Tyco Posts Positive Results Despite Macro Headwinds

Tyco reported strong fiscal second-quarter results in the face of continued weakness in global commercial construction. The security and fire firm increased year-overyear organic revenue by 2% in the quarter, a slight acceleration from 1% growth in the prior quarter. Increased project selectivity in North America commercial security curbed revenue from growing further, but the company should see better growth from higher-margin service revenue in … Continue reading Tyco Posts Positive Results Despite Macro Headwinds

BBVA’s Sees Increased Profits

In the first quarter, Spain’s Grupo BBVA reported profits of EUR 1,734 million, largely driven by gains of about EUR 823 million on disposals. Impairment losses fell 51% sequentially to EUR 1,376 million on the non-recurrence of special provisions in the trailing quarter, but the benefit of this was largely offset by a 7% sequential drop in net interest income, to EUR 3,623 million, as … Continue reading BBVA’s Sees Increased Profits

Textura Corporation Acquires LATISTA

On Thursday, after the markets closed, Textura announced that it acquired LATISTA for $35 million in cash; the deal is expected to close on December 2. LATISTA provides in‐the‐field project management applications, such as punch lists and document management. The company has a similar business model to Textura, as it charges general contractors based on the total construction value of projects that are using the … Continue reading Textura Corporation Acquires LATISTA

FB Nasdaq FB Facebook

Western Digital Surpasses Expectations in Fiscal Q3

Western Digital posted third quarter results that surpassed our expectations and management’s quarterly guidance, making it clear that the market hasn’t forgotten about hard disk drives (HDDs). While Western Digital’s near-term prospects are better than we had anticipated, we are maintaining our stable moat rating as these opportunities are balanced by adverse secular trends that will likely limit the company’s long-term performance. Sales in the … Continue reading Western Digital Surpasses Expectations in Fiscal Q3

KPN Meets Street Expectations in Third Quarter

KPN reported third-quarter results that were generally in line with our expectations, and we are maintaining our fair value estimate and moat rating for now. While the firm has chosen to classify E-Plus, the German operation it agreed to sell to Telefonica, as a discontinued operation, we are including the division as we think there is still a significant chance that European regulators will not … Continue reading KPN Meets Street Expectations in Third Quarter

Still-Weak European Paper Demand Weighed on UPM’s 1Q Results

Despite relatively steady performance from the energy and pulp segments, UPM’s quarterly EBITDA contracted 20% year over year; EBITDA from the paper business was nearly halved over the same period. As the world’s largest producer of graphic paper, UPM remains highly dependent on its paper business, where volume continues to decline–European magazine papers fell 6%, newsprint fell 3%, and fine papers fell 6%–and present significant … Continue reading Still-Weak European Paper Demand Weighed on UPM’s 1Q Results