Stock Market Champs..........9-15-06

Cygne Designs Inc. (CYDS)

Last Trade:	4.36
Trade Time:	12:47PM ET
Change:	1.16 (36.44%)

Cygne Designs Swings to a 2nd-Quarter Profit, Helped by Acquisitions

Shares of Cygne Designs Inc. rose Friday, a day after the wholesale women's clothing maker said two acquisitions of denim manufacturers helped it swing to a second-quarter profit.

Shares climbed $1.35, or 42 percent, to $4.55 in midday trading on the Nasdaq. The stock has traded in a 52-week range between $1.84 to $6.74 and declined 36 percent since the beginning of the year.

The New York-based company on Thursday said profit for the quarter ended July 31 rose to $2.4 million, or 9 cents per share, from a loss of $426,000, or 3 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.

Revenue soared to $45.1 million from $4.1 million in the year-ago period.

Most of the boost came from the company's July 2005 acquisition of the branded and private label denim segment of Diversified Apparel Resources LLC and a May 2006 acquisition of the private label denim segment of Innovo Group Inc.

An added benefit of the Diversified Apparel unit acquisition was a resulting improvement in gross margins to 22.1 percent compared to 7.2 percent in the year ago period, the company said.

California Micro Devices Corp. (CAMD)

Last Trade:	5.46
Trade Time:	12:49PM ET
Change:	1.03 (23.25%)

California Micro Devices Inc. raised its second quarter financial outlook Thursday, saying it now expects its revenue to be between $17 million and $18 million.

The Milpitas-based company had initially provided revenue guidance of between $16 million and $17.5 million initial guidance of $16.0 to $17.5 million.

The company said it expects earnings to be between breakeven and a loss of a penny a share, compared to its initial guidance of a loss of a penny to 3 cents a share.

Excluding items, including Santa Clara-based Arques Technology Inc. acquisition costs and employee stock-based compensation expenses, earnings per share are expected to be from 4 cents to 5 cents, compared to initial guidance of 2 cents to 4 cents.

First Marblehead Corp. (FMD)

Last Trade:	59.09
Trade Time:	12:44PM ET
Change:	6.74 (12.87%)

First Marblehead Shares Up on Expected Jump in Advisory Fees Estimate

Shares in First Marblehead Corp. surged to a 52-week high Friday after the education-loan processor said late Thursday it will market a batch of student loans worth 18 percent more than previously announced.

The company anticipates advisory fees of $175 million, or 12 percent of the loan balance. Think Equity Partners had estimated the fees at about $100 million.

First Marblehead buys student loans from lenders and bundles them before selling to investors in the form of a security, booking fees for the service.

The stock, which has traded between $20.89 and $58.26 in the past year, jumped $6.63, or 13 percent, to $58.98 in recent trading on the New York Stock Exchange.

First Marblehead, based in Boston, said it now expects to close on the securitization of $1.39 billion in loans at the end of September, up from $1.18 billion announced last week.

The increase in loans being securitized prompted Friedman Billings Ramsey analyst Matt Snowling to raise his profit estimate for the fiscal first-quarter, which ends Sept. 30, to $1.79 per share from 79 cents per share and boosted his share-price target to $55 from $36.

Last week, Marblehead boosted its quarterly dividend to 15 cents from 12 cents.