symantec
NASDAQ symbol SYMC, makes software that helps protect computers from viruses and electronic attacks. Its best-known product is the top-selling Norton Anti-Virus program.
SYMANTEC CORP., $18.50, Nasdaq symbol SYMC, sells Internet security technology, including anti-virus email filtering software. The company plans to spend between $750 million and $1.25 billion on acquisitions in its current fiscal year, which ends March 31, 2012. That’s equal to roughly 9% of its $14.3-billion market cap. Symantec is particularly interested in companies that expand its expertise in “cloud computing.” That’s where data and software are kept on remote servers. Users access these servers over the Internet....
DELPHI ENERGY, $2.56, symbol DEE on Toronto, explores for oil and gas in Alberta and B.C. Natural gas makes up 74% of its daily output; the remaining 26% is oil. In the three months ended March 31, 2011, Delphi’s production rose 8.0%, to an average of 8,259 barrels of oil equivalent (including natural gas) per day from 7,647 barrels a year earlier. Delphi’s cash flow rose 2.0% in the quarter, to $15.1 million from $14.8 million. Higher production and oil prices were the main reason for the gain. The company’s operating costs also fell. Delphi sold 3.2 million shares to raise $9.0 million in the quarter. Due to more shares outstanding, cash flow per share fell 13.3%, to $0.13 a share from $0.15....
Symantec Corp., symbol SYMC on Nasdaq, sells Internet security technology, including anti-virus and Internet content and email filtering software, to businesses and consumers. Symantec is one of the stocks we cover in Stock Pickers Digest, our newsletter that covers more aggressive stock market recommendations. In the three months ended April 1, 2011, Symantec’s earnings fell 8.0%, to $297 million from $323 million a year earlier. Earnings per share fell 5.0%, to $0.38 from $0.40, on fewer shares outstanding. These figures exclude several unusual items, including asset writedowns and restructuring costs. On this basis, the latest earnings beat the consensus estimate of $0.36 a share....
ADOBE SYSTEMS INC. $34.87 (Nasdaq symbol ADBE; TSINetwork Rating: Average) (408-536-6000; www.adobe.com; Shares outstanding: 504.5 million; Market cap: $17.5 billion; No dividends paid) makes software that lets computer users create, edit and share documents in the popular PDF format. As well, graphic designers use Adobe’s software to create print publications and web pages. The company also makes Adobe Flash, which lets web site developers make web pages more interactive by adding animation and video. Computer users can download Adobe’s Flash Player viewer for free....
MICROSOFT CORP., $25.03, Nasdaq symbol MSFT, is buying privately held Skype Global. Luxembourg-based Skype makes software that lets computer users make free phone calls over the Internet. Skype users can also make calls to regular or mobile phones for a fee. As well, Skype offers other services, including video conferencing and instant messaging. Skype has 663 million registered users worldwide. Microsoft is paying $8.5 billion for Skype. That’s the biggest acquisition in Microsoft’s 36-year history. Still, it holds cash and investments of $50.2 billion, or $5.95 a share, so it can easily afford this purchase. The company aims to close the deal by the end of 2011....
YAMANA GOLD, $11.46, symbol YRI on Toronto, has raised its quarterly dividend by 50%, to $0.045 a share, from $0.03 a share. This is the second time this year that the company has raised its payout: it increased its quarterly dividend by 50%, to $0.03 from $0.02, with the January 2011 payment. The new rate gives the shares a 1.6% yield. That’s a high dividend rate for a gold stock. By contrast, Barrick Gold yields 1.1%, Newmont Mining yields 1.5% and Goldcorp yields 0.9%. Yamana is also increasing its exploration budget. It will spend $105 million on exploration in 2011, up 23.5% from $85 million in 2010. Yamana expects to keep raising this spending in the following years. It could spend as much as $125 million on exploration in 2012....
SYMANTEC CORP. $18 (Nasdaq symbol SYMC; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 763.2 million; Market cap: $13.7 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 2.3; No dividends paid; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.symantec.com) makes software that protects computers from viruses and electronic attacks. The popular Norton anti-virus program is the company’s best-known product. In the past few years, Symantec has expanded its corporate-security operations by purchasing other software companies. That has cut its exposure to cyclical home-computer sales. Big purchases fuelled growth ...
SYMANTEC CORP. $18.33 (Nasdaq symbol SYMC; TSINetwork Rating: Average) (1-408-517- 8000; www.symantec.com; Shares outstanding: 789.3 million; Market cap: $14.5 billion; No dividends paid) makes software that protects computers from viruses and intruders. It also sells a range of products and services to businesses, including software and services for data backup and protection, as well as data-archiving to meet increasingly strict regulatory and compliance regulations. In the three months ended December 31, 2010, Symantec’s revenue rose 3.6%, to $1.6 billion from $1.5 billion a year earlier. The company earned $0.35 a share, down 12.5% from $0.40 a year earlier. However, that beat the consensus estimate of $0.33. Publicity around the WikiLeaks affair, involving the public release of often-embarrassing diplomatic cables, has made the company’s customers more security conscious. This should help Symantec sell more data security software, despite the slow pace of the U.S. economic recovery....
Symantec Corp., Nasdaq symbol SYMC, sells Internet security technology, including anti-virus and Internet content and email filtering software, to businesses and consumers. In the three months ended December 31, 2011, Symantec’s revenue rose 3.6%, to $1.6 billion from $1.5 billion a year earlier. The stock market investment gets 52% of its revenue from overseas sales. If you disregard the negative impact of exchange rates, international sales rose 5% during the quarter. The company earned $272 million, down 16.3% from $325 million a year earlier. Symantec spent $265 million on share buybacks in the latest quarter. Due to fewer shares outstanding, earnings per share fell 12.5%, to $0.35 from $0.40 a year earlier. These figures exclude unusual items, such as costs to absorb recent acquisitions. On this basis, the latest earnings beat the consensus estimate of $0.33....
TUPPERWARE BRANDS CORP., $45.63, New York symbol TUP, is our #1 Stock of the Year for 2011. The company makes high-quality products for the home, including plastic food and beverage containers and children’s educational toys. These products account for 70% of its revenue. The remaining 30% comes from its beauty products division, which makes a wide range of cosmetics, bath oils and fragrances. Unlike most consumer product makers, Tupperware mainly prefers to sell its goods through independent dealers instead of stores. The company now has 2.5 million dealers in over 100 countries. These dealers hold “Tupperware parties” in homes, offices and other locations to demonstrate products and take orders for merchandise. Parties also provide an opportunity to recruit new dealers, and make it easier to expand sales in less-developed countries with few retail stores or distribution networks....