Investors Business Daily

Investing

Major Indexes Sink In Higher Trade; Utilities Ambushed Again
Stocks backtracked in heavier volume Wednesday after the nation's banking chief indicated that the Federal Reserve's massive quantitative easing program may begin to taper down later this year. While the sell-off following the Federal Reserve's news release by the major indexes was pronounced, the market's leading stocks almost yawned in reaction. The IBD 50 dropped 1.2%, in line with the key stock market indexes. But just six issues within the

Brazil\'s Increasing Broadband Is Sweet Music For MercadoLibre
MercadoLibre (MELI) is performing a rare feat among former leaders: It's making a comeback. And much of the credit goes to Brazil's fast-improving infrastructure. Brazil has seen violent protests in recent days. A quarter-million Brazilians took to the streets across the country to protest a sluggish economy, government corruption, red tape, high inflation and shoddy public services. What began as a protest in Sao Paulo against a bus-fare increase

Profit-Taking Hits Stocks; Green Mountain Bucks Trend
Sellers came into the market Wednesday and major averages finished near session lows in higher volume, but several growth names hit new 52-week highs. PVH Corp. (PVH), formerly known as Phillips-Van Heusen, reversed early gains after hitting a new high. Shares fell 1.03 to 125.23 in below-average turnover. The stock surged 8% last week after the parent of Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein reported earnings. Quarterly profit growth accelerated for

Grains Fly Amid Chatter Of Fewer Acres Planted
Corn futures surged the most in seven weeks on speculation that rain and cool weather during April and May reduced U.S. planted acreage and cut yield potential. Wheat and soybeans also gained. Rainfall from March to May in Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan was the most recorded in at least 119 years, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in a report. Corn planting on May 26 was 86% complete, trailing the

Bernanke Sparks Stocks, Bonds And Gold ETFs Sell Off
Exchange traded funds tracking bonds, the major stock market indexes and gold tumbled while agricultural commodities jumped after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said that the Fed hopes to taper its economic stimulus program this fall and end it by mid 2014. At that point, the unemployment rate is seen dropping to 7%. Bernanke's remarks Wednesday followed the Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) vow of sticking with the status quo for now.

Look For Stable Earnings When Scouting Dividend Stocks
To CAN SLIM investors, dividends should only be a secondary consideration. But there is nothing wrong with earning a few extra percentage points whenever you can. When stalking for leading stocks that can grow yet also pay dividends, look for those with stable earnings. This is important because dividends are paid out from a company's profits. Do not automatically pick the ones with the highest yields. Remember, firms don't have to pay shareholder

This Uptrend Is Carrying Some Negative Baggage
Some market uptrends come with drawbacks. The lack of quality breakouts from bases is one drawback for this uptrend. The slow start, however, could change quickly. A second negative is best illustrated by Big 5 Sporting (BGFV). The stock is consolidating in a constructive and orderly fashion. Yet, if the small cap should sketch a base, it would be third stage. A base is an area where a stock pauses, hopefully before resuming its run. Breakouts

Evercore Resumes Upswing As Financial Crisis Fades
Evercore Partners (EVR), an investment bank, has rebounded nicely from the 2008-09 financial crisis. The stock debuted at 21 in August 2006 and quickly doubled before the recession caused by the 2008-09 financial crisis sent the stock -- and Evercore's profits -- tumbling into the red. But profit has picked up in the past three years, and the stock is back near its highs amid a rebound in merger and acquisitions activity. Evercore is in the

Sector Leaders Quiet, But Proto Labs Thrusts Higher
Sector Leaders took timid steps up or down in quiet volume in the run-up to Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke's remarks Wednesday afternoon. Neither the Fed statement nor Bernanke's comments offered any surprises, but the market and its leaders sold off hard on the news. According to the conventional explanation, keeping the Fed policy in place should've been a plus for the market. But at a news conference, Bernanke said if the economy improves,

Health Insurers Rise As Premiums Undercut Expectations
Beyond all the scalpel rattling this week regarding the rollout of insurance exchanges central to ObamaCare, many of the largest health insurance stocks are banging out new highs. Cigna (CI), Humana (HUM), WellPoint (WLP) and Aetna (AET) were among those at or near new highs this week. A study from Avalere Health released Wednesday showed health care premiums negotiated in nine states under the Affordable Care Act were less than those forecast by

Yields Strike 15-Month High; Fed Outlines Taper Scenario
Treasuries fell, pushing 10-year note yields to a 15-month high, after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said risks to the economy have decreased and policymakers could end bond purchases next year. Ten-year note yields rose the most in three weeks after Bernanke said policymakers may "moderate" their $85 billion in monthly bond purchases later this year and may end them around mid-2014 if economic growth is consistent with

Stocks End With Sharp Losses; Fed Sticks With Status Quo
Major averages slumped in higher volume Wednesday after the Fed sounded more optimistic about the economy, but continued with its $85 billion in monthly bond purchases. At the close, the Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500 slumped 1.4%. The Nasdaq gave up 1.1%. Preliminary data showed NYSE volume coming in 18% higher than Tuesday. Nasdaq volume rose 4%. The yield on the 10-year note surged 13 basis points to 2.32%. The Fed said that downside

10 Myths About Options ? Take 2
Options, perhaps, have more myths about them than any subject related to investing and trading. These myths persist despite the industry's existence in the U.S. for 40 years. This is the second in a series of articles that address several myths about options. Last week Myth #1 "Options are Only for Speculators" and Myth #2 "90% of Options

Stocks Stay Red After Fed Statement; Proto Labs Steady
Stocks were lower in choppy trading after the Fed said it won't taper its $85 billion-a-month bond-buying program at this time. But the central bank's comment that "downside risks to the outlook for the economy and the labor market as having diminished," may have spooked investors into thinking that tapering may be near. The Dow Jones industrial average and the S&P 500 fell 0.5% each, while the Nasdaq eased 0.4%. Volume has turned mixed in the

Stocks Edge Lower Ahead Of Fed; Proto Labs Extends Gains
Stocks were modestly lower Wednesday ahead of the Fed's policy statement coming up at 2 p.m. ET. Investors will be looking for clues to whether the central bank will tone down its bond buying and at what pace. The Dow Jones industrial average, Nasdaq and S&P 500 were all down 0.2%. Volume was tracking lower across the board in the stock market today as investors wait on the sidelines for the Fed. Men's Wearhouse (MW) trimmed losses, but was still

Stocks Chip Away At Losses; FedEx Delivers Q4 Surprise
The major indexes held formation, trading slightly lower in quietly mixed trade, as they approached the midday mark on Wednesday. All the major indexes -- the Nasdaq, the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones industrial average -- showed a 0.1% loss just ahead of the lunch hour. Volume was off 7% on the Nasdaq and 2% higher on the NYSE, compared to action at the same time Tuesday. Declines were shallow but broad, with a little more than half of the 197 industry

Stocks Open Down In Firm Trade; Adobe Climbs, La-Z-Boy Lolls
Stocks slumped to mild losses in early trade Wednesday, echoing action overseas as global markets awaited policy comments from the Federal Reserve. The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones industrial average dipped 0.2% apiece. The Nasdaq held to a 0.1% loss. Volume was slightly higher, up 10% on the Nasdaq and 7% higher on the NYSE, compared with trade at the same time Tuesday. With no significant economic news due out, the stock market today is a one-trick

Futures On Pause Prior To Fed; Adobe Systems Surges On Q2 Win
Futures tip-toed in and out of mixed terrain, commodities and global markets were quietly paused ahead of Wednesday's open as the market waited on this afternoon's policy announcement from the Federal Reserve. Dow futures dipped seven points. Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 3.5 points. S&P 500 futures were essentially flat. It is no secret that the stock market today is intently attuned to comments following the Federal Open Market Committee's two-day

5 Contrarian Warning Signs Stock Market Is Too High
The stock market has been very agitating for the bears as the SPDR S&P 500 (SPY) vaulted a remarkable 16% this year and 25% in the past 12 months. Like a broken clock that's right twice a day, the bears will eventually stand atop the podium. Here are five warnings signs the bears believe the stock market is excessively overvalued and that investors need to watch out for a correction. 1. Valuations are too high compared to the historic average.

Stocks Rise On Eve Of Key Fed Announcement
The stock market rallied Tuesday, continuing to make good on last week's favorable signals. Indexes closed near session highs as the Nasdaq jumped 0.9% and the S&P 500 0.8%. Volume slowed modestly on the NYSE but rose on the Nasdaq. Advancing stocks topped decliners by better than 2-to-1 for the second straight day. For all the chatter about the Fed's policy statement coming out Wednesday, the market was not showing any nervousness on the eve.

Foreign Stocks Near Buy Points Ahead Of Fed Meeting
Stocks can react violently to Fed policy announcements, like the one coming Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET. A slew of U.S.-traded quality foreign stocks and ADRs are near buy points. Let's look at a few. Michael Kors (KORS) isn't making it easy. The stock's breakout from its 62.35 cup-with-handle on May 22 failed, falling 7% before finding its legs. By then, one assumes that prudent longs from that breakout unloaded under the 7%-8% sell rule. But Michael

Sector Leaders Rise In Drab Volume
For Sector Leaders, Tuesday's session was positive in price progress, but lacked trading enthusiasm ahead of the Federal Reserve's Wednesday's announcement on interest rates. The indexes drew mixed volume as they advanced, but every Sector Leader except one drew lower volume as they rose. In most cases, the volume was sharply lower. Still, some stocks made noteworthy moves. FleetCor Technologies (FLT) added 1.05 to 89.12, clearing an 88.93 buy

Market Rally Gains Steam; Proto Labs Clears Flat Base
Stocks extended gains Tuesday as the market served up more new highs from the technology, retail and financial sectors. A few flat-base breakouts emerged in the technology sector. IBD 50 firm Proto Labs (PRLB) cleared a buy point of 59.94, rising 3.19 to 62.65 in big volume. It's now 4% above the buy point. The stock's most recent consolidation showed tighter, more orderly trading than prior consolidations, a positive sign. The company's

Stocks Rally Ahead Of Fed; Cree Clears 3-Weeks-Tight
Stocks rallied Tuesday to their best levels since late May amid mixed economic data and the start of a two-day Fed meeting. Equities were green all session long, even though housing starts and building permits both missed expectations. But inflation data was tame. Still, the market's focus will be on the central bank's policy statement, which will be out Wednesday at 2 p.m. EDT. A press conference will follow shortly after. The Nasdaq jumped 0.9%,

 

Business

FedEx Ground Game Trumps Air Freight Turbulence
Despite "tepid" economic growth, FedEx reported fourth-quarter earnings that easily topped analyst forecasts as its ground shipping focus paid off. The world's No. 2 delivery company after UPS (UPS) gave weak guidance for the current year and said it will cut some U.S.-Asia capacity. FedEx (FDX) Ground revenue reached $2.78 billion in the quarter ended May 31. That was 12% above a year earlier. In contrast, revenue for the

Latest MasTec Buyout Bolsters Oil And Gas Business
Executives at MasTec have spent the past several years using acquisitions to expand the company's customer base and broaden the kinds of construction and maintenance services it provides. That strategy took another step forward late last month when MasTec (MTZ) announced a buyout of Canada's Big Country Energy Services and its affiliated operating companies for $103 million in cash. The deal further solidifies MasTec's position in the oil and

GE, United Technologies Vie For Jet Engine Supremacy
Airbus and Boeing (BA) are battling for orders at the Paris Air Show. Engine makers General Electric (GE) and United Technologies (UTX) are also in a heated fight to win orders and secure dominance in the engine market. Aircraft orders take center stage at air shows. Airbus and Boeing have announced large orders from Ryanair (RYAAY), United (UAL), Air Lease (AL), British Airways, Qatar Airways, SkyWest (SKYW) and more. But engine makers have

Bank Recovery Seen Picking Up Despite Lending Report
The regulator who oversees the $26 billion settlement among five of the nation's largest mortgage lenders and the government over mortgage loan abuses said they aren't living up to terms of the agreement. Shares of the four banks on the list: Bank of America (BAC), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Citigroup's (C)CitiMortgage unit and Wells Fargo (WFC) were largely unaffected in early Wednesday trading after the regulator's report came out. The fifth lender,

Boeing, Embraer Narrow-Body Jets Rule Paris Air Show
Boeing (BA) and Embraer SA (ERJ) inked more deals for their narrow-body jets at Paris Air Show on Wednesday. Experts expected the air show to be a battle of the wide-body jets, but orders for smaller planes have taken center stage as airlines upgrade their existing fleets or expand into new markets. Orders at the show have topped $100 billion. Boeing said it reached an agreement with aircraft leasing company CIT Aerospace to sell 30 of its new

Men\'s Wearhouse Founder, Pitchman Fired, Shares Fall
Men's Wearhouse (MW) shares fell in morning trading Wednesday after the surprise announcement that its board had fired the company's iconic founder and pitchman George Zimmer as executive chairman. His termination came hours before the company's annual meeting, which was postponed "to re-nominate the existing slate of directors without Mr. Zimmer," according to a press release. A spokesman for the board said there would be "no further comment at

6 Big Cap Stocks Poised For Strong Earnings Growth
Big companies offer the safety of size and stability. If they have a recent history of strong profit gains and are projected to outperform the overall market, they're good candidates for a stock watch list. Here are six big-cap leaders that analysts expect to post strong earnings per share growth this quarter: LinkedIn (LNKD), Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR), Michael Kors Holdings (KORS), Actavis (ACT), Hertz Global Holdings (HTZ) and

MGM Plans $350 Mil Arena On Revitalized Vegas Strip
To capitalize on Las Vegas recovery, MGM Resorts International (MGM) and entertainment company AEG plan to build a 20,000-seat arena on the Vegas Strip. They named design firm Populous to draw up plans for the $350 million arena. Groundbreaking is set for summer 2014 and the as-yet-unnamed arena is scheduled to open in spring of 2016. MGM and AEG, a unit of privately held entertainment and sports complex builder and operator the Anschutz Co., will

Acquisitions Add To Jazz Pharma\'s Diversity
Fighting off the Sandman is no easy task. The struggle can be particularly grueling for the 157,000 Americans who suffer from narcolepsy. More than 10,000 have turned to Xyrem in an attempt to win that battle. The drug has delivered stellar revenue growth for Jazz Pharmaceuticals (JAZZ). In Q1, sales of Xyrem soared by 60% from the prior year quarter to $117.5 million. Although it is not the only drug in Jazz's arsenal, it did account for 65.7% of product sales.

Tim Hortons Shares Jump As Investors Push For Change
Tim Hortons (THI) shares jumped in hefty trading volume early Tuesday on prospects for more investor-pressured changes at the struggling coffee and doughnut chain. Hedge fund Scout Capital Management, which holds a 5.5% stake in the company, said in a filing that it's had talks with Hortons' management about its capital structure, share buybacks, management pay and other topics, and expects to continue such discussions. Early last month, Hortons

United Tech To Pay $473 Mil For Overcharging Military
United Technologies (UTX) will pay $473 million and interest over a 1999 lawsuit for manipulating pricing to win Air Force jet engine contracts more than two decades ago. United Tech shares rose 1% to 95.95 in the stock market today. The lawsuit was filed by the Department of Justice in 1999 and claimed United Tech's Pratt & Whitney unit overcharged the government. In 2008 District Judge Thomas Rose in Dayton, Ohio, ruled that United Tech was

Hormel Latest Meat Producer To Warn Of Lower Profits
Hormel Foods (HRL) shares fell sharply early Tuesday in heavy volume after the meat producer cut its full-year profit outlook, citing weakness in its pork business and rising costs. The warning comes amid broad changes in the industry as rival Smithfield Foods (SFD), the world's largest pork products producer, ponders a bid for the company by a Chinese company and considers appeals from investors to split up the company. Hormel now sees full-year

GE Announces Russian Joint Venture, Mass Hiring In US
General Electric (GE) and the Russian Direct Investment Fund announced their plans Tuesday to form a join venture to build mini power plants in Russia. As the industrial sector in Russia grows, so does its need for power generation systems. The 25 megawatt plants are built independently of the federal power grid, don't require the production of expensive and time-consuming transmission lines and reduce the risk of power cuts, according to the

Success Of Starbucks New Menus Depends On Readability
Starbucks (SBUX) said it will display calorie counts for all products on menu boards starting June 25. It joins McDonald's (MCD) and other restaurants trying to appeal to more health-conscious consumers. But based on a recent study, how effective the new menus will be depends on how they're worded. The world's largest coffeehouse chain -- like McDonald's, Brinker International (EAT)-owned Chili's, DineEquity's (DIN) Applebee's, and Yum Brands'

United Joins Delta In Putting Price On Flier Reward
United Continental Holdings (UAL), the world's largest airline by passenger traffic, joined Delta Air Lines (DAL) in a move to reward elite passengers based on both spending levels and miles traveled. Starting in January, United passengers must spend $10,000 and travel 100,000 miles or 120 segments in order to gain the top status of Premier 1K, Chicago-based United said in an e-mail to MileagePlus customers. Delta, the world's

Airbus, Boeing Ink Orders For Fuel Efficient Jets
The rain may have stopped at the Paris Air Show Tuesday, but orders for Airbus and Boeing's (BA) larger and more fuel-efficient jets kept pouring in. Air Lease Corp. (AL), which leases planes to airlines, signed for three firm orders for the 787-9 and for 30 787-10s. Boeing's 787-9 is a larger version of the current Dreamliner and seats up to 290 passengers, but uses 20% less fuel than current similarly sized planes. The 787-10 is even larger,

Ambarella Leads Top 5 Stocks With Bolting RS Lines
There's a leader in every industry, and today's leaders that are outpacing the market are likely to be tomorrow's biggest winners. Today's Screen Of The Day is Bolting RS Lines. IBD's Relative Strength line measures a stock's performance vs. the S&P 500 index, and stocks with rising RS lines are outpacing the market. Today's screen includes a young, diverse group of stocks. Here are the top 5 stocks with Bolting RS lines: chipmaker Ambarella

Priceline Conquered Europe, Now Marches To Take U.S.
Priceline (PCLN) lords over Europe's hotel kingdom with its industry-leading Booking.com. Booking.com also lords over Priceline, accounting for a majority of the company's international bookings. It's done well, even through the Continent's fiscal woes, as Europeans kept going on holiday no matter what. So it is no wonder the Norwalk, Conn.-based online travel company describes itself as a "leader in global online hotel reservations." What about

Terex Shares Plunge After It Cuts 2013 Outlook
Terex (TEX) joined the list of heavy equipment operators lowering forecasts for this year as the hot pace of U.S. construction slows and global markets remain weak. Terex shares plunged nearly 10% in extremely heavy volume in Monday afternoon trading in the stock market today. The maker of capital equipment for construction, infrastructure, mining and other industries guided second quarter earnings per share of 50 to 60 cents. That's well below

Weyerhaeuser Up After Longview Deal, CEO Appointment
Weyerhaeuser (WY) shares were up 2.5% to 29 Monday after the housing and wood products company announced plans to buy Longview Timber and appointed a new CEO on Sunday. Weyerhaeuser agreed to buy the timber company from Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) for $2.45 billion in an all-stock deal in an effort to boost its presence in the Pacific Northwest. In the deal, Weyerhaeuser will receive 645,000 acres of timberlands in Washington and Oregon.

 

Technology

Apple TV plays catch-up to rivals, adds HBO Go, ESPN
After six years on the market, Apple's (AAPL) set-top box, Apple TV, isn't exactly turning the television industry on its ear. But the device has found a place with loyal Apple customers who want to buy and view TV episodes and movies from Apple's own iTunes Store on their living room television. In announcing new content deals for the Apple TV on Wednesday, the consumer electronics company gave some color on video downloads from its iTunes Store. Apple said customers have downloaded more than 1 billion TV episodes and 380 million movies from iTunes to date, and they are purchasing more than 800,000 TV episodes and 350,000 movies per day. When it comes to other content on the Apple TV, Apple is simply playing catch-up with rivals, however. Apple announced Wednesday that it is offering Time Warner's (TWX) HBO Go and Walt Disney's (DIS) WatchESPN services on the Apple ?

Sony to crush Microsoft, Nintendo in console sales
Sony's (SNE) PlayStation 4 will outsell Microsoft's (MSFT) Xbox One and Nintendo's (NTDOY) Wii U, the next generation of video game consoles, marking a reversal of today's rankings, research firm DFC Intelligence predicts. Sony emerged as the big winner of last week's E3 video game conference in Los Angeles, when it announced attractive pricing for the PS4 and consumer-friendly policies. Sony said its PS4 will cost $399, compared with $499 for the Xbox One. Sony also said its new machine will run second-hand games and not require an always-on Internet connection. By contrast, Microsoft was heavily criticized for placing restrictions on used games and requiring players to log on to the Internet for authentication. "We feel that Microsoft's overall strategy for entertainment devices is deeply flawed," DFC President David Cole said in a statement Tuesday. "Right now the entire future of Microsoft's consumer entertainment business is in question and ?

PayPal Says Study Shows Support For Mobile Wallets
PayPal says a study it commissioned last month refutes those who say mobile wallet adoption is lagging. In a survey of consumers in the U.S., Britain, Canada, Germany and Australia, 83% of respondents said they wished they didn't have to carry physical wallets. Anuj Nayar, PayPal's senior director of communications, says the point of the study is not about replacing cash or credit cards with a "mobile wallet" payment method. "It's about

Red Hat Edges Expectations, So Its Stock Rises
Red Hat late Wednesday released results that edged analyst expectations, and its shares rose late after a rough day for the stock market. But the provider of open-source Linux products' year-over-year revenue growth of 15% tied for its smallest percentage increase since August 2009. Red Hat (RHT) is diversifying into more product areas as the rate at which companies convert to Linux from the Unix computer operating platform slows. And the

Stratasys Buys MakerBot In Consumer 3D Printing Shift
Stratasys (SSYS), a maker of 3D printers targeting mostly enterprises, late Wednesday announced it would acquire MakerBot, expanding deeper into the consumer field. The all-stock transaction was valued at $403 million, but could increase by another $201 million, depending on the performance of MakerBot through the end of 2014. The deal -- speculated on for weeks -- will allow Stratasys to offer more desktop 3D printers to meet customer demand and

Nvidia Stock Gains On Chip Licensing; ARM Slips
Shares of Nvidia (NVDA) rose on Wednesday after the chipmaker disclosed plans to license graphics chip technology, a move that could pressure chip designer ARM Holdings (ARMH), analysts say. At a Reuters Global Technology Summit, Nvidia CEO Jen-Hsun Huang said the company will expand its business model to boost licensing revenue. Shares of Nvidia were up 4% in afternoon trading in the stock market today, while ARM was down nearly 2%. Anil Doradla,

Google\'s Drummond Denies \'Willy-Nilly\' Data Handovers
Google (GOOG) Chief Legal Officer David Drummond on Wednesday defended the search leader's privacy record, saying executives "push back" against unwarranted government requests and that federal investigators don't have "unfettered access" to user data. Drummond answered questions in a live chat via written questions and answers online on the website of the British newspaper the Guardian. That newspaper on June 6 broke the story that Google and

TripAdvisor Buys Mobile Flight App Provider GateGuru
TripAdvisor (TRIP) said Wednesday that it's acquired GateGuru, a New York-based global provider of mobile flight and airport data. The move bolsters the mobile flight information that TripAdvisor, a provider of travel reviews and metasearch results, offers to users. The price and other terms of the acquisition weren't disclosed. GateGuru, at gateguruapp.com, provides data that's built on a mix of user-generated content and information from the

Adobe Systems Transition To Cloud Gaining Steam
Graphic design software firm Adobe Systems (ADBE) expects to add more subscribers to its Creative Cloud service this quarter than last, as its transition from licensed software continues to gain steam. Adobe shares were up 6.5% in midday trading on the stock market today following the company's fiscal second-quarter earnings report released late Tuesday. The stock, which hit a more than five-year high of 47.17 on May 3, was trading near 46.25.

Keryx Patents Seen Overcoming Generic Competition
Shares of Keryx Biopharmaceuticals (KERX) were up 7.5% in midday trading Wednesday after JPMorgan initiated coverage on the maker of drugs for chronic kidney disease with a buy rating. The New York-based company is developing Zerenex, an oral iron-based drug for treating hyperphosphatemia, a serious complication in patients with kidney disease. "Given its ability to also help treat anemia, we think advantages of Zerenex could drive rapid uptake in

Biotech Stocks On The Move: Bluebird, Sarepta, Vanda
Several small biotechs were on the move in the stock market Wednesday as one debuted and two others reported contrasting clinical-trial results. Bluebird Bio (BLUE) was up 50% after upsizing its IPO to 5.9 million shares at $17 apiece, goosing the amount of money it was expected to raise by 25% to $101 million. The company has three rare-disease drugs in development, including a very early-stage cancer program in collaboration with Celgene (CELG),

Oracle Challenges Abound Ahead Of Its Q4 Earnings
Oracle (ORCL) faces a laundry list of challenges as the database leader prepares to report results for its fiscal fourth quarter after the market close Thursday. The enterprise software maker, the largest along with rival SAP (SAP), has been struggling with slowing and even declining quarterly revenue growth, as it works on transitioning more of its business to software-as-a-service delivery and the cloud. Its hardware sales have fallen as it

Sprint Down, Clearwire Gains On Latest Dish Move
Shares of Japan-based SoftBank (SFTBF) rose 4% in Tokyo while Sprint Nextel (S) fell in morning trading in New York after Dish Network (DISH) late Tuesday said it would not make a new offer for Sprint, bringing SoftBank closer to winning a takeover battle. Sprint shareholders are slated to vote Tuesday on SoftBank's $21.6 billion offer for 78% of the company. Dish had bid $25.5 billion for 100% of Sprint. Sprint's board favors the SoftBank bid,

Tesla Recalls Some Model S Electric Cars, But Shares Up
Tesla Motors (TSLA) shares rose in early stock market trading Wednesday after the electric car maker announced a partial recall for Model S vehicles manufactured between May 10 and June 8, 2013 because of a safety-related issue. Tesla said it has notified the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of the voluntary recall. "After a careful examination, we have concluded that some Model S vehicles manufactured between May 10, 2013 and June

Verizon Communications To Sing \'O Canada\'?
Verizon Communications (VZ) would lower its roaming fees in Canada if it acquires smaller players in its wireless phone market, while providing stiffer competition for incumbents Rogers Communications (RCI), BCE (BCE) and Telus (TU), says Macquarie Capital in a report. Verizon is interested in making a bid for Wind Mobile, Bloomberg News reported Wednesday. The No. 1 U.S. telecom carrier also might be "kicking the tires" at two other small

Apple\'s iOS 7 shaping up to be its Windows 8
Apple's (AAPL) iOS 7 is shaping up to be like Microsoft's (MSFT) Windows 8 -- a disliked new operating system that has faithful users pining for the look and feel of the previous release. Negative reviews continue to flow in from designers complaining about iOS 7, a major revamp of the mobile operating system that runs Apple's iPhone and iPad. While the latest OS also is getting many positive reviews, critics say iOS 7 uses harsh colors that are hard on the eyes and has ugly control overlays, as well as confusing and inconsistent icons. Ian Storm Taylor, co-founder of Segment.io, chimed in with a blog post on Friday titled "What's Wrong with the iOS 7 Icons?" that provides a detailed takedown of the operating system's icons. Taylor says many of the icons presented in the iOS 7 unveiling at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference on June 10 felt rushed, "like the ?

Malone Cable M&A Seen Spanning U.S., Europe
John Malone's European offensive took a new turn as his Liberty Global reportedly bid for Germany's No. 1 cable TV firm, amid speculation U.S. cable firms Charter Communications -- part-owned by a Malone company -- and Time Warner Cable might merge. Malone-controlled Liberty Global (LBTYA) on Monday topped U.K.-based Vodafone's (VOD) offer for Germany's Kabel Deutschland, according to reports. Liberty Global reportedly bid $10 billion vs. Vodafone's

Adobe Systems Rises With Cloud, Beats Street Views
Adobe Systems shares jumped 4.5% in after-hours trading Tuesday after the graphic design software maker reported better-than-expected results for the start of its transition into all-cloud mode. The San Jose, Calif.-based company earned 36 cents a share excluding items, on sales of $1.011 billion for its fiscal second quarter ended May 31. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had expected Adobe (ADBE) to earn 33 cents on sales of $1.008 billion.

Small Businesses Say Technology Is Saving Them Money
Small businesses that embrace technology are saving some money with it, a new survey finds. While done by a tech vendor with software to sell -- Symantec (SYMC) -- the study came up with some broadly noteworthy observations on how firms become technology-oriented or not. Symantec polled about 2,500 small and midsize businesses worldwide -- firms with 10 to 250 employees. A lot of the tech focus tended to come from founders, the survey results

EBay CEO Confident Of Getting PayPal China License
EBay (EBAY) CEO John Donahoe predicted at a technology conference in San Francisco late Monday that the company's PayPal unit will become the first foreign player to receive a payments license in China. "I am confident that PayPal will be the first non-domestic company to get a payments license in China. That could be in three months or five years," Donahoe said at the Reuters Global Technology Summit. EBay shares were up nearly 1.5% in late