STOCKS NEWS US-Bernanke: community finance hurt by recession

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1120 ET 17June2009-Bernanke: community finance hurt by recession
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U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday said that
specialized lenders that play an important role in low income communities have
been pummeled by the recession and must look beyond their traditional sources
of funding to stay healthy.

"The Federal Reserve recognizes that these financial flows are critically
important for many low- and moderate-income communities," he said, adding that
many institutions had seen loan defaults rise and earnings fall.

For details, see [ID:nWBT011378]

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
1059 ET 17June2009-June VIX settlement value stands at 31.03
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Wednesday's session marks the settlement of June futures and options on the
CBOE Volatility Index .VIX. The VIX dipped 0.64 percent to 32.47 in a
departure from its typical inverse relationship with the underlying S&P 500
index .SPX. The S&P 500 was off 0.48 percent to 907.58.

June VIX futures settled at 31.03, a level off which June VIX options will
be priced at expiration, according to the CBOE website. July VIX futures sat at
33.00, higher than the spot level with August to October futures just above a
32 reading.

Reuters Messaging: doris.frankel.reuters.com@reuters.net
1033 ET 17June2009-Netflix advances after analyst comments, Blockbuster down
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Shares of Netflix Inc (NFLX.O) advanced on Wednesday after positive
comments from analysts.

Wedbush Morgan upgraded the online movie renter to "buy" from "hold,"
citing "compelling" valuation and saying the company could continue to deliver
earnings growth through subscriber additions and margin expansion.
[ID:nBNG193240]

Separately, Citi affirmed its "buy" rating and $52 price target on the
stock, saying Netflix "is one of the sector's most economically defensive
stocks" and has "one of the sector's strongest fundamental outlooks."

Shares of Netflix rose 4.5 percent to $39.54, while peer company
Blockbuster Inc (BBI.N) tumbled 2.6 percent to 76 cents.

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
1022 ET 17June2009-U.S. Bancorp 1st big bank to repay TARP
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U.S. Bancorp (USB.N) said on Wednesday it was repaying $6.6 billion in U.S.
government bailout funds, becoming the first large bank to do so. It also
applied to buy back a 10-year warrant for its common stock issued to the
government as part of the original bailout.

Several other big banks are also expected to make repayments on Wednesday.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) has said it will do so, and a person familiar
with the situation said Morgan Stanley (MS.N) also would. Both banks received
$10 billion from the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).

For details, see [ID:nN17333227]

Separately, Deutsche Bank upgraded U.S. Bancorp to "buy" from "hold" on
Wednesday, saying the shares "are cheaper than they initially seem once we
account for likely large amounts of excess capital within a few years and
positive book value growth (vs. declines at most banks)."

Shares of U.S. Bancorp slid 1.6 percent to $17.57.

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
1015 ET 17June2009-Molecular Insight rallies on Trofex comments
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Shares of Molecular Insight Pharmaceuticals Inc (MIPI.O) soared on
Wednesday, a day after it said its imaging agent, Trofex, had the potential to
both detect and treat metastatic prostate cancer.

On Tuesday, the company said two of its Trofex compounds rapidly detected
metastatic prostate cancer lesions in soft tissues and bone.

For details, see [ID:nBNG53811]

The stock soared 36 percent to $5.96.

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net