Home Builder Stocks at Highest Point in 2 Years After 6-Month Rise

Excerpt from an article in

The New York Times

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Home Builder Stocks at Highest Point in 2 Years After 6-Month Rise

By CHRISTINE HAUSER

After a bullish report on housing at a late summer investment conference in Dallas, the officials at Federated Investors decided to sink a few million dollars into the shares of the home builder Lennar.

Philip J. Orlando, Federated’s chief equities market strategist, was hoping for a return of 20 percent to 30 percent, confident in an improving jobs market and upticks in housing construction and sales data.

Like many other stocks in the home building industry, Lennar surged, nearly doubling in price.

Home builder stocks are at their highest level in two years, with the Standard & Poor’s index of 11 home builder stocks rising 80 percent since October, the most recent low for the industry.

Investors looking to ride the wave from the last six months, however, may be too late. Home builder shares typically increase before the spring and summer home-selling season. And while housing reports have shown some improvement in recent months, data this week has been mixed. A report on Wednesday showed that the sales of existing homes declined slightly in February, while median sales prices rose for the first time in more than a year.

Optimism About Year Ahead

News release from General Electric:

31 January 2012

Construction Equipment Dealers Optimistic About Year Ahead, GE Capital Survey Reveals

77% of respondents say the best time to increase inventory levels is first half

IRVING, TX – Construction equipment dealers are looking forward to improving trends in 2012 while acknowledging the challenges facing the industry, according to survey results released today by GE Capital, Dealer Finance.

Forty percent of respondents said they expect sales to increase 3%-5% this year, while 25% said they expect sales to increase 6%-8%. A full 77% said the best time to increase inventory is within the first half of 2012.

At the same time, 57% cited slack demand for new construction – both residential and commercial – as the biggest hurdle that construction equipment distributors have to overcome this year.

Slightly more than half of respondents said improvement in the U.S. economy will have the greatest impact on the construction industry. The other important factors affecting the industry are access to credit for end users (23%) and reauthorization of the federal highway spending bill (20%).

When asked what single category of construction equipment they believe will be in greatest demand this year, 37% cited earthmoving equipment and 23% cited specialty equipment such as pavers, compactors, drills, crushers and grinders.

The full survey results are available here:http://www.gelending.com/misc/Construction_Flash_Survey_Results_1-12.pdf

To stay on top of developing trends, participants can sign up for GE Capital’s Construction Industry Research Monitor here:http://www.americas.gecapital.com/insights-ideas/industry-research-monitor

“We’re dedicated to helping our customers be successful,” said Kristi Webb, commercial leader of GE Capital, Dealer Finance. “In addition to financing, we provide construction industry insights and expertise to help dealers and end-users tackle their biggest challenges so they can thrive in the year ahead.”

The Construction Equipment Distributor Survey of 65 respondents was conducted Jan. 18-19, 2012. Respondents included a variety of construction industry participants.

About GE Capital, Dealer FinanceGE Capital’s Dealer Finance business provides commercial leases and loans ranging from $5,000 to $25 million for the wholesale and retail financing of equipment to thousands in North America in over 12 industries. With long-term relationships and dedicated channel support, Dealer Finance works with small, medium and large enterprises as well as state and local governments. From web-based application submittals to online account management, its dedicated industry professionals bring knowledge and expertise to every relationship.

GE Capital offers consumers and businesses around the globe an array of financial products and services. For more information, visitwww.gecapital.com or follow company news via Twitter (@GECapital).

GE (NYSE: GE) works on things that matter. The best people and the best technologies taking on the toughest challenges. Finding solutions in energy, health and home, transportation and finance. Building, powering, moving and curing the world. Not just imagining. Doing. GE works. For more information, visit the company's website at www.ge.com.

Energy Department Spurs Small Modular Nuclear Reactors

News release from the U.S. Dept. of Energy:

Energy Department Takes First Step to Spur U.S. Manufacturing of Small Modular Nuclear Reactors

January 20, 2012 

Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Energy today announced the first step toward manufacturing small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs) in the United States, demonstrating the Administration’s commitment to advancing U.S. manufacturing leadership in low-carbon, next generation energy technologies and restarting the nation’s nuclear industry.  Through the draft Funding Opportunity Announcement announced today, the Department will establish cost-shared agreements with private industry to support the design and licensing of SMRs.

“America’s choice is clear - we can either develop the next generation of clean energy technologies, which will help create thousands of new jobs and export opportunities here in America, or we can wait for other countries to take the lead,” said Energy Secretary Steven Chu. “The funding opportunity announced today is a significant step forward in designing, manufacturing, and exporting U.S. small modular reactors, advancing our competitive edge in the global clean energy race.”

Small modular reactors, approximately one-third the size of current nuclear plants, have compact designs that are expected to offer a host of safety, siting, construction and economic benefits. Specifically, they could be made in factories and transported to sites where they would be ready to “plug and play” upon arrival, reducing both capital costs and construction times. The small size also makes SMRs ideal for small electric grids and for locations that cannot support large reactors, providing utilities with the flexibility to scale production as demand changes.

The draft Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) announced today solicits input from industry in advance of a full FOA, which will support first-of-a-kind engineering, design certification and licensing through a cost-shared partnership. The full FOA will fund up to two SMR designs with the goal of deploying these reactors by 2022.

Today’s announcement comes on the heels of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s certification of Westinghouse Electric’s AP1000 nuclear reactor design, which was supported through a cost-shared agreement with the Energy Department. The Department’s efforts, in coordination with the NRC and private industry, have helped American companies lead the way in obtaining certification and licensing approvals for new reactor designs, which will further streamline these processes for future investments in the U.S. nuclear industry.

For more information on SMRs, please visit the Office of Nuclear Energy website.