CHICAGO, Jan. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Zacks.com Analyst Blog features: BP Plc (NYSE: BP), Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX), ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), Syneron Medical Ltd. (Nasdaq: ELOS) and Cutera Inc. (Nasdaq: CUTR).

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Here are highlights from Monday's Analyst Blog:

BP Joins Hands With Russian Oil Company

BP Plc (NYSE: BP) and Russia's state-operated oil company, Rosneft, entered into a share-swap agreement, which allows the two companies to jointly explore and develop parts of the Siberian Artic, a highly prospective region. The deal is likely to close shortly pending certain listing approvals and completion of some administrative prerequisites.

Under the agreement, the U.K. oil giant will offer 5% of its ordinary shares, valued at $7.8 billion, in exchange for 9.5% of Rosneft's shares. In the initial exploration phase, the companies are expected to spend around $1.4 billion to $2 billion on seismic tests and drilling wells. Notably, while Rosneft will benefit from BP's technology, the latter should gain access to significant upstream reserves.

The alliance will finally allow BP access to explore hydrocarbon reserves in the remote Arctic belt of Russia. The deal includes three license blocks, EPNZ 1, 2, 3, covering approximately 125,000 square kilometers in a prolific area of the South Kara Sea, part of the Arctic Ocean off the northern coast of Siberia. The region is also expected to match UK's North Sea with respect to size and prospectivity.

Russia, with a daily output of more than 10 million barrels of oil, holds the world's top position. The Arctic region, by itself, is expected to have a reserve potential of 51 billion tons of oil, enough to cover worldwide oil demand for four years or more. Consequently, the deal enables BP, which already owns 1% of Rosneft, to strengthen its position in the Russian hydrocarbon reserve, which was previously off limits to foreign companies.

We see this latest deal as BP's yet another endeavor to fight the oil spill aftermath. BP already holds an advantageous position in Russia as compared with other western oil companies like Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) or ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), through its 50-50 joint venture, TNK-BP, with a group of Russian billionaire businessmen. Russia already represents around a quarter of BP's total production.

In the wake of rising global oil demand, we see the UK oil major as benefiting from this long-term, strategic alliance with the world's largest hydrocarbon-producing nation. But the deal is attracting some negative responses from the U.S. political field, with a few members of Congress raising national security concerns. It remains to be seen if those initial concerns would translate into more scrutiny of the deal.

We are maintaining our long-term Neutral recommendation on the stock. BP currently retains a Zacks #3 Rank, which translates into a short-term Hold rating.

Syneron Bags FDA Clearance

Syneron Medical Ltd. (Nasdaq: ELOS), a worldwide aesthetic products company, recently announced that it has been granted 510(k) clearance by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market its latest Tanda Light Emitting Diode ("LED") to be utilized for skin rejuvenation.

The new skin rejuvenation system is authorized to treat rhytides, wrinkles and lines in the periorbital region (surrounding the eye). The company expects to commercialize the system in the second half of the current year, in both the consumer and professional segments.    

According to Syneron, its new Tanda Professional Rejuvenate red light home use instrument is a useful addition for customers who seek to cut down on wrinkles around the eyes with sophisticated home light source. This technology provides a safe treatment option for dermal rejuvenation, which effectively enhances collagen production while enhancing dermal moisture. The company believes that its new system will expand the indications for its Tanda LED technology.

The Tanda skin rejuvenation system joins the Tanda line of products from the former Pharos Life Corporation (a producer of home-use light therapy devices for aesthetic procedures), which was acquired by Syneron last month. This device uses an in-house luminous LED array that provides concentrated streams of light for fractional phototherapy effect.

This highly luminous LED enables the new Tanda system to deliver five-times more power than the existing Tanda line of products, thereby cutting down the requisite number of treatments to two each week. The system builds upon the modular design of the Tanda group of products.

Syneron (founded in 2000) markets Tanda products, directly to customers, through premium retailers. Its product line-up includes items for skincare for both the home-use and professional segments. The company markets and supports its products in about 90 nations.

Syneron offers a comprehensive aesthetic product portfolio and a global distribution setup. Its knowledge allows medical practitioners provide sophisticated solutions for a wide range of aesthetic requirements such as wrinkle reduction, hair removal and body contouring. Syneron markets its products under two brands, Syneron and Candela.  It competes with Cutera Inc. (Nasdaq: CUTR) among others.

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