Here are some highlights from this past week's earnings coverage from BloggingStocks:

• Andersons Inc. (NASDAQ: ANDE) lifted its outlook on improved performance of its Plant Nutrient Group.
• BP Plc (NYSE: BP) was upgraded by Societe Generale due in part to its earnings prospects.
• Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) has developed an earnings improvement plan based on collective bonuses.
• Corel Corp. (NASDAQ: CREL) solid Q2 results did not address a buyout offer from Vector Capital.
• Discover Financial Services (NYSE: DFS) Q2 earnings were boosted by dumping its Goldfish card division.
• Fortune Brands Inc. (NYSE: FO) lowered its earnings outlook on challenging consumer environment.
• Isle of Capri Casinos Inc. (NASDAQ: ISLE) blamed dismal results on floods and smoking bans.
• MSCI Inc. (NYSE: MXB) strong Q2 results didn't save it from being dumped by Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS).
• PAREXEL International Corp. (NASDAQ: PRXL) lifted its Q4 and full-year guidance, leading to an upgrade.
• Texas Industries Inc. (NYSE: TXI) was downgraded due to fears about its earnings prospects.
• Taleo Corp. (NASDAQ: TLEO) reaffirmed its outlook as an acquisition would boost results.
• WD-40 Co. (NASDAQ: WDFC) posted solid Q3 results and offered conservative guidance.

More highlights from this past week: Apollo Group, Family Dollar, Kroger, Deutsche Bank and others

Also, while Jim Cramer ponders what will signal the bottom, many investors will be looking at next week's earnings results for General Electric (NYSE: GE), the world's largest conglomerate, as a sign of the direction of the global market. And BusinessWeek reminds us that cheap stocks -- even with big names such as Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F), Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S), and Northwest Airlines (NYSE: NWA) -- are no bargain if they have no earnings.

Upcoming results to watch for include Alcoa (NYSE: AA), Pepsi Bottling Group (NYSE: PBG), Marriott International (NYSE: MAR), and General Electric (NYSE: GE).

Visit AOL Money & Finance for more earnings coverage.

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MAJOR PAPERS:

• In a cost cutting move, struggling automaker Chrysler said it will idle its St. Louis South minivan plant in October, and will reduce operations at its St. Louis North Dodge Ram pickup truck plant to one shift in September, the Wall Street Journal reported. About 2,400 people will lose their jobs at both plants.
• In an unprecedented move, the Justice Department is pressuring UBS AG (NYSE: UBS), a foreign bank, for the names of wealthy U.S. client who used the bank to avoid paying taxes, reported the Wall Street Journal, and has sought a federal court order to proceed.

• After learning Moscow authorities have refused to renew the work visas of BP Plc's (NYSE: BP) expatriate staff, the New York Times reported that the British oil company may be in danger of losing control of TNK-BP Holding, its Russian joint venture. If the top officials from the BP side of the venture, including the CEO and CFO, are forced to leave, TNK-BP will fall into the hands of its Russian partners.
• In an upheaval aimed at preventing too much power from being exercised by the company's chairman, the UK Times reported that UBS has decided to replace four board directors in October. The governance model, which will separate the roles and responsibilities of the board and executive management, will reportedly come into play immediately and will allow the board to delegate the duties formerly allocated to the chairman's office to board committees.

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MOST NOTEWORTHY:

• ThinkPanmure upgraded Symantec (NASDAQ:SYMC) to Buy from Accumulate based on improved execution, stable growth in core business, and ramping competitive position in some high-growth businesses.
  
• Baird upgraded Cardinal Financial (NASDAQ:CFNL) to Outperform from Neutral based on valuation, the company's favorable credit risk profile in Northern Virginia, and its excess capital position.
  
• Societe Generale raised BP Plc (NYSE: BP) to Hold from Sell as it believes the bad news is priced into shares and earnings could be better than expected.

• Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE:ALU) was upgraded at Merrill Lynch to Neutral from Underperform.
  
• Jefferies lifted Hunsman (NYSE: HUN) to Hold from Underperform.
  
• Teva Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:TEVA) was upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at HSBC.

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Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE:ALU) was raised to "neutral" from "underperform" at Merrill Lynch, according to 24/7 Wall St. The financial website also reports that Whole Foods Market (NASDAQ:WFMI) was cut to "neutral" from "buy" at UBS.

Citigroup added Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) to its Top Picks Live list, according to Briefing.com. The news service reports that Time Warner (NYSE:TWX) was also added to the list.

Societe Generale raised its rating on BP (NYSE:BP) to "hold" from "sell" according to MarketWatch.

Douglas A. McIntyre

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Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE: CHK) is engaged in the acquisition, exploration, and development of properties for the production of natural gas and crude oil. The firm is the second-largest independent producer and third-largest overall producer of natural gas in the United States. Company properties are located in the US midcontinent region, along the Gulf Coast, in the Permian Basin, and in the Ark-La-Tex region. It owns interests in nearly 39,000 producing wells and has nearly eleven trillion cubic feet equivalent of proved reserves.

Chesapeake pleased investors last week, when it announced that it had formed a joint venture with Goodrich Petroleum (NYSE: GDP) that would give it working interests in deep strata of the Haynesville Shale of East Texas and Louisiana. The move is expected to make Chesapeake the largest U.S. natural-gas producer, pushing it past BP (NYSE: BP) and Anadarko Petroleum (NYSE: APC).

The CHK share price popped on the news and then moved into a bullish "flag" consolidation pattern. Prices frequently exit flags moving in the same direction they were traveling on entry. In this case, that would be to the upside.

Brokers recommend the issue with ten "strong buys," eight "buys" and nine "holds." The CHK Price to Book ratio (3.32), EPS Growth rate (25.29%), Operating Margin (26.31%) and Net Profit Margin (13.55%) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages. Institutions hold about 79% of the outstanding shares. The stock is one of those used to calculate the S&P 500 Index. Over the past 52 weeks, it has traded between $31.38 and $68.10. A stop-loss of $54.50 looks good here. Note that the firm is next expected to report quarterly results in late July.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com. He does not hold positions in any of the stocks mentioned above.

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Transocean (NYSE: RIG) is the world's largest offshore drilling contractor and a leading provider of drilling management services worldwide. The company owns, or operates, a contract drilling fleet of 138 mobile units, including 39 high-specification floaters, 29 midwater floaters, 10 high-specification jackups and 56 standard jackups. It operates in the world's major offshore oil-producing regions, including the Gulf of Mexico, the North Sea, Canada, the Middle East, Brazil, Africa and Asia. Chevron (NYSE: CVX), BP (NYSE: BP) and Petroleo Brasileiro (NYSE: PBR) are major customers.

The stock has been a steady gainer, since the January market downdraft, advancing on word of solid quarterly results, new and renewed contracts and optimistic analyst remarks. Essentially, a global shortage of deep-water drilling units has established a long-term, favorable pricing environment for the company.

The news has kept RIG shares cycling through a positive, 20-week trading channel. The price is currently rebounding from the base of that channel, suggesting the potential for a rise back toward the top.

Brokers recommend the issue with twelve "strong buys", thirteen "buys", eight "holds" and four "underperforms". Recent price targets are in the $160-$201 range. Analysts see a 29% average annual growth rate, through the next five years. The RIG P/E ratio (9.79), PEG ratio (0.36), Price to Book ratio (3.57), Sales Growth rate (134.19%), EPS Growth rate (50.20%), Return on Assets (10.32%), Return on Investment (18.52%) and Return on Equity (36.46%) compare favorably with industry, sector and S&P 500 averages. Institutions hold about 90% of the outstanding shares. The stock is one of those used to calculate the S&P 500 Index. Over the past 52 weeks, it has traded between $92.61 and $163.00. A stop-loss of $134.00 looks good here. Note that the firm is expected to report fiscal Q2 results in early August.

Larry Schutts is a contributing editor for Theflyonthewall.com and the Vice-President of Stockwinners.com. He does not hold positions in any of the stocks mentioned above.

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As if this country doesn't have enough to worry about, now Donald Trump says that oil companies such as BP (NYSE: BP), Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX), and Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) are ripping us off. According to a story from CNBC, Trump is calling for punitive sanctions against oil companies, citing their historic profit levels.

While calling himself a "great capitalist" and stating that it is against his nature to seek punitive sanctions against companies that are reaping big profits, Donald Trump indicated that it is his opinion that oil companies have been ripping off the world for quite some time. In a statement aired by CNBC, Trump said, "I can see doing something against the oil companies."

I think it takes a lot of gall for a self made opportunistic capitalist to point fingers at companies which might play the game a little better than he does. Trump knows the rules and he knows where the power resides. He should also know that if changes in the movement of oil money need to take place, those changes should start with the government's already too large part of that money. Donald Trump must be aware that any adjustment to oil company revenue percentages will simply be handed off to consumers. So what is Donald really saying?

If Mr. Trump truly wishes to help the situation, then he should be standing in front of the White House demanding that taxes already levied on oil profits should be used to subsidize diesel fuel for commerce transport until the oil market stabilizes itself. Anything less is just one speculator shaking his fist at a wagon full of speculators. As a somewhat questionable performer in that regard, perhaps Mr. Trump should just pay closer attention to what's going on in his own little backyard.

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• Is Anheuser-Busch (NYSE: BUD) going the way of the Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO)? Is BUD also trying to thwart a good offer for reasons not related to sound business rationale? Is an overblown ego going to ruin yet another sensible merger?
• Have we seen the last of the financial turmoil? Will there be another Bear Stearns? Why do Lehman (NYSE: LEH), AIG (NYSE: AIG) and KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY) -- to name but a few -- insist on scaring us?
• Can Altria (NYSE: MO)'s Phillip Morris really develop a smokeless cigarette? And how long before we find out the health implications of that one?

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BP (NYSE: BP) is up 2% ahead of the oil inventory report.

AMD (NYSE: AMD) is up almost 2% on news of its introduction of a new graphics technology.

Hooker Furniture (NASDAQ: HOFT) is off over 10% on weak earnings.

Royal Bank of Scotland (NYSE: RBS) is off over 5% on negative comments about its prospects from the bank's CEO.

Stocks may trade differently in the pre-market than they do in the regular session.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

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BP Amoco (NYSE: BP) closed at $70.60 Monday.

WTI Crude futures are recently up 2.26% to $137.39 according to Bloomberg.

Citigroup raised its rating on BP to Hold from Sell.

BP July option implied volatility of 29 is above its 26-week average of 26 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price movement.

Option Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

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MAJOR PAPERS:

• Verizon Wireless, a joint venture of Vodafone Group Plc (NYSE: VOD) and Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE: VZ), is in talks to acquire Alltel Corp. in a deal valued at about $27B, the Wall Street Journal reported. If successful, the combined companies would create the largest cellphone company, and would be better positioned to compete against AT&T Inc (NYSE: T).
• Gregory B. Penner, the son-in-law of Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE: WMT) chairman S. Robson Walton, is expected to join the company's board of directors, a move seen as the beginning of a leadership change at the company, according to the Wall Street Journal.
• The Financial Times reported that Singaporean sovereign wealth fund Temasek refused to provide funds to Bear Stearns shortly before Bear's sale to JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE: JPM). Temasek reportedly refused the request for practical and political reasons.
• Russia's Interior Ministry questioned the head of BP Plc's (NYSE: BP) Russian oil venture as part of a criminal investigation into possible large-scale tax evasion, the Financial Times reported.

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BP (NYSE: BP) shares are trading higher today after the weekly US inventory report indicated a drop in supplies, while industry analysts expected a slight increase. Crude prices pushed to $132 in response, and the average gasoline prices in the US are currently a record $3.80 per gallon. If you think that the stock won't fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on BP.

After hitting a one-year high of $79.77 in November, the stock fell through the winter to hit its one-year low of $57.85 in January before starting to rise again. BP opened this morning at $76.24. So far today the stock has hit a low of $75.86 and a high of $76.78. As of 11:10, BP is trading at $76.66, up $1.73 (2.3%). The chart for BP looks bullish and steady, while S&P gives the stock a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold rating.

For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I would consider an October bull-put credit spread below the $60 range. A bull-put credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of put options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 6.4% return in just five months as long as BP is above $60 at October expiration. BP would have to fall by more than 21% before we would start to lose money. Learn more about this type of trade here.

BP hasn't been below $60 for more than a few days in the past year and has shown support around $72 recently. This trade could be risky if oil prices top out and then plummet, but even if that happens, this position could be protected by the support the stock might find around $60, where it bottomed out twice in March.

Brent Archer is an options analyst and writer at Investors Observer.

DISCLOSURE: Mr. Archer owns and/or controls diversified portfolios of long and short stock and option positions that may include holdings in companies he writes about. At publication time, Brent neither owns nor controls positions in BP.

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MAJOR PAPERS:

• According to senior industry sources, the Financial Times reported that the Ministry of Defense could ask General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE: GD) to provide the vehicle design for a new generation of armored vehicles for the army. It is unclear whether General Dynamics, in competition with Nexter and Artec, will be awarded the contract or will be named the preferred bidder.
• Following the collapse in March of The Bear Stearns Companies Inc (NYSE: BSC), the Financial Times also reported that the SEC will soon require Wall Street banks to publicly disclose more details about liquidity and capital positions. Cox also urged lawmakers to pass legislation that would allow the SEC, or another regulator, the "explicit mandate to supervise" investment banks.

• According to the New York Times, Citigroup Incorporated (NYSE: C) will move senior investment banker Alberto Verme to Dubai by the end of the month in the hopes of establishing a stronger foothold in the region, a crucial area for global banks.
• The New York Times also reported that several large oil companies, including BP Plc (NYSE: BP), ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) and Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX), agreed to pay nearly $423M in cash in order to settle a lawsuit that alleged water contamination from methyl tertiary butyl ether, a gasoline additive. Under the terms of the deal, the oil giants also agreed to pay 70% of the future cleanup costs for the next 30 years. Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) and several other companies named in the suit did not agree to the deal.

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After hitting a one-year high of $79.77 in November, the stock hit a one-year low of $57.85 in January. This morning, BP opened at $72.73. So far today the stock has hit a low of $72.17 and a high of $72.82. As of 12:00, BP is trading at $72.30, down $0.54 (-0.7%). The chart for BP looks bullish and steady, while S&P gives the stock its highest 5 Stars (out of 5) strong buy rating.

For a bearish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a July bear-call credit spread above the $80 range. A bear-call credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of call options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 6.4% return in two and a half months as long as BP is below $80 at July expiration. BP would have to rise by more than 10% before we would start to lose money. Learn more about this type of trade here.

BP hasn't been above $80 at all in the past year and has shown resistance around $76 recently. This trade could be risky if demand for gas continues to rise over the summer, but even if that happens, this position could be protected by resistance BP might find around $80, where it topped out back in November.

Brent Archer is an options analyst and writer at Investors Observer.

DISCLOSURE: Mr. Archer owns and/or controls diversified portfolios of long and short stock and option positions that may include holdings in companies he writes about. At publication time, Brent neither owns nor controls positions in BP.

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