Adam Levine-Weinberg

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• US Airways Profits Are Not as Impressive as They Seem

  By Adam Levine-Weinberg - January 23, 2013 | Tickers: DAL, UAL, LCC

  US Airways (NYSE: LCC) reported above consensus profit for Q4 on Wednesday.  Adjusted EPS of 26 cents was double the Q411 figure, in spite of losses related to Hurricane Sandy, and beat the consenus estimate of 19 cents.  This drove the stock up above $15, to within striking distance of 52-week highs.  This caps a remarkable run for US Airways; just fourteen months ago, the stock price had fallen to more »

• Apple: Near-Term Margin Worries Are Overblown

  By Adam Levine-Weinberg - January 17, 2013 | Tickers: AAPL, BBY, BBRY, CMGE, NOK |

  When Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) reported its Q4FY12 earnings in October, management projected that margins would drop significantly in Q1FY13 (the period ending in late December) to 36%.  In the same quarter a year ago, gross margins were substantially higher at 44.7%.

  Evaluating Apple's likely gross margin profile is very difficult because the company consistently lowballs its estimates for revenue, gross margin, and profit.  Analysts at Deutsche Bank have more »

• The Ford/GM Run-up Has Gotten Out of Control

  By Adam Levine-Weinberg - January 15, 2013 | Tickers: F, GM, HMC, TM

  I was a fan of Ford (NYSE: F) and General Motors (NYSE: GM) through all of 2012.  Both companies seemed undervalued and were beaten down by overblown worries about weakness in the European auto market. 

  Yet both have been growing margins in the U.S. through careful cost and capacity management, while gaining market share in China, which is now the world's largest auto market.  Since bottoming out last more »

• Two Big Myths About Amazon.com

  By Adam Levine-Weinberg - January 14, 2013 | Tickers: AMZN, BKS, COST, TGT, WMT |

  On Monday morning, shares of e-commerce powerhouse Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) hit a new all-time high above $274.  There is no doubt that Amazon.com has transformed the retail world and made a boatload of money for investors over the past decade; ten years ago, Amazon traded for only $20/share.  While I believe that the Amazon.com business has plenty of room to grow, Amazon's stock will not more »

• Hawaiian Holdings: Great Value Despite Downgrade

  By Adam Levine-Weinberg - January 11, 2013 | Tickers: DAL, HA, UAL

  On Wednesday morning, analyst Glenn Engel at Bank of America/Merrill Lynch downgraded Hawaiian Holdings (NASDAQ: HA), the parent of Hawaiian Airlines, from buy to underperform and cut his price target from $11 to $7.

  Engel apparently sees dark days ahead for Hawaiian, with the primary concern being unit revenue weakness. This is compounded by foreign exchange pressure, as Hawaiian has expanded its presence in Japan over the past few more »

• T-Mobile Drops Subsidies: What Does it Mean for the Smartphone Market?

  By Adam Levine-Weinberg - January 11, 2013 | Tickers: AAPL, T, DTEGY.PK

  In a few months, T-Mobile USA (a unit of Deutsche Telekom (NASDAQOTH: DTEGY)) will no longer offer subsidies in return for customers committing to two-year contracts.  Phone subsidies have long been a major feature of the U.S. wireless market, particularly for smartphones.  An unlocked base-model iPhone 5 from Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) retails for $649, but can be purchased for just $199 along with a two-year contract from AT&T more »