MW : HSBC, AgilHSBC, Agilent Technologies, Rio Tintoent Technologies, Rio Tinto
Agilent Technologies Inc. (A 23.56, -0.48, -2.00%) said Monday it swung to a fiscal third-quarter loss as sales in all of the testing and equipment maker's major business areas declined from a year ago, and the company's chief executive said more weakness is likely to extend into 2010. The company said it lost $19 million, or 6 cents a share, on revenue of $1.06 billion. During the same period a year ago, the company earned $169 million or 45 cents a share on $1.44 billion in sales. See full story on Agilent.
Goldman Sachs upgraded HSBC Holdings (HBC 52.47, -1.65, -3.05%) to buy from neutral Tuesday, saying it now believes the bank's HSBC Finance Corp. unit will cease to be a major drag on group earnings from 2010. Goldman said the division's core credit card portfolio shrank rapidly in the first half of 2009, while the broker had been expecting modest growth. Goldman still expects net charge-off rates to rise from here, reflecting rising unemployment. However, the broker said it now expects cumulative net losses in the division from 2009 through 2012 to be $9.4 billion, down from its previous forecast of $17.6 billion.
The NYSE Arca Airline Index (XAL 22.35, -1.03, -4.41%) fell 8% to 22.35 points with all but one of its 13 components trading down. Regional carrier SkyWest was the lone gainer. In the last 52 weeks, the benchmark index has moved in the range of 28.22 to 12.62 points. See full story on airline stocks.
Lowe's Corp.'s (LOW 20.47, -2.36, -10.34%) second-quarter profit fell a worse-than-expected 19%, the company reported Monday, as consumers continued to balk at spending for big-ticket, but non-essential items. Lowe's also said it decided not to pursue several potential future-store projects and lowered its North American plan for store openings next year. See full story on Lowe's.
Amcor Ltd. (AU:AMC 5.65, +0.22, +4.05%) said Tuesday it agreed to pay $2.03 billion for the majority of Rio Tinto Ltd.'s (RTP 148.40, -9.89, -6.25%) Alcan Packaging business, marking its biggest-ever acquisition, according to a joint statement by the companies Tuesday.
