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Ahead of the Bell: Deutsche cuts Wells Fargo view (AP) and Ahead of the Bell: Family Dollar may lag in 2009 (AP)

City of Industry, CA --(www.FinancialNewsUSA.com)-- 01/05/2009 - US Market industry news provided by Financial News USA. NEW YORK (AP) -- Expectations for further loan losses led an analyst late Sunday to cut his 2009 and 2010 earnings estimates for Wells Fargo & Co.Deutsche Bank analyst Mike Mayo reduced his estimates on the bank based on an uncertain economic outlook and an increase in loan loss expectations.

Mayo cut his 2009 earnings estimate to $1.70 per share from $2 per share. He slashed his 2010 estimate to $2.80 per share from $3.10 per share. [Read the full article]

NEW YORK (AP) -- Family Dollar Stores Inc., which has been viewed as one of the recession's few beneficiaries, may not fare as well as its rivals in 2009, said JPMorgan analyst Charles Grom in a research note on Monday.

Grom, who maintained an "Underweight" rating on the stock, said same-store sales results for the fiscal quarter ended Nov. 29 were "disappointing."On Dec. 4, Family Dollar said its same-store sales gained 2.1 percent in the first quarter -- at the low end of the company's forecast of 2 percent to 4 percent growth. Same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, are considered a key indicator of retailer performance because they measure growth at existing stores rather than newly opened ones.The analyst said Family Dollar's weaker-than-expected same-store sales may suggest that the retailer is losing share to its rivals at a time when its stores should be gaining business. [Read the full article]

DETROIT (AP) -- Shares of Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. were mixed in pre-market trading Monday, ahead of the release of December auto sales figures which are expected to reach record lows.Shares of Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford fell 2 cents to $2.44 in pre-market activity. Last week, Ford's top sales analyst George Pipas, estimated overall December sales would decline 35 percent, with Ford faring a bit better than the industry.
Shares of GM rose 2 cents to $3.67. Last week GM received its first $4 billion installment of a bridge loan from the U.S. Treasury Department, following an announced $5 billion government infusion of its financial arm, GMAC Financial Services.Elsewhere, privately held Chrysler LLC received its first $4 billion loan installment from the Treasury Friday.The auto Web site Edmunds.com is predicting December sales of 852,000 light vehicles in the U.S., down 38 percent from the same month of 2007. [Read the full article]

Among the premarket stories for Monday, Jan. 5, from AP Financial News:NEW YORK (AP) -- Family Dollar Stores Inc., which has been viewed as one of the recession's few beneficiaries, may not fare as well as its rivals in 2009, said JPMorgan analyst Charles Grom in a research note on Monday.
NEW YORK (AP) -- Pfizer Inc. the world's largest drug developer, told the Financial Times Monday it is open to buying rivals in an effort to grow revenue.NEW YORK (AP) -- Expectations for further loan losses led an analyst late Sunday to cut his 2009 and 2010 earnings estimates for Wells Fargo & Co.NEW YORK (AP) -- A pair of analysts cut their profit estimates on Bank of America Corp. on Monday, noting the potential for higher loan losses in the coming year.NEW YORK (AP) -- Amazon.com Inc. [Read the full article]

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