Archive for February, 2018

• Morning News: February 8, 2018
  Eddy Elfenbein, February 8th, 2018 at 7:10 am

  China’s Yuan Toppled From Two-Year High as Trade Data Surprises

  Bank of England Set to Hike Rates Earlier Than Expected

  U.S. Shuts Down Cyber Crime Ring Launched by Ukrainian

  Tesla Says It Is Making Progress on Model 3 Production Issues

  Twitter Reports First Profit but User Growth Misses Estimates

  Here’s How Amazon Prime’s New Whole Foods Delivery Will Work

  In an Eco-Friendly Move, Dunkin’ Donuts Will Ditch Foam Cups by 2020

  Murdochs Defend $3 Billion ‘Thursday Night Football’ Price Tag

  Why Walmart Wants to Sell More Stuff for $10 and Up

  Russian Watchdog Says to Examine Facebook in Second Half

  ‘Greed is Good’?: Waymo Turns to Gordon Gekko to Aid its Case Against Uber

  Without Steve Wynn, Casino Empire Risks Losing More Than a Name

  Jeff Carter: Economics, The Welfare of The Poor And Middle Class OR The Numbers Game

  Howard Lindzon: Corrections and Crashes Happen …and Growth Is Good

  Joshua Brown: The Best Hedge There Is

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• Torchmark Earns $1.24 per Share in Q4
  Eddy Elfenbein, February 7th, 2018 at 4:46 pm

  Torchmark (TMK) reported Q4 net operating income from continuing operations of $1.24 per diluted common share. That’s up from $1.15 per share last year.

  For the year, Torchmark made $4.82 per share in net operating income. That’s up from $4.49 in 2016.

  Net income for the year as a ROE was 28.2%. Net operating income for the year as a ROE excluding net unrealized gains on fixed maturities was 14.3%.

  Life underwriting margins increased over the year-ago quarter by 12%.

  Life premiums increased over the year-ago quarter by 9% at American Income and health premiums increased by 8% at Family Heritage.

  Net life sales increased over the year-ago quarter by 19% at Liberty National and 7% at American Income.

  Net health sales increased over the year-ago quarter by 14%.
  Average agent counts increased over the year-ago quarter by 19% at Liberty National and 8% at Family Heritage.

  Approximately 950,000 shares of common stock were repurchased during the quarter and 4.1 million shares were repurchased during the year.

  (1) On December 22, 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (Tax Legislation) was signed into law which significantly revises corporate income tax rates from 35% to 21%, among other modifications. As a result, the Company made a one-time adjustment to estimate the impact related to the Tax Legislation. The estimated impact is treated as a non-operating event and thus excluded from net operating income from continuing operations.

  Net income per share for the quarter and net income per share for the year calculated prior to the tax reform adjustment would have been $1.30 and $4.88, respectively. Excluding the tax reform adjustment, net income for the year as a ROE and net operating income for the year as a ROE, excluding net unrealized gains on fixed maturities, would have been 11.7% and 14.4%, respectively.

• Fiserv Earns $1.41 per Share
  Eddy Elfenbein, February 7th, 2018 at 4:12 pm

  Fiserv (FISV) just reported fourth-quarter earnings of $1.41 per share. That beat estimates by three cents per share.

  “We had an excellent finish to the year, allowing us to deliver on our financial commitments and achieve double-digit adjusted earnings per share growth for the 32nd consecutive year,” said Jeffery Yabuki, President and Chief Executive Officer of Fiserv. “Our strong performance in closing the year provides momentum as we enter 2018.”

  For 2018, they expect EPS between $6.05 and $6.30. Wall Street had been expecting $5.88 per share.

• ICE Beats Earnings and Raises Dividend
  Eddy Elfenbein, February 7th, 2018 at 1:48 pm

  Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) reported Q4 earnings of 73 cents per share, one penny more than expectations.

  “We are pleased to deliver our twelfth consecutive year of record revenue,” said ICE Chairman and CEO Jeffrey C. Sprecher. “We achieved this by executing on our strategy to deliver best-in-class trading, clearing, listings and information services while continuing to expand our range of content and distribution solutions to meet the evolving needs of the market. As we look to 2018 and beyond, we are focused on innovation and growth to serve our customers and build shareholder value.”

  Scott A. Hill, ICE CFO, added: “In addition to investing in growth, we returned more capital to shareholders in 2017 than any year in our history enabled by another year of record revenue, disciplined expense management and strong cash flow. We remain committed to creating long-term value for our shareholders through operational execution and strategic investments to build on our track record of growth.”

  ICE also boosted its quarterly dividend by 20%. The payout will rise from 20 cents to 24 cents per share. The stock is down a bit today.

• Cognizant Technology Earns $1.03 per Share in Q4
  Eddy Elfenbein, February 7th, 2018 at 12:58 pm

  Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTSH) reported Q4 earnings of $1.03 per share. That beat expectations by six cents per share.

  “Consistent and solid execution throughout 2017, along with continued investments to further accelerate the shift to digital during the year, gives us confidence that we can deliver a strong 2018,” said Francisco D’Souza, Chief Executive Officer. “As companies that are already leaders in their industries integrate their domain knowledge with today’s tremendously powerful technologies like artificial intelligence, analytics and cloud, we see a new generation of digital heavyweights emerging. Cognizant is resolved to be the go-to partner to these digital-industrial leaders and also to our fast-growing digital-native clients.”

  For Q1, they expect earnings of at least $1.04 per share. For all of 2018, they’re looking for earnings of at least $4.53. Wall Street had been expecting $1.01 for Q1, and $4.35 for the year. They also raised their quarterly dividend by 33% to 20 cents per share.

  CTSH is up around 6% today.

• Morning News: February 7, 2018
  Eddy Elfenbein, February 7th, 2018 at 7:08 am

  RBI, in Careful Balancing Act, Keeps Repo Rate Unchanged

  For Korea Inc., Money and Politics Make an Awkward Olympics

  Bitcoin Snaps Slide as Crypto Markets Dodge Push for Regulation

  With Yellen Out of the Picture, Get Ready for Trump vs. Powell

  Inside Wall Street’s $8 Billion VIX Time Bomb

  Tax Changes Mean a Loss for General Motors Despite Great Results

  Snapchat Overhaul Convinces Investors It Can Fight Instagram

  Disney Earnings: Future-Proofing TV…Or Trying To

  Wells Fargo and the Future of Corporate Responsibility

  Musk’s Big Questions: Can Tesla Make Model 3s and Burn Less Cash?

  Tronc Is Near Sale of L.A. Times to Local Billionaire

  Wynn’s Wake-Up Call

  Cullen Roche: Make Investing Simple Again

  Michael Batnick: Your True Risk Tolerance

  Ben Carlson: It’s Not Too Late

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• The Bulls Strike Back
  Eddy Elfenbein, February 6th, 2018 at 4:48 pm

  Things are moving so fast on Wall Street that it’s nearly pointless to try and update you. Today was the first time in history that the Dow went from a 500 point loss to a 500 point gain.

  Today, the Dow gained back 2.33% or 567.02 points. That’s almost exactly half of yesterday’s loss.

  The S&P 500 gained 46.20 points or 1.74%. The index is back to where it was at the end of the first trading day of this year.

  Today was an uneven rally. The S&P 500 High Beta index rose 2.04% while the Low Vol Index was up just 0.32%. That’s a pretty big spread. S&P 500 Growth rose 2.20% and Value was up 1.25%. The Russell 2000 was up just 1.08%.

  The VIX fell 20% to 29.98.

• Cerner Earns 58 Cents per Share
  Eddy Elfenbein, February 6th, 2018 at 4:12 pm

  After the closing bell, Cerner (CERN) reported Q4 earnings of 58 cents per share. That’s three cents below estimates. For the full year, Cerner made $2.38 per share.

  Here are some highlights:

  Fourth quarter operating cash flow of $348.9 million and full-year of $1.308 billion.

  Fourth quarter Free Cash Flow of $185.1 million. For the full year, Free Cash Flow was $671.4 million. Free Cash Flow is a non-GAAP financial measure defined as GAAP cash flows from operating activities less capital purchases and capitalized software development costs. Please see the accompanying schedule, titled “Reconciliation of GAAP Results to Non-GAAP Results.”

  Fourth quarter days sales outstanding of 72 days, up from 69 days in the year-ago period.

  Total backlog of $17.55 billion, up 10 percent over the year-ago quarter.

  “We finished the year on a mostly positive note, with record bookings and all other key metrics except for earnings in line with our expectations,” said Zane Burke, President. “Our bookings were at record levels across several key areas, including population health, Cerner ITWorksSM, and revenue cycle, and also included strong contributions from outside of the U.S. We believe the strong bookings in the fourth quarter combined with our robust pipeline and strong competitive position sets us up for solid growth in 2018 and beyond.”

  Cerner currently expects Q1 earnings of 57 to 59 cents per share and 2018 earnings of $2.57 to $2.73 per share. The stock is down about 2.3% in the after-hours market.

• Becton, Dickinson Earns $2.48 per Share
  Eddy Elfenbein, February 6th, 2018 at 7:22 am

  This morning, Becton, Dickinson (BDX) reported Q4 earnings of $2.48 per share. That beat the Street by seven cents per share.

  “We are proud of our performance in our final stand-alone quarter, as we continued to deliver solid, consistent results,” said Vincent A. Forlenza, Chairman and CEO. “We look forward to the future with confidence as we welcome C.R. Bard to BD. Together, through our combined capabilities and the impact we can have on our customers and their patients, we have a tremendous opportunity to advance the world of health.”

  Revenues for the full fiscal year 2018, including the accretion from the acquisition of C.R. Bard, are expected to increase approximately 30.0 to 31.0 percent on a reported basis. On a comparable, currency-neutral basis that includes the revenues of C.R. Bard in the current and prior year, revenues are expected to grow 4.5 to 5.5 percent. This includes an estimated 50 basis point adverse impact from the change in the U.S. dispensing business model and the estimated sales impact from Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico on Bard’s business during BD’s first fiscal quarter.

  The Company expects full fiscal year 2018 adjusted diluted earnings per share, including the accretion from the C.R. Bard acquisition, to be between $10.85 and $11.00, which represents growth of approximately 15.0 to 16.0 percent, or approximately 12.0 percent on a currency-neutral basis.

• Morning News: February 6, 2018
  Eddy Elfenbein, February 6th, 2018 at 7:05 am

  Asian Stocks Took Their Cues From the U.S, Wiping Out 2018 Gains

  European Markets Continue Slide Following Asia and U.S. Sell-Offs

  Investors Suffer Heavy Losses on Bets Against Volatility

  Over $550 Billion Wiped Off Cryptocurrencies Since Record High Just Under a Month Ago

  Cryptocurrency Rules From Congress Sought by U.S. Market Cops

  Banks, Retailers, China Have All Turned On Bitcoin

  Democrats Lash Out at Consumer Watchdog Amid Reports the Agency is Dropping Equifax Investigation

  Broadcom Raises Its Qualcomm Offer to $121 Billion

  Arby’s, Buffalo Wild Wings Merge to Compete in Fast-Changing Industry

  Why Are Lady Doritos Such a Big Deal?

  Best Buy Is Pulling CDs From Its Stores – And People Are Freaking Out

  Cullen Roche: Why the Stock Market Falls (Sometimes)

  Joshua Brown: What Investors Should Be Thinking Right Now

  Howard Lindzon: I Was Struck by a Black Swan and of Course Markets in Turmoil

  Roger Nusbaum: The Ides of…February?

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