Lear (LEA) (GDP) (GENE) (GLF) (JCI) Get New Coverage

Lear Co. (NYSE: LEA), Goodrich Petroleum Co. (NYSE: GDP), Genetic Technologies (NASDAQ: GENE), Gulfmark Offshore (NYSE: GLF) and Johnson Controls, Inc. (NYSE: JCI) getting new coverage from analysts.

RBC Capital initiated coverage on Lear Co. (LEA). They placed a “Sector Perform” rating on the company.

Rodman & Renshaw initiated coverage on Goodrich Petroleum Co. (GDP). They placed an “Outperform” rating and a price target of $22.00 on the company.

Ladenburg Thalmann initiated coverage on Genetic Technologies (GENE). They placed a “Buy” rating and a price target of $7.50 on the company.

Iberia Capital initiated coverage on Gulfmark Offshore (GLF). They placed an “Outperform” rating on the company.

RBC Capital initiated coverage on Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI). They placed an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Limited (LTD) (HOMB) (HPQ) (ICE) (JCI) (KIOR) (LEN) Ratings, Price Targets

Limited Brands (LTD), Home Bancshares Inc (HOMB), Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), IntercontinentalExchange (ICE), Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI), KiOR Inc. (KIOR) and Lennar Co. (LEN) ratings and price targets.

RBC Capital raised its price target on Limited Brands (LTD) from $46.00 to $48.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Wunderlich reiterated its “Buy” rating on Home Bancshares Inc. (HOMB). They have a price target of $29.00 on the company.

Sterne Agee upgraded Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) from a “Neutral” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $34.00 on the company.

Credit Agricole downgraded IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) from an “Outperform” rating to an “Underperform” rating.

Macquarie initiated coverage on Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI). They placed an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) initiated coverage on KiOR Inc. (KIOR). They placed a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) downgraded Lennar Co. (LEN) from a “Buy” rating to a “Neutral” rating. They have a price target of $20.00 on the company.

Vale (VALE) (F) (NTAP) (AXL) (DE) (JCI) Price Targets Changed

Vale (NASDAQ: VALE), Ford (NYSE: F), NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ: NTAP), American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc (NYSE: AXL), Deere & Company (NYSE: DE) and Johnson Controls, Inc. (NYSE: JCI) price targets adjusted by analysts.

NetApp Inc. (NTAP) had its price target lowered by Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) to $50.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

Ford (NYSE: F) had its price target lowered by analysts at Barclays Capital from $20.00 to $15.00. They have an “Overweight” rating on the company.

Vale (VALE) had its price target lowered by Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) to $38.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. (AXL) had its price target lowered by Barclays Capital from $14.00 to $12.00. They have an “Equal Weight” rating on the company.

Deere & Company (DE) had its price target lowered by UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) from $115.00 to $110.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI) had its price target lowered by Barclays Capital from $49.00 to $43.00. They have an “Overweight” rating on the company.

Mosaic (MOS) (CSX) (DTLK) (ELS) (JCI) Price Targets Changed

The Mosaic Company (NYSE: MOS), CSX Corp. (NYSE: CSX), Datalink Corporation (NASDAQ: DTLK), Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. (NYSE: ELS) and Johnson Controls, Inc. (NYSE: JCI) had price targets adjusted by analysts.

UBS AG raised its price target on The Mosaic Company (MOS) to $80.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

RBC Capital lowered its price target on CSX Corp. (CSX) from $29.00 to $27.00. They have a “Sector Perform” rating on the company.

Canaccord Genuity boosted its price target on Datalink Corporation (DTLK) from $10.00 to $12.00. They have a “Buy” rating on the company.

JMP Securities raised its price target on Equity Lifestyle Properties, Inc. (ELS) from $64.00 to $69.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the company.

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) lowered its price target on Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI) to $41.00. They have a “Neutral” rating on the company.

Newfield (NFX) (TSCO) (AXP) (AAPL) (JCI) Ratings Reiterated

Newfield Exploration (NYSE: NFX), Tractor Supply Co. (NASDAQ: TSCO), American Express (NYSE: AXP), Apple, Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Johnson Controls, Inc. (NYSE: JCI) had ratings on them reiterated by analysts.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS) reiterated its "Buy" rating on Newfield Exploration (NFX).

Deutsche Bank (NYSE: DB) reiterated a "Buy" rating on Tractor Supply Co. (TSCO).

Piper Jaffray (NYSE: PJC) reiterated its "Overweight" rating on American Express (AXP). They have a price target of $32.00 on the company.

Scotia Capital reiterated its "Sector Perform" rating on Apple, Inc (AAPL).

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) reiterated an "Overweight" rating on Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI).

EPS on (ESV) (FL) (HNZ) (HPQ) (JCI) (MHK) Updated

EPS on ENSCO PLC (NYSE: ESV), Foot Locker (NYSE: FL), H.J. Heinz Company (NYSE: HNZ), Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ), Johnson Controls, Inc. (NYSE: JCI) and Mohawk Industries, Inc. (NYSE: MHK) were updated by analysts.

Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) raised their EPS estimate on ENSCO PLC (ESV). They have an “outperform” rating and a price target of $3.80 on the company. They had had a price target of $5.75 on the company.

UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) raised their EPS estimate on Foot Locker (FL). They have a “neutral” rating and a price target of $22.00 on the company. They had had a price target of $21.00 on the company.

Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) raised their EPS estimate on H.J. Heinz Company (HNZ). They have an “overweight” rating on the company.

Sterne Agee cut their EPS estimate on Hewlett-Packard (HPQ). They have a “buy” rating and a price target of $53.00 on the company.

Morgan Stanley raised their EPS estimate on Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI). They have an “overweight” rating and a price target of $52.00 on the company.

Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) raised their EPS estimate on Mohawk Industries, Inc. (MHK). They have a “neutral” rating and a price target of $57.00 on the company.

Dividend Yields for (JCI) (HOG) (PBCT) (HCBK) (MTB)

Indicated dividend yields for Standard & Poor's 500 Index companies Johnson Controls (JCI), Harley-Davidson Inc (HOG), People's United Financial Inc (PBCT), Hudson City Bancorp Inc (HCBK) and M&T Bank Corp (MTB).

These dividend data indicate dividend yields of companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index as of Saturday, April 30. The yield is determined by taking the latest declared dividend, annualized and divided by the price of the stock. Payout ratios are calculated based on latest quarterly dividend paid divided by earnings.

Johnson Controls (JCI) has a dividend yield of 1.32 percent on a declared dividend of $0.16. The payout ratio is 25.1 percent.

Harley-Davidson Inc (HOG) has a dividend yield of 1.56 percent on a declared dividend of $0.10. The payout ratio is 30.06 percent.

People's United Financial Inc (PBCT) has a dividend yield of 4.60 percent on a declared dividend of $0.16. The payout ratio is 103.7 percent.

Hudson City Bancorp Inc (HCBK) has a dividend yield of 3.36 percent on a declared dividend of $0.08. The payout ratio is 61.1 percent.

M&T Bank Corp (MTB) has a dividend yield of 3.17 percent on a declared dividend of $0.70. The payout ratio is 40.7 percent.

Best Corp (ABFS) (FHN) (JCI) (NFLX) (VECO) PTs Adjusted by Analysts

Analysts cut and boosted their price targets on shares of Best Corp (NASDAQ: ABFS), First Horizon National Co. (NYSE: FHN), Johnson Controls, Inc. (NYSE: JCI), Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) and Veeco Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: VECO) on April 26.

Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) cut its price target on Arkansas Best Corp (ABFS) from $27.00 to $24.00. They have a “Hold” rating on the company.

Jefferies (NYSE:JEF) cut their price target on First Horizon National Co. (FHN) from $13.00 to $12.00.

Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) boosted its price target on Johnson Controls, Inc. (JCI) from $49.00 to $53.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the firm.

Oppenheimer raised its price target on Netflix, Inc. (NFLX) from $230.00 to $280.00. They have an “Outperform” rating on the media content delivery company.

Lazard Capital raised their price target on Veeco Instruments Inc. (VECO) from $54.00 to $58.00.

Entegris (ENTG) (CETV) (IR) (JCI) (MSPD) Upgraded on April 26

Shares of Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. (NASDAQ: CETV), Entegris (NASDAQ: ENTG), Ingersoll-Rand (NYSE: IR), Johnson Controls, Inc. (NYSE: JCI) and Mindspeed Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: MSPD) were all upgraded April 26 by various brokerages.

Morgan Joseph upgraded Central European Media Enterprises Ltd. (NASDAQ: CETV) from a “Hold” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a price target of $25 on the stock.

Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) upgraded Entegris (NASDAQ: ENTG) to a “Neutral” rating. They have a price target of $9.50 on the stock.

Bank of America also upgraded Ingersoll-Rand (NYSE: IR) from a “Neutral” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a $61 price target on the stock.

Deutsche Bank (NYSE:DB) upgraded Johnson Controls, Inc. (NYSE: JCI) from a “Neutral” rating to an “Overweight” rating. They have a price target of $47 on the stock.

Piper Jaffray also upgraded Johnson Controls, Inc. (NYSE: JCI) from a “Neutral” rating to an “Overweight” rating. They also have a $47 price target on the company.

Needham & Company upgraded Mindspeed Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: MSPD) from a “Hold” rating to a “Buy” rating. They have a $10 price target on Mindspeed.

Barclays Likes Lear (LEA) (JCI) (TEN) (DAN) in Auto Parts Sector

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) analyst Brian Johnson recommends buying shares of Ford (NYSE:F) and General Motors (NYSE:GM) as the stock price of both companies have fallen over 14 percent recently, but he also likes the auto parts sector, eyeing companies like Dana Holding (NYSE:DAN), Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI), Lear Corp. (NYSE:LEA) and Tenneco (NYSE:TEN).

Of particular note for the parts industry is the commercial truck segment, where things are taking off because orders have come back strong.

As for auto sales, the reason Johnson is bullish there is from price increases on vehicles from the manufacturers, Turbo Ecoboost technology from Ford, and production estimates are probably understated.

Tenneco closed Thursday at $43.60, gaining $0.30, or 0.69 percent. Lear Corporation ended the day at $48.97, rising $0.74, or 1.53 percent. Johnson Controls closed the session at $40.73, up $0.60, or 1.50 percent. Dana Holding closed at $18.33, increasing $0.51, or 2.86 percent.

Microsoft (MSFT), Software, and Building Energy Management

Rob Bernard, Microsoft's (NASDAQ:MSFT) chief environmental strategist, said the company is working with partners at this time in an attempt to work out a strategy for software and services for better managing energy consumption in commercial buildings.

"Upwards of 20% of energy can be reduced by not replacing windows but by deploying technology," he said at a gathering at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco.

Additionally, Microsoft is looking at ways to tie building management systems into predictive analysis tools to better balance energy production and consumption. With predictive analysis tools, air conditioners in buildings could be turned down, for example, to compensate for a sudden decline in power production at a wind farm.

'What are the right ways to structure this ecosystem? Today it is all disconnected sources of information," he said.

If this strategy sounds familiar, it should. EnerNoc (ENOC), Silver Spring Networks, Serious Materials, Scientific Conservation, Johnson Controls (JCI), Schneider Electric (SBGSF.PK), IBM (IBM) and Honeywell (HON) have all sketched out strategies for improving the energy efficiency of buildings and then tying building energy consumption into demand response/demand management networks for more fluid, efficient power consumption.




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Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI) Down on Weak Auto Margins

Although Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI) was able to beat estimates, their weak auto margins weigh on the share price of the company, and was the only segment of Johnson Controls not to get a raise in guidance.

UBS says, "Though EPS of $0.55 was a beat the stock traded down on weaker auto margins, which missed our estimate and was also the only segment that did not get a margin guidance raise. Though JCI attributed this to M&A dilution, we felt commentary surrounding the rate of recovery in AE was slower than expected. Importantly, JCI does not expect Europe AE to return to pre-downturn margins of 6-7% until 2015.

"Our 2011 EPS estimate moves to $2.60 from $2.50 previously, reflecting higher BE growth and improved BE and PS margins. 2012 moves to $3.30 from $3.20; 2013 moves to $3.95 from $.3.85; and 2014 moves to $4.55 from $4.50."

UBS maintains a "Neutral" rating on Johnson Controls (JCI), which was trading at $38.76, dropping $0.04, or 0.10 percent, as of 2:44 PM EST. UBS raised their price target on Johnson Controls from $38 to $40.

Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI) Acquisitions Bodes Well for 2011

Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI) has a history of successfully acquiring and assimilating companies into their fold, and with their acquisitions of KEIPER and Recaro, they are positioned well heading into the new year.

Kaufman said, "JCI expands seat business with acquisitions. JCI announced two acquisitions yesterday to augment its Automotive Experience segment. The first acquisition was for KEIPER, which manufactures the mechanisms for seats, and the second was the sport seat business of Recaro. While financial terms were not disclosed, the company has a long history of successfully integrating acquisitions and importantly taking out costs and achieving meaningful synergies...Maintaining above-consensus 2011/2012 EPS estimates of $2.60 and $3.00."

Kaufman Bros. maintains a "Buy" rating on Johnson Controls, which closed Friday at $18.53, up $0.36, or 1.98 percent. Kaufman raised their price target on them to $41.

Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI), TRW (NYSE:TRW), Magna (NYSE:MGA), Superior Industries (NYSE:SUP) Top Auto Parts Picks for S&P

With the auto industry expected to improve and grow next year, those manufacturing auto parts like Johnson Controls (NYSE:JCI), TRW (NYSE:TRW), Magna International (NYSE:MGA) and Superior Industries International (NYSE:SUP) are expected to continue to grow at a quick pace.

Standard & Poor’s equity analyst Ephraim Levy said, “Emerging markets are becoming more attractive to parts manufacturers due to lower labor costs for manufacturing and engineering and/or due to growing demand in local and regional markets.”

As of December 23, Levy notes that auto parts and equipment companies are up 55 percent so far in 2010, and many of those companies should continue to do well in 2011.

Superior Industries International was trading at $21.59, down $0.05, or 0.23 percent, as of 1:23 PM EST. Magna International was at $52.36, gaining $0.52, or 1.00 percent. TRW Automotive was trading at $52.60, up $1.03, or 2.00 percent. Johnson Controls was at $38.44, up $0.45, or 1.18 percent.

Ford (NYSE:F) Delivers Ford Transit Connect Electric to US, UK Markets

Ford (NYSE:F) and partner Azure Dynamics have started their first shipments of the Ford Transit Connect Electric to North America and the UK.

The Ford Transit Connect Electric is an all-electric commercial vehicle, which includes the Force Drive powertrain from Azure Dynamics.

Among entities pre-ordering the vehicle were Xcel Energy (NYSE:XEL), AT&T (NYSE:T), Southern California Edison, Johnson Controls Inc. (NYSE:JCI), New York Power Authority, Canada Post and Toronto Atmospheric Fund EV300.

Ford director of Electrification Programs and Engineering, Sherif Marakby, said, “Supplier collaboration is important on all Ford product programs, but it was especially key in this effort, which went from contract signing to vehicle production in 13 months,” said . “A strong teamwork environment established by Azure and Ford was critical to delivering this vehicle.”

“The Transit Connect Electric program is a great representation of our product development approach,” added Scott Harrison, CEO, Azure Dynamics. “We have been able to focus on integration of our Force Drive powertrain solution and benefit from Ford’s expertise in building ground-up global vehicle platforms. Meanwhile, capital costs are kept in check by contracting AM General for labor and assembly services – an area where the company excels. Transit Connect Electric is a revolutionary technology and achieving our aggressive time line is a testament to the professionalism and spirit of cooperation among all the project partners.”

The Transit Connect Electric should be able to travel up to 80 miles for each charge. It's unclear how much time it'll take away from productivity, depending on how long a charge lasts. Gasoline run vehicles can of course run much further and longer, eliminating the need to stop so often. And with electric, they would surely stop well short of the 80 mile mark to ensure they aren't stuck somewhere.