24/7 Wall St. » WEN

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (F, WYNN, COF, BP, SYNC, CHTR, HL, OMX, THC, WEN, RST, PDC, AOL, CTL, AGU, DTG, M, MPEL, NWS, CSCO, TSLA, TM, PCLN, FOSL, DNDN, AVL)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 08 May 2012 20:07:27 +0000

The major US stock indexes opened sharply lower this morning as weak performance in the European markets as traders try to figure out what last weekend’s elections mean. Crude oil was also sharply lower this morning. The three major indexes have all come back from losses greater than -1% in the afternoon, but still look set to finish the day down at least -0.5%. The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.14% at 79.716. The GSCI commodity index is down fractionally at 652.27, with commodities mixed on the slightly stronger dollar. WTI crude oil closed down -1% at $97.01/barrel and Brent crude trades down -0.23% at $112.90/barrel. Gold settled down -2.1% today, at $1,604.5/ounce, after briefly falling below $1,600/ounce earlier in the day.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down more than 76 points to 12,932.01 (-0.59%), the NASDAQ fell more than 11 points (-0.39%) to 2,946.27, and the S&P 500 fell -0.43% or nearly 6 points to 1,363.71.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) maintained as ‘buy’ with a target price of $19 at Argus; Wynn Resorts Ltd. (NASDAQ: WYNN) maintained ‘outperform’ with a target price of $166 at Credit Suisse; Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE: COF) raised to ‘hold’ at Argus; BP plc (NYSE: BP) cut to ‘underweight’ at Barclays; and Synacor Inc. (NASDAQ: SYNC) cut to ‘underperform’ at BofA/ML.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR) is down up 5.5% at $65.24 after posting a new 52-week high of $66.18 earlier today (more coverage here); Hecla Mining Co. (NYSE: HL) is up 4.1% at $4.04 (more coverage here); OfficeMax Inc. (NYSE: OMX) is up 10.5% at $4.85; Tenet Healthcare Corp. (NYSE: THC) is up 1.4% at $5.11; The Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ: WEN) is down -4.3% at $4.66 (more coverage here); Rosetta Stone Inc. (NYSE: RST) is up 18.4% at $12.64; and Pioneer Drilling Co. (NYSE: PDC) is up 5.5% at $8.03.

On Wednesday we are scheduled to get earnings from AOL Inc. (NYSE: AOL), Agrium Inc. (NYSE: AGU), CenturyLink Inc. (NYSE: CTL), Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. (NYSE: DTG), Macy’s Inc. (NYSE: M), Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (NASDAQ: MPEL), News Corp. (NASDAQ: NWS), Cisco Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: CSCO), Tesla Motors Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA), Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM), and priceline.com Inc. (NASDAQ: PCLN).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Fossil Inc. (NASDAQ: FOSL) is down -36.8% at $79.50. The fashion accessories company revealed a weak forecast today. More coverage here.

Dendreon Corp. (NASDAQ: DNDN) is down -24.6% at $8.81. The drug maker’s earnings were not as strong as expected. More coverage here.

Avalon Rare Metals Inc. (AMEX: AVL) is down -24% at $1.67 after posting a new 52-week low of $1.58 earlier today. The rare earths miner is delaying a feasibility study. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Wednesday. Cleveland Fed President Sandra Pianalto and Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser are giving speeches. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

10:00 a.m. – Wholesale trade report
10:30 a.m. – EIA weekly petroleum status report
1:00 p.m. – 10-year note auction

Paul Ausick

Filed under: General, HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AGU, AOL, AVL, BP, CHTR, COF, CSCO, CTL, DNDN, DTG, F, FOSL, HL, M, MPEL, NWS, OMX, PCLN, PDC, RST, SYNC, THC, TM, TSLA, WEN, WYNN

No Beef in Wendy’s Results (WEN, MCD, YUM, CMG, JACK)

Paul Ausick — Tue, 08 May 2012 12:32:24 +0000

The Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ: WEN) reported first quarter earnings this morning and managed to post another profit — barely. The company reported adjusted EPS of $0.01 versus a consensus estimate of $0.03. Revenue totaled $593.2 million, higher than a year ago, but below the estimate of $608.4 million. What will demolish shares today is Wendy’s reduction in its full-year outlook.

Competitors McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD), Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM), and Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) have already reported quarterly results, with Yum and Chipotle Mexican Grill raising their outlooks rather than lowering them. Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ: JACK), which reports later this month, is expected to post higher profit on slightly lower sales.

Wendy’s saw its margins drop from 13.4% a year ago to 11.8% this year, “due primarily to the impact from higher commodity costs — especially for fresh beef — and the impact from unfavorable product mix.” Commodity costs are what they are, and every restaurant faces the same issue, but having the wrong products is a management issue.

The company plans to fix that by remodeling its stores:

We are allocating substantial resources toward restaurant development, marketing, product innovation and customer service initiatives that we believe will ultimately accelerate sales growth, enhance the quality of our store base and grow our worldwide presence over time.

The key word there is “ultimately.” Will investors give the company the time it will need to make all those changes? And will the changes actually deliver on the promises?

The company closed a net 13 stores in the first quarter, bringing its worldwide total of locations to 6,581, only 354 of which are outside North America. Wendy’s also said that it “continues to target more than 8,000 locations outside North America.” The question is whether or not the company waited too long to look for growth overseas.

In the pre-market this morning, Wendy’s shares are down about -2.5% at $4.75 in a 52-week range of $4.29-$5.62.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Earnings, Food, Pre-Market Activity Tagged: CMG, JACK, MCD, WEN, YUM

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (FSLR, PEP, PG, ILMN, CCL, ANV, AWR, BBEP, CDE, DISH, LPX, TSN, HFC, CHTR, DMD, HL, OMX, THC, WEN, DIS, VRTX, CTSH, BSFT)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 07 May 2012 20:08:20 +0000

The major US stock indexes opened lower this morning following a weekend of elections in Europe. A new Socialist party president in France and a still very cloudy future in Greece have left investors in a quandry. We have more coverage here on the French election and here on the election in Greece. By the last hour of trading, shares had recovered nearly all of the early losses and the three major indexes are either slightly positive or on the way to positive territory. The US dollar index rose today, now up 0.09% at 79.573. The GSCI commodity index is down about -2.3% at 653.60, with commodities mixed on the slightly stronger dollar. WTI crude oil closed down -0.6% at $97.94/barrel and Brent crude trades down -0.08% at $113.09/barrel. Gold settled down -0.4% today, at $1,639.10/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 30 points to 13,008.53 (-0.23%), the NASDAQ rose less than 2 points (0.05%) to 2,957.76, and the S&P 500 rose 0.48% or less than 1 point to 1,369.58.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) cut to ‘neutral’ at Argus; Pepsico Inc. (NYSE: PEP) raised to ‘overweight’ at Morgan Stanley; Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) cut to ‘market perform’ at Wells Fargo; Illumina Inc. (NASDAQ: ILMN) raised to ‘outperform’ with a price target of $55 at Credit Suisse; and Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) cut to ‘neutral’ at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Allied Nevada Gold Corp. (AMEX: ANV) is down about -10% at $25.59 after posting a new 52-week low of $25.37 earlier today; American States Water Co. (NYSE: AWR) is up 3.6% at $37.09; Breitburn Energy Partners L.P. (NASDAQ: BBEP) is down -2.4% at $17.54; Coeur d’Alene Mines Corp. (NYSE: CDE) is down -4.1% at $18.99 after posting a new 52-week low of $18.71; Dish Network Corp. (NASDAQ: DISH) is down -0.93% at $31.02; Louisiana Pacific Corp. (NYSE: LPX) is up 5.9% at $9.49; Tyson Foods Inc. (NYSE: TSN) is up 3.4% at $18.65; and HollyFrontier Corp. (NYSE: HFC) is down -2.4% at $28.82 (more coverage here).

On Tuesday we are scheduled to get earnings from Charter Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: CHTR), Demand Media Inc. (NYSE: DMD), Hecla Mining Co. (NYSE: HL), OfficeMax Inc. (NYSE: OMX), Tenet Healthcare Corp. (NYSE: THC), The Wendy’s Co. (NYSE: WEN), and Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS).

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VRTX) is up about 55% at $58.05. The company’s cystic fibrosis drug study showed significant positive results. More coverage here.

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. (NASDAQ: CTSH) is down more than -XX% at $XX. The IT-outsourcing firm showed good results, but guidance was weak. More coverage here.

BroadSoft Inc. (NASDAQ: BSFT) is down -17.6% at $33.68. The communications software maker posted good earnings, but followed that with soft guidance for the second quarter.

Stay tuned for Tuesday. Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker and Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher are giving speeches. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:30 a.m. – NFIB Small Business optimism index
11:30 a.m. – 4-week bill auction
1:00 p.m. – 3-year note auction

Paul Ausick

Filed under: General Tagged: ANV, AWR, BBEP, BSFT, CCL, CDE, CHTR, CTSH, DIS, DISH, DMD, FSLR, HFC, HL, ILMN, LPX, OMX, PEP, PG, THC, TSN, VRTX, WEN

Fast-Food Chains with the Most Unhealthy Customers

247wallst — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 10:38:07 +0000

While most Americans are happy with their family, friends and home life, more than one in five Americans are unhappy with their health. According to a new survey conducted by consumer-focused information site BIGinsight, those who frequent certain fast-food restaurants are even less happy with their health than the average American. 24/7 Wall St. examined the results of the survey to identify the fast-food chains with the most-unhealthy customers.

Read The Fast-Food Chains With the Most Unhealthy Customers

Customers of four of the eight largest fast-food restaurants report a higher rate of being either totally unhappy or somewhat unhappy with their health than the general population. Not surprisingly, the fast-food diners who are most unhappy with their health also report other relatively unhealthy habits. Customers of three of the four restaurants also report among the lowest rates of exercising regularly among all major fast-food chains. McDonald’s, whose customers are the most unhappy with their health, has the lowest rate customers who exercise regularly.

The four restaurants with the most-unhealthy customers also have the lowest rates of customers who watch their caloric intake. Three have among the lowest rates of customers watching their fat intakes. This behavior does not mix well with a diet that includes a number of fast-food meals.

However, not all fast-food restaurants have unhealthy customers. Chains where customers exhibit healthier behaviors, such as Arby’s, Chick-fil-A and Subway, have customers with above-average levels of happiness with their health. As Consumer Insights Director Pamela Goodfellow told 24/7 Wall St., “The difference between these consumer groups lies in what they do beyond the drive-thru: exercising, counting their calories, focusing on fat intake and watching their health in general.”

These are the fast-food chains with the most unhealthy customers.

Filed under: Special Report Tagged: MCD, WEN, YUM

Hamburgers Going Gourmet (MCD, WEN, SONC, JACK)

Paul Ausick — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 16:15:03 +0000

During the recent Great Recession, the big fast food chains like McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD), The Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ: WEN), Sonic Corp. (NASDAQ: SONC), Jack in the Box Inc. (NASDAQ: JACK), Burger King, and others launched low priced menu items for cash-strapped customers. Dollar menus were all the rage.

Now that the economy is improving, there’s a burst of demand for high-end, high-priced burgers and there are plenty of smaller companies moving to cash in on the trend. Burger prices that start at $10 or so include condiments like truffles, onions caramelized in wine, and expensive cheeses. Bloomberg News cites the CEO of upscale chain Umami:

Consumer awareness, especially around burgers, is evolving. These gourmet burger chains hit a certain psychographic — somebody who is very quality conscious, who is willing to explore and get out of their element.

And get out their wallets. The owner of another gourmet chain, Short Order, put it this way:

The days of eating $50 steaks are probably over. … Consumers are stepping down, without having to go to a Burger King.

We noted earlier this week that the top 500 restaurant chains in the US posted revenue of $242 billion in 2011, with McDonald’s topping the list at $34.2 billion in sales. How long until we can order a Big Mac avec Brie?

Paul Ausick

Filed under: Food Tagged: JACK, MCD, SONC, WEN

Wendy’s New Number 2 in Burger Sales (WEN, MCD, MCG, SBUX, PNRA)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 20:25:58 +0000

There’s a new number two among hamburger restaurant chains. The Wendy’s Co. (NASDAQ: WEN) has surpassed privately held Burger King in total sales, with $8.5 billion in 2011 sales compared with $8.4 billion for Burger King. McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD) remains number one with $34.2 billion in sales.

The numbers come from the latest research by food industry consulting firm Technomic. Other figures from Technomic show that Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. (NYSE: CMG) was the fastest growing among publicly traded companies, with growth of 23.4% in sales. The fastest growing limited-service chain was Five Guys Burgers and Fries, which posted a year-over-year sales gain of 32.8%.

Starbucks Corp. (NASDAQ: SBUX) and privately held Subway each grew sales by 7.5% in 2011. Panera Bread Co. (NASDAQ: PNRA) posted sales growth of 10.1%.

As a whole, the top 500 restaurant chains in the US posted revenues of $242 billion in 2011, up 3.4% from 2010. The growth rate was nearly double the 1.8% growth in 2010.

The Technomic press release is available here.

Filed under: Food, Research Tagged: MCD, MCG, PNRA, SBUX, WEN

Sector Shift: McDonald’s Peers May Finally Be More Attractive (MCD, YUM, WEN, JACK, CMG)

Administrator — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 20:52:46 +0000

Economic uncertainty, higher food costs, and higher labor costs… Those are not usually supposed to be a worry for the likes of McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE: MCD). After all, it has proven to be the king of all defensive stocks and it has gone on to outperform most fast food restaurant chains by far. The negative reaction in shares of McDonald’s did not really spill over into the shares of its peers on Thursday. This makes us wonder at least a bit after seeing a full day’s trading about whether or not the McDonald’s growth story is peaking ands whether or not prospects might be better off in the shares of its competitors.

McDonald’s went on to warn that the challenges are expected to impact the company’s first-quarter operating income growth.

Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM) is up 0.8% at $67.06 against a prior 52-week trading range of $47.15 to $66.65. Call that a new high! The Wendy’s Company (NYSE: WEN) is up 0.6% at $4.82 against a 52-week trading range of $4.29 to $5.62. Jack In The Box Inc. (NASDAQ: JACK) is up 0.6% at $23.21 against a 52-week trading range of $18.25 to $24.59.

Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE: CMG), a former McDonald’s brand, is actually up 1.7% at $398.71 on the day and that is a new all time high as well.

With McDonald’s shares down 3.2% at $96.99, it sure seems as though there may be concern that McDonald’s may not have the ability to endlessly grow its earnings and revenues at the same rate indefinitely through good times and bad. Keep in mind that the market value here was over $100 billion before today’s drop. Yum’s value was approaching $30 billion and Chipotle’s value was approaching $12.3 billion.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Defensive Stocks, Food, Retail Tagged: CMG, JACK, MCD, WEN, YUM

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (FSLR, MA, WAG, WEN, SD, DVR, EIX, NKTR, SSW, BID, DRC, JRCC, KR, MSO, ARCT, PEGA, CVO, TUDO, FFN)

Paul Ausick — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 21:08:23 +0000

The three major US equities indexes opened higher this morning after another (small) drop in new unemployment benefits claims and a good, but smaller-than-expected, rise in personal income and spending data (our coverage here). Lower-than-expected ISM manufacturing data was countered by generally good reports from retailers on February same-store sales (our coverage here). By mid-afternoon, the DJIA turned south and has given back more than 50 points though the average still remains in positive territory for the day. Crude oil is up sharply today, with WTI crude closing up 1.7% at $108.84/barrel and Brent crude up more than 4% at $127.70/barrel. Gold settled up 0.6% at $1,722.20/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA up more than 28 points to 12,980.30 (0.22%), the NASDAQ rose more than 22 points (0.74%) to 2,988.97, and the S&P 500 rose 0.62% or more than 8 points to 1,374.09.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) maintained ‘buy’ but target price lowered to $50 at Argus (more coverage here); Mastercard Inc. (NYSE: MA) started as ‘neutral’ at UBS; Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG) cut to ‘underperform’ at BofA/ML; Wendy’s Co. (NYSE: WEN) cut to ‘neutral’ at Janney; and SandRidge Energy Inc. (NYSE: SD) cut to ‘sell’ at Canaccord Genuity.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Cal Dive International Inc. (NYSE: DVR) is up 8.8% at $3.16; Edison International (NYSE: EIX) is up 1.9% at $42.65 after posting a new 52-week high of $44.40 earlier today; Nektar Therapeutics (NASDAQ: NKTR) is up 2.4% at $7.35; Seaspan Corp. (NYSE: SSW) is up 6.1% at $18.32; Sotheby’s (NYSE: BID) is down -10.2% at $35.32 (more coverage here); Dresser Rand Group Inc. (NYSE: DRC) is down -1.2% at $51.91; James River Coal Co. (NASDAQ: JRCC) is up 10.7% at $6.34; Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) is up 2.2% at $24.32; and Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. (NYSE: MSO) is down -3.2% at $4.36.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

American Realty Trust Inc. (NASDAQ: ARCT) is up more than 73% at $10.40. The commercial real estate company came public this morning at $6/share, along with a tender auction to purchase up to $220 million worth of shares at a price not higher than $11/share and not less than $10.50/share.

Pegasystems Inc. (NASDAQ: PEGA) is up nearly 34% at $37.50. The business software maker beat earnings estimates last night.

Cenveo Inc. (NYSE: CVO) is up nearly 26% at $4.91. The printing company reported better-than-expected earnings last night, and has kicked off a tender offer to redeem about $460 million in debt.

Tudou Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: TUDO) is down nearly -17% at $13.30. The Chinese online video company reported better-than-expected revenues last night, but soaring costs led to a net loss.

FriendFinder Networks Inc. (NASDAQ: FFN) is down nearly -14% at $1.76. The adult social networking company’s credit rating was cut this morning by S&P.

Stay tuned for Friday. Chicago Fed president Charles Evans and St. Louis Fed president James Bullard are giving speeches. There are no other events of note scheduled for tomorrow.

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire Tagged: ARCT, BID, CVO, DRC, DVR, EIX, FFN, FSLR, JRCC, KR, MA, MSO, NKTR, PEGA, SD, SSW, TUDO, WAG, WEN

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (ADP, FSLR, FIO, HLF, IACI, MA, PAYX, PRA, SD, TRN, UPL, V, WAG, WEN)

Administrator — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 13:19:49 +0000

These are some of this Thursday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen in Wall Street research calls.

Automatic Data Processing, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADP) Started as Buy at UBS.

First Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) Maintained Buy but cut target to $50 at Argus.

Fusion-io, Inc. (NYSE: FIO) Started as Outperform with $50 target at Credit Suisse.

Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE: HLF) Reiterated Buy and raised target to $76 at Argus.

InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ: IACI) Raised to Buy at BofA/ML.

MasterCard Inc. (NYSE: MA) Started as Neutral at UBS.

Paychex, Inc. (NASDAQ: PAYX) Started as Buy at UBS.

ProAssurance Corp. (NYSE: PRA) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

SandRidge Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SD) Cut to Sell at Canaccord Genuity.

Trinity Industries, Inc. (NYSE: TRN) named as Value stock of the day at Zacks.

Ultra Petroleum Corp. (NYSE: UPL) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.

Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) Started as Neutral at UBS.

Walgreen Co. (NYSE: WAG) Cut to Underperform at BofA/ML.

Wendy’s Company (NYSE: WEN) Cut to Neutral at Janney.

If you enjoyed the top analyst upgrades and downgrades, you can join our free email newsletter that includes analyst summaries each morning sent right to your inbox. We also cover top issues such as IPOs, special financial exclusives, mergers and more. Sign up in the box below.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: ADP,, FIO, FSLR, HLF, IACI, MA, PAYX, PRA, SD, TRN, UPL, V, WAG, WEN

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (K, SPLS, TWX, AAP, AZO, JPM, GCI, SIFY, WEN, ONB, GTXI, PBY, TNB, CTIC, PMC)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 21:04:30 +0000

All three major indexes opened lower again today on weak markets in both Europe and Asia. European markets continued to be weighed down by the lack of a firm agreement on the Greek debt swap. In Asia, the weak US markets on Friday held gains down, and in Shanghai, where the government was expected to ease reserves requirements, the lack of any such move kept the index in the red for its first trading day following the week-long new year holiday. Crude oil traded down today, with WTI crude oil down -0.66% at $98.90/barrel and Brent crude down -0.62% at $110.77/barrel. Gold closed down -0.19% at $1,732.10/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA down nearly 7 points to 12,653.5 (-0.05%), the NASDAQ fell more than 4 points (-0.16%) to 2,811.94, and the S&P 500 fell -0.25% or more than 3 points to 1,313.02.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Kellogg Co. (NYSE: K) cut to ‘neutral’ at JP Morgan; Staples Inc. (NASDAQ: SPLS) cut to ‘sell’ at Goldman Sachs; Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) cut to ‘equal-weight’ at Barclays; Advance Auto Parts Inc. (NYSE: AAP) and Autozone Inc. (NYSE: AZO) both raised to ‘buy’ at Goldman Sachs; and JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) maintained as ‘buy’ but removed from Conviction Buy List at Goldman Sachs.

Earnings reports since markets closed last Friday have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: Gannett Co. Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is down -6.77% at $14.19; Sify Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: SIFY) is down -5.4% at $4.74; The Wendy’s Co. (NYSE: WEN) is down -3.03% at $5.05; and Old National Bancorp. (NYSE: ONB) is down -1.90% at $11.86.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

GTX Inc. (NASDAQ: GTXI) is up nearly 49% at $5.86. The drug maker’s shares have been given a new price target of $19/share from Citigroup. We have more coverage here.

Pep Boys – Manny, Joe and Jack (NYSE: PBY) is up more than 23.5% at $14.92 after posting a new 52-week high of $15 earlier in the day. The auto parts retailer has agreed to an acquisition at $15/share. See more of our coverage here.

Thomas & Betts Corp. (NYSE: TNB) is up 13.33% at $71.28 after posting a new 52-week high of $71.80 earlier today. The electrical components maker has agreed to an acquisition by ABB Ltd. for $3.9 billion.

Cell Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: CTIC) is down nearly -18% at $1.10. The drug maker has withdrawn its application with FDA for approval of its non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma treatment.

Pharmerica Corp. (NYSE: PMC) is down nearly -12% at $12.64. The pharmacy services provider has expressed its wish that a hostile takeover bid from Omnicare Inc. (NYSE: OCR) will be withdrawn, following a Federal Trade Commission suit to block the deal. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Tuesday. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

8:30 a.m. – Employment cost index
9:00 a.m. – Case-Shiller housing price index
9:45 a.m. – Chicago purchasing managers index (PMI)
10:00 a.m. – Consumer confidence index
3:00 p.m. – Farm prices report

Paul Ausick

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, HI/LOW, Market Close, The Day Tagged: AAP, AZO, CTIC, GCI, GTXI, JPM, K, ONB, PBY, PMC, SIFY, SPLS, TNB, TWX, WEN