*** 美国股市新闻 ***

daniel888

American Eagle Outfitters Q2 Profit Falls - Update
Wed Aug 25 09:40:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Apparel retailer American Eagle Outfitters Inc. (AEO) Wednesday reported a sharp decline in second-quarter profit, hurt by higher costs and expenses and charges related to the closing of Martin+Osa chain stores. Quarterly net sales increased from the prior year, despite a 1% drop in comparable store sales. The company also provided earnings and comparable store sales outlook for the third quarter.

Second-quarter net income was $9.66 million or $0.05 per share, compared with $28.57 million or $0.14 per share in the same quarter last year. The company's first-quarter net income was $10.9 million or $0.05 per share.

On March 9, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based American Eagle announced plans to close its Martin+Osa concept, including all 28 stores and the online business. In the second quarter, the company incurred a loss from discontinued operations, net of tax, of $16.18 million, compared with a loss of $8.19 million a year ago.  

The company also reported income from continuing operations of $26 million or $0.13 per share, lower than the $37 million or $0.18 per share in the prior-year quarter.

On average, 28 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $0.13 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Net sales increased to $651.50 million from $646.8 million in the second quarter of 2009. Comparable store sales were down 1%. Twenty five analysts had a consensus revenue estimate of $654.60 million for the quarter. In the first quarter, the company posted net sales of $659.45 million and comparable store sales increase of 5%.

Commenting on the results, Jim O'Donnell, chief executive officer of American Eagle Outfitters, stated, "The second quarter was a challenging period, resulting in a miss to our sales and profit plans."

The company's month-to-date August comparable store sales rose about 1%, in line with its plan for the back-to-school selling period. In July, the company showed some resistance by recording flat comparable store sales, compared with a decline of 11% in the prior-year period. In June, the company's comparable store sales decreased 1%, and in May, the comparable store sales decreased 3%.

In the second quarter, the company's direct business AEO Direct, which includes ae.com, aerie.com and 77kids.com, posted a 9% decline in sales, compared with a 17% sales growth a year ago, which was driven by promotions.

American Eagle stated that as part of its Corporate Profit Initiative, which is aimed at strengthening profit, it plans to close 50 to 100 underperforming stores over the next two to five years. Organizational streamlining involves workforce reductions and process improvements to increase efficiencies and create a more productive environment, the company noted.

"Given the inconsistencies in business trends and unpredictable consumer behavior, we have intensified our actions to improve efficiencies, streamline our process and strengthen profitability. We are committed to driving change across the organization and delivering sustainable long-term growth," O'Donnell said.

Selling, general and administrative expense rose 3% to $165 million, due to the timing of contract-based equity grants and severance payments.

The company stated that, in the second quarter, it opened one AE store, five aerie and five 77kids stores. In addition, the company completed the remodeling of 10 AE stores. Store closings included five AE stores and 28 MARTIN+OSA stores.

American Eagle also said that total cash outflow for the closure charges of MARTIN+OSA, net of associated tax benefits, is expected to be $14 million, which is at the low end of the company's initial range of $10 million to $40 million.

For the third quarter, the company expects comparable store sales to be flat to down in the low single-digits.
The company assumes a more conservative traffic following peak back-to-school shopping. Further, the company sees third-quarter earnings from continuing operations in the range of $0.23 to $0.26 per share. Wall Street analysts expect the company to report earnings of $0.26 per share for the third quarter.

Among American Eagle's peers, Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (ANF) has reported a profit in its second quarter, compared to prior year's loss, reflecting strong sales growth mainly in the international market. The New Albany, Ohio-based specialty retailer's total quarterly sales grew 17%, and comparable sales increased 5%.

Another specialty retailer Gap Inc.'s (GPS) profit for the second quarter increased 3% over last year, helped by higher sales at Old Navy stores and Banana Republic North America.

AEO closed Tuesday's trading at $12.49, down $0.49, on a volume of over 6 million shares. In pre-market trading, the company's shares rose 4.88% or $0.61 to $13.10.

巨大的西瓜

American Eagle Outfitters Q2 Profit Falls - Update
Wed Aug 25 09:40:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Appa ...
daniel888 发表于 26-8-2010 04:34 PM

    美国鹰Outfitters第二季度利润瀑布 - 更新
周三美国东部时间2010年8月25日9时40分00秒

（综合讯） - 服装零售商American Eagle Outfitters公司（AEO的）周三公布，第二季度利润大幅下降，这主要得益于成本和费用以及与马丁+奥萨连锁店关闭收费受伤。季度净销售额从上年同期，尽管可比店面销售额下降1％。该公司还提供了第三季度的盈利前景，可比店面销售额。

第二季度净收入9660000美元或每股0.05美元，较28570000美元或每股0.14美元的去年同期。该公司第一季度的净收入为1090万美元，或每股0.05美元。

3月9日，宾夕法尼亚州匹兹堡的美国之鹰宣布，计划关闭其马丁+奥萨概念，包括所有28个商店和在线业务。在第二季度，该公司从已终止经营业务产生的损失，一千六百十八万美元税后，则为八百十九万美元去年同期的亏损。

该公司还报告收入为2600万美元，或每股0.13美元持续运营，比3700万美元或在上年同期每股0.18低。

平均而言，由汤姆森路透调查的28位分析师预计该公司报告第二季度每股0.13美元的收益。分析家的预期通常不包括特殊项目。

净销售额从六亿四千六百八十〇万美元到651.50美元万在2009年第二季度。可比店面销售额下降了1％。 25名分析师有共识的654.60美元万本季度收入预期。在第一季度，该公司公布的65945万美元和可比店面销售收入增加5％的净销售额。

评论的结果，吉姆奥多内尔，美国鹰Outfitters首席执行长表示：“第二季度是一个充满挑战的时期，在我们的销售和利润计划，导致错过。”

该公司本月最新8月可比店面销售额增长约1％，与它的后端到学校推销期间计划路线。今年7月，该公司通过记录显示，可比店面销售额持平一些阻力，而11％的上年同期下降。今年6月，该公司的可比店面销售额下降了1％，5月，可比店面销售额下降了3％。

在第二季度，该公司的直接业务AEO的直接，其中包括ae.com，aerie.com和77kids.com，张贴在销售下降9％，而17％的销售增长一年前，这是由驱动促销。

美国之鹰说，作为其企业利润倡议，该倡议旨在加强利润的一部分，它计划关闭50至100表现不佳，在未来两到五年的商店。组织精简涉及裁员和工艺改进，提高效率，创造一个更加高效的环境中，该公司表示。

“由于业务发展趋势和不可预知的消费行为上的分歧，我们加强了我们的行动，以提高效率，简化程序，加强盈利能力。我们将致力于推动整个组织的变化，实现可持续的长期增长，”O'Donnell说。

销售，一般性和管理费用增长了3％至1.65亿美元，由于合同为基础的公平赠款和遣散费时间。

该公司表示，在第二季度，它打开一个自动曝光商店，5埃尔和5 77kids商店。此外，该公司完成了声发射的10家店面改造。关闭店面包括五声发射的商店和28丁+ OSA的商店。

美国之鹰还表示，马丁+露天茶座，相关税收优惠网，封闭的预计为1400万美元，这在该公司的1000万美元至4000万美元的初始功能范围低端收费总现金流出。

对于第三季度，该公司预计可比店面销售额将持平至下降在低个位数。
该公司较为保守的假设交通高峰后回校上课购物。此外，该公司预计在0.23美元至0.26美元，即每股持续经营范围从第三季度的收益。华尔街分析师预计该公司报告第三季度每股0.26美元的收益。

在美国鹰的同龄人，阿伯克龙比和惠誉公司（ANF）的报告在其第二季度利润，较上年同期的亏损，反映销售增长强劲，在国际市场为主。新奥尔巴尼，俄亥俄州的专业零售商的总销售额增长了17％的季度，可比销售额增长5％。

另一个专业零售商Gap公司（GPS）的第二季度盈利比去年增加3％，其中在老海军商店和香蕉共和国北美较高的销售帮助。

AEO的收于$ 12.49周二的交易中，下跌0.49美元，就超过600万的股票数量。在盘前交易中，该公司的股票上涨4.88％或0.61美元至13.10。

daniel888

3M To Acquire Israel's Attenti As Buying Spree Continues - Update
Tue Aug 31 11:28:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Diversified technology company 3M Co. (MMM) said Tuesday that it has agreed to buy Israel-based
company Attenti Holdings S.A. for $230 million in cash from an investor group led by private equity
firm Francisco Partners. The company noted that the acquisition broadens its portfolio of track and
trace solutions. The transaction, 3M's second security-related acquisition in as many days, is expected
to be completed in the fourth quarter.

3M is increasingly relying on acquisitions to fuel its growth amid the economic slowdown. The company
had $3.02 billion of cash and cash equivalents at the end of the recent second quarter, up from $2.60
billion a year ago. George Buckley, the company's CEO, recently said that 3M might spend as much as
$2 billion on acquisitions this year, up from a previous estimate of $1 billion.

The Attenti acquisition comes just a day after 3M said that it will acquire Pasadena, California-based
Cogent, Inc. (COGT) in a deal worth $943 million. The acquisition of Cogent, a maker of finger-identification
systems, will see 3M foray into the $4 billion global biometric market that is expected to grow at more
than 20% annually. The biometric industry uses fingerprints and eye characteristics to identify people.

Both Attenti and Cogent both will become part of 3M's safety and security division.
In early July, 3M said it has acquired Dailys Ltd. for undisclosed terms. Dailys is a supplier of
non-woven disposable protective clothing, primarily chemical protective coveralls for industrial use.

3M company acquired J.R. Phoenix Ltd in late May, also for undisclosed terms. J.R. Phoenix makes hand
hygiene and skin care products for health care and professional use including soaps, hand cleansers,
moisturizing and protecting creams.

Tel Aviv-based Attenti, formerly known as Dmatek, makes remote people-monitoring technologies used
for a variety of offender monitoring applications, such as people awaiting trial or on probation, as
well as to assist elder-care facilities in monitoring patients. The company was acquired by the Francisco
Partners-led investor group in 2009.

Rory Yanchek, general manager, 3M Track and Trace Solutions, said, "This acquisition will position
our track and trace business as a leader in the high growth electronic offender monitoring market and
add Global Positioning System (GPS) and active Radio Frequency (RF) technology and capability to our
portfolio."

3M estimates the acquisition to be slightly dilutive to its GAAP earnings in the first twelve months
after the transaction is completed. Excluding purchase accounting adjustments and anticipated integration
expenses, the company expects the acquisition to be slightly accretive to earnings over the same period.

Attenti employs about 340 people at its major operational locations in Israel; Tampa, Florida; Naperville,
Illinois; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin; in addition to Bulgaria and Australia. The company's sales for 2010
are expected to be about $100 million.

3M, which makes varied products such as Post-It Notes, Scotch-Brite cleaning products, Filtrete air
cleaning filters and dental implants, reported a higher profit for the recent second quarter, reflecting
strong performances across all its business segments. The company's second-quarter net income was $1.12
billion or $1.54 per share, up from $783 million or $1.12 per share in the year-ago quarter. Sales at
the company's safety, security and protection services segment increased 10.3% to $842 million.

In Tuesday's regular trading session, MMM is trading at $79.55, down $0.10 or 0.13% on a volume of
0.75 million shares. In the past 52 weeks, the stock has been trading in a range of $68.96-$90.52.

daniel888

FOMC Minutes Show Fed Willing To Provide Additional Stimulus - Update
Tue Aug 31 14:58:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - With recent data indicating a slowdown in the pace of the economic recovery, the minutes of the August Federal Open Market Committee showed that members of committee said that the Fed should begin to consider steps it could take to provide additional stimulus if the economic outlook weakens further.

The committee members also agreed that the softer tone of recent data called for changes to the FOMC's characterization of the economic and financial situation.

Subsequently, the statement released by the FOMC following the meeting noted that the pace of recovery in output and employment has slowed in recent months. This compares to the June statement, which said that data suggested that the economic recovery is proceeding and that the labor market is improving gradually.

Most members of the FOMC also agreed that the weakness of the recent data made it appropriate to reiterate that conditions were likely to warrant exceptionally low interest rates for an extended period. Once again, Kansas City Federal Reserve President Thomas Hoenig objected to the language, however, arguing that the economic recovery was proceeding about as outlined earlier this year and that the Fed should begin the gradual process of removing policy accommodation fairly soon.

While the committee members still saw the economic expansion continuing, some expressed concerns that further adverse shocks in the current environment of weaker than anticipated growth could have disproportionate effects, resulting in a significant slowing in growth going forward.

In light of the economic concerns, the FOMC discussed the implications of continuing its policy of not reinvesting principal repayments received on mortgage-backed securities or maturing agency debt. The Fed noted that increased mortgage refinancing activity would accelerate repayments of principal on mortgage-backed securities in the central bank's portfolio, leading private investors to hold more longer-term securities and pushing  longer-term interest rates somewhat higher.

Due to concerns about the resulting tightening of financial conditions, all but one member of the FOMC concluded that it would be appropriate to begin reinvesting principal received on mortgage-backed securities or maturing agency debt by purchasing longer-term Treasury securities.

As was widely expected, the FOMC also agreed to maintain the target range for the federal funds rate at zero to 0.25 percent. The Fed's target rate has remained unchanged since being lowered to its current record low level in December of 2008.

The FOMC, the monetary policy setting arm of the Federal Reserve, is due to hold its next meeting on interest rates on September 21st.

The contents of the August minutes largely mirrored comments  Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke made at the Kansas City Fed's Economic Symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, on Friday, when he acknowledged that the Fed would deploy additional tools to promote economic growth if conditions worsen further.

"Should further action prove necessary, policy options are available to provide additional stimulus," Bernanke said, although he noted, "Any deployment of these options requires a careful comparison of benefit and cost."

He added, "However, the Committee will certainly use its tools as needed to maintain price stability--avoiding excessive inflation or further disinflation--and to promote the continuation of the economic recovery."

daniel888

Wall Street Sees Mixed Close Amid Continued Questions About Economy
Tue Aug 31 16:35:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Stocks turned in a lackluster performance to close out the month of August on Tuesday, with the lack of any substantive clues regarding the direction of the economy from the Federal Reserve contributing to the choppy trading on the day. The major averages gave up earlier upside and turned mixed following the report, lingering near the flat line for the remainder of the session.

While the Nasdaq slipped 5.94 points or 0.3 percent to 2,114.03, the Dow edged up 4.99 points or less than 0.1 percent to 10,014.72 and the S&P 500 rose 0.41 points or less than 0.1 percent to 1,049.33.

The minutes from the August Fed meeting revealed that a number of Fed policy makers called for further stimulus should the economy show additional weakness but offered no additional insight into the direction of the economy.

The meeting culminated in the Fed announcing it would reinvest earnings from mortgage-backed securities into government backed bonds.

Stocks moved mostly higher over the course of the first half of the day after the Conference Board said its consumer confidence index rose to 53.5 in August from an upwardly revised 51.0 in July.

The increase came as a surprise to economists, who had expected the index to edge down to a reading of 50.0 from the 50.4 originally reported for the previous month.

Also on the economic front this morning, the ISM - Chicago said regional business activity slowed down in August but still expanded for the eleventh consecutive month.

In a separate report, Standard & Poor's reading on home prices in 20 major metropolitan areas increased by more than expected in June, although the number was likely artificially boosted by the homebuyer tax credit.

In corporate news, Dollar General Corp. (DG) lifted its 2010 guidance following a strong second quarter profit. Meanwhile, sales missed estimates.

Meanwhile, agricultural products giant Monsanto Co. (MON) said it expects ongoing earnings for fiscal year 2010 at the low end of its previous guidance range of $2.40 to $2.60 per share.

Farm machine maker Deere & Co. (DE) also announced an agreement to sell its wind energy business to a wholly-owned subsidiary of Exelon Corp. (EXC) for $900 million.

Airline stocks were among the day's best performers, with the NYSE Arca Airline Index posting a gain of 1.6 percent. The upward move helped the index to move further off of last week's nearly two-month closing low.

Gold stocks also saw sizable gains on the day, resulting in a 1.1 percent advance by the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index. The gain lifted the index to its best closing level in two months as the price of December gold rose by $11.10 to $1,250.30 an ounce.

Steel, banking and railroad stocks also finished markedly higher, while weakness among electronic storage, semiconductor and oil service stocks offset some of the aforementioned upside.

The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index fell by 1.9 percent and ended the day at its lowest level in nearly ten months, while the Philadelphia Oil Service Sector Index slid by 1.4 percent as the price of oil dipped by $2.78 to $71.92 a barrel.

Overseas, stock markets in the Asia-Pacific region ended sharply lower on Tuesday. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Index plummeted by 3.6, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index saw a loss of 1 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets ended modestly higher. The French CAC 40 Index and the German DAX Index gained 0.1 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively, while the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index rose by 0.5 percent.

In the bond markets, treasuries saw notable gains. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, closed at 2.477 percent, posting a loss of 6.8 basis points.

Wednesday, market focus will be on private sector employment data from ADP, while reports on nationa manufacturing activity, construction spending and oil inventories are also likely to garner attention.

daniel888

WSJ: Burger King In Talks To Go Private - Update
Wed Sep 01 01:18:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Burger chain Burger King Holdings Inc. (BKC), which became public in 2006, is in discussions with private equity firms for a possible sale of the company, the Wall Street Journal reported, quoting people familiar with the matter.

British private equity firm 3i Group PLC is said to be interested in the hamburger chain, but the status of the talks is not yet clear. "It's uncertain whether these discussions will result in a sale," the report added.

Burger King has a market capitalization of about $2.26 billion, and operates more than 12,000 restaurants in over 75 countries. However, after going public about four years ago, the fast food chain had a tough time as the recession and unemployment reduced consumer spending.

Last week the company said its fourth-quarter net income declined to $49.0 million or $0.36 per share from $58.9 million or $0.43 per share in the same quarter last year. Worldwide revenues slipped 1% to $623.0 million, impacted by lower comparable sales and currency translation.

At the time, the company's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John Chidsey said, "In fiscal year 2010, we faced sustained levels of high unemployment and a fragile global economy that combined made  this one of the toughest operating environments in recent history...As we enter fiscal 2011, we anticipate that the challenging consumer environment will continue due to high unemployment and underemployment levels and weak consumer confidence."

Following the announcement of the results, Credit Suisse lowered its fiscal 2011 and fiscal 2012 estimates on the company and also reduced its price target, citing capital constraints.

Burger King is not new to being held by private equity firms. In 2002, a group led by TPG Capital LLC, Bain Capital LLC and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners acquired the company from Diageo PLC for about $1.5 billion. They continue to have a 32% stake in the company, along with significant representation on its board.

3i Group's portfolio includes the Little Sheep restaurant chain in China, luxury lingerie retailer Agent Provocateur Ltd. and European juice and soft drinks maker Refresco.

Burger King shares closed at $16.45 on Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange, down by 1.91%, on 1.74 million shares. In the past year, its shares reached a high of $22.19 on April 27.

daniel888

BP To Sell Stakes In Malaysian Ethylene, Polyethylene Production To Petronas - Update
Wed Sep 01 04:56:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Oil giant BP plc (BP, BP.L), which has been struggling for the past several months to
resolve the issue of oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Wednesday said it agreed to sell its interests
in ethylene and polyethylene production at Kertih in Malaysia to oil and gas company Petronas, owned
by the Malaysian goverment. BP said  Petronas is these two businesses' "natural owner" with integration
opportunities uniquely available to them at the Kertih site.

BP, which expects the deal to be completed by the end of 2010, said this transaction does not affect
its other businesses in Malaysia. It added that the agreement is in connection with its 15% interest
in Ethylene Malaysia Sdn Bhd (EMSB) and 60% interest in Polyethylene Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PEMSB), both
located at Kertih on the east coast of Malaysia. These assets are operated by Petronas.

BP commissioned EMSB's olefins cracker in 1995. It has a production capacity of about 440,000 tonnes
per annum (tpa) of ethylene, a basic petrochemical feedstock. Petronas owns 72.5% of EMSB and Idemitsu
holds a 12.5% EMSB stake.

PEMSB's polyethylene plant began operation in 1995. In PEMSB, Petronas holds a 40% interest. The
plant has a production capacity of some 318,000 tpa of polyethylene, mainly used for packaging and film
manufacturing. EMSB supplies the ethylene feedstock for the plant.

Under the terms of the deal, Petronas will pay $363 million in cash to BP at closing, including a
balance sheet adjustment of $13 million and the repayment of a shareholder loan of $53 million. BP will
also get an EMSB pre-closing dividend of $48 million, subject to the approval of the EMSB Board.

BP, which has been present in Malaysia since the 1960s, said that it is now in the process of growing
its Asian Business Service Centre in Kuala Lumpur, which supports business and functional operations
both regionally and globally.

Commenting on the deal, Sue Rataj, President of BP's Global Petrochemicals Business, said, "BP will
continue to focus on the development and expansion of our olefins and derivatives business in China,
and other large rapidly growing markets, and pursue opportunities in China and India to extend our leading
world positions in aromatics and acetyls."

BP has recently sold its assets in the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico and Egypt's Western
Desert to oil and gas company Apache Corp. (APA) for $3.1 billion. BP also agreed to sell its oil and
gas exploration and production business in Colombia to a consortium of Ecopetrol SA and Talisman Energy
Inc. (TLM, TLM.TO) for $1.9 billion in cash.

All these asset sales are seen as a move by BP to cover its burgeoning costs arising from the Gulf
of Mexico oil spill, which have already crossed $4 billion.

BP.L is trading at 380.50 pence on the LSE, down $0.10 or 0.03%, on a volume of 6.23 million shares.
BP closed Wednesday's trading at $34.83, down $0.43, on a volume of 9.43 million shares.

daniel888

Toshiba, Samsung Launch Tablets To Rival IPad
Fri Sep 03 11:48:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Competition in the nascent, but fast-growing tablet market has intensified with more
companies unveiling their own tablet computers to counter Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) iPad.  
Japanese electronics giant Toshiba Corp. (TOSBF.PK) and South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. (SSNLF.PK)
launched their new products on Thursday at the IFA consumer electronics fair in Germany.

The industry believes the market is ready for tablet computers, thanks to the spread of smartphones
and the development of state-of-the-art telecommunication technology. These new category of devices,
which are featured between smartphones and laptop computers, are easy to carry than laptops and boast
a bigger touchscreen than smartphones. They are useful for watching videos, playing games and reading
e-books, newspapers and magazines on the go.

Toshiba on Thursday unveiled its multimedia tablet computer, the Folio 100 Tablet, at the IFA consumer
electronics fair in Germany. The Folio has a 10.1-inch diagonal display with a resolution of 1024 x
600 pixels and runs version 2.2 of Google's Android, which supports Adobe Flash. The Adobe Flash is
a web technology for playing video. The feature represents an edge over the iPad, which cannot play
Flash video.

The Folio supports Wi-Fi and Bluetooth wireless. The tablet is about a half inch thick and weighs
1.7 pounds. Software that has been pre-installed on the device includes the Opera Mobile web browser,
the FBReader e-book reader, the office suite Documents To Go, notes software Evernote, Adobe Flash 10.1
and Fring, an application that combined with Folio's built-in webcam provides video calling.
The Folio 100 is scheduled to be available in the fourth quarter throughout Europe, the Middle East
and Africa. Toshiba has not yet decided whether to launch the product in other regions like the U.S.
or Japan. Reports indicate that the Folio will retail for 399 Euros or $511, which is cheaper than iPad's
499 Euro price tag.

Samsung's Galaxy Tab is the first of the company's tablet devices, and is an enlarged version of
the company's flagship Galaxy S smartphone. the device is feature rich with facilities to read e-books,
newspapers, and allows voice and video communication, SMS, MMS and email. The Samsung device too supports
the latest version of Adobe Flash.

The tablet has a seven-inch screen with a resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels. The Galaxy Tab too runs
Android 2.2, and supports Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. The device is powered by a Cortex A8 1.0GHz application
processor, and HD video content is supported by a wide range of multimedia formats. The tablet also
has a 3 megapixel camera on the rear with a flash and auto-focus, and a 1.3 megapixel user-facing camera.
Samsung plans to launch the Galaxy Tab in Europe in mid September, and in other markets including
Korea, the U.S. and Asia in coming months. The company said it will let phone operators to determine
the price.

However, Apple has a headstart in the tablet computer market. The Cupertino, California-based company
has sold more than 3 million units of the iPad in the first 80 days since it was launched in the U.S.
in early April.

According to market research firm iSuppli Corp., the iPad is is unlikely to face a viable competitor
until 2011, allowing Apple to maintain a dominant share in the tablet market at least through 2012.
The iPad is expected to account for a  whopping 74.1% of global tablet shipments in 2010, with the
remaining 25.9% consisting of a mix of older PC-type tablet products and competitive slates. Despite
the arrival of the first real iPad competitors in 2011, Apple still will maintain a prevailing 70.4%
share of shipments, iSuppli noted.

Other companies who are planning their own tablets are said to include Hewlett-Packard CO. (HPQ),
LG Electronics Inc. (LGERF.PK) and Research In Motion Ltd. (RIMM, RIM.TO), which makes the BlackBerry
smartphone.

daniel888

Delta Air Lines August Traffic Up 1.1% - Update
Fri Sep 03 14:30:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL) Friday said its traffic and capacity for August rose 1.1%
and 1.2%, respectively, while load factor stayed flat when compared to the prior year. Latin American
and Pacific contributed strongly to system traffic, while domestic traffic as well as load factor were
down.

The Atlanta, Georgia-based air lines system traffic for the month of August measured in revenue passenger
miles was up 1.1% at 18.94 billion RPMs, helped by a 4.2% increase in international traffic, offset
slightly by a 0.9% fall in domestic traffic.

Latin America recorded a 10.1% increase in traffic at 1.05 billion RPMs, while Atlantic and Pacific
recorded an increase of 0.7% and 9.5%, respectively.

August traffic was better when compared with the 0.5% increase in July. Despite being pressurized
by slowness in the economic recovery, Delta has been doing reasonably well in the past few quarter with
a rise of 4.2% in June and 2.7% in May, after recording a decline of 2.2% in April.

Capacity measured in average seat miles were up 1.2% at 21.91 billion in August, on the backdrop
of a 2.7% increase in International and a 0.3% increase in domestic regions. In July, capacity was down
0.3%.

Latin America contributed strongly with a 9.2% increase, followed by a 4% increase in Pacific and
0.6% increase from the Atlantic region.

Total system load factor remained flat at 86.5%, with domestic load factor recording a decline of
one percentage points that was offset by a 1.3% rise in International load factor. In July, load factor
was up by 0.7%.

For the month, 15.18 million passengers boarded Delta Air Lines, which was an increase of 0.3% when
compared to the same month a year ago.

Total system cargo ton miles was down at 1.1%, hurt by 100% decline in Freighter cargo section, offset
by a 26.6% increase in passenger cargo.

For the year-to-date period, system traffic increased 0.4% to 130.82 billion RPMs, while capacity
dropped 1.6% to 156.13 billion ASMs. Load factor increased 1.7 points to 83.8% from 82.1% in the year-earlier
period.

DAL is currently trading  at $11.16, up $0.32 or 3.00%, on a volume of 4.69 million shares. In the
last 52-week period, the stock traded in a range of $6.78 - $14.94, with a three-month average volume
of 9.86 million shares.

daniel888

Treasury's Krueger Cites "Steady Pattern" Of Private Sector Job Growth
Fri Sep 03 16:09:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Treasury Department Chief Economist Alan Krueger said Friday that the economy seems to
be showing a steady pattern of private sector job growth, despite some fluctuations in monthly reports.

Noting that private companies had added 67,000 jobs in August, Krueger said the figure was higher
than what many private forecasters had predicted, while estimates from June and July had been revised
upward to show 66,000 more jobs than had initially been reported.

"Private sector jobs have now increased for eight straight months," he said. "We've added 763,000
jobs during that time period. By contrast, during the first eight months of 2009 we lost 4.2 million
jobs and in the beginning of 2009 we were losing 750,000 jobs a month."

While month-to-month changes in jobs numbers in the private sector have been volatile, Krueger noted
that the quarterly averages show a more steady pattern of job gains.

"Over the first eight months of this year, job gains have averaged 95,000 per month," he said. "In
the economic expansion from November 2001 through January 2007, private sector jobs rose by 80,000 per
month."

He added, "The pace of job growth so far this year slightly exceeds private sector job growth in
the last expansion, even though it remains less than we would like."

The report also has additional hopeful signs, Krueger said, pointing to a 19,000 jobs increase in
the hard-hit construction sector, which had lost 1.9 million jobs since the recession began.

Because most of the jobs were in heavy and civil engineering construction and non-residential specialty
trade, Krueger said it seems likely that infrastructure spending under the American Recovery and Reinvestment
Act played a role in that growth.

The economic recovery, Krueger added, is also showing hopeful signs in spite of gross domestic progress
figures that have recently been revised downward to show slower growth.

The recovery, he said, has some "underlying momentum," and, more promisingly, is showing signs of
a normal recovery despite the unusual nature of the downturn.

"We've known that his is not going to be a recovery that moves in a straight line, that there are
going to be bumps along the way given the nature of the financial crisis that led to the recession,"
he said. "The handoff from the government to the private sector is taking place."
He added, "I think today's report is reassuring."

daniel888

August Jobs Data Helps Lift Stocks To Three-Week Highs
Fri Sep 03 16:29:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Stocks rallied to their best closing levels in three weeks ahead of the Labor Day weekend
on Friday, as a softer than forecast drop in August jobs helped to alleviate some fears of a double-dip
recession. Nonetheless, the day's buying may have been held back by a worse than expected reading on
service sector activity.

The major averages edged higher going into the close, ending the day near their highs for the session.
The Dow jumped by 127.83 points or 1.2 percent to end at 10,447.93, the Nasdaq advanced by 33.74 points
or 1.5 percent to 2,233.75 and the S&P 500 surged up 14.41 points or 1.3 percent to 1,104.51.
For the week, the Dow rose by 2.9 percent, the Nasdaq moved up by 3.7 percent and the S&P surged
by 3.8 percent.

Before the start of trading, the Labor Department said that non-farm payroll employment fell by 54,000
jobs in August, matching the revised decrease seen in July. Economists had expected employment to fall
by about 120,000 jobs compared to the loss of 131,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
While government employment showed a notable decrease due to the elimination of 114,000 temporary
census jobs, private sector employment increased for the eight consecutive month, rising by 67,000 jobs.
Despite the smaller than expected decrease in non-farm employment, however, the unemployment rate
still edged up to 9.6 percent in August from 9.5 percent in July. The modest increase in the unemployment
rate came in line with economist estimates.

Meanwhile, the Institute for Supply Management said its non-manufacturing index fell to 51.5 in August
from 54.3 in July, although a reading above 50 indicates continued growth in the service sector. Economists
had expected the index to show a more modest decrease to a reading of 53.0.

With the bigger than expected decrease, the non-manufacturing index fell to its lowest level since
coming in at 50.5 in January.

In corporate news, video game maker Take-Two Interactive (TTWO) reported a third quarter profit while
analysts expected a loss, with the results reflecting the strong performance of Red Dead Redemption,
which was launched in May. Revenues also firmly beat estimates and the company raised its guidance for
the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2010.

Tax preparation company H&R Block (HRB) reported a narrower than expected loss for its first quarter
on revenues that topped expectations by nearly $10 million.

Meanwhile, Campbell Soup Co. (CPB) posted fourth quarter revenues that missed forecasts while projecting
2011 sales below expectations.

Electronic storage stocks were among the day's best performers, with the NYSE Arca Disk Drive advancing
by 2.7 percent. The index finished at a three-week closing high as it rebounded further from last week's
one-year closing low.

Brokerage stocks also moved notably higher on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Securities Brokerage
Index up by 2.6 percent to a two-week closing high.

Banking, defense, semiconductor and housing stocks also closed notably higher amid the day's broad-based
buying interest.

Overseas, stock markets in the Asia-Pacific region ended mostly higher to close out the week. Japan's
benchmark Nikkei 225 Index gained 0.6 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index moved up by 0.5 percent.
The major European markets also closed notably higher. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index, and the French
CAC 40 Index both gained 1.1 percent, while the German DAX Index rose by 0.8 percent.

In the bond markets, treasuries ended notably lower. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year
note, which moves opposite of its price, closed at 2.706 percent, posting a gain of 7.8 basis points.
Next week, the markets will likely focus on the Federal Reserve's Beige Book report along with data
on jobless claims and wholesale trade.

daniel888

Obama Highlights Private Sector Job Growth, Pushes Small Business Bill
Fri Sep 03 13:59:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - President Barack Obama Friday sought to highlight the positives in an August jobs report
that was better than many analysts had feared.

The report showed the economy gaining 67,000 jobs in the private sector, but public sector cutbacks,
primarily the loss of temporary Census jobs, brought the overall payroll picture to a net loss of 54,000.
Economists had expected the loss of about 120,000 jobs.

The losses, and the return of workers to the job market, also caused the unemployment rate to tic
up slightly to 9.6 percent in August from 9.5 percent in July.

Obama, speaking in the Rose Garden, said the report represented a positive sign, though, he said,
"It's not nearly good enough." He also highlighted the fact that the public sector job growth figures
from July had been revised upward to 107,000.

"I want all Americans to remind themselves there are better days ahead," Obama said. "Even after
this economic crisis, our markets remain the most dynamic in the world."

He added, "Our workers are still the most productive. We remain the global leader in innovation,
in discovery, in entrepreneurship."

Obama said that in coming weeks he would lay out an agenda to do more to boost job creation and the
economy, including extending tax cuts for the middle class and investing in areas of the economy with
high potential for job growth.

"One thing we have a responsibility to do right now is to lift up our small businesses, which accounted
for over 60 percent of job losses in the final months of last year," he said. "That's why once again,
I'm calling on Congress to make passing a small business jobs bill its first order of business when
it gets back into session later this month."

Obama said that the small business bill presently stalled in the Senate would be critical, as it
doubles the loan limits for small business loans, eliminates capital gains taxes on certain investments
and accelerate $55 billion in tax credits for job-creating investments.

"Keep in mind, it is paid for. It will not add one dime to our deficit," he said. "So, put simply,
this piece of legislation is good for workers; it's good for small business people; it's good for our
economy."

He added, "Yet, Republicans in the Senate have blocked this bill -- a needless delay that has led
small business owners across this country to put off hiring, put off expanding, and put off plans that
will make our economy stronger."

Obama stressed that the small business bill would not be a "silver bullet" that would right the nation's
economic woes, but he said it was one of a series of measures that everyone knows would advance the
economy.

"I'm confident that if we're willing to put partisanship aside and be the leaders the American people
need us to be, if we're willing to do â

daniel888

Samson Oil & Gas Advisory on North Stockyard Operations
Sun Sep 19 20:00:00 2010 EDT

DENVER, Sep 19, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Samson Oil & Gas Limited (ASX: SSN) (NYSE AMEX: SSN) provides the following operational advice on wells within the North Stockyard Oilfield. Gary #1-24H well (37% working interest).

Fracture stimulation operations re-commenced on Thursday, September 16th on the Gary #1-24H well (37% working interest). As of Sunday afternoon September 19th, stages 2 through 8 have been pumped and the program should be finished by the middle of the week at which time the well will be prepared for production.Earl #1-13H well (32.2% working interest).

The next Bakken Formation well to be drilled in the North Stockyard Field, the Earl 1-13H, is expected to spud on or about September 25th.

Samson's Ordinary Shares are traded on the Australian Securities Exchange under the symbol "SSN". Samson's American Depository Shares (ADSs) are traded on the New York Stock Exchange AMEX under the symbol "SSN".

Each ADS represents 20 fully paid Ordinary Shares of Samson. Samson has a total of 1,663 million ordinary shares issued and outstanding, which would be the equivalent of 83.15 million ADSs.

Accordingly, based on the NYSE AMEX closing price of US$1.28 per ADS on September 17th, 2010 the company has a current market capitalization of approximately US$ 106.5 million. Correspondingly, based on the ASX closing price of A$0.066 on September 17th, 2010, the company has a current market capitalization of A$ 109.8 million.

daniel888

IBM To Acquire Netezza For $1.7 Bln Cash - Update
Mon Sep 20 08:56:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Technology giant International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) and Netezza Corp.  (NZ) Monday said they have entered into a definitive agreement for IBM to acquire Netezza for $27 per share in cash or about $1.7 billion.

Netezza, based in Marlborough, Massachusetts, is a provider of high-performance analytics in data warehousing appliances.

The two companies have been strategic partners for many years focused on workload optimized systems. Netezza designs and develops its appliances on IBM systems technology and, combined with IBM software, powers many applications within organizations.  

Netezza's clients include eHarmony, Neiman Marcus, Time Warner, Estee Lauder, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, United HealthGroup, Nationwide Insurance, Sapporo, NYSE Euronext and  Virgin Media, among others. Netezza has around 500 employees.

IBM said the deal expands its information and analytics offerings, including services available through IBM's Business Analytics and Optimization Consulting organization.  According to the company, more than 6,000 IBM consultants are dedicated to analytics.  

Steve Mills, senior vice president and group executive, IBM Software and Systems, said, "Netezza strongly complements our business analytics capabilities and client base.  Together, we have the opportunity to quickly leverage the technology and accelerate the offering."

In the last four years, IBM has invested more than $12 billion in 23 analytics related acquisitions. In the company's second-quarter of 2010, analytics business grew 14%.  

Following the close of the acquisition, IBM intends to integrate Netezza within its Information Management software portfolio.
  
IBM's acquisition of Netezza comes at a time when technology companies are on a buying spree in order to expand into more promising markets and also to offer additional services to customers. PC maker Hewlett-Packard Inc. (HPQ) announced two high-profile acquisitions this month, of 3PAR and ArcSight, while Intel Corp.

(INTC) recently decided to buy McAfee Inc.

"The combined strengths of IBM and Netezza are a key differentiator at a time when organizations of all sizes are looking to gain more insight from their business information," IBM and Netezza said in the statement today. The acquisition is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2010. IBM closed Friday at $130.19, up from the prior close of $129.67, on 10.40 million shares.After closing at $24.60 on Friday, NZ is up over 12% in pre-market activity at $27.63.

daniel888

Lennar Turns To Profit In Q3 - Update
Mon Sep 20 07:37:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Home builder Lennar Corp. (LEN, LEN_B) reported Monday a profit for the third quarter, compared to a loss last year, helped by increase in the number of home deliveries and improved margins.

Meanwhile, the company said new orders of homes decreased 15% from the prior year.  

For the third quarter, net earnings attributable to the company were $30.03 million or $0.16 per share, compared to a net loss of $171.6 million or $0.97 per share in the year ago quarter.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $0.04 per share. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Found in 1954, Lennar operates as a home builder and provider of financial services in the U.S. The company's homebuilding operations include the construction and sale of single-family attached and detached homes, and multi-level residential buildings, together with purchase, development, and sale of residential
land.

Lennar's Financial Services segment primarily provides mortgage financing, title insurance and closing services for both buyers of the company's homes and others.

Operating earnings from Lennar Homebuilding were $38.13 million, compared to a loss of $154.75 million in the prior year. Lennar Financial Services operating earnings were $6.81 million, down from $11.16 million in the preceding year. Rialto Investments operating earnings were $18.49 million, compared to a loss of $496 thousand in the prior year.
  
Stuart Miller, president and chief executive fficer of the company said,  "Our Rialto Investments segment continued to add healthy profits to our bottom line as evidenced by its contribution of $7.7 million of operating earnings. Our strategic investments in the FDIC loan portfolios and in the PPIP fund are performing extremely well and are producing strong earnings for our company. Our disciplined approach to underwriting and investing in distressed opportunities holds us in good stead for future earnings growth."

Total revenues for the quarter were $824.98 million, up 14%, from $720.73 million in the prior year quarter. Fifteen analysts had consensus revenue estimate of $765.19 million for the quarter. Revenues were higher primarily due to a 9% increase in the number of home deliveries. Revenues from home sales increased 10% in the third quarter of 2010 to $697.4 million from $635.3 million in 2009.

Lennar homebuilding revenues increased to $718.15 million from $643.61 million in the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, Lennar Financial Services revenues decreased to $68.83 million from $77.12 million a year earlier. During the quarter, the company posted revenues of $38 million from Rialto Investments.

"During our third quarter, as expected, our sales pace declined as a result of the expiration of the Federal homebuyer tax credit at the end of April. Although high unemployment and foreclosures have continued to present challenges for the national housing market, our communities have been less impacted than
the broader market," added Miller.
  
Gross margin on home sales  improved 1,330 basis points to 21.1%. Gross margins for the quarter included $11.3 million of valuation adjustments, compared to gross margins on home sales of 7.8%, in the third quarter of 2009, which included $49.4 million of valuation adjustments.

Operating margin on home sales improved 1,530 basis points to 7.2%. Total home deliveries increased 10% to 2,950 from 2,691 in the prior year. Total value of home deliveries were $719.47 million, up from $659.8 million in the preceding year.

Meanwhile new orders of homes decreased 15% to 2,624 from 3,104 in the year-ago period. Backlog dropped 12% to 2,173 homes.
  
Average sales price of homes delivered increased to $240,000 in the third quarter of 2010 from $239,000 in the same period last year.

LEN closed Friday's regular trading at $13.99 on the NYSE, while LEN_B ended at $11.20.

daniel888

Unlocking Value?
Mon Sep 20 04:26:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Nearly a month after a major shareholder urged it to put itself up for sale, this company has created a special committee to select a financial advisor to help boost its share price. The creation of a special committee appears to have spawned a renewed interest in the stock, which gained more than 12% on Friday on nearly 10 times its average volume.

... Read on to find out more about the teaser stock -  Bitstream Inc. (BITS).

Founded in 1981, Bitstream develops software technologies and applications for the graphic art and mobile communications industries. The company's core products include, fonts and font rendering technologies, mobile browsing technologies, variable data publishing, Web-to-print, and multi-channel communications technologies. The products are offered under the brands MyFonts, Pageflex and BOLT mobile browser.

Revenue is generated by licensing software products, and from consulting, hosting, and support and maintenance services.

In 2009, the company's revenue dropped 10% to $21.5 million while net income plunged 64% to $852 thousand or $0.08 per share. During the second quarter ended June 30, 2010, Bitstream acquired Press-sense Ltd. for $6.5 million in cash to expand its global presence and strengthen the Pageflex product line and sales channels to better serve multi-channel customers.

The company reported its second-quarter fiscal 2010 results last month.

For the second-quarter, revenue rose 4% year-over-year and 4.4% sequentially to $5.43 million. However, on a GAAP and non GAAP basis, Bitstream slipped to loss, reversing a year-ago profit. The company expects to have continuing losses for the remainder of the year, but remains optimistic of the revenue potential.

Due to the company's lackluster performance, on August 20, Millennium Group LLC, which owns over 11% stake in Bitstream, sent a letter to the company's board urging members to form a non-executive committee to explore a sale of the company to one or more parties.

As on September 16, shares of the company were down more than 15% year to date. The  September 17th announcement about a special committee has put some pop into the stock price.

Bitstream sees 2010 as the transitional year and expects to return to growth by 2011.

BITS has thus far hit a low of $5.02 and a high of $9.06. The stock closed Friday's trading at $7.25, up 12.40% on an above-average volume of 190 thousand shares.

Whether the company hoists the "for sale" sign or not, now that it has taken up the agenda of unlocking significant value for stockholders, Bitstream could be worth watching.

daniel888

BP Permanently Seals Blown-out Macondo Oil Well
Sun Sep 19 22:06:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - British energy giant BP Plc (BP, BP.L) announced Sunday the completion of the "Bottom Kill" procedure to permanently seal the blown-out Macondo oil well in the Gulf of Mexico. The company confirmed that both the casing and annulus of the well were sealed by cement pumped through the relief well, and it will now go ahead to complete the abandonment of the well.

BP re-started the relief well drilling operations a week ago, and intercepted the well's annulus at a depth of 17,977 feet on Wednesday with cement being pumped into the annulus on Friday to finally seal the well. The well sealing was completed with the continued guidance and approval of the National Incident Commander Thad Allen and the leadership and direction of the federal government.

"This is a significant milestone in the response to the Deepwater Horizon tragedy and is the final step in a complex and unprecedented subsea operation - finally confirming that this well no longer presents a threat to the Gulf of Mexico," BP group chief executive Tony Hayward said in a statement.

The permanent sealing of the well was confirmed by the company, the federal government scientific team and the National Incident Commander. The Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation, and Enforcement will now oversee the continuing decommissioning of the Macondo well and its associated relief wells.

Earlier, BP capped the well in mid-July to choke the 107-day old BP oil spill for the first time since the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon rig explosion on April 20 that led to the biggest environmental disaster in US history. The temporary cementing operations at the damaged well were also completed on August 5 as part of the static kill procedure.

The rig explosion killed eleven of the 126 workers on the rig, which eventually sank in about 5,000 feet of water. The full impact of the resultant oil spill on the lives and livelihoods of tens of thousands of Americans, especially those living in or near the Gulf of Mexico, is as yet undetermined.

"However, there is still more to be done. BP's commitment to complete our work and restore the damage done to the Gulf of Mexico, the Gulf coast and the livelihoods of the people across the region remains unchanged," Hayward added.

The broken well spewed an estimated 5 million barrels of oil worth around $400 million into the Gulf so far after the explosion, according to U.S. government scientists. The total volume of oil collected or flared by the containment systems so far is said to be about 826,800 barrels.

BP revealed that the oil spill has cost it a whopping US$9.5 billion until now, including the cost of the spill response, containment, relief well drilling, static kill and cementing, grants to the Gulf states, claims paid and federal costs.

As of August 23, there were 127,000 individual and business claims filed, against most of which $399 million have been disbursed. Since then, 68,000 claims have been submitted to the Gulf Coast Claims Facility or GCCF, with over 19,000 claims totaling over $240 million being paid.

In mid-July, BP also agreed to the creation of a $20 billion oil spill escrow trust to satisfy certain obligations arising from the oil and gas spill with an initial $3 billion deposit made to the trust on August 8 by BP.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Justice Department announced a week ago that it expects to file a civil suit for the federal government damage claims under the Clean Water Act and the Oil Pollution Act, and asked the court handling several hundreds of claim suits to give the government and state plaintiffs special consideration over private cases.

However, BP has found that no single factor caused the explosion on the Gulf of Mexico oil rig, according to an internal probe report released last week that was compiled by an over 50 member investigation team led by BP's head of Safety Operations Mark Bly, following a four-month investigation.

BP accepted partial blame for the well explosion, but also pointed a finger at partners Transocean, Inc. (RIG) and Halliburton Co. (HAL). BP's investigation suggested a sequence of failures involving a number of different companies and work teams led to the Deepwater Horizon rig blowout and the resultant oil spill from the Macondo well.

The report blamed the accident on "a complex and interlinked series of mechanical failures, human judgments, engineering design, operational implementation and team interfaces."

The investigation team has also proposed a total of 25 recommendations designed to prevent a recurrence of such an accident. These recommendations include strengthening assurance on blow-out preventer's, well control, pressure-testing for well integrity, emergency systems, cement testing, rig audit and verification, and personnel competence.

daniel888

Arena Pharma - Thinned Out
Fri Sep 17 01:59:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Shares of Arena Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ARNA) slumped more than 42% to $2.17 in after-hours trading Thursday after an FDA panel rejected the company's weight-loss drug Lorcaserin.

Arena submitted its New Drug Application for Lorcaserin last December based on its pivotal phase III clinical trial program, BLOOM (Behavioral modification and Lorcaserin for Overweight and Obesity Management) and BLOSSOM (Behavioral modification and LOrcaserin Second Study for Obesity Management).

The FDA panel members who reviewed the New Drug Application for Lorcaserin on Thursday voted 9 to 5 that the available data do not adequately demonstrate that the potential benefits of Lorcaserin outweigh the potential risks, when used long-term in a population of overweight and obese individuals to allow marketing approval.

Earlier in the week, Arena's shares dropped as much as 42% after briefing documents released on Tuesday ahead of the panel meeting, concluded that Lorcaserin has only a slim efficacy and also raised concerns about its side effects including, heart problems,  psychiatric issues like depression and cognitive
events and worst of all - preclinical tumors.

The safety issues - most notably malignant tumors in rats, have come as a big surprise to industry analysts who were optmistic that the drug was safe and effective enough to pass the regulatory muster.

In July, Arena inked a marketing and supply agreement with Eisai Inc., the U.S. pharmaceutical operation of Tokyo-based Eisai Co., Ltd. for Lorcaserin, if approved. Arena, which has  spent 12 years developing Lorcaserin and has no marketed drugs, has a lot riding on the diet-drug's approval.

Though the FDA generally follows the recommendations of its advisory panels, it is not mandatory to do so. The FDA is slated to decide on Lorcaserin on October 22.

Commenting on the panel outcome, Jack Lief, Arena's President and CEO of Arena Pharma said," We believe that Lorcaserin has a positive benefit-risk profile and represents a potential advance in the treatment of obesity. We will work with the FDA as the agency completes its review of the lorcaserin new drug application."   

Lorcaserin is the second diet-drug to be shot down by the FDA panel in recent months. In mid-July, a federal advisory committee turned down Vivus Inc.'s (VVUS) experimental once-daily weight loss pill Qnexa due to safety concerns. A final decision by the FDA on Qnexa is expected by October 28.

Apart from Vivus and Arena, one more company is in the race to develop a diet drug - Orexigen Therapeutics Inc. (OREX ) with its investigational drug Contrave. The FDA panel is scheduled to review Contrave on December 7.

The market for anti-obesity drugs is virtually untapped and continues to hold a glittering allure. Till date there has been no 'silver bullet' remedy for obesity.

According to the National Center for Health Statistics, 34% of American adults are obese and 32.7% are overweight. A person with a body mass index, or *BMI, of 25-29.9 is said to be overweight, while an obese person will have a BMI of 30 or more. (*BMI is a measure of body fat based on height and weight).

The UN's World Health Organisation, or WHO, estimates that in 2015, the number of obese people around the world will surge to more than 700 million, up from 400 million adults who were obese in 2005.

The drug therapy for treatment of obesity has a checkered past. The long-term safety of the weight-loss drugs continue to pose a challenge for their development. A couple of approved diet drugs have been recalled, following reports of adverse side reactions like heart damage.

Fen-phen, a combination drug of Phentermine and Fenfluramine, and a related drug Redux marketed by Wyeth, now a part of Pfizer Inc. (PFE), were withdrawn from the U.S. market in September 1997 after the drugs were found to be associated with a serious heart condition known as valvular regurgitation, or leaky heart valves.

Yet another diet drug to be taken off the market was Sanofi-Aventis' (SNY) Acomplia. The drug was approved in the EU (European Union) in 2006. However, with new data from post-marketing trials linking the drug to serious psychiatric disorders, Sanofi-Aventis on the recommendation of the EMEA, withdrew Acomplia from the European markets in late October of 2008.

The approved weight-loss pills on the market have limited effectiveness and have unpleasant side effects. Abbott Laboratories' (ABT) Meridia and Roche's Xenical are FDA-approved prescription anti-obesity drugs. GlaxoSmithKline plc's (GSK) Alli is the only FDA-approved, over-the-counter weight-loss product.

The safety and efficacy of Meridia have been questioned by its opponents ever since reports of adverse reactions to the diet drug surfaced in 2002. That year, the consumer-protection group Pubic Citizens petitioned to the FDA to recall Meridia saying that the risk of use outweighed the benefit, and described the drug as "unacceptably dangerous."

However, in 2005, the regulatory agency refused to ban Meridia saying "overall risk-benefit profile supports it remaining available as a prescription drug for the treatment of appropriately selected obese patients.

In January of this year, the FDA toughened warning label on Meridia about the increased risk of heart attack and stroke in patients with a history of heart problems. A federal advisory panel, which met as recently as September 15 to decide whether or not to allow Meridia on the market, rendered a split decision - with eight members voting to pull the drug from the market and eight members voting to keep the drug on the market with new restrictions and more stringent warnings.

In May, warnings about the possible risk of liver injury were added to Alli and Xenical labels.
With the FDA raising the safety bar for drug approvals, it remains to be seen if any or all three diet drugs will be able to reach the pharmacy shelf.

daniel888

Sun Pharma Completes Acquiring Taro
Wed Sep 22 01:54:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Mumbai-based Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., said it had completed the acquisition of a controlling stake in Israel-based Taro Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd., following the Option Agreement entered into in 2007 with Taro's controlling shareholders led by Taro's Chairman, Barrie Levitt.

Consequently, Sun's subsidiaries have increased their economic interest in Taro to 48.7% and their voting rights to 65.8%, the company said, but gave no details about the cost of the deal.

In connection with the closing of the Option Agreement, the parties to the transactions, as well as Taro's directors, had settled all outstanding litigation among themselves, the company said.

Taro has an established franchise in dermatology and tropical products in the US, in addition to generic-product offerings in cardiovascular, neuro-psychiatric and anti-inflammatory therapeutic categories.
It has sales-and-marketing operations in Israel and Canada.

Taro has factories in Canada and Israel manufacturing tropical creams and ointments, liquids, capsules and tablets dosage forms, complementing Sun's current manufacturing and development capabilities for the U.S.

On September 8, Sun Pharma won the legal battle for taking control of Taro, when the Israeli Supreme Court thwarted an attempt by the Israeli company to block Sun's offer to increase its stake. At that time, Sun Pharma had a 36% equity stake in Taro with 24% voting rights.

The two companies were at loggerheads since Sun struck a deal in 2007 for its unit--Alkaloida Chemical Co. Exclusive Group--to take control of Taro for $454 million, or $7.75 a share.

As part of that agreement, Taro received an equity-infusion of around $60 million from Sun, which led to an improvement in the ailing Israeli company's fortunes. In May 2008, Taro terminated the merger agreement on the ground that that Sun's original offer was too low. This triggered a protracted legal battle between the two companies.

Sun Chairman and Managing Director Dilip Shanghvi was appointed as Chairman of the board of Taro. He welcomed Ilan Leviteh, former Chief Executive Officer of Makhteshim Agan Industries, one of the world's major producers of agro-chemical products and one of Israel's largest industrial companies, as a new director of Taro.

Shanghvi said, "We intend to build on Taro's market presence in the US, Israel and Canada and its expertise in dermatology and pediatrics, along with speciality and generic pharmaceuticals, and over-the-counter products. Taro's current employees are an important part of our future plans for Taro, and we are committed to productive relations with Taro's employees, and maintaining and enhancing Taro's facilities in Israel as well as Canada."

At the BSE, Sun Pharma shares now trading at Rs.1,954.90, up by Rs.29 or 1.51% on a volume of 27,000 shares. The scrip touched an intraday high of Rs.1,984.70 and a low of Rs.1,940.55.

daniel888

Microsoft Boosts Quarterly Dividend 23% - Update
Tue Sep 21 23:47:00 2010 EDT

(RTTNews) - Software giant Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) announced Tuesday that its board has approved a 23% increase in quarterly dividend and also authorized up to $6 billion in incremental commercial paper and longer-term debt.

"This higher dividend, combined with our ongoing share repurchase program, reflects our commitment to returning capital to our shareholders and our confidence in the long-term growth of the company," CFO Peter Klein said in a statement.

The world's largest software company raised its quarterly dividend $0.03 or 23% to $0.16 per share, which is payable on December 9 to shareholders of record on November 18, 2010. The company noted that the ex-dividend date will be November 16, 2010.

It is for the first time in two years that the Redmond, Washington-based software maker has raised its quarterly dividend. It is also only the fifth increase in quarterly dividend the company has announced

since it started paying quarterly dividends in 2004. Microsoft has been paying a dividend since 2003.
The company paid an annual dividend  in 2003 and moved to quarterly dividends from 2004.

The company last raised its quarterly dividend in September 2008 to $0.13 per share from $0.11 per share. Microsoft noted that it has returned nearly $170 billion to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases in the past ten years.
Further, the company noted that about $23.7 billion in share repurchase authorization are remaining as of June 30, 2010 under its current $40 billion share repurchase plan approved in September 2008.

The dividend increase at Microsoft comes close on the heals of another technology company Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO) deciding last week to begin paying dividend in 2011. The size and timing of the dividend is expected to be determined in the coming months.

Among other technology companies, Oracle Corp. (ORCL) started paying dividends last year, and Xerox Corp. (XRX) reportedly said recently that it would look to raise its dividend next year. Google, Inc.

(GOOG) has never paid a dividend and it also says it does not intend to  pay any dividends in the foreseeable future. Apple Inc. (AAPL), which used to pay dividends, hasn't paid since 1995.

Meanwhile, Intel Corp. (INTC) and International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) have increased dividends significantly in the past ten years, with IBM's latest increase of 18% coming in April 2010. Since 2003, IBM has increased its quarterly dividend over 330%. Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ) has maintained an unchanged dividend since 1998.

Microsoft intends to sell debt during the year to pay for dividends and further share repurchases.
The company's board has also today authorized up to $6 billion in incremental commercial paper and longer-term debt. As of June 30, 2010,   Microsoft had about $37 billion of cash on balance sheet.

In what was Microsoft's debut in corporate bond market, it raised $3.75 billion in an offering of senior unsecured notes in May 2009. The offering was part of $6 billion debt authorization by the company's board of directors in September 2008 . Microsoft had initially floated the idea of selling bonds for the first time in February 2008, when it was attempting to buy Yahoo!, Inc. (YHOO) for $44.6 billion, which was later scrapped.

Like many other technology companies, cash-rich Microsoft has long clung to a conservative capital structure, preferring to keep a large amount of cash on hand and avoid significant borrowings.

Microsoft also became the first company in a decade to receive the top AAA rating from Standard & Poor's when it initially filed in September 2008 to tap debt markets. Moody's Investors Service also assigned its highest rating to Microsoft's debt.
MSFT closed Tuesday's regular trading session at $25.15, down $0.28 or 1.10% on a volume of 52.92 million shares, lower than the three-month average volume of 65.41 million shares. In the past 52-week period, the stock has been trading in a range of $22.73 to $31.58.