Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day Highlights: Ambarella, AGL Resources, SIRIUS XM Radio, Pandora Media and Liberty Media

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Apr 04, 2013, 09:30 ET

CHICAGO, April 4, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Zacks Equity Research highlights Ambarella (Nasdaq:AMBA ) as the Bull of the Day and AGL Resources (NYSE:GAS ) as the Bear of the Day. In addition, Zacks Equity Research provides analysis on SIRIUS XM Radio Inc. (Nasdaq:SIRI), Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE:P) and Liberty Media Corp. (Nasdaq:LMCA).

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Full analysis of all these stocks is available at http://at.zacks.com/?id=2678.

Here is a synopsis of all five stocks:

Bull of the Day:

Ambarella (Nasdaq:AMBA ) is a semiconductor company that makes the chips that allow cameras to capture high definition video. Analysts have started to get better clarity into the earnings outlook for the company and have increased their estimates. Today, this Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) stock is the Bull of the Day.

Recent trading action has also made this stock incredibly attractive. After touching $16.00 on April 1, this stock has seen a significant consolidation. Giving back another 10% on April 3 makes the current level that much more attractive to investors.

Ambarella went public to very limited fanfare in October of 2012. Originally priced between $9 -$11 per share, the investment bankers moved the price to $6 even though they only sold 6 million shares. The stock opened at $6.71 so it was an instant 10%+ success for those who participated.

Those who sold soon there after didn't see the bigger picture. With the stock trading around $15, its up about 150% from the IPO price.

Bear of the Day:

AGL Resources (NYSE:GAS ) has produced a negative earnings surprise in each of the last two quarters and is set to report the March quarter in early May. Last year they missed that quarter too, and as a result, the stock is a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell) and is the Bear of the Day.

Since December 2012, earnings estimates for GAS have been moving lower. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2013 stood at $3.00 in December and then ticked slightly lower the $2.99 in January 2013. An early February earnings report was responsible for the largest move, as estimates tumbled to $2.64. March saw the estimates tick lower again and they now sit at $2.61. That is a decline of 13%.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2014 has also seen some reductions, though not quite as stiff. The chart below shows an 8.6% decline from the December 2012 level to the present.

AGL Resources distributes natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and governmental customers in Illinois, Georgia, Virginia, New Jersey, Florida, Tennessee, and Maryland. The company owns approximately 80,000 miles of underground distribution and transmission mains.

Latest Posts on the Zacks Analyst Blog:

SIRIUS XM Down to Underperform

We downgrade our recommendation on SIRIUS XM Radio Inc. (Nasdaq:SIRI) to Underperform. The company reported mixed financial results for the fourth quarter of 2012. While net earnings barely met the Zacks Consensus Estimate, revenue fell below the same.

Why the Downgrade?

SIRIUS XM forecasted that its growth rate of net subscriber addition will be reduced in 2013. The company added more than 1.66 million Self-Pay subscribers in 2012. However, it is not expected to add more than 1.6 million Self-Pay subscribers in 2013. Similarly, SIRIUS XM generated more than 2 million net new subscribers in 2012, whereas the company is likely to add a mere 1.4 million net new subscribers in 2013.

Meanwhile, the stock price of SIRIUS XM has soared by more than 73% in the last year and is currently trading at the high-end of its 52-week price range. We believe that the company's growth rate will slow down in 2013 and consequently its valuation metrics should converge to the S&P 500. SIRIUS XM currently has a Zacks Rank #5 (Strong Sell).

Other Concerns

SIRIUS XM is largely dependent on the growth of the U.S. auto industry and at present holds an estimated 70% market share of the new cars sold in the face of growing competition from Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE:P) and Spotify. Therefore, even a minor fluctuation of autosales may significantly affect the company's overall financials.

Further, SIRIUS XM lost the legal battle to counter the takeover bid from Liberty Media Corp. (Nasdaq:LMCA), which currently controlsmore than 50% of the company. We do not know whether there will be any change in management policy after the takeover.

Get the full analysis of all these stocks by going to http://at.zacks.com/?id=2649.

About the Bull and Bear of the Day

Every day, the analysts at Zacks Equity Research select two stocks that are likely to outperform (Bull) or underperform (Bear) the markets over the next 3-6 months.

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