the top three loonie forecasters in the first quarter, according to a Bloomberg ranking. He sees the currency rebounding from about C$1.33 to the dollar.

“Tariffs are on and off depending on tweet storms,” Perez said. “Oil and commodities will catch a break in the second half of the year and propel the Canadian dollar to ranges of C$1.295-1.305 per U.S. dollar.”

As a last resort, Canadian government bonds are always a good haven. Government debt has been a beneficiary of the global flight to safety, with the yield on the country’s 10-year securities falling five basis points to 2.15 percent Tuesday, the lowest since April 9.

— With assistance by Maciej Onoszko

Nautilus (NLS) Raised to “Hold” at ValuEngine

Nautilus (NYSE:NLS) was upgraded by equities research analysts at ValuEngine from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Monday.

NLS has been the subject of several other reports. Imperial Capital reissued an “in-line” rating and issued a $12.00 price objective (down from $14.00) on shares of Nautilus in a research report on Wednesday, March 7th. B. Riley lifted their price objective on Nautilus from $16.75 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 8th. DA Davidson reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Nautilus in a research report on Tuesday, May 8th. Zacks Investment Research lowered Nautilus from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, March 9th. Finally, Lake Street Capital reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $14.00 price objective (down from $15.00) on shares of Nautilus in a research report on Tuesday, March 6th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.75.

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Nautilus traded up $0.20, hitting $16.50, during midday trading on Monday, according to MarketBeat.com. 228,500 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 339,199. The company has a market capitalization of $495.76 million, a PE ratio of 18.75 and a beta of 1.33. Nautilus has a 1-year low of $11.30 and a 1-year high of $19.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.27, a quick ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

Nautilus (NYSE:NLS) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 7th. The specialty retailer reported $0.26 EPS for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.05. Nautilus had a return on equity of 15.45% and a net margin of 6.68%. The firm had revenue of $114.80 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.77 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.26 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. equities research analysts predict that Nautilus will post 1.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Nautilus declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, March 5th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the specialty retailer to purchase shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

In related news, CEO Bruce M. Cazenave sold 5,350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $12.97, for a total value of $69,389.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 381,396 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,946,706.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Bruce M. Cazenave sold 10,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.51, for a total value of $176,657.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 389,044 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,423,116.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 32,958 shares of company stock valued at $501,871 over the last ninety days. 3.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Engine Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Nautilus in the 4th quarter valued at about $134,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in Nautilus in the 4th quarter valued at about $142,000. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in Nautilus in the 4th quarter valued at about $179,000. Jefferies Group LLC bought a new stake in Nautilus in the 4th quarter valued at about $183,000. Finally, MetLife Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Nautilus in the 4th quarter valued at about $218,000. 87.22% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Nautilus

Nautilus, Inc, a consumer fitness products company, designs, develops, sources, and markets cardio and strength fitness products, and related accessories for consumer use in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Direct and Retail. It offers specialized cardio products, treadmills, elliptical machine, bike products, strength products, home gyms, dumbbells, kettlebell weights, and weight benches primarily under the Nautilus, Bowflex, Octane Fitness, Schwinn, and Universal brands.

To view ValuEngine’s full report, visit ValuEngine’s official website.

Swiss Factories Get a Franc Warning Amid Run of Good Fortune

Just as Switzerland’s factories come roaring back, the rallying franc is a reminder of how the currency has the potential to pull the rug from under them.

Industrial production is rising at the fastest pace since before the financial crisis and companies such as Schurter, a maker of electrical components, are seeing sales surge. Gross domestic product figures this week are expected to confirm the economy is growing apace, with economists predicting 2018 will see the strongest expansion in four years.

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The better outlook is partly thanks to the franc, which depreciated 7 percent in the past year and late last month reached 1.20, the level the central bank had previously defended. Yet the fragility of the currency’s revival is all too clear, with Italy’s political turmoil, U.S. foreign policy and emerging-market concerns reigniting demands for the safety of the Swiss currency, kickstarting a rally in recent weeks.

A slowdown in the neighboring euro-area economy, Switzerland’s main market, means there’s even a risk of two of the economy’s boosters fading.

Still, the state of affairs is a far cry from 2015, when Switzerland was walloped by what became known as “Frankenshock,” when the central bank abruptly dropped its currency ceiling, sending the franc to near parity with the euro. By the end of 2015, industrial production was falling at the fastest pace in six years, and machinery orders were sinking.

Reflecting the relatively more benign situation now, Schurter reported a 31 percent rise in revenue last year. Ralph Mueller, who runs the family-owned business, attributes that to both the stronger euro area and the weaker franc, as well as the firm’s efforts to develop new markets.

“We’re a very conservative company, but we can always adapt,” he said in an interview in his office near Lake Lucerne. “The period after 2015 exemplifies the strength of Swiss companies to find the energy and the means to get out from between a rock and a hard place.”

Good Growth

Switzerland's machine, electrical and metals saw revenue increase last year

Source: Swissmem

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The realignment of the stars in 2017 saw the franc weaken just as the 19-country euro area was in the throes of its best growth in a decade. In the first quarter of 2018, Swissmen, an industry body, reported orders surged 24 percent, and manufacturing confidence is now at its highest since 2011.

While the global economy appears to be humming along, smooth progress for Switzerland isn’t guaranteed.

Mounting trade tensions because of U.S. tariffs pose a risk, as noted by Roland Fischer, CEO of OC Oerlikon AG, a maker of machinery components and gear systems, just this month.

There’s also the threat of the franc continuing its recent appreciation, perhaps on the back of concerns about Italian politics, where the chance of new elections have risen. Having touched 1.20 per euro in mid-April, the currency has since appreciated to 1.16.

Gaining Ground

Swiss industry appears to be in the best shape in years

Source: KOF Swiss Economic Institute

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But for now, companies are reaping the benefits. First-quarter order intake at Oerlikon reached an all-time high, and elevator maker Schindler Holding AG said it had a “robust” start to the year. According to an SNB report, companies margins have improved on the back of higher turnover, productivity increases and the stronger euro.

Schurter boss Mueller says that while 2018 may turn out to be another year with double-digit growth, it can’t go on forever.

“There are years where the franc plays into our hands and years where it doesn’t,” said Mueller. “We have to learn to live with that.”

— With assistance by Zoe Schneeweiss, and Andrew Atkinson

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Gevo (GEVO) Hits New 52-Week High and Low at $0.22

Gevo, Inc. (NASDAQ:GEVO) reached a new 52-week high and low on Friday . The company traded as low as $0.22 and last traded at $0.23, with a volume of 20863 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $0.27.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GEVO shares. Zacks Investment Research raised Gevo from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 13th. ValuEngine raised Gevo from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, HC Wainwright reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Gevo in a research note on Tuesday, May 15th.

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The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Gevo (NASDAQ:GEVO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 28th. The energy company reported ($0.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.26) by $0.06. Gevo had a negative return on equity of 32.15% and a negative net margin of 70.28%. The company had revenue of $6.68 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.70 million. research analysts forecast that Gevo, Inc. will post -0.88 EPS for the current year.

Gevo Company Profile

Gevo, Inc, a renewable chemicals and biofuels company, focuses on the development and commercialization of alternatives to petroleum-based products based on isobutanol produced from renewable feedstocks in the United States. It operates through two segments, Gevo, Inc and Gevo Development/Agri-Energy.

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019

tags:TEN,TRGP,MITK,WSB,INFI,SBCF,APDN,NRG,MEI,GGG,

Although the idea MGM Resorts (NYSE:MGM) might step in to buy troubled Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN) was always more speculative than based on any concrete evidence, the chances of it actually happening have now been reduced to virtually nil.

MGM just announced a $2 billion stock repurchase authorization, and though the program doesn't guarantee the money will be spent on buybacks, it pretty much indicates the casino operator has no intention of buying its rival.

MGM Resorts spent $7 billion over the past few years expanding its operations such as buying the Borgata casino in Atlantic City. Now it wants to buy its stock. Image source: Borgata.

Spending a lot on stock

CEO Jim Murren says the amount authorized indicates not only MGM's financial strength, but also the casino's "continued commitment to returning capital to our shareholders."

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019: Tenneco Inc.(TEN)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Gentex (NASDAQ: GNTX) and Tenneco (NYSE:TEN) are both mid-cap auto/tires/trucks companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation, risk, earnings and dividends.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Tenneco (NYSE: TEN) and China Automotive Systems (NASDAQ:CAAS) are both auto/tires/trucks companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends and valuation.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Tokenomy (CURRENCY:TEN) traded 1.2% lower against the U.S. dollar during the one day period ending at 18:00 PM ET on May 24th. During the last week, Tokenomy has traded down 7.6% against the U.S. dollar. Tokenomy has a total market cap of $30.34 million and $258,901.00 worth of Tokenomy was traded on exchanges in the last day. One Tokenomy token can now be bought for about $0.24 or 0.00003211 BTC on exchanges.

• [By Jim Crumly]

  As for individual stocks,�Verifone Systems (NYSE:PAY) is being acquired by a group of private investors, and Tenneco (NYSE:TEN) is buying an auto parts business before splitting into two public companies.

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019: Targa Resources, Inc.(TRGP)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Max Byerly]

  Reaves W H & Co. Inc. trimmed its holdings in Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) by 30.6% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 224,657 shares of the pipeline company’s stock after selling 99,015 shares during the period. Reaves W H & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Targa Resources were worth $9,885,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Targa Resources (NYSE:TRGP) was downgraded by equities research analysts at ValuEngine from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019: Mitek Systems, Inc.(MITK)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Brian Feroldi, Leo Sun, and Demitrios Kalogeropoulos]

  So, which stocks are potential hidden winners that can be safely purchased today? We asked a team of investors to weigh in, and they picked�Sogou (NYSE:SOGO), TJX Companies (NYSE:TJX), and Mitek Systems (NASDAQ:MITK).�

• [By ]

  Mitek Systems (MITK) : "This one is too speculative for me. I'd buy NVIDIA (NVDA) ."

  AK Steel Holding (AKS) : "They're not the lo- cost producer. That's Nucor (NUE) and that's the way you want to go."

• [By Max Byerly]

  ValuEngine downgraded shares of Mitek Systems (NASDAQ:MITK) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Friday.

  A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on MITK. BidaskClub upgraded Mitek Systems from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, May 3rd. Zacks Investment Research upgraded Mitek Systems from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, March 29th. Finally, National Securities assumed coverage on Mitek Systems in a research report on Friday, March 9th. They issued a buy rating and a $14.00 target price on the stock. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. The stock has an average rating of Buy and an average target price of $12.00.

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019: WSB Holdings Inc.(WSB)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Garrett Baldwin]

  Markets have been under pressure once again by the U.S. Federal Reserve. Inflation levels are going through the roof… but the people in charge of managing it have been lying to Americans for years. Now it's time to get even.�Money Morning�Liquidity Specialist Lee Adler has the perfect way to make a lot of money when no one is looking.�Read it here.

  The Top Stock Market Stories for Wednesday In addition to Trump's concerns about China and trade, the President also stated that he is unsure whether a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un will take place as planned. Multiple media outlets this morning are questioning if the event will take place. The summit is tentatively planned for June 12. Banking stocks were on the move after Congress passed new laws designed to reduce regulations for thousands of financial institutions. The new rules will ensure that smaller banks are not facing the same strict rules as the bigger giants. The financial sector has been lobbying to changes to the Dodd-Frank Act since its inception after the 2008-09 financial crisis. Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) CEO Mark Zuckerberg met with members of the European Union on Tuesday. The CEO of the social media giant outraged European Parliament members after reportedly dodging questions about user privacy and the firm's collection of personal data. During the conversation, EU members questioned whether Facebook is a monopoly and pondered if the firm should be broken up due to antitrust concerns. Three Stocks to Watch Today: TGT, LOW, TIF Shares of Target Corporation (NYSE: TGT) fell nearly 6% after the retail giant fell short of earnings expectations before the bell. The firm reported earnings per share of $1.32. This figure missed Wall Street earnings expectations by six cents. The retail giant blamed poor spring weather for its performance and said that its bottom line has been impacted by the costs of upgrading its physical locations. Lowe's Companies (NYSE: LOW) stock gained

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019: Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.(INFI)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Infinity Pharmaceuticals (INFI)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019: Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida(SBCF)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Here are some of the news articles that may have impacted Accern Sentiment’s analysis:

  Get Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida alerts: Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida (SBCF) EVP Sells $43,249.63 in Stock (americanbankingnews.com) Q2 2018 EPS Estimates for Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida Cut by FIG Partners (SBCF) (americanbankingnews.com) Q2 2018 EPS Estimates for Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida (SBCF) Cut by Analyst (americanbankingnews.com) Zacks Investment Research Lowers Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida (SBCF) to Sell (americanbankingnews.com)

  SBCF has been the subject of several recent research reports. Zacks Investment Research upgraded Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 28th. ValuEngine raised shares of Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 21st. BidaskClub raised shares of Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 10th. Guggenheim reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $28.00 price objective on shares of Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Hovde Group raised shares of Seacoast Banking Co. of Florida from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $30.00 to $29.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. The company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $29.00.

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019: Applied DNA Sciences Inc(APDN)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Ascent Capital Group (NASDAQ: ASCMA) and Applied DNA Sciences (NASDAQ:APDN) are both small-cap industrial products companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, dividends, risk, profitability, earnings and institutional ownership.

• [By Max Byerly]

  These are some of the media headlines that may have effected Accern Sentiment’s rankings:

  Get Applied DNA Sciences alerts: Applied DNA Sciences’ (APDN) CEO James Hayward on Q2 2018 Results – Earnings Call Transcript (seekingalpha.com) Edited Transcript of APDN earnings conference call or presentation 3-May-18 8:30pm GMT (finance.yahoo.com) Applied DNA Sciences: Fiscal 2Q Earnings Snapshot (finance.yahoo.com) Applied DNA Sciences (APDN) Stock Rating Upgraded by ValuEngine (americanbankingnews.com) Applied DNA Reports Fiscal Second Quarter 2018 Financial Results (finance.yahoo.com)

  A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Maxim Group set a $5.00 price target on shares of Applied DNA Sciences and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 6th. ValuEngine raised shares of Applied DNA Sciences from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd.

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019: NRG Energy Inc.(NRG)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  NRG Energy Inc. (NYSE: NRG) was started with a Buy rating and�assigned a $37 price objective (versus a $33.15 close) at Merrill Lynch.

  Oasis Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: OAS) was reiterated as Overweight and the target price was raised to $17 from $13 at Morgan Stanley.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  DTE Energy (NYSE: DTE) and NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, risk, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019: Methode Electronics, Inc.(MEI)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  ValuEngine cut shares of Methode Electronics (NYSE:MEI) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note published on Wednesday morning.

  MEI has been the topic of several other research reports. Zacks Investment Research lowered Methode Electronics from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Saturday, February 24th. Robert W. Baird reissued an outperform rating and set a $51.00 target price (up previously from $48.00) on shares of Methode Electronics in a research report on Friday, March 2nd. Finally, TheStreet lowered Methode Electronics from a b rating to a c+ rating in a research report on Friday, March 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. The stock presently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $48.75.

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Here are some of the news stories that may have effected Accern Sentiment Analysis’s analysis:

  Get Methode Electronics alerts: Analysts Expect Methode Electronics (MEI) Will Announce Quarterly Sales of $242.88 Million (americanbankingnews.com) Methode Electronics (MEI) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages (americanbankingnews.com) Analysts Anticipate Methode Electronics (MEI) Will Post Earnings of $0.74 Per Share (americanbankingnews.com) Commit To Buy Methode Electronics At $35, Earn 5.8% Annualized Using Options (nasdaq.com)

  Shares of Methode Electronics opened at $41.75 on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. Methode Electronics has a 12-month low of $41.85 and a 12-month high of $42.60. The company has a market capitalization of $1.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 4.03 and a quick ratio of 3.47.

Top 10 Casino Stocks To Watch For 2019: Graco Inc.(GGG)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Prudential Financial Inc. reduced its holdings in Graco (NYSE:GGG) by 55.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 424,224 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 528,080 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned about 0.25% of Graco worth $19,395,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Revlon names its first female CEO in its 86-year history

Debra Perelman has been appointed the first female Chief Executive Officer of Revlon, a company that's majority owned by her billionaire father, Ronald Perelman.

"It's a good time for the company to be led by a woman," she said in a statement to CNNMoney. "This is another first for the company and I'm honored and humbled."

Perelman, 44, takes the helm as CEO and president of Revlon just months after she was appointed Chief Operating Officer in January. She has worked at Revlon for 20 years.

A spokesperson for Revlon (REV) said nepotism was not a factor in her ascension to CEO.

"She's qualified," said the spokesperson. "I also think she got that benefit, that she did learn from [her father]. He's been a mentor to her and he respects her."

Ronald Perelman purchased Revlon in 1985 through his investment firm MacAndrews & Forbes, which now owns about 87% of Revlon. Revlon's brands include the cosmetics line Elizabeth Arden.

Revlon has been struggling financially. The company reported a loss in its most recent quarter, and sales were down compared to a year earlier.

Debra Perelman started working at Revlon in 1998 and became a member of the Revlon board in 2015. She has also worked for Revlon as executive vice president and head of new business development for its holding company, MacAndrews & Forbes.

Women are underrepresented in the top levels of corporate management. The Fortune 500 only has 24 women CEOs in its ranks, like Mary Barra of General Motors (GM) and Indri Nooyi of PepsiCo (PEP). Revlon is not in the Fortune 500.

A CNNMoney analysis showed that women hold only 5% of the CEO jobs in the S&P 500.

Women are also underrepresented in the beauty industry's top leadership. The Est茅e Lauder Companies (EL) and L'Or茅al, two of the largest beauty companies, are led by men.

Virginia Retirement Systems ET AL Acquires New Position in Olin Co. (OLN)

Virginia Retirement Systems ET AL acquired a new position in Olin Co. (NYSE:OLN) in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm acquired 11,800 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $359,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of OLN. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Olin by 971.4% in the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 4,725 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $168,000 after purchasing an additional 4,284 shares during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Olin during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $178,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Olin during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Atria Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Olin during the first quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Finally, Naples Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Olin during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $206,000. 89.02% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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In other Olin news, EVP John L. Mcintosh sold 8,750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.79, for a total transaction of $286,912.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 63,891 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,094,985.89. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Stephen C. Curley sold 6,250 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.00, for a total value of $206,250.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 25,837 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $852,621. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

OLN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $37.00 price target on shares of Olin in a research report on Tuesday, April 17th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Olin from $40.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 10th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $41.00 price target on shares of Olin in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Nomura decreased their price target on Olin from $43.00 to $40.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, SunTrust Banks reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Olin in a research report on Tuesday, February 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Olin currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $38.33.

Shares of NYSE OLN opened at $33.22 on Friday. Olin Co. has a 1-year low of $27.79 and a 1-year high of $38.84. The firm has a market cap of $5.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.01, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Olin declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the specialty chemicals company to purchase up to 9.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 9th. Olin’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 98.77%.

Olin Company Profile

Olin Corporation manufactures and distributes chemical products in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls; Epoxy; and Winchester. The Chlor Alkali Products and Vinyls segment offers chlorine and caustic soda, ethylene dichloride and vinyl chloride monomers, methyl chloride, methylene chloride, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, perchloroethylene, trichloroethylene and vinylidene chloride, hydrochloric acid, hydrogen, bleach products, and potassium hydroxide.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding OLN? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Olin Co. (NYSE:OLN).