US HOT STOCKS: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, 3PAR, Actuate, Delta
Shares of mortgage-finance companies Fannie Mae (FNM,
$1.26, +$0.21, +20.00%) and Freddie Mac (FRE, $1.55, +$0.29, +23.02%) gained
Monday. Late last week reports surfaced that the U.S. Treasury Department has
agreed to provide Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac with as much capital as they need
over the next three years. The companies were placed in government
conservatorship in 2008.
3PAR Inc. (PAR, $11.41, +$1.13, +10.99%) gained after
Barron's said the company's strong data-security business could make it a
takeover target for a big player. 3PAR's finances are in good shape, and it's
been picking up some impressive customers, Barron's said.
A Korean-led consortium on Sunday won a landmark
contract, valued at about $20.4 billion, to build four nuclear reactors in the
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Roth Capital raised its stock-investment rating on
Actuate Corp. (ACTU, $4.52, +$0.51, +12.72%), a provider of an enterprise
reporting application platform worldwide, to buy from hold. The analysts said
that since the company's third-quarter earnings report the stock has lost a
quarter of its value, creating what the firm believes is an "exceptionally
attractive" risk-reward entry point.
Airlines declined Monday, including AMR Corp. (AMR,
$7.93, -$0.21, -2.58%), UAL Corp. (UAUA, $12.81, -$0.28, -2.14%) and Delta Air
Lines Inc. (DAL, $11.41, -$0.36, -3.06%). Passengers are now facing tighter
security after a Nigerian man on a Northwest Airlines flight from
Amicas Inc. (AMCS, $5.35, +$0.93, +21.04%) entered a
$217 million deal to be bought by private-equity firm Thoma Bravo LLC as that
industry continues a recent spate of buyouts. Amicas Chairman and Chief
Executive Stephen Kahane said Monday the buyout will provide the maker of
radiology, medical-imaging and information-management products with
"additional capital and operational expertise" that will help it to
grow.
Compugen Ltd. (CGEN, $5.61, +$1.53, +37.50%) unveiled
a new drug target for multiple epithelial tumors, or carcinomas, which the
drug-development company said could lead to improved cancer treatments.
B. Riley raised its stock-investment rating on teen
retailer Hot Topic Inc. (HOTT, $6.49, +$0.28, +4.51%) to buy from neutral. The
analysts said they think some recent downgrades on the stock to sell were ill
timed, especially since the shares were already beaten down.
Radware Ltd. (RDWR, $15.00, +$0.78, +5.49%) raised its
fourth-quarter guidance amid continued sales and margin improvements, the
Israeli maker of networking products reported.
China-based vaccine maker Sinovac Biotech Ltd. (SVA,
$6.62, +$0.37, +5.95%) has filed an application with Chinese officials to begin
human clinical trials of its vaccine to treat hand, foot and mouth disease, a
viral illness common in infants and children that doesn't have specific
treatment. Sinovac said it expects
Tower Bancorp Inc. (TOBC, $22.29, -$0.26, -1.15%) will
buy First Chester County Corp. (FCEC, $9.53, +$4.03, +73.27%) for about $65
million in stock, which is a significant premium to the fellow Pennsylvania
bank's closing price, saying the deal would immediately add significantly to
earnings and double Tower's size.
Biopharmaceutical development company Vical Inc. (VICL,
$3.35, +$0.60, +21.82%) said a safety panel gave its metastatic melanoma
treatment a positive review and recommended that late-stage trials continue.
Source: abcnews.go.com