Thursday’s Analyst Moves: QUALCOMM, Inc., Kraft Foods Group Inc, Whole Foods Market, Inc., More (QCOM, KRFT, WFM, More)

Before Thursday's opening bell, a number of big name dividend stocks were the subject of analyst moves. Below, we highlight the important analyst commentary for investors.

Qualcomm Downgraded to “Market Perform”

QUALCOMM, Inc. (QCOM) has been cut to “Market Perform” at Bernstein as China remains an uncertainty. The firm has an $80 price target on QCOM, suggesting a 5% upside from the stock’s current price. QCOM has a dividend yield of 2.23%.

Deutsche Bank Downgrades Kraft

Deutsche Bank has cut its rating on Kraft Foods Group Inc (KRFT) to “Hold” following the release of its Q2 earnings. Analysts at the firm see KRFT facing a difficult fundamental environment. KRFT has a dividend yield of 3.67%.

Two Firms Downgrade Whole Foods

JP Morgan has downgraded Whole Foods Market, Inc. (WFM) from “Overweight” to “Neutral.” The firm has also cut estimates on WFM as the company lacks near term visibility.

UBS also cut its rating on WFM from “Buy” to “Neutral” as analysts now believe that the company’s re-acceleration needs more time. WFM has a dividend yield of 1.33%

JPM Lifts PT on Alcoa

JP Morgan has raised its price target on Alcoa Inc (AA) to $24.50. The firm has also boosted estimates on the company due to higher expected aluminum prices. AA has a dividend yield of 0.73%.

Jefferies Lowers PT on Dominion Resources

Jefferies has lowered its price target on Dominion Resources, Inc. (D) from $73.50 to $72. D has a dividend yield of 3.49%.

Eli Lilly Downgraded at Citi

Eli Lilly and Co (LLY) has been cut to “Neutral” at Citigroup due to Alimta risks. LLY has a dividend yield of 3.13%.

Two Firms Lift PT on U.S. Steel

JP Morgan has boosted its price target on United States Steel Corporation (X) to $33. The firm has also raised estimates as the company is cutting costs.

Jefferies has increased its price target on X from $31 to $35. The firm has also raised estimates on X due to lower expenses and stable pricing. X has a dividend yield of 0.60%.

Credit Suisses Boosts PT on Hess

Credit Suisse has raised its price target on Hess Corp. (HES

Harbinger Capital COO to Pay SEC Fine Over Falcone Scheme

The former chief operating officer at Harbinger Capital Partners LLC agreed Monday to settle charges by the Securities and Exchange Commission that he assisted a scheme by the firm and its owner Philip A. Falcone to misappropriate millions of dollars from a hedge fund they managed to pay Falcone’s personal taxes.

Peter A. Jenson, who was charged along with Falcone and Harbinger in a 2012 enforcement action by the SEC, has agreed to admit wrongdoing and pay a $200,000 penalty.

Jenson has also agreed to be prohibited from working in the securities industry for at least two years, and agreed to be suspended for at least two years from practicing as an accountant on behalf of any publicly traded company or other entity regulated by the SEC.

The settlement papers were filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and must be approved by the court.

Falcone and Harbinger consented to a settlement last year in which they agreed to pay more than $18 million and admit wrongdoing.

“Jenson assisted a fraudulent scheme that allowed Falcone to put his own interests ahead of investors by engaging in a related party loan on favorable terms,” said Julie Riewe, co-chief of the SEC Enforcement Division’s Asset Management Unit, in a Monday statement. “This settlement shows that we hold accountable not only those who perpetrate a scheme, but also those who enable them.”

In his settlement, Jenson admits that with knowledge of Falcone’s and Harbinger’s violations, he provided substantial assistance in connection with the loan by failing to:

Ensure that the lender (Harbinger Capital Partners Special Situations Fund) had separate counsel;

Ensure that the loan was consistent with Falcone’s fiduciary obligations to the Special Situations Fund;

Ensure that Falcone paid an “above market” interest rate on the loan.

Timely disclose the loan to investors; and

Take actions to cause the lender to accelerate Falcone’s payment on the loan once investors in the Special Situations Fund were permitted to begin redeeming their investments.

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Related on ThinkAdvisor:

Amazon Slips On Wider-Than-Expected Loss; Acacia Research Shares Gain

Related BZSUM Amazon Rating And Price Target Cut; Pandora Reports Slow Growth Markets Open Lower; Xerox Profit Beats Estimates

Midway through trading Friday, the Dow traded down 0.80 percent to 16,947.71 while the NASDAQ tumbled 0.70 percent to 4,440.96. The S&P also fell, dropping 0.52 percent to 1,977.69.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Basic materials shares gained 0.10 percent in trading on Friday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included DRDGOLD (NYSE: DRD), up 7.4 percent, and LyondellBasell Industries NV (NYSE: LYB), up 4.5 percent.

In trading on Friday, technology shares were relative laggards, down on the day by about 0.80 percent. Top decliners in the sector included Silicon Laboratories (NASDAQ: SLAB), down 13.7 percent, and Informatica (NASDAQ: INFA), off 13.4 percent.

Top Headline

Xerox (NYSE: XRX) reported better-than-expected second-quarter earnings and raised the lower end of its full-year earnings forecast.

The Norwalk, Connecticut-based company reported a quarterly profit of $266 million, versus a year-ago profit of $271 million. Its per-share earnings climbed to $0.22 from $0.21 per share. The year-ago quarter results included a loss of $0.02 per share related to discontinued operations. Excluding certain items, it earned $0.27 per share in the recent quarter.

Its revenue declined 1.8% to $5.29 billion from $5.39 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.26 per share on revenue of $5.31 billion.

Equities Trading UP

Acacia Research (NASDAQ: ACTG) shares shot up 14.82 percent to $17.20 after the company reported upbeat Q2 results and approved a $0.125 per share quarterly dividend.

Shares of Qlik Technologies (NASDAQ: QLIK) got a boost, shooting up 12.48 percent to $26.31 after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly results.

The Royal Bank of Scotland Group plc (NYSE: RBS) shares were also up, gaining 10.38 percent to $12.34 on strong earnings report.

Equities Trading DOWN

Shares of Pandora Media (NYSE: P) were down 13.51 percent to $24.84 after the company announced slower than expected growth metrics. Pandora’s earnings beat the official analyst estimate by $0.01 per share at $0.04 per share. The company also raised its full-year forecast.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) shares tumbled 11.09 percent to $318.84 after the company reported a wider-than-expected loss for the second quarter. For the third quarter, Amazon projected sales of $19.7 billion to $21.5 billion. Analysts at B Riley downgraded Amazon from Buy to Neutral and lowered the target price from $425 to $350.

Informatica (NASDAQ: INFA) was down, falling 13.53 percent to $30.21 after the company reported quarterly results and lowered its FY14 earnings forecast. Baird downgraded Informatica from Outperform to Neutral and lowered the price target from $45.00 to $36.00.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded up 0.09 percent to $102.16, while gold traded up 0.63 percent to $1,300.90.

Silver traded up 0.73 percent Friday to $20.57, while copper fell 0.69 percent to $3.24.

Eurozone

European shares were mostly lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 declined 0.83 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index climbed 0.05 percent, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index fell 1.06 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX declined 1.41 percent and the French CAC 40 tumbled 1.90 percent while UK shares fell 0.43 percent.

Economics

Orders for durable goods increased 0.7% in June, versus economists’ expectations for a 0.5% gain.

Posted-In: Earnings News Guidance Downgrades Eurozone Futures Price Target Commodities

© 2014 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  Most Popular Earnings Scheduled For July 24, 2014 Apple's iTime Patent: Proof That The iWatch Is Coming Soon? Thursday Morning Earnings Reports Bank of America Raises Facebook's Price Objective on 'Best Beats in the Sector' Organovo Up 19% #PreMarket; In Research Pact With Johnson & Johnson Unit #PreMarket Primer: Thursday, July 24: Facebook Proves Its Worth Related Articles (ACTG + AMZN) Amazon Rating And Price Target Cut; Pandora Reports Slow Growth Amazon Conference Call Highlights Amazon Slips On Wider-Than-Expected Loss; Acacia Research Shares Gain SunTrust's Bob Peck Comments On Amazon Following Earnings Analysts Debate: Is Amazon The 'Prophet Of No Profit'? Markets Open Lower; Xerox Profit Beats Estimates

United Continental Finally Growing Like Delta

Back on July 8, Morgan Stanley’s John Godyn predicted that United Continental (UAL) would execute a turnaround before JetBlue (JBLU). If today’s earnings are anything to go by, that appears to be a good call.

Agence France-Presse/Getty Images

Today, United Continental said it earned $2.34 a share, beating topping the Street consensus for $2.15, on sales of $10.33, narrowly beating forecasts for $10.31 billion. United Continental also said it would buy back $1 billion of its shares over the next three years. JetBlue, on the other hand, reported a profit of 19 cents share, meeting analyst forecasts, while revenue came in at $1.49 billion, below forecasts for $1.51 billion.

Shares of United Continental have gained 3.2% to $47.88 at 11:02 a.m., while JetBlue has dipped 0.3% to $11.24.

Cowen’s Helane Becker and Conor Cunningham zero in on United Continental’s third-quarter guidance:

United has historically lagged its major competitors in PRASM growth; 3Q14 could signify a turning point as management forecasts 3Q14 PRASM growth of 2% to 4%, compared to our estimate of 2% and in line with Delta’s (DAL) forecast. We consider this guide a major positive for the company as we have long been concerned about the company’s PRASM deficiencies…

In conjunction with earnings, United announced a $1 Bn (~6% of the company market cap) share repurchase program to be completed over the next three years. This announcement is two quarters earlier than our expectations. We believe the company could quickly complete this repurchase program well before the three year time frame.

United Continental has gained 15% so far in July, easily outperforming Delta’s 1.2% rise and JetBlue’s 3.7% advance.

Deep Green: Can a Robot Manage Your Money Better Than a Human?

Hasloo Group Production Studio/Shutterstock Historically, when Americans invested their money with a financial adviser, they wanted to walk into an office, shake hands and sit across the desk from the person they were entrusting their money to. There's something about looking a person in the eye that helps engender trust and confidence. But as technology improved and became ubiquitous, those sit-down meetings increasingly began to be replaced with phone calls, or sometimes just email exchanges. Now, a new generation of money management firms like Wealthfront, Betterment and Motif Investing is taking that concept a step farther, betting that today's investors will not even want to deal with a live adviser. Instead, their platforms are designed to allow you to invest your money with all the customized finesse that comes from having an adviser –- but without ever interacting with one. It's the dawn of the "robo-adviser," but whether you'll consider this innovation a good fit for you might depend on which side of the generational gap you fall on. Answer the Questions These robo-adviser firms customize their adviser-like investing services by asking customers a complex series of questions when they first open their accounts online. The tools, say proponents, can determine a client's risk profile and suggest asset allocations better than a human adviser can. And because the process is automated, it is extremely efficient, allowing these firms to offer their services -- and an increasingly complex set of investing tools -- at a very low cost. But the question you have to ask yourself -- before answering all their questions -- is, "Am I comfortable investing with an algorithm alone?" An algorithm, after all, simply takes a given set of information -- the data points in this case being your answers to series of questions -- and follows a set of clearly-defined steps to calculate a solution -- in this case, the answer to the question, "How should I in best invest my money?" At it's core, it's same process through which companies like Google (GOOG) figure out which ads to serve up to you, Amazon (AMZN) suggests books it thinks you will like, or Netflix (NFLX) reviews your previously viewed movies to determine other films you'll want to watch. Still, though algorithms have quietly become a pervasive part of our everyday lives, financial services has traditionally been a "high-touch" business -- one that demands plenty of personal interaction. But that's not as important to millennials, as technology has taken the place of face-to-face interaction, allowing even the business of dating to be transformed by sites like Match.com and apps like Tinder. Go for a Test Drive, With a Little Bit of Money For those in Generation X (or older), that may not be such an easy transition to make when it comes to your money. However, there is a simple way to determine if a robo-adviser is right for you. Test it out. Often, people look at investing as an all-or-nothing endeavor -- as if their capital has to go into either stocks or bonds, they have to be "in the market" or "on the sidelines," investing with an adviser or without one. But the same technology that gave birth to the robo-adviser gives you the ability to test-drive different investing products with a low initial investment. So if robo-advisers intrigue you, sample the concept with a small amount of your funds. There is no cost to open an account with a robo-adviser firm, and it can be done quickly and safely from your computer, with no obligation. Test out the tools and services that are offered. See if you like what they are doing with your investments, and if you are comfortable with the user experience. If you are, then you can move over as much, or as little, as you want. And if you don't think a robo-adviser is right for you after trying one out, you can close your account and take your money out with the click of a button. Company: Oracle Cash compensation: $5.5 million Stock and options: $90.7 million Total compensation 1-year change: 24% Despite his $1 salary, Ellison is not only the highest paid tech CEO this year, but the highest paid of all CEOs.

The Long Road Ahead for DryShips Inc.

The shipping sector has put in a solid performance during the past year or so. However, DryShips (NASDAQ: DRYS  ) , one of the sector's biggest players, has missed out on much of the rally.

Surprisingly, even after reporting a good set of first quarter results, DryShips is still lagging its peers, although this poor performance can be traced back to one factor; debt.

Good first quarter
For the first quarter DryShips reported a net loss of $34.6 million, or $0.08 per share. Analysts were expecting the company to break even for the quarter.  These results included a $32.6 million, or $0.08 per share non-cash write off charge associated with the full refinancing of Ocean Rig's (NASDAQ: ORIG  ) $500.0 million 9.5% senior unsecured notes. Excluding this cost, the company would have reported a net loss of $15.2 million, or $0.04 per share.

Despite this loss, DryShips' results did contain some good news. For example, the company's drybulk segment reported a 17% rise in time charter revenues and a 3% rise in voyage days. In addition, DryShips' tanker segment really outperformed, reporting a near 100% rise in time charter revenues, drop in operating expenses and rise in voyage days.

Meanwhile, Ocean Rig UDW Inc, DryShips' majority-owned offshore drilling subsidiary reported a 47% rise in sales. This rise in sales spurred Ocean's Board of Directors to declare a quarterly cash dividend of $0.19 per common share. Overall group operating costs increased by 25%.

What's more, DryShips reported an operating profit for the period. However, the company was thrown into a loss by crippling interest costs, which amounted to $114 million, for the period, 1.3x operating income.

Debt is a concern
There is no denying that debt is DryShips' main concern going forward. The company's debt stood at a total of $6 billion at the end of the first quarter, up around $500 million quarter over quarter.

However, the company has vowed to do something about this. The refinancing of Ocean's $500.0 million 9.5% senior unsecured notes was a major step in this plan. While not directly beneficial to DryShips, low interest costs for Ocean will be reflected through higher dividend payouts to DryShips. The notes were refinanced at 7.25%, which should save the company just under $10 million per annum in interest costs .

DryShips is working to reduce its debt in several ways.

Firstly, the company is cancelling its delayed Chinese newbuildings, several Panamax vessels which were slated to be delivered this year. . Secondly, with ship prices rising, DryShips is looking to refinance its fleet, hopefully achieving a lower rate of interest as the loan-to-value rate falls.

As far as maturities are concerned, DryShips has a convertible bond maturing this year with loan maturities of $72 million, $138 million and $68 million for 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively. The firm is taking proactive measures to potentially refinance certain facilities ahead of maturity. These measures include the refinancing of facilities and possible addition of extra debt to pay off existing issues.   .

Of course, if these measures fail, the company still has the ability to issue shares into the market for immediate cash. During the first quarter DryShips sold approximately 22.2 million common shares, at an average share price of $4.14 per share, resulting in net proceeds of $90 million. Management is trying to avoid this option, as they are fully aware of the implications to shareholders.

Ocean Rig
Still, DryShips is beginning to profit from its investment in Ocean. DryShips received a $15 million dividend from the subsidiary during the first quarter and further payouts should follow.

DryShips owns around 60% of Ocean Rig and management is trying to unlock value from the offshore driller by converting some, if not all of Ocean's assets into an Master Limited Partnership structure. Hopefully, this should help DryShips in its quest to reduce debt.

Luckily, Ocean's fleet of nine 6th and 7th generation ultra-deepwater drillships is one of the most advanced fleets in the offshore drilling business. It's easy to see why the company has a $5.4 billion contract backlog. An additional two drilling units are being delivered to the company next year.

With a sector leading fleet, Ocean's income is soaring, great news for DryShips. For the first quarter Ocean's income totalled $31.1 million on an adjusted basis. Revenue for the period jumped around 50% year over year, and similarly, operating income rose by 90%.

On average, for fiscal 2014 Wall Street analysts expect Ocean to report earnings of $1.56, rising to $2.30 during 2015 . Based on the first quarter dividend of $0.19 per share, Ocean should be able to pay $0.76 in dividends to DryShips this year, or maybe more, adding roughly $60 million to DryShips' bottom line -- a much needed income boost .

Of course, DryShips always has the option to sell its 60% share of Ocean to repay debt, although this is likely to be a last resort.

Foolish summary
Even after a solid first quarter, DryShips remains underwater, constrained by its overwhelming debt pile and crippling interest payments. However, the company's management is working hard to remedy the situation and DryShips' investment in OceanRig is just starting to yield results and boost overall income.

The next few months, or even quarters will be crucial to DryShips. If the company can put in place a plan to lower debt and interest costs, the company should return to profitability. On the other hand, if DryShips continues to struggle with its debt load, more shares could be issued to meet the company's cash flow requirements, diluting existing holders and leading to more uncertainty.

 

OPEC is absolutely terrified of this game-changer
Imagine a company that rents a very specific and valuable piece of machinery for $41,000 per hour (That's almost as much as the average American makes in a year!). And Warren Buffett is so confident in this company's can't-live-without-it business model, he just loaded up on 8.8 million shares. An exclusive, brand-new Motley Fool report reveals the company we're calling OPEC's Worst Nightmare. Just click HERE to uncover the name of this industry-leading stock… and join Buffett in his quest for a veritable landslide of profits!

     

Coca-Cola: Second Quarter Should Be Better Than First, JPMorgan Says

JPMorgan’s John Faucher and team think Coca-Cola’s (KO) second-quarter results should be better than its first. They explain why:

Bloomberg

[Coca-Cola's stock] has performed well since reporting Q1 results that were better than feared heading into the quarter. Given the stock’s underperformance over the past two-plus years, we are not surprised by the performance over the past several months as earnings growth should improve in the back half of the year as Fx becomes less of a headwind and the company cycles easier comparisons. While we think the better EPS performance will help, we think stronger organic top line growth is needed to drive multiple expansion.

Shares of Coca-Cola, which is scheduled to report earnings on July 22, have gained 0.7% to $42.33 at 12:50 p.m. today, while Dr. Pepper Snapple (DPS) has risen 0.7% to $59.30 and PepsiCo (PEP) has ticked up 0.2% to $90.19.

The Pratt & Whitney Story

United Technologies Corp.'s (UTX) Pratt & Whitney engine unit is nearing a deal with the U.S. government for about $2 billion worth of engines for the Lockheed Martin Corp.'s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the company announced on Thursday. The clause of the contract suggests that the company will be engaged in two years of production of about 80 engines. The agreement comes after the U.S. government this year criticized Pratt & Whitney for not doing enough to reduce the cost of the turbine, called the F135. The Pentagon has been putting pressure on Lockheed Martin and Pratt & Whitney to cut their prices as the government tries to pare the costs of its most expensive weapons program. The Pentagon expects to pay about $399 billion for the F-35, including the purchase of 2,443 jets.

Pratt & Whitney and the U.S. Department of Defense had last year reached an agreement in principle on a $1 billion production contract for the sixth batch of engines to be used on F-35 Lightning II warplanes. The contract would cover 38 total engines, including program management, engineering support, production and spare parts.

Switching back to present, contract talks between the two sides continue even as the failure of one of the engines on an F-35 last month has led to a fleet wide grounding of the jets. The grounding has so far kept F-35s from coming to the U.K. for their overseas air show debut.

The company officials said that the company has cut the industrial footprint where it works on the engine by 15% and reduced staff involved in the program. Pratt plans to reduce the cost to make each engine by 12% every time they double the number of units produced. Lowering costs is partly linked to boosting output. That has been a challenge for the F-35 as production has increased more slowly than planned, leaving companies to pay for excess infrastructure they have put in place to prepare for higher output volume. Pratt & Whitney has an 877,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in North Berwick.

Despite a keen focus on innovation and development, the company's earnings have more than kept rising. United Technologies produced $4.00 per share in 2009, moving to $6.21 per share in 2013. And that value has translated into shareholder returns.

United Technologies has delivered 197% shareholder returns over the past 10 years, which is almost twice that of the S&P 500 or the Dow Jones Industrial. The company has also been able to pay a dividend every year since 1936. During 2008 and 2009, United Technologies boosted its dividend by roughly 15% each year, and it's no stranger to share repurchases. Since 2008, the company has returned more than $19 billion to investors in the form of dividends and share repurchases. This is a reason enough to encourage investments in the UTX stock.

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Stocks to Watch: Lorillard, Wells Fargo, Rent-A-Center

Among the companies with shares expected to actively trade in Friday’s session are Lorillard Inc.(LO), Wells Fargo (WFC) & Co. and Rent-A-Center Inc.(RCII)

U.S. tobacco company Reynolds American Inc.(RAI) is in talks to buy smaller rival Lorillard, both companies confirmed Friday, in a multibillion-dollar deal that would create a powerful new No. 2 to industry leader Altria Group Inc.(MO) (MO). Reynolds American shares rose 1.2% to $63.00 premarket, while Lorillard shares climbed 5% to $66.25.

Wells Fargo posted a 3.8% rise in net income as a continued slowdown in the bank’s lucrative mortgage business was offset by stronger lending and lower provisions for loans that could sour. But shares edged down 0.6% to $51.49 premarket as a key measure of lending profitability declined.

Rent-A-Center warned its results for the second quarter will fall below expectations, pointing to macroeconomic pressures that are burdening its financially constrained customers. Shares fell 13% to $25.40 in premarket trading.

MGIC Investment Corp.(MTG) and Radian Group Inc.(RDN) criticized proposed standards for private-mortgage insurers seeking to do business with Fannie Mae (FNMA) and Freddie Mac (FMCC), claiming the level of liquid assets insurers would need to hold is excessive. MGIC shares slumped 13% to $8.00 premarket, while Radian shares fell 6.5% to $13.60.

J.P. Morgan (JPM) initiated coverage of Halozyme Therapeutics Inc.(HALO) with an overweight rating and a $13 price target, saying in a note to clients that the company’s proprietary pipeline appears to be garnering increased attention. Halozyme shares climbed 5.2% to $9.77 premarket.

Kofax Ltd.(KFX) said its fiscal 2014 earnings will be below expectations due to the delay in license revenue transactions. Shares slumped 18% to $6.64 premarket.

Fastenal Co.(FAST) said its second-quarter earnings rose nearly 8% as the company’s revenue continued to improve, though margins weakened slightly. Still, shares fell 2.4% to $47.01 premarket as revenue came in below analysts’ estimates.

Shopping-center owner AmREIT Inc.(AMRE) said it is evaluating a $433 million unsolicited takeover bid from Regency Centers Corp.(REG) AmREIT’s Class B shares slipped 8.7% to $20.50 premarket after jumping some 17% in Thursday trading.

Isle of Capri Casinos Inc.(ISLE) said it had eliminated several senior positions in a move expected to save about $2.5 million, excluding severance payments, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Shares slipped 8.1% to $9.24 premarket.

Defense and security-products maker Arotech Corp.(ARTX) said it plans to offer an unspecified amount of its shares in a public offering. Arotech recently had about 21 million shares outstanding, according to FactSet. Shares fell 6.9% to $3.50 premarket.

Aspen Insurance Holdings Ltd.(AHL) said it expects second-quarter operating earnings above Wall Street projections, citing “the continued excellent performance across our businesses.”

Chevron Corp.(CVX) said it expects its second-quarter production to decline slightly from the year-earlier period as lower output abroad offsets a modest increase domestically.

Cosi Inc.(COSI) named Yum Brands Inc.(YUM) veteran Scott Carlock as the chief financial officer of the struggling sandwich chain.

Cloud-based software provider E2open Inc.'s(EOPN) loss widened in its fiscal first quarter as operating expenses continued to rise.

NGL Energy Partners LP(NGL), which bought oil-storage company TransMontaigne Inc. from Morgan Stanley (MS) (MS) last week, said it is offering to buy the outstanding units of TransMontaigne Partners LP(TLP) (TLP) in a one-for-one exchange of common units.

Occidental Petroleum Corp.(OXY) named company veteran Todd A. Stevens as the future chief executive of the California oil-and-gas operations it plans to spin off into a separate, publicly traded company and William E. Albrecht as executive chairman.

Vishay Intertechnology Inc.(VSH) said that it has reached a deal to buy Taiwan’s Capella Microsystems Inc. for about $205 million, as it looks to broaden its optical sensors business.

Beware These 5 Debt Traps

Alamy I have plenty of experience going into debt. I've spent over half my life paying down a mortgage. I've taken out more than one home equity loan and have made more than my share of car payments. Have I ever been debt-free? Yes, for the first 18 years of my life. But now that I'm approaching retirement, I am nearing that state of equanimity once again. So I know how to get in and also how to get out. There are plenty of ways to dig yourself deeper into the hole. For most of us, these are the top five debt traps: 1. Stretch out the car loan so your monthly payments are less. If you take out a three-year loan of, say, $20,000 at 1.9 percent interest, your monthly payment will be about $573. But if you go for the four-year loan at 2.9 percent, the monthly payment is only $443. And the five-year loan at 3.9 percent is just $368. However, for that lower monthly bill, you will have paid $2,095 in interest by the end of five years, compared to only $628 for the three-year loan. 2. Pay the minimum balance on your credit card. When the bill arrives in the mail it tells you that you have options. You can pay the full amount -- say it's $1,200 -- or you can send in the minimum of $25. That seems like an easy choice, until you find out the interest rate on your unpaid balance is around 15 percent. If it takes you five years to pay it off the interest will add a whopping $500 to that initial $1,200 charge. And if you ignore the bill until it's past due you might incur an extra penalty of $25 or more. Even worse, if you write one of those checks the credit card company sends you, that cash loan could cost you a usurious 25 percent interest or more.