Stocks in Motion: USF
Updated from 12:46 p.m. EDT
Shares of
Administaff
( ASF) were among the
NYSE's
winners Monday, rising 26.3% after the company posted first-quarter results that topped Wall Street forecasts.
The provider of human resources services posted earnings of $4.6 million, or 18 cents a share, on sales of $299 million. Analysts polled by Thomson First Call were expecting earnings of 12 cents a share on sales of $279.7 million. A year ago the company posted adjusted earnings of 15 cents a share on sales of $252 million. The average number of work-site employees paid per month jumped to 83,729 in the latest quarter, up from 74,792 a year ago. Monthly revenue per employee rose 6% to $1,190, up from $1,123 last year. Looking ahead, Administaff said that it would have 85,750 to 86,250 average worksite employees paid per month during the second quarter, and $202 to $204 in gross profit per work-site employee per month. Shares traded up $3.60 to $17.27.
Tyson Foods
(TSN)
rose 3.1% after the company posted second-quarter earnings and sales that beat expectations. The meat company earned $76 million, or 21 cents a share, on sales of $6.36 billion. Analysts were expecting earnings of 17 cents a share on sales of $6.15 billion. A year ago the company earned $119 million, or 33 cents a share, on sales of $6.15 billion. Pretax earnings during the most recent period included $2 million in costs related to poultry and prepared-foods plant closings, the company said. A year ago, costs included $14 million, or 2 cents a share. Looking ahead, Tyson lowered the top end of its 2005 earnings range, saying that it now expects $1.05 to $1.20 a share. Previously, it forecast 2005 earnings of $1.05 to $1.30 a share. Shares traded up 52 cents to $17.41.
Shares of
Sysco
(SYY)
rose 2.3% after the food service distributor posted third-quarter results that were better than expected. The company earned $218.2 million, or 34 cents a share, on sales of $7.44 billion. Analysts were expecting earnings of 33 cents a share on sales of $7.39 billion. A year ago the company earned $195.8 million, or 30 cents a share, on sales of $7.03 billion. Sysco said that a reversal of an $11 million accrual for an income tax contingency helped its most recent results. The company said the accrual, based on additional information and supported by a third-party analysis, is no longer warranted. Shares traded up 81 cents to $35.41.
Parker Drilling
(PKD)
rose 5.8% after the drilling tools company swung to a first-quarter profit that topped forecasts. The company posted earnings of $3.9 million, or 4 cents a share, on sales of $120.2 million. Results included a charge of a penny a share. Analysts were expecting earnings of 1 cent a share. A year ago the company reported a loss of $4.9 million, or 5 cents a share, on sales of $90.9 million. Shares traded up 31 cents to $5.65.
Shares of
USF
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rose 5.9% after
Yellow Roadway
( YELL) sweetened the cash portion of its previously announced bid for USF. Yellow will now offer USF shareholders 65% in cash and 35% in stock. Previously, Yellow offered a 50-50 mix of cash and stock. Under the new terms, USF shareholders will receive $29.25 a share in cash and 0.31584 shares in stock. Shares of USF traded up $2.53 to $45.16, while Yellow Roadway traded up $2.05 to $51.05.
NYSE volume leaders included
Nortel Networks
( NT), down 19 cents to $2.30;
Qwest
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, up 5 cents to $3.47;
Elan
(ELN)
, up $1.20 to $6.71;
American International Group
(AIG)
, up $2.59 to $53.44;
Verizon
(VZ)
, down 83 cents to $34.97;
Morgan Stanley
( MWD), down $3.23 to $49.39; and
Lucent Technologies
( LU), up 1 cent to $2.44.
Nasdaq
volume leaders included
Microsoft
(MSFT)
, down 7 cents to $25.23;
Sirius Satellite Radio
(SIRI)
, up 23 cents to $4.99;
Cisco Systems
(CSCO)
, down 1 cent to $17.26;
Intel
(INTC)
, up 3 cents to $23.55;
Sun Microsystems
(SUNW)
, up 14 cents to $3.76;
MCI
( MCIP), down 83 cents to $25.70;
Oracle
(ORCL)
, up 4 cents to $11.60; and
Siebel Systems
( SEBL), down 9 cents to $8.91.
