Solveig Gas Norway AS is a holding company in which Canada Pension Plan Investment Board has an interest of approximately 40%, Allianz Capital Partners (a subsidiary of Allianz SE) holds 30% and the remaining 30% is held by Infinity Investments SA, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

Formed in 2003, the Gassled joint venture is Norway's integrated gas transportation system and processing facility that distributes most of the gas production on the Norwegian Continental Shelf to consumers on the European continent and in the United Kingdom.

With the completion of the sale, Statoil owns a 5% interest in Gassled and remains the technical service provider. Other joint venture partners in Gassled are Total SA (TOT), ExxonMobil Corporation (XOM), Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A), Norsea Gas, ConocoPhillips (COP), Eni SpA (E), DONG, GDF Suez and RWE Dea Norge.

Statoil plans to redeploy the proceeds raised from the sale of its interest in Gassled into assets which can yield higher rates of return. This reflects Statoil’s continuous effort to increase shareholder value and capital efficiency.

We have a favorable outlook on Statoil’s long-term production growth, given the company’s growing upstream presence in the emerging basins of the Caspian Sea, West Africa and the U.S.deepwater Gulf of Mexico.

Statoil holds a Zacks #3 Rank, which is equivalent to a Hold rating for a period of one to three months. For the long term, we maintain a Neutral recommendation on the stock.

Solveig Gas Norway AS is a holding company in which Canada Pension Plan Investment Board has an interest of approximately 40%, Allianz Capital Partners (a subsidiary of Allianz SE) holds 30% and the remaining 30% is held by Infinity Investments SA, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

Formed in 2003, the Gassled joint venture is Norway's integrated gas transportation system and processing facility that distributes most of the gas production on the Norwegian Continental Shelf to consumers on the European continent and in the United Kingdom.

With the completion of the sale, Statoil owns a 5% interest in Gassled and remains the technical service provider. Other joint venture partners in Gassled are Total SA (TOT), ExxonMobil Corporation (XOM), Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A), Norsea Gas, ConocoPhillips (COP), Eni SpA (E), DONG, GDF Suez and RWE Dea Norge.

Statoil plans to redeploy the proceeds raised from the sale of its interest in Gassled into assets which can yield higher rates of return. This reflects Statoil’s continuous effort to increase shareholder value and capital efficiency.

We have a favorable outlook on Statoil’s long-term production growth, given the company’s growing upstream presence in the emerging basins of the Caspian Sea, West Africa and the U.S.deepwater Gulf of Mexico.

Statoil holds a Zacks #3 Rank, which is equivalent to a Hold rating for a period of one to three months. For the long term, we maintain a Neutral recommendation on the stock.

There are primarily four reasons for this positive outlook: (1) gradual introduction of 4G LTE enabled mobile handsets in the developed markets of the U.S., Japan, and South Korea (2) massive growth of 3G smartphones in the emerging markets, particularly in China, where the company has strong foothold (3) Qualcomm’s growing association with Apple Inc. (AAPL) for its iPhones and iPADs and (4) a diversified product portfolio.However, the stock price has soared nearly 33% in the last six months. We thus reaffirm our Neutral recommendation on the stock.   

Qualcomm has firmly established its leadership position in the high-end smartphone segment. Several analysts have opined that Qualcomm captured market share from its arch rivals, STMicroelectronics N.V. (STM)and Intel Corp. (INTC) in the previous quarter.

Intel’s Infineon chipset was a major supplier to Apple's iPhone. However, it now appears that Qualcomm’s Snapdragon platform has taken the center stage. Apple’s upcoming iPhone 5 and iPAD 3 may become potential growth drivers for the company in near future.

Qualcomm received a shot in its arm from the upcoming Windows 8 operating system of Microsoft Corp. (MSFT). The two entities are collaborating to develop chipsets from Snapdragon platform for notebook and tablets that will use Windows 8 operating system.

In addition, Qualcomm’s Gobi mobile Internet connectivity solutions will provide 3G/4G LTE connectivity to those devices that will run on Windows 8 software. Sanpdragon also supports Windows Phone 7 operating system. Qualcomm is the sole chipset developer for both Windows smartphones and Windows notebooks.

There are primarily four reasons for this positive outlook: (1) gradual introduction of 4G LTE enabled mobile handsets in the developed markets of the U.S., Japan, and South Korea (2) massive growth of 3G smartphones in the emerging markets, particularly in China, where the company has strong foothold (3) Qualcomm’s growing association with Apple Inc. (AAPL) for its iPhones and iPADs and (4) a diversified product portfolio.However, the stock price has soared nearly 33% in the last six months. We thus reaffirm our Neutral recommendation on the stock.   

Qualcomm has firmly established its leadership position in the high-end smartphone segment. Several analysts have opined that Qualcomm captured market share from its arch rivals, STMicroelectronics N.V. (STM)and Intel Corp. (INTC) in the previous quarter.

Intel’s Infineon chipset was a major supplier to Apple's iPhone. However, it now appears that Qualcomm’s Snapdragon platform has taken the center stage. Apple’s upcoming iPhone 5 and iPAD 3 may become potential growth drivers for the company in near future.

Qualcomm received a shot in its arm from the upcoming Windows 8 operating system of Microsoft Corp. (MSFT). The two entities are collaborating to develop chipsets from Snapdragon platform for notebook and tablets that will use Windows 8 operating system.

In addition, Qualcomm’s Gobi mobile Internet connectivity solutions will provide 3G/4G LTE connectivity to those devices that will run on Windows 8 software. Sanpdragon also supports Windows Phone 7 operating system. Qualcomm is the sole chipset developer for both Windows smartphones and Windows notebooks.

South-west of Al-Hassa in the eastern region is the location for one of the new gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) substations, which will help in transmission of an additional 2,000 megawatt (MW) of electricity from a new gas-fired power plant. The plant is being built by an independent power producer adjacent to SEC’s existing Qurayyah power station. 

The project involves construction of six other new distribution substations and development of three existing ones in Riyadh and other cities in the central region.

ABB will conduct the design, supply, installation and commissioning of the new substations. The company will also supply key equipment, such as GIS, transformers, shunt reactors and capacitor banks and a range of solutions including SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) as well as automation, control, protection and communication equipment, which will meet the global IEC 61850 standard.

Based in Zurich (Switzerland), ABB Ltd. is a global provider of power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve performance, while lowering environmental impact. The company operates in approximately 100 countries, structuring its global organization into five regions: Europe, Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. A major competitor of ABB Ltd. is Siemens AG (SI).

Currently, we are maintaining a Zacks #4 Rank (short-term Sell recommendation) on ABB Ltd.

South-west of Al-Hassa in the eastern region is the location for one of the new gas-insulated switchgear (GIS) substations, which will help in transmission of an additional 2,000 megawatt (MW) of electricity from a new gas-fired power plant. The plant is being built by an independent power producer adjacent to SEC’s existing Qurayyah power station. 

The project involves construction of six other new distribution substations and development of three existing ones in Riyadh and other cities in the central region.

ABB will conduct the design, supply, installation and commissioning of the new substations. The company will also supply key equipment, such as GIS, transformers, shunt reactors and capacitor banks and a range of solutions including SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) as well as automation, control, protection and communication equipment, which will meet the global IEC 61850 standard.

Based in Zurich (Switzerland), ABB Ltd. is a global provider of power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve performance, while lowering environmental impact. The company operates in approximately 100 countries, structuring its global organization into five regions: Europe, Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. A major competitor of ABB Ltd. is Siemens AG (SI).

Currently, we are maintaining a Zacks #4 Rank (short-term Sell recommendation) on ABB Ltd.

We remind investors that last month the CHMP recommended against the conditional approval of Folotyn (pralatrexate injection) in the EU. Allos is looking to get Folotyn approved in the EU for treating patients suffering from peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) whose disease progressed after at least one prior systemic therapy.

The European marketing authorisation application, under review since 2010, included data from a phase II study (PROPEL). We note that Folotyn is already available in the US for the PTCL indication. The drug received accelerated approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in September 2009.

We believe that the request for re-examination of the CHMP’s opinion highlights the management’s confidence in the drug. If the drug manages to clear the regulatory hurdles and hit the European markets then it would highly welcome by the patients in the EU since currently there are no approved therapies for relapsed or refractory PTCL there. The company further stated that it along with partner Mundipharma will work closely with the CHMP during the re-examination.

We remind investors that Allos inked a co-development and commercialization deal with Mundipharma in May 2011 for Folotyn. Per the terms of the deal, the sole responsibility of commercializing the drug in the US and Canada lies with Allos. Mundipharma is responsible for commercializing Folotyn in the rest of the world. Mundipharma has already filed marketing applications in countries like Australia, South Korea and Switzerland.

Our Recommendation

Currently, we have a long-term recommendation of Neutral on Allos. We believe that Allos must reduce its dependence on Folotyn and develop additional products to sustain growth. We see limited upside potential until Allos is successful in expanding its product portfolio. The stock carries a Zacks #3 Rank (Hold rating) in the short-run.

We remind investors that last month the CHMP recommended against the conditional approval of Folotyn (pralatrexate injection) in the EU. Allos is looking to get Folotyn approved in the EU for treating patients suffering from peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) whose disease progressed after at least one prior systemic therapy.

The European marketing authorisation application, under review since 2010, included data from a phase II study (PROPEL). We note that Folotyn is already available in the US for the PTCL indication. The drug received accelerated approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in September 2009.

We believe that the request for re-examination of the CHMP’s opinion highlights the management’s confidence in the drug. If the drug manages to clear the regulatory hurdles and hit the European markets then it would highly welcome by the patients in the EU since currently there are no approved therapies for relapsed or refractory PTCL there. The company further stated that it along with partner Mundipharma will work closely with the CHMP during the re-examination.

We remind investors that Allos inked a co-development and commercialization deal with Mundipharma in May 2011 for Folotyn. Per the terms of the deal, the sole responsibility of commercializing the drug in the US and Canada lies with Allos. Mundipharma is responsible for commercializing Folotyn in the rest of the world. Mundipharma has already filed marketing applications in countries like Australia, South Korea and Switzerland.

Our Recommendation

Currently, we have a long-term recommendation of Neutral on Allos. We believe that Allos must reduce its dependence on Folotyn and develop additional products to sustain growth. We see limited upside potential until Allos is successful in expanding its product portfolio. The stock carries a Zacks #3 Rank (Hold rating) in the short-run.

Fourth Quarter Highlights

Quarterly net revenue was approximately $13,496.7 million, down 21% year over year but was above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $13,407 million. Quarterly net loss was approximately $1286.9 million or a loss of 39 cents per share compared with net income of $1,192.5 million or 27 cents per share in the prior-year quarter.

However, adjusted (excluding special items) EPS of 8 cents in the reported quarter beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a couple of cents.

Quarterly adjusted operating income was approximately $644.8 million, down 56% year over year. Adjusted operating margin in the fourth quarter was 4.8% compared with 8.6% in the year-ago quarter. In the fourth quarter of 2011, Nokia shipped 19.6 million smart devices and 93.9 million Mobile Phones, down 31% and 1% year over year, respectively.

Agreements of Analysts

Of the 19 analysts covering the stock in the last 7 days, none moved the EPS estimate upward for the first and second quarter of fiscal 2012 but three revised the estimate downward for the same periods.

Likewise, for fiscal 2012, out of the 24 analysts covering the stock in the last 7 days, none increased the EPS estimates, though seven analysts decreased them. Similarly, for fiscal 2013, in the last 7 days, out of the 16 analysts covering the stock, none moved the EPS estimate upward, however, two analysts moved in the opposite direction.

Such bearish stance adopted by the analysts suggests that they are apprehensive about the success of the newly launched Windows-based Lumia smartphones.

Currently, the Zacks Consensus EPS Estimate for the first quarter of fiscal 2012 stands at break-even, which indicates a loss of 100.93% year over year. Similarly, for the second quarter of fiscal 2012, the Zacks Consensus EPS Estimate of 3 cents reflects a loss of 63.16%.

Likewise, for fiscal 2012, Zacks Consensus EPS Estimate is pegged at 24 indicating a loss of 37.83%. However, for fiscal 2012, Zacks Consensus EPS Estimate stands at 43 cents, reflecting a profit of 83.07%.

Magnitude of Estimate Revisions

In synergy with the downward revision of estimate, in the last 7 days, the current Zacks Consensus Estimate for first and second quarter 2012 was just a penny below the previous estimate of 1 cent and 4 cents per share, respectively.

Likewise, for fiscal 2011 and 2012, the current Zacks Consensus Estimates were 5 cents and 2 cents below the earlier estimate of 29 cents and 45 cents, respectively.

Earning Surprises

With respect to earnings surprises, the company’s consistent track record in the last four quarters is expected to persist in the coming quarters. In the last quarter, Nokia produced an earnings surprise of 2 cents or 33.33%.

The ongoing quarter and the second quarter of fiscal 2012 contains an upside potential of 0.00% (essentially a proxy for future earnings surprises). However, fiscal 2012 and 2013 reflects a downside risk of 8.33% and 4.65% respectively.

Our Recommendation

Continuous loss of market share coupled with stiff competition from Android-based smartphones and Apple Inc’s (AAPL) iPhones are headwinds for the company.

However, increased shipments of Nokia’s dual-sim handsets in the emerging nations and aggressive cost reduction process implemented by the company will act as catalysts for growth going forward.

We thus maintain our long-term Neutral recommendation for Nokia. Currently, Nokia has a Zacks#3 Rank, implying a short-term Hold rating on the stock.

About Earnings Estimate Scorecard

Len Zacks, PhD in mathematics from MIT, proved over 30 years ago that earnings estimate revisions are the most powerful force impacting stock prices. He turned this ground breaking discovery into two of the most celebrating stock rating systems in use today. The Zacks Rank for stock trading in a 1 to 3 month time horizon and the Zacks Recommendation for long-term investing (6+ months). These “Earnings Estimate Scorecard” articles help analyze the important aspects of estimate revisions for each stock after their quarterly earnings announcements. Learn more about earnings estimates and our proven stock ratings at: http://www.zacks.com/education/

Fourth Quarter Highlights

Quarterly net revenue was approximately $13,496.7 million, down 21% year over year but was above the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $13,407 million. Quarterly net loss was approximately $1286.9 million or a loss of 39 cents per share compared with net income of $1,192.5 million or 27 cents per share in the prior-year quarter.

However, adjusted (excluding special items) EPS of 8 cents in the reported quarter beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a couple of cents.

Quarterly adjusted operating income was approximately $644.8 million, down 56% year over year. Adjusted operating margin in the fourth quarter was 4.8% compared with 8.6% in the year-ago quarter. In the fourth quarter of 2011, Nokia shipped 19.6 million smart devices and 93.9 million Mobile Phones, down 31% and 1% year over year, respectively.

Agreements of Analysts

Of the 19 analysts covering the stock in the last 7 days, none moved the EPS estimate upward for the first and second quarter of fiscal 2012 but three revised the estimate downward for the same periods.

Likewise, for fiscal 2012, out of the 24 analysts covering the stock in the last 7 days, none increased the EPS estimates, though seven analysts decreased them. Similarly, for fiscal 2013, in the last 7 days, out of the 16 analysts covering the stock, none moved the EPS estimate upward, however, two analysts moved in the opposite direction.

Such bearish stance adopted by the analysts suggests that they are apprehensive about the success of the newly launched Windows-based Lumia smartphones.

Currently, the Zacks Consensus EPS Estimate for the first quarter of fiscal 2012 stands at break-even, which indicates a loss of 100.93% year over year. Similarly, for the second quarter of fiscal 2012, the Zacks Consensus EPS Estimate of 3 cents reflects a loss of 63.16%.

Likewise, for fiscal 2012, Zacks Consensus EPS Estimate is pegged at 24 indicating a loss of 37.83%. However, for fiscal 2012, Zacks Consensus EPS Estimate stands at 43 cents, reflecting a profit of 83.07%.

Magnitude of Estimate Revisions

In synergy with the downward revision of estimate, in the last 7 days, the current Zacks Consensus Estimate for first and second quarter 2012 was just a penny below the previous estimate of 1 cent and 4 cents per share, respectively.

Likewise, for fiscal 2011 and 2012, the current Zacks Consensus Estimates were 5 cents and 2 cents below the earlier estimate of 29 cents and 45 cents, respectively.

Earning Surprises

With respect to earnings surprises, the company’s consistent track record in the last four quarters is expected to persist in the coming quarters. In the last quarter, Nokia produced an earnings surprise of 2 cents or 33.33%.

The ongoing quarter and the second quarter of fiscal 2012 contains an upside potential of 0.00% (essentially a proxy for future earnings surprises). However, fiscal 2012 and 2013 reflects a downside risk of 8.33% and 4.65% respectively.

Our Recommendation

Continuous loss of market share coupled with stiff competition from Android-based smartphones and Apple Inc’s (AAPL) iPhones are headwinds for the company.

However, increased shipments of Nokia’s dual-sim handsets in the emerging nations and aggressive cost reduction process implemented by the company will act as catalysts for growth going forward.

We thus maintain our long-term Neutral recommendation for Nokia. Currently, Nokia has a Zacks#3 Rank, implying a short-term Hold rating on the stock.

About Earnings Estimate Scorecard

Len Zacks, PhD in mathematics from MIT, proved over 30 years ago that earnings estimate revisions are the most powerful force impacting stock prices. He turned this ground breaking discovery into two of the most celebrating stock rating systems in use today. The Zacks Rank for stock trading in a 1 to 3 month time horizon and the Zacks Recommendation for long-term investing (6+ months). These “Earnings Estimate Scorecard” articles help analyze the important aspects of estimate revisions for each stock after their quarterly earnings announcements. Learn more about earnings estimates and our proven stock ratings at: http://www.zacks.com/education/