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Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc.’s stock surged 5.6% in premarket trade Thursday, after Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded the wood-flooring company, citing an appealing reward-versus-risk profile. Analyst Laura Champine raised her rating to buy about three months after lowering it to hold. She raised her stock price target to $18, which is 27% above Wednesday’s closing price, from $15. She said that after a recent store tour with senior management, her long-term gross margin estimate may be too conservative. And Champine said she believes the company filled an executive void with the addition an experienced chief compliance and legal officer, when it announced earlier this week that it hired former Rayonier general counsel Jill Witter. “[Lumber Liquidators] still has a number of regulatory and legal hurdles to clear, but the stock appears washed out to us following its [year-to-date] performance,” Champine wrote in a note to clients. The stock has gained 18% since closing at a more-than six-year low of $12.06 on Aug. 7, but was still down 79% year to date, while the S&P 500 has tacked on 1%. The stock started diving in late February, after a “60 Minutes” report alleged wood flooring the company sourced from China had dangerous levels of a cancer-causing agent.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

The owners of the Weather Channel have held talks with tech and media companies about selling the cable network and digital juggernaut, according to reports late Wednesday by Bloomberg and CNNMoney. The reports said the owners — Comcast’s [s:CMCSA] NBCUniversal, Blackstone Group and Bain Capital — might sell only the Weather Channel’s digital business, which includes Weather.com and Weather Underground. The current owners bought the Weather Channel from Landmark Communications in 2008 for $3.5 billion, and it’s believed to be worth somewhat less today, the CNNMoney report said.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

Make your bath safe and accessible for the whole family …read more

From:: DIY this old house

Bold stripes, DIY butcher block, and thoughtful details turn a dingy utility room into a space with function and flair …read more

From:: DIY this old house

Greece on Thursday morning repaid 3.4 billion euros ($3.8 billion) to the European Central Bank after having received its first tranche of bailout money from the European Stability Mechanism, media reports said. The repayment has been considered a key step in the Greek debt crisis, in which a failed money transfer was seen as forcing the ECB to shut off emergency lending to Greek banks. But after the ESM approved Greece’s €86-billion bailout program late on Wednesday, the rescue fund early Thursday disbursed €13 billion to help Athens repay the bonds held by the ECB. Another €10 billion will be made available immediately as well to help recapitalize the banks.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

By Monica Mendoza

Banks took possession of more Colorado homes in July than one year ago, which adds homes to housing inventory.

But the number of new foreclosure starts this month is down, signaling a short lived burst in that inventory.

In July, the number of bank repossessions was up 41 percent from a year ago, which, combined with the number of new foreclosure starts, showed Colorado’s overall foreclosure rate up 2 percent from last July, according to RealtyTrac’s July 2015 U.S. Foreclosure Market Report.

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From:: biz journal foreclosures

Tesla Motors Inc. banked an estimated $738.3 million from a stock offering that closed Wednesday, the electric car manufacturer detailed in a filing. While burning cash fast on the development of two upcoming new car models, a battery-storage offering and a huge battery plant dubbed the “Gigafactory,” Tesla sold about 3.1 million fresh shares to raise capital. The final total included more than 400,000 optional shares, indicating strong demand for the stock despite Tesla’s free-spending ways. The total does not include the costs of the offering and underwriting fees. Tesla stock fell 2.1% to $255.25 Wednesday, but shares have gained 7.2% since the stock offering was announced last week, on Aug. 13.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

Popeyes Lousiana Kitchen Inc. said Wednesday that net income for the second-quarter of fiscal 2015 was $10.3 million, or 44 cents per share, compared with $8.3 million, or 39 cents, for the same period last year. The FactSet consensus estimate was 44 cents. Revenue was $59.4 million, a 10.6% increase from $53.7 million for the comparable period in 2014. FactSet consensus sales estimate was $62.7 million. The increase was due to a $2.8 million increase in sales at company-operated restaurants and a $3.5 million increase in franchise royalties. At the end of the second quarter, Popeyes operated and franchised 2,443 restaurants versus 2,262 restaurants at the end of the same quarter last year, an 8% increase. The company raised its guidance for earnings per diluted share for full-fiscal 2015 to $1.85 to $1.90 from $1.84 to $1.89. And it reiterated its guidance for full-fiscal 2015 new restaurant openings of between 200 and 225, including between 85 and 95 overseas.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

Leidos Holdings Inc. said Wednesday it has won a $4.3 billion contract from the U.S. Department of Defense to modernize the military health care system. Leidos is the prime contractor on the job and will work with partners Cerner , Accenture Federal Services and Henry Schein Inc. . The contract has a two-year initial ordering period, two three-year option periods and a possible two-year additional term that would bring it to 10 years. Shares were slightly higher in after-hours trade, but are up 3% in the year so far, while the S&P 500 has gained 1%.

Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.

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From:: Stock Market News

By Marianne Canada

Whether you live in a residence hall or just have a tiny apartment (or house!), storage is always one of the most important elements of a room. When I first spied these simple Ikea shelves the wheels started turning…literally. I added two sets of casters and a couple of mending plates to turn two shelves into the perfect mobile coffee table. It can hold makeup, games, craft supplies, you name it, and when you need more space you can simply roll it under the bed.

Once you assemble the shelves, there are just a few easy steps to a rolling coffee table. Here’s how to do it:

Click here to view the embedded video.

This easy Ikea hack would work in so many areas of your home, from the bedroom to a covered porch.

What would you store in the drawers? Tell me in the comments below.

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From:: HGTV