US HOT STOCKS: Domino's, TIB Financial, UniFirst, WellCare -2-

30th Jun 2010 18:23

Domino's Pizza Inc. (DPZ, $11.41, +$0.42, +3.82%) is "very pleased" with second-quarter sales trends, where momentum from the launch of a revamped pizza recipe has continued. "We're very pleased with the momentum that appears to be sustained," Domino's CFO Wendy Beck said Wednesday at an Oppenheimer & Co. investor conference. Energy Inc. (EGAS, $10.88, -$0.57, -4.98%) said it will sell up to 2.5 million shares to raise funds to expand its distribution systems as well as for working capital and general corporate purposes. The offering would increase the number of shares outstanding at the natural gas utility by 42%. Shares of EnteroMedics Inc. (ETRM, $0.37, -$0.11, -22.90%) fell after the developmental medical-device maker company unveiled plans for a 1-for-6 reverse stock split to comply with Nasdaq trading standards. FirstCity Financial Corp. (FCFC, $6.62, +$0.72, +12.20%) announced it has refinanced credit lines and reached a deal to team up with fellow distressed-asset investor Varde Investment Partners LP. Fuqi International Inc. (FUQI, $6.89, -$0.64, -8.50%), which exaggerated earnings in the first ninth months of last year because of accounting errors, won't be able to file its restated 2009 results or its first-quarter data with the Securities and Exchange Commission as soon as it had expected, the Chinese jewelry company said. Gerdau SA (GGB, $13.52, +$0.43, +3.28%) has reached a deal to buy the one-third stake of Gerdau Ameristeel Corp. (GNA, $10.91, +$0.04, +0.37%) it doesn't already own for $1.6 billion. Gerdau, a Brazilian long steel producer, made that proposal earlier this month to the board of the mini-mill steel company, and the board then unanimously agreed it would support the $11-a-share bid, a 53% premium to the prior day's closing price. Chinese technology-outsourcing provider HiSoft Technology International Ltd. (HSFT, $10.88, +$0.88, +8.80%) rose after the company's initial public offering of at least 7.4 million American depositary shares priced at $10 each, below prior expectations of $11 to $13. Moody's Investors Service raised its ratings outlook on Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. (HST, $13.85, +$0.27, +1.99%) to stable, citing the recovery in the lodging industry and expected continued improvement in the hotel operator's revenue per available room, an important industry metric. Lindsay Corp.'s (LNN, $32.79, +$0.38, +1.17%) fiscal third-quarter earnings rose a bigger-than-expected 19% as its sales jumped and margins improved at the maker of agricultural equipment. Chairman and Chief Executive Rick Parod said strong international irrigation sales in Australia, Mexico, Brazil and South Africa, as well as "solid" domestic growth, drove the improved results. Monsanto Co.'s (MON, $46.73, -$0.61, -1.29%) fiscal third-quarter earnings plunged 45% on restructuring charges and sharply reduced herbicide sales as the company relies less on its Roundup weed-killer business. It also forecast per-share results this quarter, excluding restructuring charges, between a 9-cent loss and an 11-cent profit. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of 3 cents a share. Philips-Van Heusen Corp. (PVH, $47.08, +$1.33, +2.91%) said it would top its fiscal second-quarter forecast if current trends continue, including a 12% rise in same-stores sales at the apparel maker's U.S. outlet operations. Playboy Enterprises Inc. (PLA, $4.20, +$0.12, +2.94%) (PLA.A, $4.15, -$0.12, -2.81%) said it would cut an unspecified number of jobs as it restructures its organization to become a brand-management company. It expects to record a $3 million second-quarter restructuring charge, and the changes are expected to save Playboy $3 million a year. Anglo-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto PLC (RTP, $44.49, -$0.93, -2.05%) said it would exercise warrants to purchase shares of Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. (IVN, $13.27, -$0.08, -0.60%), boosting its stake to 30% for about $393 million. Rio holds a 22% stake in the miner of Mongolian copper and gold deposits. It could take a stake of up to 44% if it exercises all its warrants and converts a $350 million load into shares. StemCells Inc. (STEM, $0.97, -$0.02, -2.08%) announced it will sell 7 million shares to an investment partnership at an approximately 13% discount to Tuesday's closing price. Seaside 88 LP is paying 86.5 cents a share for the roughly 6% initial stake in the researcher. It also has agreed to purchase another 5 million shares in 12 weeks at the stock's then-trading price, but StemCells has the right to not go through with that deal. SuperGen Inc. (SUPG, $1.99, -$0.33, -14.22%) shares declined after it reported leukemia drug Dacogen failed to reach its primary endpoint during a clinical trial. However, the pharmaceutical company and its partner, Eisai Inc., said it will still submit the drug for approval to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. An investor group stacked with former Bank of America Corp. (BAC, $14.52, -$0.05, -0.34%) executives agreed to invest $175 million in TIB Financial Corp. (TIBB, $0.53, -$0.16, -23.31%), a Naples, Fla., bank, in the latest example of industry veterans looking to pour money into ailing U.S. banks. The deal would give the investment group, North American Financial Holdings Inc., up to 99% ownership of TIB, which has $1.7 billion in assets and 28 branches in Florida. UniFirst Corp.'s (UNF, $43.97, +$2.94, +7.15%) fiscal third-quarter profit dropped 11% amid higher costs, but the results at the provider of occupational uniforms and protective clothing beat expectations and its specialty garments unit fueled a sales increase. WellCare Health Plans Inc. (WCG, $22.82, -$1.50, -6.17%) shares fell on fears the managed-care company may face a higher penalty tied to an investigation into its accounting practices. -By Dow Jones Newswires; write to [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires June 30, 2010 13:23 ET (17:23 GMT)