Advanced Battery (NASDAQ:ABAT) Margins Should Widen in Fourth Quarter

After figures from the third-quarter were released, it appears margins for Advanced Battery Technologies (NASDAQ:ABAT) are poised to rise in the fourth quarter and forward, as operating expenses were lowered at the company.

Olympia Capital Markets said, "We are lowering our operating expense expectations in light of the third quarter figures. On that basis, we are raising our EPS estimates for the fourth quarter from $0.12 to $0.16, for the full year 2010 from $0.44 to $0.53, and for full year 2011 from $0.52 to $0.60. We continue to believe the shares would be reasonably priced at 10 times estimated 2011 earnings plus its current cash position, now $1.06 per share."

A "Buy" rating is maintained on Advanced Battery by Olympia, which closed Tuesday at $4.02, falling $0.03, or 0.74 percent. Olympia has a price target of $7 on them raising it from $6 a share.

Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) Should Generate New Subscribers with Streaming

Now that Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) has seriously entered the streaming market, Needham & Company sees them generating new subscribers for the business, which shouldn't do much as far as cannibalization goes, although there is bound to be a small percentage involved.

Needham, which maintains a "Hold" rating on Netflix, said, "Netflix announced a streaming-only subscription plan and raised the prices on its combination by-mail and streaming plans. The streaming-only option should enable the company to add new subscribers who have no interest it its by-mail subscription plan. We continue with 2010 and 2011 estimates of $2.85 and $4.55 respectively. We also continue with a hold rating solely for valuation reasons."

Netflix closed Tuesday at $187.71, falling $0.61, or 0.32 percent. Trading volume was up over 30 percent on the day from its 3-month average.

Pacific Sunwear (NASDAQ:PSUN) Needs Wider Margins, Stronger Sales

Noting Pacific Sunwear of California (NASDAQ:PSUN) has improved their product line and store environment, Needham still sees them as weak until they can generate sustainably wider margins and consistent sales.

Needham, which maintains a "Hold" rating on Pacific, said, "At -0.4x P/sales and -1.6x P/book, respectively PSUN is trading significantly below the sector averages of 1.1x and 2.7x. While we agree both store environment and merchandise assortment has begun to improve at PacSun, the Junior’s business continues to struggle. We would like to see more evidence that a margin recovery is underway or stronger sales momentum, before we become more positive on the stock. We no longer think that liquidity is a concern, given the availability of credit and ability to generate cash, even on depressed sales levels."

Pacific closed Tuesday at $5.95, dropping $0.32, or 5.10 percent. Trading volume was almost double the 3-month daily average.