Stocks ended higher on Monday, boosted by a flurry of merger deals and investors breathing a sigh of relief that elections in Iraq proceeded with less bloodshed than expected.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 62.74 points, or 0.6 percent, at 10,489.94. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 9.91 points, or 0.9 percent, at 1,181.27. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 26.58 points, or 1.3 percent, at 2,062.41.
Among the deals announced Monday, Metlife Inc. said it would purchase Citigroup Inc.’s Travelers Life & Annuity division for $11.5 billion, and SBC Communications Inc. said it would buy AT & T; Corp. for nearly $16 billion.
Among local movers, shares of National Lampoon Inc. jumped 11.8 percent to close at $4.25 after the L.A.-based entertainment company appointed a new chief executive and a president to replace the departing Jim Jimirro. Daniel Laikin, the chief operating officer since 2002, will fill the company’s top seat while Douglas Bennett, the current executive vice president, will step in as president.
Mattel Inc. shares rose 6 percent to $19.45 after the El Segundo-based toymaker said its fourth-quarter profit rose 33 percent over the year-prior period. Mattel reported earnings of $284.3 million (68 cents per diluted share) for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, versus $213.9 million (49 cents per share) for the comparable quarter of 2003.
And shares of Cathay General Bancorp rose 4.7 percent to $36.33 after its stock was upgraded to “buy” from “market perform” by Cohen Bros. The 12-month price target was set at $40 per share.
Camarillo-based electronic payment processor Electronic Clearing House Inc. sunk 3.5 percent to close at $8.78 after its stock was cut to “neutral” from “buy” by Roth Capital Partners.
And shares of Hilton Hotels Corp. dipped 2 percent to $22.25 as investors reacted to news that its fourth-quarter earnings fell 3 percent from one year ago. Beverly Hills-based Hilton reported earnings of $65 million (16 cents per diluted share) for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, compared with $67 million (17 cents per share) for the like-year quarter of 2003.
