Shares Of Acme Packet Are Off To A Strong Start After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Acme Packet (APKT) spiked up on Friday, ending the day with gains of 12.0%. The provider of session delivery network solutions received an upgrade from analysts at Stifel Nicolaus bolstering demand for its shares.

Analyst Upgrade

Analysts at Stifel Nicolaus boosted their rating from hold to buy and attached a $27 price target. Analyst Sanjiv Wadhwani increased the estimates for both revenue and earnings as the company stands to benefit from the rollout of VoLTE.

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Gap - Good Start Of The Year After A Good News Show

Shares of The Gap (GPS) have been off to a good start of the year. The specialty apparel company known for its stores operating under the names of Gap, Old Navy and Banana Republic among others, issued three separate press releases on Thursday which contained good news, helping its shares to end the week higher.

Good News Show

Decent December Sales Report

The good news started on Thursday with the December sales results. Net sales for the five weeks ending on the 29th of December increased by 5% to $2.08 billion. The entire growth in sales was driven by comparable store sales growth.

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Kohl's Shares Offer Appeal After A Failed Holiday Season Experiment

Shares of Kohl's (KSS) fell 1.7% so far in 2013, not benefiting from the positive market sentiment after the announcement of some sort of fiscal cliff resolution. The department store selling apparel, footwear and home products, reported its December sales results on Thursday.

December Sales Report

Kohl's reported its sales for the five weeks ending on December 29, just like most of its retail colleagues. Total sales for the month rose some 4.0% to $3.37 billion, driven by a 3.4% increase in comparable sales.

Year-to-date, sales of Kohl's rose by 1.0% to $18.1 billion. So far in 2012, comparable store sales fell by 0.3%. CEO and Chairman Kevin Mansell commented on the sales results

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MetLife - Uptick In Long-Term Rates Send Shares Higher Into 2013

Shares of MetLife (MET) have been off to a very strong start in 2013. Investors saw a 9.1% return in the first three trading days of the year alone. The insurance company benefited from a fiscal cliff solution and an uptick in long term interest rates.

Strong Start To The Year

Like any other company, and financial firms in particular, MetLife benefited from the resolution of the fiscal cliff. Shares of the largest life insurer of the nation furthermore showed impressive gains as an uptick in higher bond yields improve earnings on its almost $400 billion fixed-income bond portfolio.

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TJX Companies - Buy This Long-Term, Value Creating Company On Dips

Shares of TJX Companies (TJX) have been off to a good start in the new year. Shares of the off-price apparel and home fashion retailer known for Marshalls and HomeGoods have risen 5.0% so far this year. On Thursday, the company reported strong sales results for December, prompting the company to raise its full year outlook for the fiscal year of 2013.

Strong End To 2012

TJX reported strong December sales results. Sales for the five weeks ending on December 29, came in at $3.6 billion, up 10% on the year before. Sales were driven by a 6% increase in comparable sales. Analysts expected same store sales growth to come in at just 2.3% for the month.

For the 48 weeks ending at the same date, sales rose a similar 10% to $23.9 billion. For the same period, same store sales growth came in at 7%.

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Lexmark International Announces Bolt-On Acquisition Of Acuo, Continuing Its Transformation

Shares of Lexmark International (LXK) have been off to a strong start in 2013, trading with gains of 12.5%. On Wednesday, the manufacturer of supplying printing, imaging, document workflow and content management solutions, announced the acquisition of Acuo Technologies.

The Deal

Lexmark International announced that it has agreed to acquire Acuo Technologies, a privately-held leader in high performance software and services in an all-cash transaction valuing the firm at $45 million.

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Skullcandy: Investors And Analysts Are Overreacting

Shares of Skullcandy (SKUL) started 2013 on a bad note. Shares of the developer and distributor of headphones and audio accessories to retailers have lost almost 12% already in the first three trading days of the year.

Dismal Share Price Performance

Skullcandy went public in July of 2011. At the time, the offering was a great success as the company was able to raise its offering price while boosting the size of the offering. Shares went eventually public at $20 per share and saw a healthy first day spike.

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3D Systems Continues To Use Its Stock As Expensive Currency To Make Acquisitions

Shares of 3D Systems Corporation (DDD) started 2013 on a strong note. Shares of the three-dimensional content-to-print solutions company rose 10.3% so far this year after the company announced the acquisition of Geomagic.

The Deal

3D Systems Corporation announced that it has agreed to acquire Geomagic, a leading provider of 3D authoring solutions including design, sculpt and scan software tools used to create 3D content.

Combined, 3D Systems and Geomagic have a stronger portfolio in the 3D platform and industry. The deal adds complementary products and technology and boost the global marketing coverage. CEO Abe Reichental commented on the deal:

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AbbVie's Shares Are More Appealing Than Abbott's Following The Spin-Off

This week, the long-anticipated split of Abbott Laboratories (ABT)finally took place. Shareholders who held their shares before the start of 2013 will now hold one share in Abbott Laboratories and one share in AbbVie (ABBV).

The Split

As a result of the split, shareholders will now own a medical device company which continues to operate under its old name. Shareholders will furthermore hold one share in AbbVie which continues with its proprietary pharmaceutical activities. Both companies generate roughly $21 billion and $18 billion in annual revenues, respectively.

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Eli Lilly's Strong Outlook Is Comforting Amidst $6 Billion In Patent Expirations

Shares of Eli Lilly (LLY) ended the first trading week of 2013 on a strong note. The pharmaceutical developer, manufacturer and distributor of a variety of drugs commented on its 2012 performance and gave an upbeat outlook for 2013 and beyond, sending shares 3.7% higher.

Updated Outlook For 2012

Eli Lilly previously guided for 2012 earnings per share of $3.68-$3.78, on a reported basis. Excluding a one-time benefit of $0.43 per share from the early payment of the exenatide revenue sharing obligation, non-GAAP earnings were guided to come in at $3.30-$3.40 per share.

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Target - Soft Holiday Sales Result In Earnings Coming In Below Target

Shares of Target (TGT) have risen 2.4% so far this year on the release of its sales results for the month of December. Investors are relieved that the December sales report indicates that same store sales growth recovered from the poor results in November.

December Sales Results

Target announced that net retail sales for the five weeks ending on December 29, came in at $10.21 billion. Net sales rose 0.8% compared to the year before, as comparable store sales were essentially flat.

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Brady Corporation Starts The Year Good By Acquiring Precious Dynamics Corporation

Shares of Brady Corporation (BRC) started 2013 on a strong note. The manufacturer of identification solutions and specialty materials announced the acquisition of Precious Dynamics Corporation at the start of the trading week.

The Deal

Brady Corporation announced that it has agreed to acquire Precious Dynamics Corporation in a $300 million all-cash deal. PDC is a leader in identification products in the healthcare market, including patient wristbands, specialty labels and other identification systems. The company's products reduce medical errors by integrating patients data.

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Duff & Phelps Shareholders Should Hope For A Higher Offer

Shares of Duff & Phelps (DUF) ended 2012 on a strong note. Shares of the independent financial advisory and investment banking firm rose 19.7% to $15.62 per share on the final trading day of the year. The firm decided to sell itself to a consortium of private equity firms for $15.55 per share.

The Deal

Duff & Phelps announced that the firm has agreed to sell itself to a private equity firm consortium comprised out of The Carlyle Group, Stone Point Capital LLC, Pictet & Cie and the Edmond de Rothschild Group. The consortium will pay $15.55 per share in cash, valuing the firm at approximately $665.5 million.

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Hormel - Addition Of Skippy Sends Shares To Fresh All-Time Highs

Shares of Hormel Foods (HRL) rose 3.7% in Thursday's trading session. The diversified food manufacturer announced the acquisition of Skippy peanut butter from Unilever (UN).

The Deal

Hormel Foods announced that it has agreed to acquire the number 2 peanut butter brand of the country in a $700 million deal.

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Ross Stores - Shares Spike Up On Strong December Sales

Shares of Ross Stores (ROST) have seen a great start to 2013. The operator of off-price apparel and home fashion stores reported strong same store sales growth for the important December month on Thursday.

A Strong End To 2012

Ross Stores reported that total sales for the last five weeks of 2012 rose 11% on an annual basis, coming in at $1.276 billion. Growth was driven by a solid 6% increase in same store sales.

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Mellanox - Outlook Continues To Be Uncertain

Shares of Mellanox (MLNX) fell 14% in after hours trading on Wednesday. The fabless semiconductor company issued a downbeat outlook for the fourth quarter of 2012.

Fourth Quarter Outlook

Mellanox issued a very weak outlook for the fourth quarter of 2012. The supplier of high performance and end-to-end interconnect solutions guides for fourth quarter revenues of $119-$121 million. This is far below the previous outlook of $145 to $150 million.

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Avis Makes An Excellent Acquisition By Acquiring Zipcar

Shares of Zipcar Inc (ZIP) rose 47.8% in Wednesday's trading session.Avis Budget Group (CAR) made a $12.25 offer per share in cash for the car sharing network company. Shareholders of Avis Budget react favorably to the proposed deal, sending shares of Avis 4.8% higher.

The Deal

Avis Budget Group announced that it has agreed to acquire Zipcar in a deal valuing the firm at approximately $500 million, or $12.25 per share. Shareholders in Zipcar stand to receive another 0.6% if the proposed deal takes place at the proposed price.

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Middleby Continues Its Acquisition Spree, Buying Viking Range Corporation

Shares of The Middleby Corporation (MIDD) rose 2.2% on the final trading day of the year. The manufacturer, marketer and distributor of cooking and warming equipment announced the acquisition of Viking Range Corporation.

The Deal

The Middleby Corporation announced that it has agreed to acquire Viking in an all-cash transaction valuing the firm at $380 million.

Viking is a leading manufacturer of premium residential cooking equipment, ovens and other kitchen appliances and is based in Greenwood Mississippi. By combining both firms, Middleby expects to find meaningful cost reduction and production efficiencies and yield, improved design and performance.

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Investors Applaud Diodes' Acquisition Of BCD Semiconductor

Shares of Diodes Incorporated (DIOD) ended the trading year of 2012 on a strong note. Last week, the manufacturer of high-quality application specific standard products for semiconductor markets announced the acquisition of BCD Semiconductor Manufacturing (BCDS).

The Deal

Diodes announced that it has agreed to acquire BCD Semiconductor Manufacturing in an all-cash transaction valuing the firm at $151 million.

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