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H&R Block Inc. (HRB)
F1Q2011 Earnings Call Transcript
September 2, 2010 4:30 pm ETComplete Story »

Quiksilver, Inc. (ZQK)
F3Q2010 Earnings Call Transcript
September 2, 2010 4:30 pm ETComplete Story »

Hickey and Walters (Bespoke) submit:
The Russell 3,000 makes up about 98% of the US equity market, and below we highlight the stocks in the index that are up the most so far in 2010. These names are all up 100% or more year to date. With a third of the year left, Wabash National (WNC) holds onto the top spot with a gain of 265.08%. Somaxon Pharmaceutical (SOMX) ranks second at 253.70%, while Applied Energetics (AERG), IDT Corp (IDT), Acme Packet (APKT) and Isilon Systems (ISLN) are the rest of the names with YTD gains of more than 200%. The most recognizable name on this list is probably NetFlix (NFLX), which is currently up 150.32% in 2010. A few other noteworthy stocks on the list of big winners include Crocs (CROX), 3PAR (PAR), MBIA (MBI), OpenTable (OPEN), and Las Vegas Sands (LVS). It will be interesting to see how much this list changes by the end of the year.click to enlargeComplete Story »

Jason Farkas submits:As the U.S. dollar approaches an important bottom and U.S. stocks appear to be near a pivotal top, we here at EWI are prepared for trend changes. But most investors will be caught off guard, as there doesn’t appear to be any fundamental rationale for markets to turn now. So we’ve highlighted a few items that are likely to become front-page news after the next wave of decline has begun. Most prognosticators and Monday-morning quarterbacks will blame the decline on events like these, but, in reality, markets make the news (not the other way around). Future Headline: Euro Weakens on Belgians’ Waffling Current clues: The three regions of Belgium are seeing increasing tension that may lead to a break-up. What would happen to its sovereign debt obligations, which stand at 100% of GDP, should the language-divided country splinter? Keep in mind that this country is larger than Greece in terms of its share of global GDP (.8% versus .6%).Complete Story »

Bondsquawk submits: By Rom BadillaStocks continued to rise for a second day and Treasuries fell after pending sales of used homes and retail data came in better than expected. Investors bid up equities and sold Treasuries as they await Friday’s job data, which if disappointing can cause the markets to shed its gains since yesterday. The euro ended slightly stronger while government bonds in European countries were mixed after ECB’s press conference earlier today.Complete Story »

Frederic Ruffy submits: SentimentMajor averages are holding modest gains ahead of employment numbers Friday morning. Economic data drove the morning action after the Labor Department said that filings for jobless benefits fell by 6,000 last week and a bit more than economists had expected. Separate data, on second quarter productivity and July factory orders, was in-line with expectations. However, the latest pending home sales showed a surprise increase of 5.3 percent in July. Economists were looking for no change. After a 255-point rally Wednesday, the data was enough to keep the bullish momentum alive and now the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 20 points heading into the final hour. Trading is slow, with about 4.7 million calls and 3.9 million puts traded. Volume will pick up early Friday in reaction to the jobs data, and then slow to a crawl tomorrow afternoon heading into the three-day Labor Day weekend.Bullish FlowBullish flow detected in Anadarko Petroleum (APC), with 23,850 calls trading, or 2x the recent average daily call volume in the name. Shares are up $1.81 to $50.50 after The Australian published a story saying that APC is on BHP’s (BHP) radar screen as a possible acquisition target: "A senior figure in the global energy industry is convinced that the 'second target' for BHP is Anadarko Petroleum Corporation, telling The Australian he believed the US oil and gas independent was firmly on BHP’s radar. BHP declined to comment for this article." In options action, the focus is on APC Sep 50, 52.5 and 55 calls. Nov 55 calls are among the most actives as well.Complete Story »

Marc Chandler submits:Many had expected the BOJ to have intervened already and its absence raises the question of why haven't they. The simplest explanation is they don't think it would be effective. This is the meaning of the official comments that say that the real issue is dollar weakness not yen strength. But some do not find the straight forward explanation very satisfying.A news wire now cited three "unnamed sources" suggesting that US opposition to intervention is preventing unilateral BOJ intervention. Really ? This seems to exaggerated the US influence over Japan. The US did not seem to look at the massive BOJ intervention in late 2003 and early 2004 favorably, yet it took place. That is to say if the political will was stronger, US distaste/objections to intervention would be overcome. The yen's rise is not simply against the dollar, as the performance of euro-yen clearly illustrates. The yen has appreciated by about 10.5% against the dollar this year and about 21% against euro. Since the end of Q1, the yen has appreciated by around 14% on a trade-weighted basis and 40% in the past two years.Ozawa, who is challenging Kan in the DPJ leadership contest toward the middle of the month has been arguing in favor of intervention. But when he was cabinet secretary (until recently) he reportedly was not pressing this. In any event, polls show Kan clearly ahead.Complete Story »

Frank Holmes submits:Wednesday kicked off what has historically been the strongest period (September through December) of the year for mining stocks and gold. We discussed this back in August (Ready, Set, Gold!) but if you were out enjoying a family vacation, don’t worry you probably haven’t missed the opportunity.Research from Barry Cooper at CIBC shows that while gold has historically performed well in September—prices have risen 81% of the time over the past 20 years—those investors who held their investment through the end of the year reaped the most benefits.Complete Story »

Layne Christensen Company (LAYN)
F2Q2011 Earnings Call Transcript
September 2, 2010 11:00 am ETComplete Story »

Hovnanian Enterprises, Inc. (HOV)
F3Q2010 Earnings Call Transcript
September 2, 2010 11:00 am ETComplete Story »