Author: therawinformant

Stocks fluctuated between gains and losses Monday as market participants weighed prospects that the virus-stricken economy would rebound quickly against fears over an extended rise in new cases over the weekend. The Final Round panel breaks down the details.

from Yahoo Finance https://ift.tt/3hRepvE

By now, I'm assuming you've heard about President Trump's plan to jump-start the U.S. economy by spending $1 trillion on an "infrastructure plan." You really should have heard of it by now… because he's been promising it for about four straight years. But could 2020, with its arrival of a coronavirus and a recession that's cost more than 40 million Americans their jobs, be the year that it finally happens?Maybe.In Rosenblatt's latest report on the subject, analyst Ryan Koontz admits that there have been "years of infrastructure talk from all sides and surprisingly little to show for it." But he also argues that passing an infrastructure bill, as an economic stimulus measure to get people back to work and help restart the economy, "makes sense" and is "broadly favored in public polling," suggesting that 2020 could be the year there's enough public support to get such a plan through Congress.Moreover, the infrastructure bill now being mooted in the White House could be about more than just building roads and bridges. In addition to such steel-and-concrete projects, Koontz observes that the White House wants additional spending to accelerate the rollout of 5G wireless networks to form "a meaningful part in the bill." If this comes to pass, then high-tech firms helping to build the 5G infrastructure could become major beneficiaries of a $1 trillion infrastructure plan.Which high-tech companies in particular? Koontz identifies four likely targets: Ciena (CIEN), CommScope (COMM), Ericsson (ERIC), and Nokia (NOK).In Koontz's view, a $1 trillion infrastructure plan could begin accelerating spending on 5G infrastructure as early as next year, and increase spending by internet providers such as AT&T (T), Verizon (VZ), and T-Mobile (TMUS) by an average of 30% annually through 2023. This spending would flow to the infrastructure builders (Ciena, et al).In 2020 the scenario Koontz describes, CommScope would probably be the biggest beneficiary in terms of revenue growth, growing its revenues collected from the big telcos by as much as 50% that year alone. Ciena would be second in line, growing revenues perhaps 42%, followed by Ericsson (30% revenue growth) and Nokia (25%). Other networking infrastructure companies such as Cisco (CSCO), Juniper (JNP), and Infineon (IFNNY) would benefit, too, albeit to a lesser extent.As for which of these 5G infrastructure plays Rosenblatt likes best, Koontz leans towards Ciena, which he says has "strong exposure to hyperscale and 5G programs," is the market leader in optical networking outside of China, and likely to win market share globally as non-Chinese telcos shun use of equipment manufacture by China's Huawei has.Koontz is also impressed with Ciena's recent improvements in profitability. Indeed, over the past five years, operating profit margins at Ciena have more than doubled, from 5.5% to 12.4% (over the last 12 reported months). Applied to a 50% increase in annual revenue ($3.66 billion), this has led to an explosion in profits at Ciena, which topped $321 million over the past 12 months — versus just $12 million earned in 2015.When you consider furthermore that Ciena's free cash flow for the same period — $381 million — is running nearly 20% ahead of reported profits, it's pretty clear why Koontz rates Ciena a "buy" alongside a $64 price target. CIEN's Strong Buy consensus rating is based on an impressive 12 Buy ratings indicating confidence in the stock. Only four analysts rated it a Hold. The average price target of $61 and change implies a 12.5% upside potential from the current share price of $65. (See CIEN stock-price forecast on TipRanks)To find good ideas for stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks’ Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks’ equity insights.

from Yahoo Finance https://ift.tt/3162iF1

Pulmonologist at NYU Langone Medical Center and Independent Women’s Forum Visiting Fellow Dr. Qanta Ahmed joins Yahoo Finance’s Zack Guzman to discuss the rise in coronavirus cases as the White House says it’s bracing for a potential second wave this fall.

from Yahoo Finance https://ift.tt/2Yncbwc

from Yahoo Finance https://ift.tt/3dpQ9xl

The latest 13F reporting period has come and gone, and Insider Monkey is again at the forefront when it comes to making use of this gold mine of data. Insider Monkey finished processing 821 13F filings submitted by hedge funds and prominent investors. These filings show these funds' portfolio positions as of March 31st, 2020. […]

from Yahoo Finance https://ift.tt/2V8D3Or

American Airlines looks to secure $3.5 billion in new financing and United Airlines may receive a $5 billion debt offering from a group of banks led by Goldman Sachs. Yahoo Finance’s On The Move panel addresses the state of U.S. airlines.

from Yahoo Finance https://ift.tt/3enF8xC

Yahoo Finance’s Brian Sozzi and Alexis Christoforous discuss the reopening of amusement parks across the world, and cruise industry outlook with Wedbush Securities Managing Director James Hardiman.

from Yahoo Finance https://ift.tt/2Bwrv0q

(Bloomberg) — Wirecard’s creditors are demanding more clarity from the company in return for the extension of almost $2 billion in financing after it breached terms on the loan, people familiar with the matter said.At least 15 commercial lenders, including Commerzbank AG and ABN Amro, are in negotiations about the steps to take after the German payments company said on Thursday it’s unable to release its annual report because it can’t locate 1.9 billion euros in cash ($2.1 billion), the people said. One of them, Bank of China Ltd., is considering writing off and terminating its credit line with the company, separate people familiar with the matter said.Read more: Bank of China Is Said to Weigh Ending Wirecard’s Credit LineMeanwhile, bondholders are also preparing for restructuring talks or for an “impending insolvency” and hired advisers One Square and Kirkland & Ellis.Concerns over the missing money prompted a collapse in Wirecard AG shares and the departure of CEO Markus Braun, who was replaced on an interim basis by James Freis. In an indication of the company’s worsening situation, Moody’s Investors Service cut Wirecard’s credit ratings six levels on Friday and then withdrew its rating altogether on Monday.Wirecard hired investment bank Houlihan Lokey to come up with a financing strategy and said it’s likely the missing money doesn’t exist.Wirecard could make an announcement accepting outside monitoring and higher transparency as early as this week, and, in return, the banks may not exercise their right to call the loan, one the people said.The lenders are also considering hiring outside help as they seek to navigate the risk of a potentially massive default, the person said asking not to be identified discussing the private information.Wirecard has an outstanding revolving credit facility of 1.75 billion euros, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The German payments company has warned that loans of as much as 2 billion euros could be terminated because its audited results weren’t published by a Friday deadline.About 90% of the RCF has been drawn by the company, according to people familiar with the matter and a list detailing the RCF participation that was seen by Bloomberg:Most of the banks are leaning toward an extension of the repayment obligation in order to better assess the potential impact of a default on their balance sheets, the person said. However, a prolonged extension could be seen as delaying an insolvency, which is illegal under German law.Spokespeople for ABN Amro, Commerzbank, ING, LBBW, Cregit Agricole, DZ Bank, Citigroup and Deutsche Bank declined to comment. Representatives for the other banks didn’t immediately respond to requests seeking comment.Wirecard didn’t respond to a request for comment. In a separate statement on Friday the company said it’s in “constructive talks” with lending banks.Read more: Wirecard’s $2.1 Billion Hole Deepens After Forgery Claim Deutsche Bank Chief Risk Officer Stuart Lewis declined to comment on Wirecard when asked about the exposure on a previously scheduled analyst call on Thursday. However, he said the bank typically hedges its exposure to companies with a low investment-grade credit rating and encouraged analysts to “draw your own conclusions.” Wirecard has a rating that’s one notch away from sub-investment grade.Moody’s had previously said that Wirecard’s ratings could be lowered to junk. “The current findings are even more material compared to previous allegations, as they refer to the substance of available cash holdings, which had been a key credit strength of Wirecard’s previous rating,” Moody’s said in a statement Friday. The questions looming over the company’s financials also may trigger a “swift decline” in its customer base and transaction volumes, Moody’s said.Lending RisksWirecard’s revolving facility is due June 2024. Lenders include Agricultural Bank of China Ltd., Bank of China Ltd., Commerzbank AG, Deutsche Bank AG, DZ Bank AG, and Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg.The company sold 500 million bonds in 2019 to repay part of drawn down amount.Banks typically take and hold their revolving credit facilities’ commitments for high-grade companies that means most of Wirecard’s lenders may not have offloaded their lending risk in the company.Read more: What’s Next for Wirecard Debt in Balance-Sheet Crisis (Updates with details throughout. A previous version erroneously stated that Raiffeisen International is a lender in table.)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.

from Yahoo Finance https://ift.tt/3hSsPM6