

Westamerica Bancorporation Earnings Drop on Interest Declines
Third-quarter profits at Westamerica Bancorporation fell 16% year on year to $16.7 million, or $0.63 a share, from $20.0 million, or $0.73 a share. Earnings decreased largely due to lower net interest income as a result of declining asset yields. While we are not making changes to our narrow moat rating or fair value estimate, we probably will trim our near-term earnings assumptions. Net interest … Continue reading Westamerica Bancorporation Earnings Drop on Interest Declines

Nestle Posts Solid Results Despite Slower Growth in Emerging Markets
Nestle’s underlying sales increased 4.4% during the first nine months of fiscal 2013, driven by 3.0% volume growth and 1.4% higher prices. While concerns surrounding slowing growth in some emerging markets have circulated throughout the consumer products industry, Nestle’s performance was again skewed toward developing regions (up 8.8%, and about 45% of consolidated sales), while developed markets remain lackluster (up just 1.1%). The European business … Continue reading Nestle Posts Solid Results Despite Slower Growth in Emerging Markets

KeyCorp Impresses as Revenue Jumps Year Over Year
KeyCorp earned $229 million, or $0.25 per diluted share, for the third quarter, up from $211 million, or $0.22 per diluted share, for the same period in 2012. Non interest income grew to $459 million from $429 million in the previous quarter. Reported net interest was $584 million, flat with the previous quarter. Net interest margins declined, falling 12 basis points to 3.11% as earning … Continue reading KeyCorp Impresses as Revenue Jumps Year Over Year

Piper Jaffray Posts Strong Earnings from Acquisitions
Piper Jaffray Companies reported net income applicable to common shareholders of $4.8 million, or $0.33 per diluted share, on $128 million of net revenue for the third quarter of 2013. If $5 million of acquisition-related costs and the results of discontinued operations are excluded, then the company would have reported pro forma earnings per diluted share of $0.57. We are maintaining our current Morningstar economic … Continue reading Piper Jaffray Posts Strong Earnings from Acquisitions

Heartland Sees Revenue Declines of 3% in Quarter
Heartland’s third-quarter consolidated top line fell 3% year over year, while revenue before fuel surcharges declined 4%; slightly behind our expected run rate for the full-year 2013. Management indicated that rates improved, but “inconsistent” freight demand, limited driver availability, and the government’s recently revised hours-of-service rules weighed on tractor utilization. We expect these factors to be a common theme reported by most truckload carriers for … Continue reading Heartland Sees Revenue Declines of 3% in Quarter

The mystery behind Google barges
Mysterious barges appeared in the ocean near Google's basement. The software giant said nothing about the strange construction, until now. See what is behind the barges!Read More >> Continue reading The mystery behind Google barges