Most of the major market indices took a hit last week, with the Nasdaq Composite leading -- err, bleeding -- the way with a 2.7% slide. But amid the mayhem, a handful of stock salmon swam upstream, deftly dodging the claws of savage bears. Here are five of the past week's biggest successes:
|
Company | March 18 | Weekly Gain | My Watchlist |
|---|---|---|---|
| Celera (Nasdaq: CRA) | $8.40 | 33% | Add |
| Lubrizol (NYSE: LZ) | $133.75 | 27% | Add |
| K-Sea (NYSE: KSP) | $8.09 | 25% | Add |
| Unilife (Nasdaq: UNIS) | $5.31 | 25% | Add |
| Golar LNG (Nasdaq: GLNG) | $22.96 | 23% | Add |
Source: Barron's.
Celera came through with healthy gains, after Quest Diagnostics (NYSE: DGX) agreed to acquire its rival medical lab in a $671 million deal.
Not so fast! Quest's buyout offer would take Celera out at $8 a share. The market's assuming that either a bidding war will break out or that Quest will sweeten its offer. Several law firms are also trying to stir up class action lawsuits, suggesting that Celera is selling itself too cheap. In short, there may still be some fireworks here.
Lubrizol was the New York Stock Exchange's top performer on even bigger buyout news. Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-B) is snapping up the lubricants giant in a $9.7 billion deal. I'm probably in no position to question Buffett, but where was this acquisitive spirit two years ago, when equity prices were much lower?
Another acquisition that fueled a big run-up was Kirby's deal to snap up oil tanker K-Sea Transportation. The news also sparked investor interest in K-Sea's peers, explaining the 23% pop in shares of Golar LNG.
Finally, Unilife headed higher after announcing that it was on track to begin producing its prefilled syringes, having cleared an essential regulatory milestone. Unilife further revealed that its CEO would make a sizable purchase of stock in the open market, which certainly didn't hurt its shares.
After a great week for these five stocks, let's see whether they'll be up for an encore.
Which of these five stocks do you think will continue to move higher? Share your thoughts in the comment box below.
