Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) Tablet: Finally Some Competition for Apple’s iPad?

Atlanta, GA 6/26/12 (StreetBeat) -- Apple (Nasdaq:AAPL) has cemented its dominance in the tablet market, but that hasn't stopped competitors from trying to chip away at the iPad's market share and fight for the runner up position. The latest entrant, Microsoft's (Nasdaq:MSFT) "Surface," was introduced last week with strong fanfare. But its time in the spotlight may be short-lived as Google (Nasdaq:GOOG) is expected to unveil their own tablet, the Nexus 7during this week's I/O developer's conference.

"For Google this is certainly a big opportunity," says David Garrity of GVA Research, adding that the tech behemoth may be better positioned to beat out Microsoft due to its history across software and hardware, especially after acquiring Motorola Mobility.

"Google I think could potentially have a product that does pose a threat. However, that said, Apple is still the name to beat in terms of the space," says Garrity. He points to Apple's unparalleled momentum and years of brand equity as primary reasons why Google and just about any other competitor will have trouble making significant dent in the tablet market.

As for Microsoft and the aforementioned Surface, Garrity suggests they may not even be competing for the same customers. He predicts the company's foray into hardware (Xbox not withstanding) will put the Surface more in line with Ultrabooks in terms of pricing rather than slightly cheaper tablets. Garrity says Microsoft won't "throw over a business model that has served them reasonably well for about the last 30 years to come out and transform wholly into an integrated provider of hardware and software." Rather, in his view the Surface is a product that will highlight the strengths of Windows 8 and what the platform is capable of.

With Apple, Google, and Microsoft leading the tablet pack, Garrity reminds us not to discount the old guards like Dell (Nasdaq:DELL) and Hewlett Packard (NYSE:HPQ). He argues both have perfectly good reasons to enter the fray, but whether or not they do depends on Microsoft loyalty for Dell and whether Meg Whitman can, or even wants to, succeed in a market that her HP predecessors clearly avoided.

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Microsoft's (Nasdaq: MSFT) long and tortured history in tablets

Palm Beach, FL 6/19/12 (StreetBeat) -- For decades, the tablet computer was like a mirage in the technology industry: a great idea, seemingly reachable on the horizon, that disappointed as hopeful companies got closer. Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) has experienced this cycle of hope and disappointment many times.

The device unveiled by the Redmond Wash.-based software giant on Monday —the Surface— isn't the first tablet it envisioned. Indeed, the company's engineers have been trying to reshape personal computing for as long as there's been a PC.

The first PCs had keyboards, borrowed from the typewriter. But people quickly started wondering whether pens, which are more comfortable writing tools, wouldn't be a better basis for personal computing.

Several companies worked pen-based computing in the late 1980s, and Microsoft jumped on the trend. By 1991, it released "Windows for Pen Computing," an add-on to Windows 3.1 that let the operating system accept input from an active "pen" (really a stylus). Several devices used Microsoft's software, and are recognizable as the ancestors of today's tablets: They were square, portable slabs with a screen on one side. They weren't designed to respond to finger-touches, however: the reigning paradigm was that of the notepad and pen.

The pen-computing fad subsided in the 90s. While PenWindows tablets got a lot of attention, mainstream computing remained stubbornly keyboard-based.

In 2002, Microsoft founder Bill Gates said these early tablet ventures were "almost painful to recall," but not to worry. He had something much better, a device that would fulfill "a dream that I and others have had for years and years," he said. It was Windows for XP Tablet PC Edition. This time, hardware makers like Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ), Samsung Electronics, Toshiba Corp. (OTCBB: TSYY) and Acer Group played along, producing tablet PCs.

Like the earlier generation, some of these looked like today's tablets, but inside, they were really PCs. Compared to an iPad, they were expensive — at around $1,500 — heavy, and didn't last long on battery power. Buyers paid a lot for the ability to enter things on the screen with a pen.

Another problem was that the pen-based adaptations were skin-deep. Windows remained a thoroughly keyboard-and-mouse-based operating system, and many functions were simply hard to get to with a pen. Third-party applications weren't converted for pen use at all. As a backup, many of these tablets had keyboards, just like laptops.

The tablet PCs found homes in a few business settings, where a PC that could be used while standing, at least for short periods, was welcome. But they remained a niche product, and the number of manufacturers who made tablet PCs steadily shrank.

In parallel with the Tablet PC push, Microsoft prompted partners such as Fujitsu and ViewSonic to create Smart Displays. These were big tablets intended for home use, and each one was linked to a PC through Wi-Fi, making it something of an expensive monitor with short-range portability. This was supposed to be a cheaper alternative to a full-blown tablet, but the devices reached shelves at $1,000 and more in 2003. While a Smart Display was in use, the associated PC could not be used. Very few were sold, and Microsoft cancelled the project the same year.

Microsoft gave tablets another try in 2006, launching "Project Origami" with some of its partners. The idea was to make really small PCs with screens sensitive not just to pens, but to fingers. This time, fewer companies followed along. One of them was Samsung, which had high hopes for its "Q1".

But Microsoft hadn't learned much from its Tablet PC adventure. Windows was still hard to use with anything other than a keyboard. The "Ultra-Mobile PCs" were still expensive and suffered from very short battery life — the Q1 could surf the Web for about 2 hours. One thing they did get right was weight — the Q1 weighed 1.7 pounds, just a bit more than a first-generation iPad.

In 2008, reports emerged of yet another tablet computer, or rather a "booklet computer," being developed by Microsoft. Code-named "Courier," it had two screens joined by a hinge, and facing each other. It was designed for pen and finger input. Microsoft cancelled the project in 2010, saying it was just one of many projects it tests to "foster productivity and creativity."

One touch-based computer that did see the light of day in 2008 was Microsoft Surface. It was more of a table than a tablet: the computer was a big box that sat on a floor, with a big, horizontal screen on top. It was intended not for home use but for store displays and similar applications. Unusually, Microsoft didn't rely on hardware partners for this product, but made and sold it on its own. Intended as a niche product, it has remained one.

Microsoft has had one notable success in the tablet space — if you apply a broad definition to the term. Its "Pocket PC" operating system, which is distinct from Windows, ran on phone-sized hand-held "personal digital assistants" starting around 2000. The devices were powerful compared to Palm's PDAs, the market leaders of their time. The Pocket PCs supported color screens, and could recognize casual handwriting. Compaq made good use of Microsoft's Pocket PC software in its popular iPAQ line. But PDAs were a small market, and when Pocket PC moved over to smartphones and was renamed Windows Mobile, it soon found tough competition in the shape of BlackBerrys and then iPhones.

The company that finally cracked the tablet code in 2010 was Apple, not Microsoft. Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) made the iPad a success by scaling up a phone rather than scaling down a PC, which is what Microsoft had been trying to do with the Tablet PC and Origami. Phone chips are cheap and last much longer on batteries, which meant that the iPad was both light, inexpensive and had good battery life. In addition, the iPhone software it used was designed from the ground up for touch input.

Microsoft's new strategy is similar. For Windows 8, it's borrowing design features from Windows Phone, its new smartphone system. Most importantly, one version of the software is designed to run on phone-style chips, rather than the PC-style chips that have been the mainstay of Windows since it was created in the 1980s. It remains to be seen whether Microsoft can make its tablet vision a reality, or if it will stay a mirage.

Please contact www.thestreetbeat.com for interest in our latest investor relations platform the “CEO Interview Series” with its host Steve Kanaval. The package includes a one-on-one interview with a seasoned industry professional; published segment to our web site with embedded audio/video file; and a compressed file that can be easily e-mailed out to your current and/or potential investors. Please e-mail bflautt@gmail.com or call (662) 392-0740 for pricing and scheduling.

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DoMark International (OTCBB:DOMK) Receives Confirmation That 1st “SolaPad” Units Are Being Prepared for Shipment

Atlanta, GA 5/25/12 (StreetBeat) -- DoMark International Inc. (OTCBB: DOMK) announced today that management of its wholly-owned subsidiary, SolaWerks, has confirmation from the manufacturer of the hot new “SolaPad” product that the first order of production units are being prepared for shipment. Management anticipates pre-orders for “SolaPad” will be accepted via the SolaWerks website by the middle of next week. Deliveries to pre-order customers are anticipated to begin during the 1st week of June.

The revolutionary new SolaPad product is an ever-charging solar and battery system that fits all versions of the Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPad. Once an iPad is placed into a SolaPad sleeve, there is theoretically no reason to ever plug the iPad into any wall-mounted charger again.

About SolaWerks:

SolaWerks, Inc. is a newly formed subsidiary, wholly owned by Domark International Inc. SolaWerks' current focus is to develop and distribute the SolaPad: a combined cover and charging system for Apple's iPad, and the SolaCase: a combined cover and charging system for all versions of Apple's iPhone. SolaWerks competes in a market that also includes Hewlett Packard (NYSE: HPQ), IBM (NYSE: IBM) and ReneSola (NYSE: SOL).

SolaWerks has launched its "SolaCase" product for all versions of the Apple iPhone. Similar to the SolaPad, the SolaCase contains a large, high-efficiency solar panel on its reverse side, plus an additional internal battery to keep the iPhone charged at all times.

Please contact www.thestreetbeat.com for interest in our latest investor relations platform the “CEO Interview Series” with its host Steve Kanaval. The package includes a one-on-one interview with a seasoned industry professional; published segment to our web site with embedded audio/video file; and a compressed file that can be easily e-mailed out to your current and/or potential investors. Please e-mail bflautt@gmail.com or call (662) 392-0740 for pricing and scheduling.

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Hewlett Packard (NYSE: HPQ) to lay off 27,000, profit slides 31 percent

Orlando, FL 5/24/12 (StreetBeat) -- Hewlett Packard Co (NYSE: HPQ) plans to lay off roughly 27,000 employees or about 8 percent of its workforce over the next couple of years to jumpstart growth and save up to $3.5 billion annually, sending its shares 11 percent higher.

The company said the layoffs would be made mainly through early retirement and would generate annual savings of $3 billion to $3.5 billion as it exits fiscal year 2014, when the layoffs are expected to the completed.

The world's No. 1 personal computer maker, which employs more than 300,000 people globally, also said on Wednesday that it had a 31 percent decline in second-quarter profit and a 3 percent decline in revenue, compared with a year ago.

The results, however, were better than Wall Street expectations.

Layoffs "adversely impact people's lives, but in this case, they are absolutely critical to the long-term health of the company," Chief Executive Meg Whitman said.

"This is broad based," she said in an interview. "By design, it will touch all of HP."

Whitman said a third of the layoffs would be in the United States. The company will take a pretax charge of $1.7 billion in fiscal 2012 related to the layoffs.

Whitman plans to boost spending on research and development, especially in printing and PCs, with the savings from the cost cuts.

Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu said the quarter was surprisingly strong for HP, which had missed its own forecast most quarters in the last 18 months and prior to Whitman taking over as CEO.

"Everyone expected a miss, given what Dell said," Wu said. "It looks like HP is regaining its footing."

Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) shares on Wednesday plunged 17 percent following weaker than expected results and a disappointing revenue forecast spurred fears that global tech spending is weakening faster than anticipated.

HP itself has been trying to move past the internal upheaval that marked 2011, including the departure of two chief executives.

Whitman, a veteran Silicon Valley executive who took the top job last September, has been trying to turn the company around.

Whitman said both business leaders and consumers in Europe were worried about the region's economy, which is hurting HP's business. She warned that the European debt crisis was a big "headwind" the company was facing.

HP reported second-quarter net income of $1.59 billion, or 80 cents a share, compared with $2.3 billion, or $1.05 a share, a year ago. Revenue of $30.69 billion was down 3 percent compared with the same period last year.

Excluding after-tax costs for amortization, restructuring charges and acquisition-related charges, HP said it earned 98 cents a share, compared with analysts' average estimate of 91 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

TABLET LAUNCH FOR HOLIDAY

Whitman, who has been at the helm for six months, said the company also plans to launch tablets -- for both consumers and corporations -- later this year.

"We will have a Windows 8 tablet for the holiday," she said.

This would be HP's second attempt in the tablet market. HP killed its previous WebOS-based TouchPad tablet last year after just seven weeks on store shelves, citing poor demand.

Whitman also said HP's acquisition of British software company Autonomy for over $11 billion is facing challenges, and results in the division fell short of HP's expectations.

HP has moved the division under its chief strategy officer Bill Veghte. Autonomy founder Mike Lynch will be leaving the company.

Results from HP's other divisions were also weak.

Sales from the personal systems group, encompassing PCs, were flat with a decline in sales to consumers offsetting revenue from commercial clients.

Revenue from its bread-and-better printing group, which is being merged with the PC group, fell 10 percent after weak consumer and corporate demand.

"We improved the channel inventory to within an acceptable range," Whitman said on a conference call, referring to the printing group. "However, we continue to face a weak demand environment."

Sales of enterprise servers, storage and networking equipment fell 6 percent.

HP shares rose to $22.35 after hours after ending down 3.2 percent at $21.08.

Please contact www.thestreetbeat.com for interest in our latest investor relations platform the “CEO Interview Series” with its host Steve Kanaval. The package includes a one-on-one interview with a seasoned industry professional; published segment to our web site with embedded audio/video file; and a compressed file that can be easily e-mailed out to your current and/or potential investors. Please e-mail bflautt@gmail.com or call (662) 392-0740 for pricing and scheduling.

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Dell (Nasdaq: DELL) shares fall on disappointing results

Palm Beach, FL 5/23/12 (StreetBeat) -- Shares of Dell Inc. (Nasdaq: DELL) tumbled late Tuesday after the computer maker posted quarterly results that fell below expectations, with the company’s chief financial officer pointing to challenges in its business.

Dell (Nasdaq: DELL -16.84%) was down more than 12% after hours.

The company reported a fiscal first-quarter profit of $635 million, or 36 cents a share, compared with a profit of $945 million or 49 cents a share for the year-earlier period.

Revenue was $14.4 billion, down from $15 billion. Adjusted profit was 43 cents a share.

Analysts were expecting the Round Rock, Texas-based Dell to report a profit of 46 cents a share on revenue of $14.9 billion, based on a consensus survey by FactSet Research.

For the current quarter, Dell said it expects revenue to rise sequentially by 2% to 4%, which translates to a range of $14.7 billion to $15 billion.

Analysts were expecting sales of $15.4 billion, according to data from FactSet Research.

The company’s weak outlook appeared to have an impact on shares of rival Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE: HPQ -4.58%), which reports results on Wednesday. H-P’s stock was down more than 2% at last check.

Brian Gladden, the chief financial officer, said Dell had a “mixed quarter,” noting gains in the data storage, networking and services businesses.
However, he added: “The consumer business has become a bit more challenging.”

Gladden also pointed to changes in the consumer market, particularly the shift from laptops to smartphones and tablets. “Consumers today have other options in terms of alternative mobile devices.”

Analysts have noted how the rise of mobile devices hurts PC sales. Dell, for its part, has been pushing harder to expand its presence in higher-margin segments of the tech industry geared to corporate customers. But the company also has been buffeted by macroeconomic issues, including the crisis in Europe and weaker public-sector spending.

“Nasty” was how ISI analyst Brian Marshall described Dell’s results, adding that “I am sure they will have to lower expectations.”

Sterne Agee analyst Shaw Wu said the company had a “disappointing quarter despite low expectations. … It looks like the turnaround efforts the company is making is taking longer than expected.”

Please contact www.thestreetbeat.com for interest in our latest investor relations platform the “CEO Interview Series” with its host Steve Kanaval. The package includes a one-on-one interview with a seasoned industry professional; published segment to our web site with embedded audio/video file; and a compressed file that can be easily e-mailed out to your current and/or potential investors. Please e-mail bflautt@gmail.com or call (662) 392-0740 for pricing and scheduling.

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Tomahawk, WI 2/29/2012 (StreetBeat) – First Solar reported fourth-quarter profit and revenue below Wall Street's expectations. It also lowered its revenue and cash flow outlook for fiscal 2012.

For the three months ended Dec. 31, First Solar posted an adjusted profit of $110 million, or $1.26 a share, on net sales of $660 million, down more than 30% on a sequential basis.

Analysts were expecting earnings of $1.53 a share on sales of $779.3 million.

First Solar reduced its fiscal 2012 revenue view to between $3.5 billion and $3.8 billion from a prior projection of $3.7 billion to $4 billion.

Shares were dropping 7.5% to $33.68 in premarket trading on Wednesday.

Staples , the office-products retailer, reported fourth-quarter net income of $283.6 million, or 41 cents a share, on sales of $6.46 billion.

Staples was expected by analysts to earn 41 cents a share in the fourth quarter on revenue of $6.45 billion.

Shares were popping 3% at $16.48.

Costco , the warehouse retailer, earned $394 million, or 90 cents a share, in its fiscal second quarter, up from $348 million, or 79 cents, a year earlier.

Total revenue jumped 10% to $23 billion.

Analysts expected Costco to earn 87 cents a share on revenue of $22.83 billion.
Shares were rising 1.3% to $86.40.

Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs said they received Wells notices from the Securities and Exchange Commission and could face civil claims tied to sales of mortgage-backed securities.

According to reports, JPMorgan Chase is expected to announce Wednesday that it too received a Wells notice.

The notices generally indicate the SEC plans to bring charges or take other enforcement action against a company.

Shares of Goldman Sachs were sliding 1.2% to $115.70, while JPMorgan shares were up 0.5% to $39.40.

Joy Global , the mining equipment maker, reported first-quarter income from continuing operations of $142 million, or $1.33 a share on net sales of $1.1 billion. Analysts expected earnings of $1.33 a share on sales of $1.16 billion.

Shares were down 0.8% at $91.

Hewlett-Packard plans to lay off 275 employees from its webOS software division, according to reports.

CEO Meg Whitman in December opened up the company's webOS operating system to outside developers.

Shares were flat at $26.19.

DreamWorks Animation reported fourth-quarter net income of $24.3 million, or 29 cents a share, missing the consensus forecast of 32 cents.

Revenue came in at $219 million, beating the $206 million expected by analysts, on average.

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Facebook gearing up for 2012 IPO

Palm Beach, FL 11/29/11 (StreetBeat) --Facebook, the world's largest Internet social network, is preparing for a initial public stock offering next year, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Facebook is exploring raising $10 billion, the Wall Street Journal said on Monday. It hopes the offering will value the company at more than $100 billion, according to WSJ, which first reported the story. Facebook's Chief Financial Officer, David Ebersman, had discussed a public float with Silicon Valley bankers but founder and Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg had not decided on any terms and his plans could change, the Journal said.

The social network, which now claims more than 800 million members after seven years of explosive growth, has not selected bankers to manage what would be a very closely watched IPO. But it had drafted an internal prospectus and was ready at any moment to pull the IPO trigger, the Journal cited people familiar with the matter as saying.

At $100 billion valuation, the company started by Zuckerberg in a Harvard dorm room would have double the valuation of Hewlett-Packard, the Journal said. A formal S-1 filing could come before the end of the year, though nothing was decided, the newspaper added. A Facebook representative declined to comment.

Silicon Valley start-ups have this year begun to test investor appetite for a new wave of dotcoms. If it does debut in 2012, Facebook's IPO would dwarf that of any other dotcom waiting to go public.

"Farmville" creator Zynga has filed for an IPO of up to $1 billion. In November, daily deals service Groupon debuted with much fanfare, only to plunge below its IPO price within weeks. LinkedIn and Pandora are now also trading significantly below the levels their stocks reached during their public debuts earlier this year.

Facebook has become one of the world's most popular Web destinations, challenging established companies such as Google Inc and Yahoo Inc for consumers' online time and for advertising dollars. Facebook does not disclose its financial results, but a source familiar with the situation told Reuters earlier this year that the company's revenue in the first six months of 2011 doubled year-on-year to $1.6 billion.

Eric Feng, a former partner at venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers who now runs social-networking site Erly.com, said that the cash Facebook will get in an IPO would allow them to make more acquisitions and refine or work on new projects, such as a rumored-Facebook phone or a netbook.

Having tradeable stock will also allow Facebook to attract more engineering talent who might have been more attracted to the company in earlier days when it was growing faster but now perhaps might be attracted to other companies. "It'll be a powerful bullet for them," said Feng.

Investors have been increasingly eager to buy shares of Facebook and other fast-growing but privately-held Internet social networking companies on special, secondary-market exchanges. Facebook said in January that it will exceed 500 shareholders this year, and that in accordance with SEC regulations, it will file public financial reports no later than April 30, 2012.

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Swan Lake, MS 11/22/2011 (StreetBeat) – Hewlett-Packard , the computer and printer maker, said fiscal fourth-quarter earnings fell from a year earlier but still topped Wall Street's expectations.

HP said adjusted earnings per share fell 12% from last year to $1.17 per share. Adjusted net revenue for the quarter ended in October dropped 3% to $32.3 billion.

Analysts were expecting profit of $1.13 a share on sales of $32 billion.
Chief Financial Officer Catherine Lesjak said HP was "remaining cautious" about fiscal 2012, and HP forecast non-GAAP earnings of 83 cents a share for its fiscal first quarter ending in January. Wall Street's current consensus view is for a profit of $1.11 a share. For the full year, the Dow component sees non-GAAP earnings of at least $4 per share vs. the average analysts' estimate of $4.54 a share.

Brocade Communications blew past Wall Street's expectations in its fiscal fourth quarter.

The networking equipment company reported adjusted earnings of $79 million, or 16 cents a share, for the three months ended Oct. 29. Revenue was $550 million, up 9% on a sequential basis but virtually flat from last year.

Analysts were calling for a profit of 10 cents a share in the latest quarter on revenue of $527.4 million.

Medtronic , the health care technology provider, is expected by analysts Tuesday to report earnings of 82 cents a share on revenue of $4.1 billion.
Last week, Medtronic agreed to sell Physio-Control, an emergency medical response technology group, to private-equity firm Bain Capital for $487 million.

Campbell Soup , the soup maker, is expected by analysts Tuesday to report earnings of 79 cents a share on revenue of $2.2 billion.

Chico's , the women's retailer, is expected by analysts to post third-quarter earnings of 20 cents a share on revenue of $548.5 million. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters expect same-store sales for the quarter to rise mor e than 5%.

Gilead Sciences agreed on Monday to buy Pharmasset for $11 billion in cash and debt, vaulting Gilead into the lead to develop the next generation of all-oral hepatitis C therapies.

The acquisition price of $137 a share was an 89% premium to Pharmasset's closing price Friday of $72.67.

Pharmasset shares rose 84.6% Monday to close at $134.14.

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Netlist Signs Deals with IBM and HP For Its Hypercloud Technology

Tallahassee, FL 11/15/11 (StreetBeat) --Netlist Inc (Nasdaq: NLST) said it signed deals with Hewlett Packard Co (NYSE: HPQ) and International Business Machines Corp (NYSE: IBM) to make its flagship product HyperCloud memory system compatible with their servers.

The company's shares rose 15 percent in extended trade, following the announcement. They closed at at $2.35 on Monday on Nasdaq. It is currently trading up 29% at $3.05.

The deal with IBM is non-exclusive, while the HP agreement is exclusive for a period of time, Netlist said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

About Netlist:
Netlist develops technology solutions for customer applications in which high-speed, high-capacity, small form factor and heat dissipation are key requirements for system memory. These customers include OEMs that design and build tower servers, rack-mounted servers, blade servers, high-performance computing clusters, engineering workstations and telecommunications equipment. Founded in 2000, Netlist is headquartered in Irvine, CA with manufacturing facilities in Suzhou, People's Republic of China.

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Tomahawk, WI 11/8/2011 (StreetBeat) – Priceline.comhandily beat Wall Street expectations for its third-quarter results.

The online travel booking company posted non-GAAP earnings of $512.6 million, or $9.95 a share, for the three months ended Sept. 30 on revenue of $1.45 billion, up more than 45% from the same period a year earlier. The average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters was for a profit of $9.30 a share on revenue of $1.42 billion in the latest quarter.

Shares rose 3.4% to $526.05.

Activision Blizzard reports third-quarter earnings after the close Tuesday. Analysts expect the game developer to earn 2 cents a share in the September-ended period on revenue of $558.4 million.

Activision on Tuesday released the latest Call of Duty title, Modern Warfare 3.

Shares were up 3.4% to $14.20.

Hewlett-Packard is looking to sell Palm's webOS mobile software platform, according to Reuters, which cited four sources close to the matter.

A sale of the unit could go for hundreds of millions of dollars but less than the $1.2 billion that HP paid last year, Reuters said.

Several technology companies -- including Amazon and Research In Motion -- have expressed an interest in buying the division, which is seen as attractive for its patents, the sources said.

The stock is up 50 cents to $28.02 in premarket trading Tuesday.

Dynegy's holding company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Dynegy, the Houston-based energy company, filed for bankruptcy protection for Dynegy Holdings on Monday. Other Dynegy Holdings units also filed for bankruptcy protection. The parent company wasn't part of the filing.

The filing would lead to losses for bondholders, but wouldn't involve shareholders because the parent company isn't part of the filing, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Shares are down 5.4% to $2.79.

Toyota said fiscal second-quarter earnings fell 18.5% to 80.4 billion yen ($1 billion) as sales fell almost 5% because of parts shortages the company incurred from the earthquake and tsunami in March.

The company didn't give a forecast for the full year because of recent flooding in Thailand, which Japan's top automaker said has hurt production.

The stock fell 3.9% to $62.90 in premarket trading Tuesday.

Reporting earnings Tuesday are Take-Two Interactive, Fossil and Scotts Miracle-Gro.

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Tomahawk, WI 9/23/2011 (PennyPayDay) – San Jose, Calif.-based networking chipmaker Cavium lowered its revenue outlook, citing weak enterprise and software services demand.

The company now expects a sequential decline in revenue for its fiscal third quarter of 4% to 6% from its second-quarter total of $71.6 million. That implies revenue ranging from $67.3 million to $68.7 million for the three months ending in September. The current average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters is for revenue of $73.4 million.

Shares were plummeting 12.7% to $27.24.

Silvercorp Metals was plunging 7.3% to $6.32 in premarket trading Friday ahead of the silver miner's annual meeting at 1 p.m. EDT. Shares have been tumbling amid what the company said have been attacks by "a group of well-organized and well-planned illegal short-sellers trying to profit by manipulating Silvercorp's share price with false and selective statements, fabrications and rumors" over the last two weeks.

Silvercorp said it has appointed an independent committee of its board to investigate the allegations.

Separately on Thursday, the company said it repurchased about $35 million worth of shares.

Nike sprinted past Wall Street's profit expectations for its fiscal first quarter as revenue grew 18% year over year, thanks to robust global demand.

The Beaverton, Ore.-based maker of athletic footwear and apparel reported earnings of $645 million, or $1.36 a share, with revenue totaling $6.08 billion. The performance was well ahead of the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters for earnings of $1.21 a share in the period on revenue of $5.75 billion.

Shares were gaining 4.7% to $88.15.

Mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton were falling in premarket trading as global iron ore prices threaten their first, four-year drop since 1982, as supplies mount.

Rio Tinto shares were tumbling 3.2% to $44.58 and BHP Billiton was slumping 2.4% to $65.64.

Tibco Software posted non-GAAP earnings of $39.4 million, or 23 cents a share, on revenue of $229 million for the fiscal third quarter. The average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters was for a profit of 21 cents a share in the quarter on revenue of $220 million.

Strong growth in licensing revenue led to the solid upside profit surprise in the company's third quarter.

Shares were adding 2.3% to $21.45.

After two days of rumor and speculation, Hewlett-Packard unveiled Meg Whitman, the former head of eBay, as the company's new CEO, ending Leo Apotheker's brief but turbulent spell in the company's hot seat.

The No. 1 PC maker confirmed Apotheker's ouster and Whitman's appointment in a statement released after markets closed on Thursday.

HP shares were down 1.5% to $22.45.

McDonald's said it is returning even more cash to shareholders, boosting its dividend by 15%. The Dow component said its board has approved lifting its quarterly payout to 70 cents a share from 61 cents, payable on Dec. 15 to shareholders of record on Dec. 1.

The higher dividend, which will total about $700 million per quarter, represents a forward annual yield of 3.2% based on Thursday's closing price of $85.99.

Shares were down 0.3% to $85.75.

Homebuilder KB Home reported a third-quarter loss of 13 cents a share vs. the average analyst estimate of loss of 19 cents a share. Shares were unchanged at $5.72.

Cintas, the maker of specialized products and services to all types of businesses, reported first-quarter profit of 52 cents a share vs. the average analyst estimate of 47 cents a share.

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Tomahawk, WI 9/15/2011 (PennyPayDay) – Transcept Pharmaceuticals announced a plan to resubmit the new drug application for its proposed insomnia drug Intermezzo by the end of the month.

Shares were surging 41.3% to $4.72 in premarket trading Thursday.

Online movie rental company Netflix on Thursday said it was lowering is third-quarter domestic subscriber estimates.

"We know our decision to split our services has upset many of our subscribers, which we don't take lightly, but we believe this split will help us make our services better for subscribers and shareholders for years to come," the company said in a statement.

Shares were plummeting 15% to $177.51.

UBS, the Swiss bank, said Thursday it discovered an estimated $2 billion of losses caused by a rogue trader.

Shares were tumbling 10.6% to $11.34.

Shares of Microsoft were inching up 0.9% to $26.73 as the software products company said 500,000 copies of the preview version of Windows 8 have been downloaded since its debut this week.

Shares Intel were up 0.8% to $21.28 as Bloomberg reported the chipmaker sold $5 billion of five-, 10- and 30-year bonds -- its first sale of non-convertible debt since 1987.

Shares of Hewlett-Packard were ticking up 0.6% to $23.08 as Bloomberg reported that HP options traders have been at their most bullish in two years amid optimism that the company's transition away from personal computers will prove to be successful.

BlackBerry maker Research In Motion is expected by analysts Thursday to report second-quarter earnings of 88 cents a share vs. last year's earnings of $1.46 a share. Shares were down 0.2% to $29.65.

General Motors and Chrysler agreed with the United Auto Workers to extend contracts after the parties failed to reach a new agreement by a midnight deadline.

GM shares were flat at $22.17.

Food and beverage giant PepsiCo announced a management shake-up at its biggest unit, the Americas beverage division. The unit has been losing its edge to arch rival Coca-Cola.

Shares were trading sideways at $61.63.

Filtration and industrial products maker Clarcor posted a profit of $32.1 million, or 63 cents a share, for the third quarter on revenue of $284.8 million, up from its year-ago equivalent earnings of $28.3 million, or 55 cents a share, on revenue of $262.8 million. The earnings were below the average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters for earnings of 66 cents a share in the period on revenue of $295.3 million.

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Tomahawk, WI 9/13/2011 (PennyPayDay) – Computer hardware company Hewlett-Packard said Tuesday it was extending the deadline for its offer for Autonomy, the U.K. software company, to Oct. 3 after it received acceptances from only 41.6% of Autonomy shareholders.

Shares were down 0.6% to $22.45 in premarket trading Tuesday.

Networking giant Cisco is holding its annual financial analyst conference on Tuesday at 11 a.m. EDT.

Shares were falling 0.4% to $16.03.

Consumer electronics retailer Best Buy is expected to post second-quarter earnings of 53 cents a share Tuesday vs. last year's earnings of 60 cents a share.

Shares were trading sideways at $24.97.

Chipmaker Intersil has lowered its revenue outlook for the third quarter, citing weak demand across all of its end markets. The company now sees revenue of $184 million to $188 million for the three months ending in September vs. a previous projection of $205 million to $213 million. The current average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters is for revenue of $209 million.

Vertically integrated solar products and services company SunPower said its board has authorized a proposal to reclassify the company's class A and B common shares as a single issue on a one-for-one basis.

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Tomahawk, WI 8/19/2011 (PennyPayDay) – Sprint Nextel in discussions with cable companies about a possible investment that could result in the buyout of partner Clearwire, according to a Bloomberg report.

Clearwire shares were surging 25.5% to $2.90 in premarket trading Friday. Sprint shares were rising 0.3% to $3.50.

HP, desperate to boost its margins, unveiled a major corporate and strategic overhaul Thursday, which will involve ditching its WebOS devices and potentially spinning off its PC business.

The computer hardware company also gave weak guidance after reporting adjusted earnings per share of $1.10 on sales of $31.20 billion for its fiscal third quarter, compared to $1.08 a share on revenue of $30.70 billion reported in the year-ago period.

Analysts expected adjusted earnings per share of $1.09 on sales of $31.17 billion.

Shares were plunging 16.1% to $24.77.

Chipmaker Marvell Technology reported second-quarter earnings of 38 cents a share vs. the Wall Street consensus target of 37 cents a share.

Shares were advancing 9% to $13.05.

Shares of salesforce.com were spiking 5.2% to $120 after the cloud computing applications company increased its full-year revenue guidance to $2.22 billion to $2.23 billion, up from $2.15 billion to $2.17 billion.

The software company posted second-quarter adjusted earnings of 30 cents a share, in line with analysts' estimates. Revenue was $546 million, above analysts' projections of $528.8 million.

Software company Autodesk reported second-quarter profit of 44 cents a share vs. the average analyst estimate of 41 cents a share.

Shares were rising in premarket trading by 3.7% to $27.50.

Barnes & Noble said Liberty Media would invest $204 million in the bookseller, but discussions to buy it for $1 billion have ended.

Barnes & Noble shares were rising 2.6% to $12.40.

Bank of America plans to cut 3,500 jobs in the current quarter and thousands of additional cuts are expected as part of an aggressive overhaul, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation.

Shares were sliding 1.9% to $6.88.

Apparel company Gap has reaffirmed its full-year earnings guidance of $1.40 to $1.50 a share after reporting that its second-quarter profit fell to 35 cents a share from 36 cents a share a year ago. The Wall Street consensus estimate for the quarter was earnings of 33 cents a share.

Shares were up 0.2% to $15.55.

Intuit Inc., the financial management software provider, reported fourth-quarter loss of 19 cents a share vs. loss of 15 cents a share last year.

Revenue was $593 million, beating the average analyst estimate of $583 million.

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LargeCap Stocks to Keep an Eye on Today

Tomahawk, WI 8/18/2011 (PennyPayDay) – Retailer Sears (SHLD) reported a second-quarter loss of $146 million, or $1.37 a share, wider than a year earlier, as domestic comparable-store sales declined. Shares were down 3.7% at $57.91.

A year earlier, Sears lost $39 million, or 35 cents a share.

On an adjusted basis, Sears posted a loss of $1.13 a share. Analysts were forecasting the retailer to lose 64 cents a share in the second quarter.

NetApp (NTAP) shares were dropping 14% after the company said its fiscal first-quarter earnings fell. The computer networking company also issued a weak second-quarter outlook.

Shares of JDS Uniphase (JDSU) were falling 2.7% after the company said it expects its fiscal first-quarter revenue to fall short of analysts' estimates.

The maker of communications equipment maker posted increases in fourth-quarter earnings and sales. But JDS Uniphase said first-quarter net revenue would come in at about $400 million to $425 million; analysts were expecting $471 million.

Consol Energy (CNX) agreed to sell a 50% stake of its Marcellus Shale acreage in Pennsylvania and West Virginia to Noble Energy for $3.4 billion. The companies said the joint development plan calls for the rig count to increase from four to 16 by 2015. Consol shares were up 11% to $47.

Dollar Tree (DLTR) shares were losing 4% to $63.80 after the discount retailer reported weaker-than-expected sales for the second quarter. The company's sales rose 12% to $1.54 billion, but fell short of estimates for $1.55 billion.

Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) is expected to post adjusted quarterly earnings of $1.09 a share after the markets close Thursday on revenue of $31.2 billion. The PC and printer maker earned $1.08 a share a year earlier on revenue of $30.7 billion.

Shares were down 1.2% to $31.02 in premarket trading Thursday.

J.M. Smucker (SJM) booked weaker-than-expected sales of $1.19 billion for the quarter ended July 31, though the figure was 13% higher than a year earlier. Analysts had expected Smucker to book quarterly revenue of $1.25 billion. The company also lowered its 2012 revenue outlook, citing weakening demand and recent price cuts. Adjusted quarterly earnings of $1.12 a share beat expectations by 3 cents.

Coca-Cola (KO) plans to invest $4 billion in China over the next three years as the company tries to improve global growth. China accounts for 7% of Coca-Cola's global sales by volume. The stock was down by 1.4% to $68.32.

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NASA Goes with Hewlett-Packard

Hewlett-Packard has won a contract from NASA worth up to $2.5 billion. The contract was awarded Monday and calls for Hewlett-Packard to provide and manage up to $2.5 billion worth of PCs, software, peripherals, and associated end-user and IT services for the space agency over 10 years, according to a NASA press release. Specifically, HP will offer services to support NASA personnel in business, science, research, and computation.

HP beat out longtime NASA contractor Lockheed Martin to pick up the lucrative project.

"Our team is disappointed that NASA selected another solution," Sheila Collins, a spokeswoman for Lockheed, said in a statement e-mailed to Bloomberg. "We submitted a 'best-value' solution based on our knowledge of the program and our understanding of NASA's mission. We continue to serve NASA on other contracts."

This isn't HP's first contract with the space agency. In 2007, the company took home a seven-year contract worth up to $5.6 billion to provide PCs, printers, and other hardware to any federal agency through NASA's Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement program.

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