Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Nissan Motor Co., General Motors Corp., Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc., First Solar, Inc. and AK Steel Holding Corp.

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Here are highlights from Monday's Analyst Blog:

Nissan Motors Stays a Sell

Nissan Motor Company (Nasdaq: NSANY | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) manufactures and sells about 3.5 million cars and commercial vehicles annually in more than 190 countries. The company's major production sites are located in Japan, with additional facilities located in the U.S. and elsewhere. Some of its key brands include Altima, Sentra, Maxima, Quest, Pathfinder, Xterra, Frontier, Titan, and its luxury brand, Infiniti.

The company anticipates a 29.5% drop in earnings for fiscal 2008. Thus, we rate the stock a Sell with a target price of $11.50.

GM in Trouble Without a Bailout

Weak North American sales, falling production volumes and rising raw material costs are increasing our concerns for the General Motors (NYSE: GM | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) stock. Significant incentives to stimulate sales and keep inventories lean are eating into margins.

Furthermore, GM sales are hampered by poor resale values. The company is at a disadvantage compared to its competition owing to huge pension and health care costs. These issues compel us to rate the shares a Sell with a six-month target price of $7.

Waddell & Reed May Be Pricey

Waddell & Reed's (NYSE: WDR | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) 2Q08 net income came in at $0.42 per diluted share, two pennies ahead of our estimate as well as that of consensus.

The positive surprise resulted from the improvement in the operating margin, supported primarily by higher management fees. Assets under management grew 29.9% year-over-year with 134.2% growth in overall sales (net of commissions). After reviewing the results and considering the ongoing concerns with the financial sector as a whole, we are slightly moderating our FY08 and FY09 earnings estimates.

First Solar Shines a Way Forward

First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq: FSLR | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) designs, manufactures, and sells solar electric power modules using a proprietary thin-film semiconductor technology. It sells its products to project developers, system integrators, and operators of renewable energy projects primarily in Europe. First Solar also focuses on designing and deploying commercial solar projects for utilities in the United States.

ITT Educational Services is currently selling at 20 times trailing 12-month EPS, reflecting the company's revenue and earnings growth profile. Revenues have grown at a 13% five-year compound annual growth rate. Over the last few years, the stock has traded in a wide P/E range of 16 to 40. The target price is $90.75, which is an 18 P/E multiple on trailing twelve month earnings.

AK Steel Solid to Build On

As a large percentage of AK Steel's (NYSE: AKS | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) sales come from the automotive sector, its steel volumes are inextricably linked to this industry. The steel products include aluminum-coated stainless steel, coil-coated steel, cold-rolled coated steel, electrogalvanized steel, hot-dipped galvanized steel, and hot-rolled steel. The company's steel products are also consumed by the industrial machinery and equipment as well as construction sectors.

We believe the company will gain from new projects, higher selling prices, and increased shipment. We reiterate the Buy rating and retain our six-month target price of $35.

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