Digital Daily » Nasdaq

Spare Change for Amazon Shares?

John Paczkowski — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 21:59:38 +0000

$118.49. That’s the price at which Amazon shares closed Friday, a day after the company reported a 69 percent jump in third-quarter profit and a 28 percent gain in revenue. It was a new 52-week high and the stock’s best since December 1999, when it hit $106.68.

Which is saying something. Because as you might recall, in 1999, Nasdaq was soaring on the back of the dot-com bubble to levels never before seen.

And here we are amid the worst recession since the 1930s. Haven’t even entered that “all important holiday shopping season” yet, either.

Things are looking pretty good for Amazon (AMZN) right now. Sure, there’s renewed competition from retailers like Wal-Mart (WMT). There are potential sales tax issues and income tax liabilities and a raft of Kindle-killers headed to market. But Amazon’s stock is up 131 percent this year, brokerage firms are upgrading their ratings on the company, and analysts are saying it’s only going to go higher.

Said Citigroup analyst Mark Mahaney: “Near-term outlook very positive as AMZN heads into holiday season fully armed against shrinking/de-stocking offline retailers, with one of the must-have gadgets of the season (Kindle), a significantly strengthening International presence, and soon-to-be closed Zappos acquisition.”

Yeah. Things are looking pretty good right now. But we said that back in ‘99 too–when Amazon had a similar P/E.

Sirius Slapped With Minimum Bid Notice

John Paczkowski — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 21:21:22 +0000

Ugly news for Sirius (SIRI): With a share price that has closed below $1 for 30 consecutive business days, the company has fallen out of compliance with Nasdaq listing rules. In a notice issued earlier this week, Nasdaq gave the company until March 15, 2010, to comply.

So the question now is: Will Sirius now move ahead with the reverse split its stockholders approved back in May?

Nasdaq Grants Sirius an Exception

John Paczkowski — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 20:28:47 +0000

Sirius XM’s deal with Liberty Media appears to be moving ahead as planned. This morning the company said that it has received the necessary Nasdaq approval to issue Liberty (LINTA) 12.5 million shares of Sirius (SIRI) preferred stock without shareholder approval. Normally, the company would be required to seek such approval, but because of its dire financial straits Nasdaq has lifted the requirement.

Call Me Mel "Save-My-Own-Keister" Karmazin

John Paczkowski — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 15:49:06 +0000

Sirius XM (SIRI) is ready to seek bankruptcy protection. The company has warned investors that it’s prepared to file Chapter 11. It has hired bankruptcy and restructuring advisers. And it has filled out the necessary paperwork. But it may never file it.

“People familiar with the situation” tell The Wall Street Journal that Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin and satellite mogul Charlie Ergen are moving closer to an accord that would save the struggling satellite radio outfit from having to file Chapter 11. Apparently, Ergen has agreed to allow Karmazin to keep his job if he agrees to a deal, and that’s been concession enough to keep him at the negotiating table, though he continues to pursue an alternative, and perhaps fantastical, deal with Liberty Media (LINTA).

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Sirius-EchoStar-Liberty: Ménage-à-Blah

John Paczkowski — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 20:16:56 +0000

As entertaining as news of a Sirius XM-EchoStar-Liberty Media three-way might be, research houses don’t appear to be giving it much credence. Already a few have issued reports dubious of the idea of Liberty accepting the white knight role in this debacle.

In a note to investors this morning, Collins Stewart analyst Thomas Eagan described the possibility of Liberty acquiring or even investing in the struggling satellite radio concern as “highly doubtful.” Explaining his skepticism, Eagan notes, “We do not believe that Liberty initiated the dialogue with [Sirius]. Additionally, we believe [DirecTV] management does not want [Sirius] combined with its operations. [DirecTV] certainly does not need it. Their operations lead the industry.”

Over at Barclays Capital, James M. Ratcliffe and Vijay Jayant are equally skeptical of an alliance between Sirius (SIRI) Liberty (LINTA). “Liberty involvement is more likely an effort by Sirius XM to attract a competing bidder, in our view–we don’t believe the company is fundamentally interested in becoming involved in the satellite radio business,” they wrote, adding that a Sirius bankruptcy is still a distinct possibility. “Chapter 11 would allow the restructuring of above-market OEM revenue share contracts and branded programming contracts, improving operating cash flows,” they explained. “On the other hand, it would result in aggressive competition among the various capital stakeholders and create a significant management distraction for as much as eighteen months.”

For Sirius, bankruptcy may be a more attractive option than cutting a deal with EchoStar’s (SATS) Ergen, but that’s not really saying much. Anyway, Sirius has about a week to decide between the two.

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Sirius: Give Me Liberty or Give Me Ergen

John Paczkowski — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 13:44:01 +0000

The Sirius XM fiasco is fast becoming high drama. Hoping to avoid bankruptcy and fend off an unsolicited takeover attempt from satellite mogul Charlie Ergen’s EchoStar, which has been acquiring its debt, Sirius has approached Liberty Media about a possible transaction. “People briefed on the negotiations” say talks between the two companies are advanced, but it’s not yet clear how much Liberty would be willing to invest in Sirius and whether it’s even interested in taking control of the company.

Like EchoStar (SATS), Liberty Media’s interest in Sirius (SIRI) revolves around the company’s physical assets–satellite and terrestrial repeaters, towers that bolster satellite radio services with Liberty’s DirectTV (DTV) satellite television services. Said Stanford Group analyst Fred Moran: “All of these companies are satellite-delivered media. If you can cross-market, cross-promote and intertwine services between satellite video and satellite audio, you could strengthen your competitive position.”

Question is, is Liberty Media (LINTA) interested in such a thing and is it willing to repay Sirius XM’s debts and buy out the company’s existing shareholders to do it? If it’s not, Sirius may well be forced into bankruptcy, which company officials reportedly claim is preferable to inking a deal with Ergen and EchoStar. Seems Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin can’t bear the thought of giving up control of the company to Ergen.

Sirius shares are trading higher this morning on the news after being viciously beaten down Wednesday by reports that the satellite radio company is mulling a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.

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Potential Sirius Delisting Postponed Until November

John Paczkowski — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 17:13:09 +0000

Sirius XM Radio caught a lucky break recently when NASDAQ added another three months to a suspension of its delisting rules. With a share price below the $1 minimum price requirement to remain listed on the exchange, the struggling satellite radio broadcaster’s delisting seemed imminent. No longer. Now that NASDAQ has extended the suspension of the $1 minimum price requirement until Monday, April 20, 2009, Sirius (SIRI) has quite a few more months to bolster its flaccid share price. Even if its shares are still trading under $1 on April 20, the company won’t receive a delisting notice until 30 days after that–May 19. Then it will have another 180 days to meet NASDAQ’s minimum price requirement. So Sirius essentially has the better part of the year to set its lands in order. If it’s to be delisted, it won’t happen until mid-November.

UPDATE: As the commenter below notes, Sirius could file for an extension in November. If it were granted, the company would then have another 180 days to meet NASDAQ’s minimum bid requirement, which would take it all the way into 2010.

Macworld '09: Behind the PhilNote

John Paczkowski — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 19:00:19 +0000

[ See post to watch video ]

What the Hell's Going On With Sun?

John Paczkowski — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 16:03:17 +0000

Who said the M&A market is dead? Sun Microsystems said this morning that it has acquired Q-layer, a company that automates cloud computing deployments. A noteworthy move for Sun (JAVA), which has been refocusing its attention on the cloud computing space–or trying to, anyway. Presumably, the company has been preoccupied with other matters these past few months–like “aligning its massive and struggling hardware business with the global economic climate” and aligning 18 percent of its workforce with unemployment benefits.

Sun shares are trading up on the news. That said, they’ve been trading higher for a few days now, inexplicably up about 20 percent versus Nasdaq, which isn’t doing nearly as well.

Odd, that, isn’t it?

So Much for Those October "Lows"…

John Paczkowski — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 01:05:00 +0000

Concerns that the econalypse will last longer than expected inspired a nasty market selloff Wednesday, one that kicked tech’s ass all the way back to April 2003.

The Nasdaq gave up nearly 97 points, falling 6.5 percent to 1,386, its lowest close in five years. And it dragged a host of tech issues down into the mud along with it. Leading the downward charge was Yahoo (YHOO), whose shares plummeted nearly 21 percent to close at $9.14, their lowest price in about six years. Declining right along with it were shares of Google (GOOG), which slipped nearly six percent to close at $280.18. Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), Intel (INTC), eBay (EBAY) and Amazon (AMZN) didn’t fare much better. Their shares all closed down at least four percent. Quite a bloodbath. The carnage in charts, below (click for the larger image):

A Yahoo! Morale Booster

John Paczkowski — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 18:00:32 +0000

[ See post to watch video ]

AAPLause, Please

John Paczkowski — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 21:20:43 +0000

What a lousy day to report earnings. The Dow fell 231.77 points, or 2.5 percent, to finish at 9,033.66, and Nasdaq dropped 73.35 points, or 4.1 percent, to finish at 1,696.68, in a market that beat most tech issues into bloody submission. Not the sort of jovial earnings report atmosphere you hope for when you’re a company whose share price has lost half its value since the beginning of the year.

But that was the hand that Apple (AAPL) was dealt. And so, with its stock trading at a little over $91 in a dismal market, the company reported fourth quarter results. And lo and behold, they’re good. Very good.

Apple, which typically low-balls its earnings forecasts and then exceeds them, appears to have done so once again. The company posted revenue of $7.9 billion and net quarterly profit of $1.14 billion, quite a bit more than the profit of $1 a share on $7.8 billion in revenue it had forecast. It shipped 2,611,000 Macs during the quarter, over 11 million iPods and nearly seven million iPhones–6,892,000 to be exact. Said CFO Peter Oppenheimer, “We had a quarterly record for Macintosh sales, and we blew it out on the iPhone.”

Apple CEO Steve Jobs was even more effusive in his praise. “Apple just reported one of the best quarters in its history, with a spectacular performance by the iPhone–we sold more phones than RIM,” Jobs said in a statement. “We don’t yet know how this economic downturn will affect Apple. But we’re armed with the strongest product line in our history, the most talented employees and the best customers in our industry. And $25 billion of cash safely in the bank with zero debt.”

Not “the best quarter ever,” as Jobs is often wont to say. But one of them. An impressive showing amid the current econaclypse.

And what of future guidance? Apple is, once again keeping with tradition. The company delivered a first-quarter outlook well below analysts’ forecasts.

Wall Street's Case of the Mondays

John Paczkowski — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 18:00:41 +0000

[ See post to watch video ]

Econalypse Now

John Paczkowski — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 16:03:21 +0000

The government’s $700 bailout of Wall Street, signed into law Friday after weeks of contentious debate, clearly isn’t the panacea for which tech investors, and investors in general, had hoped. Technology stocks stumbled at the opening bell Monday and then fell flat on their faces as investors succumbed once again to the market malaise. The Nasdaq fell 5.4 percent to trade at 1843.04, dragged down by the declining valuations of Microsoft (MSFT), Apple (AAPL), Yahoo (YHOO), eBay (EBAY) and others. And Google (GOOG), at $366.73, is fast approaching a new 52-week low. Looks like we’re in for another bloodbath.

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Wall Street: Give Me Something to Stop the Bleeding

John Paczkowski — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 14:20:16 +0000

Our industry is not immune to what goes on in the global economy. And yet as I travel, given the current circumstances, people still see a certain buoyancy in the market.”

– Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, Sept. 26, 2008

Wall Street’s 777-point selloff Monday–one of its worst days since 1929–hit many tech stocks harder even than the overall market on Monday. Said Ross Sandler, senior Internet analyst at RBC Capital Markets, “Tech took it on the chin disproportionately.”

Indeed, it did. And a couple of other places as well, from the looks of things.

A quick overview of the carnage:

Amazon (AMZN) fell 10 percent to $63.35
Apple (AAPL) fell 17.9 percent to $105.26
Cisco (CSCO fell 8.5 percent to $21.79
Comcast (CMCSA) fell 13 percent to $18.01
Dell (DELL) fell 9.4 percent to $15.41, a new 10-year low
eBay (EBAY) fell 12 percent to $19.95
Google (GOOG) fell 12 percent to $381.00, a new 2-year low
Intel (INTC) fell 10.1 percent to $17.27, a new 2-year low
Microsoft (MSFT) fell 8.7 percent to $25.01
Oracle (ORCL) fell 9 percent to $18.77
Qualcomm (QCOM) fell 13 percent to $39.88
Research In Motion (RIMM) fell 12.8 percent to $61.73
Sirius XM (SIRI) fell 18 percent to $0.62
Sun (JAVA) fell 11.7 percent to $6.75, a new 13-year low
Yahoo (YHOO) fell 10.8 percent, to $16.88, a new 5-year low

Seems the tech industry “buoyancy” to which Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer referred last week was more of a noneffervescence. Certainly, that’s the impression one gets from reading the statement Microsoft just issued calling on Congress to revisit its vote against the financial bailout plan. “Microsoft strongly urges members of the U.S. House of Representatives to reconsider and to support legislation that will re-instill confidence and stability in the financial markets,” General Counsel Brad Smith said in a statement. “This legislation is vitally important to the health and preservation of jobs in all sectors of the economy of Washington State and the nation, and we urge Congress to act swiftly.”

What was that you were saying about “buoyancy” again, Steve?

Still, to be fair, the tech sector does appear to be gaining some ground in early trading today. The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 2 percent to 2,027, reclaiming some of Monday’s ugly 9 percent loss. Apple shares are up 2.7 percent at $106.70 as I write this. Google shares are up 4.5 percent at $398.06. Microsoft is up 2.5 percent at $25.63. Even Yahoo is on an upward track, up 2.43 percent at $17.29.