Earnings - 16th July 2008

4:27PM Xilinx reports Q1 (Jun) results, beats on revs; guides Q2 revs in-line (XLNX) 25.21 +1.36 : Reports Q1 (Jun) earnings of $0.30 per share, includes charges, may not be comparable to the First Call consensus of $0.35; revenues rose 2.6% year/year to $488.2 mln vs the $481.9 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q2, sees Q2 revs up 1% to down 3% sequentially, which equates to $473.55-493.08 mln vs. $482.97 mln consensus. Gross margin in the June quarter was 63.8%, up from 62.2% in the same quarter a year ago.

4:25PM YUM! Brands beats by $0.03, misses on revs; guides FY08 EPS in-line (YUM) 36.47 +1.01 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings of $0.45 per share, $0.03 better than the First Call consensus of $0.42; revenues rose 11.8% year/year to $2.7 mln vs the $2551 mln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for FY08, sees EPS of $1.89 vs. $1.89 consensus. Worldwide same-store-sales growth of +4%, including +14% in mainland China, +4% in YRI, and +2% in the U.S. Co states, "For 2008, we expect to return over $2 billion to shareholders through both dividends and significant share buybacks.

4:25PM eBay beats by $0.02, beats on revs; guides Q3 EPS in-line, revs in-line; raises FY08 guidance, in line with consensus (EBAY) 28.10 +1.21 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings of $0.43 per share, $0.02 better than the First Call consensus of $0.41; revenues rose 19.7% year/year to $2.2 bln vs the $2.17 bln consensus. Co issues in-line guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.39-0.41 vs. $0.41 consensus; sees Q3 revs of $2.1-2.15 bln vs. $2.18 bln consensus. Co raises guidance for FY08, sees EPS of $1.72-1.77 vs. $1.74 consensus; sees FY08 revs of $8.8-9.05 bln vs. $9.01 bln consensus. Prior FY08 guidance was for EPS of $1.70-1.75 and revs of $8.7-9.0 bln. GAAP operating margin decreased slightly to 24.8% for the quarter, compared to 24.9% for the same period last year. Non-GAAP operating margin decreased to 31.9% for the quarter, compared to 32.4% for the same period last year. The decrease in operating margins was caused primarily by the co's faster growing, lower-margin businesses, such as PayPal and Skype. Gross merchandise volume was $15.68 bln for the quarter, an increase of 8% over the second quarter of 2007. The non-GAAP effective tax rate for the quarter was 22% compared to 25% for the second quarter of 2007 and 23% for the first quarter of 2008.

4:20PM HOKU Scientific beats by $0.12, misses on revs; guides Q2 revs below consensus (HOKU) 4.77 +0.37 : Reports Q1 (Jun) earnings of $0.01 per share, $0.12 better than the First Call consensus of ($0.11); revenues rose 101.1% year/year to $2.2 mln vs the $2.4 mln consensus. Co issues downside guidance for Q2, sees Q2 revs of $1.6-2.0 mln vs. $2.97 mln consensus.

4:11PM Kinder Morgan Prtnrs beats by $0.09, beats on revs (KMP) 55.55 -0.41 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings of $0.64 per share, $0.09 better than the First Call consensus of $0.55; revenues rose 47.7% year/year to $3.5 bln vs the $2.74 bln consensus.

9:14AM AMB Property reports EPS in-line, beats on revs; reaffirms FY08 FFO guidance (AMB) 46.48 : Reports Q2 (Jun) funds from operations of $1.06 per share, in-line with the First Call consensus of $1.06; revenues rose 25.0% year/year to $209.3 mln vs the $187.5 mln consensus. Co reaffirms guidance for FY08, sees FFO of $3.85-4.05 vs. $3.96 consensus.

9:09AM AMR Corp beats by $0.27, reports revs in-line (AMR) 4.41 : Reports Q2 (Jun) loss of $1.13 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.27 better than the First Call consensus of ($1.40); revenues rose 5.1% year/year to $6.18 bln vs the $6.14 bln consensus. Co has obtained $720 mln in new financing through a number of transactions, including the sale of certain aircraft and through newly issued mortgage debt that is secured by aircraft. Co has decided to retire all 34 of its A300 aircraft by the end of 2009, instead of the previous 2012; co also plans to make additional capacity reductions in 2009. Co has decided to place on hold its planned divestiture of American Eagle, its regional affiliate, until industry conditions are more stable and favorable. Co sees Y08 capacity -3.7%, with Q3 capacity -3.0%. Co sees Q3 fuel costs of $3.81 per gallon and Y08 of $3.42 gallon.

8:47AM Charles Schwab beats by $0.01, reports revs in-line (SCHW) 19.22 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings from continuing ops of $0.27 per share, $0.01 better than the First Call consensus of $0.26; revenues rose 8.5% year/year to $1.31 bln vs the $1.3 bln consensus. "I'm very pleased with how our business model continued to deliver great service and consistent financial results in the second quarter. Clients brought $26 billion in net new assets to the company and total client assets ended June at $1.4 trillion, up 1% from June 2007. Active brokerage accounts and retirement plan participants were up 5% and 13% over the year-earlier levels, and banking accounts more than doubled to 355,000. Even in a tough market environment, our business showed standout growth and profitability."

8:39AM Marshall & Ilsley reports Q2 loss $0.04 better than consensus (MI) 11.59 : Reports Q2 (Jun) loss of $1.52 per share, $0.04 better than the First Call consensus of ($1.56). Co reports that Net interest income increased 12% compared to the second quarter of 2007. Wealth Management total revenue rose 14% over the same period last year. Co reports provision for loan and lease losses of $886 million driven by continued deterioration in the housing market. Net charge-offs for the period were $400.7 million, or 3.23% of total average loans and leases. Allowance to loan ratio boosted to 2.05%. Adjusted efficiency ratio was 51.3%, up 0.4 percentage points from the adjusted efficiency ratio for the same period last year.

8:16AM Trina Solar issues Q2 upside guidance; sees Y08 revs to meet or exceed previous guidance (TSL) 29.63 : Co issues upside guidance for Q2 (Jun), sees Q2 (Jun) revs of $200-205 mln, compared to previous guidance of $169-177 mln, vs. $173.70 mln First Call consensus. In Q2, co shipped approx 47MW of PV modules. Co sees Q2 gross margins of approx 22.5-23.5% with operating margins of 14-15.2%. Co issues guidance for FY08 (Dec), sees FY08 (Dec) revs to meet or exceed previous guidance of $770-808 mln vs. $786.11 mln consensus, based on customer commitments in signed contracts and the co's current operating and market conditions. "We are very pleased with our strong growth in the second quarter. We believe our achievement is due to our sales distribution strategy, our highly recognized brand in the marketplace and strong market demand for our products."

8:10AM Wells Fargo beats by $0.03, beats on revs; increases dividend 10% (WFC) 20.51 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings of $0.53 per share, $0.03 better than the First Call consensus of $0.50; revenues rose 15.9% year/year to $11.46 bln vs the $10.65 bln consensus. Co increases quarterly dividend 10% to $0.34. Co reports $3 bln provision in loan losses for Q2. "Wells Fargo continued to strengthen its franchise during the second quarter. Earnings per share were 14 cents below that of last year due to $2.3 billion of higher provision expense, including a credit reserve build of $1.5 billion (30 cents per share). We were able to lend more to current customers where we believed it was prudent and properly priced. We grew core deposits while reducing funding costs. We achieved record cross-sell results with our retail and commercial customers - a testament to our relationship-based strategy and our 160,000 team members who serve our customers."

8:02AM Piper Jaffray misses by $0.16, beats on revs (PJC) 25.94 : Reports Q2 (Jun) loss of $0.32 per share, $0.16 worse than the First Call consensus of ($0.16); revenues fell 0.9% year/year to $94.9 mln vs the $86.7 mln consensus. The firm said, "We now believe that the current capital markets downturn will continue through the rest of 2008 and could extend into 2009. We are carefully managing our business with the goal of establishing a stronger market position once the market cycle corrects. At the same time, we are evaluating the appropriate actions to position our firm for a more prolonged market downturn."

:40AM Delta Air Lines beats by $0.25, beats on revs (DAL) 4.67 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings of $0.35 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.25 better than the First Call consensus of $0.10; revenues rose 59.5% year/year to $5.5 bln vs the $5.39 bln consensus. Co sees Q3 operating margin, ex-items, of 1-3%; co sees fuel price, including taxes and hedges, of $3.52. Co sees Q3 system capacity of 0-(2)% and mainline capacity flat. Co sees Y08 operating margin, ex-items, of 0-(2)%; co sees fuel price, including taxes and hedges, of $3.32. Co sees Y08 system capacity flat with mainline capacity +0-2%. Co expects to cover approx $3 bln of the estimated $4 bln raw impact of higher fuel input costs in Y08; co expects to end the year with a liquidity position of $3.2 bln.

7:37AM Abbott Labs beats by $0.05, beats on revs; guides Q3 EPS below consensus; guides FY08 EPS above consensus (ABT) 57.85 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings of $0.84 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.05 better than the First Call consensus of $0.79; revenues rose 14.8% year/year to $7.31 bln vs the $7.23 bln consensus. Co issues downside guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.76-0.78, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.79 consensus. Co raises guidance for FY08, to EPS of $3.24-3.28, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $3.23 consensus, prior guidance $3.20-3.25.

7:32AM St. Jude Medical beats by $0.05, beats on revs; guides Q3 EPS above consensus; guides FY08 EPS above consensus (STJ) 43.96 : Reports Q2 (Jun) adjusted earnings of $0.60 per share, $0.05 better than the First Call consensus of $0.55; revenues rose 19.9% year/year to $1.14 bln vs the $1.06 bln consensus. Co issues upside guidance for Q3, sees EPS of $0.56-0.58 vs. $0.53 consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY08, sees EPS of $2.28-2.33 vs. $2.19 consensus. "These are outstanding results across the board, with revenue exceeding our guidance in every business category, and especially strong ICD sales both in the U.S. and internationally... We therefore are increasing both our revenue and earnings guidance for 2008."

7:05AM Bluelinx guides Q2 EPS & revs above consensus (BXC) 3.23 : Co issues upside guidance for Q2 (Jun), sees EPS of $0.18-0.24 vs. ($0.23) First Call consensus; sees Q2 (Jun) revs of $835 mln vs. $805.95 mln consensus. The Company's preliminary results for the second quarter were positively impacted by increases in product prices as well as the Company's ongoing initiatives to increase margins across all product categories. Additionally, the Company's board of directors has approved a plan to exit its custom milling operations in California. The closure of the City of Industry milling operation is expected to be completed during the third quarter of fiscal 2008 and result in a pre-tax charge of approximately $4 million or an after-tax charge of approximately $0.08 per diluted share. The charge will be recognized in the third quarter of 2008. The Company expects approximately $1.5 million of this charge will require cash expenditures in the third quarter.

6:59AM Old Dominion guides above consensus for Q2 & FY08 (ODFL) 28.30 : Co issues upside guidance for Q2 (Jun), sees EPS of $0.62-0.64 vs. $0.51 First Call consensus. Co issues upside guidance for FY08 (Dec), sees EPS of $1.90-1.95 vs. $1.83 consensus. Contributing to the growth in the Company's second-quarter earnings were an increase in tonnage of 10.2% compared with the second quarter of 2007, a more stable pricing environment and improved productivity.

6:31AM Donnelley & Sons issues Q2 guidance; reaffirms Y08 guidance (RRD) 26.85 : Co issues guidance for Q2 (Jun), sees EPS of at least $0.72, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $0.72 First Call consensus; sees Q2 (Jun) revs of approx $2.9 bln vs. $2.98 bln consensus. Co reaffirms guidance for FY08 (Dec), sees EPS of $3.08-3.15, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $3.14 consensus. "We are pleased with our expected second-quarter results in the context of challenging global economic conditions. We continue to benefit from the scale of our platform, the breadth of our product and service offerings, the diverse range of customers we serve, and our focus on cost compression. We look forward to speaking with you on August 6 when we report our final second-quarter financial results."

6:17AM Host Hotels beats by $0.01, reports revs in-line; guides Q3 FFO below consensus; guides FY08 FFO below consensus (HST) 11.60 : Reports Q2 (Jun) funds from operations of $0.56 per share, $0.01 better than the First Call consensus of $0.55; revenues rose 2.5% year/year to $1.42 bln vs the $1.41 bln consensus. Co issues downside guidance for Q3, sees FFO of $0.27-0.29 vs. $0.34 consensus. Co issues downside guidance for FY08, sees FFO of $1.75-1.85 vs. $1.88 consensus.

6:15AM Knight Capital Group misses by $0.02, misses on revs (NITE) 16.56 : Reports Q2 (Jun) earnings of $0.32 per share, $0.02 worse than the First Call consensus of $0.34; revenues rose 8.8% year/year to $219.1 mln vs the $224.6 mln consensus. The company had $964.9 million in stockholders' equity as of June 30, 2008, equivalent to a book value of $10.42 per diluted share. The company had a book value of $9.41 per diluted share as of June 30, 2007.

6:07AM Cleveland-Cliffs and Alpha Natural Resources to merge; ANR shareholders to receive $128.12/share in cash and stock (CLF) 111.46 : Co and Alpha Natural Resources (ANR 94.92) announce that each co's Board of Directors has approved a definitive merger agreement under which Cleveland-Cliffs will acquire all outstanding shares of Alpha in a cash and stock transaction valued at approx $10 bln. Under the terms of the agreement, for each share of Alpha common stock, Alpha stockholders would receive 0.95 Cleveland-Cliffs common shares and $22.23 in cash. Based on Cleveland-Cliffs' closing stock price on July 15, 2008, Alpha stockholders would receive $128.12 per share, which represents a premium of 35% to Alpha's closing stock price on July 15, 2008.