The Euro pulled back on Friday and slipped to a low of 1.2980 during the overnight trade as investors scaled back their appetite for risk, and the shift in mark sentiment could lead the EUR/USD to retrace the advance from earlier this week as the economic docket is expected to show the world’s largest economy expanding at a slower pace in the second quarter.

AUD/USD: Bulls Challenge Resistance Above 0.90

Japanese Yen Poised to Extend Gains as Risk Aversion Continues

The Japanese Yen outperformed overnight as carry trades followed stocks lower after a round of disappointing economic data. Equity index futures are sharply lower, hinting more of the same is ahead in European hours.

O’Reilly Beats, Ups Outlook

O’Reilly Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ:ORLY) has revealed a 34% increase in profit to $114.6 million in the second quarter of the year from $85.5 million in the same quarter a year-ago. The profit excluded the charge related to the investigation of CSK Auto Corporation – acquired by the company two years ago – by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).

The company outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 74 cents per share by posting a profit of 81 cents during the quarter. This reflected a … [visit site to read more]

Owens-Illinois Misses By A Penny

Owens-Illinois Inc. (NYSE:OI) delivered earnings per share of 90 cents in its second quarter, falling short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 91 cents as well as the year-earlier profit of 94 cents.

The decline was due to lower revenues in Europe (the company’s largest segment), lower shipments and inconsistent recovery across North America and Europe on sluggish beer demand. These headwinds more than offset the accelerated economic recovery in South America and China, and higher … [visit site to read more]

Initial Jobless Claims Dip

Initial Claims for Unemployment Insurance remain in the tight “trading range” they have been in since the start of the year. This week they fell by 11,000 to 457,000.
As the graph below shows, great progress was made in reducing initial claims between March of 2009 and the New Year, but since then initial claims have found a high — but bumpy — plateau. There is a fair amount of volatility in the week-to-week numbers, so it makes sense to look at the four-week moving average, which is … [visit site to read more]

Equity Residential Tops Estimates

Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR), a leading real estate investment trust (REIT), reported fiscal 2010 second quarter funds from operations (FFO) of $175.0 million or 58 cents per share, compared to $168.7 million or 58 cents in the year-earlier quarter. Funds from operations, a widely used metric to gauge the performance of REITs, is obtained after adding depreciation and amortization and other non-cash expenses to net income. The second quarter 2010 FFO beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3 … [visit site to read more]

NOV Beats, Backlog Slides

Oilfield service company National-Oilwell Varco (NYSE:NOV) reported better-than-expected second quarter results. The company’s earnings per share, excluding transaction charges, came in at 97 cents, well above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 93 cents.
Including the after-tax charge of 1 cent, earnings per share for the quarter were 96 cents, up 81.1% from 53 cents in the second quarter 2009. The upbeat quarter results reflect management’s efficient execution skills and the company’s diversified … [visit site to read more]

Pioneer Tops Estimates

Pioneer Natural Resources Company (NYSE:PXD) reported its second-quarter earnings of 43 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 42 cents and the year-earlier loss of 10 cents, primarily reflecting growth in Spraberry field, Eagle Ford Shale and Alaska .

Revenues in the quarter jumped significantly to $662.4 million from $273.0 million in the year-ago quarter and surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $510 million.

Operational Performance

Total production … [visit site to read more]

Book Review:Information Rules: A Strategic Guide To The Network Economy

By Sandesh Trivedi, sandeshtrivedi@gmail.com
For value investors blindly shunning tech stocks they might want to read the book, Information Rules: A Strategic Guide to the Network Economy by Carl Shapiro and Hal Varian. Though the book might not help you catch the next Microsoft or Cisco or Amazon at a very early stage, it puts forth a very compelling argument that traditional economics still applies to the new economy. The book serves as a handbook to analyze the basic economics of tech … [visit site to read more]

ADP Reports Q4 In Line

Automatic Data Processing Inc. (NYSE:ADP) announced results for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2010. Adjusted net earnings from continuing operations for the quarter were 42 cents per share, in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
Earnings per share were down 3 cents from 45 cents reported in the year-ago quarter, attributable to increased unemployment and the negative effect of the economic downturn. Earnings per share were negatively affected by a higher effective tax rate in the quarter and … [visit site to read more]

Clear As Mud

Fundamentals
Indecision about the state of the global economy has caused Crude Oil futures to get stuck in a rut. Economic data that has been trickling in from the US and abroad has been mixed, making it difficult for traders to gauge where the economy is heading in the intermediate term. Adding to the confusion, inventory data has been equally skittish lately, clouding the supply and demand outlook. Yesterday’s EIA inventory report was a prime example. The report showed an unexpected rise of … [visit site to read more]

Walter Energy Sweeps Estimates

Premium metallurgical coal producer and exporter Walter Energy Incorporation (NYSE:WLT) announced its operating earnings for the second-quarter 2010 of $2.16 per share versus 21 cents per share in the year-ago quarter. The results of the company were higher than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.94 per share by 22 cent.

Total Revenue
Walter Energy’s total revenue in second-quarter 2010 was $410.6 million compared with $169.1 million in the year-ago period, reflecting a whopping … [visit site to read more]