S&P 500 surpasses 2,000 for first time on takeover speculation

NEW YORK – U.S. stocks rose, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index above 2,000 for the first time, on signs of more corporate takeovers and stimulus for the European economy.

Burger King Worldwide Inc. added 16 percent after saying it’s in talks to buy Tim Hortons Inc. and move its headquarters to Canada. InterMune Inc. surged 36 percent after Roche Holding AG purchased the biotechnology company for $8.3 billion. Morgan Stanley climbed to the highest since 2009 and JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. added more than 2 percent.

The S&P 500 rallied 0.6 percent to a record 2,001.12 at 12:05 p.m. on Monday in New York. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 107.79 points, or 0.6 percent, to 17,109.01. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.6 percent to 4,566.61, the highest level since March 2000.

“This number, 2,000, is a pretty significant number from psychological and financial points,” Joe Bell, senior equity analyst at Cincinnati-based Schaeffer’s Investment Research Inc., said in a phone interview. “We’re seeing the continuation of a strong momentum that occurred in July.”

- Advertisement -

The S&P 500 has risen almost 100 points since its low during trading on Aug. 7, climbing on nine of 12 days to erase the 3.9 percent drop that began on July 24. The U.S. equity benchmark has advanced for the past three weeks and more than $900 billion has been added to the value of American equities.

European shares

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index jumped 1.1 percent Monday as comments by Mario Draghi fanned speculation the European Central Bank is closer to quantitative easing. ECB policy makers “stand ready to adjust our policy stance further” and will use all available instruments to “ensure price stability over the medium term,” Draghi said on Aug. 22.

Futures trading on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange halted for as long as four hours Sunday because of a technical problem, affecting contracts from U.S. stock indexes to Treasuries, oil and gold. CME Group Inc. suspended all of its Globex electronic-trading markets except for Malaysian equity-index derivatives, according to its website. Trading, which was scheduled to start at 5 p.m. Chicago time for some products, began at 9 p.m.

Burgers, coffee

All 10 of the main S&P 500 groups advanced Monday, with health care and financial stocks rising at least 0.8 percent for the best performance. Morgan Stanley added 3.1 percent to $34.52 for the biggest gain in S&P. JPMorgan Chase advanced 2.2 percent to $59.79 for the biggest increase in the Dow.

Burger King, the burger chain that is majority-owned by 3G Capital, added 16 percent to $31.50. U.S. shares of Canada’s Tim Hortons jumped 19 percent to $75.01.

Burger King would create the world’s third-largest fast-food chain by merging with Canada’s bigger seller of coffee and doughnuts, the companies said in a statement. Canada’s corporate tax rate is 26.5 percent, compared with 40 percent in the U.S., according to audit, tax and advisory firm KPMG.

InterMune surged 36 percent to $72.99. Roche will buy the unprofitable company that’s awaiting U.S. approval of its biggest drug, for $74 a share, the Basel, Switzerland-based company said Sunday in a statement.

Ann Inc., the owner of the Ann Taylor chain, rose 6 percent to $39.78, the highest in six weeks. The company could be valued at $50 to $55 a share to a potential acquirer, such as a private-equity buyer, according to a letter Monday from investment firms Engine Capital LP and Red Alder LLC.

No posts to display