>>> US Gapping up

Gapping up
In reaction to strong earnings/guidance:
  • SITO +16.1%, DKS +7.9%, MOMO +7.4%, INWK +7.2%, VIPS +7.1%, AST +6.8%, FN +5.5%, COTY +4.2%, HTHT+3.8%, BLIN +3.6%, (thinly traded)
  • BHP +3.3%, ATHM +3.2%, EAC +3.1%, IMMY +2.6%, (thinly traded), WKHS +2.3%, TEDU +2.1%, MGT +2%, ABEO+1.8%
M&A news:
  • STEM +20.9% (discloses agreement and plan of merger and reorganization with Microbot Medical)
  • PX +4.6% (WSJ report on potential merger with Linde)
Select metals/mining stocks trading higher: MT +4.3%, GOLD +3.3%, BTG +3%, AUY +2.5%, EGO +2.4%, CLF +2.1%,SBGL +2.1%, X +2.1%, GG +2.1%, AG +1.8%, GDX +1.8%, VALE +1.7%, ABX +1.7%, NEM +1.7%, SLW +1.6%, SLV+0.9%

Select oil/gas related names showing strength: SDRL +2.5%, CHK +1.8%, RDS.A +1.7%, STO +1.7%, TOT +1%, WLL+1%

Other news:
  • ALLT +8.1% (Soros Fund Management increases passive stake)
  • EBIO +6.5% (grants Roche (RHHBY) license to develop/commercialize EBI-031 and all other IL-6 antagonist antibody technology; co entitled to receive $30 mln in payments from Roche)
  • PETX +4.1% ( granted FDA approval of NOCITA)
  • FNBC +3.6% (light volume, announces delay in filing 2015 annual report, has until Aug 25 )
  • SORL +3.5% (following Monday's 40%+ move higher on earnings)
  • RIO +2.9% (in sympathy with BHP earnings)
  • PSG +2.7% (after Monday's 45% sell-off following 10-K delay/update)
  • PNK +2.1% (authorizes a new $50 million stock repurchase program)
  • MARA +2% (has asserted its patent rights related to the French and Italian Parts of European Patent in both France and Italy, respectively)
  • JMEI +1.9% (following Shenzhen-HK stock link approval in China)
  • ACGL +1.2% (American Intl announces agreement to sell its 100% interest in United Guaranty Corporation to Arch Capital for $3.3 bln)
  • FIT +1.1% (Morgan Stanley discloses 6.7% passive stake )
  • SHLM +1.1% (Director in association with Barington disclosed purchase of 50K shares)
Analyst comments:
  • NE +2.4% (upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at BofA/Merrill )
  • DVN +1.5% (added to US 1 List at BofA/Merrill)
  • SHEN +1.4% (upgraded to Outperform from Mkt Perform at Raymond James)
  • MRO +1.4% (upgraded to Buy from Neutral at BofA/Merrill)
  • TPIC +1.4% (initiated with a Outperform at Raymond James)
  • PTEN +0.7% (upgraded to Neutral from Underperform at BofA/Merrill)

WSJ : How ESPN Could Rebound Amid Cable-Cutting (14/08)

How ESPN Could Rebound Amid Cable-Cutting
A common metric of pay-TV subscriber numbers doesn’t include new streaming services, which could be a source of growth for networks such as Disney’s ESPN

Pay-TV subscriber declines are accelerating—at least that is what recent headlines and commentary from media executives suggests. But as the traditional cable bundle fragments and frays, a new wave of streaming services could provide a surprising boost to the most popular networks.

Shares of media companies tumbled last year when Walt Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger admitted his company’s sports powerhouse ESPN had lost some subscribers. Amid cord-cutting and cord-shaving—the trend of moving to cheaper bundles of fewer channels—determining the rate of subscriber losses is essential to valuing cable-network owners.

The problem is that finding reliable third-party subscriber data is difficult, particularly as the subscriber base grows for nontraditional services such as Dish Network’s Sling TV and Sony’s PlayStation Vue.

Data from Nielsen released last month showed ESPN subscribers declining at a rate of about 4% over the previous year versus a rate of about 2% last year. But the data don’t take into account streaming services.

ESPN is on both Sling and Vue, and Disney says it gets paid the same amount for those subscribers. More such services are on the horizon. Disney said during its fiscal third-quarter earnings report last week that ESPN and a number of its other cable networks would be part of AT&T’s DirecTV Now streaming offering, expected to launch in the fourth quarter. A similar service from Hulu, in which Disney owns a stake, is expected early next year.

Subscriber declines are still happening. Disney said last Tuesday that a drop in subscribers at ESPN offset growth from rate increases. But having a presence on these streaming bundles may mean the difference between a steady or rapid decline in subscribers. In the future, it could even mean a new source of growth for certain networks.
Data from pay-TV providers seem to underscore the point. Traditional U.S. pay-TV subscribers fell by 1.3% in the second quarter, versus a 0.8% drop in the second quarter of 2015, according to MoffettNathanson. Include estimates for Sling, however, and the decline was only 0.8% versus a drop of 0.6% a year ago. The research firm estimates that Sling has more than 700,000 subscribers.
Granted, pay-TV provider numbers also include subscribers to TV “skinny” bundles, which typically consist of basic broadcast channels plus premium channels such as HBO. These bundles exclude pricier cable channels and are likely more responsible for declines at those networks than all-out cord cutting. Still, the popularity of these top networks is what makes them so appealing for inclusion in streaming bundles.


Nielsen is working with media companies to evaluate how to include streaming subscribers in its estimates. Until then, investors should give credit to the networks that appear on the stream.

>>> Dick's Sporting Goods beats by $0.13, beats on revs; guides Q3 above consens

Dick's Sporting Goods beats by $0.13, beats on revs; guides Q3 above consensus; raises FY17 above consensus

  • Reports Q2 (Jul) earnings of $0.82 per share, $0.13 better than the Capital IQ Consensus of $0.69; revenues rose 8.0% year/year to $1.97 bln vs the $1.89 bln Capital IQ Consensus.
  • Consolidated same store sales increased 2.8%, vs. guidance of negative 4.0% to negative 1.0%.
    • Same store sales for DICK'S Sporting Goods increased 3.0%, while Golf Galaxy decreased 4.3%. Second quarter 2015 consolidated same store sales increased 1.2%.
  • Co issues upside guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.39-0.42 vs. $0.38 Capital IQ Consensus; comps +2-3%.
  • Co issues upside guidance for FY17, raises EPS to $2.90-3.05 from $2.60-2.90, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $2.84 Capital IQ Consensus; raises comps to +2-3% from down 1 to up 1%.
  • "We are pleased with our second quarter results, particularly in light of the liquidation activity in the market," said Edward W. Stack, Chairman and CEO. "Looking ahead, we are focused on capturing the displaced market share and remain confident in our ability to strengthen our leadership position."
  • During Q2, the Company repurchased ~1.3 million shares of its common stock at an average cost of $42.60 per share, for a total cost of $57 million.

>>> US Early premarket gappers

Early premarket gappers

Gapping up: STEM +28%, SITO +16.1%, A +9.8%, ALLT +9.1%, AST +8.4%, INWK +7.2%, ATHM +6.9%, VIPS +6.2%, FN+6.1%, MOMO +4.7%, PX +4.6%, MT +4.5%, SORL +3.9%, PSG +3.8%, BHP +3.7%, PETX +3.6%, FNBC +3.6%, GOLD+3.6%, BLIN +3.6%, DNAI +3.5%, RIO +3.1%, EAC +3.1%, NE +2.8%, SDRL +2.8%, AUY +2.7%, CLF +2.7%, EGO +2.6%,IMMY +2.6%, AG +2.3%, WKHS +2.3%, MGT +2.3%, X +2.2%, PNK +2.1%, TEDU +2.1%, SBGL +2.1%, SLW +2.1%, TEDU+2.1%, RENN +2%, JMEI +1.9%, VALE +1.9%, GDX +1.8%, CHK +1.8%, ABEO +1.8%, ABX +1.7%, STO +1.7%, NEM +1.7%,RDS.A +1.7%, MRO +1.4%, MON +1.4%, TOT +1.3%, ACGL +1.2%, SLV +1.2%, SHLM +1.1%, MS +1.1%, WLL +1%

Gapping down: HAIN -27.7%, HTBX -12.9%, REPH -11.8%, UNVR -6.8%, GALT -5.8%, SID -5.2%, EVOK -4.6%, AMCN -4.5%,HPT -3.6%, AAP -3.4%, VRTX -3.3%, CXO -3%, PE -2.8%, ALRM -2.8%, AFCO -2.5%, SHOP -2.3%, GBDC -2.2%, ATVI -2.1%,AU -2%, PRKR -1.3%, JPM -1%, AETI -0.8%, TWTR -0.8%, ASM -0.7%

>>> Viking Global Investors - 13F Filing

Viking Global Investors discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: new RICE MSFT AIG NRG HIG positions, closed out ENDP ANTM PRU
Highlights from 2016 Q2 filing as compared to 2016 Q1 filing:
  • New positions in: RICE (~12.6 mln shares), MSFT (~5.6 mln), AIG (~3.3 mln), NRG (~3.6 mln), HIG (~3.6 mln), TYC (~3.7 mln), CLD (~2.9 mln), ICE(~1.1 mln), HCA (~1.1 mln), SC (~1.1 mln), JAZZ (~0.6 mln), GWPH (~0.8 mln),
  • Increased positions in: TMUS (to ~14 mln shares from ~2.7 mln shares), CPN (to ~20.4 mln from ~10.5 mln), DYN (to ~9.1 mln from ~0.4 mln), JD (to ~22.5 mln from ~15.1 mln), ECR (to ~7.4 mln from ~0.3 mln) NWL (to ~9.9 mln from ~4.7 mln), APC (to ~7.8 mln from ~0.9 mln)
  • Decreased positions in: AGN (to ~1.9 mln shares from ~4.9 mln shares), AET (to ~1 mln from ~3.9 mln), WBA (to ~3.5 mln from ~6.3 mln), CP (to ~0.9 mln from ~2.3 mln), PXD (to ~1.4 mln from ~2.6 mln)
  • Closed positions in: ENDP (from ~4.5 mln shares), ANTM (from ~4.8 mln), PRU (from ~2.3 mln), MET (from ~2.6 mln), LNG (from ~1.5 mln), PGR(from ~1.6 mln), AKRX (from ~2.1 mln), PFE (from ~1.1 mln), HLT (from ~1.3 mln), CB (from ~1 mln), TDG (from ~1.1 mln)

>>> Tiger Global - 13F - Filing

Tiger Global discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: Increased CHTR, AMZN, PCLN positions, decreased SQ and AAPL positions, closed out NFLX
Highlights from 2016 Q2 filing as compared to 2016 Q1 filing:
  • Increased positions in: PCLN (to ~0.8 mln shares from ~0.6 mln shares), CHTR (to ~4.3 mln from ~2 mln), AMZN (to ~1.5 mln from ~1 mln)
  • Decreased positions in: SQ (to ~1.2 mln shares from ~6.6 mln shares), XRS (to ~0.6 mln from ~1.7 mln), PSTG (to ~1 mln from ~5.2 mln), AAPL (to ~1.4 mln from ~5.7 mln)
  • Closed positions in: NFLX (from ~18 mln shares), DATA (from ~1.7 mln), GME (from ~1.8 mln), XON (from ~2.1 mln)

>>> Discovery Capital (Rob Citrone) - 13F Filing

Discovery Capital (Rob Citrone) discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New WPX HZNP IBN QEP positions, Closed out YPF FCX AMAT positions
Highlights from 2016 Q2 filing as compared to 2016 Q1 filing:
  • New positions in: WPX (~8.7 mln shares), HZNP (~3.5 mln), IBN (~3.5 mln), QEP (~3.9 mln), WDC (~2.8 mln), HAL (~1.9 mln), SUPV (~2.1 mln), RICE(~0.7 mln), XEC (~0.7 mln)
  • Increased positions in: I (to ~4.1 mln shares from ~0.4 mln shares), CPE (to ~5.3 mln from ~1.3 mln), CTRP (to ~2.4 mln from ~0.8 mln), YNDX (to ~3 mln from ~0.6 mln), TSU (to ~2.1 mln from ~0.5 mln) PE (to ~2.1 mln from ~0.4 mln), JMEI (to ~1.4 mln from ~0.9 mln) V (to ~1.5 mln from ~0.8 mln),
  • Decreased positions in: POT (to ~3.1 mln shares from ~5.4 mln shares), AER (to ~2.7 mln from ~3.7 mln), RAD (to ~1 mln from ~2 mln), FB (to ~1.1 mln from ~1.7 mln), BIDU (to ~0.1 mln from ~0.6 mln), AMZN (to ~0.2 mln from ~0.6 mln)
  • Closed positions in: YPF (from ~7.9 mln shares), FCX (from ~9.9 mln), AMAT (from ~3.5 mln), ENDP (from ~4.1 mln), MDVN (from ~2.1 mln), FOXA(from ~3.5 mln), BOBE (from ~1.8 mln), MPEL (from ~1.5 mln), RDN (from ~1.4 mln), STNG (from ~1.4 mln

>>> Maverick Capital - 13F - Filing

Maverick Capital discloses updated portfolio positions in 13F filing: New PM WCN MYL CSC positions, Closed out ST HDS positions, Increased PFE AXP positions
Highlights from 2016 Q2 filing as compared to 2016 Q1 filing:
  • New positions in: PM (~5.9 mln shares), WCN (~5.6 mln), MYL (~2.3 mln), CSC (~3.1 mln), JACK (~0.7 mln), LILAK (~0.7 mln), LVLT (~0.9 mln), ANF(~0.2 mln), SBS (~0.2 mln)
  • Increased positions in: PFE (to ~18.4 mln shares from ~8.2 mln shares), AXP (to ~4.6 mln from ~0 mln), SABR (to ~19.8 mln from ~15.1 mln), UHS (to ~2.8 mln from ~1 mln), LRCX (to ~5.5 mln from ~3 mln) USB (to ~3.6 mln from ~1 mln), FB (to ~2.8 mln from ~1.6 mln) CMCSA (to ~3.4 mln from ~1.7 mln), NOC (to ~1.2 mln from ~0.7 mln)
  • Decreased positions in: LBTYK (to ~1.5 mln shares from ~7.2 mln shares), YELP (to ~0.1 mln from ~5.4 mln), ARMK (to ~6.8 mln from ~10.9 mln),NWL (to ~1.4 mln from ~5.4 mln), ADBE (to ~2.6 mln from ~4.4 mln), KSU (to ~0.5 mln from ~2.3 mln), KHC (to ~0 mln from ~1.6 mln)
  • Closed positions in: ST (from ~3.5 mln shares), HDS (from ~3.6 mln), PCRX (from ~1.6 mln), HCA (from ~0.4 mln), CIT (from ~0.8 mln)