symantec

MCKESSON CORP., $154.99, New York symbol MCK, rose 10% this week to a new all-time high after it agreed to buy Celesio AG, a Germany-based firm that distributes prescription drugs in Europe and Brazil. The company will pay $8.3 billion for Celesio, which includes its debt. This is a big purchase for McKesson, which has a market cap of $35.4 billion. The deal should close sometime in 2014. The combined company will have annual revenue of $150 billion, and will serve over 120,000 hospitals and pharmacies in more than 20 countries. That will cut McKesson’s reliance on the U.S., which currently accounts for 90% of its revenue. The company’s bigger size will also help it negotiate lower prices from pharmaceutical makers....

WYNDHAM WORLDWIDE CORP., $67.35, symbol WYN on New York, reported higher revenue and earnings in the latest quarter, and the shares rose to a new all-time high. In the three months ended September 30, 2013, the hotel and resort operator’s revenue rose 12.8%, to $1.43 billion from $1.27 billion a year earlier. The company gets most of its revenue from vacation rather than business travel, and vacation bookings rose in the latest quarter. That helped push up Wyndham’s occupancy rate by 1.9%. Before one-time items, earnings rose 24.8%, to $1.41 a share from $1.13. The company continues to buy back its stock. In the latest quarter, it repurchased 2.7 million shares for $160 million. In 2012, it bought back 12.9 million shares for $623 million....

AMAZON.COM INC., $316.01, symbol AMZN on Nasdaq, has unveiled two new versions of its Kindle tablet computer, as the company aims to increase its small share of the highly competitive tablet market. Amazon has an estimated 5% of the U.S. tablet market, compared to 51% for the Apple iPad and 19% for Samsung. The company will continue to offer its lower-end Kindle Fire HD, with a seven-inch screen, for $139. However, it is now introducing a new seven-inch Kindle Fire HDX starting at $229 and an 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HDX starting at $379....

SYMANTEC CORP. $25.36 (Nasdaq symbol SYMC; TSINetwork Rating: Average) (1-408-517-8000; www.symantec.com; Shares outstanding: 698.6 million; Market cap: $17.7 billion; Dividend yield: 2.4%) sells computer security technology, including anti-virus and email-filtering software, to businesses and consumers....

SYMANTEC CORP. $25.36 (Nasdaq symbol SYMC; TSINetwork Rating: Average) (1-408-517-8000; www.symantec.com; Shares outstanding: 698.6 million; Market cap: $17.7 billion; Dividend yield: 2.4%) sells computer security technology, including anti-virus and email-filtering software, to businesses and consumers. It also offers data-archiving software.

In Symantec’s fiscal 2014 first quarter, which ended June 28, 2013, its revenue rose 2.5%, to $1.75 billion from $1.68 billion a year earlier. The company is doing a good job of selling its products as ongoing subscriptions instead of one-time purchases. Subscriptions now account for 45% of its revenue, up from 44% a year ago.

Earnings per share rose 7.3%, to $0.44 from $0.41. That easily beat the consensus estimate of $0.36.
...

SYMANTEC CORP., $26.52, Nasdaq symbol SYMC, sells computer-security technology, including anti-virus and email-filtering software, to businesses and consumers. The stock jumped 8% this week after the company reported record quarterly revenue and earnings. In its fiscal 2014 first quarter, which ended June 28, 2013, Symantec’s revenue rose 2.5%, to $1.71 billion from $1.67 billion a year earlier. That beat the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. The company is doing a good job of selling its products as ongoing subscriptions instead of one-time purchases. Subscriptions now account for 45% of Symantec’s revenue, up from 44% a year ago....

WESTJET AIRLINES LTD., $21.36, symbol WJA on Toronto, moved up almost 7% this week after reporting record quarterly earnings. In the three months ended June 30, 2013, the company’s earnings rose 5.2%, to $44.7 million from $42.5 million a year earlier. That marks WestJet’s 33rd consecutive quarter of profitability. Earnings per share rose 9.7%, to $0.34 from $0.31, on fewer shares outstanding. Revenue increased 4.3%, to $843.7 million from $809.3 million a year earlier. WestJet shares fell as low as $19.65 earlier this week after reaching an all-time high of $25.47 in April 2013. The decline was mostly due to investor concern that the company’s profit growth could slow if it can’t fill the new planes it’s adding to the same level as its current fleet. That includes its new Canadian regional airline, WestJet Encore, which launched in June 2013....

AIMIA INC., $15.74, symbol AIM on Toronto, rose over 13% this week after TD Bank agreed to become the primary credit card issuer for Aeroplan, Aimia’s main loyalty program. TD is a recommendation of The Successful Investor, our newsletter that focuses on conservative Canadian investing. Aeroplan is Canada’s largest loyalty program, with over 4.6 million members who collect Aeroplan miles from participating companies. Members can exchange their miles for flights, car rentals, hotel rooms and merchandise. Under this new 10-year deal, which would begin January 1, 2014, TD will launch new credit cards under the Aeroplan banner, including cards for frequent flyers and small businesses....

SYMANTEC CORP. $22.70 (Nasdaq symbol SYMC; TSINetwork Rating: Average) (1-408-517-8000; www.symantec.com; Shares outstanding: 696.6 million; Market cap: $15.8 billion; Dividend yield: 2.6%) sells computer security technology, including anti-virus and emailfiltering software, to businesses and consumers....

SYMANTEC CORP. $22.70 (Nasdaq symbol SYMC; TSINetwork Rating: Average) (1-408-517-8000; www.symantec.com; Shares outstanding: 696.6 million; Market cap: $15.8 billion; Dividend yield: 2.6%) sells computer security technology, including anti-virus and emailfiltering software, to businesses and consumers. It also offers data-archiving software.

In its fiscal 2013 third quarter, which ended March 29, 2013, Symantec’s earnings per share rose 15.8%, to $0.44 from $0.38 a year earlier. Revenue gained 4.4%, to $1.75 billion from $1.68 billion.

The company is poised to keep reporting higher earnings as its new restructuring plan takes effect.
...