Credit Services
(AXP) American Express Company Analyst Downgrades Stock to Neutral
We are downgrading our recommendation on American Express Company (AXP) to Neutral from Outperform as we expect the overall economic recovery to be sluggish and hence AmEx’s top line growth will face obstacles in the near term. AmEx’s fourth quarter earnings from continuing...
5Mar2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(MCO) Nucor Downgraded by Moody’s Investors Service
Recently, credit ratings agency Moody’s Investors Service (MCO) has cut Nucor Corporation’s (NUE) unsecured debt rating one notch to “A2″ from “A1″ and affirmed the steel maker’s Prime-1 short-term debt rating. Moody’s judges obligations rated...
4Mar2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(MCO) Moody’s Analyst Raising Price Target
Moody’s Corp (MCO) is an industry leader in credit ratings. We maintain our Neutral rating on Moody’s but raise our price target to $29.00 from our previous target of $25.00 on better-than-expected results. Results for 2009, although below year-ago levels, were better than...
4Mar2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(NNI) Nelnet’s Fourth Quarter Beats Consensus Estimates
Nelnet Inc.’s (NNI) fourth quarter earnings of $1.64 per share were well ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.21. The company had earned 32 cents per share in the year-ago quarter. Quarterly results reflect the benefits of diversification of revenue through fee-based...
4Mar2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(DLLR) Dollar Financial Repurchases Senior Notes
Last week, Dollar Financial Corp. (DLLR) announced the repurchase of $35.2 million worth of its 2.875% U.S. senior convertible notes due 2027 for $32.0 million in cash, or 91% of par value. This reduces the company’s annual cash interest expense by about $1.0 million and non-cash...
3Mar2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(CIT) CIT Group Expects $900 Million Loss in Fourth Quarter
Following its emergence from bankruptcy protection in Dec 2009, CIT Group Inc. (CIT) said in a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday that it expects to report a loss of about $900 million in the fourth quarter and about $4 billion for 2009. However,...
3Mar2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(COF) Initial Claims for Unemployment Shows More Bad News
The Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance report was decidedly weak, with claims rising to 496,000, an increase of 22,000. The 4-week moving average rose by 6,000 to 473,750. The weekly numbers can be very volatile, so in general it is better to watch the 4-week average...
25Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued($DLLR) Dollar Financial’s Report Beats Earnings Expectations
Dollar Financial Corporation’s (DLLR) fiscal second quarter (ended December 30, 2009) earnings came in at 60 cents per share, substantially ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 45 cents. This also compares favorably with the earnings of 54 cents in the year-ago quarter. Pro...
16Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(ACF) AmeriCredit Corporation – Earnings Estimates Jump
AmeriCredit Corp (ACF) easily surpassed expectations in its latest earnings report, which has sent shares soaring. Company Description AmeriCredit Corp. provides auto financing through dealerships in the U.S. Currently, ACF has about $9 billion in receivables from 800,000 customers. Another...
10Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(WRLD) World Acceptance Corporation – Posts Record Results for the Fiscal Third Quarter
World Acceptance Corporation (WRLD) recently reported a record fiscal third quarter as loan volumes rose. The stock is cheap. WRLD trades at just 8.6x forward earnings. Company Description World Acceptance provides short-term small loans, medium-term larger loans, credit insurance...
9Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(EFX) Equifax Exceeds Expectation
Equifax’s (EFX) fourth quarter 2009 EPS of 61 cents exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 5 cents. Revenue Revenue for the quarter was $464.3 million, up 4.0% from $446.6 million reported in the year-ago quarter. Approximately 3.0% of the increase was due to the unfavorable...
4Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(MCO) Moody’s Incorporated Beats in Fourth Quarter
Moody’s Inc.’s (MCO) fourth-quarter earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 40 cents per share. Excluding restructuring charges, quarterly earnings stood at 42 cents, up 13.5% from 37 cents in the year-ago period. The results reflected improvement in the credit market...
4Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(MCO) Earnings Preview For Moody’s
The earnings outlook for Moody’s Inc. (MCO) remains robust ahead of its fourth-quarter results on February 4, with the current Zacks Consensus Estimate at 39 cents per share. A surge in bond issuance activity will boost the company’s fourth-quarter earnings. However, there...
1Feb2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(AEA) My Confrontation With Ben Bernanke: The Question He Refused to Answer
by Dr. Mark Skousen, Contributing Editor Tuesday, January 26, 2010: Issue #1183 “The Federal Reserve continues to work actively to prepare for the possibility of financial stress.” – Ben Bernanke, January 5, 2007 The Secret Service watched me warily as I approached Federal...
26Jan2010 | InvestmentU | 0 comments | Continued(AXP) American Express Company Beats on Lower Credit Losses
American Express Company’s (AXP) fourth quarter earnings from continuing operations of 59 cents per share were ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 56 cents. This also compares favorably to an earnings from continuing operations of 26 cents in the prior-year quarter. Including...
23Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(COF) Capital One Financial’s Revenue Surpasses
Capital One Financial Corp.’s (COF) fourth quarter net income from continuing operations of 90 cents per share was substantially better than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 45 cents. This also compares favorably to a net loss of $3.67 per share in the year-ago period. Results...
23Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(AXP) American Express Company Eclipses Estimates
American Express Company (AXP) significantly surpassed its year-ago performance while also eclipsing the Zacks Consensus Estimate in its fourth quarter. After the bell marked another sharp selloff in the market, at which time AXP announced earnings per share of 59 cents, beating...
21Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(SLM) Sallie Mae Reports Profits But Misses Consensus Expectations
SLM Corporation (SLM), commonly known as Sallie Mae, reported fourth quarter core earnings of $249 million or 41 cents per share and just missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 44 cents. However, the results were significantly up from the prior-year quarter when the company had...
21Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(EFX) Equifax Partners With 1010data
Information solution major Equifax Inc. (EFX) recently announced that the company is expanding its partnership with data provider and analytics company 1010data. This collaboration will help Equifax to provide its individual and household marketing data to retailers via the 1010data...
20Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(EZPW) EZCORP Incorporated – PEG Ratio of Only 0.69
EZCORP Inc. (EZPW) is scheduled to report fiscal first-quarter 2010 results on Jan 21. The company operates payday-lending stores and pawnshops in the U.S., Canada and Mexico for individuals who do not have cash or access to credit. On Nov 5, EZCORP issued first quarter guidance...
18Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(ECPG) Encore Capital Group – Earnings Estimates Are Up
Encore Capital Group, Inc. (ECPG) continues to trade at excellent valuations and analysts are projecting excellent growth over the next few years. Company Description Encore Capital buys accounts receivable from businesses to perform collection services. The debt portfolio includes...
14Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(NNI) Nelnet’s CUnet to Buy Sparkroom
CUnet, a subsidiary of Nelnet Inc.’s (NNI), announced yesterday that it has agreed to acquire Sparkroom, a provider of enrollment marketing automation and lead performance management solutions. The transaction is expected to close on Feb. 1, 2010. Terms of the deal were not...
12Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(AXP) Unemployment Duration Still Increasing
What really sets this recession apart from all previous post-war recessions is the difficulty people have in going back to work after they have been laid off. In any economic environment, there are always jobs that are being lost, and new jobs created. It is the net number that...
10Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(SLM) SLM Corporation (Sallie Mae) – Bull of the Day
We are upgrading our recommendation on the shares of SLM Corporation, or Sallie Mae (SLM) to Outperform. The company’s third quarter earnings were well ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate, driven by an increase in loan originations and improvements in the credit markets. However,...
6Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(FIF) Financial Federal Corporation Upgraded by Analysts
We are upgrading our recommendation on the shares of Financial Federal Corp. (FIF) to Neutral as we think that the shares of the company are currently trading at a price almost near the agreement value with People’s United. On Nov 22, 2009, Financial Federal entered into...
6Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(SLM) SLM Corporation “Sallie Mae” Upped to Outperform
We are upgrading our recommendation on the shares of SLM Corporation (SLM) to Outperform. Based in Reston, Virginia and commonly known as Sallie Mae, SLM Corporation is the nation’s market leader in education finance. The company manages student loans of roughly 10 million...
5Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(EFX) Consumer Payments Trend Down
As per a recent credit trend report published by Equifax Inc. (EFX), consumer delinquency rates for bankcards, first mortgages and home equity lines of credit increased on a month-to-month basis in November 2009. Home mortgage rates touched another record of 7.91% in November,...
1Jan2010 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(EFX) Equifax & Moneta Enter Joint Venture for Online Payments System
Equifax Inc. (EFX), a global leader in information solutions, recently announced that it has entered into a joint venture agreement with Moneta, an online payment alternative to credit cards, whereby the latter will be utilizing the Equifax credit decisioning system for a new...
29Dec2009 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(COF) Capital One Financial Upgraded to Outperform
We are upgrading our recommendation on Capital One Financial Corp. (COF) to Outperform. The company’s third quarter earnings were substantially ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate, driven primarily by higher-than-expected revenue and almost stable expenses. However, an increase...
27Dec2009 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued(COF) Capital One Financial – Bull of the Day
We are upgrading our recommendation on Capital One (COF) to Outperform. The company’s third quarter earnings were substantially ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate, driven primarily by higher-than-expected revenue and almost stable expenses. However, increased provisions...
27Dec2009 | vitalstocks | 0 comments | Continued