05 expected Stocks Sees 2009 operating EPS 4

"If politicians keep making mistakes it's going to last longer and longer."(Reporting by Neil Chatterjee; Editing by Tomasz Janowski) Hot Stocks China. ) Let's wind the clocks back exactly 15 months to the day, when it was first reported that power forward Elton Brand would sign a contract with the Philadelphia 76ers rather than the Los Angeles Clippers. Just three days prior, point guard Baron Davis had verbally agreed to leave the Golden State Warriors to sign with the Clippers, due in large part to a recruitment effort from Brand himself.The news of Brand's spurning of the Clips was stunning, especially considering he had opted out of the final year of his contract (worth $16.4 million) so that the Clippers could use the money to help build a better team around him.Then, on the first day possible, they did exactly what he had wanted them to do in signing Davis (five years, $65 million). Pairing Brand and Davis would give the Clippers one of the more potent inside-outside duos the league had to offer.Combine them with young players like incoming rookie Eric Gordon, second-year forward Al Thornton, and serviceable center Chris Kaman, and the "other" Los Angeles team is suddenly looking quite formidable.However, Brand stunningly elected to ink a five-year deal with Philadelphia worth around $80 million on July 10, 2008. It was rumored that the Clippers were offering a contract very similar to the one he ultimately signed with Philadelphia. Clippers head coach Mike Dunleavy blamed Brand's agent, David Falk, for Brand backing out on his word and moving east. Dunleavy claims that, for whatever reason, Falk has something against the Clippers, and was quietly urging Brand to move elsewhere.Falk then accused Dunleavy of illegally contacting Brand without going through the agent first, an apparent violation of the league's collective bargaining agreement.On the court, each player's first season with his respective new team was anything but overwhelming.Davis, playing in his hometown of Los Angeles for the first time since his brief college stint with UCLA, played in just 65 games last season, averaging about 15 points and eight assists per game for a Clippers team that went just 19-63. Brand's season was cut very short by a severe shoulder injury he suffered last December, when he was flipped onto his shoulder after being undercut by Milwaukee's Luc Richard Mbah a Moute. Even though his Sixers went on to make the playoffs, Brand played in just 29 games, which means he's played in just 37 NBA games in the past two seasons combined. Brand's departure caused Dunleavy (also the Clippers' GM) to make a horrid move in the middle of the season, acquiring power forward Zach Randolph from the Knicks to help fill the vacancy left by Brand only months before. While Randolph is productive on paper (he averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds last season), he's a terrible locker room influence, a black hole in the post, and has a ridiculous contract paying him $16 million this coming season and $17 million in 2010-11. Why is Brand's departure now a good thing for the ClippersTheir 19-63 record in 2008-09 was terrible enough to land them the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 Draft, which they used to take Oklahoma's Blake Griffin.Griffin, 20, has great size for a power forward at 6'10", has insane athletic ability, and should be a force in the paint for the next decade and more.He's strong, is a phenomenal rebounder, and his athleticism should help him become a decent shot-blocker at the NBA level.So, instead of having a perhaps-decent playoff-caliber team with a semi-injury-prone guy over 30 entering the second year of his lucrative contract, the Clippers now have a talented, younger roster featuring a 20-year-old physical beast with perhaps more upside than any big man in the league today.In the end, getting Randolph was a great move for Dunleavy and his Clippers.What better way to tank a team than to bring in Zach RandolphAfter landing Griffin in the draft, Dunleavy was able to pawn Randolph and his contract off onto the NBA's worst executive, Memphis' Chris Wallace. Los Angeles acquired the expiring contract of Quentin Richardson in return, and then turned around and shipped him off to Minnesota in exchange for Craig Smith, Sebastian Telfair, and Mark Madsen. Telfair is likely to be the backup point guard to Davis, and Smith gives the Clippers more beef up front.Madsen was waived in August.So, will the Clippers be contenders this seasonIt's unlikely that the Clippers will be able to make much noise this season in the loaded Western Conference, but things are certainly looking up.If Griffin turns into the player most think he will be, the Clippers will have a dangerous post threat for years.They'll be pairing him with perhaps the league's most-underrated rookie from last season, shooting guard Eric Gordon.The sharpshooting Gordon averaged 16 points per game last season while shooting a stellar 39 percent from beyond-the-arc.Unfortunately, nobody heard about him because he was playing on a 19-win team.So, instead of having an inside-out combo of two 30-plus year-old guys earning a combined $145 million, Los Angeles now has an inside-out combo of two 20-year-old guys earning about $120 million less.Reportedly, Davis has come into training camp in the best physical shape he's been in in years and has vowed not to duplicate last year's horrible showing.These Clippers likely won't be a playoff team this year, but if they can keep their core together, they will certainly be a team to be reckoned with down the road. . Q4 operating EPS $1.08 vs $1.05 expected Stocks Sees 2009 operating EPS $4.20 to $5.20 Says Q1 will be weakest quarter "by far" (Adds comparisons with estimates, forecast) NEW YORK, Jan 26 (Reuters) - Diversified manufacturer EatonCorp (ETN.N) reported a lower quarterly profit on Monday, amidthe ongoing downturn in North American car and truck marketsand a decline in earnings in its aerospace and hydraulicsunits, but the results beat Wall Street estimates.

Net income fell to $163 million, or 98 cents per share,from $256 million, or $1.71 per share, a year earlier. On an operating basis, fourth-quarter earnings fell to$1.08 a share, which was 3 cents higher than analysts hadexpected, according to Reuters Estimates. Revenue rose 3 percent to $3.5 billion, below estimates of$3.64 billion. Eaton said it expected its first quarter will have by farthe weakest earnings of the year, affected by plant shutdowns,and estimated full-year operating profit of $4.20 to $5.20 pershare. Analysts on average are expecting Eaton to earn $4.57 ashare in 2009. (Reporting by Euan Rocha and Nick Zieminski; Editing by LisaVon Ahn) Stocks. (Reuters) - Caterpillar Inc reports Q4 earnings per share $1.08 on record sales and revenues for 2008.Highlights: Sees FY 2009 earnings per share $2.50 excluding items Q4 revenue rose 6 percent to $12.92 billion Sees FY 2009 sales $40 billion Says taking assertive action to respond to the global recession and a loweroutlook for 2009 Says initiated actions which will remove about 20,000 workers from business Says planning for 2009 sales and revenue to be in range of plus or minus 10percent from $40 billion Says worldwide employment was 112,887 at the end of 2008, up 11,554 from ayear ago Cat financial Q4 revenues $661 million Sees very weak year for world economy, continued declines in commodity pricesand industry declines in all regions Says 2009 will be the weakest year for economic growth in the postwar period Says expect US to be first major economy to pull out of recession, sometimein H2 2009 Says hiring freezes and suspension of salary increases for most support andmanagement employees Says significant reductions in total compensation for executives / seniormanagers Sees significant declines in all geographic regions in most industries Says actions include reduction in indirect expenses of about 15 percent Sees 2009 profit to drop significantly from 2008 Says profit in H1, and particularly Q1, will be under severe pressure Says voluntary and involuntary separations and layoffs of about 4,000full-time production employees Says actions include elimination of almost 8,000 temporary, contract andagency workers Says actions include layoffs or separations of as many as 5,000 support andmanagement employees Sees charge for redundancy costs about $500 million for year, with most of itcoming in Q1 Says actions include voluntary separations of about 2,500 support andmanagement employees Says temporarily put stock repurchase program on hold Says actions include significant reduction in capital expenditures Reuters Estimates Q4 earnings per share view $1.28, revenue view $11,966.13million Reuters Estimates FY 2009 earnings per share view $4.16, revenue view$44,093.79 million.

But since the rush attack is operating smoothly, the defense is competing at an elite level, and they're facing the Oakland Raiders, there isn't much sense in rushing Manning back.Still, he wants to play, and is likely going to be a game-time decision. Regardless of his status, there remains the decent chance that he wouldn't even finish the game, so he doesn't make a great fantasy option this week. Roy Williams Doubtful For Dallas in Week FiveWilliams didn't practice Friday, and with Miles Austin eager to show he has starterability, it's likely Dallas doesn't try to rush him back.He could have a nice day against a weak Kansas City secondary if he did play, but all signs point to him sitting out week five. Look for Austin and possibly even Sam Hurd to put up decent numbers as Tony Romo and the rest of the passing attack look to bounce back. Matt Hasselbeck Likely to Face JaguarsHasselbeck has been a regular at practice all week and has reportedly "looked good". That sounds awesome, but a three-week absence and a return behind Seattle's sketchy pass-blocking doesn't bode too well for fantasy owners testing Hasselbeck out this week.The Jacksonville Jaguars pass defense can be had, but you should worry more about Hasselbeck's rust and protection rather than his upside at this point.Regardless of how he performs, however, he's still an upgrade over Seneca Wallace, and we could see a huge rise to John Carlson's value, as well as some attention taken away from the running game. Joseph Addai Listed as Questionable For ColtsAddai practiced on Friday but is stilllisted as questionable as he gears up for the Tennessee Titans' tough run defense.This might be a good week to try for some help at RB, anyways. Donald Brown could figure to get a lot of touches, and with his ability to make things happen on the outside, is probably the better start of the two Colts backs, regardless of Addai's status. Jerricho Cotchery Could Miss Monday Night GameThis would be bad news for Mark Sanchez and the passing offense, while it could be fantastic news for Braylon Edwards owners.Sanchez lost his third favorite target in Chansi Stuckey to Cleveland, and losing Cotchery to injury before Monday could severely hamper the Jets' passing attack.This could mean the Jets rely even more on their running game than usual, but it also almost guarantees that we'll see a lot of Braylon Edwards in his New York debut. Correll Buckhalter Ruled Out For Sunday's GameThis means Knowshon Moreno gets his first official start in Denver's backfield, and it also likely means he'll get almost all the carries.Expect Peyton Hillis and Lamont Jordan to fight for a few touches, but this could be Moreno's coming-out-party.However, the matchup with a surprisingly solid New England defense may not equate to elite fantasy production.Looking for more fantasy advice Go here.. Our rivals from Boston aren’t doing so hot For once, that makes me a little upset.

I’m not saying that I’m scared of the Yankees facing the Angels in the ALCS, but I would certainly prefer them playing the Red Sox Why For one, it’s more exciting. Two, the Yankees have won nine of their last 10 against the BoSox. Three, the Angels have always been the kryptonite to the Yankees.But don’t count the Red Sox out of this series. They get two games at Fenway before heading back to LA, and they have overcome this deficit in the ALDS before.According to MLB ’s Ian Browne, “Since 2003, the Red Sox are 13-3 in potential elimination games.” Not too shabby. This article is also featured on lenNY's Yankees. ) Ohio (-3.5) 29 AKRON 20Over/Under Total: 52.003:00 PM Pacific Time Saturday, Oct-10Ohio is a pretty good team. The Bobcats are 3-2 with their two losses being by a combined 8 points to Connecticut and Tennessee.