Dividend.com: KLA-Tencor Chipped

KB Homes is not recommended at this time, holding a Dividend.com Rating of 2.7 out of 5 stars.

BJ's Wholesale Club Continues to Gain With Bulk Shoppers

BJ's Wholesale Club(BJ Quote) just reported its third-quarter profit rose 24% to $28.2 million, or 48 cents a share, compared to $22.7 million, or 35 cents, a year ago.

The company's sales were up 13.4% to $2.4 billion. Same-store sales open at least one year rose 11.9%, or 6.6% excluding gas. The No. 3 U.S. warehouse club operator continues to see shoppers flock to its stores for low prices on staples like fresh food, prepared meals and paper towels.

For the full year 2008, BJ's now expects earnings per share of $2.20 to $2.30, up from $2.10 to $2.20 previously forecast.

We follow BJ's competitors, Costco(COST Quote) and Wal-Mart(WMT Quote). We are avoiding the names right now, despite the appeal of consumers looking to buy in bulk and save. The dividend yields for Costco and Wal-Mart are not as attractive as other dividend names we presently favor. That being said, we would get more bullish on the stocks if valuations improve and stocks come down to better risk/reward levels. Costco seems to be getting there quicker than Wal-Mart at this point.

Chip Giant KLA-Tencor Cutting 15% of Workforce

KLA-Tencor(KLAC Quote) just announced it would cut its workforce by 15%, or around 900 jobs, as it moves to weather the economic downturn.

Management said the cuts are part of an effort to lower its operating expense run rate by $165 million to $175 million by the end of fiscal 2009. Intel's warning last week was not a good sign for the world's largest supplier of equipment used to make semiconductor chips.