For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL - February 1, 2012 - Zacks Equity Research
highlights
Caterpillar, Inc.
(
CAT
) as the Bull of the Day and
Bank of America Corp.'s
(
BAC
) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research
provides analysis on
Cosi Inc.
(
COSI
),
Panera Bread Co.
(
PNRA
) and
Starbucks Corp.
(
SBUX
).
Full analysis of all these stocks is available at
http://at.zacks.com/?id=2678
.
Here is a synopsis of all five stocks:
Bull of the Day
:
Caterpillar Inc.'s
(
CAT
) fourth quarter EPS increased 53% to $2.25 and revenues surged 35%
to a record $17.2 billion, driven by increased machine demand.
Results were way ahead of Zacks Consensus Estimates.
With the Bucyrus acquisition, the company is positioned to be
the #1 mining equipment manufacturer in the U.S. with a strong
footing in the major mining markets of China and India.
Caterpillar's strong brand name, pricing power and global dealer
network put it in a position to capitalize on the growing need for
infrastructure development worldwide.
We maintain our Outperform recommendation, which indicates that
it will perform better than the market. Our $134.00 target price,
14.5x our 2012 EPS estimate, reflects this view.
Bear of the Day
:
Bank of America Corp.'s
(
BAC
) fourth-quarter earnings came in substantially lower than the
Zacks Consensus Estimate. The sale of non-core assets and
accounting gains made it possible for the company to remain
profitable during the quarter. However, excluding nonrecurring
items, the company would have incurred a loss.
Higher non-interest expense was the primary headwind in the
quarterly numbers. Also, capital and liquidity remained weak. For
the full year 2011, the company reported earnings of $0.01 per
share, a nickel lower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Our six-month target price of $6.50 per share equates to about
7.0x our earnings estimate for 2012. This price target implies an
expected negative total return of 8.1% over that period, which is
consistent with our long-term Underperform recommendation on the
shares.
Latest Posts on the Zacks
Analyst Blog
:
Cosi Comps Turn Around in 4Q
Cosi Inc.
(
COSI
) recently reported a 2.6% rise in its system-wide comparable
restaurant sales for the fourth quarter of 2011, after witnessing
declining comps for two consecutive quarters.
The upside in comps was driven by new initiatives and seasonally
mild weather conditions. In the month of December, which is the
holiday period, comps crept up 8.2%. Comparable restaurant sales
represent a key figure, which measures growth at restaurants in
operation for more than 15 months.
Company-owned comparable restaurant sales inched up 0.9%, due to
higher customer visitation. Moreover, same-store sales at franchise
operated restaurants climbed 5.3%. The premium casual dining
restaurant chain operator is expecting the same trend to continue
for the first quarter of 2012.
Sales for the fourth quarter 2011 also rose on the back of one
extra week of operation compared with the year-ago quarter,
same-store sales growth and higher company-owned restaurant
sales.
Total revenue, which comprises company-operated restaurant sales
and franchise fees and royalties, jumped 3.3% year over year to
$26.2 million. Sales also surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of
$24.0 million.
A traffic growth of 0.6% and an increase of 0.3% in average
check resulted in a 2.8% upside in company-operated restaurant
sales to $25.3 million. Franchise fees and royalty revenues
increased 18.8% to $0.9 million.
We expect estimates to go up in the coming days based on
encouraging fourth quarter sales results coupled with positive
outlook for the next quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2011
and 2012 are pegged at a loss of 12 cents and earnings of 2 cents,
respectively.
During the third quarter of 2011, Cosi posted a 6.6%
year-over-year decline in total revenue, as company-owned
restaurant sales tumbled 6.8%. However, franchise fees and royalty
revenues expanded 11.0% year over year. In the reported quarter,
system-wide comparable sales slid 3.0% from the year-ago quarter
due to sluggish consumer spending. Comps at both company-owned
restaurants and franchised restaurants were down 3.0% year over
year.
The company is slated to release its fourth quarter 2011 results
on March 29, 2012. Its prime competitors include
Panera Bread Co.
(
PNRA
) and
Starbucks Corp.
(
SBUX
). Cosi currently retains a Zacks #3 Rank (short-term Hold rating).
We are also maintaining our long-term Underperform recommendation
on the stock.
Get the full analysis of all these stocks by going to
http://at.zacks.com/?id=2649
.
About the Bull and Bear of the Day
Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two
stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear)
the markets over the next 3-6 months.
About the Analyst Blog
Updated throughout every trading day, the
Analyst Blog
provides analysis from Zacks Equity Research about the latest news
and events impacting stocks and the financial markets.
About Zacks Equity Research
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which to sell for the long-term.
Continuous analyst coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150
publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry
which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company
profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices
are six-month time horizons.
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BANK OF AMER CP (
BAC
): Free Stock Analysis Report
CATERPILLAR INC (
CAT
): Free Stock Analysis Report
COSI INC (
COSI
): Free Stock Analysis Report
PANERA BREAD CO (
PNRA
): Free Stock Analysis Report
STARBUCKS CORP (
SBUX
): Free Stock Analysis Report
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