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Wall Street's daily picks
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May 6, 1999: 2:42 p.m. ET
Retailers American Eagle, Goody's earn favor, but Descartes gets censure
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Wall Street analysts revised their ratings of the following companies, according to remarks issued Thursday by estimate tracker First Call Corp.
The retail sector came under the magnifying glass as analysts picked through the morning's barrage of April sales figures. Two clothing chains, American Eagle Outfitters and Goody's Family Clothing, got upgrades after reporting stronger-than-expected sales improvement.
Goody's (GDYS) was "very pleased" with its sales growth, which was "well above plan." In particular, the company had expected same-store sales to decline by 10 percent from last year, leaving analysts pleasantly surprised by a slight increase.
As a result, Goody's raised its first-quarter earnings forecast to about 22 cents per share, about double previous estimates, and Southwest Securities raised its rating on the stock to "buy" from "accumulate." Shares edged up 3/8 to 10-1/2.
American Eagle (AEOS) was more restrained in its press release, simply stating that overall sales climbed 35.2 percent in April from a year ago, while same-store sales rose 16.9 percent. As a result, one of the analysts polled by Boston-based First Call, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Thomson Financial, raised his recommendation of the stock to a consensus "strong buy" from "buy."
Another of the day's significant upgrades came in the health-care management sector. PacifiCare Health (PHSYB) earned high marks from an analyst polled by First Call, getting a "strong buy" nod after reporting Wednesday that overall strong performance lifted first-quarter profits to $1.61 per share.
The figure far surpassed analysts' expectations of $1.28 per share, boosting the stock 13-15/16 or more than 17 percent, in Wednesday trading. On Thursday, investors took some profits, pushing PacifiCare shares down 3-13/16 at 90.
On the downgrade side, Canadian e-commerce software provider Descartes Systems (DSGX) earned the wrath of Piper Jaffray, which lowered its stock outlook to "neutral" from "buy." Descartes confessed that it will report a significant first-quarter loss due to "slippage of large orders."
Shares plunged 1-23/32, losing more than a quarter of their value, to 6-3/4.
Finally, PlayByPlay Toys (PBYP), which manufactures stuffed animals and novelty pillows, blamed restructuring and shaky economic conditions in Latin America for its warning of soft profits ahead. The company said it will report a loss of about 17 cents per share, but Wall Street had expected a profit of 9 cents.
As a result, Dain Rauscher knocked the stock's rating to "neutral" from "buy," while shares tumbled 7/8 to 5-3/8. 
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