McDonald's January Sales Increase...

McDonald's Corp. (MCD) reported January global same-store sales rose 5.7%, as U.S. sales rebounded from December weakness and growth overseas was boosted by the beaten-down dollar.

MCD is up 1.80 to $56.26 this morning....

I could swear they just said last week that traffic was down...so which is it??? In fact the market sold off hard in reaction to that news.

Morgan Stanley Does Not Like Sears...

A continuing decline in sales and tight profit margins might hurt Sears' (SHLD) turnaround plans. "Until I can see why cash is low, I see no reason to own the stock," Morgan Stanley's Gregory Melich says.

Have you been to a K-Mart or Sears store lately??? No one there.

Dell Dumps AMD...

Dell (DELL) has stopped selling AMD-powered (AMD) machines through its online store, including the Latitude D531, Vostro 1000 or OptiPlex 740.

This is good news for Intel (INTC).

Smartphones....

Research in Motion (RIMM) and Apple (AAPL) may be the primary beneficiaries of a massive consumer shift from basic cellphones to smart phones.

Go check out a cell phone store and ask them what the trend is...

Another Take on Ethanol....

Ethanol may boost global warming. Researchers say widespread ethanol use could double any greenhouse gas emissions produced by the gasoline it replaces. Farmers growing biofuel plants destroy forests and grass, raising the amount of carbon in the atmosphere. Ethanol producers' Renewable Fuels Association called the research "simplistic."

Verizon Announces Stock Buyback..

Verizon (VZ) yesterday announced that its board has authorized the repurchase of up to 100 million shares. The authorization expires Feb. 28, 2011. Sounds like a lot of stock - 100 million shares! - but it would be just 3.4% of the company’s 2.9 billion shares outstanding, or about 1% of the float per year over the authorized period.

Verizon's stock has fallen from the mid 40's to $36.95 over the past three weeks. Their dividend currently pays 4.655%. Not bad for a quality name.

Dismal January for Retail, But Stocks Rally...

Retailers posted their worst monthly sales in five years; even gift-card redemptions were soft. Wal-Mart (WMT) lead the way with 0.5% comps growth vs. 2% estimates; more than half of all retailers missed expectations.

Despite the bad news, Retail stocks had a great day. That is a key group to keep an eye on over the next few months. Retailers will typically be one of the first groups to show a recovery in the economy as it pertains to the average citizens.

Stimulus Bill Wins Vote...

Congress approved a $168B economic stimulus bill, meaning more than 130 million households will begin receiving $600-1,200 rebate checks. The measure passed after Democrats dropped demands for billions in extra spending and tax breaks.

President Bush called the legislation "an example of bipartisan cooperation at a time when the American people most expect it."

Amazon Ups Stock Repurchase Plan..

Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN) announced today that its Board of Directors has authorized the Company to repurchase up to $1 billion of the Company's common stock within the next 24 months.

The program allows the Company to opportunistically repurchase its shares when it believes that doing so would enhance long-term shareholder value. This stock repurchase authorization replaces an April 2007 $500 million stock repurchase authorization.

The stock is climbing 2.50 pts to $73.58 in the premarket.

Earnings Due Today....

• American Electric Power (AEP). Expected to report Q1 earnings of $0.73 cents a share.

• Apartment Investment and Management (AIV). Expected to post Q4 loss of $0.27 per share.

• Beckman Coulter (BEC). Expected to report Q4 earnings of $1.03 a share.

• Weyerhaeuser Co. (WY). Expected to report Q4 earnings of $0.35 a share.

Hitachi to Introduce Super Thin TV's in 2010...

Hitachi Ltd. (HIT). The Japanese electronics giant said today it will introduce a 10-millimeter (mm) thin plasma display panel TV in 2010 in a bid to boost the competitiveness of its flat TV business operations. The thickness is less than a third of the 35mm-thin PDP TVs the manufacturer plans to launch next year. Capitalizing on these new "super-thin" models, Hitachi is targeting to raise its share of the world's PDP TV market to 10% in the fiscal year to March 2011, from an estimated 6 percent in the year to March 2009, it said.

Hitachi will also introduce a 15mm-thin liquid crystal display (LCD) panel TV by 2012, slimmer than the 19-mm model it plans to launch next year. It will also launch a 3mm-thin organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display TV by 2012, the company said.

Options Going Crazy in CTSH...

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (CTSH). The Teaneck, N.J.-based IT services provider late Thursday said fourth-quarter net income rose to $96.3 million, or 32 cents a share, from $69.5 million, or 23 cents a share, in the same period last year. On an adjusted basis, earnings were 36 cents a share, beating the mean estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial for 31 cents a share.

Fourth-quarter revenue increased 41% to $600 million from $424.4 million in last year's comparable period. The company provided guidance for first-quarter adjusted earnings of 36 cents a share and sales of at least $640 million.

The stock is up 3.50 to $31 premarket.

Guitar Hero Propels Earnings for Activision..

After yesterday's closing bell, Activision Inc. (ATVI). late Thursday reported third-quarter adjusted earnings rose to $284.9 million, or 90 cents a share, from $147.5 million, or 48 cents a share, in the same period last year. Revenue for the period ended Dec. 31 jumped 80% to $1.48 billion from $824.3 million in last year's comparable period.

For fiscal 2008, the Santa Monica, Calif.-based interactive entertainment software products company expects adjusted earnings of $1.07 a share on sales of $2.65 billion. For the fourth quarter, the company expects adjusted earnings of 4 cents a share on sales of $350 million.

Activision is the maker of the popular Guitar Hero video game. Obviously a big hit for Xmas.