HEADLINE STOCKS-U.S. stocks to watch on March 3
NEW YORK, March 3 (Reuters) - Some U.S. stocks to watch on Tuesday:
ADVANCED MICRO DEVICES (AMD.N)
The company closed a deal to spin off its manufacturing operations, and named Bruce Claflin chairman. The plants that make AMD's chips are now part of a new company, a joint venture with Advanced Technology Investment. The new company has a total enterprise value of about $4.3 billion, including debt. [ID:nN02433513]
Shares of Advanced Micro Devices rose 9.5 percent to $2.20 in premarket trade.
TRINA SOLAR (TSL.N)
The solar power company reported a fourth-quarter loss, hurt by weaker prices for solar modules. It also said sales volume would fall in the first quarter. [ID:nN03340762]
Shares of Trina closed Monday at $5.96.
CITIGROUP (C.N)
Citigroup is looking to create joint ventures with third parties as a way of getting rid of businesses it doesn't want, the New York Post reported on Tuesday, citing high-level insiders at the bank.
The bank is looking to strike partnerships with non-core assets like CitiFinancial, CitiMortgage, Primerica, and its private-label credit card business, the paper reported.
Such partnerships could be similar to what Citigroup
arranged when it combined its Smith Barney unit with Morgan
Stanley's (MS.N) wealth management unit, giving Morgan Stanley
51 percent control of the venture, the New York Post wrote.
[ID:nL3234775]
Shares of Citigroup, a Dow component, rose 12 cents to $1.32 in premarket trade on Tuesday.
JPMORGAN CHASE & CO (JPM.N)
JPMorgan generated $5 billion in profits during a turbulent year for Wall Street and financial stocks by trading over-the-counter fixed-income derivatives, according to a Bloomberg report, which cited two people with knowledge of the results.
As of Sept. 30, Bloomberg wrote, JPMorgan held $87.7 trillion worth of outstanding OTC contracts, more than the next two banks-- Bank of America (BAC.N) and Citigroup (C.N)-- combined.
JPMorgan hasn't disclosed earnings for its interest-rate swap, municipal bond and foreign exchange derivatives group, the agency reported, adding that the division was among JPMorgan's most profitable. [ID:nBNG470183]
Shares of JPMorgan rose 2.6 percent to $21.70 in premarket trade.
COMPASS MINERALS INTERNATIONAL (CMP.N)
German fertilizer company K+S AG is considering a bid for Compass, said a source familiar with the matter.
According to London's The Daily Telegraph newspaper, K+S was planning a cash bid of $2.4 billion for the company, and plans an initial offer of $78 a share. Based on Compass's Monday closing price of $56.02, $78 a share would represent a premium of 39.2 percent.[ID:nL38885]
Shares of Compass gained 8.9 percent to $61 in premarket trade.
BLACKSTONE GROUP (BX.N)
Stephen Schwarzman, the chief executive of Blackstone, saw his pay fall 99 percent in 2008, a year when the private-equity firm posted a loss of $1.33 billion.
Schwarzman received a base salary of $350,000 in the year, with no cash compensation. [ID:nBNG41276]
Shares of Blackstone closed Monday at $4.77.
EAGLE BULK SHIPPING INC (EGLE.O)
Eagle Bulk reported quarterly profit in line with analysts' consensus view, as time charter revenue more than doubled. [ID:nBNG385395]
Shares of the company closed at $3.15 Monday on Nasdaq. They rose 14.29 percent after market close to $3.60.
PDL BIOPHARMA INC (PDLI.O)
Drug developer PDL BioPharma Inc (PDLI.O) swung to a
fourth-quarter profit, helped by higher royalties from its
licensed products. [ID:nBNG494088]
Shares of the company closed at $5.59 Monday on Nasdaq. They rose 13.60 percent after market close to $6.35. (Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by James Dalgleish)
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