CHICAGO, Aug. 29, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Zacks.com announces
the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the
Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events
impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently
featured in the blog include: Shoe Carnival Inc. (Nasdaq:
SCVL), Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM), CIGNA Corporation
(NYSE: CI), Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET) and UnitedHealth Group
Inc. (NYSE: UNH).
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Here are highlights from Friday's Analyst Blog:
Shoe Carnival's 2Q Disappoints
Shoe Carnival Inc. (Nasdaq: SCVL) recently posted second
quarter 2011 earnings of 20 cents per
share, well below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 30 cents and the year-earlier quarter earnings of
32 cents per share. The company
delivered poor quarterly earnings mainly due to a decline in
traffic at stores.
Net sales inched up 0.8% year over year to $166.7 million during the quarter. Comparable
store sales (comps) fell 1.1% in the quarter versus 8.3% increase
in the year-ago quarter. The downside in comps was attributable to
unfavorable weather conditions in many of Shoe Carnival's markets
during the quarter.
During the quarter, gross margin contracted 50 basis points
(bps) to 27.8% due to flat merchandise margin, partly offset by a
0.5% spike in buying, distribution and occupancy costs. Selling,
general and administrative (SG&A) expenses increased 3.7% year
over year to $42.3 million. As a
percentage of net sales, SG&A escalated 60 bps to 25.3%, due to
lower comparable sales growth.
Humana to Acquire Arcadian
Yesterday Humana Inc. (NYSE: HUM) announced that it will
purchase Arcadian Management Services, a Medicare Advantage health
maintenance organization that has members in 15 U.S. states.
However, the financial and other terms of purchase remain
undisclosed. The acquisition is expected to complete by the end of
the year, after obtaining the approval of U.S. federal and state
regulators.
Arcadian is a California-based
privately held organization established in 1996 and specializes in
providing high-quality health care services to its members, most of
whom dwell in small and medium-sized communities. The company
provides Medicare coverage to about 64,000 people and reported
total revenue of $622 million in
2010.
On the other hand, Humana earned $33.87
billion in revenues in 2010, which is more than 5 times the
total revenue of Arcadian. Humana is actively working on expanding
its size, not just through acquisitions, but also by increasing its
employee base.
On Monday, the company had announced its plan to employ 300 new
registered nurses, social workers and community health educators in
its Humana Cares division by the end of this fall. Additionally, in
July this year, the company had announced its plan to hire 200
full-time employees, including customer care specialists and
front-line supervisors, at its national Medicare service operations
center in Tampa.
While the current-year income of Humana will not be
significantly affected by the acquisition, the deal is expected to
increase its earnings in the coming years as it will expand the
Medicare business of the company. Humana is a leader in insurance
and healthcare industry, which has other major players like
CIGNA Corporation (NYSE: CI), Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET)
and UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH).
Humana carries a Zacks #1 Rank, which translates into a Strong
Buy rating for the short-term.
On Wednesday, the shares of the company closed at $70.79, down 2.59%, on the New York Stock
Exchange.
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