Midday movers: Merck, United, SuperValu
Stocks pare earlier losses but remain down despite a drop in initial jobless claims. SVU tanks nearly 50%.
Investors begin to focus their attention on the upcoming bank earnings, with JP Morgan (JPM) and Wells Fargo (WFC) due to report prior to the open Friday.
Merck (MRK) shares rose $1.73, or 4.20%, to $42.93 after the company said it was ending a trial of its treatment for post-menopausal patients with osteoporosis early because the results were so favorable. Following the announcement, Citigroup upgraded Merck to a "buy" and raised its price target on shares to $50 from $34.
Procter & Gamble (PG) moved up over 4% on indications that activist investor Bill Ackman's Pershing Square may have taken a significant position in the stock.
United Continental (UAL) confirmed an order to purchase 150 Boeing (BA) 737 airplanes. Boeing gained about 0.5%, while United dropped nearly 4%.
Among the notable gainers Thursday are Affymax (AFFY), up 16%, after signing a supply agreement with Takeda Pharmaceuticals, and Fastenal (FAST), up 7%, after its earnings beat consensus.
Among the noteworthy losers are SuperValu (SVU), down 45%, after its Q1 results missed expectations and the company said it was suspending its dividend and reviewing its strategic alternatives, and Calix (CALX), down over 20%, after the company announced preliminary results far below its previous guidance.
MORE ON MSN MONEY
DATA PROVIDERS
Copyright © 2013 Microsoft. All rights reserved.
Quotes are real-time for NASDAQ, NYSE and AMEX. See delay times for other exchanges.
Fundamental company data and historical chart data provided by Thomson Reuters (click for restrictions). Real-time quotes provided by BATS Exchange. Real-time index quotes and delayed quotes supplied by Interactive Data Real-Time Services. Fund summary, fund performance and dividend data provided by Morningstar Inc. Analyst recommendations provided by Zacks Investment Research. StockScouter data provided by Verus Analytics. IPO data provided by Hoover's Inc. Index membership data provided by SIX Financial Information.
Japanese stock price data provided by Nomura Research Institute Ltd.; quotes delayed 20 minutes. Canadian fund data provided by CANNEX Financial Exchanges Ltd.
STOCK SCOUTER
StockScouter rates stocks from 1 to 10, with 10 being the best, using a system of advanced mathematics to determine a stock's expected risk and return. Ratings are displayed on a bell curve, meaning there will be fewer ratings of 1 and 10 and far more of 4 through 7.
127 | 269 | 463 | 588 | 658 | 616 | 643 | 431 | 263 | 138 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
LATEST POSTS
All hail the bull market, which ended the week with a big rally. But it also is starting to look a little like 1987, which suffered an epic blow-out.
FIDELITY VIEWPOINTS
- How to sell covered calls - Fidelity Investments
- Savvy year-end tax moves to consider now - Fidelity Investments
- Seven ways to prepare for tax changes
- Five reasons an annual review is crucial - Fidelity Investments
- Take a look at mid caps now - Fidelity Investments
- State of the sector: Health care - Fidelity Investments
VIDEO ON MSN MONEY
ABOUT
Top Stocks provides analysis about the most noteworthy stocks in the market each day, combining some of the best content from around the MSN Money site and the rest of the Web.
Contributors include professional investors and journalists affiliated with MSN Money.
Follow us on Twitter @topstocksmsn.