Today Stock Market News

Among the companies whose shares are expected to see active trade in Monday’s session are MasterCard, Anadarko and Hartford.

Investors will start the month of November in the hope that the worst is behind for stocks, with credit conditions showing continued signs of improvement as governments around the world intervene to support financial markets.

Latin American stock markets end mixed, closing out a grim month fueled by pressure on commodity prices and uncertainty about the future of Argentina’s pension system.

Bradenton, Fla.-based Freedom Bank gets taken over, marking the 17th bank failure so far this year amid the ongoing credit crisis.

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) — In the battle of the search engine wars, Google has long been the site to beat. Competitors beware: Google’s billionaire founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin bought themselves a fighter jet and they aren’t afraid to use it.

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — There’s panic in the air. People are looking at their quarterly portfolio statements, seeing big negative numbers and asking, what’s next?

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Bradenton, Fla.-based Freedom Bank was closed Friday, marking the 17th bank failure so far this year amid the ongoing credit crisis. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation said in a statement that as of Oct. 17, Freedom Bank had $287 million in total assets and $254 million in total deposits. Freedom Bank’s four branches will open Monday as branches of Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Fifth Third Bank , which has assumed Freedom Bank’s deposits, the FDIC said.

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Cable-television operators must continue to carry the same broadcast channels that over-the-air viewers receive once those stations make their federally mandated conversion to digital signals in February, a federal appeals court rules.

Canadian stocks manage a weekly gain but finish lower for the day and the month, as the materials sector stumbles along with weaker futures prices.

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Mformation Technologies Inc., a mobile device management software company, said late Friday it filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Research In Motion and its U.S. subsidiary, Research In Motion Corp., over the company’s Blackberry devices. Mformation Technologies alleges in its lawsuit that Research In Motion infringes two of its patents related to methods of “remote device management.” The lawsuit was filed in the District Court for the Northern District of California.

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The prospect of more international bailouts for emerging markets couldn’t save the sector from turning in one of its most dismal months ever, after a worldwide credit squeeze pushed benchmarks to levels on par with previous global crises.

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Fitch Ratings on Friday lowered Hartford
Financial Services Group’s issuer default rating to A from A+ and the insurer financial strength ratings of Hartford’s primary life and property/casualty insurance subsidiaries to AA- from AA. “The rating actions reflect Fitch’s more detailed review of HFSG’s exposure to the current volatile credit and investment market conditions, which are negatively impacting its asset portfolio as well as earnings and capital needs in its variable annuity business. The combination of these issues has negatively impacted the organization’s capital position,” said Fitch in a statement. The outlook is negative.

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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Delta Air Lines said late Friday it named Steve Gorman as executive vice president and chief operating officer of the new combined entity formed from the merger of Delta and Northwest Airlines. The company also named Hank Halter as senior vice president and chief financial officer. Delta finalized its merger with Northwest on Wednesday, creating the country’s largest airline.

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Crude-oil futures close with a last-minute gain, but still suffer the biggest monthly loss ever in New York as weak U.S. economic data feed concerns that a slowdown in global economic growth will continue to reduce oil demand.

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Fidelity National Financial Inc. said late Friday it received about $58 million from The Reserve Primary
Fund as part of the initial distribution from the liquidation of the
assets of the fund. The distribution is equivalent to about 51% of FNF’s investment in the Primary Fund.

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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — ICO Global Communications said Friday that a Los Angeles Superior Court jury awarded the company $236 million in punitive damages against Boeing and its satellite services subsidiary. The verdict is in addition to at least $371 million awarded last week when the jury found Boeing liable for fraud, tortious interference, and breach of contract, according to ICO Global. The court is also expected to determine the amount of pre-judgment interest to be added to the award, which ICO estimates will be about $100 million. “The total expected judgment to be entered against Boeing in favor of ICO is approximately $707 million,” said ICO Global in a statement. The Wall Street Journal reported that Boeing will file an appeal.

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks on Friday advanced for a second consecutive day, on track for solid weekly gains but the worst month in decades, as investors bypassed generally bleak economic data to focus on improvement in the troubled credit markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 144.32 points to finish at 9,325.01, down 14.1% for the month, but up 11.3% for the week. The S&P 500 rose 14.67 points to 968.76, a monthly decline of 16.9% and weekly gain of 10.5%. The Nasdaq Composite climbed 22.43 points to 1,720.95, off 17.7% for October, but a gain of 10.9% from last Friday’s close.

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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — General Mills said Friday it is recalling some Progresso Hearty Tomato soup because they contain allergens not listed on the labels, including egg, milk, and soy. The company said so far there have been no reports of allergic reactions or illnesses linked to the product. The recall only affects 19-ounce Progresso Hearty Tomato soup with ‘19May10 NV VN-3′ printed on the bottom of the can.

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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services on Friday lowered Las Vegas Sands Corp.’s corporate credit rating to B from B+. The rating remains on CreditWatch with negative implications. The downgrade reflects the ratings agency’s continuing concerns regarding the weakening U.S. economy and its likely effect on gaming markets, such as Las Vegas, said Ben Bubeck, an S&P credit analyst. S&P said the company’s performance will continue to be pressured for the next few quarters.

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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - Detroit might have more spring in its step these days if Rick Wagoner ran the U.S. Treasury Department instead of Hank Paulson.

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) - Late-traders Friday evening may move quickly to shut the door on a dreary month for U.S. stocks, and take some profit off the table after advances in the regular session.

Gold futures fall 2.7% Friday, ending October’s trading with their worst monthly record since early 1983, as a strengthening U.S. dollar and fund liquidations pounds the precious metal and other commodities.

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - Crude futures made a last minute turn higher Friday on the New York Mercantile Exchange. December crude finished at $67.81 per barrel, up $1.85, or 2.8%, after spending nearly all of the session trading lower. It finished 32.6% lower for the month, the biggest monthly loss on record. The move higher “looks like it started in the products,” said Darin Newsom, a senior analyst at DTN. The market may have seen a “round of last minute end-of-the-month position squaring.”

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Energy stocks began the last trading day of a historically bad month for equities by posting more losses as oil prices retreated and retail gasoline prices fell to $2.50 a gallon Friday.

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — CIGNA Corp. on Friday said it had no plans to issue equity and that its capitalization remains strong and in excess of regulatory requirements. The healty service company also said it does not expect to issue additional long-term debt in 2008, particularly under current conditions, and will only do so if credit market conditions improved. On Thursday, Cigna had reported a third-quarter net income of $171 million, or 62 cents a share, falling short of the average $1.06 a share forecast by analysts.

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WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Federal Reserve board chairman Ben Bernanke on Friday launched the public debate over what the government should do with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac once the financial market crisis is over. The government took over the two mortgage giants last month after they were judged to be operating in “an unsafe and unsound manner,” Bernanke said. In a speech to a conference on the meltdown in the mortgage industry at the University of California, Berkeley, Bernanke said that some form of government guarantee is going to needed if the mortgage securities business recovers. This must be considered if Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are privatized, he said. The government might create a government mortgage bond insurer to get around this obstacle, he said. Covered bonds, which are popular in Europe, are another attractive option, but at the moment these securities can’t compete with Federal Home Loan Bank funding for mortgage assets, Bernanke said. Whatever course is chosen, the GSEs must be forced to shrink their loan portfolios, he said.

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Read ‘em and weep: A data recap of the October carnage in the financial markets.

BOSTON (MarketWatch) — The Food and Drug Administration said Friday that it has approved German drug developer Schwarz Pharma AG’s medication Toviaz for the treatment of overactive bladder. The product, which is already on the market in Europe, will be distributed by Pfizer Inc. Schwarz is a member of Belgium-based conglomerate UCB Group.

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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — December crude fell by $1.68, or 2.6%, to $64.28 per barrel Friday afternoon on Globex. “Demand-side concerns are going to keep oil under pressure and we should find out soon just what price the Saudis want to defend,” said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research. “Clearly, we are below the level that the price hawks, such as Venezuela, would prefer, but the Saudis have not publicly called for a restoration of higher prices.”

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Cummins Inc. shares fell as much as 17% in early trades on Friday after the engine maker’s gloomy forecast for the remainder of the year overshadowed a third-quarter profit that rose due to overseas sales gains.

LONDON (MarketWatch) — The Italian air company (CAI) has decided not to make a definitive offer for bankruptcy-threatened carrier Alitalia because of opposition from the pilots and crew unions, Italian newspaper Il Corriere della Sera reported on Friday.

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BOSTON (MarketWatch) — UBS analyst Andrew Kligerman on Friday downgraded shares of troubled insurance giant American International Group Inc. to neutral from buy. The analyst said ongoing deterioration in the credit and equity markets is “placing capital pressures on competing insurers’ ability to purchase AIG assets,” which is inhibiting quick asset sales and repayment of a $72 billion loan from the Federal Reserve, and also diminishing asset-sale proceeds. Still, AIG shares were up 8% in midday action.

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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings on Friday said it swung to a third-quarter loss on hefty charges relating to job cuts, plant closures and other restructuring efforts. The company reported a loss of $440.9 million, or $8.54 a share, vs. a profit of $13.5 million, or 25 cents a share, a year ago. Results in the most recent quarter included one-time charges totaling $7.71 a share. Sales were cut by a third to $528.1 million as top automaker customers continued to curtail production. Shares jumped 22% to $3.08 in early trades.

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Shares of the following companies were making notable moves in the U.S. stock market Friday:

Airline stocks gain altitude as the price of oil continues to slump, poised for its biggest monthly loss on record.

Chevron’s profit more than doubles to nearly $8 billion, built on the summer’s record run of triple-digit crude oil prices.

LONDON (MarketWatch) — The Bank of England’s rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee is likely to slash its key lending rate by a full percentage point to 3.5% at its monthly policy meeting Thursday, Citigroup economist Michael Saunders said Friday in a weekly research note. Although the MPC has never cut by more than a half-point, the economic and financial crisis is “unusually severe,” Saunders said. “Under these conditions, the MPC probably will be ready to ease at an unprecedented pace unless worries about currency weakness and the ballooning fiscal deficit dominate.” Regardless of the outcome Thursday, the MPC is likely to cut the key rate from its current level of 4.5% to around 2% by mid-2009, he said.

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SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Moody’s Investors Service on Friday revised AB Volvo’s outlook to negative from stable but affirmed the Swedish truckmaker’s A3 long-term and Prime-2 short-term ratings. “The outlook change to negative reflects the pace of degradation in the market environment of Volvo’s key markets as reflected in the company’s recent quarterly results. If these negative trends were to persist at the same level in the last quarter of 2008 and 2009 Volvo’s credit metrics and financial flexibility could weaken to levels no longer in line with the
A3 rating category,” said Falk Frey, Moody’s lead analyst for the European automotive sector. The ratings agency said it takes some comfort in Volvo’s announcement of the implementation of steps to adapt production rates and costs to lower demand. But it noted that more measures may be needed to mitigate the impact of the slowdown in activity.

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Drug stocks showed a mixed performance in early action Friday as shares of Shire Ltd. gained in the wake of an analyst upgrade.

BOSTON (MarketWatch) — Vanguard Group on Friday said it has reopened Vanguard International Explorer Fund and Vanguard Precious Metals and Mining Fund to new shareholder accounts. “The financial market environment has changed considerably since we closed the funds, which at current asset levels are in a position to accept additional cash flows,” said Vanguard Chief Executive William McNabb in a statement. Vanguard International Explorer Fund was closed in August 2004, while Vanguard Precious Metals and Mining Fund shuttered in February 2006.

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WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Banks receiving hundreds of billions of dollars of taxpayer money must lend out the money, not use it for bonuses or to take over other banks, a top Democratic lawmaker said Friday. “I am deeply disappointed that a number of financial institutions are distorting the legislation that Congress passed at the president’s request,” said Rep. Barney Frank, head of the House Financial Services Committee. “Increased lending activity is the only legitimate purpose for taxpayer funding of these institutions,” Frank said. Frank’s committee will hold oversight hearings into the bailout on Nov. 12 and 18.

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — U.S. stocks erased much of Friday’s early losses after a slew of mostly downbeat, but expected, economic data. After tallying modest declines initially, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 15.93 points to 9,196.62. The S&P 500 was near flat at 953.6, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 11.34 points to 1,687.18.

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WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — U.S. consumer sentiment dropped in October from the prior month, according to a media report on the University of Michigan/Reuters index released Friday. The index fell to 57.6 in late October, compared with a reading of 70.3 in late September. Earlier in October, the reading hit 57.5. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch were expecting a final October reading of 57.5.

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BOSTON (MarketWatch) — Drug stocks traded mixed in early action Friday as shares of Shire Ltd. gained in the wake of an analyst upgrade. The Amex Pharmaceuticals inched up 0.4% to 268.23 and the Amex Biotechnology Index eased 1% to 649.59. Shire’s U.S.-traded shares jumped 4% to $39.69. Analysts for J.P. Morgan raised their price target for its London-traded shares to 1084p from 1014p, citing a positive third-quarter earnings report.

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Tata Motors Ltd. said Friday third-quarter net profit fell to 3.46 billion rupees, or about $70 million, from 5.26 billion rupees a year ago, a company statement said. The auto maker is mulling cuts to capital spending in the face of a global economic slowdown, according to published reports. The Mumbai company said profits were hit by rising input costs, high interest rates and lack of financing. Sales volumes declined by 1.1% to 135,037 vehicles. Tata Motors reiterated plans to launch its Nano small car, billed as the world’s cheapest car, in March.

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Shares of mutual fund and research firm Morningstar fell 20% in early trade Friday after Keefe Bruyette & Woods analysts downgraded them to market perform from outperform, pointing to a disappointing quarter and outlook. The company after Thursday’s closing bell said third-quarter profit rose to 45 cents a share, but the earnings came in below analyst expectations. Keefe analysts also downgraded T. Rowe Price shares, sending the asset manager’s stock down 3.5%. In the broader financial sector, the Financial Select Sector SPDR ETF , which tracks the financial stocks in the S&P 500, fell 0.3%.

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — Airline stocks gained altitude early Friday as the price of oil continued its slump, poised for its biggest monthly loss on record. At last check, the Amex Airline Index added nearly 2% to 23.32 points with all but four of its 14 components trading up. Crude for December fell $2.08, or 3.2%, to $63.88 a barrel in early electronic trading, and the front-month contract has lost 37% of its value thus far for October. United parent company UAL Corp. rose 6.8% to $14.06, Continental climed 2.3% to $17.33 and American parent AMR Corp. added 1.6% to $9.35. Trading down were Brazilian airlines Gol Linhas and Tam SA .

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -U.S. stocks opened lower on Friday after another round of gloomy, but anticipated, economic data and as video-games maker Electronic Arts cut its forecast and its workforce. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 35.85 points to 9,144.84. The S&P 500 declined 5.52 points to 948.57, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 17.75 points to 1,680.77.

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Retail shares opened lower on the last trading day in October, hurt by the biggest drop in consumer spending in over 4 years. The S&P Retail Index fell 0.3% to 287.82.

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NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — The Treasury Department’s efforts to pump new money into the banking system isn’t working out as planned.