Monday Stocks to Watch

The market is trading higher but with subdue volume. I tried a few buying this morning, and yet they all failed to advance after I bought them. Perhaps I paid too high for them. Many of the issues are higher in the morning than in the afternoon. (JSDA) is a good case in point. I need to learn from my past experience for the confirmation before start buying again.

Look for earnings from the following volatile companies after close tonight:
(NCMI), (SYX)

Here are movers and shakers from MarketWatch:

Advancers

Shares in ABN Amro (ABN) jumped Monday as speculation mounted that it could be about to reveal merger talks with the U.K.'s Barclays. See full story.

Acadia Pharmaceuticals (ACAD) shares soared after the San Diego-based company reported positive top-line results from its Phase II schizophrenia co-therapy trial with ACP-103. The trial evaluated ACP-103 when used together with either risperidone or haloperidol. Acadia said the co-therapy arms with ACP-103 demonstrated "statistically significant antipsychotic efficacy" as measured by the reduction in the positive and negative syndrome scale, the primary endpoint of the trial.

BEA Systems (BEAS) was upgraded to buy from neutral At UBS.

DaimlerChrysler (DCX) was upgraded to neutral from sell at Goldman Sachs, which cited management's plans to consider all options for the future of the Chrysler unit. "We believe the risk reward balance for a seller of DaimlerChrysler shares has become unsustainable," Goldman Sachs said. Potential upside could come from speculative news flow, an unexpected deal or an aggressive 2009 action plan from the group, Goldman Sachs added.

EGL Inc. (EAGL) agreed to be taken private in a $1.7 billion deal by an investor group led by the company's chief executive and largest shareholder. James Crane, also EGL's chairman, together with investment funds affiliated with Centerbridge Partners, L.P. and Woodbridge Co., will pay EGL's shareholders $38 in cash for each share of common stock they hold in the logistics and freight forwarding company. See full story.

Force Protection Inc. (FRPT) shares jumped after the Ladson, S.C.-based maker of protective vehicles reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $17 million, or 39 cents a share, on revenue of $62.9 million.

IntercontinentalExchange (ICE) said it's delivered its proposed merger agreement to CBOT Holdings' (BOT) board. "We believe the ICE offer clearly constitutes a superior proposal under the terms of CBOT's agreement with CME," said Jeffrey Sprecher, chairman and CEO of IntercontinentalExchange. The roughly $10 billion offer, which was first announced last week, rivals a definitive agreement CBOT already has in place with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME). The deal with CME values CBOT at roughly $8 billion. Calling its bid a "superior proposal," IntercontinentalExchange said it plans to hold a meeting in Chicago on March 21 to discuss the offer with CBOT members. It also said it believes a definitive agreement between the parties could be completely quickly. Sprecher stated. "We are confident that, given our knowledge of CBOT's business and with its cooperation, we can complete our review and be in a position to execute a definitive transaction agreement within one week."

InfraSource Services Inc. (IFS) shares jumped after Quanta Services (PWR) agreed to buy InfraSource in an all-stock deal valued at $1.26 billion. Under the terms of the deal InfraSource shareholders will receive 1.223 shares of Quanta stock for each share of InfraSource, representing a value of $30.13, or a 17.4% premium over the closing price on Friday. Quanta said the deal is expected to enhance its earnings in 2008, adding it expects to achieve cost and operational synergies through the integration of project and asset management functions as well as procurement and administrative cost savings.

ServiceMaster (SVM) was in focus following news that an investment group led by Clayton Dubilier & Rice, the private-equity firm, has agreed to purchase ServiceMaster Co. at a price of $15.625 a share, implying an acquisition premium of 16% over Friday's closing price of $13.47, the provider of various type of residential and commercial services said. The Memphis-based company's board decided to explore strategic options last November. The total buyout price comes to $5.5 billion, including assumed debt. Shareholders will vote on the proposed deal at a special meeting that the company expects to hold during the second quarter.

Siga Technologies (SIGA) shares jumped after the company said its smallpox drug candidate was used to treat a toddler who inadvertently contracted eczema vaccinatum, and that the patient is now improving.

Spartan Stores Inc. (SPTN) said it has agreed to acquire 20 retail grocery stores, two fuel centers and three convenience stores, from G&R Felpausch Co. Financial terms weren't disclosed. The transaction is subject to certain conditions including satisfactory conclusion of the company's due diligence process, Spartan said. Upon completion, the transaction will increase annual retail segment sales by about $200 million, the Grand Rapids, Mich.-based grocery distributor said. Annual consolidated sales will increase by about $100 million as Felpausch is an existing distribution customer, the company said. Spartan said it expects to realize gains from the deal, but they will be offset in the first year by transition expenditures of about $5 million to $6 million.

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) said it's postponed its annual meeting until March 29 in order to provide additional time to evaluate the proposed actions of a shareholder group as well as the company's strategic options, including a possible sale. The meeting was originally scheduled for March 23. The company said the record date for the annual meeting remains Feb. 26. In addition, the board set a record date of March 29 for determining shareholders entitled to act by written consent. Earlier in March, the shareholder group, which includes Oppenheimer Funds, D.E. Shaw & Co. and others representing a 45% stake in the company, indicated it's looking to nominate directors to Take-Two's board with an eye towards a management shake-up.

Triad Hospitals Inc. (TRI) shares rose after the company agreed to be acquired by Community Health Systems Inc. (CYH) for $54 a share in cash. See full story.

Decliners

Accredited Home Lenders (LEND) is in talks with a third party to provide financing and boost liquidity, the subprime-mortgage lender said Monday. See full story.

Amrep Corp. (AXR) reported fiscal third-quarter earnings of $6.9 million, or $1.04 a share, up from a year-ago profit of $5.2 million, or 79 cents a share.

AtheroGenics (AGIX) plummeted after it revealed the Arise phase III trial of AGI-1067 did not meet its primary endpoint. The primary endpoint was a statistically significant relative risk reduction in a composite cardiovascular endpoint of CV death, resuscitated cardiac arrest, non-fatal myocardial infarction, non-fatal stroke, use of coronary revascularisation and for angina pectoris. AtheroGenics and AstraZeneca, its partner in the project, now plan to work together to fully analyze the full data set for AGI-1067.

Cleveland BioLabs (CBLI) shares slumped after the company said it has completed a $30 million private stock sale. The company said the funds from the placement will allow it to respond to a request for proposal recently issued by the Department of Defense for the advanced development of medical radiation countermeasures to treat gastrointestinal effects of acute radiation syndrome. The funds will also be used for the advancement of Cleveland BioLabs' pipeline of compounds, the company said.

Diodes Inc. (DIOD) said that, as a result of greater than anticipated pressure on selling prices, it has narrowed its guidance range for first quarter 2007 revenue to $91 million to $93 million. It also said that it expects its gross margin to be around 100 basis points lower than the 33.4% recorded in the fourth quarter of 2006.

Fieldstone Investment Corp. (FICC) shares slid after the company agreed to reduce the per share purchase price for its acquisition by Credit-Based Asset Servicing and Securitization LLC, or C-BASS, to $4 per share from a planned consideration of $5.53 a share. The company cited the "recent severe deterioration of the market for subprime loans," which has reduced its liquidity. In exchange for the lower per share price, C-BASS will provide Fieldstone with additional liquidity. See full story.

Hercules Offshore (HERO) agreed to acquire Todco (THE) for $2.3 billion in cash and stock. See full story.

Medifast (MED) forecast earnings of 45 to 46 cents a share in fiscal 2007 on revenue of between $85 million and $88 million. The current average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Financial is for a profit of 50 cents a share for the year.

Nortel Networks said it narrowed its fourth-quarter loss significantly from a year earlier, when it booked a huge one-time legal charge, as sales rose almost 10%. See full story.

RadioShack (RSH) was downgraded to underweight from equal-weight at Morgan Stanley.

TransMontaigne Partners LP (TLP) reported fourth-quarter net earnings of $1.91 million, or 6 cents per basic limited partner unit, down 49% from $3.77 million, or 48 cents per basic limited partner unit, in the year-ago period, as operating costs and expenses rose. The Denver-based petroleum products transport company said revenue in the quarter ended Dec. 31 rose to $19.3 million from $11.9 million last year, while operating costs and expenses increased to $9.5 million from $4.1 million.