The News Issue Week Day
RICH AMERICA, POOR AMERICA The split nature of today's economy has been great for stock like Coach, tough for ones like Wal-Mart. Why that won't change much, even as the Democrats gain clout in Washington. he New IBM
Big Blue's shareholders have been blue for the past few years. But the tech giant has a new strategy, focused on software. Best of all, it's working.
Randall Forsyth The buck may be real loser in Iraq ...
Review&Preview A vote keeps ASMI intact. Going more nuclear ...
Storming Ahead, After run-up, a few insurers look good ...and Direct TV
Smooth Style Polo stock will stay in fashion ...
Follow the Leaders Copying smart stockpickers is one way to build a best-ideas portfolio, and it saves on management fees. A look at Oracle, Sears, AutoZone,Wendy's and other top holding of five closely watched hedge funds ...
Coming Spinoff Duke Energy's powerful idea ...
The New Big Blue Cover Story: IBM investors may soon be smiling like CEO Palmisano, as Wall Street comes to realize that Big Blue's reinvention as a software giant gives it a steadier, more profitable business with plenty of potential for further improvement ...
Spreading Joy The four rules of good giving ...
Technology Trader Microsoft stock could be ready for takeoff, now that new version of Vista and office have launched ...
13 Great Gadgets Our pick for sleek and sophisticated gadget gifts include Sony TAV-L1 all-in-one home theater, a digital SLR camera, Logitech's Harmony 1000 universal remote ...
Thursday
Static - Free TV
DIRECTV GROUP HAS RALLIED MORE than 60% this year, to 23, amid talk the satellite operator might merge with rival EchoStar Communications (ticker:
DISH), or find itself the subject of an asset swap between 38% holder News Corp. (NWS) and Liberty Media (LINTA). De spite the run~up, it may be too soon to sell the shares (ticker: DTV), as the company continues to generate cash and post higher earnings, much as we predicted last year ("Beam Me Up," April 11, 2005).
Indeed, DirecTV has generated about $1 billion of free cash flow before interest and taxes this year, doubling last year's output, and analysts expect earnings per share to jump 21% next year, to $1.31.
In the third quarter, DirecTV's cus tomer churn rate was a higher-than-ex pected 1.8%, and the company added fewer new subscribers than expected. But it was able to boost its percentage of higher-qual ity customers while containing subscriber acquisition costs. Also, satellite-TV play ers continue to win "eyeballs," despite in tensifying competition from cable. Di recTV has 15.68 million subscribers, up from 14.9 million last spring.
As Ban'on's Mark Veverka recently pointed out, DirecTV has customer-service problems ("I No Longer Want My. Di recTv," Nov. 13). And a merger might not oc cur. But, at about 18 times estimated '07 earn ings. DirecTV "is undervalued," says Tem pleton Investments analyst Matthew Na gle. Longer-term, he says, the stock is worth at least 10% more than its current price.
-ccw
Complete Archive Desember 2006
The New Cisco
As technologies like Internet video take off, Cisco Systems, the king of computer networking, will be among the biggest winners. Why its shares could rally another 15%.
Survivor! GOP Will Hang On Despite a profusion of predictions to the contrary, the Republicans will keep control of Congress through just barely. So says our highly reliable seat by seat analysis of local political funding.
The New IBM Big Blue's shareholders have been blue for the past few years. But the tech giant has a new strategy, focused on software. Best of all, it's working.
