Insider Trades

U.S. Steel, Genomic Health and Other Stocks Insiders Are Buying

Nelson Hem — Sat, 18 May 2013 19:54:32 +0000

Insiders may sell shares for any number of reasons, but conventional wisdom is that insiders really only buy shares of a company for one reason -- they believe the stock price will move higher and they want to profit from it.

Pullbacks and sell-offs provide a perfect opportunity for investors who have faith in a company to snap up shares. Here are some stocks that have seen insider buying recently.

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals

One director, Felix Baker, bought more than 1.9 million shares last week. That was worth more than $24.9 million. This San Diego-based biopharmaceutical company has been discussed as a possible takeover target and it last week announced a secondary offering.

The market capitalization is about $1 billion and the long-term earnings per share (EPS) growth forecast is about 20 percent. Shares of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: ACAD) are up more than 180% year-to-date. Over the past six months, the stock has outperformed larger competitors AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) and Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY).

Genomic Health

A director, Felix Baker again, last week bought more than 311,000 shares, which was worth more than $10.8 million, of this health care company. A novel genetic test by Genomic Health (NASDAQ: GHDX) to gauge the aggressiveness of prostate cancer became available on the market last week.

The diagnostics company has a market cap near $1.1 billion. While the long-term EPS growth forecast is about 33 percent, the return on equity is less than six percent. The share price is up more than 37 percent year-to-date and just shy of a new 52-week high. The stock has outperformed the ...

AdCare Health Systems Issues Employment Inducement Grant to New Chief Financial Officer

Paul Quintaro — Thu, 16 May 2013 20:10:09 +0000

AdCare Health Systems (NYSE: ADK) (NYSE: ADK.PRA) announced today that it has issued to Ronald W. Fleming, who commenced serving as AdCare's Chief Financial Officer on May 15, 2013, a ten-year warrant to purchase 70,000 shares of AdCare's common stock with an exercise price of $5.90 per share. One-third of the shares underlying the warrant shall vest ratably on each of May 15, 2014, May 15, 2015 and May 15, 2016. The vesting of the underlying shares shall accelerate upon a change in control of AdCare. The warrant is exercisable for cash or by ...

Benzinga Market Primer: Wednesday, May 15

Matthew Kanterman — Wed, 15 May 2013 10:45:32 +0000

Futures Lower on Weak European Growth Data

U.S. equity futures traded lower in early pre-market trade following a weaker than expected GDP report from the eurozone for the first quarter. GDP growth rose to -0.2 percent on a quarterly basis from -0.6 percent but missed forecasts of a 0.1 percent contraction. Weakness was notably seen in Germany, France, and Italy in the report, with the annualized rate of growth for Germany dropping to -1.4 percent vs. 0.2 percent growth forecast.

Top News

In other news around the markets:

The U.K. had fewer people claim unemployment benefits in April than expected, a positive sign for the labor market as the unemployment rate fell. The Claimant Count Change in the U.K. was released at -7.3 thousand people vs. a forecast of -3.0 thousand as the unemployment rate unexpectedly declined 0.1 percent to 7.8 percent. However, most of the drop was due to people leaving the labor force.
The Bank of England issued an upbeat forecast for the U.K. economy in its latest Inflation Report, the last of Governor Mervyn King's tenure at the BoE. The Bank forecasts that the U.K. will grow 0.5 percent in the second quarter with growth accelerating to 1.7 percent in the second quarter of 2014 and 2.2 percent in the same period of 2015. Notably, the Bank mentioned that it sees the effects of the financial crisis easing, finally.
Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) has refused to sign a new safety pact for its suppliers in Bangladesh but has announced that it will increase inspections in the country in the wake of the disaster that left numerous workers dead and more injured.
S&P 500 futures fell 3.7 points to 1,644.30.
The EUR/USD was lower at 1.2887.
Spanish 10-year government bond yields ...

Benzinga Market Primer: Tuesday, May 14

Matthew Kanterman — Tue, 14 May 2013 10:32:36 +0000

Futures Slightly Lower on Mixed European Data

U.S. equity futures traded slightly lower in early pre-market trade following mixed economic data out of the eurozone. The moves follow basically flat trading on Wall Street from Monday after futures rallied into the open following weaker than expected Chinese data.

Top News

In other news around the markets:

The German ZEW Economic Sentiment Index rose to 36.4 in May from 36.3 in April but missed expectations of a gain to 38.3. The current conditions index was also weak and over 77 percent of respondents said they do not expect another rate cut in the next six months.
Industrial Production across the eurozone rose faster than expected in March as IP rose 1.0 percent vs. a 0.4 percent forecast gain.February's reading was revised downwards to 0.3 percent from 0.4 percent.
Australia's just released budget for the next fiscal year sees growth at 3 percent, alleviating some fears of a more protracted slowdown in the resource-rich nation.
S&P 500 futures fell 2.8 points to 1,628.00.
The EUR/USD was higher at 1.3006.
Spanish 10-year government bond yields rose 3 basis points to 4.32 percent.
Italian 10-year government bond yields rose 3 basis points to 4.01 percent.
Gold rose 0.05 percent to $1,435.00 per ounce.

Asian Markets

Asian shares were mostly lower overnight as the yen retreated from recent lows against the dollar. The Japanese Nikkei Index fell 0.16 percent and the Shanghai Composite Index fell ...

Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Friday May 10, 2013

Charles Gross — Sat, 11 May 2013 14:51:29 +0000

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Friday May 10, 2013:

Illumina Shares Soar on Rumor of Roche $88/Share Bid

The Rumor:
Shares of Illumina (NASDAQ: ILMN) surged higher Friday, after Swiss publication L'Agefi reported Swiss pharma giant Roche (OTC: RHHBY) had offered $88 per share to acquire the San Diego, CA-based genetic technology company. Illumina shares rose as high as $77.11 during the session.

After initially declining comment on the rumor, Roche said a deal for Illumina was "off the table". Roche had previously made offers of $44.50 and $51 per share for Illumina, both of which were rejected by Illumina's board. A rumored $60 offer never materialized.

Illumina closed at $69.98 Friday, a gain of 4% on 5.5 times average volume.

Actavis Confirms Merger Talks with Warner Chilcott

The Talks:
Shares of generic drug maker Actavis (NYSE: ACT) and Irish specialty pharmaceutical company Warner Chilcott (NASDAQ: WCRX) moved sharply higher Friday on a Bloomberg report that Actavis was in talks to acquire Warner Chilcott. Acatvis had reportedly been in merger talks with Valeant Pharmaceuticals (NYSE: VRX).

Both companies later confirmed that they were in early ...

Starbucks, Huntington Bancshares and Other Stocks Insiders Are Buying

Nelson Hem — Sat, 04 May 2013 14:25:23 +0000

Pullbacks and sell-offs provide a perfect opportunity for investors who have faith in a company to snap up shares. Here are some stocks that have seen insider buying recently.

Huntington Bancshares

The CEO and two directors bought more than 112,000 shares in the past two weeks. Altogether, that was worth more than $797,000. This commercial and consumer banking services provider recently boosted its dividend and last week named a new head of its treasury management division.

This Columbus, Ohio-based regional bank has a market capitalization of about $6.1 billion and a dividend yield near 2.8 percent. The price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio is lower than the industry average and the return on equity is less than 12 percent.

Shares of Huntington Bancshares (NASDAQ: HBAN) pulled back about eight percent in mid-April but have begun to recover. But over the past six months, the stock has underperformed competitors Fifth Third Bancorp (NASDAQ: FITB) and Keycorp (NYSE: KEY).

Key Energy Services

The CEO, COO, controller and two directors last week bought a combined 112,500 shares, which was worth more than $613,000, of this Houston-based onshore rig-based well servicing contractor. First-quarter EPS fell more than expected due to a falling inland rig count.

Key Energy Services (NYSE: KEG) has a market cap near $948 million. While the long-term EPS growth forecast is about nine percent, the ...

George Soros Takes a 7.9 Percent in J.C. Penney, Ackman Vindicated?

Matthew Kanterman — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 11:39:43 +0000

Famed currency investor George Soros, famous for "breaking the sterling" in the 1980's, has taken a large 7.9 percent stake in struggling retailer J.C. Penney (NYSE: JCP). Soros now is long the stock along with Pershing Square's Bill Ackman and now is opposed by Carl Icahn.

Although he has taken a large stake, Soros' SEC filing disclosed that the stake was a passive one, meaning that unlike Ackman, he will not try to exert influence on the company. The move comes so soon after J.C. Penney has seen earnings plummet, has seen the departure of its Chief Executive, and the departure of no less than 5 other key employees in the past few months.

Ackman's Pershing Square owns approximately 17.8 percent of the stock and now has a key ally in the potential turn around of the company. Combined, the two investors own more than a quarter of the ...

Benzinga Market Primer: Friday, April 26

Matthew Kanterman — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 10:33:08 +0000

Futures Lower Ahead of GDP

U.S. equity futures traded lower in early pre-market trade ahead of the key U.S. first quarter GDP report due out at 8:30 am eastern. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg are expecting a growth rate of 3.1 percent in the first quarter with the range of estimates between 2.3-3.3 percent. This would be a staunch improvement from the fourth quarter's 0.4 percent growth.

Top News

In other news around the markets:

The Bank of Japan released its updated economic forecasts at its interest rate meeting overnight, estimating 2.9 percent growth for fiscal year 2013 and 2014 vs. 2.3 percent previously and sees the BoJ achieving 1.9 percent inflation by 2015 or 2016.
The China MNI Business Sentiment Index rose to 58.6 in April from 58.2 in March, showing that businesses and managers are still rather optimistic about the Chinese economy despite recent weak data.
Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE: ADM) increased its bid for Australian company Graincorp to $4.3 billion, making the deal a near certainty to go through according to analysts.
S&P 500 futures slid 5.5 points to 1,576.20.
The EUR/USD was flat at 1.3011.
Spanish 10-year government bond yields rose 5 basis points to 4.34 percent.
Italian 10-year government bond yields rose 7 basis points to 4.13 percent.
Gold rose 0.03 percent to $1,462.50 per ounce, retracing nearly 50 percent of its losses since its recent slide from above $1,600 per ounce to below $1,400.

Asian Markets

Asian shares were mostly lower overnight on disappointing forecasts from the Bank of Japan as well as no increase in its easing policy while inflation data showed that policy in Japan has had no impact as of yet. The Japanese Nikkei Index fell 0.3 percent and the Shanghai Composite Index fell 0.97 percent while the Hang Seng Index rose 0.65 percent. ...

Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Tuesday April 23, 2013

Charles Gross — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 00:11:17 +0000

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Tuesday April 22, 2013:

MEMSIC to be Acquired by IDG-Accel China Capital II, L.P. and Affiliates for $4.225/Share in Cash

The Deal:
MEMSIC (NASDAQ: MEMS) announced Tuesday that it has agreed to be acquired by IDG-Accel China Capital II, L.P. and its affiliates MZ Investment Holdings Limited and MZ Investment Holdings Merger Sub Limited for $4.225 per share in cash. Affiliates of IDG currently hold approximately 19.5% of the company's outstanding common stock. IDG and its affiliates will acquire all the outstanding shares of common stock of MEMSIC that are not currently owned by them, including shares underlying outstanding in-the-money equity awards, for approximately $88.5 million.

The transaction is expected to close during Q1 2013.

MEMSIC closed at $4.07 Tuesday, a gain of 50% on 21 times average volume.

Hearing Chatter New Oriental Education Near Going Private ...

Benzinga's M&A Chatter for Monday April 22, 2013

Charles Gross — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 01:53:22 +0000

The following are the M&A deals, rumors and chatter circulating on Wall Street for Monday April 22, 2013:

ABB to Acquire Power-One for $6.35/Share in Cash

The Deal:
ABB (NYSE: ABB) and Power-One (NASDAQ: PWER) announced Monday that their boards of directors have agreed to a transaction in which ABB will acquire Power-One for $6.35 per share in cash or $1.028 billion. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2013.

Power-One closed at $6.33 Monday, a gain of 56% on 52 times average volume.

CECO Environmental to Acquire Met-Pro for $13.75/Share

The Deal:
CECO Environmental (NASDAQ: CECE) announced Monday it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Met-Pro Corporation (NYSE: