Carter's Inc (CRI)

Carter's Inc (CRI) - Gerrick Johnson at BMO Capital Markets

And other firms are investigating the situation, according to press releases. The two complaints already filed accuse Carter's officers and directors of violating the Securities Exchange Act by issuing false and misleading statements about financial results, which artificially inflated stock prices. After Carter's announced it would have to restate about four years of earnings, the stock price plunged in value. Shares declined nearly 24 percent and the company lost more than $350 million of market capitalization, said the law firm Barrack, Rodos & Bacine of Philadelphia. Analyst Gerrick Johnson with BMO Capital Markets said the suits were not unexpected, as the stock dropped due to "something the company had control over," as opposed to something driven by consumer tastes.  

Carter's Inc (CRI) - Margaret Whitfield at Sterne Agee

Smallcap Carter's slumped 10.2 percent to $21.58 after the children's clothing retailer said it would restate some historical results for periods beginning in 2004. For details, see [ID:nBNG493568] Credit ratings agency Moody's subsequently placed Carter's on review for a possible downgrade. "The restatement and the filing of the 10 Q may be weeks away, hopefully in December, but it could possibly drag into the New Year," said Margaret Whitfield, senior analyst at Sterne Agee & Leach. Whitfield said, however, that Carter's "underlying business is quite healthy and that the issues related to the mark down accommodations which may involve restatements detract from what is going on with the company overall." 

Carter's Inc (CRI) - Margaret Whitfield at Sterne Agee

The review, by the audit committee and outside counsel, is in progress. Carter's, based in Atlanta, plans to restate financials as soon as possible. "We've initiated a dialogue with the SEC and informed them of this review," said CEO Michael D. Casey. "In addition, we are improving internal controls and management processes to help reduce risks inherent in this component of our business going forward." Sterne Agee analyst Margaret Whitfield said in a note to investors that the restatement and review could result in a change in top management, since Casey, the CEO, was CFO during the time in question. In addition, activist shareholders could seek management change or a change in control, or even interest from private equity or strategic buyers. 

Carter's Inc (CRI) - BMO Capital Markets

, Analysts at BMO Capital Markets initiate coverage of Carter Holdings (CRI) with an "outperform" rating.  

Carter's Inc (CRI) - Addison Wiggin at Contrarian Stock Market Investing News

Is Barack Obama the Next Jimmy Carter? (Part One) Could America be headed for a replay of the 1970s? More specifically, could America's much feted president wind up as the next Jimmy Carter?  

Carter's Inc (CRI) - Benjamin Rowbotham at Goldman Sachs

Shares of Carter's Inc rose on Thursday after an analyst upgraded the stock from "sell" to "neutral" saying improvement at OshKosh will help carry the company through the first half of the year. Shares rose 58 cents, or 3.6 percent, to $16.52 in afternoon trading Thursday. On Tuesday the Atlanta-based retailer, which operates its namesake stores and OshKosh, posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter sales. Goldman Sachs (nyse: GS - news - people ) analyst Benjamin H. Rowbotham wrote in a note to clients that the fourth-quarter results marked two straight quarters of improvement at OshKosh in both retail and wholesale, "increasing our confidence in the trajectory of management's turnaround efforts."  

Carter's Inc (CRI) - Ian Fogg at Forrester Research

The first point to make here - as noted by Forrester analyst Ian Fogg - is that while universal broadband access is a worthy aim, setting such a low speed bracket smacks of a "lowest common denominator" approach to broadband delivery. Far from future-proofing the national network, Carter's strategy is one that looks more like getting by on barebones. While it might be enough in the short term, were it to be magically deployed overnight, in four years' time - the date set by Carter for achieving universal access - speed and bandwidth requirements will only have increased. Getting more people fast internet access inexorably leads to increased use of web apps and services, which in turn will fuel the need for speed. Carter said the government's thinking on not even setting a floor of 2Mbps is there may be parts of the UK where it would be prohibitively expensive to even ensure a 2Mbps connection, and he likened this to the wiggle room given to utility companies - saying, essentially, a glass of water in London is not the same as a glass of water in another part of the UK but they are both drinkable.