LargeCap Stocks to Keep an Eye on Today

Tomahawk, WI 8/16/2011 (PennyPayDay) – Clothing chain Urban Outfitters reported second-quarter earnings that fell 21% to $56.7 million, or 35 cents a share, as profit margins shrank.

The company beat analysts' expectations for earnings of 32 cents a share, boosting the shares in after-hours trading Monday. However, the stock was giving back those gains, plunging 10.4% to $26.61 in premarket trading Tuesday.

Solar panel maker Evergreen Solar has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy as it caved under stiff competition from cheaper Chinese products.

Share were dropping 9.4% to 16.3 cents.

Private-equity firm Carlyle Group is in exclusive talks to buy drug company Pharmaceutical Product Development for possibly as much as $4.3 billion, according to Bloomberg.

Pharmaceutical Product Development shares were popping 3.5% to $32.60.

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway hasinitiated a small stake in the discount retail chain Dollar General, and now has a $51 million position.

Dollar General shares were popping 3.3% to $33.24.

BP has replaced its head of strategy as the company tries to find ways to revive its share price following last year's $41 billion Gulf of Mexico oil spill, Bloomberg reported.

Shares were down 3.2% to $40.34.

Wal-Mart reported its ninth consecutive decline in U.S. same-store sales, but second-quarter earnings and total revenue topped forecasts, sending shares up 2.9% to $51.45 in premarket trading Tuesday.

The retail giant earned $1.09 a share on revenue of $108.6 billion, receiving a boost from Sam's Club and its international unit. Analysts were calling for a profit of $1.08 a share on revenue of $108.28 billion.

Shares of Agilent Technologies were falling 2.8% to $36.45 after the measurement company forecasted adjusted net income of 79 cents to 81 cents a share on revenue of $1.74 billion to $1.76 billion in the current quarter. Analysts were estimating earnings of 81 cents a share on revenue of $1.75 billion.

Third-quarter revenue came in at $1.69 billion, roughly in line with the Wall Street consensus target of $1.66 billion. The company posted third-quarter profit of 77 cents a share vs. the average analyst estimate of 73 cents a share.

Home Depot, the No. 1 home-improvement retailer, raised its earnings outlook for the fiscal year and said second-quarter profit rose 14.3% on a rebound in its seasonal business.

Home Depot shares were rising 2.5% to $32.23.

Home Depot earned $1.36 billion, or 86 cents a share, in the second quarter, up from year-earlier earnings of $1.19 billion, or 72 cents a share. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expected Home Depot to earn 83 cents a share.

Computer company Dell is expected to report second-quarter profit of 49 cents a share after the markets close Tuesday vs. last year's profit of 32 cents a share. Shares were down 0.3% to $15.45.

Branded food products company J.M. Smucker cut coffee prices by 6% for the majority of its brands including Folgers, as the costs for green coffee fell.

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Top Large Cap Tech Stocks

The following is a list of large-cap tech stocks. Judging by their earnings results relative to analyst estimates over the last year, it's clear that these tech giants are being underestimated by analysts.

To create this list, we started with a universe of large-cap tech stocks. We the collected earnings surprise data on all these stocks, and narrowed down the list to the companies that have the highest average earnings surprise rate over the last year.

How long will their winning streak continue, and how long until the good news fully priced in? Details below.

The list has been sorted by the average earnings surprise over the last year.

1. SanDisk Corp. (SNDK): Semiconductor Industry. Market cap of $8.89B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 72.46% over the last year. Short float at 7.38%, which implies a short ratio of 1.42 days. The stock has gained 75.68% over the last year.

2. Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO): Internet Information Providers Industry. Market cap of $21.05B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 63.54% over the last year. Short float at 4.77%, which implies a short ratio of 2.34 days. The stock has gained 0.62% over the last year.

3. Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT): Semiconductor Equipment & Materials Industry. Market cap of $16.54B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 62.43% over the last year. Short float at 1.8%, which implies a short ratio of 1.22 days. The stock has lost -2.75% over the last year.

4. Activision Blizzard, Inc. (ATVI): Multimedia & Graphics Software Industry. Market cap of $14.01B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 39.81% over the last year. Short float at 4.1%, which implies a short ratio of 2.02 days. The stock has gained 0.78% over the last year.

5. United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC): Semiconductor Equipment & Materials Industry. Market cap of $7.46B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 38.52% over the last year. Short float at 0.39%, which implies a short ratio of 3.75 days. The stock has lost -22.43% over the last year.

6. Apple Inc. (AAPL): Personal Computers Industry. Market cap of $275.65B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 33.25% over the last year. Short float at 1%, which implies a short ratio of 0.47 days. The stock has gained 45.17% over the last year.

7. Autodesk, Inc. (ADSK): Technical & System Software Industry. Market cap of $8.02B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 27.25% over the last year. Short float at 3.98%, which implies a short ratio of 2.86 days. The stock has gained 30.67% over the last year.

8. Intuit Inc. (INTU): Application Software Industry. Market cap of $15.1B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 25.43% over the last year. Short float at 1.98%, which implies a short ratio of 1.44 days. The stock has gained 56.72% over the last year.

9. Teradata Corporation (TDC): Diversified Computer Systems Industry. Market cap of $6.51B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 21.49% over the last year. Short float at 0.96%, which implies a short ratio of 0.93 days. The stock has gained 29.27% over the last year.

10. Rogers Communications Inc. (RCI): Wireless Communications Industry. Market cap of $20.36B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 19.99% over the last year. Short float at 3.82%, which implies a short ratio of 49.79 days. The stock has gained 17.99% over the last year.

11. Garmin Ltd. (GRMN): Scientific & Technical Instruments Industry. Market cap of $5.68B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 19.53% over the last year. Short float at 16.84%, which implies a short ratio of 13.09 days. The stock has lost -3.13% over the last year.

12. Intel Corporation (INTC): Semiconductor Industry. Market cap of $117.58B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 17.64% over the last year. Short float at 0.96%, which implies a short ratio of 0.78 days. The stock has gained 6.09% over the last year.

13. Maxim Integrated Products Inc. (MXIM): Semiconductor Industry. Market cap of $6.61B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 17.05% over the last year. Short float at 7.69%, which implies a short ratio of 6.35 days. The stock has gained 24.8% over the last year.

14. Flextronics International Ltd. (FLEX): Printed Circuit Boards Industry. Market cap of $5.29B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 16.8% over the last year. Short float at 2.61%, which implies a short ratio of 2.95 days. The stock has lost -5.6% over the last year.

15. Dolby Laboratories Inc. (DLB): Diversified Electronics Industry. Market cap of $7.21B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 16.61% over the last year. Short float at 7.3%, which implies a short ratio of 5.51 days. The stock has gained 48.84% over the last year.

16. Advanced Semiconductor Engineering Inc. (ASX): Semiconductor Equipment & Materials Industry. Market cap of $5.47B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 16.42% over the last year. Short float at 0.29%, which implies a short ratio of 4.12 days. The stock has gained 0.22% over the last year.

17. Agilent Technologies Inc. (A): Scientific & Technical Instruments Industry. Market cap of $12.2B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 16.19% over the last year. Short float at 1.68%, which implies a short ratio of 1.79 days. The stock has gained 18.83% over the last year.

18. Avago Technologies Limited (AVGO): Semiconductor Industry. Market cap of $5.89B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 16.11% over the last year. Short float at 4.45%, which implies a short ratio of 2.6 days. The stock has gained 53.08% over the last year.

19. Cree Inc. (CREE): Semiconductor Equipment & Materials Industry. Market cap of $6.11B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 16.07% over the last year. Short float at 21.78%, which implies a short ratio of 4.68 days. The stock has gained 18.11% over the last year.

20. Microsoft Corporation (MSFT): Application Software Industry. Market cap of $218.76B. The company has outperformed analyst earnings estimates by an average of 16.06% over the last year. Short float at 0.94%, which implies a short ratio of 1.14 days. The stock has lost -13% over the last year.