Bank of America, MS, CASB, GNTX, USB, CNH, EPIC, NOC Popular Stocks
U.S. stocks traded higher Wednesday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average rising 33 points to 10075, the S&P 500 increasing 6 points to 1097 and the Nasdaq Composite gaining 13 points to 2176.
Bank of America (NYSE:BAC, $16.92, -$0.09, -0.53%) is expected to announce a deal to sell First Republic Bank to a consortium of investors for about $1 billion, a person briefed on the transaction told DealBook. The sale will allow Bank of America to raise much-needed capital and unload a banking unit that most analysts believe does not fit well into its larger retail banking franchise.
Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS, $34.88, +$2.36, 7.26%) snapped three straight quarterly losses by posting a profit in the third quarter. Driving earnings at the second largest investment bank on Wall Street were investment banking and fixed-income sales and trading.
Cascade Financial Corporation (NASDAQ:CASB, $3.18, +$1.64, 106.49%), parent company of Cascade Bank, reported net income of $1.6 million for the third quarter of 2009. The Bank earned $1.0 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2009, compared to a net loss of $6.6 million, or $0.55 per diluted share, in the third quarter a year ago.
Gentex Corp.’s (NASDAQ:GNTX, $17.26, +$2.74, 18.87%) third-quarter profit jumped 58%, beating expectations, as the auto-parts supplier’s margins strengthened despite a demand slump, prompting it to give an upbeat fourth-quarter sales forecast.
U.S. Bancorp’s (NYSE:USB, $25.34, +$1.54, 6.47%) third-quarter profit rose 4.7% as revenue jumped due to net interest income and fee revenue growth, as well as fewer charges.
CNH Global NV (NYSE:CNH, $22.48, +$2.61, 13.14%) said it expects gradual improvement in sales of its farm and construction equipment next year, but swung to a third-quarter loss Wednesday.
Benchmark raised its rating on Epicor Software Corp. (NASDAQ:EPIC, $7.51, +$0.24, 3.30%) to buy from hold, citing firmer information technology budgets and better visibility, the Epicor 9 product cycle and good earnings surprise potential because of easier 2010 comps and overly conservative investor expectations.
Northrop Grumman Corp.’s (NYSE:NOC, $50.29, +$0.50, 1.00%) third-quarter earnings fell 4.3% on pension expenses as results topped analysts’ expectations amid risk management and growing operating results. The company again increased its 2009 earnings target.
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