| Kansas City Southern Firing On All Cylinders and Keeping Pace With Fast-Changing U.S. Pipeline Map |
| News - Financial News |
|
Kansas City Southern (KSU) is moving on the fast track as the railroad operator's business gathers momentum in the U.S. and Mexico.KCS is a mover and a shaker when it comes to hauling goods. In the U.S., the holding company's Kansas City Southern Railway serves a 10-state region in the Midwest and Southeast and has the shortest north/south rail route between its home base of Kansas City, Mo., and several key ports along the Gulf of Mexico.South of the border, its Kansas City Southern de Mexico's core route runs along the shortest, most direct rail passageway between Mexico City and Laredo, Texas. [Read the full article] A word of caution. The overall stock market is in a correction and has been dependent on European headlines for the past several weeks.Ulta Salon combines beauty salons with a wide selection of hair care and other beauty products at a variety of price points.Earnings rose 73% in the latest quarter — well above forecasts and the best gain in four quarters. Sales advanced 23%, the best gain in three years.On Dec. 1, analysts expect Ulta to report another quarter of beautiful results: 65% EPS growth to 38 cents on a 20% sales rise to $406.1 million.Ulta Salon's shares have held up well in a rough 2011. They found support at the 200-day line in late August, then at the 50-day in early October and November. But with the major averages falling hard, Ulta has dropped back below the 50-day line. Ulta is a late-stage stock, which means a future breakout is at greater risk of failing.The kings of plastic don't actually carry credit balances themselves. [Read the full article] They knocked Citigroup (C) to "equal weight" from "overweight," and shaved a third off its price target, to $30, from $45. Morgan left Bank of America (BAC), Goldman Sachs (GS) and SunTrust Banks (STI) shares unchanged at "equal weight." JPMorgan Chase (JPM) shares kept their "overweight" rank.Morgan Stanley changed its overall sector outlook to "in line," from "attractive." But shares of the batch were trading up Monday, as the broader market rallied on word that European leaders appeared to be making progress on containing the sovereign-debt crisis.Banks have been under pressure since the economic crises in 2008, and now face consumer and regulatory push-back from efforts to recoup revenue with new fees. Morgan Stanley analysts think the euro zone is now in recession that could last at least through next year's first quarter. [Read the full article] 
|