Updating NCR CORP., ABB LTD. and FPL GROUP INC.

Article Excerpt

NCR CORP. $10 (New York symbol NCR; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Shares outstanding: 159.2 million; Market cap: $1.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.4; WSSF Rating: Average) will cut 2,200 jobs, or 10% of its workforce, by the end of this year. Because of the recession, banks are buying fewer of its automated teller machines (ATMs). As well, retailers have cut spending on new cash registers. The layoffs should help NCR cut its annual costs by up to $250 million by the end of 2011. If you exclude severance and other unusual costs, NCR earned $30 million, or $0.19 a share, in the third quarter of 2009. That’s down 67.4% from $92 million, or $0.55 a share, a year earlier. Sales fell 17.7%, to $1.1 billion from $1.4 billion. Despite the slower sales, the long-term outlook for ATMs remains strong, particularly in China and India. As well, demand for new technologies, such as self-serve check-out terminals and kiosks, should rise. That’s…