Crown Holdings reported third-quarter results that were broadly in line with our expectations, but we have increasing concerns about the profit potential of Crown’s operations in Asia-Pacific. For example, through the first nine months of the year, Asia-Pacific segment profit declined $2 million while sales increased $157 million compared with the first nine months of…
Nokia’s second-quarter earnings report had a couple of bright spots but was mostly concerning as the firm’s mobile phone business continues to languish. The favorable view of Nokia’s pending acquisition of the remainder of its Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) joint venture is mostly offset by a rapidly deteriorating basic phone market and only modest Windows…
Woodside Petroleum reported reduced second-quarter production, after planned shutdowns of the Pluto LNG (liquefied natural gas) plant and North West Shelf (NWS) Train 2. However, production was below expectations after a subsequent unplanned shutdown at Pluto. Processing has since resumed, but not before a revision to 2013 group production guidance of 1% to 10%, from…
St. Jude Medical STJ released solid second-quarter results, and the firm remains on track to meet full-year projections. On the whole, the performance across St. Jude’s product segments are pleasing, and many are particularly heartened to see stability in implantable cardioverter defibrillator sales. After two years of soft demand following a published study that suggested…
Smith & Nephew SNN posted first-quarter results that were largely consistent with our expectations, and we are standing behind our fair value estimate of $58 per share. As we had suspected, the growth of reconstructive products slowed considerably as Smith & Nephew’s new product cycle is waning just as competitors are launching new products. Nonetheless,…
Bank of America BAC reported net income of $4 billion, or $0.32 per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2013. The results were ahead of expectations as the pace of change was faster than expected; however, the magnitude of improvements is not likely to result in a substantial increase fair value. That said, Bank…
