AIG, Greif, Palm, Merck, Navistar, Sprint: U.S. Equity Preview

By Lynn Thomasson

Dec. 10 (Bloomberg) -- The following companies may have unusual price changes in U.S. trading tomorrow. Stock symbols are in parentheses, and share prices are as of 5:50 p.m. in New York, unless otherwise specified.

Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures expiring in December slipped 0.1 percent to 894.9. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were unchanged. Nasdaq-100 Index futures fell 0.2 percent to 1,214.75.

American International Group Inc. (AIG US) rose 3.4 percent to $1.81 in trading after the official close of exchanges. The insurer plans to announce more than $15 billion worth of sales of businesses before the end of the year to raise money to pay government loans, the Financial Times said, citing people familiar with the situation.

Greif Inc. (GEF US) slid 1.2 percent to $29.25. The maker of shipping and packaging equipment predicted 2009 profit between $3.25 and $3.75 a share. Analysts polled by Bloomberg estimated $4.15 a share on average.

Palm Inc. (PALM US): The maker of the Treo and Centro smart phones invited reporters and analysts to a Jan. 8 event at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, signaling it may introduce new devices based on revamped software to gain ground on Apple Inc.’s iPhone and Research In Motion Ltd.’s BlackBerry. Palm shares gained 3.1 percent to $1.69 in regular trading.

Merck & Co. (MRK US): The third-largest U.S. drugmaker faces a new trial over the death of a former user of the Vioxx painkiller that resulted in a $32 million award against the company, a court ruled. A Texas state appeals court said it erred in May by throwing out the award and granted Merck’s request for a new trial. The stock climbed 2.6 percent to $26.98 in regular trading.

Navistar International Corp. (NAV US): The largest maker of blast-resistant trucks for the U.S. military won a $362.3 million order to build more of the vehicles to protect troops from roadside bombs. Navistar gained 3.2 percent to $24.04 in regular trading.

Sprint Nextel Corp. (S US) dropped 2.1 percent to $2.37. The third-largest U.S. wireless company had its rating on senior unsecured debt lowered to below-investment grade by Moody’s Investors Service, which cited its weakened position in the wireless phone market.

To contact the reporter on this story: Lynn Thomasson in New York at lthomasson@bloomberg.net.