Penney, Intuit Rally; First Solar, Apollo Plunge

Mayank Mehta
19 Feb, 2010
New York City

Apollo Group declined as much as 10% after it forecasted lower than expected second quarter earnings. Canadian Solar Inc and First Solar Inc declined on lower quarterly margins. J.C. Penney rallied 6% after it reported better than expected earnings. Intuit soared 9% on higher than expected earnings.

[R]11:55 AM New York – Apollo Group declined as much as 10% after it forecasted lower than expected second quarter earnings. Canadian Solar Inc and First Solar Inc declined on lower quarterly margins. J.C. Penney rallied 6% after it reported better than expected earnings. Intuit soared 9% on higher than expected earnings. Smith International surged on buyout talks.[/R]

Of the stocks in S&P 500 index, 219 increased, 266 declined and 15 were unchanged.

First Solar, Inc led the decliners in the S&P 500 index with a loss of 8.4% followed by losses in Apollo Group, Inc of 8.4% and in Dell Inc of 6.5%, in Windstream Corporation of 4.4% and in The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company of 3.4%.

Smith International, Inc led gainers in the S&P 500 index with a rise of 13.6% followed by gains in Intuit Inc 7.9%, in J. C. Penney Company, Inc of 6.6% and in Sprint Nextel Corporation 3.9%.

Other Movers

Amerigroup Corporation ((AGP)) added 6.3% or $1.58 to $26.31 after the health insurer reported fourth quarter revenues rose 18% to $1.36 billion from $1.15 billion a year ago. Net income in the quarter rose 12% to $40.2 million or 79 cents per diluted share compared to net income of $35.9 million or 67 cents per share a year ago.

Apollo Group, Inc ((APOL)) declined 6.5% or $4.03 to $57.41 after the for-profit provider of college degrees currently expects consolidated net revenue from continuing operations for the second quarter of fiscal 2010 of approximately $1.07 billion and diluted earnings per share from continuing operations between $0.77 and $0.82.

Brady Corporation ((BRC)) closed unchanged at $29.88 after the manufacturer of identification solutions and specialty materials reported second quarter sales rose 11% to $295.8 million from $266.4 million a year ago. Net income in the quarter was $15.0 million or 28 cents per diluted share compared to net loss of $4.1 million or 8 cents per share a year ago.

California Pizza Kitchen, Inc ((CPKI)) decreased 4.2% or 61 cents to $13.65 after the dining restaurant chain said fourth quarter revenues rose 3.7% to $167.8 million from $161.8 million a year ago. Net loss in the quarter was $9.9 million or 41 cents per diluted share compared to net loss of $5.3 million or 22 cents per share a year ago.

CBS Corporation ((CBS)) dropped 3.7% or 52 cents to $13.19 after the broadcast television network said fourth quarter adjusted OIBDA increased 11% to $569.2 million.

Dell Inc ((DELL)) declined 6.4% or 93 cents to $13.50 after the technology company said fourth quarter revenues rose 11% to $14.9 billion from $13.4 billion a year ago. Net income in the quarter fell 5% to $334 million or 17 cents per diluted share compared to net income of $351 million or 18 cents per share a year ago.

Developers Diversified Realty Corporation ((DDR)) increased 2.3% or 22 cents to $9.72 after the real estate investment trust said fourth quarter revenues fell 4% to $209.5 million from $218.5 million a year ago. Net loss in the quarter was $90.1 million or 46 cents per diluted share compared to net loss of $194.6 million or $1.61 per share a year ago.

Eclipsys Corporation ((ECLP)) advanced 3.0% or 51 cents to $17.48 after the health care software maker said fourth quarter revenues rose 5.4% to $133.7 million from $126.8 million a year ago. Net income in the quarter rose 15% to $3.8 million or 7 cents per diluted share compared to net income of $3.3 million or 6 cents per share a year ago.

Harleysville Group Inc ((HGIC)) climbed 3.8% or $1.25 to $33.94 an insurance company said fourth quarter revenues rose 7% to $245.0 million from $229.4 million a year ago. Net income in the quarter rose 426% to $24.2 million or 86 cents per diluted share compared to net income of $4.6 million or 16 cents per share a year ago.

Hittite Microwave Corporation ((HITT)) gained 4.9% or $2.00 to $42.25 after the semiconductor maker said fourth quarter sales fell 6% to $43.7 million from $46.4 million a year ago. Net income in the quarter fell 1.5% to $13.4 million or 45 cents per diluted share compared to net income of $13.6 million or 45 cents per share a year ago.

Home Properties, Inc ((HME)) fell 2.3% or $1.12 to $46.10 after the real estate investment trust said fourth quarter revenues fell 0.1% to $125.8 million from $125.9 million a year ago. Net income in the quarter fell 51.4% to $12.2 million or 36 cents per diluted share compared to net income of $25.1 million or 78 cents per share a year ago.

Ingram Micro Inc ((IM)) added 2.6% or 47 cents to $18.52 after the distributor of tech products said fourth quarter sales rose 1.5% to $8.81 billion from $8.68 billion a year ago. Net income in the quarter was $107.0 million or 64 cents per diluted share compared to net loss of $564.3 million or $3.48 per share a year ago.

Intuit Inc ((INTU)) surged 7.9% to $32.74 after second quarter net was ahead of market expectations.

J. C. Penney Company, Inc ((JCP)) increased 5.7% or $1.44 to $27.47 after the department store operator reported fourth quarter sales fell 3.6% to $5.55 billion from $5.76 billion a year ago. Net income in the quarter fell 5% to $200 million or 84 cents per diluted share compared to net income of $211 million or 95 cents per share a year ago.

Morningstar, Inc ((MORN)) fell 3.9% or $1.75 to $42.84 after the financial data-tracking firm said fourth quarter revenues rose 2.8% to $122.6 million from $119.3 million a year ago. Net income in the quarter fell 25.4% to $14.4 million or 29 cents per diluted share compared to net income of $19.3 million or 39 cents per share a year ago.

PECO II, Inc ((PIII)) the provider of telecommunications power systems surged 44.8% or $1.79 to $5.78.

Pioneer Natural Resources Company ((PXD)) decreased 0.7% or 38 cents to $48.91 after the oil and gas producer was cut to “neutral” from “outperform” by Credit Suisse Group AG.

The Spectranetics Corporation ((SPNC)) fell 1.7% or 12 cents to $6.79 after the medical laser maker reported fourth quarter revenues rose 11.6% to $29.7 million from $26.6 million a year ago. Net loss in the quarter was $5.7 million or 17 cents per diluted share compared to net loss of $1.1 million or 3 cents per share a year ago.

WebMD Health Corp ((WBMD)) increased 5.0% or $1.97 to $41.17 after the online health information provider said fourth quarter revenue increased 25.4% to $138.1 million from $110.1 million a year ago.