Friday, December 10, 2010

Indications: U.S. stock futures edge higher; Tenet in focus

Stock Assault 2.0 - Artificial Intelligence Stock Market Software

By Simon Kennedy, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch) â€" U.S. stock futures edged higher, with Tenet Healthcare Corp. likely to be among the big movers after the company rejected a takeover bid.

S&P 500 futures /quotes/comstock/21m!f:sp\z10 (SPZ10 1,233, +4.20, +0.34%)  rose 2.9 points to 1,230.80 and Nasdaq 100 futures /quotes/comstock/21m!f:nd\z10 (NDZ10 2,200, +0.75, +0.03%)  were up 3.5 points at 2,203.25.

Asia's week ahead

The Bank of Japan's latest quarterly Tankan survey next week is likely to reveal that sentiment among large manufacturers has weakened. MarketWatch's Myra Saefong reports.

U.S. markets ended the day mostly higher on Thursday as a drop in claims for unemployment benefits helped improve sentiment.

The S&P 500 index rose 0.4%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was effectively flat.

Analysts at J.P. Morgan on Friday said they are expecting the S&P 500 to deliver at least a 15% rise over the course of 2011. They set a target for the index of 1,425 by the end of the coming year.

“History suggests an even stronger 20%-plus gain,” said analyst Thomas Lee in a note to clients.

He said the combination of the third year of an expansion and the third year of a presidential term has generated an average return of 20.6% in the past.

On the data front Friday, figures on the October trade balance are due at 8:30 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time, followed by a December consumer-confidence reading once markets are open.

The dollar edged lower, falling 0.3% against the yen to ¥83.566, while the euro rose 0.1% to $1.32593.

Community Health Systems Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!cyh/quotes/nls/cyh (CYH 31.64, -0.11, -0.35%)  said Tenet Healthcare /quotes/comstock/13*!thc/quotes/nls/thc (THC 4.29, +0.03, +0.70%)  has rejected a takeover offer valued at $6 a share of cash and stock, or a roughly 40% premium to Thursday’s closing price.

TODAY'S TOP MARKET STORIES

S&P 500 (1 YEAR)

• Market Snapshot: U.S. stocks in focus • Today's biggest advancing, declining stocks • Sign up for free, breaking-news email alerts

Earnings Watch | Earnings, updates, warnings

THE MARKET BY SECTOR | Industries • Tech Stocks | Energy Stocks | Retail Stocks • Financials | Airline Stocks | Pharma and Biotech

EXPANDED MARKETS NEWS • Bonds | Oil news | Gold news • Currencies | Market Data | Economic Calendar • See all the latest markets video

/conga/story/misc/markets.html 84614

Community Health said the equity value of the offer was $3.3 billion and that the total value would be $7.3 billion including the assumption of $4 billion of debt. See full story on Community Health’s offer.

The offer appears to have become hostile very quickly, said Wells Fargo Securities analysts. They added, however, that Tenet shareholders will find it difficult to walk away from the offer and, with a bidding war unlikely, it likely will be in Tenet’s best interests to accept this offer or a slightly improved one.

Shares in Tenet jumped 47% in premarket trading to $6.30, while Community Health fell 3.6%.

In other deal news, The Wall Street Journal reported that Beckman Coulter Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!bec/quotes/nls/bec (BEC 57.09, -0.34, -0.59%)  has put itself up for sale. The company had a market value of just under $4 billion at Thursday’s closing price and could fetch more than $5 billion in a sale, the newspaper said, citing people familiar with the matter. Shares in the company rose 16% in premarket trading.

In earnings news, National Semiconductor Corp. /quotes/comstock/13*!nsm/quotes/nls/nsm (NSM 14.97, +0.23, +1.56%)  late Thursday reported second-quarter earnings of 34 cents a share, topping the 32 cents-a-share consensus figure. The group’s revenue forecast for the current quarter, however, fell short of expectations.

Standard & Poor’s also announced changes to the composition of its indexes. F5 Networks Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!ffiv/quotes/nls/ffiv (FFIV 138.92, +1.75, +1.28%) , Netflix Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!nflx/quotes/nls/nflx (NFLX 191.05, +2.82, +1.50%)  and Newfield Exploration Co. /quotes/comstock/13*!nfx/quotes/nls/nfx (NFX 70.04, -0.03, -0.04%)  will all move from the S&P MidCap 400 to the S&P 500, replacing The New York Times Co. /quotes/comstock/13*!nyt/quotes/nls/nyt (NYT 9.74, +0.05, +0.52%) , Office Depot Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!odp/quotes/nls/odp (ODP 4.95, -0.08, -1.59%)  and Eastman Kodak Co. /quotes/comstock/13*!ek/quotes/nls/ek (EK 5.31, +0.54, +11.32%) .

Cablevision Systems Corp. /quotes/comstock/13*!cvc/quotes/nls/cvc (CVC 33.36, +0.06, +0.18%)  will also join the S&P 500, replacing King Pharmaceuticals Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!kg/quotes/nls/kg (KG 14.21, 0.00, 0.00%) /quotes/comstock/13*!kg/quotes/nls/kg (KG 14.21, 0.00, 0.00%) , which is being acquired by Pfizer Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!pfe/quotes/nls/pfe (PFE 16.76, +0.04, +0.23%) .

In international markets, European stocks edged mostly higher, while Asian markets ended the day mostly lower. See Europe Markets.

The French CAC 40 index rose 0.1% in midday trading, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 closed down 0.7%.

Simon Kennedy is the City correspondent for MarketWatch in London.

Powered By iWebRSS.com

NYSE Arca Morning Update - 08:30:00 ET

NYSE Arca Morning Update for Friday, Dec 10, 2010 :

STOCKS TRADING ON NYSE Arca AT A PRICE 15% OR MORE AWAY FROM
THE PREVIOUS TRADE DAY'S CONSOLIDATED CLOSE PRICE (AS OF 08:30:00 ET)

Stock Thursday's Close Current Price Pct Change Current NYSE ARCA Vol
THC $4.29 $6.50 51.6% 6,154,047
BEC $57.07 $71.98 26.1% 105,265
ASTM $3.04 $2.52 (17.0%) 21,706
GMCR $37.38 $31.29 (16.3%) 128,408


10 MOST ACTIVE STOCKS ON NYSE ARCA AS OF 08:30:00 ET

BASED ON DOLLARS TRADED: | BASED ON SHARES TRADED:
Stock $ Volume Price PctChg | Stock Share Vol Price PctChg
SPY $48,187,992 $124.24 0.4% | THC 6,154,047 $6.50 51.6%
THC $40,116,683 $6.50 51.6% | C 3,961,000 $4.71 0.6%
NFLX $23,041,029 $199.00 4.2% | BAC 576,024 $12.74 0.9%
C $18,593,817 $4.71 0.6% | STWD 468,699 $19.86 0.6%
QQQQ $11,693,977 $54.31 0.3% | DRYS 404,798 $6.30 4.8%
IWM $9,697,855 $77.13 0.4% | SPY 387,892 $124.24 0.4%
STWD $9,326,949 $19.86 0.6% | CYS 322,684 $12.64 ( 4.2%)
GLD $7,686,593 $135.25 ( 0.1%) | SNH 300,526 $20.56 ( 0.0%)
BEC $7,440,198 $71.98 26.1% | SIRI 254,056 $1.40 0.0%
BAC $7,326,846 $12.74 0.9% | IRE 244,123 $2.98 ( 1.7%)


Price changes may be affected by symbol splits and dividends.

Consolidated close price is the last print (excluding prints with trade
conditions) prior to 4PM ET.

This information is also updated on our web page every morning at 8:35ET:
http://www.tradearca.com/data/volume/daily_update.asp

This material is for informational purposes only.
NYSE Euronext and its affiliates ("NYSE Arca") are not soliciting any action based upon it.
This material is not to be construed as an offer to buy or sell any security in any jurisdiction where such an offer or solicitation would be illegal.
Any opinions expressed in this material are NYSE Arca opinions only.
NYSE Arca undertakes no obligation to update any of the information contained in this material in light of new information or future events.
THIS MATERIAL IS PROVIDED BY NYSE ARCA "AS IS" AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES EXPRESS OR IMPLIED.
NYSE ARCA DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES INCLUDING THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY, TITLE, AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AS TO THIS MATERIAL.
IN NO EVENT SHALL NYSE ARCA BE LIABLE FOR DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OF ANY KIND WHATSOEVER (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, LOST PROFITS, TRADING LOSSES AND DAMAGES THAT MAY RESULT FROM THE USE
OF THIS MATERIAL, ANY DELAY OR INTERRUPTION OF SERVICE OR OMISSIONS OR INACCURACIES IN THE MATERIAL) WITH RESPECT TO THIS MATERIAL.

Copyright [2010] by NYSE Euronext. All rights reserved. Reproduction and redistribution prohibited without prior express consent.

Subscribe to "The $t0ckman" via email

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner