(Updates to afternoon trade; adds Bank of New York, Bank of
America, Human Genome, Savient)
NEW YORK, June 12 (Reuters) - Some U.S. stocks to watch on
Friday:
BLACKROCK INC (BLK.N)
The company has agreed to buy Barclays Global Investors in
a $13.5 billion deal. [ID:nLC391915]
Shares of BlackRock fell 4.4 percent to $174.54 while
Barclays ADRs slid 4.1 percent to $19.09.
BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON (BK.N)
The U.S. Federal Reserve has ended an enforcement action
against the bank launched in April 2006 over safeguards against
money laundering. [ID:nN12270467]
Shares fell 1.6 percent to $28.49.
BANK OF AMERICA CORP (BAC.N)
The company is expected to repay all TARP money by early
2010, wrote Stifel Nicolaus, which upped its price target on
the stock to $22 from $18. [ID:nBNG419549]
Shares of the Dow component gained 6.3 percent to $13.78.
RAMBUS INC (RMBS.O)
The chip designer agreed to cut its royalties in order to
settle charges brought by the European Commission, according to
the European Union Official Journal. [ID:nLC53738]
Shares soared 14 percent to $17.21.
PFIZER (PFE.N)
The company's experimental oral drug could prove a cheaper
and more convenient alternative to costly anti-TNF biotech
treatments, medical experts said. [ID:nLB807537]
Shares of the Dow component rose 2 percent to $14.92.
HARTFORD FINANCIAL SERVICES GROUP INC (HIG.N)
Shares of the insurance company fell 8.3 percent to $12.91
after it said it would take $3.4 billion of federal bailout
money. It also plans to sell as much as $750 million of common
stock. [ID:nN12541266]
HUMAN GENOME SCIENCES INC (HGSI.O)
The stock fell 10 percent to $2.86 after Lazard Capital
Markets downgraded it to sell arguing there was low probability
of the company's lupus drug succeeding. [ID:nBNG494428]
SAVIENT PHARMACEUTICALS INC (SVNT.O)
Shares soared 56 percent to $9.24 after the Food and Drug
Administration said the company's proposed gout drug Krystexxa
appeared to be effective. [ID:nN12547133]
CATERPILLAR INC (CAT.N)
Goldman Sachs removed the company from its conviction sell
list, saying an expectation for higher oil prices "reduces
downside risk for Caterpillar's mining and oil & gas
business."
Shares of the Dow component fell 1.1 percent to $37.20.
PAYCHEX INC (PAYX.O)
Shares of Paychex fell 3.9 percent to $27.21 after Goldman
Sachs added the company to its Americas Conviction Sell list.
"Into fiscal year 2010 we expect Paychex shares to
underperform given continued pressure from limited new sales,
declining checks-per-client, increased client attrition, and
limited pricing leverage," the firm wrote.
LEGG MASON INC (LM.N)
A unit of the money manager, along with bond company
Pacific Investment Management Co and billionaire Gerald J.
Ford, are looking at ways to buy up banks' toxic loans,
according to a report in the New York Post. [ID:nBNG399435]
Shares of Legg Mason fell 2 percent to $23.74.
MICROSOFT CORP (MSFT.O)
The software company plans to ship the newest version of
its Windows operating system in Europe without its Internet
Explorer web browser, countering pressure from European
regulators. [ID:nN11506625]
Separately, Citi raised its price target on the stock by $5
to $28. [ID:nBNG422756]
Shares of the Dow component rose 0.5 percent to $22.95.
AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL GROUP INC (AIG.N)
The insurer promised to repay taxpayers with any funds won
at a trial with Starr International, a company controlled by
former CEO Maurice Greenberg. [ID:nN11525054]
Shares fell 1.9 percent to $1.58.
HOKU SCIENTIFIC INC (HOKU.O)
The company reported a narrower fourth-quarter loss but
said it may not be able to continue as a going concern over the
next 12 months. [ID:nBNG449926]
The stock sank 27 percent to $3.13.
ARCSIGHT INC (ARST.O)
The provider of security and compliance management software
posted a quarterly profit that topped market estimates but
forecast a weak first quarter. [ID:nBNG326300]
Shares rose 2.8 percent to $18.57.
IMMUNOGEN INC (IMGN.O)
The drugmaker is discontinuing further internal development
of its experimental gastric-cancer drug, IMGN242, citing slow
progress. [ID:nBNG344807]
Shares sank 1.8 percent to $8.11.
EZCORP INC (EZPW.O)
The pawn and payday lender cut its full-year profit
outlook, citing lower-than-expected demand for its loan
products and previously owned merchandise in the United States.
[ID:nBNG350286]
Shares fell 14 percent to $11.09.
(Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by James Dalgleish)
