Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Dana Inc (DAN) Expected to Post Earnings of $0.70 Per Share

Equities analysts forecast that Dana Inc (NYSE:DAN) will report earnings of $0.70 per share for the current fiscal quarter, Zacks reports. Three analysts have issued estimates for Dana’s earnings, with the lowest EPS estimate coming in at $0.65 and the highest estimate coming in at $0.73. Dana posted earnings per share of $0.75 during the same quarter last year, which would suggest a negative year-over-year growth rate of 6.7%. The company is expected to issue its next earnings results on Monday, April 29th.

On average, analysts expect that Dana will report full year earnings of $3.24 per share for the current fiscal year, with EPS estimates ranging from $3.06 to $3.35. For the next year, analysts anticipate that the business will report earnings of $3.51 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $3.15 to $3.80. Zacks’ EPS averages are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side research analysts that that provide coverage for Dana.

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Dana (NYSE:DAN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 15th. The auto parts company reported $0.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.05. Dana had a net margin of 5.24% and a return on equity of 33.01%. The company had revenue of $1.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.62 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on DAN shares. TheStreet raised shares of Dana from a “c” rating to a “b” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 20th. KeyCorp set a $20.00 price objective on shares of Dana and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 18th. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Dana from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 15th. Barclays set a $23.00 price target on shares of Dana and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 4th. Finally, UBS Group raised shares of Dana from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Dana has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $21.91.

Shares of NYSE DAN traded down $0.34 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $20.18. The company had a trading volume of 1,903,211 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,951,727. Dana has a 12 month low of $12.65 and a 12 month high of $28.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.66. The stock has a market cap of $2.97 billion, a PE ratio of 6.79, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.90.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 28th. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.98%. Dana’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.47%.

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Amalgamated Bank increased its stake in shares of Dana by 109.5% during the 4th quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 22,742 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $310,000 after purchasing an additional 11,888 shares during the last quarter. Weber Alan W boosted its holdings in shares of Dana by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Weber Alan W now owns 770,993 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $10,509,000 after buying an additional 25,000 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Dana by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 214,545 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,924,000 after buying an additional 9,185 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in shares of Dana by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 36,705 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $500,000 after buying an additional 1,614 shares during the period. Finally, Voloridge Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Dana during the 4th quarter worth about $1,404,000. Institutional investors own 93.62% of the company’s stock.

About Dana

Dana Incorporated provides drive and motion products, sealing solutions, thermal-management technologies, and fluid-power products to vehicle and engine manufacturer in North America, Europe, South America, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates in four segments: Light Vehicle Driveline Technologies, Commercial Vehicle Driveline Technologies, Off-Highway Drive and Motion Technologies, and Power Technologies.

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Earnings History and Estimates for Dana (NYSE:DAN)

Tuesday, February 26, 2019

Buy Lupin; target of Rs 1000: Motilal Oswal

Motilal Oswal's research report on Lupin

Revenue increased ~8% YoY to INR42.9b (our estimate: INR42b) in 3QFY19, led by domestic formulation (DF) (+11% YoY to INR12b; 28% of sales) and API (+35% YoY to INR3.6b; 8% of sales) businesses. Growth was partly offset by a 1% YoY decline in US sales (INR14b, 33% of sales) and moderate growth in Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. LPC received licensing income (MALT1 Inhibitors) of INR2.1b from Abbvie.

Outlook

We maintain Buy on the stock. Progress on resolving the warning letter at its Goa/Indore sites would be the key event to track over next 3-6 months, in addition to key launches.

For all recommendations report, click here

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

Read More First Published on Feb 26, 2019 05:07 pm

Monday, February 25, 2019

Top 5 Penny Stocks To Own Right Now

tags:CNR,SIRI,FFNW,RMCF,SB,

After markets closed on Monday, rental car company Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (NYSE: HTZ) and real-estate firm Zillow Group Inc. (NASDAQ: Z) reported quarterly results. Before markets opened Tuesday morning Discovery Inc. (NASDAQ: DISCA) and Dish Network Corp. (NASDAQ: DISH) also released earnings reports. Here’s a quick look at the reports and the reactions to them.

Hertz revenue was up 5% year over year to $1.43 billion in the first quarter, and the adjusted net loss totaled $1.58 per share, down slightly from a loss of $1.61 in the same quarter last year. Analysts had forecast an adjusted net loss of $1.26 per share and revenues of $1.97.

The big miss on both revenues and earnings hit the stock hard. Shares traded down almost 8% in Tuesday’s premarket session to $20.40, after closing at $22.16 Monday. The 52-week trading range is $8.52 to $27.27 and the 12-month price target on the stock is $21.29.

Zillow reported revenues of $299.88 million for the first quarter and adjusted diluted earnings per share of $0.07. The totals beat earnings per share estimates by a penny and revenues by nearly $2 million. The company’s second-quarter revenue guidance of $322 million to $327 million fell way short of the consensus estimate of $343 million.

Top 5 Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: China Metro-Rural Holdings Limited(CNR)

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ethan Ryder]

    Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) – Equities research analysts at Desjardins boosted their Q3 2018 earnings per share estimates for shares of Canadian National Railway in a research note issued on Monday, October 8th. Desjardins analyst B. Poirier now anticipates that the transportation company will earn $1.09 per share for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $1.09. Desjardins also issued estimates for Canadian National Railway’s FY2021 earnings at $5.66 EPS.

  • [By Shane Hupp]

    Canadian National Railway (TSE:CNR) (NYSE:CNI) had its target price upped by investment analysts at CIBC from C$116.00 to C$120.00 in a research report issued on Friday. CIBC’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 3.54% from the stock’s current price.

  • [By Shane Hupp]

    Her Majesty the Queen in Right of the Province of Alberta as represented by Alberta Investment Management Corp cut its position in Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) by 21.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,956,400 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 522,300 shares during the period. Canadian National Railway accounts for about 1.7% of Her Majesty the Queen in Right of the Province of Alberta as represented by Alberta Investment Management Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest position. Her Majesty the Queen in Right of the Province of Alberta as represented by Alberta Investment Management Corp owned 0.27% of Canadian National Railway worth $184,215,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

  • [By Logan Wallace]

    Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) – Analysts at Seaport Global Securities issued their Q1 2019 EPS estimates for shares of Canadian National Railway in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, January 30th. Seaport Global Securities analyst M. Levin expects that the transportation company will earn $0.96 per share for the quarter. Seaport Global Securities also issued estimates for Canadian National Railway’s Q2 2019 earnings at $1.26 EPS, Q3 2019 earnings at $1.27 EPS and Q4 2019 earnings at $1.26 EPS.

  • [By Logan Wallace]

    Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders acquired 1,956 put options on the company. This is an increase of 1,818% compared to the typical volume of 102 put options.

  • [By Max Byerly]

    Canadian National Railway (NYSE:CNI) (TSE:CNR) – Cormark raised their Q3 2018 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for Canadian National Railway in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, April 10th. Cormark analyst D. Tyerman now expects that the transportation company will post earnings per share of $1.15 for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $1.14.

Top 5 Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: Sirius XM Radio Inc.(SIRI)

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Max Byerly]

    Sirius XM Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:SIRI) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 196,142,023 shares, an increase of 1.7% from the August 15th total of 192,889,327 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 11,084,621 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 17.7 days. Approximately 14.9% of the shares of the company are short sold.

  • [By Garrett Baldwin]

    Click here before Sept. 26 to sign up.

    Four Stocks to Watch Today: P, AMRN, GOLD, ABX Shares of Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P) jumped more than 8% this morning on news it will be acquired by Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SIRI). The all-stock deal is worth roughly $3.5 billion. SIRI stock was off 3.5% after the announcement. This morning, Barrick Gold Corp. (NYSE: ABX) announced it has purchased Randgold Resources Ltd. (NASDAQ: GOLD) in an all-share deal that will create a new firm worth $18.3 billion. The new mining firm will have a massive presence in North America and Africa. Barrick shareholders will own 67% of the new organization, while Randgold shareholders will own 33%. Shares of Amarin Corp. (NASDAQ: AMRN) popped more than 285% in pre-market hours (from $2.99 to $11.55) after the biopharma company announced positive results from a clinical trial. The firm's fish oil capsule showed significant benefits to heart patients. Shares of Amarin had been off about 25% this year before the announcement. Look for an earnings report this afternoon from Ascena Retail Group Inc. (NASDAQ: ASNA).

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  • [By Rick Munarriz]

    Last week was a busy one for Sirius XM Holdings (NASDAQ:SIRI) investors tracking Wall Street moves. The week kicked off with Barclays analyst Kannan Venkateshwar downgrading the stock and the stock of its controlling stakeholder, Liberty SiriusXM (NASDAQ:LSXMA). Two days later it was James Goss at Barrington upgrading Sirius XM stock.

Top 5 Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: First Financial Northwest Inc.(FFNW)

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Stephan Byrd]

    Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on First Financial Northwest (FFNW)

    For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

  • [By Logan Wallace]

    Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on First Financial Northwest (FFNW)

    For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

  • [By Max Byerly]

    First Financial Northwest (NASDAQ:FFNW) will be announcing its earnings results on Tuesday, July 24th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $0.26 per share for the quarter.

Top 5 Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory Inc.(RMCF)

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ethan Ryder]

    Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (NASDAQ: RMCF) and Tootsie Roll Industries (NYSE:TR) are both small-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends and analyst recommendations.

  • [By Max Byerly]

    Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (NASDAQ: RMCF) and Tootsie Roll Industries (NYSE:TR) are both small-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability and institutional ownership.

Top 5 Penny Stocks To Own Right Now: Safe Bulkers Inc(SB)

Advisors' Opinion:
  • [By Ethan Ryder]

    Evermore Global Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB) by 24.1% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,997,101 shares of the shipping company’s stock after selling 635,851 shares during the quarter. Safe Bulkers accounts for approximately 2.2% of Evermore Global Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Evermore Global Advisors LLC’s holdings in Safe Bulkers were worth $6,790,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

  • [By Ethan Ryder]

    Safe Bulkers (NYSE:SB) was downgraded by research analysts at ValuEngine from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday.

  • [By Lisa Levin] Gainers Madrigal Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDGL) shares surged 144.96 percent to close at $265.61 on Thursday in reaction to an encouraging Phase 2 clinical trial update. The clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company said its liver-directed, thyroid hormone receptor called MGL-3196 showed a statistical significance in the primary endpoint of lowering liver fat at 12 weeks and also 36 weeks. Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: VKTX) shares rose 101.01 percent to close at $9.99 on Thursday after falling 4.42 percent on Wednesday. Akers Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: AKER) jumped 45.58 percent to close at $0.474. The developer of rapid health information technologies said Wednesday afternoon it was granted a 180-day extension from the Nasdaq Stock Market to meet the requirement of a minimum $1.00 per share closing bid price for 10 straight days. Kitov Pharma Ltd (NASDAQ: KTOV) gained 40.93 percent to close at $3.03 after the FDA approved Kitov's Consensi for the treatment of osteoarthritis pain and hypertension. China Customer Relations Centers, Inc. (NASDAQ: CCRC) rose 28.21 percent to close at $19.86. J.Jill, Inc. (NYSE: JILL) climbed 26.45 percent to close at $7.84 after the company posted upbeat quarterly earnings. Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRIS) shares climbed 21.93 percent to close at $2.78 in reaction to an encouraging FDA update. The biotechnology company that focuses on therapies for the treatment of cancer said the FDA granted a Fast Track designation for fimepinostat (CUDC-907) in patients with relapsed or refractory. Boxlight Corporation (NASDAQ: BOXL) gained 21.23 percent to close at $7.48. Kirkland's, Inc. (NASDAQ: KIRK) rose 16.21 percent to close at $12.83 after reporting upbeat Q1 results. The Brink's Company (NYSE: BCO) jumped 16.2 percent to close at $79.25 as the company announced plans to acquire Dunbar Armored for $520 million in cash. Applied Optoelectronics, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAOI) rose 15.14 percent to c
  • [By Ethan Ryder]

    Here are some of the news articles that may have impacted Accern’s rankings:

    Get Safe Bulkers alerts: Safe Bulkers (SB): Moving Average Crossover Alert (finance.yahoo.com) Should Investors Have Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB) In Their Porfolio After Profit Growth of 0.63922? (zeelandpress.com) Detailed Research: Economic Perspectives on Safe Bulkers, SITO Mobile, Castle Brands, Motorcar Parts of America … (nasdaq.com) Simple Rule To have an eye on These Stocks:- BioTime, Inc. (NYSE:BTX), Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB), Mettler-Toledo … (thestreetpoint.com) Safe Bulkers, Inc. (NYSE:SB): How is this stock valued? (cantoncaller.com)

    Several research firms have commented on SB. Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Safe Bulkers from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 1st. ValuEngine downgraded shares of Safe Bulkers from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday. TheStreet raised shares of Safe Bulkers from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 27th. Seaport Global Securities raised shares of Safe Bulkers from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $3.50 to $5.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 31st. Finally, Maxim Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $6.00 target price on shares of Safe Bulkers in a research report on Monday, July 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. The company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $3.79.

  • [By Shane Hupp]

    These are some of the media stories that may have effected Accern Sentiment’s scoring:

    Get Safe Bulkers alerts: Safe Bulkers, Inc. Agrees with Cosco Shipping Heavy Industry Co. Ltd. to Install Alfa Laval PureSOx Scrubbers (finance.yahoo.com) Analysts Anticipate Safe Bulkers, Inc. (SB) to Post $0.06 EPS (americanbankingnews.com) Safe Bulkers Inc.: Safe Bulkers, Inc. Announces Election of Class I Directors at 2018 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (twst.com) Critical Analysis: Dorian LPG (LPG) & Safe Bulkers (SB) (americanbankingnews.com)

    A number of analysts have recently weighed in on SB shares. TheStreet cut Safe Bulkers from a “c-” rating to a “d+” rating in a research report on Thursday. Maxim Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $6.00 price target on shares of Safe Bulkers in a research report on Monday, July 23rd. Zacks Investment Research cut Safe Bulkers from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 12th. ValuEngine upgraded Safe Bulkers from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 1st. Finally, Seaport Global Securities upgraded Safe Bulkers from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $3.50 to $5.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. The company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $3.79.

Sunday, February 24, 2019

Equifax Inc (EFX) Files 10-K for the Fiscal Year Ended on December 31, 2018

Equifax Inc (NYSE:EFX) files its latest 10-K with SEC for the fiscal year ended on December 31, 2018. Equifax Inc provides information solutions and human resources business process outsourcing services for businesses, governments and consumers. It also provides database management, fraud detection, marketing, business credit, and analytical services. Equifax Inc has a market cap of $13.32 billion; its shares were traded at around $110.49 with a P/E ratio of 30.02 and P/S ratio of 3.93. The dividend yield of Equifax Inc stocks is 1.40%. Equifax Inc had annual average EBITDA growth of 8.20% over the past ten years. GuruFocus rated Equifax Inc the business predictability rank of 2.5-star.

For the last quarter Equifax Inc reported a revenue of $835.3 million, compared with the revenue of $838.4 million during the same period a year ago. For the latest fiscal year the company reported a revenue of $3.4 billion, an increase of 1.5% from last year. For the last five years Equifax Inc had an average revenue growth rate of 9.3% a year. The Equifax Inc had a decent operating margin of 13.13%, compared with the operating margin of 24.53% a year before. The 10-year historical median operating margin of Equifax Inc is 24.70%. The profitability rank of the company is 8 (out of 10).

At the end of the fiscal year, Equifax Inc has the cash and cash equivalents of $223.6 million, compared with $336.4 million in the previous year. The long term debt was $2.6 billion, compared with $1.7 billion in the previous year. The interest coverage to the debt is 4.3. Equifax Inc has a financial strength rank of 5 (out of 10).

At the current stock price of $110.49, Equifax Inc is traded at 13.8% premium to its historical median P/S valuation band of $97.06. The P/S ratio of the stock is 3.93, while the historical median P/S ratio is 3.45. The intrinsic value of the stock is $54.28 a share, according to GuruFocus DCF Calculator. The stock lost 1.56% during the past 12 months.

For the complete 20-year historical financial data of EFX, click here.

Friday, February 22, 2019

Buy Walmart (WMT) Stock After Blowout Holiday Quarter Earnings?

Walmart (WMT ) posted better-than-expected Q4 earnings Tuesday, along with strong e-commerce sales and solid U.S. comps growth. So is now the time to buy Walmart stock as the company continues to prove it can adapt to an Amazon (AMZN ) -obsessed retail age?

Quick Q4 Overview

Walmart’s holiday quarter revenues climbed 1.9% to reach $138.8 billion. This fell just below our $139.30 billion Zacks Consensus Estimate, but beat Q3’s 1.4% jump and came on top of Q4 fiscal 2018’s 4.1% top-line growth. Plus, the Commerce Department last week said overall U.S. holiday sales saw their largest drop since 2009. Therefore, along with Walmart’s 40% full-year e-commerce growth and 3.6% fiscal 2019 U.S. comps expansion, the retail powerhouse seems to have shaken off any worries about Amazon’s encroachment.

Meanwhile, Walmart’s adjusted quarterly earnings jumped 6% to reach $1.41 per share and easily surpassed our $1.33 estimate. Shares of WMT have slipped since the company reported its Q4 financial results. Still, investors will see that Walmart stock has outpaced the S&P 500 and its industry’s average over the last three years.

 

Outlook

Walmart reiterated its fiscal 2020 guidance that calls for EPS to decline by a low single-digit percentage, but post low mid-single digit growth when excluding its Flipkart investment. The retail behemoth now owns 77% of one of India’s largest e-commerce sites, which could prove key down the road with the country’s economy set to boom and maybe even surpass China.

On top of that, Walmart projects that its e-commerce sales will climb around 35% above last year’s 40% digital sales expansion. The company pointed to increased online grocery pickup, higher average tickets, and a broader assortment on Walmart.com, among other reasons, for its e-commerce strength.

Walmart plans to add 1,000 grocery pickup locations in fiscal 2020 to end the year with 3,100. The company also expects to double its grocery delivery locations to 1,600. Walmart is of course not alone, as competitors Kroger (KR ) , Costco (COST ) , and Target (TGT ) all ramp up their digital retail businesses. Still, these e-commerce focused initiatives helped Walmart report U.S. comp sales on a two-year stack of 6.8%, which marked its strongest growth in nearly a decade.

 

Bottom Line

Walmart is a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) that sports “B” grades for Value and Growth and an “A” for Momentum in our Style Scores system. The “Retail – Supermarkets” industry currently rests in the top 10% of our 256 industries, and we know that stocks in strong industries can outperform the market. 

WMT is currently trading at 21.6X forward 12-month Zacks Consensus EPS estimates, which marks a slight premium compared to its industry’s 19.6X average. With all that said, now might be a solid time to think about buying this dividend paying retail powerhouse that has raised its quarterly cash dividend every year since first declaring one in March 1974.

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Wednesday, February 20, 2019

Deborah H. Caplan Sells 3,054 Shares of NextEra Energy Inc (NEE) Stock

NextEra Energy Inc (NYSE:NEE) EVP Deborah H. Caplan sold 3,054 shares of NextEra Energy stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $183.50, for a total value of $560,409.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,597 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,146,549.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

NEE traded up $1.05 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $185.09. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,101,253 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,306,713. NextEra Energy Inc has a twelve month low of $151.32 and a twelve month high of $185.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.36. The firm has a market cap of $88.08 billion, a PE ratio of 24.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.26.

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NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.51 by ($0.02). NextEra Energy had a return on equity of 10.01% and a net margin of 39.74%. The firm had revenue of $4.39 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.25 earnings per share. NextEra Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that NextEra Energy Inc will post 8.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.70%. This is a positive change from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.11. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 27th. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.66%.

NEE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Investment Research cut NextEra Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 18th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on NextEra Energy from $184.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 12th. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price target on shares of NextEra Energy in a report on Monday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on NextEra Energy to $186.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 1st. Finally, Credit Suisse Group reduced their price target on NextEra Energy from $185.00 to $173.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 24th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. NextEra Energy has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $178.75.

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,214,999 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,907,634,000 after buying an additional 815,916 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc lifted its holdings in NextEra Energy by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc now owns 41,214,999 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,907,634,000 after purchasing an additional 815,916 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. lifted its holdings in NextEra Energy by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 37,651,697 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,544,616,000 after purchasing an additional 886,301 shares in the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund lifted its holdings in NextEra Energy by 17,067.6% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 8,822,408 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 8,771,018 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in NextEra Energy by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,679,055 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,160,953,000 after purchasing an additional 270,346 shares in the last quarter. 77.71% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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NextEra Energy Company Profile

NextEra Energy, Inc, through its subsidiaries, generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power to retail and wholesale customers in North America. The company generates electricity through wind, solar, nuclear, and natural gas-fired facilities. It also provides risk management services related to power and gas consumption.

Read More: Price to Earnings Ratio (PE) Basics

Insider Buying and Selling by Quarter for NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE)

Tuesday, February 19, 2019

Hain Celestial Group Inc (HAIN) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Hain Celestial Group Inc (NASDAQ:HAIN) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the nineteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $28.64.

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group set a $21.00 price objective on shares of Hain Celestial Group and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, November 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “hold” rating and set a $24.00 price objective on shares of Hain Celestial Group in a research report on Wednesday, November 14th. BidaskClub raised shares of Hain Celestial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 22nd. Loop Capital raised their price objective on shares of Hain Celestial Group to $24.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 12th. Finally, Buckingham Research set a $24.00 price objective on shares of Hain Celestial Group and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 9th.

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NASDAQ:HAIN traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $17.76. 1,397,265 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,033,174. Hain Celestial Group has a fifty-two week low of $14.45 and a fifty-two week high of $36.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 2.17 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.31, a P/E/G ratio of 4.53 and a beta of 1.38.

Hain Celestial Group (NASDAQ:HAIN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 7th. The company reported $0.14 EPS for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.26 by ($0.12). Hain Celestial Group had a positive return on equity of 5.28% and a negative net margin of 6.72%. The company had revenue of $584.16 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $611.18 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.32 earnings per share. Hain Celestial Group’s revenue was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Hain Celestial Group will post 0.65 EPS for the current year.

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hain Celestial Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Premier Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Hain Celestial Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $299,000. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Hain Celestial Group by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 134,598 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,135,000 after acquiring an additional 3,637 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in Hain Celestial Group by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 3,645,824 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,823,000 after buying an additional 455,337 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC boosted its holdings in Hain Celestial Group by 421.8% during the fourth quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 633,726 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,051,000 after buying an additional 512,278 shares in the last quarter. 91.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Hain Celestial Group Company Profile

The Hain Celestial Group, Inc manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells organic and natural products. The company operates in seven segments: the United States, United Kingdom, Tilda, Ella's Kitchen UK, Canada, Europe, and Cultivate. It offers infant formula; infant, toddler, and kids foods; diapers and wipes; rice and grain-based products; plant-based beverages and frozen desserts, such as soy, rice, oat, almond, and coconut; flour and baking mixes; breads, hot and cold cereals, pasta, condiments, cooking and culinary oils, granolas, and cereal bars; canned, chilled fresh, aseptic, and instant soups; yogurts; chilies; chocolates; and nut butters.

See Also: What is a balanced fund?

Analyst Recommendations for Hain Celestial Group (NASDAQ:HAIN)

Monday, February 18, 2019

Accelerator Network Tops One Day Trading Volume of $0.00 (ACC)

Accelerator Network (CURRENCY:ACC) traded flat against the dollar during the 24 hour period ending at 13:00 PM Eastern on February 18th. One Accelerator Network token can currently be bought for about $0.0164 or 0.00000457 BTC on popular exchanges including IDEX, EtherDelta (ForkDelta) and CoinExchange. In the last week, Accelerator Network has traded 0.1% higher against the dollar. Accelerator Network has a market capitalization of $11,160.00 and approximately $0.00 worth of Accelerator Network was traded on exchanges in the last day.

Here is how other cryptocurrencies have performed in the last day:

Get Accelerator Network alerts: Litecoin (LTC) traded up 12.8% against the dollar and now trades at $48.88 or 0.01250211 BTC. Dogecoin (DOGE) traded up 5.4% against the dollar and now trades at $0.0021 or 0.00000053 BTC. Verge (XVG) traded up 6.5% against the dollar and now trades at $0.0063 or 0.00000162 BTC. Bytom (BTM) traded 6.7% higher against the dollar and now trades at $0.0855 or 0.00002186 BTC. Linkey (LKY) traded up 7.3% against the dollar and now trades at $0.87 or 0.00022288 BTC. Polymath (POLY) traded up 3.9% against the dollar and now trades at $0.0957 or 0.00002448 BTC. Syscoin (SYS) traded up 0% against the dollar and now trades at $0.0453 or 0.00001158 BTC. Matrix AI Network (MAN) traded 2.8% higher against the dollar and now trades at $0.0743 or 0.00001901 BTC. Einsteinium (EMC2) traded 0.7% lower against the dollar and now trades at $0.0445 or 0.00001138 BTC. BridgeCoin (BCO) traded 5.5% higher against the dollar and now trades at $0.35 or 0.00009012 BTC.

Accelerator Network Profile

Accelerator Network (CRYPTO:ACC) is a proof-of-work (PoW) token that uses the Scrypt hashing algorithm. It launched on July 18th, 2017. Accelerator Network’s total supply is 968,786 tokens and its circulating supply is 678,678 tokens. The official message board for Accelerator Network is medium.com/accelerator-network. The official website for Accelerator Network is accelerator.network. Accelerator Network’s official Twitter account is @Accelerator_Net.

Buying and Selling Accelerator Network

Accelerator Network can be traded on these cryptocurrency exchanges: CoinExchange, IDEX and EtherDelta (ForkDelta). It is usually not possible to purchase alternative cryptocurrencies such as Accelerator Network directly using US dollars. Investors seeking to trade Accelerator Network should first purchase Ethereum or Bitcoin using an exchange that deals in US dollars such as Changelly, Coinbase or GDAX. Investors can then use their newly-acquired Ethereum or Bitcoin to purchase Accelerator Network using one of the aforementioned exchanges.

Sunday, February 17, 2019

Washington Real Estate Investment Trust (WRE) Q4 2018 Earnings Conference Call Transcript

Washington Real Estate Investment Trust  (NYSE:WRE)Q4 2018 Earnings Conference Call

Logo of jester cap with thought bubble.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

Feb. 15, 2019, 11:00 a.m. ET

Contents: Prepared Remarks Questions and Answers Call Participants Prepared Remarks:

Operator

Welcome to the Washington Real Estate Investment Trust Year End 2018 Earnings Conference Call. As a reminder, today's call is being recorded.

Before turning the call over to the Company's President and Chief Executive Officer, Paul McDermott, Tejal Engman, Vice President of Investor Relations will provide some introductory information. Ms. Engman, please go ahead.

Tejal Engman -- Vice President of Investor Relations

Thank you and good morning, everyone. Please note that our conference call today will contain financial measures such as FFO, core FFO, NOI, core FAD, and adjusted EBITDA that are non-GAAP measures as defined in Reg G. Please refer to our most recent financial supplement and to our earnings press release, both available on the Investor page of our website and to our periodic reports furnished or filed with the SEC for definitions and further information regarding our use of these non-GAAP financial measures and a reconciliation of them to our GAAP results.

Please also note that some statements during this call are forward-looking statements within the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. Forward-looking statements in the earnings press release along with our remarks are made as of today and we undertake no duty to update them as actual events unfold. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ materially. We refer to certain of these risks in our SEC filings. Please refer to pages 8 through 25 of our Form 10-K for our complete risk factor disclosure.

Participating in today's call with me will be Paul McDermott, President and Chief Executive Officer; Steve Riffee, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; Tom Bakke, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer and Drew Hammond, Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer and Treasurer.

Now, I'd like to turn the call over to Paul.

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Thank you, Tejal, and good morning, everyone. Thanks for joining us on our year-end 2018 earnings conference call. 2018 was another year of solid operational performance, continued asset recycling and further balance sheet improvement for WashREIT. We delivered approximately 2% core FFO per share and 3% same-store NOI growth on a year-over-year basis. We upgraded our Northern Virginia office portfolio with the sale of Braddock Metro Center in Alexandria and the acquisition of Arlington Tower in Rosslyn. We continued to upgrade our DC office portfolio with the sale of 2445 M Street in the West end, having acquired Watergate 600 on the DC Waterfront in 2017. And we ended the year with a net debt to adjusted EBITDA ratio of 6.2 times.

As a result, we have entered 2019 with a strong balance sheet and a higher quality, better located portfolio with exciting lease-up opportunities in a region that is expected to benefit from a continued rise in defense spending and Amazon HQ2 related growth. This year, we are focused on multiple commercial lease-up opportunities that represent meaningful, long-term NOI growth for our shareholders. Our 2019 goal is to create solid visibility on our future revenue growth by executing commercial leases throughout the year and by delivering the first units at the Trove, our multifamily development by the Pentagon in the fourth quarter of this year.

Let me now provide you with a progress report on our key commercial leasing opportunities that were referenced in the 8-K we filed last November. Starting with Watergate 600, we are very close to signing a 51,000 square foot long-term lease for the top two floors of the building with a blue chip company that considers Watergate 600 to be its best relocation option, as it looks to expand its regional footprint. We expect lease commencement to take place in early 2020, pending the completion of an extensive build out.

This lease and the 22,000 square foot of other leases that we have executed thus far at Watergate 600 validate our acquisition thesis on office tenants being drawn to the asset's iconic status, and unparalleled waterfront views. Following the lease up of Watergate 600's top two floors, we have a pipeline of approximately 100,000 square feet of deals for approximately 40,000 square foot of current availability, which includes all other 2019 lease expirations. Thereafter, annual lease expirations at Watergate 600 are negligible until 2026 and beyond.

Moving on to Arlington Tower, we delivered one floor of collaborative, furnished suites within the Space+ program from December through early January. Over that period, we have signed two leases totaling approximately 8,000 square feet that are both already generating GAAP and cash revenues and have now received multiple LOIs for a third suite. When signed, we will have leased nearly half the floor we just delivered at weighted average rents that are 12% higher than both the expiring and the market rent for traditional leases with a weighted average term of 3.5 years and 26 days of weighted average downtime from delivery to rent commencement.

Our build-out of these Space+ suites is approximately 30% lower than the average tenant incentives incurred on new Class A (inaudible) quarter over the last 12 months according to Comstock data. Based on our proof of concept at the 1600 Wilson, we expect 90% of our initial Space+ capital outlay to have a useful life of at least 10 years. As of today, we have approximately 36,000 square feet of Space+ and 27,000 square feet of traditional lease space that is currently vacant and available to lease at Arlington Tower. We expect the majority of Space+ vacancy to commence throughout 2019 and for the traditional lease space to commence in the first half of 2020. We remain bullish on Rosslyn, which delivered another strong leasing year in 2018, following a record leasing year in 2017.

This sub-market continues to attract premier office tenants with the latest reports being that Amazon is looking to take a large block of co-working space in Rosslyn. Furthermore, the research we conducted with Congressional Quarterly projected an increase in contract awards in the RMB corridor (ph) that is resulting in robust activity among small and midsize office users, looking for furnace space with immediate availability and flexible terms. We continue to see excellent small deal activity in the market and tour velocity at Arlington Tower remains high with a deal pipeline of approximately 210,000 square feet. In general, we expect demand for high-quality flexible office space in our region will continue to grow and that landlords will have to quickly adapt their product offerings to capitalize on what is now regarded to be a secular shift in the office business.

That said, while flexible office and co-working are often spoken as one product offering, we believe they have different value propositions. Space+ is predominantly a flexible office offering that addresses existing and new tenant need for greater flexibility, while continuing to forge their unique corporate identities. Although core working product also offers duration flexibility, it is a relatively more expensive option for small and mid-sized users in our market, particularly those seeking to space to accommodate 12 or more employees.

Moreover, co-working still does a relatively poor job of helping small and mid-sized users establish their unique corporate identities as it attempts to cater to a wide variety of tenants with different space needs from freelancers to Fortune 500 corporations. Although Space+ is priced at a premium to traditional leases, it is at a very meaningful discount to co-working with creative design that allows tenants to emphasize their own brand, culture and customer experience. We therefore believe it is well positioned to meet the growing demand for flexible space, both out of co-working and from our existing long-term tenants, who regard Space+ to be a valuable amenity.

We finished 2018 with approximately 133,000 square feet of delivered Space+ space, which is located in 53 spaces across 10 buildings. The delivered space is currently 86% leased, with the majority of the remaining space having been recently delivered. We have another 57,000 square feet across 14 spaces in the Space+ program that we'll deliver over the next 6 to 8 months. Thus far, we have achieved rents that are at a premium to the market and in full year 2018, it took us approximately 69 days on average to get from delivery to lease commencement. This compares favorably with the 3.5 months of average downtime for spec suites and 16.5 months average downtime for traditional to be customized shelf space, according to NKF data.

Moving back to Washington DC office, we finally have some availability in our value oriented DC Class B office portfolio after years of being largely stabilized and fully occupied. Our most significant lease-up opportunities are 1220 19th Street, 2000 M Street and 1227 25th Street, where we have approximately 71,000 square feet of anticipated tenant vacates within our 2019 lease expirations. These include approximately 19,000 square feet feet at 1227 25th Street, as well as 41,000 square feet at 1220 19th Street, both of which were referenced in the 8-K published in November 2018.

Expiring rents for these anticipated vacates range from the high-40s to the low-50s gross per square foot, implying slight mark-to-market upside as well as significant gap to commodity Class A product where asking rents are currently in the high $60 gross per foot range according to JLL data. Moreover, JLL expects another 2 million square feet of Class B office product will be removed through 2022, further limiting value oriented options in the DC corridor.

In the 8-K we filed last November, we referenced four renewal leases in the DC Class B portfolio, two of these were roll ups, and two were roll downs, which I would like to detail further. The expiring cash rents for the 42,000 square feet tenant we renewed at 1775 Eye Street were in the mid-60s, as they had escalated over a number of years and blended 8,000 feet of the high value retail space that we now have taken back. We renewed the tenant at just above $60 a foot with 2.5% rent escalators over a term of 11.3 years, which is a very solid execution for lower floor Class B office space in Washington DC. Moreover, we expect to release the 8000 square feet of prime retail space at rents that will roll-up in the low double-digits.

The GSA renewal, which is out for signature was atypical, as the GSA held a recompete process where we were competing against C buildings in Southwest DC. 1227 25th Street is one of three assets in our portfolio that has space leased to the GSA and federal government tenants comprised less than 2% of our annualized base rental revenue as of December 31, 2018.

Now onto retail, where we are under LOI for both the 28,000 square-foot former HHGregg vacancy at Hagerstown and the 23,000 square-foot former HHGregg vacancy at Frederick Crossing with a discount retailer that will require significantly lower capital investment than previously estimated. We expect both leases to commence in the first half of 2020 and to generate approximately $0.5 million of combined, stabilized, annualized NOI. We are also negotiating a lease with a medical user for the entire second floor of the new Spring Valley Village development. If signed, this lease is expected to commence from early 2020 and contribute a little over $400,000 of stabilized annualized NOI.

In addition, we are very close to releasing a challenging 28,000 square foot vacancy at Montrose Shopping Center for a term of four years with lease commencement beginning at the end of the first quarter this year as well as a 15,000 square foot vacancy at Concord Center for a term of 10 years with lease commencement around year-end 2019. Finally, we have executed a 12,000 square foot lease for another vacancy at Randolph Shopping Center.

In summary, we are at LOI or lease for approximately 114,000 square feet of retail vacancies that are expected to commence by early 2020. We have made substantial progress on some of our most challenging vacancies and are pleased to be restabilizing the retail portfolio's cash flows.

Shifting gears to multifamily, we believe the announcement of Amazon HQ2 at National Landing is an unequivocal long-term positive for our multifamily portfolio. Approximately, 95% of our multifamily units are within a 30-minute driving distance from HQ2, with approximately 70% of the units located within a 5-mile radius of HQ2. We expect Amazon generated jobs to benefit the lease-up at the Trove, where the first units are expected to deliver in the fourth quarter of this year as well as some of our other Northern Virginia Class A assets, including Bennett Park and the Maxwell located in the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor.

With the cancellation of HQ2 in New York, there is potential for even greater job growth in Northern Virginia. There are several studies that had analyzed the multiplier effect of the 25,000 employees that Amazon has committed to bring to the DC metro region over 10 years. While the US Bureau of Economic Analysis estimates a multiplier of 1.9, UC Berkeley forecasts a multiplier of 5 additional jobs for every one Amazon job. As this multiplier manifests itself in potentially 50,000 to 125,000 additional jobs over the next decade, we expect it to positively benefit our Class B assets in Northern Virginia, including Paramount, Wellington, Park Adams, Riverside and Roosevelt Towers.

We remain positive on multifamily on a near-term basis as well. While supply deliveries remain at elevated levels, both our Class A and Class B multifamily portfolios continue to grow rents and occupancy as nearly 75% of our multifamily NOI is derived from assets located in Northern Virginia and approximately 80% is from Class B assets. As a result, our portfolio is relatively insulated from the large wave of Class A supply that's delivering in the Capitol Hill Riverfront and NoMa submarkets of the district.

In the fourth quarter, we grew Class A average rents by approximately 1.8% and Class B average rents by approximately 2.6% year-over-year, while ending occupancy grew 70 basis points year-over-year on a square footage basis. In full year 2018, we achieved 4.1% renewal trade outs, 60 basis points higher than in 2017, while retention remains steady year-over-year. New lease trade outs came in at a 1.8% for the year, broadly in line with our performance in 2017.

Looking at deliveries over the next 12 months, Northern Virginia is expected to receive 42% of the region's new units, below its historical average of 50% of the units, while Washington DC is expected to receive 45% of the new units, well above its historical share of 20%, according to Delta Associates. This regional delivery trend leaves us confident in our portfolio's relative positioning in 2019.

Moving onto our region's fundamentals, in spite of the recent government shutdown, we are optimistic on federal spending, continuing to be a positive driver for real estate demand, particularly in Northern Virginia, which will benefit from the continued increase in the defense budget and contract awards. As the data for 2018 contract awards is now available, we ask CQ examine how contract spending had fared, relative to their expectations at the time of the 2018 budget appropriations last spring.

For the DC metro region as a whole, government contract spending increased by 6.1% in 2018, which although significantly positive relative to recent history, was 2.1% lower than the projected year-over-year increase. Moreover, while contract spending rose 7.6% in Maryland and 6.9% in Virginia, it actually declined 1.1% in Washington DC. Growth in Virginia was driven by defense contract awards, which grew 11% in 2018, according to CQ Data and having met annual projections are expected to continue to rise in the current fiscal year. This is supported by the fact that for the first time in over a decade, the fiscal year 2019 defense budget was appropriated prior to the start of the fiscal year, which means that contractors have more clarity and fiscal assurance today than at any time in the past 10 years.

The overall regional increase in contract awards does appear to have had a positive impact on job growth, which was robust at 52,100 new jobs in 2018, relative to 50,900 new jobs in 2017. Importantly, the region created 16,000 new professional and business service jobs, which represented 31% of 2018 job growth relative to 10,400 new professional and business service jobs created in 2017, representing 21% of 2017 job growth. The fact that our region generated 54% more new professional business service jobs year-over-year is impressive.

That said, we believe the pace of fiscal year 2019 contract award has been interrupted due to the recent government shutdown. As a result, some awards may be shifted to later months of this fiscal year. While the initial shutdown didn't have a significant impact on our portfolio, the region's real estate fundamentals do remain partially dependent on federal government spending. Encouragingly for Virginia, not only was 2019 defense budget passed on time, but (inaudible) defense spending levels for 2020 and FY 2021 also call for continuing gains in spending.

Now, I would like to turn the call over to Steve to discuss our financial and operational performance in the fourth quarter and our 2019 guidance.

Stephen E. Riffee -- Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Thanks, Paul and good morning, everyone. 2018 net income attributable to controlling interests of $25.6 million or $0.32 per diluted share exceeded 2017 net income attributable to controlling interests of $19.7 million or $0.25 per diluted share. Core FFO of $1.86 per diluted share for the full year 2018 was in line with the midpoint of our most recent guidance range. We grew core FFO per share by approximately 2% year-over-year, partly due to 3.1% year-over-year same-store NOI growth.

On a sequential basis, fourth quarter core FFO grew by a penny, primarily due to lower overall building operating expenses. Expenses, as a percentage of revenue, improved 110 basis points for the second consecutive year to 34.5% for full year 2018, driven by expense management initiatives across the same-store portfolio as well as lower real estate taxes.

Core funds available for distribution or core FAD was approximately $121 million in 2018, representing a 78.4% payout ratio, which was better than the 80% payout ratio we had targeted for the year. For 2019, we are targeting a core FAD payout ratio of approximately 80%. Our full year 2018 same-store NOI growth of 3.1% GAAP and 3.7% cash was driven by higher revenues across the office, multi-family and retail portfolios, as average same store occupancy grew by 40 basis points year-over-year and rental rates and recoveries across all three property types trended higher.

Moving onto office and retail leasing, we leased approximately 153,000 square feet in the fourth quarter, including 52,000 square feet of new leases and 101,000 square feet of renewal leases. Office renewals included the 42,000 square foot early renewal of one of our top 10 largest tenants. As we had detailed in the 8-K filed in November 2018, the renewal was for 11.3 years at rents that were single digit roll downs on a GAAP and a cash basis. Notably, the remaining approximately 49,000 square feet of office renewals rolled up on a GAAP and a cash basis.

Retail signed approximately 17,000 square feet of new leases where economics were skewed by two leases signed with service providers that are expected to further improve the merchandising mix and traffic at two of our neighborhood and community shopping centers. We achieved 100% retail tenant retention in the fourth quarter, driven by our proactive approach to retention and tenants exercising early renewal options, a trend that we believe will continue in 2019.

Our biggest needle movers on the leasing front are Arlington Tower and Watergate 600. These two assets account for a third of our 2019 office lease expirations and provide us the opportunity to create longer-term value by growing rents and further enhancing NAV. In retail, we have approximately 99,000 square feet or 5.4% of annualized retail rent expiring in 2019. The majority of these lease expirations are in our neighborhood and community-anchored shopping centers with a median lease size of approximately 2,500 square feet.

With regards to multifamily unit renovations, at year-end, we had 272 units left to renovate at the Wellington and 191 units left to renovate at Riverside. The Wellington unit renovation program is now 60% complete, while Riverside is 78% complete. We are generating a mid-teens return on cost on the renovation dollars that have been invested at these two assets to-date and expect consistent returns as we plan for these programs to be substantially completed through 2019.

Now turning to 2019. We are guiding to a full year core FFO per share range of $1.74 to $1.78. This range includes a $1 million to $1.5 million impact or an approximately $0.015 to $0.02 reduction as a result of adopting the new leasing accounting standard ASC 842, beginning January 1, 2019.

Our guidance includes the following assumptions: a projected same-store NOI growth range of negative 0.5%, deposit of 0.5%. Excluding Watergate 600, same-store NOI growth is projected to range from positive 1.75% to 2.75%. As Paul mentioned, we expect the top two floors of Watergate 600 to be built out for a new tenant in 2019 and the lease to commence in early 2020. We assume same store office NOI declines to range between negative 5.25% to negative 4.25%, while we are in the process of leasing up spaces, which we expect will contribute to same-store NOI growth in 2020 and beyond.

Excluding Watergate 600, same store office NOI growth is expected to be approximately flat at the midpoint. We assume multi-family and retail same-store NOI growth will each range from 3.75% and 4.25%. We project dispositions to range $175 million to $200 million. Our capital plan for 2019 assumes approximately $65 million to $70 million of development spending, predominantly for the Trove where we have executed a guaranteed maximum price contract that insulates us from escalations and construction pricing. Our interest expense is expected to range between $51 million to $51.75 million. Capitalized interest is expected to range from $2.75 million to $3.25 million.

G&A is projected to range from $18 million to $18.75 million, as we reduced costs by approximately 17% at the midpoint to partially offset the lower revenue in this lease-up period. Finally, we project office non-same-store NOI, which consist of Arlington Tower purchased in 2018, to range between $16.75 million and $17.25 million. Our focus remains on maintaining our balance sheet strength. We expect our net debt to adjusted EBITDA to be in our targeted range of 6 to 6.5 times and to end the year at the lower end of the range,

following the completed plan of dispositions.

And with that, I will now turn the call back over to Paul.

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Thank you, Steve. I would like to take this opportunity to announce that Tom Bakke, our Chief Operating Officer, has informed the company of his retirement. As many of you know, Tom joined Washington REIT in 2014 to help transform the company. Tom turned the operations around by implementing a portfolio management model that increased accountability and drove superior performance. In a nutshell, Tom helped create WashREIT 2.0. I can't thank him enough for his many contributions, his passion, his leadership and for his friendship over the years. One of Tom's greatest successes is the development of an extremely talented team of portfolio managers across all three asset classes. I'm confident in their leadership and ability to achieve our operational and strategic goals. We wish Tom all the very best for this new phase of life and his very well-deserved retirement.

To recap, we are excited about our multiple commercial lease-up opportunities and look forward to updating you on our progress on those, as well as on the robust, multi-family and retail growth, we expect this year. As our guidance implies, we are proactively reducing our G&A by approximately 17% at the midpoint of our 2019 guidance range, as we cut costs and maximize the FFO we generate for our shareholders, while working to create long-term NOI growth through leasing. We have entered 2019 with a strong balance sheet and a capital plan that enables us to deliver the first units at the Trove later this year. 2019 is about leasing execution at WashREIT and we look forward to updating you on our progress throughout the year.

With that, let me now open the call to answer your questions.

Questions and Answers:

Operator

Great. Thank you. At this time, we will be conducting a question-and-answer session. (Operator Instructions) Our first question is from Blaine Heck from Wells Fargo. Please go ahead.

Blaine Heck -- Wells Fargo Securities -- Analyst

Thanks, good morning. Paul, thanks for all the commentary on Space+, that was very helpful. And it seems like pretty significant growth initiative for you guys. I guess how much of your office portfolio do you see as available to convert into Space+ and how big do you envision that segment could eventually represent?

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Blaine, Tom is pioneering this over the last -- over the last six months and so, I'm going to just ask him to comment on the metrics.

Thomas Q. Bakke -- Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

Yeah. Thanks, Paul. So, Blaine, I think we've touched on Space+ before, it's our flexible space program and we do have a lot of things happening in the office business. One of the most important things is this push toward more flexibility and more experiential type offerings. You hear a lot of co-working data sort of geared and it could grow upwards of 10% of the office business. I think that's sort of on the aggressive side.

The way we look at it is we are creating an offering sort of in the midpoint that addresses the small to mid-sized tenants that have a need for speed, that have a need for flexibility, have a need for sort of a broader service offering. And we think it could be upwards of 5% of our portfolio. So right now, it's probably about 3%. I don't think it gets much above 5, but we want it to be broad enough that we can address these evolving tenant needs in pretty much all the sub-markets we are in.

Blaine Heck -- Wells Fargo Securities -- Analyst

Great, that's helpful. Maybe for Paul or Steve, you guys have been trading at a discount to NAV most of this year so far. Good to see some of that is coming back today, but have you guys contemplated share repurchases and how do you think about that opportunity to invest in your own stock versus maybe going out and purchasing something at market cap rates?

Stephen E. Riffee -- Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Well, Blaine, I think we've probably been asked that over the years from time-to-time as the markets have fluctuated. It's certainly in our capital allocation analysis. We've always said that we do consider it, but we would do it on a leverage neutral basis to keep the balance sheet strong. And so to do that, the debt that we would be paying down alongside of a share repurchase would be on the cheaper end of our debt, it would be our short-term debt that we could pay down and we look at like their stock price, where we're at. It's -- we are in the 5s and we still have the Trove where we have, a guaranteed maximum price contract.

We're well along -- the initial stabilization yields are over a 6 in that development and we think -- thereafter, we think that's an improving market for further growth and in the near term, we still have some of our renovation programs going on in our units, in our multi-family value add properties and that's been yielding in the mid teens. So, it is something that we do evaluate. It has not crossed the threshold is our best allocation to capital at this point.

Blaine Heck -- Wells Fargo Securities -- Analyst

Okay, makes sense. And then last from me, you guys have guidance for around 200 million of dispositions this year, can you just talk a little bit about what you guys are targeting to sell, whether it's going to be kind of one-offs or larger deals and maybe how you're thinking about the timing of those sales? Is there anything being marketed at this point?

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Blaine, nothing is being marketed right now. But I would say that, as we look at our portfolio, we have some office assets that are probably reaching their inflection point and that has just been due to Tom's team's great leasing efforts. And so, we're, I think, at the end of the value creation from our standpoint there. And so those are types of assets we would take to market. Steve, just in terms of timing.

Stephen E. Riffee -- Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Sure. I mean, considering we're already a little bit into the year, our own models and forecasts assume that we get, I'd say, less than half done around mid-year, with the balance of our guidance range toward the end of the year.

Blaine Heck -- Wells Fargo Securities -- Analyst

Great, thanks. And Tom, good luck on everything in the future.

Thomas Q. Bakke -- Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

Thanks, Blaine. Appreciated. Great.

Operator

Our next question is from John Guinee from Stifel. Please, go ahead.

John Guinee -- Stifel Nicolaus -- Analyst

Great. Nice job. And Tom, we will miss you. Talk about the Trove, it looks to me like it's almost walking distance to the Pentagon, to Fashion Square, Pentagon City and a couple of blocks further east is the new Amazon HQ2 headquarters. Can you actually walk in a tunnel under 395 to get to it or do you have to cross 395 on foot?

Thomas Q. Bakke -- Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

You have to cross 395, but John, I think from the Trove, we will be running shuttles like we do from the Wellington, its sister property on the site, so we don't want people running across 395.

John Guinee -- Stifel Nicolaus -- Analyst

And is -- $300,000 a unit seems pretty reasonable. Can you talk about how you got there, did you allocate any land to it, did you have to build a bunch of structured parking et cetera?

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Sure, John. So 300,000 units, it's just a hair above 300,000 a door. I think our competitive advantage, you hit on it, is really the land basis, our hard costs and I'm just going to go the Tower and a parking, but our hard costs are around 235 a door, soft costs around 36 and our land basis, we think if you were to try to go out and buy land and replicate what we're doing on the Trove, call it be about 70,000 a door and our land basis is just between 36 and 37 a door.

The only thing I would add to that, again, if you're comparing it to kind of a market rate deal on our math, since we have looked at other opportunities, yes, you do, as you pointed out, John in terms of parking, if you're doing above grade, we're allocating probably 22,000 a stall for that and for going below grade, we're probably averaging around 45,000 a stall.

John Guinee -- Stifel Nicolaus -- Analyst

Great. Okay. And then shifting to FFO guidance, it's down $0.10 year-over-year, which on 80 million shares equals about $8 million. Your FFO for 2018 is $146 million. So, it's over a 5% decline year-over-year. What on earth is driving a $8 million, 5% decline in FFO?

Stephen E. Riffee -- Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

John, this is Steve. I think one of the reasons that we wanted to give visibility in the 8-K that we filed in November 2018 was to kind of lay out the lease expirations. So they're laid out and pretty much in sequence with 60,000 square feet happening right off in mid-January. And so, and we also talked about in this call, our efforts in 2019 are really, we believe we're under the way, will be steady lease up throughout 2019 for the spaces that we have available.

So I think in most of that, we will be really contributing in early 2020 and some of the leases will continue, in the 8-K, will continue to expire in May and August. So we believe, looking at our numbers, we're certainly not ready to give full guidance for 2020. But we believe that both same-store and overall -- overall same-store and office same store will then return to same-store growth in the first quarter of 2020.

John Guinee -- Stifel Nicolaus -- Analyst

Got you. Thank you.

Operator

(Operator Instructions) Our next question is from Daniel Ismail from Green Street Advisors. Please go ahead.

Daniel Ismail -- Green Street Advisors -- Analyst

Great. Thanks, guys and good morning and Tom, all the best in retirement. Just a quick question on the dispositions, are there any tax consequences associated with the dispositions?

Stephen E. Riffee -- Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Dan, it is Steve. Right now, we always do tax planning and for having already recycled as a management team over $1 billion of capital, we've always made sure that is tax efficient. Right now, we believe that the guidance that we put out and the way we could execute it that we wouldn't have to reinvest the proceeds, but it really depends on what you sell and when you sell it. So it's something that we're always mindful of and that we would always keep an eye on.

Daniel Ismail -- Green Street Advisors -- Analyst

Great. And I think you mentioned over the last few quarters some difficulty in finding acquisition opportunities in your -- the sweet spot of value add multifamily, can you expand on that and how you guys have seen the pipeline over the last quarter.

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Sure, Danny. I think if you're looking at the DC market right now, I would say that predictably, given all the volatility that we saw in December, we saw a little bit of a pull back by some of the portfolio managers that we thought were going to bring product to the market in January. So I think we've had a slow start there. But we do see a lot of product particularly office product coming to the market. I think that is also pretty predictable, especially in Northern Virginia. I think you're going to really see a surge in Northern Virginia office product coming out, trying to draft off of the successes of both the Silver Line and HQ2.

he type of -- we're still not really seeing any core capital out there, looking for product, it all has to have a value add component. I think as we've tried to say to you, we are going to continue to look for multifamily product, that's the part of the portfolio we want to continue to recalibrate. When I say that too, I think there's going to be some eye-popping numbers, I mean the rumor is now the Meridian, that's on the market, directly across the street from Amazon will trade in the upper three caps, that is not the products that we're looking for, we think that we are looking at some multifamily, both one-offs and portfolios right now. And the opportunities that we do look at are at better cap rates and I think have better -- offer better value propositions for our shareholders.

Daniel Ismail -- Green Street Advisors -- Analyst

And maybe for the ones that you get a fee income to market, has pricing changed at all, maybe excluding the ones around National Landing?

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

I don't think we have enough data points for a fact pattern there. I think if anything, they've been flat, I think when you look at anything, I mean I can't pick up an OM that's come across my desk without giving me the precise proximity to HQ2. So I think people are definitely looking for a little juice there, but I think smart investors are discounting that. It's still -- like I said earlier, it still has to have, Danny, some type of value add characteristic to really get the juice and I think people are really looking for, just given the inflow of jobs over the next 10 years or what's projected to be and drafting off of defense and tech in Northern Virginia, I really think the multifamily is still kind of the sweet spot.

Daniel Ismail -- Green Street Advisors -- Analyst

And maybe just last one for me, the Riverside land parcel, can you guys give us an update on your plans for that piece of land and maybe expectations for any type of development starts in the near future?

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Well, we're in design development on Riverside right now. I think you're talking about the piece of land that was out in front of our property. Yes, we're still examining that. Our land basis right now in Riverside is, I want to say, between 20 and 21 a door and we think market land value if I was to do a market rate deal down there, it's probably about 35,000 a door. So roughly about a 40% discount, but we are looking at Riverside both with and without that parcel and as soon as we have something further to comment on about Danny, we'll let you know.

Daniel Ismail -- Green Street Advisors -- Analyst

Okay, great. Thanks guys.

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Thank you.

Operator

Our next question is from Chris Lucas from Capital One. Please go ahead.

Chris Lucas -- Capital One -- Analyst

Good morning, everyone. Tom, congratulations. Good luck and thanks for all of your help over the last several years. I appreciate it.

Thomas Q. Bakke -- Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

Thanks, Chris.

Chris Lucas -- Capital One -- Analyst

As it relates to the Trove, Paul, just kind of curious, I know Phase 1 is up and you're moving forward and expect delivery of units later in the year. Is Phase 2 under construction at this point and if so when or if not when will you start construction for that phase?

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Phase 2 is not under construction right now. I believe that we are shooting forward in the back half of '20 in terms of delivery.

Chris Lucas -- Capital One -- Analyst

Right. So, when would you have to get started in order to meet that delivery timeframe?

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Later on in the year, Chris.

Chris Lucas -- Capital One -- Analyst

Okay. Will the lease up pace at the Phase 1 impacted all your decision to move forward with Phase 2?

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

No. It will not.

Chris Lucas -- Capital One -- Analyst

Okay. So you're going to press forward with that. Okay. And then as it relates to sort of longer-term lease expirations, we're inside of two years now in World Bank, when should we be thinking about how to handicap that renewal?

Thomas Q. Bakke -- Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

This is Tom. I think we are in discussions with them right now, Chris and I think there is -- there are some things going on at the World Bank as we know, but the real estate department seems fairly focused on trying to get something done. So hopefully, we'll have some good news at some point in the not-too-distant future.

Chris Lucas -- Capital One -- Analyst

Okay, thank you. And then on the dispositions, I guess just kind of curious, you mentioned targeting office. I guess, just curious whether or not these would be lumpy transactions or whether or not there are some granularity to sort of the mix?

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

I think there will be some granularity if it's office, they're kind of on an asset management basis, kind of when they hit their different inflection points, so there may be separate opportunities and the timing might be different.

Chris Lucas -- Capital One -- Analyst

Okay. And then on the -- on Tom's retirement, I guess, just trying to understand, Paul, will you be back filling that role or how are you thinking about -- what your plans are there?

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Well, like I said in my remarks, Chris, I think Tom has built out an exceptional team. I think they're kind of a self leading team, the three portfolio managers, and so we're not going to backfill it at this time. But, we will keep our options open going forward.

Chris Lucas -- Capital One -- Analyst

Okay. And then maybe if I could just pivot over to the G&A guidance, can you give me more color on just sort of how you're able to (inaudible) that much savings year-over-year, I'm just trying to get my arms around it.

Stephen E. Riffee -- Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Sure, Chris. Well, in addition to everything else we've been executing over the last couple of years, we've had pretty large initiatives to invest in our technology and our processes. And also in our leadership development to prepare people to step up into bigger roles and all of that's creating efficiencies and we feel that it was very timely, we believe those efficiencies are going to allow us to reduce costs this year and that would be appropriate for our shareholders in this period of where revenues are down, what we're going to lease up again.

Chris Lucas -- Capital One -- Analyst

Okay, thank you. I appreciate it.

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Thanks, Chris.

Operator

Thank you. This concludes the question-and-answer session. I'd like to turn the floor back to management for any closing comments.

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Thank you, everyone. Again, I would like to thank you for your participation on our call today and we look forward to talking with many of you soon at the upcoming conferences. Have a good afternoon. Thank you.

Operator

This concludes today's teleconference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.

Duration: 50 minutes

Call participants:

Tejal Engman -- Vice President of Investor Relations

Paul T. McDermott -- President and Chief Executive Officer

Stephen E. Riffee -- Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Blaine Heck -- Wells Fargo Securities -- Analyst

Thomas Q. Bakke -- Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer

John Guinee -- Stifel Nicolaus -- Analyst

Daniel Ismail -- Green Street Advisors -- Analyst

Chris Lucas -- Capital One -- Analyst

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This article is a transcript of this conference call produced for The Motley Fool. While we strive for our Foolish Best, there may be errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in this transcript. As with all our articles, The Motley Fool does not assume any responsibility for your use of this content, and we strongly encourage you to do your own research, including listening to the call yourself and reading the company's SEC filings. Please see our Terms and Conditions for additional details, including our Obligatory Capitalized Disclaimers of Liability.

Saturday, February 16, 2019

Analysts Anticipate Pivotal Software (PVTL) Will Post Quarterly Sales of $170.10 Million

Wall Street analysts expect that Pivotal Software (NASDAQ:PVTL) will post sales of $170.10 million for the current quarter, according to Zacks Investment Research. Three analysts have issued estimates for Pivotal Software’s earnings, with estimates ranging from $170.00 million to $170.30 million. The business is expected to report its next earnings results after the market closes on Thursday, March 14th.

On average, analysts expect that Pivotal Software will report full-year sales of $658.46 million for the current year, with estimates ranging from $658.30 million to $658.74 million. For the next financial year, analysts anticipate that the business will report sales of $808.96 million, with estimates ranging from $801.85 million to $817.00 million. Zacks’ sales averages are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side analysts that cover Pivotal Software.

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Pivotal Software (NASDAQ:PVTL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, December 11th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the Zacks’ consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.04. The business had revenue of $168.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $164.11 million. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 30.3% on a year-over-year basis.

Several brokerages have weighed in on PVTL. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Pivotal Software from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 20th. Zacks Investment Research cut Pivotal Software from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on Pivotal Software from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. The stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $23.23.

Shares of PVTL stock traded up $0.94 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $21.16. The stock had a trading volume of 4,079,599 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,644,725. Pivotal Software has a 12-month low of $14.43 and a 12-month high of $31.24.

In other news, SVP Edward Hieatt sold 44,791 shares of Pivotal Software stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.01, for a total value of $896,267.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President William Cook sold 30,000 shares of Pivotal Software stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.00, for a total value of $600,000.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PVTL. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Pivotal Software by 1,232.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,827,457 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,229,000 after buying an additional 2,615,254 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Pivotal Software in the second quarter valued at $40,940,000. SQN Investors LP boosted its holdings in Pivotal Software by 2,772.5% in the third quarter. SQN Investors LP now owns 1,726,349 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,802,000 after purchasing an additional 1,666,250 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its holdings in Pivotal Software by 88.1% in the third quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,890,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,606,000 after purchasing an additional 1,353,731 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its holdings in Pivotal Software by 729.3% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 706,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,548,000 after purchasing an additional 621,143 shares during the period.

About Pivotal Software

Pivotal Software, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides an integrated solution that combines a cloud-native application platform and services in the United States. Its cloud-native platform, Pivotal Cloud Foundry (PCF), accelerates and streamlines software development by reducing the complexity of building, deploying, and operating modern applications.

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Earnings History and Estimates for Pivotal Software (NASDAQ:PVTL)

Friday, February 15, 2019

EURINR is expected to move sideways: Angel Broking


Angel Broking's currency report on EURINR


EURUSD appreciated by 0.3 percent yesterday while EURINR depreciated by 0.34 percent the same time frame. PPI from Euro zone came in at - 0.8 percent against market expectations of -0.7 percent for Jan'19. Services PMI from Eurozone came in at 51.2 against market expectations of 50.8 for Jan'19. Also, factory orders from Germany came in at -1.6 percent against market expectations of 0.3 percent for Jan'19. In line with other negative data sets, German industrial production data also came in at -0.4 percent against market expectations of 0.8 percent.


OUTLOOK


EURINR is expected to move sideways in today's session.


Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.

Read More First Published on Feb 15, 2019 11:33 am

Thursday, February 14, 2019

Jefferies Financial Group Boosts Lattice Semiconductor (LSCC) Price Target to $10.50

Lattice Semiconductor (NASDAQ:LSCC) had its price target increased by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group to $10.50 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, The Fly reports. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective points to a potential downside of 0.94% from the company’s current price.

Several other research firms also recently issued reports on LSCC. $1 raised shares of Lattice Semiconductor from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $8.00 to $11.00 in a report on Wednesday. Susquehanna Bancshares raised shares of Lattice Semiconductor from a “neutral” rating to a “positive” rating and set a $11.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday. BidaskClub raised shares of Lattice Semiconductor from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 12th. ValuEngine raised shares of Lattice Semiconductor from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 6th. Finally, Zacks Investment Research raised shares of Lattice Semiconductor from a “sell” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $7.75 price objective on the stock in a report on Saturday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. The company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $9.61.

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LSCC traded up $2.42 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $10.60. 14,780,682 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,588,656. The company has a quick ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 4.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.00, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.35. Lattice Semiconductor has a 52-week low of $5.05 and a 52-week high of $10.71.

Lattice Semiconductor (NASDAQ:LSCC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 12th. The semiconductor company reported $0.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.08. The business had revenue of $96.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $95.10 million. Lattice Semiconductor had a negative net margin of 6.64% and a positive return on equity of 8.68%. The firm’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Lattice Semiconductor will post 0.24 EPS for the current year.

In other Lattice Semiconductor news, VP Esam Elashmawi bought 20,000 shares of Lattice Semiconductor stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $5.66 per share, for a total transaction of $113,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 20,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $113,200. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO James Robert Anderson bought 10,000 shares of Lattice Semiconductor stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 21st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $5.67 per share, with a total value of $56,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $56,700. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 2.83% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Pearl River Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Lattice Semiconductor during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Lattice Semiconductor during the fourth quarter worth about $81,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP increased its position in Lattice Semiconductor by 26.2% during the fourth quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 13,845 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 2,872 shares during the last quarter. Pitcairn Co. acquired a new stake in Lattice Semiconductor during the fourth quarter worth about $144,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in Lattice Semiconductor during the second quarter worth about $152,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.54% of the company’s stock.

Lattice Semiconductor Company Profile

Lattice Semiconductor Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops and sells semiconductor devices in Asia, Europe, and the Americas. The company offers programmable logic devices that consist of five product family lines, such as the ECP, MachXO, iCE40, CrossLink, and programmable mixed signal devices.

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Analyst Recommendations for Lattice Semiconductor (NASDAQ:LSCC)