Diana Shipping, Inc.

Consensus estimates continue to climb higher for Diana Shipping, Inc. ( DSX - Snapshot Report ) . The consensus earnings estimate for this year is up three cents to $1.71 over the past week, while profit forecasts for next year have risen six cents to $2.02 over the same period of time. Two analysts upped their estimates for both this year and next. DSX, which was last featured as a Value stock on Mar 29, has soared over 65%. Read our Mar 29 analysis.

Updates to Previous Value Zacks Rank Buy Stocks

On Jul 16, the Board of Directors at Tidewater, Inc. (TDW) authorized a new share repurchase program in which the company is entitled to spend up to $200 million to buy back shares of its common stock. TDW bought back a total of 2,560,500 of its common shares during the period Jul 28, 2006 through Jun 30, 2007. Chairman, President and CEO stated, "We have been very pleased with the financial performance of our company and believe that continuing the repurchase of our shares at attractive prices is a very proactive and sound use of the company's financial resources. Our strong balance sheet and positive operating environment provides us the financial means to both reinvest in building or procuring new vessels for our fleet and return value to our shareholders." Read our May 8 analysis.

The Board of Directors at Barnes Group, Inc. (B) declared a quarterly cash dividend of 14 cents per share. The dividend is payable on Sep 10 to shareholders of record as of Aug 31. The company has distributed a cash dividend to shareholders on a continuous basis since 1934. B is currently yielding 1.67%. Read our May 16 analysis.

On Jul 20, Whirlpool (WHR) reported second-quarter profits of $2.00 per share. With analysts calling for $1.83, the company surprised by 9.3%. The result also marked a 58.7% year-over-year improvement. Revenues climbed 3% from a year ago to $4.85 billion. WHR has now topped the Street's estimate in 10 straight quarters, including double-digit percentage surprises for the past five. Read our May 1 analysis.

Last Week’s Value Zacks Rank Buy Stocks

Consensus earnings estimates for Excel Maritime Carriers, Ltd. (EXM) have been on the rise over the past 30 days. The Board of Directors recently commenced a quarterly common stock dividend policy of 20 cents per share. EXM is currently yielding 2.47%. The company has a price-to-book ratio of 1.9, compared to 4.8 for the market and 2.3 for the industry. Read the full analysis of EXM.

OM Group, Inc. (OMG) recently announced that it expects to reach consolidated revenues of $2 billion to $4 billion by the year 2010. Consensus earnings estimates for both this year and next year have experienced sizeable jumps over the past 30 days. The company has a price-to-book ratio of 1.9, compared to 4.8 for the market and 2.6 for the industry. Read the full analysis of OMG.

Consensus earnings estimates have been on the rise for Bank of Montreal (BMO). BMO has returned value to its shareholder base through both dividend distributions and share buybacks. The company has a current dividend yield of 3.66% and a five-year average dividend yield of 3.21%. BMO has a price-to-book ratio of 2.5, compared to 4.8 for the market and 2.8 for the industry. Read the full analysis of BMO.

Eaton Corporation (ETN) exceeded analysts’ earnings expectations in 14 out of the past 16 quarters. The company recently boosted its full-year outlook by 30 cents for both its net income per share and operating earnings per share. Consensus estimates have risen over the past seven days. Earnings per share are projected to grow 10% over the next 3-5 years. ETN has a price-to-book ratio of 3.4, compared to 4.8 for the market. Read the full analysis of ETN.