Transocean Launches All Cash Voluntary Offer For Aker Drilling

- Transocean Launches All Cash Voluntary Offer For Aker Drilling



Aug 26, 2011

Transocean (NYSE:RIG) announced after receiving clearance by the Oslo Stock Exchange, that it launched its all cash voluntary offer for 100% of the shares of Aker Drilling for 26.50 Kroner per share. The offer has been made on an unconditional basis and with settlement guaranteed by a financial institution.

Transocean has a potential upside of 51.7% based on a current price of $51.47 and an average consensus analyst price target of $78.07.

Transocean is currently below its 50-day moving average (MA) of $59.22 and below its 200-day MA of $70.28.

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Rowan Gets Go-Ahead for Share Repurchase Program

- Rowan Gets Go-Ahead for Share Repurchase Program

Monday, August 08, 2011
Rowan Companies Inc.

Rowan's board of directors has authorized the Company to repurchase up to $100 million in shares of its common stock.

Matt Ralls, Rowan's President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, "This share repurchase program is an expression of confidence in Rowan's long-term future and ability to continue to create shareholder value."

This program is effective immediately. Repurchases under this program will be made through the open market or in privately negotiated transactions. These repurchases may be commenced or suspended from time to time without prior notice.

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El Paso Topped Q2 EPS Estimates By $0.10 Per Share

- El Paso Topped Q2 EPS Estimates By $0.10 Per Share



Aug 4, 2011

El Paso (NYSE:EP) reported Q2 EPS of $0.34, ahead of consensus estimates of $0.24 per share.

Doug Foshee, chairman, president, and chief executive officer of El Paso Corporation said, "We are very pleased with our financial and operational performance. With the completion of our Ruby Pipeline, we have placed three major projects into service this year and will complete two more by year end. And with natural gas likely to be the cornerstone for growth in electric power development, we continue to see exciting growth opportunities on the horizon. Execution in our E&P business is outstanding, with oil programs ramping up with results that are equal to or better than expectations. We are very encouraged by the completion of our first 7,000 foot plus lateral in the Wolfcamp Shale, and we see this program delivering many years of very profitable development across our large acreage position. On the financial front, we continue to make excellent progress, improving our balance sheet primarily through drop downs to El Paso Pipeline Partners. This progress has put us in position to separate into two outstanding companies by year end. We believe this is a great time to be a shareholder of El Paso."

El Paso has a potential upside of 27.7% based on a current price of $19.49 and an average consensus analyst price target of $24.89.

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Ford Increases Availability of Fuel-Efficient Tires Across Lineup

- Ford Increases Availability of Fuel-Efficient Tires Across Lineup



Jul 11, 2011

New fuel efficient, low resistance tires developed by Ford (NYSE:F) are expected to advance fuel economy by up to 2 mpg and are likely to be featured in Ford's up and coming C-Max Energi, C-Max Hybrid and the Focus Electric Cars.

David Rohweder, Ford's Global Chief Engineer for tire and wheel engineering said, "Tire technology, pressures and wear can make a big difference to a vehicle's fuel economy, so the company is working closely with leading tire companies to optimize performance with low-rolling-resistance tires." Ford Motor (NYSE:F) has a potential upside of 46.1% based on a current price of $13.5 and an average consensus analyst price target of $19.73.

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JA Solar Announced It Entered Into A Definitive Agreement To Acquire Silver Age Holdings Limited

- JA Solar Announced It Entered Into A Definitive Agreement To Acquire Silver Age Holdings Limited



Jul 1, 2011

JA Solar (NASDAQ:JASO) announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire 100% ownership interest in Silver Age Holdings Limited. At the time of closing JA Solar will issue 30.901 million ordinary shares as consideration at a price of $5.825 per share.

Dr. Fang Peng, CEO of JA Solar, commented, "This agreement represents another important step in JA Solar's strategy of optimizing our cost structure through selective vertical integration. In today's solar market, it is essential for producers to improve costs while maintaining a relentless focus on technology and product quality. By boosting JA Solar's internal wafer capacity through this acquisition, we expect to achieve greater economies of scale and improve the company's profitability. Furthermore, Solar Silicon Valley has key technologies which can be leveraged to provide superior quality wafer substrates for our high-efficiency solar cell products. As a low cost leader in the solar industry, we expect that this transaction will enhance JA Solar's leadership position and enable us to meet strong global demand for our high-quality, high-efficiency solar products."

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First Solar Wins $4.5 Billion in Conditional Loan Guarantees from the DoE

- First Solar Wins $4.5 Billion in Conditional Loan Guarantees from the DoE



Jun 30, 2011

First Solar Inc (NASDAQ:FSLR) is trading up big today after it was reported that the world's largest manufacturer of thin-film solar modules had won $4.5 billion in conditional loan guarantees from the Department of Energy for three California projects.

The company's Topaz and Desert Sunlight projects, which will have 550 megawatts of capacity each, and its 230-megawatt Solar Ranch project, were each offered low-cost financing needed for construction to commence, the agency said today in an e-mailed statement.

The agency must distribute all of the funds authorized for the loan guarantee program before it expires at the end of September. The agency has offered conditional loans or loan guarantees for 40 clean energy products totaling $38 billion, including $16 billion for solar energy.

First Solar said the construction projects approved today will add 1,400 jobs and that all of the 20 million plus cadmium telluride glass panels used in the projects will be manufactured at its plants in Ohio and in Arizona.

Shares of First Solar are trading up 6.3% at $137.57.

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Clean Diesel Technologies Announced Pricing Of Underwritten Public Offering Of Shares

- Clean Diesel Technologies Announced Pricing Of Underwritten Public Offering Of Shares



Jun 29, 2011

Clean Diesel Technologies (NASDAQ:CDTI) announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 2,725,000 shares of its common stock at a price to the public of $3.75 per share. Clean Diesel is offering 2,645,000 of these shares and 80,000 of these shares are being offered by selling stockholders.

The company has granted a 30-day option to the underwriters to purchase up to an additional 408,750 shares of common stock to cover over-allotments.

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Husky Closes $1B Common Share Offering

- Husky Closes $1B Common Share Offering

Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Husky Energy Inc.

Husky has closed its previously announced $1 billion bought-deal public offering of common shares (the "Public Offering") and its $200 million concurrent private placement (the "Private Placement"). The Company has received total gross proceeds of approximately $1.2 billion from the combined Public Offering and Private Placement.

Pursuant to the Public Offering, the Company has issued, through a syndicate of underwriters led by RBC Capital Markets, Goldman Sachs Canada Inc., HSBC Securities (Canada) Inc. and J.P. Morgan Securities Canada Inc., a total of 36,968,500 common shares in the capital of Husky at a price of $27.05 per share for total gross proceeds of approximately $1 billion. The Public Offering was conducted under the Company's universal base shelf prospectus filed November 26, 2010 with the securities regulatory authorities in all provinces of Canada and the Company's universal base shelf prospectus filed June 13, 2011 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Pursuant to the Private Placement, the Company's principal shareholders, L.F. Investments (Barbados) Limited and Hutchison Whampoa Luxembourg Holdings S.a.r.l. have been issued a combined total of 7,393,714 common shares at the same price as the Public Offering, for total gross proceeds of approximately $200 million.

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Shaw Group Deviates Third-Quarter Loss

- Shaw Group Deviates Third-Quarter Loss



Jun 29, 2011

Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE:SHAW) deviated to a fiscal third-quarter loss as the company reported a $48.1 million undermine to account for loans created for a project in South Texas and build up costs on an energy and chemicals project also effected results. Shares dropped 13% to $28.13 in after-hours trading as the latest results were worse than expected and the company issued a weak outlook for the current quarter and next year.

The Shaw Group is currently below its 50-day moving average (MA) of $35.97 and below its 200-day MA of $35.29.

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UBS Initiates Coverage of Tesoro With $23 Target, Neutral Rating

- UBS Initiates Coverage of Tesoro With $23 Target, Neutral Rating



Jun 28, 2011

UBS initiated coverage of Tesoro Corp (NYSE:TSO) today with a neutral rating and a $23 price target for the company.

Shares of Tesoro are trading up 2.17% at $21.63.

Tesoro has a potential upside of 35.3% based on a current price of $21.63 and an average consensus analyst price target of $29.27.

Tesoro is currently below its 50-day moving average (MA) of $23.86 and should find support at its 200-day MA of $20.02.

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UBS Initiates Coverage of Valero Energy with Buy Rating, $33 Price Target

- UBS Initiates Coverage of Valero Energy with Buy Rating, $33 Price Target



Jun 28, 2011

UBS initiated coverage of Valero Energy Corp (NYSE:VLO) today with a buy rating and a $33 price target for the company.

Shares of Valero Energy are trading up 2.32% at $24.25.

Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO) has a potential upside of 41.3% based on a current price of $24.25 and an average consensus analyst price target of $34.27.

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Hanwha SolarOne Announces Executive Appointments

- Hanwha SolarOne Announces Executive Appointments



Jun 27, 2011

Hanwha SolarOne (NASDAQ:HSOL) announced this morning that its board of directors has appointed Ki-Joon Hong as CEO, Jung Pyo Seo as CFO, and Chris Eberspacher as CTO.

The appointments are effective as of July 1, 2011. Mr. Hong is currently the Chairman of the Board of SolarOne and CEO of Hanwha Cehmical.

Mr. Seo joins the company from Azdel, an automotive manufacturer of thermoplastic materials based in Virginia, where he was that company's CFO and COO.

Hanwha SolarOne has a potential upside of 36.8% based on a current price of $5.9 and an average consensus analyst price target of $8.07.

Hanwha SolarOne is currently below its 50-day moving average (MA) of $5.94 and below its 200-day MA of $8.45.

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Rolling Strikes to Begin At BHP Billiton Mine Tonight

- Rolling Strikes to Begin At BHP Billiton Mine Tonight



Jun 24, 2011

Rolling strikes will begin hitting BHP Billiton Ltd (NYSE:BHP) late Friday, beginning in its Blackwater coking coal mine in northeastern Australia, which it co-owns with Mitsubishi Corp.

The strikes are then planned move on to six other mines over the weekend and into next week, a union official said.

The strikes are being conducted by the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union, which is one of three unions representing more than 3,000 workers involved in contract talks with the BHP-Mitsubishi Alliance.

Earlier this month a series of six-hour strikers was conducted by workers at six mines in Queensland. The workers are demanding equal pay for contract workers and employees and a say by union reps in recruitment, among other things.

BHP Billiton has a potential upside of 22.5% based on a current price of $88.38 and an average consensus analyst price target of $108.3.

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Eagle Rock Energy Entered Into A Five-Year Senior Secured Credit Facility

- Eagle Rock Energy Entered Into A Five-Year Senior Secured Credit Facility



Jun 23, 2011

Eagle Rock Energy (NASDAQ:EROC) announced that it has entered into a five-year senior secured credit facility with a syndicate of banks led by Wells Fargo, N.A. as administrative agent, Bank of America, N.A. and Royal Bank of Scotland plc as co-syndication agents, and BNP Paribas as documentation agent.

Initial commitments totaled $675 million, with the ability to increase commitments up to $1.2 billion.

Jeffrey P. Wood, the Partnership's Chief Financial Officer said, "We are pleased with the support shown by our lender group, which includes several institutions continuing long-term relationships with Eagle Rock and others beginning new strategic relationships. The refinancing of our credit facility, together with our inaugural senior notes issuance last month, provides further long-term stability and financial flexibility to Eagle Rock's capital structure as we continue to focus on our growth strategy."

Eagle Rock Energy has a potential upside of 27% based on a current price of $11.02 and an average consensus analyst price target of $14.

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Fed Cuts 2011 and 2012 Growth Forecasts, Confirms End of QE2

- Fed Cuts 2011 and 2012 Growth Forecasts, Confirms End of QE2



Jun 22, 2011

The Federal Reserve cut its forecast for economic growth this year, saying GDP should increase 2.7% to 2.9% for 2011, down from its forecast in April for 3.1% to 3.3% growth. It's the second time that growth forecasts have been lowered this year.

The Fed said in a statement, "The slower pace of recovery reflects in part factors that are likely to be temporary, including the damping effect of higher food and energy prices on consumer purchasing power and spending as well as supply-chain disruptions associated with the tragic events in Japan."

The central bank said it sees 2012 growth in the range of 3.3% to 3.7%. In April, the bank had projected 2012 growth at a more robust 3.5% to 4.2%.

The Federal Open Market Committee said it anticipates inflation will "subside to levels at or below those consistent with the Committee's dual mandate as the effects of past energy and other commodity price increases dissipate."

The Committee also confirmed it was ending its $600 million bond purchasing program known as "QE2," and that it would maintain interest rates at their current exceptionally low levels for an extended period of time.

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Worker Fatally Injured at BP Refinery in California

- Worker Fatally Injured at BP Refinery in California



Jun 22, 2011

A BP Plc (NYSE:BP) worker was fatally injured at the company's Carson refinery in California on Wednesday, the company said.

The worker died at the refinery's rail-loading site at about 8 a.m. local time, BP said in a prepared statement.

BP spokesman Scott Dean said, "Our focus right now is on taking care of this man's family and our employee assistance personnel are in action as we speak."

An investigation into the incident is ongoing. The refinery is operating normally, according to Mr. Dean.

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Real Goods Solar, Alteris Renewables Announced Definitive Merger Agreement

- Real Goods Solar, Alteris Renewables Announced Definitive Merger Agreement



Jun 22, 2011

Real Goods Solar (NASDAQ:RSOL) and Alteris Renewables announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement to create a multi-state solar integration powerhouse.

Real Goods Solar will issue 8 million unregistered shares of its Class A common stock to Alteris equity holders for 100% of Alteris' outstanding equity.

Bill Yearsley, CEO of Real Goods Solar, "I am excited to join Real Goods Solar, the pioneering solar company in the United States. Our ability to execute projects successfully is highly dependent on human resources, our most important asset. Having the opportunity to bring together two very seasoned management teams positions our organization well for the future. The organization we are building will now be capable of providing integrated national project delivery. This is an industry that is built around constant change and I look forward to a program of well planned profitable growth both organically and through acquisitions."

Real Goods Solar has a potential upside of 79.5% based on a current price of $2.6 and an average consensus analyst price target of $4.67.

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Ford Is Work With Nuance Communications To Find A Way To Make Voice Recognition Even Easier

- Ford Is Work With Nuance Communications To Find A Way To Make Voice Recognition Even Easier



Jun 22, 2011

Ford (NYSE:F) is working with its voice technology partner Nuance Communications (NASDAQ:NUAN) to find a way to make voice recognition even easier and more intuitive for drivers to successfully use.

Brigitte Richardson, Ford Global Voice Control Technology and Speech Systems lead engineer commented on the matter, "With each generation of SYNC, we have learned more about how drivers use the voice recognition system, and have continuously refined it so customers can do more and say more to get their tasks done more quickly and efficiently. With intent, we are examining how to take our voice recognition to the next level of command and control, helping further reduce the learning curve and improving ease of use - and ultimately building higher customer satisfaction. In the end, we want the user's wish to be the system's command."

Ford Motor has a potential upside of 49.5% based on a current price of $13.32 and an average consensus analyst price target of $19.91.

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CarMax Posts Strong Q1, EPS Beats By $0.08, Revenue Grows 18% Year Over Year

- CarMax Posts Strong Q1, EPS Beats By $0.08, Revenue Grows 18% Year Over Year



Jun 22, 2011

CarMax, Inc. (NYSE:KMX) reported Q1 EPS $0.55 today, beating the consensus estimate for $0.47 per share. Revenues for the quarter grew 18% year-over-year to $2.68 billion, topping the consensus estimate for $2.52 billion.

Tom Folliard, president and chief executive officer said, "We are pleased to report another quarter of strong results. Comparable store used unit sales increased 6%, fueled by increased customer traffic. While traffic for the current quarter remained solidly above the prior year level, sales conversion dipped somewhat. We are especially pleased with our performance in light of recent economic and market challenges, including higher gas and vehicle prices, the uptick in the unemployment rate and the recent pull-back in consumer confidence."

Carmax has a potential upside of 29.6% based on a current price of $30.52 and an average consensus analyst price target of $39.56.

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Anadarko Pays $17 Million In Royalty Claims

- Anadarko Pays $17 Million In Royalty Claims



Jun 20, 2011

Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (NYSE:APC), along with Kerr-McGee Corp. and their affiliates will have to pay more than $17 million in royalties. According to the Justice Department, Anadarko Petroleum Corp. knowingly underpaid royalties owed on natural gas produced from federal and Indian lands.

This $17 million settlement resolves the claims that Anadarko and Kerr-McGee improperly reported processed gas as unprocessed gas in order to lower royalty payments. In recent activity, shares of Anadarko were down 1% to $69.78.

The oil and gas company has a potential upside of 33.8% based on a current price of $69.73 and an average consensus analyst price target of $93.3.

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