As Monday’s trading day draws to a close, the general outlook on the day has been positive, as the majority of the biggest movers among large-cap stocks have been those companies who saw sharp increases in their stock prices. The top movers on the day have been Tesoro Corporation (NYSE:TSO), Visteon Corporation (NYSE:VC), Focus Media Holding Limited (NASDAQ:FMCN) and Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:SHLD) on the positive side, and InterOil Corporation (NYSE:IOC) on the down side.
Tesoro Corporation (NYSE:TSO) has seen its stock jump nearly 9 percent on the day to $38.65 after it announced a $2. billion purchase of a BP oil refinery in California, which increased its refinery total to three in the state and raises its operations in the state to 50 percent of total. The deal is seen to be a bargain, as Tesoro Corporation (NYSE:TSO) bought the refinery for about 15 percent of hits replacement value, far less than the industry norm of 25-30 percent. However, a couple of insiders sold more than 23,000 shares at $30-$35 a share since the beginning of August.
Viesteon Corporation (NYSE:VC) has seen its stock go up about 10 percent to about $42.65 a share after the announcement that chairman and CEO Don Stebbins, who led Visteon Corporation (NYSE:VC) out of a 2010 bankruptcy, has stepped down and was being replaced on an interim basis by director Timothy Leuliette. The move has fueled speculation that Visteon Corporation (NYSE:VC), a Ford offshoot, will be eventually broken up and have its parts sold to the highest bidder. Jeffrey Altman’s Owl Creek Asset Management had $118 million invested in Visteon Corporation (NYSE:VC) at the end of March.
Focus Media Holding Limited (NASDAQ:AQ:FMCN) has risen nearly 9 percent on the day to $25.45 as several investment firms and company CEO Nanchun Jiang are offering to take Focus Media Holding Limited (NASDAQ:FMCN) private with an offer of $27 per share – a 15-percent premium on the stock’s Friday close. Offers to take Chinese companies private has been a recent trend, as the companies seem to be valued low due perhaps to certain accounting practices.
Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:SHLD) was jumping nearly 6 percent on the day to $54.35 upon the news that it was spinning off its Hometown, Outlet and selected hardware stores into its own company under the SHOS ticker. Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:SHLD) also announced that its licensing rights to Kenmore, DieHard and Craftsman brands would be sold, which seems to be in line with evaluations that the stock may double based on a sum-of-the-parts analysis.
On the down side of the market trends Monday was InterOil Corporation (NYSE:IOC), which is down 4 percent to $87.25 on talk that Royal Dutch Shell, which had expressed significant interest in exploration licenses of InterOil Corporation (NYSE:IOC) in Papua New Guinea, is now tempering its interest in the license and is dragging its feet on a deal. Billionaire George Soros had an $18 million stake in InterOil Corporation (NYSE:IOC) at the end of March, but had sold more than 60 percent of his position during that quarter.