Trefis Top 5 – May 17 Insights (LVS, DD, AA, X, CRM)

+7.38%
Upside
51.48
Market
55.28
Trefis
LVS: Las Vegas Sands logo
LVS
Las Vegas Sands

Today we wrote on Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) surging growth due to its operations in Singapore, which is set to become the 2nd largest gaming market globally and where LVS is part of an effective duopoly. We take a look at recently launched DuPont (NYSE:DD) and focus on the safety and performance materials segment which accounts for around 40% of its stock value. In metals and mining space, Alcoa’s (NYSE:AA) management sees the company “aluminizing” the world, and we look at key trends for U.S. Steel (NYSE:X). Finally we include an earnings preview for the Salesforce.com (NYSE:CRM), which is set to announce results later this week.

LVS Worth $49 as Singapore Gamblers Outspend Vegas in ’11

In April 2010, Las Vegas Sands (NYSE: LVS) opened the Marina Bay Sands facility in Singapore at an approximate cost of $5.5 billion. The integrated resort has 2,600 rooms, 161,000 square feet of gaming space, and 1.3 million square feet of convention and meeting space. LVS is a developer, owner and operator of destination casino resorts and operates in the U.S., Macau, and Singapore and competes with Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN), MGM Resorts International (NYSE:MGM), SJM (HKG:0880), Galaxy (HKG:0027) and Harrah’s among others.

Relevant Articles
  1. Down 13% In Last Six Months, Will Macau Recovery Over Q4 Drive Las Vegas Sands Stock?
  2. Las Vegas Sands Stock Has Remained Flat This Year Despite Macau Recovery. What’s Next?
  3. Macau Recovery Will Drive Las Vegas Sands Q2 Results
  4. Singapore Strength And Macau Rebound Drive Las Vegas Sands Q1. What’s Next For The Stock?
  5. Is Las Vegas Sands Stock A Buy With Macau On Cusp Of Recovery?
  6. Company Of The Day: Las Vegas Sands

See article.

40% of DuPont’s Stock Driven by Performance and Safety Materials

DuPont (NYSE:DD) is a diversified global chemical company, which supplies agricultural products (such as seeds and pesticides), high-performance materials, automotive coatings, electronic materials and key industrial chemicals to industries and consumers globally. DuPont competes with other major chemical & agricultural companies such as Dow Chemicals (NYSE: DOW), 3M (NYSE:MMM), Monsanto (NYSE:MON), Syngenta and BASF.

Our current price estimate for DuPont stands at $58.10. The firm derived a bulk of its value from the performance and safety materials division constituting 40% of the our price estimate, which we discuss below.

See article.

Alcoa Predicts Substantial Aluminum Demand Growth

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) is upbeat about the future of the aluminum industry. At the company’s recent shareholder meeting, Alcoa Chairman and CEO Klaus Kleinfeld detailed his views of an “aluminizing” world. [1] He predicts that the global consumption and supply of aluminum could double from its 2010 figures by the year 2020. This growth is expected to be fueled by an increasing demand for “more efficient infrastructure and transportation solutions”. Alcoa is the world leader in the production and management of primary aluminum, fabricated aluminum and alumina, and competes with other international metals and mining giants like Rusal, Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO), BHP Billiton (NYSE:BHP) and Chalco (NYSE:ACH).

See article.

Key Trends Impacting U.S. Steel

U.S. Steel (NYSE:X) continues to see tough times, with profits evading the tenth largest steel producer in the world again this quarter. The company reported losses of $86 million for the first quarter of 2011, although sales figures have improved by almost 13% over the value in the last quarter of 2010. [2] U.S. Steel competes with international steel giants like ArcelorMittal (NYSE:MT), BaoSteel, Posco (NYSE:PKX), Nippon Steel and ThyssenKrupp.

See article.

Salesforce.com Earnings Preview: What We’re Watching

Salesforce.com (NYSE:CRM) is expected to announce its fiscal year Q1 2012 earnings on May 19th. We believe the main focus of the earnings will be how the company’s newer cloud-computing products are faring, and we will keep an eye on the company’s operating margins as expenses have been steadily outpacing revenue growth in the past couple of years. However, Salesforce.com’s top-line growth is still impressive and beyond that of competitors SAP (NYSE:SAP), Oracle (NASDAQ:ORCL), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) and IBM (NYSE:IBM).

See article

See all of our articles on Trefis.

Notes:
  1. Global Trends Driving Increased Aluminum Demand, Alcoa Press Releases, May 13 2011 []
  2. U.S. Steel First Quarter 2011 earnings release, U.S. Steel Press Releases []