Equity Office Properties' (NYSE:EOP) future remains uncertain after private equity groups and competitors continue to circle the largest commercial renter in the U.S. CNBC reported today that a consortium consisting of Vornado (NYSE:VNO), Barry Sternlicht's Starwood Capital, and Leon Bluhm's Walton Street Capital are planning to make an acquisition bid within the next 24 hours. Meanwhile, the Financial Times is reporting that Cerberus Capital Management dropped out of the consortium dropped out after a weekend of talks but could still come back at a later stage, although that is not likely. Many others familiar with the situation said the enormous amount of liquidity in the marketplace meant another investor could still be found to replace Cerberus. This stock is definitely one worth watching closely as the February 18th deadline for additional bids draws closer. The current offer from Blackstone stands at $48.50 per share, while the stock trades at $50.69, up 1.69% in today's trading.

Equity Office Properties Trust (Equity Office) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns and manages of office properties. At December 31, 2005, Equity Office owned buildings in 22 markets and 101 submarkets, including its 17 core markets, which are Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, Oakland/East Bay, Orange County, New York, Portland, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, Stamford and Washington, D.C. Equity Office owns substantially all of its assets and conducts substantially all its operations through EOP Operating Limited Partnership (EOP Partnership). As of December 31, 2005, Equity Office owned 89.7% of EOP Partnership through its ownership of partnership units in EOP Partnership.

Related Companies
Reckson Associates Realty (RA)
Highwoods Properties, Inc. (HIW)
American Financial Realty Trust (AFR)

IntercontinentalExchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE) moved up $2.59, or 2%, to $131.78 today after conflicting analyst reports put pressure on the stock. The ordeal began when Wachovia downgraded ICE from "outperform" to "market perform", citing a stock priced with high expectations which could disappoint and lead the stock down in the near term. However the firm also raised their 2007 and 2008 estimates to $3.37 and $4.50 per share, accounting for full accretion of the NYBOT deal and far more robust oil futures trading. All in all, Wachovia believes the shares should trade between $135 and $140, or 29-30x 2008 earnings estimate. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs retains a more optimistic outlook saying that the market continues to underestimate the growth potential of the exchanges volumes. The firm set their new 2008 earnings estimates at $5.50, which is 43% above consensus and 10% above the next highest estimate. Moreover, GS believes that the risk reward trade-off remains favorable on ICE, with a 2:1 ratio of upside to downside based on bull case 2008 EPS of $7.00 and bear case EPS of $3.85. Consequently, the firm said that it believes the shares should trade around $165, or 30x its 2008 estimates.

Both of these analysts make good point: Oil contract volume has been on the increase during the past few weeks as hedge funds have embraced short trades after OPEC failed to react to a $50/barrel price point. This, combined with strong existing futures volumes, should help ICE's EPS significantly. However, many are quick to note that there also may be some downside pressure on Friday after trading restrictions are lifted for NYBOT insiders. Whether or not the stock will reach $160 remains to be seen; however, this is definitely a stock worth watching over the next few months.

Related Companies
Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings (CME)
Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. (NDAQ)
CBOT Holdings Inc. (BOT)

Encore Acquisition Company (NYSE:EAC) moved up $1.15, or 5.13%, to $23.70 today after the company announced that it would offer shares of its limited partnership interests in an initial public offering. The new entity is expected to own certain Wyoming oil and natural gas properties to be acquired from subsidiaries of Anadarko Petroleum Corporation and certain legacy oil and gas properties currently owned by Encore. This acquisition of Anadarko properties is valued at $400 million to be paid in cash, subject to customary purchase price adjustments. Encore said that the net proceeds from the initial public offering are expected to be used to repay indebtedness incurred in connection with the acquired properties.

Encore Acquisition Company (Encore) is an independent energy company engaged in the acquisition, development, exploitation, exploration and production of onshore North American oil and natural gas reserves. The Company's properties and oil and natural gas reserves are located in four core areas: the Cedar Creek Anticline (CCA) in the Williston Basin of Montana and North Dakota; the Permian Basin of West Texas and Southeastern New Mexico; the Mid-Continent area, which includes the Arkoma and Anadarko Basins of Oklahoma, the North Louisiana Salt Basin, the East Texas Basin and the Barnett Shale of north Texas, and the Rockies, which includes non-CCA assets in the Williston and Powder River Basins of Montana and North Dakota, and the Paradox Basin of southeastern Utah.

Related Companies
Mexco Energy Corporation (MXC)
Clayton Williams Energy, Inc. (CWEI)
XTO Energy, Inc. (XTO)

Telik, Inc. (NDAQ:TELK) moved up $0.15, or 2.45%, to $6.26 this morning after Carl Icahn disclosed a 9.92% stake in a Schedule 13D filing with the SEC. The activist investor said that he believed the company's stock was undervalued and represented an attractive investment opportunity. Moreover, he said that his fund may engage management in discussions regarding the company's plans and prospects. Icahn is best known for orchestrating spin-offs and forcing special dividends in order to unlock shareholder value.

Telik, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the discovery, development, and commercialization of small molecule drugs for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases. Its lead product candidate TELCYTA is a small molecule cancer drug product designed to be activated in cancer cells that is currently in phase 3 clinical trials. While the company has no significant revenues at this point (since their product is still in development), they do have $146 million - or $2.79 per share - in cash with almost no debt. Consequently, the stock may be a risky buy at this point, but Icahn likely sees some value in the company's products or cash reserves. Regardless, this is definitely a stock worth watching over the next few months.

Related Companies
Ariad Pharmaceuticals (ARIA)
Maxygen, Inc. (MAXY)
Arena Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ARNA)

Emergency Medical Services Corporation (NYSE:EMS) announced earnings guidance for the 2007 fiscal year ending December 31, 2007. The company expects full year diluted earnings per share between $1.11 and $1.18 versus a consensus of $1.09.

Charming Shoppes, Inc. (NDAQ:CHRS) said consolidated net sales for the nine weeks ended December 30, 2006 increased 3% to $654.4 million. Meanwhile, consolidated comparable store sales for the company's retail store brands decreased 2% during the nine weeks ended December 30, 2006.

CACI International Inc (NYSE:CAI) expects revenue for FY07 to range between $1.875 billion and $1.950 billion versus a consensus of $2.02 billion. Meanwhile, diluted earnings per share is now expected to range between $2.45 and $2.65 versus a consensus of $3.00.

RIDEX Corporation (NDAQ:IRIX) said it completed the acquisition of the aesthetics business of Laserscope pursuant to the terms of the definitive agreement.

The Mills Corporation (NYSE:MLS) and Brookfield Asset Management Inc. (NYSE:BAM) announced today that The Mills has entered into a definitive agreement pursuant to which Brookfield will acquire The Mills for cash at a price of $21 per share, representing a total transaction value of approximately $1.35 billion for all of the outstanding common stock of The Mills and common units of The Mills Limited Partnership, and approximately $7.5 billion including assumed debt and preferred stock.

Quanex Corporation (NYSE:NX) expects to report fiscal first quarter 2007 diluted earnings per share from continuing operations in a range of $0.45 to $0.50 when it reports results on February 27, 2007. The current consensus stands at $0.42.

Parker-Hannifin (NYSE:PH) reports Q2 earnings of $1.55 per share, ex-items, above the consensus of $1.40. Meanwhile, revenues came in at $2.51 billion versus the consensus of $2.46 billion. Sees FY07 EPS of $6.35 to $6.75 versus prior guidance of $6.05-6.45 and the consensus of $6.38.

TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. (NDAQ:AMTD) moved up $0.85, or 4.9%, to $18.21 today after releasing its operating results and financial condition in an 8K filing with the SEC. The company reported its best quarter ever, as growing fees and increased retail trading helped lift the company's net income by 60% year over year. Ameritrade also experienced success in many other measures, including:

• Record net income of $146 million, or $0.24 per diluted share
• Record non-GAAP net income of $173 million, or $0.28 per diluted share
• Record pre-tax income of $239 million, or 45 percent of net revenues
• Operating margin of $278 million, or 52 percent
• Record EBITDA of $291 million, or 54 percent
• Net revenues of $535 million
• Average client trades per day of approximately 238,000
• Annualized return on equity of 34 percent for the quarter
• Client assets of approximately $278.2 billion, including $39.8 billion of client cash and money market funds
• Liquid assets of $499 million; cash and cash equivalents of $441 million
• 109,000 new accounts at an average cost per account of $360; 40,000 closed accounts; 6,260,000 Total Accounts; 3,255,000 Qualified Accounts
• Average client margin balances of approximately $7.3 billion. On Dec. 31, 2006, client margin balances were approximately $7.6 billion

The company also said that, like its competitors, it will be attempting to lean itself off of mostly commission-based income to more of an "asset gatherer". CEO Joe Moglia said, "By the end of this year, we talk about being able to move from a firm that was almost totally based on transactions to one that's becoming more and more of an 'asset gatherer' ... By the end of 2007, we will be generating more revenues based on our assets alone than 100% of all of our expenses. And that includes our advertising numbers." Moglia also told CNBC that he believes there may be consolidation within the sector, but maintained that he didn't want to insinuate that the Ameritrade was currently involved in any such transaction. Regardless, AMTD is definitely a stock worth watching over the next few months.

Related Companies
optionsXpress Holdings, Inc. (OXPS)
E*TRADE Financial Corporation (ETFC)
The Charles Schwab Corporation (SCHW)

Lawson Software Inc. (NDAQ:LWSN) CEO Harry Debes disclosed an 80,000 share purchase at prices ranging from $6.64 to $6.90 in a transaction valued at more than $530,000, bringing his his overall stake to 128,674 shares. The transaction, disclosed in a Form 4 filing with the SEC, helped move LWSN up $0.11, or 1.63%, to $6.87 so far in today's session.

The company provides business application software, services and maintenance to customers primarily in the services sector, trade industries and manufacturing/distribution sectors specializing in specific markets, including health care, public services, retail, financial services, food and beverage, and wholesale distribution. While the company is currently trading above enterprise value with a high PEG of 2.59, it does have $1.41/share in cash and very little debt. This makes the company a potential acquisition target in an increasingly active M&A market, and new contracts should help the company prop up its falling earnings in future quarters. Combined, these factors make LWSN a stock worth watching over the next few months.

Related Companies
Oracle Corporation (ORCL)
SAP AG (SAP)
JDA Software Group, Inc. (JDAS)

SulphCo, Inc. (AMEX:SUF) Chairman and CEO Dr. Rudolph Gunnerman was dismissed from the company's board today after a misunderstanding that stemmed from questionable amendments he requested be made to the company's bylaws. These proposed changes would have restricted the board's ability to act on shareholders' behalf while further entrenching management. Dr. Gunnerman currently holds approximately 39% of the company's stock and revealed his proposals in a Schedule 13D filing with the SEC.

According to the filing:

"On January 12, 2007, Dr. Gunnerman delivered to the Company a written consent purporting to be executed by the holders of a majority of the Company’s outstanding shares of Common Stock (the Written Consent), which was signed by, among others, the Reporting Persons ... The Bylaw Amendments include, among others, (a) the requirement that an Annual Meeting of the stockholders be held on the first Tuesday in April at 850 Spice Islands Drive, Sparks, Nevada; (b) modifications to the procedures for stockholder nominations of directors to serve on the Company’s Board of Directors; (c) the fixing of the number of Board members at six; (d) the elimination of "cause" as a requirement for the removal of directors; (e) the inability of the Board to remove any officer of the Company until the first annual Board meeting to be held following the next annual meeting of stockholders following January 11, 2007; (f) the inability of the Board of Directors to issue, prior to the next annual meeting of stockholders (i) any shares of capital stock of the Company entitled to more than one vote per share, and (ii) in the aggregate, in excess of 10% of the outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company; and (g) that the Amended and Restated Bylaws may be amended only by stockholders holding a majority of the Company’s voting stock.

Subsequent to their delivery of the Written Consent, the Reporting Persons became aware of a miscalculation in the number of shares of Common Stock held by the persons that had executed the Written Consent, including the Reporting Persons. The miscalculation resulted from the reliance by the Reporting Persons on information included in a Share Holder Report issued by the Company’s transfer agent with respect to the number of shares of Common Stock held by the Company’s stockholders. The Share Holder Report purported to be current, but was in fact outdated. Based on the correct number of shares of Common Stock actually held by the stockholders executing the Written Consent, including the Reporting Persons, the Written Consent was not executed by the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of Common Stock.

Prior to the date hereof, in accordance with the federal securities laws, the Reporting Persons have contacted a limited number of stockholders of the Company believed by the Reporting Persons to hold, together with the Reporting Persons, a majority of the outstanding shares of Common Stock. The Reporting Persons are continuing their efforts to obtain the consent of the stockholders previously contacted by them, but no other stockholders, to the Bylaw Amendments. If the Reporting Persons are not successful in these efforts, the Reporting Persons will continue to explore their legal options as stockholders of the Company, and may as stockholders of the Company call a special meeting of the Company’s stockholders to consider amendments to the Company’s Amended and Restated Bylaws similar to the Bylaw Amendments.

The Reporting Persons may in addition (whether or not the Bylaw Amendments are adopted) propose their own slate of nominees for election at the Company’s next annual meeting of stockholders."

Shortly after this Schedule 13D was released this morning, the company's board of directors dismissed Dr. Gunnerman from his post as Chairman and CEO of the company. While he will continue to serve as a director of the company, Larry Ryan has been named the new Chief Executive Officer and Robert H. C. van Maasdijk has been appointed chairman of the board. These actions may prompt him to explore other legal options or even propose his own slate of nominees to the company's board of directors. Shares of SUF are trading even on the day; however, if Gunnerman is successful in instituting the changes, the stock could see some downside.

Related Companies
Gerber Scientific, Inc. (GRB)
Sono-Tek Corporation (SOTK)

Verizon Communications, Inc. (NYSE:VZ) said that it would be spinning off its phone operations in less populated portions of New England and combine the assets with FairPoint Communications, Inc. (NYSE:FRP) in a deal worth around $2.7 billion. Under the agreement, Verizon would spin off its phone operations in Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire and then merge the new entity with FairPoint. Ownership in the new entity would be divided between the two companies, with VZ maintaining a 60% stake and FRP holding a 40% stake. Meanwhile, the new entity would also take on about $1.7 billion of Verizon debt.

FairPoint shares moved up $2.15, or 11.6%, to $20.69 in early trading on the news. CEO Eugene Johnson said in an interview on CNBC that he believed the transaction would strengthen the company's presence in rural areas. In a statement, FairPoint said it would invest more money in its New England operations and expand high-speed Internet access to more customers. Meanwhile, Verizon said that it would use the money to strengthen their balance sheet and pay off some of its outstanding debt.

Spin offs also represent a great opportunity for shareholders to make money. On the average, spin-offs outperform the overall market, a phenomena so popular that there is now an ETF focusing on this exact strategy! This occurs because parent company shareholders tend to sell their shares immediately after receiving their distribution, thereby creating a downside pressure that has no fundamental justification.

Related Companies
AT&T Inc. (T)
Sprint Nextel Corporation (S)
Qwest Communications (Q)

WCI Communities, Inc. (NYSE:WCI) moved up $2.59, or 12.32%, to $23.61 in early trading today after Carl Icahn disclosed a 14.57% stake in the company in a Schedule 13D filing with the SEC. Icahn said that he believed the company's shares were undervalued and that he intends to seek the company's views on how to unlock the inherent value of the shares. The news comes after Hotchkis and Wiley Capital Management LLC, a 16% holder of the company, said that they intend on engaging in talks "about its business and affairs which may include discussing the structure of management and the board of directors" earlier this month.

The company is trading well below enterprise value with a PEG of just 0.38, which makes the company appear extremely undervalued on the surface. But in reality, WCI continues to face difficulties with its land and projects; its Oceanside project is dead while the company is still struggling with business in the Miami condo market. And with only 140 orders last quarter, many investors are questioning whether a turnaround is possible, even with one of the best marketing forces in the business. However, Icahn is certainly one of the best in the business, which is evidenced the stock's sharp move today. Whether or not he is successful in turning around the company - or even something more drastic like forcing a sale - depends on many factors; but regardless, this is certainly a stock to keep on the radar as we learn more.

Related Companies
Brookfield Homes (BHS)
NVR, Inc. (NVR)
Levitt Corporation (LVT)