Oppenheimer Equities Analysts Cut Earnings Estimates for Cummins Inc. (CMI)

Cummins Inc. (NYSE:CMI) – Oppenheimer dropped their FY2018 earnings estimates for shares of Cummins in a report released on Wednesday, August 1st. Oppenheimer analyst N. Kaye now expects that the company will post earnings of $14.10 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $14.54. Oppenheimer currently has a “Outperform” rating and a $192.00 price target on the stock.

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CMI has been the subject of several other research reports. Zacks Investment Research lowered shares of Cummins from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Cummins from $176.00 to $164.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 10th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Cummins from $160.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 25th. UBS Group lowered shares of Cummins from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $136.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, May 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Co lowered shares of Cummins from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $190.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, May 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. The company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $166.52.

Shares of Cummins traded down $0.22, hitting $139.50, during midday trading on Thursday, according to MarketBeat.com. 8,209 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,415,738. Cummins has a 1 year low of $129.90 and a 1 year high of $194.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.02, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19.

Cummins (NYSE:CMI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 31st. The company reported $3.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $3.63 by ($0.31). Cummins had a net margin of 4.67% and a return on equity of 26.30%. The business had revenue of $6.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.53 EPS. Cummins’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 22nd will be paid a $1.14 dividend. This represents a $4.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.27%. This is an increase from Cummins’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.08. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 21st. Cummins’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.68%.

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CMI. BlackRock Inc. boosted its stake in Cummins by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 12,138,618 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,967,548,000 after purchasing an additional 463,368 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in Cummins by 92.7% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 736,626 shares of the company’s stock worth $119,400,000 after purchasing an additional 354,266 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN increased its stake in Cummins by 19.4% in the first quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 1,972,366 shares of the company’s stock worth $319,699,000 after purchasing an additional 320,872 shares during the period. Mackay Shields LLC purchased a new stake in Cummins in the first quarter worth $48,754,000. Finally, Federated Investors Inc. PA increased its stake in Cummins by 1,486.5% in the first quarter. Federated Investors Inc. PA now owns 235,711 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,207,000 after purchasing an additional 220,854 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.34% of the company’s stock.

About Cummins

Cummins Inc designs, manufactures, distributes, and services diesel and natural gas engines, and engine-related component products worldwide. It operates through four segments: Engine, Distribution, Components, and Power Systems segments. The Engine segment manufactures and markets a range of diesel and natural gas powered engines under the Cummins and other customer brands for the heavy-and medium-duty truck, bus, recreational vehicle, light-duty automotive, construction, mining, marine, rail, oil and gas, defense, and agricultural markets.

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James Investment Research Inc. Boosts Stake in American Equity Investment Life Holding (AEL)

James Investment Research Inc. lifted its holdings in American Equity Investment Life Holding (NYSE:AEL) by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 129,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,521 shares during the period. James Investment Research Inc.’s holdings in American Equity Investment Life were worth $4,669,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vigilant Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Equity Investment Life in the second quarter worth about $112,000. Point72 Asia Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of American Equity Investment Life in the first quarter worth about $188,000. BKS Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Equity Investment Life in the first quarter worth about $207,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of American Equity Investment Life in the first quarter worth about $233,000. Finally, Xact Kapitalforvaltning AB purchased a new position in shares of American Equity Investment Life in the fourth quarter worth about $254,000. 93.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Shares of American Equity Investment Life opened at $35.14 on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The company has a current ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29. American Equity Investment Life Holding has a 12 month low of $25.43 and a 12 month high of $37.16. The stock has a market cap of $3.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.52 and a beta of 2.49.

American Equity Investment Life (NYSE:AEL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 2nd. The financial services provider reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.01. American Equity Investment Life had a net margin of 8.49% and a return on equity of 11.22%. The company had revenue of $510.78 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $514.11 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.66 earnings per share. research analysts anticipate that American Equity Investment Life Holding will post 3.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AEL shares. ValuEngine raised shares of American Equity Investment Life from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 22nd. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of American Equity Investment Life from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $31.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 4th. Sandler O’Neill reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $41.00 price target on shares of American Equity Investment Life in a research note on Friday, July 13th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of American Equity Investment Life from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $33.88.

American Equity Investment Life Profile

American Equity Investment Life Holding Company, through its subsidiaries, provides life insurance products and services in the United States. The company issues fixed index and rate annuities; and single premium immediate annuities, as well as life insurance products. The company markets its products through various distribution channels, including national marketing organizations, broker/dealers, banks, and registered investment advisors.

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Zoe’s Kitchen Inc (ZOES) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Zoe’s Kitchen Inc (NYSE:ZOES) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eleven ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and three have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $12.21.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on ZOES shares. ValuEngine raised shares of Zoe’s Kitchen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 6th. Telsey Advisory Group decreased their price objective on shares of Zoe’s Kitchen from $15.00 to $12.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 12th. William Blair lowered shares of Zoe’s Kitchen from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, May 25th. Maxim Group lowered shares of Zoe’s Kitchen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $20.00 to $12.00 in a report on Friday, May 25th. Finally, Piper Jaffray Companies lowered shares of Zoe’s Kitchen from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $11.00 to $7.00 in a report on Friday, May 25th.

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A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Zoe’s Kitchen by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,064,228 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $29,808,000 after purchasing an additional 86,351 shares during the period. Legion Partners Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Zoe’s Kitchen by 46.7% during the 4th quarter. Legion Partners Asset Management LLC now owns 821,672 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $13,738,000 after purchasing an additional 261,500 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its position in Zoe’s Kitchen by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 591,380 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $8,539,000 after purchasing an additional 4,220 shares during the period. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS acquired a new position in Zoe’s Kitchen during the 1st quarter valued at about $6,846,000. Finally, Wasatch Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Zoe’s Kitchen by 19.5% during the 1st quarter. Wasatch Advisors Inc. now owns 364,083 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock valued at $5,257,000 after purchasing an additional 59,414 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.43% of the company’s stock.

NYSE:ZOES traded down $0.18 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $10.36. 430,043 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 514,396. Zoe’s Kitchen has a 12 month low of $8.59 and a 12 month high of $17.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The firm has a market cap of $206.62 million, a P/E ratio of -103.60 and a beta of 0.15.

Zoe’s Kitchen (NYSE:ZOES) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 24th. The restaurant operator reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.11). Zoe’s Kitchen had a negative return on equity of 3.61% and a negative net margin of 1.73%. The company had revenue of $102.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $104.75 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.01 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.7% compared to the same quarter last year. equities analysts predict that Zoe’s Kitchen will post -0.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Zoe’s Kitchen Company Profile

Zoe's Kitchen, Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops and operates a chain of fast-casual restaurants. It operates a range of restaurant formats, including in-line, end-cap, and free-standing restaurants. As of February 22, 2018, the company operated owned and franchised 249 restaurants in 20 states of the United States.

Read More: What does earnings per share mean?

Internet of People (IOP) Reaches Market Capitalization of $2.73 Million

Internet of People (CURRENCY:IOP) traded down 16.7% against the US dollar during the one day period ending at 16:00 PM Eastern on July 20th. Internet of People has a total market capitalization of $2.73 million and approximately $126,233.00 worth of Internet of People was traded on exchanges in the last day. One Internet of People coin can currently be purchased for $0.77 or 0.00010536 BTC on major exchanges including Fatbtc, Upbit and Bittrex. In the last week, Internet of People has traded 12% higher against the US dollar.

Here is how other cryptocurrencies have performed in the last day:

Get Internet of People alerts: Emercoin (EMC) traded down 5.3% against the dollar and now trades at $2.92 or 0.00039779 BTC. BitcoinDark (BTCD) traded 7% higher against the dollar and now trades at $52.18 or 0.00710104 BTC. Experience Points (XP) traded 14.2% lower against the dollar and now trades at $0.0001 or 0.00000001 BTC. Universal Currency (UNIT) traded down 0.3% against the dollar and now trades at $0.29 or 0.00003978 BTC. Sprouts (SPRTS) traded down 21.7% against the dollar and now trades at $0.0000 or 0.00000000 BTC. Breakout (BRK) traded 4.3% lower against the dollar and now trades at $0.0836 or 0.00001138 BTC. Neutron (NTRN) traded down 7% against the dollar and now trades at $0.0409 or 0.00000556 BTC. BitTokens (BXT) traded 0.2% higher against the dollar and now trades at $0.53 or 0.00007883 BTC. ParkByte (PKB) traded 1.4% lower against the dollar and now trades at $0.0294 or 0.00000400 BTC. PX (PX) traded flat against the dollar and now trades at $0.0010 or 0.00000015 BTC.

Internet of People Coin Profile

Internet of People (IOP) is a PoW/PoS coin that uses the SHA-256 hashing algorithm. Its launch date was October 2nd, 2016. Internet of People’s total supply is 3,931,947 coins and its circulating supply is 3,525,843 coins. Internet of People’s official Twitter account is @IoP_community. The Reddit community for Internet of People is /r/IoP_Community and the currency’s Github account can be viewed here. The official website for Internet of People is iop.global.

Buying and Selling Internet of People

Internet of People can be traded on the following cryptocurrency exchanges: Upbit, Fatbtc and Bittrex. It is usually not currently possible to buy alternative cryptocurrencies such as Internet of People directly using U.S. dollars. Investors seeking to trade Internet of People should first buy Ethereum or Bitcoin using an exchange that deals in U.S. dollars such as GDAX, Gemini or Coinbase. Investors can then use their newly-acquired Ethereum or Bitcoin to buy Internet of People using one of the aforementioned exchanges.

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Zacks: Analysts Anticipate Invesco Ltd. (IVZ) Will Post Quarterly Sales of $1.41 Billion

Equities analysts expect Invesco Ltd. (NYSE:IVZ) to post $1.41 billion in sales for the current quarter, Zacks reports. Three analysts have issued estimates for Invesco’s earnings, with the lowest sales estimate coming in at $1.39 billion and the highest estimate coming in at $1.42 billion. Invesco posted sales of $1.25 billion during the same quarter last year, which would indicate a positive year over year growth rate of 12.8%. The company is expected to announce its next quarterly earnings results before the market opens on Thursday, July 26th.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that Invesco will report full-year sales of $5.65 billion for the current year, with estimates ranging from $5.57 billion to $5.69 billion. For the next fiscal year, analysts anticipate that the firm will post sales of $5.86 billion per share, with estimates ranging from $5.67 billion to $6.03 billion. Zacks’ sales averages are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side research analysts that follow Invesco.

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Invesco (NYSE:IVZ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 26th. The asset manager reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $958.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $979.91 million. Invesco had a net margin of 21.96% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.61 earnings per share.

Several research firms recently weighed in on IVZ. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Invesco from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $37.00 price objective on shares of Invesco in a report on Wednesday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Invesco from $40.00 to $37.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 10th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Invesco from $42.00 to $40.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 23rd. Finally, ValuEngine downgraded shares of Invesco from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. The stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $39.07.

In other Invesco news, major shareholder Ltd. Invesco purchased 2,127,659 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 22nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $4.69 per share, with a total value of $9,978,720.71. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in Invesco by 10.5% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 34,426,896 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $1,102,006,000 after buying an additional 3,283,953 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Invesco by 20.6% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 11,640,548 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $372,614,000 after buying an additional 1,988,111 shares in the last quarter. Kiltearn Partners LLP lifted its stake in Invesco by 19.8% during the first quarter. Kiltearn Partners LLP now owns 7,127,910 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $224,387,000 after buying an additional 1,178,700 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Invesco by 18.2% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,340,611 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $106,933,000 after buying an additional 513,179 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in Invesco by 1.4% during the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,971,049 shares of the asset manager’s stock valued at $95,103,000 after buying an additional 40,422 shares in the last quarter. 79.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

IVZ stock opened at $25.46 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.66. Invesco has a fifty-two week low of $25.34 and a fifty-two week high of $38.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.54.

About Invesco

Invesco Ltd. is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm provides its services to retail clients, institutional clients, high-net worth clients, public entities, corporations, unions, non-profit organizations, endowments, foundations, pension funds, financial institutions, and sovereign wealth funds.

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Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Invesco (IVZ)

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3 Stocks I'm Never Selling

Warren Buffett once said that when its comes to stocks, his�"favorite holding period is forever." Investors shouldn't blindly apply that idea to all stocks, but holding the best stocks "forever" can mean the difference between a 10% gain and multi-bagger returns. Today, I'll discuss three of my favorite long-term holdings, and why I don't plan to sell them anytime soon.

Amazon

I bought Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN)�back in the low $600s, and it now trades at above $1,700. Yet I plan to keep holding the stock, because its growth story seems more compelling than ever.

Image source: Getty Images.

Amazon generates most of its revenue from its online marketplaces in over a dozen countries. Amazon locks in those customers with Prime, its premium plan, which offers discounts, free shipping, streaming media, and other perks.

The company reported that it had over�100 million Prime members earlier this year, and research firm CIRP estimates that the average Prime member spends $1,300 on the site annually, compared to $700 for�non-members. The firm also estimated that�Echo owners spend a whopping $1,700 per year. Amazon is also expanding this ecosystem into the brick-and-mortar market through its Whole Foods and Amazon Go stores.

Amazon generates most of its operating profits from AWS (Amazon Web Services), the largest cloud infrastructure platform in the world. The growth of this higher margin business allows the company to expand its lower-margin marketplaces with loss-leading strategies like smart speakers, Kindle devices, and original streaming content.

All told, revenue for the company rose 31% last year, and�analysts expect another 34% growth this year thanks to the growth of its marketplaces, AWS, and Whole Foods stores. Its earnings, which rose 26% last year, could more than double this year.

Amazon's stock might seem pricey at 140 times this year's earnings, but it remains an essential long-term play on the e-commerce and cloud markets.

Tencent

I bought Tencent's (NASDAQOTH:TCEHY) OTC shares back in the high $20s, and the stock now trades in the low $50s. The Chinese tech giant's stock tumbled from its all-time high of $61 earlier this year, but I think it's still a compelling investment.

Image source: Getty Images.

Tencent owns WeChat, the most popular mobile messaging app in China with over�a billion monthly active users (MAUs). It also owns the older messaging platform QQ and a related social network called Qzone. Over the past few years, Tencent expanded WeChat into an all-in-one "super app" for ride hailing, deliveries, online purchases, games, and other services.

Tencent is also the largest video game publisher in the world. It owns hit titles like League of Legends, Arena of Valor, and Clash of Clans, and holds major stakes in Activision Blizzard, Ubisoft, PUBG developer Bluehole, and Fortnite publisher Epic Games. Tencent also owns major streaming video and music platforms, and has an expanding presence in next-gen technologies like cloud services and artificial intelligence.

Simply put, Tencent has wide moats in multiple high-growth markets. That's why�its revenue rose 56% last year as its non-GAAP earnings rose 43%. Analysts expect its revenue to rise 43% this year as its�earnings, slightly throttled by higher ecosystem investments,�grow 31%.

Tencent's stock isn't cheap at about 35 times earnings, but it's a reasonable premium for one of China's top tech companies.

Square

I bought shares of Square (NYSE:SQ) in the low $50s earlier this year, and the stock currently trades in the high $60s. The stock isn't cheap at 145 times this year's earnings, but I think the payment services provider's accelerating growth will reduce those multiples in the near future.

Square Register. Image source: Square.

Square's main hardware products -- its credit card-reading dongle Square Reader, its iPad-based POS (point of sale) system Square Stand, and its stand-alone POS system Square Register -- are all aimed at disrupting the market for traditional POS systems. Square links these devices to its cloud services, which help customers manage customer relationships, inventories, payrolls, logistics, website design, and other features.

Square also provides a mobile payments platform called Cash, which is currently the third most popular mobile peer-to-peer payments app�in America according to eMarketer. All these products and services are designed to flourish in a cashless society.

Square's adjusted revenue rose�43% last year, and�analysts expect another 48% growth this year. Its adjusted earnings, which jumped nearly seven-fold last year, could grow another 70% this year. Square could face tougher challenges as other competitors enter the market, but its first mover's advantage -- particularly with small to medium-sized businesses -- should buoy its long-term growth.

�

Somewhat Positive Press Coverage Somewhat Unlikely to Impact SemGroup (SEMG) Stock Price

News headlines about SemGroup (NYSE:SEMG) have trended somewhat positive this week, Accern Sentiment reports. The research firm identifies positive and negative media coverage by reviewing more than 20 million blog and news sources in real time. Accern ranks coverage of companies on a scale of negative one to positive one, with scores nearest to one being the most favorable. SemGroup earned a daily sentiment score of 0.11 on Accern’s scale. Accern also assigned news headlines about the pipeline company an impact score of 45.1707332632932 out of 100, meaning that recent media coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an effect on the company’s share price in the next few days.

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Capital One Financial restated an “equal weight” rating on shares of SemGroup in a research note on Thursday, June 28th. Barclays increased their price target on SemGroup from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. ValuEngine downgraded SemGroup from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 22nd. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on SemGroup in a research report on Tuesday, June 12th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $25.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on SemGroup from $29.00 to $26.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. The company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $26.92.

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SemGroup traded down $0.10, reaching $24.50, during mid-day trading on Thursday, MarketBeat.com reports. 7,765 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 701,466. The company has a market capitalization of $2.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -102.08, a P/E/G ratio of 125.00 and a beta of 1.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. SemGroup has a 12-month low of $20.20 and a 12-month high of $30.95.

SemGroup (NYSE:SEMG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 8th. The pipeline company reported ($0.48) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.07 by ($0.55). The business had revenue of $661.61 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $570.99 million. SemGroup had a positive return on equity of 2.17% and a negative net margin of 1.74%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 45.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.16) EPS. research analysts predict that SemGroup will post 0.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About SemGroup

SemGroup Corporation provides gathering, transportation, storage, distribution, marketing, and other midstream services for producers, refiners of petroleum products, and other market participants. Its Crude Transportation segment operates crude oil pipelines and truck transportation businesses. It operates a 455-mile crude oil gathering and transportation pipeline system in Kansas and northern Oklahoma; a 75-mile crude oil gathering pipeline system that transports crude oil from production facilities in the DJ Basin to the pipeline owned by White Cliffs Pipeline, LLC; a 527-mile pipeline that transports crude oil from Platteville, Colorado to Cushing, Oklahoma; and 3 pipelines with an aggregate of 106 miles of pipe, as well as crude oil trucking fleet of 215 transport trucks and 210 trailers.

Hot Casino Stocks To Invest In Right Now

tags:ANET,WPX,KNOP,PROV,

Shares of casino operators with ties to Macau were sent lower after news surfaced recently that hotels on the tiny Chinese island of Hainan might begin offering low-stakes baccarat.

Where blackjack and poker are the preferred card games in Western casinos, baccarat is the favorite among China's VIP gamblers. And because Macau is the only place in China where gaming is legal, some believe that allowing it anywhere else will siphon off high rollers, which will hurt casino companies like Las Vegas Sands (NYSE:LVS), Melco Resorts & Entertainment (NASDAQ:MLCO), and Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN), which all derive the bulk of their revenue from Macau.

But the fears look to be overblown because any low-stakes games on Hainan wouldn't be attractive to the VIPs the casinos count on, and the volume of gaming would likely be a tiny fraction of the $32 billion Macau generated last year.

Sanya City in Dadonghai Bay on Hainan, often called "China's Hawaii." Image source: Getty Images.

Hot Casino Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Arista Networks, Inc.(ANET)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Matthew Cochrane]

  What drove this increase in sales? The company seems to have finally figured out that it needs to continue innovating its router and switching products, or else smaller competitors, such as Arista Networks Inc (NYSE:ANET), will eat its lunch and steal market share. On this front, Cisco looks like it is delivering. In the company's second-quarter conference call, CEO Chuck Robbins talked about the successful launch of the company's new switching platform, the Catalyst 9000:

• [By Billy Duberstein]

  Data center switching upstart Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) is more open-source; incumbent switch maker Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO), perhaps due to its front-runner status as a legacy business from the 1990s, has stayed more "closed."

• [By Shane Hupp]

  BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp decreased its holdings in shares of Arista Networks Inc (NYSE:ANET) by 11.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 36,358 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 4,582 shares during the quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp’s holdings in Arista Networks were worth $9,282,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Tuesday continued the stock market's upward momentum, with major benchmarks all posting solid gains and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite seeing an especially substantial advance. Earnings helped to lead the indexes higher, with good reports from several sectors of the market helping to build enthusiasm among investors that 2018 could extend the current bull run to a full decade even with the recent correction. Story stocks did particularly well, and Twitter (NYSE:TWTR), Shopify (NYSE:SHOP), and Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) were among the best performers on the day. Here's why they did so well.

Hot Casino Stocks To Invest In Right Now: WPX Energy, Inc.(WPX)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shane Hupp]

  US Capital Advisors initiated coverage on shares of WPX Energy (NYSE:WPX) in a research note issued to investors on Monday. The firm issued a buy rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  WPX Energy (NYSE:WPX) had its price target lifted by Stifel Nicolaus from $27.00 to $28.00 in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday. They currently have a buy rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Hodges Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of WPX Energy (NYSE:WPX) by 1.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,047,818 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 17,025 shares during the period. WPX Energy accounts for about 1.2% of Hodges Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Hodges Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.26% of WPX Energy worth $15,487,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

• [By Max Byerly]

  Southwestern Energy (NYSE: SWN) and WPX Energy (NYSE:WPX) are both mid-cap oils/energy companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, profitability and institutional ownership.

Hot Casino Stocks To Invest In Right Now: KNOT Offshore Partners LP(KNOP)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Carnival Cruise Line (NYSE: CCL) and KNOT Offshore Partners (NYSE:KNOP) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends and earnings.

• [By Max Byerly]

  ValuEngine downgraded shares of KNOT Offshore Partners (NYSE:KNOP) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on KNOT Offshore Partners (KNOP)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

Hot Casino Stocks To Invest In Right Now: Provident Financial Holdings, Inc.(PROV)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Max Byerly]

  News articles about Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) have been trending somewhat negative this week, according to Accern. Accern identifies negative and positive media coverage by monitoring more than twenty million blog and news sources in real time. Accern ranks coverage of public companies on a scale of -1 to 1, with scores nearest to one being the most favorable. Provident Financial earned a daily sentiment score of -0.02 on Accern’s scale. Accern also assigned news articles about the financial services provider an impact score of 45.9215692366566 out of 100, meaning that recent media coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an effect on the company’s share price in the near future.

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Charter Financial (NASDAQ: CHFN) and Provident Financial (NASDAQ:PROV) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, profitability, risk and dividends.

Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now

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Progressive ended up being 30% cheaper than Liberty Mutual.

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Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now: Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation(COG)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Comerica Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Cabot Oil & Gas Co. (NYSE:COG) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 103,688 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,486,000.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Cabot Oil & Gas (COG)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Cabot Oil & Gas Co. (NYSE:COG) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 1,293,691 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,023,000.

• [By Logan Wallace]

  The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in Cabot Oil & Gas Co. (NYSE:COG) by 8.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 550,867 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock after buying an additional 44,335 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Cabot Oil & Gas were worth $13,210,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

• [By ]

  The hot list:

  Align Technology (ALGN) (+22% revenue growth estimate) Amazon (AMZN) (+22%) Autodesk (ADSK) (+27%) Cabot Oil & Gas (COG) (+34%) Concho Resources (CXO) (+30%) Facebook (FB) (+27%) Netflix (NFLX) (+25%) Pentair (PNR) (+22%) Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX) (+22)

  "Firms with high revenue growth should outperform the S&P 500 during the next 12 months as the index climbs by 6% to our target of 2875," says Kostin. 

Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now: Gevo, Inc.(GEVO)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Gevo, Inc. (NASDAQ:GEVO) reached a new 52-week high and low on Friday . The company traded as low as $0.22 and last traded at $0.23, with a volume of 20863 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $0.27.

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Gevo (NASDAQ:GEVO) was upgraded by equities research analysts at ValuEngine from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

• [By Max Byerly]

  Amyris Biotechnologies (NASDAQ: AMRS) and Gevo (NASDAQ:GEVO) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership, earnings and valuation.

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Shares of Gevo, Inc. (NASDAQ:GEVO) saw strong trading volume on Monday . 4,144,466 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 374% from the previous session’s volume of 873,478 shares.The stock last traded at $4.72 and had previously closed at $3.98.

Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now: Johnson Outdoors Inc.(JOUT)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lisa Levin] Companies Reporting Before The Bell Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $1.96 per share on revenue of $3.46 billion. Aon plc (NYSE: AON) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $2.8 per share on revenue of $2.93 billion. American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: AXL) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.81 per share on revenue of $1.75 billion. Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE: BABA) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.88 per share on revenue of $9.27 billion. LifePoint Health, Inc. (NASDAQ: LPNT) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $1.13 per share on revenue of $1.62 billion. V.F. Corporation (NYSE: VFC) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.65 per share on revenue of $2.90 billion. Newell Brands Inc. (NYSE: NWL) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.26 per share on revenue of $3.05 billion. Titan International, Inc. (NYSE: TWI) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.04 per share on revenue of $407.27 million. Boise Cascade Company (NYSE: BCC) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.45 per share on revenue of $1.09 billion. Cheniere Energy, Inc. (NYSE: LNG) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.39 per share on revenue of $1.59 billion. Cboe Global Markets, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBOE) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $1.24 per share on revenue of $308.05 million. ITT Inc. (NYSE: ITT) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $0.73 per share on revenue of $683.96 million. Fred's, Inc. (NASDAQ: FRED) is expected to report quarterly loss at $0.19 per share on revenue of $551.00 million. Virtu Financial, Inc. (NASDAQ: VIRT) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.52 per share on revenue of $288.31 million. Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P. (NYSE: CQP) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.57 per share on revenue of $1.38 billion. Genesis Energy, L.P

Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now: FBR & Co(FBRC)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Media headlines about FBR & Co (NASDAQ:FBRC) have been trending somewhat positive this week, according to Accern. Accern rates the sentiment of media coverage by monitoring more than twenty million news and blog sources. Accern ranks coverage of public companies on a scale of -1 to 1, with scores nearest to one being the most favorable. FBR & Co earned a news impact score of 0.14 on Accern’s scale. Accern also gave press coverage about the financial services provider an impact score of 44.0509600232626 out of 100, indicating that recent media coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an impact on the company’s share price in the next several days.

Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now: MGIC Investment Corporation(MTG)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Headlines about MGIC Investment (NYSE:MTG) have been trending somewhat positive recently, according to Accern Sentiment Analysis. The research group ranks the sentiment of press coverage by monitoring more than 20 million news and blog sources in real-time. Accern ranks coverage of public companies on a scale of negative one to positive one, with scores closest to one being the most favorable. MGIC Investment earned a coverage optimism score of 0.09 on Accern’s scale. Accern also gave news coverage about the insurance provider an impact score of 46.9053330399122 out of 100, indicating that recent press coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an effect on the stock’s share price in the next several days.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  MGIC Investment Corp. (NYSE: MTG) traded down about 6.5% Wednesday to post a new 52-week low of $10.07 after closing Tuesday at $10.77. The stock’s 52-week high is $16.21. Volume was more than double the daily average of around 4.2 million shares. The company reported uninspiring first-quarter results this morning.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Monday was a positive day on Wall Street, as major benchmarks jumped following an uneventful weekend, tapering their gains as the session came to a close. Some had feared that China might retaliate once again after the U.S. issued a second round of tariffs against the nation with the world's second-largest economy, but the expected fireworks didn't come, putting market participants more at ease. The beginning of earnings season in the next week will also distract investors from geopolitical issues, perhaps allowing indexes to climb further. Yet some individual stocks had difficulties that sent their shares lower. Yandex (NASDAQ:YNDX), Menlo Therapeutics (NASDAQ:MNLO), and MGIC Investment (NYSE:MTG) were among the worst performers on the day. Here's why they did so poorly.

Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now: Covenant Transportation Group, Inc.(CVTI)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Covenant Transportation Group (CVTI)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ: ODFL) and Covenant Transport (NASDAQ:CVTI) are both transportation companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends, valuation, risk and institutional ownership.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Covenant Transportation Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CVTI) shares hit a new 52-week high and low on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $35.19 and last traded at $34.25, with a volume of 9263 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $33.86.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  ValuEngine upgraded shares of Covenant Transport (NASDAQ:CVTI) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now: Interactive Brokers Group, Inc.(IBKR)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Logan Wallace]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Interactive Brokers Group (IBKR)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Here are some of the headlines that may have effected Accern Sentiment Analysis’s analysis:

  Get Interactive Brokers Group alerts: What Could Attract Investors to Interactive Brokers (finance.yahoo.com) Reviewing Charles Schwab (SCHW) and Interactive Brokers Group (IBKR) (americanbankingnews.com) Interactive Brokers Group (IBKR) Presents At Sandler O’Neill’s Global Exchange And Brokerage Conference – Slideshow (seekingalpha.com) Should You Invest In The Financial Stock Interactive Brokers Group Inc (NASDAQ:IBKR)? (finance.yahoo.com) Interactive Brokers Welcomes New Bond Disclosure Rules (finance.yahoo.com)

  Shares of Interactive Brokers Group traded up $1.20, reaching $71.38, during midday trading on Friday, according to MarketBeat Ratings. 1,131,168 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 859,815. The stock has a market cap of $29.39 billion, a PE ratio of 46.65, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.95. Interactive Brokers Group has a one year low of $36.23 and a one year high of $80.32.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  Interactive Brokers Group (NASDAQ: IBKR) and Charles Schwab Co. Common Stock (NYSE:SCHW) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability and risk.

• [By Max Byerly]

  Compass Point started coverage on shares of Interactive Brokers Group (NASDAQ:IBKR) in a research note published on Tuesday. The brokerage issued a neutral rating and a $74.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock.

Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now: AdvanSix Inc. (ASIX)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Max Byerly]

  AdvanSix (NYSE:ASIX) Director Michael Marberry bought 1,398 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $35.74 per share, for a total transaction of $49,964.52. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  GSA Capital Partners LLP reduced its holdings in AdvanSix Inc (NYSE:ASIX) by 36.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 24,620 shares of the company’s stock after selling 14,277 shares during the quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP owned about 0.08% of AdvanSix worth $856,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now: Gladstone Land Corporation(LAND)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Landsec (LON:LAND) announced a dividend on Tuesday, May 15th, Upcoming.Co.Uk reports. Investors of record on Thursday, June 21st will be given a dividend of GBX 14.65 ($0.20) per share on Friday, July 27th. This represents a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 21st. This is an increase from Landsec’s previous dividend of $9.85. The official announcement can be viewed at this link.

• [By Shane Hupp]

  Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Gladstone Land (LAND)

  For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

Top 10 Safest Stocks To Buy Right Now: iShares MSCI Emerging Markets (EEM)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By ]

  In the first three months of the year, Bridgewater unloaded more than $2 billion worth of shares in three big emerging market ETFs: the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (EEM), its cheaper counterpart the iShares Core MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (IEMG), and the Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF (VWO). The combined 45 million shares were the largest sales by the money manager in the period.

• [By ]

  The MSCI Emerging Market Index is positing an incredible run. It��s on its longest-ever streak without a 10% decline, Bloomberg notes. That��s helping power the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (NYSE:EEM) well ahead of the S&P 500 to start the year.

• [By ]

  As we mentioned earlier, the S&P 500 is up 20% this year. Meanwhile, the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (NYSE:EEM) has rocketed to gains of nearly 35% year-to-date. This performance puts all the U.S. major indexes to shame �� even the red-hot Nasdaq Composite.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  Cabot Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (NYSEARCA:EEM) by 10.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 31,676 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock after buying an additional 2,946 shares during the quarter. Cabot Wealth Management Inc.’s holdings in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF were worth $1,529,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

• [By Craig Jones]

  On CNBC's "Options Action", Dan Nathan spoke about an unusual options activity in iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Index (ETF) (NYSE: EEM). He said the put options volume was pretty high on Wednesday. Puts outnumbered calls 2 to 1.

Crispr Therapeutics AG (CRSP) Expected to Announce Quarterly Sales of $1.47 Million

Brokerages predict that Crispr Therapeutics AG (NASDAQ:CRSP) will report $1.47 million in sales for the current fiscal quarter, according to Zacks. Three analysts have issued estimates for Crispr Therapeutics’ earnings, with estimates ranging from $500,000.00 to $2.00 million. Crispr Therapeutics posted sales of $3.58 million in the same quarter last year, which suggests a negative year over year growth rate of 58.9%. The business is scheduled to report its next earnings results on Thursday, August 9th.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that Crispr Therapeutics will report full-year sales of $13.09 million for the current fiscal year, with estimates ranging from $2.90 million to $24.00 million. For the next fiscal year, analysts expect that the business will report sales of $56.80 million per share, with estimates ranging from $22.50 million to $91.10 million. Zacks’ sales averages are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side analysts that cover Crispr Therapeutics.

Get Crispr Therapeutics alerts:

Crispr Therapeutics (NASDAQ:CRSP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 9th. The company reported ($0.62) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.67) by $0.05. Crispr Therapeutics had a negative net margin of 189.60% and a negative return on equity of 35.18%. The firm had revenue of $1.36 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.64 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.54) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 49.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

CRSP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Chardan Capital lifted their price target on shares of Crispr Therapeutics from $25.00 to $72.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 15th. ValuEngine upgraded shares of Crispr Therapeutics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 2nd. TheStreet upgraded shares of Crispr Therapeutics from a “d+” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Friday, March 16th. Zacks Investment Research upgraded shares of Crispr Therapeutics from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 13th. Finally, BidaskClub cut shares of Crispr Therapeutics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Crispr Therapeutics has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $65.90.

In related news, CEO Samarth Kulkarni sold 15,000 shares of Crispr Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.36, for a total transaction of $1,040,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 163,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,344,521.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President Rodger Novak sold 75,000 shares of Crispr Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $4,500,000.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 1,183,247 shares in the company, valued at approximately $70,994,820. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,510,845 shares of company stock worth $80,447,023 in the last three months. 37.70% of the stock is owned by insiders.

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. EAM Global Investors LLC bought a new position in Crispr Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,089,000. CIBC World Markets Inc. bought a new position in Crispr Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,156,000. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Crispr Therapeutics by 91.9% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 26,620 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,217,000 after buying an additional 12,751 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. bought a new position in Crispr Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at approximately $919,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC bought a new position in Crispr Therapeutics in the first quarter valued at approximately $256,000. 39.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Shares of NASDAQ:CRSP traded up $0.33 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $63.21. 846,500 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,352,314. Crispr Therapeutics has a 1-year low of $15.67 and a 1-year high of $73.90. The stock has a market cap of $2.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -36.96 and a beta of 4.22.

About Crispr Therapeutics

CRISPR Therapeutics AG, a gene editing company, focuses on developing transformative gene-based medicines for the treatment of serious human diseases using its regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats associated protein-9 (CRISPR/Cas9) gene-editing platform in Switzerland. Its lead product candidate is CTX001, which targets sickle cell disease and beta-thalassemia with an ex vivo approach whereby cells are harvested from a patient, treated with a CRISPR/Cas9-based therapeutic and reintroduced into the patient.

Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Crispr Therapeutics (CRSP)

For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

China Life Insurance (LFC) vs. Voya Financial (VOYA) Critical Contrast

China Life Insurance (NYSE: LFC) and Voya Financial (NYSE:VOYA) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability and institutional ownership.

Valuation & Earnings

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This table compares China Life Insurance and Voya Financial’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
China Life Insurance	$105.48 billion	0.68	$4.77 billion	$0.93	13.65
Voya Financial	$8.62 billion	0.96	-$2.99 billion	$3.01	16.24

China Life Insurance has higher revenue and earnings than Voya Financial. China Life Insurance is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Voya Financial, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

0.3% of China Life Insurance shares are held by institutional investors. 0.4% of Voya Financial shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility & Risk

China Life Insurance has a beta of 1.57, indicating that its stock price is 57% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Voya Financial has a beta of 1.52, indicating that its stock price is 52% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

China Life Insurance pays an annual dividend of $0.27 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Voya Financial pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.1%. China Life Insurance pays out 29.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Voya Financial pays out 1.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for China Life Insurance and Voya Financial, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
China Life Insurance	2	1	7	0	2.50
Voya Financial	0	3	11	0	2.79

China Life Insurance presently has a consensus target price of $13.85, suggesting a potential upside of 9.14%. Voya Financial has a consensus target price of $59.31, suggesting a potential upside of 21.31%. Given Voya Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Voya Financial is more favorable than China Life Insurance.

Profitability

This table compares China Life Insurance and Voya Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
China Life Insurance	6.27%	12.27%	1.38%
Voya Financial	-25.86%	4.01%	0.23%

China Life Insurance Company Profile

China Life Insurance Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a life insurance company in the People's Republic of China. The company operates in four segments: Life Insurance Business, Health Insurance Business, Accident Insurance Business, and Other Business. It offers individual and group life, annuity, accident, and health insurance products, as well as provides pension products. The company is also involved in reinsurance business; the asset management, fund management, and health management activities; retirement properties investment; and provision of financial services. It sells its products through agents, direct sales representatives, and dedicated and non-dedicated agencies. The company was founded in 1949 and is headquartered in Beijing, the People's Republic of China. China Life Insurance Company Limited is a subsidiary of China Life Insurance (Group) Company Limited.

Voya Financial Company Profile

Voya Financial, Inc. operates as a retirement, investment, and insurance company in the United States. It operates through Retirement, Investment Management, Individual Life, and Employee Benefits segments. The Retirement segment offers tax-deferred employer-sponsored retirement savings plans and administrative services; and individual account rollover plans and other retail financial products, as well as financial planning and advisory services. This segment serves corporate, education, healthcare, and other non-profit and government entities, as well as institutional and individual customers through third-party administrators, wirehouse affiliated brokers, registered investment advisors, independent sales agents, and consulting firms. The Investment Management segment provides fixed income, equity, multi-asset, and alternative products and solutions to individual and institutional customers directly, as well as through consultant channel, banks, broker-dealers, and independent financial advisers. The Individual Life segment provides wealth protection and transfer opportunities through universal, variable, and term life products. The Employee Benefits segment offers stop loss, group life, voluntary employee-paid, and disability products through consultants, brokers, third-party administrators, enrollment firms, and technology partners. The company was formerly known as ING U.S., Inc. and changed its name to Voya Financial, Inc. in April 2014. Voya Financial, Inc. was incorporated in 1999 and is based in New York, New York.

McCormick Tastes Like Success; National Beverage Chokes After SEC Concerns

In this segment from the Motley Fool Money podcast, we first break down an upbeat quarterly report from one of Jason Moser's favorite companies: spice giant McCormick (NYSE:MKC). Host Chris Hill and senior Motley Fool analysts Matt Argersinger and Ron Gross give him a backdrop to rhapsodize not just about the spice purveyor's excellent business model, but also about the smart moves it has made recently, including a major acquisition that is paying off even faster than originally predicted.

But in the world of investing, it's vital that we be able to trust the numbers companies report, and the Securities and Exchange Commission isn't entirely sure we can when it comes to National Beverage (NASDAQ:FIZZ), seller of sparkling water LaCroix, as well as classic soda brands Faygo and Shasta. In essence, the SEC suggested that the company was being a bit too creative in terms of the metrics it was using to describe sales growth -- possibly because the metrics themselves didn't have a clear definition. So, what should Foolish investors think about all this? The guys have some advice.

A full transcript follows the video.

This video was recorded on June 29, 2018.

Chris Hill: Shares of McCormick up 10% this week. Spice maker's second quarter profits came in 23% higher than a year ago. Jason, I don't love this company as much as you do. I don't know anyone who loves it as much as you do. But, I mean, they're totally getting it done.

Jason Moser: I just wish, on one conference call, we'd have management say, "That was a spicy meatball!" or something like that. There are a lot of reasons to be enthusiastic about this business. I think the market's enthusiasm is based mostly on the fact that the RB Foods acquisition from a few quarters ago is proving to be the right decision, a smart decision, a good decision that the business is benefiting from.

If you look at the two segments the company operates in, the Consumer segment, which is what we stock our spice cabinets with, that grew 16%, with growth in all three regions; the Flavor Solutions segment -- which, man, I still love that renaming. It used to be Industrial. They call it Flavor Solutions now. Growth of 15% there.

I think the most encouraging thing is that the balance sheet, post-acquisition, that was one of the big question marks. It continues to strengthen. While operating income is covering interest expense about 6 times over, that will get better as time goes on, they've actually made $350 million in prepayments to the borrowing that they took out for this acquisition. They're going to pay it off ahead of time.

Then, from there on out, you have this company with some of the most powerful brands in flavor and spice around the world. Again, I say it every time, the value proposition? 90% of the flavor and only 10% of the cost of what you're eating, you just can't miss out on that.

Matt Argersinger: It's been amazing, given what we've seen with the rest of the consumer staples sector. McCormick kind of falls in that, and yet McCormick has defied all that. Do you think it's because they have such good brand placement on the high-end and low-end? So, they're not really suffering --

Moser: I think that's the key. A lot of people ask about, I go to the spice aisle, and I see all the McCormick stuff, but I'm going to buy this other store brand stuff -- well, that's the thing, McCormick has a lot of that store brand, private label business, as well. And when you look at French's and Frank's Red Hot and all of these different seasonings and flavors and spices, they just have such a big share of it all together. It's a tough thing to compete with.

Hill: Let's face it, there are a lot of companies that make a lot of acquisitions, and a lot of them don't work out. So, kudos to McCormick for, among other things, making the recent acquisitions work.

Moser: I think the skepticism, at least, on this RB Foods acquisition, initially, was warranted. It was a big deal, they had to borrow a lot of money to make it happen, but it's just proving to work out.

Hill: National Beverage is the parent company of several brands, including La Croix sparkling water. Shares of National Beverage fell 12% in two days after the SEC raised questions about the company's sales metrics. Ron, for background here, Nick Caporella is the CEO at National Beverage. He is known, among other things, for some creative, fun press releases. But I guess he got their attention when he started rolling out things like VPO, velocity per outlet. I don't even know what that means.

Ron Gross: [laughs] I love wacky CEOs, it's just so fun. Velocity per capita. They help National Beverage create growth "never before thought possible." What more do you need? Obviously, the SEC doesn't like that. It also doesn't like comments like, "VPO was flashing solid green numbers."

There's a lot of bluster there. I would warn investors to be careful of CEOs with a lot of bluster, that like to type in all caps. They're very promotional. To companies out there, if you want to use a metric, explain the metric or don't use the metric.

Here, they told the SEC to go take a hike, and that they didn't need to define the metric because it didn't really affect the company as a whole, it was just a goal set by certain customers. They, quite frankly, did not respond to the SEC, and it seems to have been dropped. But, be careful of bluster.

Hill: La Croix is the best-selling sparkling water in the country, so they have a little bit more going on than just bluster.

Gross: For sure they do. I'm not a fan of the stock at 27 times forward earnings when you have Pepsi and Coke at around 19-20 times. But, the growth probably is higher. But, there's a bit of a fad element going on here. I drink a lot of flavored seltzer. Those La Croix flavors are a little much for me personally, but they sell.

Seeking value buys? 2 largecaps & 1 midcap that could return 8-24% in next 3-6 months

Dharmesh Shah

The Nifty regained positive momentum after the corrective decline seen last week. It witnessed a steady recovery from the major support area of 10,550 levels, despite global volatility. The index has held 10,550 on three occasions during June, in spite of a host of concerns on escalating trade war, depreciating rupee against the dollar and rising crude prices, thus highlighting the significance of this support and resilience.

On the daily chart, the Nifty has formed a higher high and higher low formation indicating positive bias. Going forward, we expect the index to continue its positive momentum and head towards the past two week��s almost identical high of 10,830. Going forward, the focus will now shift to stock-specific action as we enter into the Q1 FY19 earning season.

The index has major support in the range of 10,550-10,600 and any dips towards the support area should be utilised as an incremental buying opportunity as it is a confluence of:

related news D-Street indecisive! Top 3 stocks that could return 5-17% in 3-4 weeks Market nervous ahead of Q1 earnings; 3 stocks that could offer 7-13% return July series: Nifty to consolidate within 10,550-10,850 range

a.) 78.6 percent retracement of the last leg of the rally (10,418-10,893), at 10,520

b.) The 100 day simple moving average is placed around 10,535

c.) The index during June formed multiple lows around 10,550 levels. The previous week��s low is also placed at 10,557 levels

Structurally, broader consolidation in the 10,000��11,172 range since December last year has made the market healthier and created fresh buying opportunities within a larger degree uptrend. Time-wise, the last three legs have taken 7-8 weeks to complete each directional move. Current profit booking from the May high of 10,930 has lasted over 7 weeks.

Going by the market rhythm of each directional move maturing in 7-8 weeks, we expect the current decline to bottom out in the ongoing week, leading the index to form a higher base formation.

The Nifty Midcap and Small-cap indices have declined 18 percent and 28 percent, respectively, from January highs. In the last two sessions, the indices are moving higher and the daily stochastic has witnessed positive crossover from oversold territory.

Such price action, after a panic decline, is likely to bring a breather in downward momentum in coming sessions. The key point to observe is that an improvement in the market breadth which would confirm that these indices are gradually entering a base formation.

Here is a list of top three stocks which could 8-24% return in the next six months:

Marico: Buy| CMP: Rs 343| Target: Rs 370| Stop Loss: Rs 324| Return 8%| Time frame: 3 months

The share price of Marico has witnessed a sharp rebound from the May 2018 low of Rs 305 and is seen forming a higher peak and higher trough on the weekly chart.

The recent price activity signals a major trend reversal offering a fresh entry opportunity for medium-term investors.

Over the past ten months, the stock has been consolidating in a broader range of Rs 335��300. This overall consolidation has taken the shape of a contracting triangle pattern, indicating tapering range bound activity.

The stock has recently recorded breakout from aforementioned contracting triangle pattern and is seen sustaining above the same signalling conclusion of the secondary phase of consolidation.

The stock retraced its 2016-17 up move by 50�percent (Rs 292) and formed a base formation near lows of March and May 2017 around Rs 300, indicating accumulation by stronger hands at the major retracement support.

The immediate short-term support is placed around Rs 324 levels being the confluence of the trendline support joining recent lows and 50�percent retracement of the last major up move (Rs 304-352).

Based on the aforementioned technical evidence, we believe that the stock has formed a higher base as it broke out of contracting triangle pattern, signifying continuance of uptrend.

Therefore, it offers an opportunity to ride the same with the favorable risk-reward setup. The stock is likely to head towards Rs 370 being the measuring implication of the consolidation breakout (335-300=35 points) added to the breakout level of Rs 335, projects upside towards Rs 370 (335+ 35=370).

GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals: Buy| CMP: Rs 2,902| Target: Rs 3,490| Stop loss: Rs 2,590|Return 20%| Time frame: 6 months

The share price of GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals has recently registered a breakout above the falling channel containing the entire corrective price activity of the last two years signalling a reversal of the corrective trend and resumption of the fresh up move, thus offering a fresh entry opportunity from a medium-term perspective.

The stock has formed an all-time high of Rs 3,872 during April 2016. A corrective decline of the last two years saw the index form a base around Rs 2,020 during March 2018.

A sharp pullback in the last three months from the lower band of the falling channel containing the entire corrective decline saw the index forming a higher peak and higher trough in the weekly chart signalling a resumption of the uptrend.

The immediate support base for the stock is around Rs 2590 being the confluence of the 50 days EMA and 38.2�percent retracement of current up move (2020-2870).

Time-wise, the stock has recently retraced its five months corrective decline from Rs 2700 to Rs 2020 in just three months. A faster retracement of the last falling segment signals a robust price structure.

The breakout from the long-term falling channel was accompanied by a strong volume of almost three times the 50-weeks average volume of 51,000 shares per week indicating elevated participation in the direction of the trend.

Based on the aforementioned technical observations, we expect the stock to continue its positive bias and head towards Rs 3,500 as it is the 80 percent retracement of the entire decline (3872-2020)

Maharashtra Seamless: Buy| CMP: Rs 439| Target: Rs 548| Stop loss: Rs 402| Return 24%| Time frame: 6 months

The stock witnessed a structural turnaround in the August 2017 as it registered a resolute breakout from multiyear (7 years) resistance zone (Rs 420). Thereafter, the stock has consistently moved northwards and recorded 52-weeks high of Rs 552.

We believe the sideways consolidation over the past three months has laid the foundation for the next leg of up move within a structural uptrend.

The entire corrective decline since January 2018 high (Rs 552) appears to be forming a falling wedge pattern. The occurrence of falling wedge pattern near crucial support area signifies bullish trend reversal which offers a fresh entry opportunity as a breakout from falling wedge would indicate the end of the secondary corrective phase and resumption of the primary uptrend.

We believe the stock has been forming a strong support base formation around�Rs 415 levels, as it is a confluence of:

a.) 38.2�percent retracement of 2016-17 move (213 - 552), placed around Rs 415

b.) as per change of polarity concept, the earlier resistance of Rs 420 has now acted as key support, as the stock is forming potential double bottom formation near Rs 420 levels.

Based on the aforementioned technical parameter, we expect the stock to head towards Rs 550 as it is the implicated target of recent consolidation (485-415=70) added to breakout level (485+70=555) corroborating 52 weeks high of Rs 552.

Disclaimer: The author is Head Technical, AVP at ICICI Direct.com Research. The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on Moneycontrol.com are his own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. First Published on Jul 5, 2018 09:03 am

Private Capital Group LLC Has $228,000 Holdings in New York Community Bancorp, Inc. (NYCB)

Private Capital Group LLC grew its stake in New York Community Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE:NYCB) by 3,177.9% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 17,504 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,970 shares during the quarter. Private Capital Group LLC’s holdings in New York Community Bancorp were worth $228,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NYCB. BlackRock Inc. boosted its holdings in New York Community Bancorp by 14.8% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 56,419,781 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $735,149,000 after acquiring an additional 7,287,646 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of New York Community Bancorp by 27,738.6% during the first quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 2,426,691 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,625,000 after purchasing an additional 2,417,974 shares in the last quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD lifted its holdings in shares of New York Community Bancorp by 51.4% during the first quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD now owns 5,464,221 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $64,915,000 after purchasing an additional 1,854,060 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of New York Community Bancorp by 589.3% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,443,507 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,810,000 after purchasing an additional 1,234,082 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new position in shares of New York Community Bancorp during the fourth quarter valued at $13,176,000. 65.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Get New York Community Bancorp alerts:

New York Community Bancorp opened at $11.49 on Friday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.13, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market cap of $5.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.19, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.67. New York Community Bancorp, Inc. has a one year low of $11.35 and a one year high of $14.53.

New York Community Bancorp (NYSE:NYCB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.20. The firm had revenue of $293.16 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $295.51 million. New York Community Bancorp had a net margin of 26.12% and a return on equity of 6.81%. New York Community Bancorp’s revenue was down 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.21 EPS. research analysts anticipate that New York Community Bancorp, Inc. will post 0.81 earnings per share for the current year.

NYCB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. B. Riley lowered their price target on New York Community Bancorp from $13.00 to $12.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. ValuEngine downgraded New York Community Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $12.00 price target on shares of New York Community Bancorp in a report on Thursday, April 26th. Barclays lowered their price target on New York Community Bancorp from $13.00 to $11.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 26th. Finally, Zacks Investment Research raised New York Community Bancorp from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $16.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. New York Community Bancorp presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $12.95.

New York Community Bancorp Profile

New York Community Bancorp, Inc operates as a holding company for New York Community Bank and New York Commercial Bank that offer banking products and financial services in Metro New York, New Jersey, Ohio, Florida, and Arizona. The company offers various deposit products that include checking and savings accounts, individual retirement accounts, certificates of deposit, NOW and money market accounts, and non-interest-bearing accounts.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding NYCB? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for New York Community Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE:NYCB).

Morgan Stanley downgrades Starbucks due to its China sales growth stumble

Starbucks' growth trends will not turnaround anytime soon after the company's sales guidance reduction, according to Morgan Stanley.

The firm lowered its rating to equal-weight from overweight for Starbucks shares, citing the deteriorating sales growth in China and the U.S.

On Tuesday Starbucks lowered its global third-quarter same store sales growth forecast to 1 percent versus the previous forecast of 3 percent.

"Facing now what is clearly decelerating top-line in its two key markets, SBUX is now saddled with increased EPS risk and a poor recent track record of driving sales," analyst John Glass said in a note to clients Wednesday. "We see this stock as range bound, at best, near-term as the catalyst for a US comp recovery remains elusive, offset by a valuation that has been compressing over the past 2+ years."

Starbucks shares are down 5 percent in early trading Wednesday.

Glass reduced his price target to $59 from $72 for Starbucks shares, representing 3 percent upside to Tuesday's close.

The analyst noted how the company's China same store sales growth is likely to be nearly flat in the third quarter versus 8 percent growth just three quarters ago.

The China sales "deceleration was a negative surprise, and believing in the long-term opportunity in China is important to the long-term thesis. There are some plausible partial explanations for this (a switch away from unsanctioned third party delivery; new arrangements to come by year's end) but now this is show-me as well," he said.

In a similar move, Telsey Advisory Group lowered its rating to market perform from outperform and reduced its price target to $60 from $70 for Starbucks shares Tuesday, predicting more mixed sale results in China.

�� CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this story.

Disclaimer

Netflix Bulls Push Targets Higher

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Netflix Inc. bulls were on parade Tuesday -- in tune with the machine-like upward trajectory of the video streaming company’s shares, which have doubled since the beginning of the year.

Wall Street is getting more bullish on Netflix as streaming capabilities become an ever bigger part of the global media landscape. GBH Insights analyst Dan Ives raised his price target on Netflix to a Street-high $500, only days after Goldman Sachs set what had been the previous high at $490. Ives sees stronger-than-expected subscriber growth this year and a potential benefit to Netflix if a bidding war between Comcast Corp. and Walt Disney Co. drives Twenty-First Century Fox Inc. to break up some assets.

Netflix was among the top gainers in the S&P 500 Index on Tuesday, even as concern about an expanding trade war with China dragged the benchmark lower for a third day. The stock climbed as much as 3 percent Tuesday and crossed $400 apiece for the first time, putting it on pace to reach yet another record close. Netflix carries an average price target of $340, an 18 percent discount to Tuesday’s record high.

“The combination of engaging new content, momentum in overseas markets and a business model that scales globally increasingly sets Netflix apart from its legacy competitors,” wrote Monness Crespi analyst Brian White in a note Tuesday. White, lifting his price target to $460, expects the market to reward Netflix with higher price-to-earnings multiples as "global content is paving the way."

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As Netflix continues to invest in itself, coupled with other strategic initiatives such as a joint venture in the U.K., Wall Street anticipates continued growth in subscribers and scale. Piper Jaffray analyst Michael Olson, who raised his price target to $420, expects subscriber growth in Netflix’s international segment to exceed the Wall Street consensus in the second quarter.

(Updates share performance in headline, third paragraph.)

Goldman Warns the Rise of the Machines Leaves Markets Exposed

High-frequency traders are a threat to markets as they “know the price of everything and the value of nothing,” according to Goldman Sachs, quoting Oscar Wilde.

Computers are prized for their ability to process massive amounts of data better than humans. But it’s their relative inability to process a complex world that might lead machines to worry that humans know something they don’t when markets go haywire -- and exit a situation in which they don’t have the upper hand, wrote strategists led by co-Chief Markets Economist Charles Himmelberg in a note.

There’s an old poker adage that if you can’t spot the sucker at the table in your first half hour, it’s probably you. The same thinking informs why HFTs tend to withdraw in chaotic markets, according to Himmelberg.

“When shocks of unknown origin cause sudden price declines, HFTs may have reason to assume that the shock is being driven by fundamental news (e.g., if the price decline follows a complex macro surprise or dramatic policy announcement),” the strategists wrote Tuesday. “Under these circumstances, HFTs are at higher risk of being adversely selected by more fundamentally informed traders, so their optimal response is to withdraw liquidity by widening their quotes or by withdrawing them altogether.”

This can cause a feedback loop if the selling continues, leading to a lack of liquidity and thus bigger price declines, which drives HFTs to supply even less liquidity and in some cases even aggressively demanding liquidity, according to Goldman.

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Thus, the increasing popularity of algorithmic trading may be making markets more fragile. Indeed, abrupt “flash crashes” have occurred across stocks, fixed income, foreign exchange and volatility markets since 2010 amid this rise of the machines.

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Computerized trading comes with other risks. There’s little capital backing the most of these operations and a quick withdrawal of liquidity by HFTs could reinforce the negative perception of a macroeconomic event, adding to a vicious feedback loop, according to Goldman.

“Vulnerabilities in the new market structures are under-appreciated simply because they have not yet been stress tested by this long expansion,” Himmelberg wrote. “To us, the rapid growth of financial innovation and market share of HFT liquidity supply during the post-crisis period feels uncomfortably familiar.”

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