Capital One, Caterpillar, Crucell, Xerox: U.S. Equity Movers

By Lu Wang

Jan. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Shares of the following companies are having unusual fluctuations in U.S. trading. Stock symbols are in parentheses, and prices are as of 9:50 a.m. in New York.

Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD US) slipped 4.5 percent to $1.93. The second-largest maker of personal-computer processors reported its ninth consecutive loss after plummeting PC demand forced customers to slash orders.

Barclays Plc American depositary receipts (BCS US) fell 18 percent to $2.79. The U.K. bank is trading at a price suggesting investors give it a 70 percent chance of being nationalized, according to analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co.

Capital One Financial Corp. (COF US) tumbled 15 percent to $18.73. The Virginia-based credit-card lender posted a $1.42 billion fourth-quarter loss on goodwill charges tied to its auto lender and a $1 billion boost to reserves for soured loans.

American Express Co. (AXP US), the biggest U.S. credit-card company by purchases, fell 5.7 percent to $15.14.

MasterCard Inc. (MA US) lost 4.9 percent to $122.52. The world’s second-biggest credit-card network was rated “sell” in new coverage at Citigroup Inc., citing slower global spending.

Caterpillar Inc. (CAT US) fell 5.1 percent to $35.35. The world’s largest maker of construction equipment after Komatsu Ltd. (6301 JP), the world’s second-biggest maker of earthmoving equipment, cut its profit forecast by 42 percent, citing slowing demand from emerging markets.

Forestar Group Inc. (FOR US) jumped 22 percent to $11.25. The manager of land with oil and gas interests received a takeover offer from Holland M. Ware, who currently owns 7.4 percent of the company’s stock, for $15 a share.

General Electric Co. (GE US) fell 4.6 percent to $12.86. The world’s biggest maker of power-plant turbines, jet engines, locomotives and medical imaging equipment forecast $10 billion in credit losses this year, $1 billion more than its prior estimate.

Geron Corp. (GERN US) rallied 21 percent to $6.31. The company won approval from U.S. regulators to begin the first human test of embryonic stem cells, treating people who have spinal cord injuries.

Harley-Davidson Inc. (HOG US) had the second-biggest decline in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, losing 17 percent to $10.26. The biggest U.S. motorcycle maker reported 8.5 percent less fourth-quarter profit than analysts estimated as the recession reduced demand.

Wyeth (WYE US) rose the most in the S&P 500, climbing 8.2 percent to $42. Pfizer Inc. (PFE US), the world’s biggest drugmaker, is in talks to buy Wyeth in an effort to replace revenue it expects to lose to generic competition in three years, according to three people familiar with the discussions.

ADRs of Crucell NV (CRXL US), the largest Dutch biotechnology company that’s in negotiations to be bought by Wyeth, lot 8.8 percent to $20.41.

Xerox Corp. (XRX US) fell the most in the S&P 500, sliding 20 percent to $6.10. The world’s largest maker of high-speed color printers posted earnings and gave a forecast that fell short of analysts’ estimates as customers spent less on its machines amid the recession.

To contact the reporter on this story: Lu Wang in New York at lwang8@bloomberg.net