Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc., Marriott International Inc., Baidu.com Inc., Google Inc. and Eastman Chemical Co.
CHICAGO--(Business Wire)--
Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst
Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest
news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks
recently featured in the blog include: Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Worldwide Inc. (NYSE: HOT), Marriott International Inc. (NYSE: MAR),
Baidu.com Inc. (Nasdaq: BIDU), Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG) and Eastman
Chem Co. (NYSE: EMN).
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Here are highlights from Friday's Analyst Blog:
Starwood Attractive; Stays a Buy
We maintain our Buy rating for Starwood Hotels & Resorts (NYSE:
HOT) following the release of Q1 financial results. We consider the
company's significant exposure to international markets and
concentration in higher-end hotels to be positive attributes that
should help Starwood to weather the economic downturn in the U.S.
market.
Starwood is currently trading at approximately 8.6x our 2008
EBITDA estimate. Marriott International (NYSE: MAR) currently trades
at approximately 9.0x our 2008 EBITDA estimate. Given the quality of
Starwood's portfolio, we believe that a premium valuation to the peer
group average is warranted.
Baidu.com has Huge Opportunities
Baidu.com (Nasdaq: BIDU), the most popular Internet search engine
in China, generates almost 100% of its revenue from online
advertising. The company has announced impressive financial results
quarter after quarter.
According to research firm iResearch, Baidu held 63% of the
Chinese search market share compared to Google's (Nasdaq: GOOG) 26%,
based on the number of uses in the second quarter of 2008.
Furthermore, Baidu has thousands of content partners, constituting the
market's largest advertising network in China.
EMN: An Impressive Q1
Eastman Chemical Co. (NYSE: EMN) had an impressive first quarter
2008, marked by increasing prices, volume gains and strength in
several end markets. The company is likely to benefit from its recent
focus on the industrial gasification business. Thus, we rate shares of
EMN a Buy. Accordingly, we have set a new price target of $80.00.
The company is seeing strong demand in several end markets
including PCI, Specialty Plastics, and Fibers. Eastman is hiking
prices of major products, a policy that is likely to offset higher
operating costs and help earnings. It is undergoing continuous
restructuring and cost cutting. Eastman's cash flow situation is
improving. The balance sheet is in good shape and the company enjoys
good financial flexibility. The management has plans for capital
investment.
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