Among the companies with shares expected to actively trade in
Monday's session are BlackBerry Ltd. (BBRY) and Yongye
International Inc. (YONG).
BlackBerry took an ax to its operations, saying it would cut its
staff by 40% and stop selling devices to consumers after its
attempt to regain its footing in the smartphone market failed.
Shares dropped 6.4% to $8.17 premarket.
Yongye has agreed to be taken private in a deal that values the
Chinese fertilizer company at about $339 million. Full Alliance
International Ltd. and its affiliates will buy all the shares they
don't already own for $6.69 each in cash, a 40% premium to Yongye's
closing price on Oct. 12, the last trading day prior to its
announcement of the receipt of a going-private proposal. Shares
jumped 6.5% to $6.37 premarket.
Watch List:
ACI Worldwide Inc. (ACIW) agreed to acquire Official Payments
Holdings Inc. (OPAY) in a deal valued at $109 million, expanding
the company's position in the fast-growing electronic-bill-payments
market. Payment-software maker ACI will acquire Official Payments
for $8.35 a share in cash, a 1.8% discount to its Friday closing
price.
Agrium Inc.'s (AGU, AGU.T) board plans to raise the fertilizer
company's annual dividend by 50% as the company also warned that
weak prices and lower volume are expected to hurt third-quarter
wholesale results.
AT&T Inc. (T) confirmed it is exploring a sale of some or
all of the telecommunication giant's wireless-tower assets, a
portfolio sale analysts say can exceed $4 billion. The company also
said it expects to report record third-quarter smartphone sales
next month, as well as stronger upgrades from year-ago levels, but
sees a slowdown in upgrades in the final quarter of the year.
Merck & Co. (MRK) said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
didn't approve its resubmitted new drug application for sugammadex
sodium injection due to concerns about a hypersensitivity study
that the agency had previously requested. Sugammadex sodium
injection is the company's investigational agent for the reversal
of neuromuscular blockade, the inhibition of a muscular
contraction, induced by neuromuscular blocking agents.
News Corp (NWS) reported a profit for the fiscal year ended in
June as the publishing company reports results after its earlier
separation from 21st Century Fox Inc. (FOX, FOX.AU). Results
exceeded Wall Street's expectations.
Norfolk Southern Corp. (NSC) said Chief Financial Officer John
P. Rathbone will retire later this year and will be succeeded by
Marta R. Stewart. The railroad company said Mr. Rathbone will
retire Nov. 1 after a 32-year career in the company's finance and
administrative divisions.
Suntech Power Holdings Co. (STP, K3ND.SG) said it received
notice last week that an Italian court issued a ruling to seize
additional solar parks constructed by a fund controlled by the
Chinese solar company.
US Airways Group Inc. (LCC) and AMR Corp. (AAMRQ), parent of
American Airlines, agreed to extend their merger termination date
beyond mid-December, as their proposed $11 billion deal faces an
antitrust trial in November. The amended merger deal extends the
date on which either AMR or US Airways can terminate the deal to
Jan. 18, 2014, from Dec. 17, or--if the court enters an order on or
before Jan. 17 in favor of the companies--on the 15th day following
the entry of that order.
Write to Lauren Pollock at lauren.pollock@wsj.com
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