Analyst sees growth in 3Q for Manhattan Associates

Manhattan Associates shares jump after analyst upgrades, sees solid 3Q after tough first half

• On 12:48 pm EDT, Thursday October 15, 2009

SEATTLE (AP) -- Shares of Manhattan Associates Inc. skyrocketed Thursday after an analyst said the software maker seems to have turned the corner after a "miserable" first half.

Raymond James analyst Terry Tillman wrote in a note to investors that license sales hit a 10-year low in the first half, but in the third quarter sales improved. Manhattan Associates provides software and services that help companies manage inventory and supplies.

Shares of the Atlanta-based company jumped $2.87, or 13.7 percent, to $23.75 in early afternoon trading. Earlier, shares touched a 52-week high of $24.

Tillman wrote that increased international business and new customers for demand forecasting and planning tools helped in the quarter. The effects on Manhattan Associates of the broader economic meltdown appear to have subsided, the analyst wrote.

Tillman upgraded the stock to "strong buy" from "market perform" but said he would not raise estimates for the quarter.

"By no means are we sounding the 'all clear' signal," Tillman wrote.