Tag - DCO

Huron Consulting Group Inc. (Nasdaq:HURN), Savient Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq:SVNT) and Vivus Inc. (Nasdaq:VVUS) are among the biggest percentage losers in Monday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: Ducommun Inc. (Nasdaq:DCO), First Merchants Corp. (Nasdaq:FRME), Univest Corp of Pennsylvania (Nasdaq:UVSP), Summit Financial Group Inc. (Nasdaq:SMMF), Constant Contact Inc. (Nasdaq:CTCT) and Comfort Systems USA, Inc. (Nasdaq:FIX).

Gibraltar Industries Inc. (Nasdaq:ROCK), MWI Veterinary Supply Inc. (Nasdaq:MWIV) and Integral System Inc..(Nasdaq:ISYS) are among the biggest percentage losers in Wednesday's trading among companies with market capitalizations under $1 billion.

Also included among the results: General Maritime Corp. (Nasdaq:GMR), Knot Inc. (Nasdaq:KNOT), Capital Bank Corp. (Nasdaq:CBKN), Ducommun Inc. (Nasdaq:DCO), Perry Ellis International Inc. (Nasdaq:PERY) and Badger Meter Inc. (Nasdaq:BMI).

Small-cap stocks opened lower but battled back to steady levels, pressured by profit-taking after Tuesday’s big FOMC rally. Weak profit news on the financial front and lingering worries about the recession prompted a pause in the updraft, which saw small-caps climb to the highest daily close Tuesday since mid-November.  Some of today’s small-cap gainers are Cadence Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NYSE:PCH), Telvent  (Nasdaq:TLVT) and Joy Global (Nasdaq:JOYG).

Other Market Watch highlights today included:

• This morning, the yield on benchmark 10-year notes was down a whopping 6%, indicating strong demand for underlying Treasury securities.  
• The only physical product making huge waves right now is the cocoa market, which rose to 22-year highs in London trading.  
• Commodities should find underlying support from the recent slide in the U.S. dollar, which tumbled to 13 ½-year lows against the yen today.  
• Emerging market stocks found support overnight, with Hungary’s beaten down stock market climbing 6% amid gains in oil and gas stocks.

Small Cap Gainers:

• Cadence Pharmaceuticals Inc. jumped 48% on news of a positive trial for a post-surgery abdominal pain drug. See (NYSE:PCH).
• Telvent Oversees Lan-Zheng-Chang liquid pipeline operation, the largest liquid pipeline in China. Shares rise 13%. See (Nasdaq:TLVT).  
• Joy Global up 11% after Q4 profit rises on strong demand. See (Nasdaq:JOYG). 
• Energy Conversion Devices is climbing above 10% despite a maintained "sell" rating by Citi. See (Nasdaq:ENER).  

Small Cap Losers:

• Gibraltar Steel Corp. gapped lower and shed 26% building products manufacturer updated guidance and announced the closure of a manufacturing facility. See (Nasdaq:ROCK).  
• Soleil Securities initiates coverage on Ducommun with a "sell;" shares fall 13%. See (NYSE:DCO).
• QBE Insurance Group Limited completes PMI Asia acquisition. Shares of PMI are down 10% on the news. See (NYSE:PMI).  
• Small-cap homebuilder Hovnanian Enterprises Inc. missed the earnings forecast and HOV shares were off 7.5% shortly after the open. See (NYSE:HOV).

Ducommun Inc. (NYSE:DCO) CEO Joseph Berenato said the commercial markets still look strong as the provider of engineering and manufacturing services for the aerospace and defense industries looks forward. Berenato made the comments during a Monday morning conference call with analysts and investors.

“Build rates remain high and are occasionally growing,” Berenato said. “Our own backlog at the second quarter was $382 million versus $353 million at yearend, so we continue to see our backlog increasing and we expect to see it to continue to gradually increase as we go forward.”

The chief executive said the company is making progress toward its fundamental goals of operational excellence, organizational development and profitable growth. The acquisition environment is starting to improve after a “tough” 18 months, he said.

“After the first half of ’08, we’ve gradually seen better acquisition candidates starting to become available,” Berenato said. “For the first time in 18 months, I think we’re starting to see some things that could be a good fit for us.”

Ducommon’s search for a new chief financial officer is going, the CEO said. The Carson, Calif.-based firm’s previous CFO, Gregory Hann, resigned last November.

Ducommun Inc. (NYSE:DCO) CEO Joseph Berenato said the company, a maker of aerospace structural components and subassemblies, said the firm is optimistic about the Carson, Calif.-based firm’s future. Berenato made the comments during a Monday morning conference call.

“Even though we’ve seen some tremors to the economy at large, we still see our future as pretty bright and although it’s filled with some risks, we think predominantly it’s filled with opportunity,” Berenato said. “We’ve had a good first quarter and we look forward to a strong year.”

Before Monday’s opening, Ducommun reported that its first-quarter revenue rose 12% to $98.7 million, compared with $88.1 million a year earlier. The results bested Wall Street’s expectation of $96.2 million in revenue.

“We’ve started 2008 with a solid performance and as we look forward, the commercial markets continue to look strong,” Berenato said. “Build rates are high.”

Net income for the three months ended March 29 surged 29% to $5.3 million, or $0.49 per share, versus $3.8 million, or $0.37 per share, a year ago, when the quarter ended on March 31. The earnings numbers also beat Wall Street analysts’ earnings estimate of $0.44 per share.

Operating costs and expenses increased 10% to $90.1 million, from $81.8 million during the prior-year period. Gross profit, as a percentage of sales, rose to 21.2% during the quarter, from 21% during the first quarter of 2007. The firm’s effective tax rate during quarter clocked in at 36.8%, versus 32.1% during the same period of 2007.

“We’re driving growth through capital expenditures, R&D and acquisitions,” Berenato said. “Those growth elements are driven by our policy deployment . . .

The Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM) moved up as news of a stock buyback program by International Business Machines Corp. (Nasdaq: IBM) overshadowed worrisome economic reports. The small-cap index added 6.86 points, or 0.97%, to 717.32. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDU) gained 114.70 points, or 0.91%, to 12,684.92.

On a year-to-date basis, the Russell 2000 has declined 6.36%, while the Dow is down 4.37% and the S&P 500 has decreased 5.93%.

The major U.S. indices interrupted their early-session volatility to post gains on news that IBM has approved a $15 billion stock buyback. The Armonk, N.Y.-based tech giant said that the buyback will boost its 2008 profit.

The announcement came at around 11 a.m. ET, and immediately sent stocks small and large flying.

The U.S. Labor Department reported that producer prices increased 1% in January, more than the expected 0.4%.

The numbers tell us that inflation pressures remain a worry despite the slowing economy.

Meanwhile, the Conference Board announced that its index of consumer confidence fell to a five-year low of 75.0 in February, down from 87.3 in January. A pullback in consumption will spell trouble for the economy, because consumer spending is about 70% of U.S. gross domestic product.

Ducommun Inc. (NYSE: DCO) shares are soaring for no apparent reason, but the aerospace engineering company declined to comment on the unusual market activity. The stock exchange NYSE Euronext (NYSE: NYX) had asked the Los Angeles-based company to explain if corporate activities were behind the stock price movement.

On Tuesday morning, investment bank BB&T Capital Markets (NYSE: BBT) maintained its “buy” rating on Ducommun. BB&T said in a note to investors that the firm will see internal growth of 9% in 2008.

On Monday, Ducommun posted fourth-quarter profit of $5.4 million, or $0.51 per share, from $4.3 million, or $0.41 per share, a year earlier. Analysts expected earnings of $0.51 per share.

Quarterly revenue increased 6% to $93.5 million, from $87.8 million during the prior-year period. Wall Street analysts projected revenue of $92.1 million.

In Tuesday’s trading, DCO shares were up 22.53%, or $5.57, at $30.29. Over the last 52 weeks, shares have ranged from $23.19 to $42.70.

Lately the broader markets have been a bit grounded. The Dow finished down for the month of December for only the third time in eleven years. The 3.5% return that the S&P 500 posted in 2007 left much still to be desired. Not to mention the fact that the Russell 2000 fell to 15-month lows earlier this week. However, one segment of the market that’s been taking off has been the aerospace and defense sector. The Dow Jones U.S. Select Aerospace & Defense Index posted a mighty return of 28.2% in 2007. 

One small cap that’s been leading the boom is Ducommun Incorporated (NYSE: DCO). And the results that this Carson, Calif.-based company have posted have been anything but common. At a market cap of just $331 million, the company struck it rich in 2007. Ducommun’s stock soared nearly 67% last year.

Founded in 1849 at the height of the Gold Rush, Ducommun is the oldest continuously operating business in Los Angeles. Back then the company repaired watches for prospectors. Today it engineers and manufactures components and assemblies for commercial aircraft, military aircraft and space programs.

A prominent example of Ducommun’s work is its support for a subsidiary of United Technologies Corporation (NYSE: UTX), which manufactures the Black Hawk helicopter for the military. In November, Ducommun locked up a five-year, $60 million deal to provide titanium erosion shields for the helicopter program. The shields are designed to protect the Black Hawk’s main rotor blades. Some of the company’s other major customers include the U.S. government, The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA), Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT), and Raytheon Company (NYSE: RTN).

The Black Hawk contract win is reminiscent of the wave of success that Ducommun has had recently. For the third-quarter ended Sept. 29, management reported net income of $5.8 million, or $0.55 per diluted share on $94.7 million in sales. These figures handily topped analysts polled by Thomson Financial, who were expecting EPS of $0.45 per share on $90.6 million in sales. The results also represented a 42.3% increase in net income and a 16.1% increase in sales versus the year-ago quarter.

Ducommun Inc. (NYSE: DCO) CEO Joe Berenato said the aircraft parts maker expects continued growth in its commercial and military segments. Berenato made the comments during a morning conference call.

The chief executive said the company sees outsourcing opportunities in its commercial segment, as well as rising business activity rates by The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA), one of the firm’s chief customers. Ducommun also sees outsourcing opportunities in business jets and light commercial aircrafts, he said.

Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan continue to drive the company’s military segment, he said.

“While the overall defense budget will stay large, there will be winners and losers within that framework,” Berenato said. “Our focus is to continue trying to increase our design and engineering content and moving and migrating to higher-level assemblies.”

He also said Ducommun sees new opportunities for the firm’s titanium and composite-based aircraft components.

Before the opening, Ducommun reported third-quarter sales of $94.7 million, above analyst estimates of $90.6 million and 16% above $81.6 million a year earlier. The firm’s quarterly profit rose 42% to $5.8 million, or $0.55 per share, above Wall Street projections of $0.45 per share and compare with $4.1 million, or $0.40 per share, during the same period of 2006.