For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL - May 11, 2012 -
Zacks Equity
Research
highlights
ProAssurance
(
PRA
) as the Bull of the Day and
RadioShack
(
RSH
) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research
provides analysis on
Ford Motor
(
F
),
Fiat SpA (
FIATY
) and
General Motors
(
GM
)
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
:
ProAssurance Corp.'s
(
PRA
) first-quarter earnings surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate on
the back of an improved top line. Additionally, enhanced operating
cash flow and asset position aided in driving the book value of
shares. Higher operating cash flow is also likely to translate into
enhanced operating leverage and generation of excess capital for
share repurchases.
Though the intense price and product competition, weak rate
environment, loss cost trends and regulatory challenges limit the
desired upside in the sector, we believe the benefits of geographic
diversity, aggressive claims defense, stable ratings, improving ROE
and strong financial position are likely to have a positive impact
on the company over time.
Our six-month target price of $108.00 per share equates to about
15.2x our earnings estimate for 2012. Combined with the $1.00 per
share annual dividend, this target price implies an expected return
of 21% over that period, which is consistent with our Outperform
recommendation.
Bear of the Day
:
The nightmare of
RadioShack Corp.
(
RSH
) persists as the company's first-quarter 2012 financial results
were pathetic. The company's core consumer electronics retail
business is on a secular downtrend and is unlikely to be revived in
the near future. Customers increasingly prefer online purchase
instead of visiting brick-and-mortar retail stores.
Loss of footfall is taking a toll on RadioShack's mobility
business, on which the company is banking for its future growth.
Further, instead of computers and cameras, majority of consumers
prefer tablets and smartphones, which are less profitable for the
retail industry.
In the last quarter, comparable store sales for the
company-operated stores and kiosks decreased 4.2% year over year.
This is a key retail performance indicator measuring growth from
existing sales locations. We do not find any immediate growth
catalyst and thus reaffirm our Underperform recommendation.
Latest Posts on the Zacks
Analyst Blog
:
Ford Shortens Summer Shutdown
Ford Motor Co.
(
F
) plans to boost output by 40,000 vehicles by shortening the summer
shutdown at its 13 North American plants to one week from the
traditional two weeks. The move is based on the company's aim to
match output with improving demand for its vehicles and is
consistent with its target to enhance annual production capacity by
400,000 vehicles.
Recently, the automaker revealed its fear to lose market share
due to insufficient capacity to meet consumer demand. Most of the
company's plants are already operating at maximum capacity. As a
result, adding a week of production to the plants turned out an
easy way out from the capacity bottleneck issue.
The 13 plants include 6 assembly including Chicago Assembly,
Dearborn Truck, Kentucky Truck, Louisville Assembly, Michigan
Assembly and Kansas City Assembly. The remaining 7 plants include
Dearborn Engine, Chicago Stamping, Cleveland Engine No. 1, Lima
Engine, Essex Engine, Sterling and Rawsonville.
These plants are normally closed for two weeks around the U.S.
Independence Day holiday on July 4 in order to switch production to
the next model year. At that time, automakers gear up the
facilities for the next vehicle models by making changes in
engineering and design systems.
Ford is not exception to the capacity issue. Recently, Chrysler
Group LLC - controlled by Italy's
Fiat SpA (
FIATY
) - revealed its plan to give up normal two-week shutdown in summer
for 2012 due to the same problem. However, no one has heard from
General Motors Company
(
GM
) regarding its production schedule.
Last month, U.S. saw a sluggish 2.3% growth in light vehicle
sales to 1.18 million units from 1.16 million units in the same
month last year. Meanwhile, it rose 9.5% to seasonally adjusted
annual rate (SAAR) of 14.42 million units from 13.17 million units
in April 2011.
The sluggish growth can be attributable to lower sales recorded
by GM and Ford and fewer selling days (due to more Sundays than
April last year). But thanks to the fuel-efficient lineups and pent
up demand that kept the auto sales recovery on track.
Ford's sales slid 5% to 180,350 vehicles due to shortages in
production. The company's top selling vehicle during the month was
F-Series pickup trucks, which saw a 4% rise in sales to 47,453
units. Meanwhile, sales of the recently revamped models - Lincoln
MKS sedan and MKT crossover - surged more than 50% during the
month.
Ford, a Zacks #3 Rank (Hold) stock, posted a sharp 20% fall in
profits to $1.6 billion in the first quarter of the year from $2.0
billion in the same quarter of 2011. On per share basis, profits
ebbed 17% to 39 cents from 47 cents in the first quarter of 2011.
Nevertheless, it was higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 35
cents.
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.
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Continuous analyst coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150
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which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company
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FORD MOTOR CO (F): Free Stock Analysis Report
FIAT SPA (FIATY): Free Stock Analysis Report
GENERAL MOTORS (GM): Free Stock Analysis Report
PROASSURANCE CP (PRA): Free Stock Analysis
Report
RADIOSHACK CORP (RSH): Free Stock Analysis
Report
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