Stocks Hitting 52-Week Highs: Sara Lee, Nu Skin
NEW YORK (
) -- Shares of
Sara Lee
( SLE) and
Nu Skin
(NUS) - Get Report
hit 52-week highs on Thursday the same day they reported earnings.
Sara Lee
The food company reported fiscal second-quarter earnings of $469 million, or 79 cents a share, down from $833 million, or $1.30, a year earlier.
Adjusted earnings from continuing operations were 27 cents a share.
Analysts were expecting profit of 25 cents a share.
"We continue to recommend SLE based on our view that the coffee business ispoised for a turnaround as well as the potential value creation of the split," Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts wrote in a report Thursday.
Sara Lee is separating its meats division from its European beverage unit.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts have a buy rating on the stock and $21 price target. The majority (eight) of the analysts who cover Sara Lee consider it a hold. Six categorized it as a buy and one rated it a sell.
Shares of Sara Lee hit a 52-week high of $19.92 on Thursday. The stock's 52-week low of $15.66 was set on Oct. 4.
Sara Lee's estimated price-to-earnings ratio for next year is 18.83. The average for the food products area is 13.89. For lower forward P/E ratios, look at
Kellogg
(K) - Get Report
,
Tyson Foods
(TSN) - Get Report
and
Smithfield
(SFD)
with 13.48, 7.85 and 8.01 forward P/E ratios, respectively.
TheStreet Ratings
gives Sara Lee a B- grade with a buy rating and
price target. The stock has risen 4.86% year to date.
Nu Skin
The personal care products company posted fourth-quarter earnings of $49.5 million, or 76 cents a share, on revenue of $495.3 million. Earnings a year earlier were $37.3 million, or 58 cents.
"Given such healthy earnings growth and free cash flow generation in recent quarters, Nu Skin announced another dividend boost, this time of 25%," Wedbush analysts wrote in a report on Thursday. "This increase is particularly noteworthy given that the company just raised the dividend 19% in Q3:2011."
Wedbush analysts rate Nu Skin as outperform; all nine of the analysts who cover the company rate the stock a buy. Wedbush's price target is $51.34.
Shares of Nu Skin reached a 52-week high of $53.98 on Thursday. The stock's 52-week low of $27.50 was set on March 15.
Nu Skin's estimated P/E for next year is 15.52. The average among companies in its industry is 15.84.
Avon's
(AVP) - Get Report
forward P/E is 10.73.
TheStreet Ratings
gave Nu Skin an A+ grade with a buy rating and
price target.
-- Written by Alexandra Zendrian
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