For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL - January 23, 2012 - Zacks Equity Research
highlights
UnitedHealth Group
(
UNH
) as the Bull of the Day and
The Goldman Sachs Group
(
GS
) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research
provides analysis on
Tiffany & Company
(
TIF
),
News Corporation
(
NWSA
) and
School Specialty Inc.
(
SCHS
).
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
:
UnitedHealth Group's
(
UNH
) fourth-quarter 2011 earnings came in substantially ahead of the
Zacks Consensus Estimate, led by strong revenue growth from the
UnitedHealthcare and Optum businesses, partially offset by higher
medical costs. The company ended the year 2011 with better
performances in virtually every meaningful metric: membership,
revenues, MLR, operating margins and cash flow.
The company strengthened its key capabilities to respond to the
emerging growth opportunities. These initiatives has been taken to
expand its Medicaid and Medicare business and for growing the
health service business.
Though certain headwinds such as high unemployment, growing
medical cost, pressure from Health Care overhaul, etc. remains, we
believe the company will beat the odds given its diversified
business model with leading market share positions in the
Commercial, Medicare and Medicaid markets. A solid balance sheet
and a highly conservative investment portfolio will further help it
to outperform its peers.
Bear of the Day
:
We are downgrading our recommendation on
The Goldman Sachs Group
(
GS
) to Underperform from Neutral based on expectation of continued
lower top-line as in 2011, coupled with the fundamental pressure on
the banking sector. Though the company reported profits, increased
operating expenses and lower equity trading revenues remain matters
of concern.
Though Goldman has a well-managed global franchise and strong
capital base, regulatory issues, including lawsuits, are expected
to dent the financials of the company in the upcoming quarters.
During 2011, the company was sued by various firms for
misrepresenting documents as an underwriter in the sale of
mortgage-backed securities. Final judgment on these lawsuits has
yet to be determined.
Our six-month price target of $98.00 equates to about 8.5x our
earnings estimate for 2012. Combined with the $0.35 per share
dividend, the price target implies an expected negative total
return of 8.3% over that period, which is consistent with our
Underperform recommendation.
Latest Posts on the Zacks
Analyst Blog
:
Tiffany Looks to UAE for Growth
Tiffany & Company
(
TIF
) entered into a strategic joint venture with a Dubai based
company, Damas Jewellery, in a move to enhance the visibility of
its brand in the United Arab Emirates. Both the companies agreed to
infuse capital in the joint venture.
The company signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with
Damas, which will facilitate Tiffany to integrate its five existing
stores with its worldwide store network.
Of late, the emerging markets have been an important region for
the retailers to enhance their profitability. The region not only
provides an avenue to amplify sales but also brings in long-term
opportunities for retailers to expand their margins as consumer
spending in the region is one of the highest in the world.
According to the data released by the Department of Economic
Development (DED), the consumer confidence index (
CCI
) of Dubai is rising. Overall CCI in Dubai marked an increase of 15
points to 125 in the last quarter of 2011 compared with the third
quarter.
Perhaps retailers are not the only ones eyeing the region to
generate profits. Recently, in a similar move,
News Corporation
(
NWSA
) reached an accord with the MOBY Group to acquire a minority stake
in the company in order to expand its footprint in the Middle
East.
School Specialty Expands Tech Solutions
Recently,
School Specialty Inc.
(
SCHS
), the leading provider of supplemental educational products for
PreK-12 educators, has expanded its offering of classroom
technology solutions. The company introduced a new range of
technology to improve the output and efficiency of its clients. The
new technology will have an array of features at different price
levels and will include document cameras, short-throw digital
projectors, interactive white boards, listening centers, student
response systems, pads and slates.
Requirement of standardized instructional equipments and
increasing classroom sizes are creating lot of new challenges for
the educators. With a variety of approximately 75,000 items ranging
from classroom supplies, furniture, playground equipment and
supplemental curriculum solutions, School Specialty serves as a
complete package for the educators' total classroom solution.
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
Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and
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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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GOLDMAN SACHS (
GS
): Free Stock Analysis Report
NEWS CORP INC-A (
NWSA
): Free Stock Analysis Report
SCHOOL SPECIALT (
SCHS
): Free Stock Analysis Report
TIFFANY & CO (
TIF
): Free Stock Analysis Report
UNITEDHEALTH GP (UNH): Free Stock Analysis
Report
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