>>> Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 25/04/2014

>>> Up
*ACCENTURE RAISED TO OUTPERFORM VS NEUTRAL AT CREDIT SUISSE
*NOVOZYMES RAISED TO NEUTRAL VS SELL AT CITI
*OPHIR ENERGY RAISED TO BUY VS NEUTRAL AT UBS
*SAFT RAISED TO NEUTRAL VS REDUCE AT ODDO

>>> Down
*HANNOVER RE CUT TO HOLD VS BUY AT DZ
*HSBC CUT TO UNDERWEIGHT FROM OVERWEIGHT AT MORGAN STANLEY
*MERAFE CUT TO NEUTRAL VS BUY AT BOFAML
*SAIPEM CUT TO EQUALWEIGHT VS OVERWEIGHT AT BARCLAYS
*SUEZ ENVIRONNEMENT CUT TO EQUALWEIGHT AT MORGAN STANLEY
*TECHNIP CUT TO UNDERPERFORM VS MARKET PERFORM AT RAYMOND JAMES
*UNILEVER CUT TO EQUALWEIGHT VS OVERWEIGHT AT BARCLAYS

>>> PT Change
*MELEXIS PT RAISED TO EU30 FROM EU26 AT ING

>>> Initiation
*BP RATED NEW BUY AT JEFFERIES

>>> Call

RTR - Allergan approached Shire about takeover but rebuffed

(Reuters) - Allergan Inc approached Shire Plc in recent months about a possible takeover but was rebuffed, according to people familiar with the matter, in the latest example of a U.S. drugmaker seeking to buy an overseas rival to lower its tax rate.
The preliminary approach for Shire, which is based in Ireland and has a market value of $33 billion, did not progress to serious discussions between the two companies, the sources said.
Since then Allergan has received an unsolicited $47 billion takeover offer from Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc teamed up with activist investor Bill Ackman's Pershing Square Capital Management.
Analysts have suggested one way for the Botox maker to defend against the unsolicited bid would be to acquire foreign drugmakers such as Shire, Jazz Pharmaceuticals Plc or Alkermes Plc.
One of the sources said it was unclear if Allergan would try to revive talks with Shire, or pursue another target as a means to remain independent.
Representatives for Allergan and Shire declined to comment.

>>> US After Hours

After Hours Summary: SYNA +9.0%, DECK +6.5%, BIDU +4.9%, MSFT +2.6%, P -5.2%, EW -4.1%, CLF -3.5% following earnings/guidance

After Hours Gainers: Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings: INUV +11.4%, LSCC +10.4%, ECHO +9.6%, MKTO +9.5%, CUDA +9%, SYNA +9%, DECK +6.5%, PDFS +6.2%, GIMO +5.6%, SPWR +4.9%, BIDU +4.9%, AMCC +4.7%, ALTR +4%, DV +3.7%, HBI +3.7%, CRUS +3.5%, INFA +3.5%, MSFT +2.6%, MDCA +1.9%, NTGR +1.7%, SBUX +1.6%, OTEX +0.9%, NEM +0.8%, PKI +0.5%, QLIK +0.2%, WOOF +0.1%

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: CLH +7.7% (Relational Investors confirmed 9.08% stake in 13D filing), SXCP +1.3% (priced public offering of 2.8 mln common units at $29.03 per unit), TSL +1.0% (to supply 36MW of high efficiency modules to large-scale chile solar project), OTEX +0.9% (filed a shelf registration statement in connection with GXS transaction Registration Rights), STR +0.8% (announced it has begun construction on a CNG-fueling station in DeSoto, Texas)

After Hours Losers:

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to earnings: EOPN -10.7%, CAMP -8.9%, DGII -6.1%, AFOP -6.1%, P -5.2%, KLAC -5.1%, MLNX -4.2%, EW -4.1%, V -3.9%, CLF -3.5%, BRCM -3.5%, CB -2.7%, EMN -2%, AWAY -1.9%, FSL -1.7%, FBP -1.6%, LEG -1%, INAP -0.9%, FII -0.7%, CENX -0.4%, LVS -0.3%, MPWR -0.2%, BAS -0.1%, WFT -0.1%

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: SNV -2.4% (announced one-for-seven reverse stock split), FSL -1.7% (appointed Dan Durn CFO; co also reported earnings), NRZ -1.6% (launched public offering of 25 mln shares of its common stock), ROYT -1.0% (lowered monthly cash distribution by 1% to $0.12102 per unit from $0.12188 per unit), BAC -0.9% (weakness on reports that U.S. may ask for over $13 bln in a settlement deal regarding RMBSs), 

>>> Asian Update

Asian Market Update: Tokyo Core CPI hits 22-year highs; Baidu, Microsoft rally on earnings

***Economic Data*** - (JP) JAPAN APR TOKYO CPI Y/Y: 2.9% (multi-year high) V 3.0%E; CPI CORE Y/Y: 2.7% (22-year high) V 2.8%E - (JP) JAPAN MAR NATIONAL CPI Y/Y: 1.6% V 1.6%E; CPI CORE Y/Y: 1.3% V 1.4%E; FY13/14 core CPI 0.8%, above 0.7% BOJ target - (CN) CHINA Q1 PRELIMINARY CURRENT ACCOUNT BALANCE $7.2B v $49.8B PRIOR - FX REGULATOR SAFE - (KR) SOUTH KOREA APR CONSUMER CONFIDENCE: 108 V 108 PRIOR

Market Snapshot (as of 03:30 GMT): - Nikkei225 +0.6%, S&P/ASX closes, Kospi -0.7%, Shanghai Composite +0.1%, Hang Seng -1.1%, Jun S&P500 flat at 1,873, Jun gold +0.1% at $1,292, Jun crude oil flat at $101.97/brl

***Highlights/Observations/Insights*** - Another busy session of top-tier earnings in US extended hours saw a fairly strong set of results from Baidu, Microsoft, and Starbucks. BIDU beat on top and bottom lines (Reports Q1 $1.24 adj v $0.94e, R$1.53B v $1.46Be) and also guided Q2 revenues well above consensus at $1.90-1.95B v $1.78Be. Bidu online marketing Rev rose 57% in Q1, helping send its shares up nearly 5% afterhours. Starbucks EPS was in line with ests at $0.56, but the company also raised its FY14 EPS target to $2.62-2.68 from $2.59-2.67. SBUX further noted it increased revenue and profits across all of its reportable segments in Q2, while its China Rev was up nearly 20%. MSFT is up 2.5% on a 6cent beat on the bottom line and revenues in line. Commercial licensing segment sales rose 3.4% while revenues in Hardware spiked up by 41%.

- Japan headlined economic data calendar with CPI figures that were largely in line with estimates for March on nationwide basis. FY13/14 core CPI at 0.8% was also above the 0.7% BOJ target ahead of next week's central bank update on growth and inflation projections. April Tokyo CPI - a forward looking gauge reflecting adjustment for the Apr 1st start to higher sales tax - rose to a 22-year high on core basis at 2.7%. Analysts are divided whether the stripped-down inflation is sufficiently high enough to keep the BOJ on the sidelines without more easing, however Fin Min Aso said the Tokyo figure indicates sales tax hike has been reflected in prices "steadily". - Separately, Fin Min Aso also commented on the stalled TPP talks after Pres Obama left Japan for Korea, noting it does not appear the administration has the ability to push through a deal until mid-term elections. Even then, he said, there was no guarantee that Congress would pass TPP if a deal is reached. USD/JPY traded up about 30pips from session lows seen just before the inflation report.

- US State Sec Kerry kept up the pressure on the Russian side after tensions flared up into more violence in Ukraine overnight. Kerry said the Geneva agreement was "not optional", and after a week since the signing, only Ukraine side is keeping its promise toward de-escalation. Late in the US session, press reports indicated the next round of sanctions could target Gazprom's financing arm Gazprombank.

***Fixed Income/Commodities/Currencies*** - (JP) BOJ offers to buy ¥170B in JGBs with maturity over 10-yr and ¥140B in floating-rate JGBs - (US) Weekly Fed Balance Sheet Total Assets Week ending April 23rd: $4.30T v $4.24T prior; Reserve Bank Credit: $4.25T v $4.20T prior; M1: +$28.3B v +$21.4B prior; M2: +$25.2B v +$41.5B prior; M1 y/y change: 10.2% (7-month high) v 10.0% w/w; M2 y/y change: 6.2% (3-month high) v 6.1% w/w

***Equities*** US markets: - SYNA: Guides Q4 EPS $1.10-1.32 v $0.99e, Rev $275-295M v $235Me; GM 45-46% v 45.2% q/q - conf call; +10.9% afterhours - CUDA: Reports Q4 $0.06 v $0.00e, R$60.3M v $59.2Me; +8.3% afterhours - DECK: Reports Q4 -$0.08 v -$0.15e, R$295M v $285Me; +6.5% afterhours - BIDU: Reports Q1 $1.24 adj v $0.94e, R$1.53B v $1.46Be; +4.6% afterhours - SPWR: Reports Q1 $0.49 v $0.32e, R$684M v $655Me; +4.3% afterhours - HBI: Reports Q1 $0.76 v $0.58e, R$1.06B v $1.08Be; +4.1% afterhours - ALTR: Reports Q1 $0.37 v $0.32e, R$461.1M v $439Me; +4.0% afterhours - DV: Reports Q3 $0.86 v $0.75e, R$496.1M v $492Me; +3.7% afterhours - UA: Navient, Under Armour to Join the S&P 500; SLM, PolyOne to Join S&P MidCap 400; Aceto to Join S&P SmallCap 600; effective after close of trading on April 30th; +3.1% afterhours - MSFT: Reports Q3 $0.68 v $0.62e, R$20.4B v $20.5Be; +2.5% afterhours - SBUX: Reports Q2 $0.56 v $0.56e, R$3.87B v $3.97Be; +1.5% afterhours - AMZN: Reports Q1 $0.23 v $0.22e, R$19.74B v $19.5Be; +0.3% afterhours - EMN: Reports Q1 $ 1.61 v $1.60e, R$2.3B v $2.4Be; -2.0% afterhours - BRCM: Reports Q1 $0.51 v $0.46e, R$1.98B v $1.96Be; -2.1% afterhours - CB: Reports Q1 $1.50 v $1.50e, R$3.06B v $3.42Be; -2.7% afterhours - CLF: Reports Q1 -$0.54 v -$0.21e, R$940M v $1.04Be; -3.5% afterhours - EW: Reports Q1 $0.74 v $0.68e, R$522.4M v $524Me; -4.1% afterhours - P: Reports Q1 -$0.13 v -$0.14e, R$194.3M v $176Me; -4.4% afterhours - V: Reports Q2 $2.20 v $2.19e, R$3.16B v $3.20Be; -4.5% afterhours - KLAC: Reports Q3 $1.23 v $1.10e, R$832M v $823Me; -5.5% afterhours

Notable movers by sector: - Consumer Discretionary: BYD Corp 1211.HK +2.0% (Q1 results); Hisense Kelon Electrical 000921.CN -5.0% (Q1 results); Shiseido 4911.JP -3.9% (FY13/14 results) - Consumer staples: Kweichow Moutai 600519.CN -7.4% (Q1 results) - Financials: Bank of China 601988.CN +0.8% (Q1 results) - Energy: PetroChina 601857.CN -0.1% (Q1 results) - Industrials: Fuji Electric Holding 6504.JP +6.5% (FY13/14 results); Kawasaki Heavy Industries 7012.JP +5.7% (FY13/14 resulst); Hitachi Chemical 4217.JP +7.2% (FY13/14 results); Hitachi Construction Machinery 6305.JP +2.8% (FY13/14 results); Hitachi Metals Ltd 5486.JP +10.7% (FY13/14 results); Kia Motors 000270.KR -1.2% (Q1 results) - Technology: Wangsu Science & Technology 300017.CN -4.0% (Q1 results); TCL Corp 1070.HK -3.7% (q1 results); Denso Corp 6902.JP -1.6% (FY13/14 results); Omron Corp 6645.JP -7.5% (FY13/14 results) - Healthcare: Shijiazhuang Yiling Pharmaceutical 002603.CN -4.9% (Q1 results)

>>> US Notable Movers


Notable after hours earnings movers: SYNA +11.7%, MKTO +11.3%, INUV +6.3%, CAMP -10.7%, P -6.1%, FSL -5.3%

Companies trading higher after hours following earnings/guidance:

SYNA +11.7%, MKTO +11.3%, INUV +6.3%, CUDA +5.5%, DECK +4.8%, BIDU +4.9%, DV +4.1%, ALTR +4%, HBI +3.4%, CRUS +3.3%, MSFT +2.9%

Companies trading lower after hours following earnings/guidance:

CAMP -10.7%, P -6.1%, FSL -5.3%, AFOP -4.7%, MLNX -4.2%, EW -4.1%, AWAY -4%, CLF -2.6%, V -1.6%, LEG -1%, FII -0.

>>> US Close Dow unchg S&P +0,17% Nasdqa +0,52%


Closing Market Summary: Tech Shares Climb While Dow Jones Lags

The Nasdaq Composite (+0.5%) and S&P 500 (+0.2%) posted modest gains on Thursday, but not before enduring a morning dip into the red, which took place in reaction to reports indicating Russia has commenced military exercises on the Ukrainian border.

The news from Europe knocked the key indices from their early highs, while giving a boost to safe-haven assets like gold futures (+0.5% to $1290.80/ozt), Treasuries (10-yr yield -1 bps to 2.69%), and the Japanese yen (102.30 vs USD); however the morning spike in safety flows was retraced partially, while equities rallied off their lows with the technology sector (+1.1%) setting the pace.

Tech shares (and the Nasdaq) received significant support from the shares of Apple (AAPL 567.77, +43.02), which surged 8.2% after the top-weighted tech company handily beat earnings expectations. In addition, Apple increased its share buyback to $90 billion and announced a 7:1 stock split, which will go into effect on June 2.

Apple notwithstanding, the market heard from several other tech names like Citrix Systems (CTXS 60.00, +4.01), Facebook (FB 60.87, -0.49), F5 Networks (FFIV 105.98, -2.21), and Texas Instruments (TXN 48.47, +2.01), all of which reported better than expected earnings.

Elsewhere, the discretionary sector (+0.5%) was the only other noteworthy pocket of strength, thanks to a boost from homebuilders. DR Horton (DHI 23.13, +1.78) gained 8.3% after reporting above-consensus results, while the broader iShares Dow Jones US Home Construction ETF (ITB 23.90, +0.57) advanced 2.4%. The discretionary space also received significant support from Amazon.com (AMZN 337.15, +12.57), which rallied 3.9% ahead of its after-hours earnings release.

Even though two of the four largest sectors displayed relative strength, that was not the case with the other two top-weighed groups. Health care (-0.2%) and financials (-0.1%) lagged throughout the session, with the relative weakness in health care largely due to the underperformance of biotechnology. The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB 229.62, -1.37) lost 0.6%, but managed to close above its 20-day moving average (228.55).

Also of note, the industrial sector (-0.2%) ended among the laggards after several components reported earnings. 3M (MMM 136.65, -1.34) and UPS (UPS 98.64, -0.60) missed expectations, while Caterpillar (CAT 105.28, +1.90) reported well ahead of estimates. For its part, United Continental (UAL 41.53, -4.53) also beat bottom-line estimates, but slumped 9.8%.

Participation remained relatively light as less than 650 million shares changed hands at the NYSE.

Reviewing today's data:
  • The initial claims level increased to 329,000 for the week ending April 19 from an upwardly revised 305,000 (from 304,000) for the week ending April 12. The consensus expected the claims level to increase to 312,000. A 24,000 increase from the previous week may seem like a lot, but it took place at a time when the Department of Labor normally has difficulty adjusting for the Easter holiday. In all likelihood, the low claims levels at the beginning of the month were a result of seasonal biases and not a change in layoff trends. Claims are likely to stabilize in the 320,000 -- 330,000 range over the next few weeks. 
  • Durable goods orders increased 2.6% in March after increasing a downwardly revised 2.1% (from 2.2%) in February. The consensus expected durable goods orders to increase 2.0%. For the past few months, durable goods orders have been reliant on Boeing for growth. That wasn't necessarily the case in March as demand strengthened across the board. Transportation orders were still important, up 4.0% after increasing 6.7% in February, but were not the sole provider of growth. Durable goods orders excluding transportation increased 2.0% in March, up from a 0.1% increase in February. That was also well above the consensus expectation of a 0.5% gain. 
Tomorrow, the final reading of the Michigan Consumer Sentiment survey for April (consensus 82.6) will be released at 9:55 ET.
  • S&P 500 +1.6% YTD 
  • Dow Jones Industrial Average -0.5% YTD 
  • Nasdaq Composite -0.7% YTD 
  • Russell 2000 -1.5% YTD

>>> Microsoft beats by $0.05, reports revs in-line

Microsoft beats by $0.05, reports revs in-line

Reports Q3 (Mar) earnings of $0.68 per share, $0.05 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.63; revenues fell 0.4% year/year to $20.4 bln vs $20.0-20.5 bln guidance and the the $20.37 bln consensus.
Devices and Consumer revenue grew 12% to $8.30 bln vs. $7.8-8.1 bln guidance.
Windows OEM revenue grew 4%, driven by strong 19% growth in Windows OEM Pro revenue.
Office 365 Home now has 4.4 million subscribers, adding nearly 1 million subscribers in just three months.
Microsoft sold in 2.0 million Xbox console units, including 1.2 million Xbox One consoles.
Surface revenue grew over 50% to ~$500 million.
Bing U.S. search share grew to 18.6% and search advertising revenue grew 38%.
Commercial revenue grew 7% to $12.23 bln vs. the $1.2-12.4 bln guidance.
Office 365 revenue grew over 100%, and commercial seats nearly doubled, demonstrating strong enterprise momentum for Microsoft's cloud productivity solutions.·
Azure revenue grew over 150%, and the company has announced more than 40 new features that make the Azure platform more attractive to cloud application developers.
Windows volume licensing revenue grew 11%, as business customers continue to make Windows their platform of choice.
Lync, SharePoint, and Exchange, our productivity server offerings, collectively grew double-digits.
Microsoft expects to close the acquisition of the Nokia Devices and Services business on April 25, 2014.

"We are making good progress in our consumer services like Bing and Office 365 Home, and our commercial customers continue to embrace our cloud solutions. Both position us well for long-term growth,"

RTR - Elizabeth Arden hires Goldman to explore sale

(Reuters) - Elizabeth Arden Inc has hired Goldman Sachs Group to explore a sale and reached out to a small group of potential buyers, according to people familiar with the matter.

The U.S. cosmetics company decided to gauge buyer interest after its share price has come under pressure in the last 12 months amid weak sales in North America, the people said.

Shares of Arden rose nearly 8 percent to $34.16 on the Nasdaq on Thursday, giving it a market value of more than $1 billion.

The people asked not to be named because the matter is not public. Representatives for Elizabeth Arden did not respond to requests for comment, while Goldman Sachs declined to comment.

On Wednesday, South Korea's LG Household & Healthcare Ltd said it was considering making a bid for Arden.

In addition to its namesake brand, Elizabeth Arden is known for celebrity brand perfumes such as those of Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber, as well as skin care brands like Ceramide and Prevage.

Arden has been pressured by a pullback in spending on beauty products among price consious shoppers. It is also largely focused on the mass market fragrance market, which is viewed as less attractive than skin care.

The company sells its products to U.S. chains such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc, Target Corp and Kohl's Corp , as well as department stores including Nordstrom Inc and Macy's Inc.

Last quarter, North American sales, the bulk of its business, fell 13 percent. Arden is also facing poor demand in Europe. (Reporting by Soyoung Kim and Olivia Oran in New York, additional reporting by Phil Wabha in New York)

WSJ : Alstom Gets Fired Up On GE Bid Prospects

Alstom Gets Fired Up On GE Bid Prospects

Alstom, ALO.FR +10.93% the troubled French conglomerate, doesn't often turn heads.

Hence the enthusiasm with which investors met reports that General Electric GE +0.20% was in talks to buy the company for about $13 billion. The stock jumped 11% Thursday, despite Alstom saying it was unaware of any offer. Further reports that day indicated GE was interested in buying just Alstom's energy business.

The latter makes more sense. Certainly, if GE did want to bet on a big acquisition—it typically hasn't spent much more than $4 billion on a single deal—Alstom would be a questionable choice.

Buying the whole company would accelerate GE's plan to bulk up in industrials, reducing its reliance on more volatile financial services. It could also pick up Alstom at a discounted price thanks to the latter's mounting balance-sheet pressures. At the reported offer price, Alstom would be valued at 7.7 times fiscal 2014 earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization based on Nomura estimates. GE trades at about 10 times.

Synergies could be compelling. Folding Alstom's weak gas-turbines business into GE, which is the market leader, might produce decent savings. And combining Alstom's power-transmission business with GE's assets and its Chinese joint venture would create a powerful global competitor in a market that is fragmenting.

While this strengthens the case for GE to consider Alstom's energy business, a takeover of the whole company likely would come with too much baggage. Alstom's rail arm, accounting for 23% of operating profit, offers modest growth prospects. Moreover, 56% of its power-equipment sales and a majority of its services revenue come from coal-fired plants, estimates UBS. UBSN.VX -0.11% Those face serious regulatory and renewable-energy challenges. New coal installations are expected to decline 1.7% a year through 2020 based on UBS forecasts.

Alstom also carries a lot of political and legal complexity. Restructuring French operations could prove hard to pull off. And Alstom was implicated in a bribery investigation in March after its joint-venture partner on an Indonesian power project agreed with the U.S. Justice Department to pay a fine. Alstom could face up to $1.25 billion in fines and pre-enforcement litigation costs assuming the investigations follow a similar course to a case concerning Siemens SIE.XE +0.03% in 2008, estimates Nomura. Alstom said in March it was cooperating with the investigation.

Given all this, Alstom's investors would doubtless welcome a takeover at a premium, not least Bouygues, EN.FR +4.64% which owns a 29.3% stake. GE's own shareholders likely wouldn't share their excitement.