No specific value was placed on the deal.
Earnings season pressed on before the bell this morning, moving stocks throughout the first half of the regular session.
Shares of Wells Fargo & Co. (
WFC) are higher following the
company's third-quarter earnings report this morning. The bank reported
Q3 EPS of $0.60 per share, a nickel better than the Street view. Revenue
was $20.87 billion, vs. expectations of $20.94 billion.
Shares of Altera (
ALTR) are lower even after the company reported
third quarter earnings results that beat Street expectations. Altera
(ALTR), the largest U.S. tobacco company, reported Q3 EPS of 69 cents
per share compared to Street estimates of 65 cents a share. Revenue of
$527.5 million is higher than Street estimates of $525.98. For Q4,
company sees sales growth up 3% to 6%. Profit rose by higher prices for
its Marlboro cigarettes and snuff sales, Bloomberg reported. Altera
shares are down 0.59%, or $0.18, to $29.32.
Abbott Labs (
ABT) reports Q3 adjusted EPS at $1.05, just topping the
Thomson Reuters mean analyst estimate for $1.04. Sales of $8.7 billion
are up from $7.8 billion. The Street looked for $8.9 billion. ABT sees
adjusted 2010 EPS at $4.16 to $4.18. The Street is at $4.16.
Yahoo Inc. (
YHOO) is higher, even though the Internet group reported
disappointing revenue growth for the fourth quarter. The company
expects revenue to reach between $1.125 billion to $1.225 billion, while
analysts polled by Thomson Reuters on average had expected the figure
to reach $1.26 billion. As a result, speculation is growing that Yahoo
may consider a buyout and start discussions with private equity firms.
Airline stocks were trending higher following positive earnings numbers.
Delta (
DAL) posted a profit of $929 million, or $1.10 a share
excluding one-time items, having posted a loss of $161 million, or 19
cents a share, a year ago. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters on average
had expected earnings of 94 cents a share.
US Airways (
LCC), meanwhile, reported a profit of $243 million, or
$1.23 a share, which was above the $1.17 a share expected by analysts.