Stocks declined Thursday, joining commodities on the downside as the dollar rose and traders speculated that the Federal Reserve could return to raising interest rates at its April meeting. The S&P 500 lost .04% on the day while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained .08% and the Nasdaq Composite rose by .10%. U.S. markets are closed tomorrow in observance of the Good Friday holiday.
The U.S. dollar is on a five-day winning streak against a basket of its major rivals, which has sent gold, one of this year’s best-performing assets, to its lowest prices in a month. Dollar strength is plaguing other commodities, which pressured emerging markets stocks today.
Pressure was not the order of the day for Pandora Media Inc (NYSE:P), TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ:TIVO) and United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X) as buyout rumors and analyst chatter helped make these three of today’s best stocks.
Pandora Media Inc (P)
Shares of online music provider Pandora climbed 10% on heavy volume as speculation P is a takeover target increased.
On Wednesday, Pandora added Anthony J. Vinciquerra to its board, expanding the size of the board to 10 from nine. The addition of Vinciquerra to the P board stoked speculation the company could look to sell itself because Vinciquerra is a former advisor of private equity firm Texas Pacific Group.
Analyst Rich Tullo at Albert Fried & Co. said in an interview with MarketWatch that the addition of Vinciquerra to the P board gives some credence to the takeover talk.
TiVo Inc. (TIVO)
Speaking of takeover speculation, that is exactly what sent shares of TiVo soaring 23% on volume that was more than 10 times the daily average. Various media outlets reported TIVO is in talks with Rovi Corp. (NASDAQ:ROVI) regarding a sale.
Citing the New York Times, Bloomberg reports TIVO investors would likely receive a combination of cash and shares of Rovi if a deal were to emerge. TIVO investors would own 30% of the combined company.
TIVO was one of the first companies to offer digital video recorders while Rovi provides on-screen viewing guides and program listings.
United States Steel Corporation (X)
U.S. Steel surged 6% amid a broader rally in coal and steel stocks. The bullishness in X shares came a day after multiple analysts revealed positive views on the stock.
On Wednesday, JPMorgan said the steel tariffs recently implemented by the U.S. are working and that steel prices have more upside. X is one of the bank’s top four picks among shares of steelmakers.
Credit Suisse also highlighted X in positive fashion, identifying the stock as one of its top picks among steel names, citing robust rolled leverage.
At the time of this writing, Todd Shriber did not own any of the aforementioned securities.
