Shares of Landry's Restaurants Inc. surged more than 16 percent on Monday after saying it would allow its chief executive to take the company private, helping send the Standard & Poor's SmallCap 600 Index slightly higher at midday.
The S&P 600 _ which tracks stocks with a market capitalization between $300 million and $2 billion _ rose 2.13 points to 389.18.
Small-cap companies make up about 3 percent of the total U.S. securities market, but are often cited as good investments due to their low valuations and potential to grow into big-cap stocks.
Landry's climbed $2.76, or 16.4 percent, to $19.55. On Monday, the company agreed to allow Tilman J. Fertitta to buy the remaining 61 percent of the company he doesn't already own for $21 per share in cash, a 25 percent premium over Friday's close of $16.79.
Financial services provider Sterling Financial Corp. advanced 81 cents, or 13.5 percent, to $6.82 after a Sandler O'Neill & Partners analyst upgraded shares to "Buy" from "Hold," saying the stock trades at a discount.
Multimedia Games Inc. rose 41 cents, or 8.8 percent, to $5.09 after the maker of video lottery and bingo terminals said it named former Harrah's Entertainment Inc. executive Anthony Sanfilippo as president and chief executive.
Among the decliners, Healthextras Inc. gave up $2.03, or 6.4 percent, to $29.80 after a Piper Jaffray analyst cut the pharmacy benefits manager to "Neutral" from "Buy," saying shares trade at a fair price while some of the obstacles that weighed on its first-quarter results remain.
A.H. Belo Corp., which publishes the Dallas Morning News and other newspapers, lost 48 cents, or 6 percent, to $7.49.
Poultry producer Sanderson Farms Inc. declined $2.52, or 5.9 percent, to $40.50 as corn prices continued climbing at the Chicago Board of Trade amid devastating floods in the Midwest.
Terms & Conditions
RSS Headlines
Fool UK