Altair Nanotechnologies Inc. (ALTI: chart), manufacturer of safe, high-performance battery pack systems used in electric and hybrid-electric automobiles and stationary power systems, announced today that global power leader AES Corporation has made a $3 million strategic investment in Altair. Shares went up 12.5%.

Myriad Genetics (MYGN: chart) shot 7.4% higher after the company said its Flurizan drug showed the capability of slowing the progression of Alzheimer''s disease during a phase II clinical trial.

Pathmark Stores (PTMK: chart) said that Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea planned to buy it for $678.6 million, creating a larger company to compete in the U.S. Northeast. Shares climbed 12.9%.

Barnes & Noble (BKS: chart), bookseller, forecast profit and sales for this fiscal year that were well below analysts'' estimates, sent its shares down nearly 10%. The company said that for the current fiscal year, it expected earnings per share in the range of $1.65 per share to $1.80 per share. Including charges for the distribution center closing and legal fees, full-year earnings are expected to be in the range of $1.49 to $1.67 per share.

The muted outlook comes even in a year that includes the expected release of J.K. Rowling''s """"""""Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows,"""""""" which will go on sale July 21. The company noted that while the release of this book will produce a large sales spike in the second quarter, it will be sold at a deep discount producing very little gross margin.

British Airways (BAB: chart) tumbled 5.4%, construction materials firm Kingspan, which dropped 7.2%, and miners including Antofagasta, which eased 2.7%.Shares of British Airways PLC fell on worries that its profit could suffer as a result of a deal designed to open up the lucrative trans-Atlantic aviation market.

Fremont General Corp. (FMT: chart) shares fell 31.2% amid worries it might go bankrupt, leading a broad decline among subprime mortgage lenders as the crisis in the sector escalates. The slide came after the largest independent U.S. subprime lender said late Friday that federal prosecutors and securities regulators are examining accounting errors and stock trading.

Home Solutions of America (HSOA: chart), provider of recovery and rebuilding services, lowered its yearly guidance, weighed by a sagging home sector, and said its chief operating officer will resign. Shares of Home Solutions plummeted 19.8%. The company said it expects yearly earnings of between 43 cents and 46 cents. Previously, the company said it expected earnings between 56 cents and 60 cents. The company said it expects fourth-quarter earnings of 5 cents to 7 cents per share.

Memory Pharmaceuticals (MEMY: chart) shares fell 31.6% after the biotech drug maker said results of a clinical study for one of its drugs to treat bipolar mania failed to show significant effectiveness. Memory Pharmaceuticals shares fell 97 cents, or 31%, to $2.16 in afternoon trading on the Nasdaq at more than double their average volume.

Milacron (MZ: chart) shares slumped 7.9% after the New York Stock Exchange halted trading of its sub-penny eligible securities, including its common stock, because the trading system doesn''t accommodate transactions in fractions of a cent. Shares of the Cincinnati plastics processing company continue to trade on the Nasdaq and NYSE Arca exchanges, Milacron said.

OM Group Inc. (OMG: chart), producer of metal-based specialty chemicals, said that its fourth-quarter net income increased to $56.8 million, or $1.93 per share, compared with $11.6 million, or 40 cents per share a year ago. On a continuing operations basis posted a loss of 58 cents per share. Net sales climbed to $172.1 million versus $151.5 million in the same period a year earlier. Stock fell 7.4%.

Palm Inc. (PALM: chart) traded lower amid rumors that Nokia will purchase it. Palm was off 8.8%, and Nokia was down 0.1%.

1:00PM European markets finished lower for a fifth consecutive session.
European stocks finished a volatile trading session in the red for a fifth day in a row. Monday losses came on the back of U.S. mortgage lending concerns, rallying Japanese yen and Chinese stock valuations. The yen climbed 0.6% on the U.S. dollar, 1.2% on the euro and 1.7% on the British pound. The most notable losers included British Airways which slipped 6.6%, construction materials firm Kingspan, down 7.2%, and miner Antofagast, falling 2.7%. However, there were stocks moving to the upside. Countrywide rose 3.5% after Apollo Management agreed to buy the real estate chain''s shares for 1 billion pounds. Shares in the world''s third-largest bank, HSBC Holdings added 1.1% after posting a 5% profit rise in 2006 and lifting its dividend by 11%. The German DAX 30 dropped 1% at 6,534.57, the French CAC 40 fell 0.7% at 5,385.03 and the U.K. FTSE 100 lost 0.9% at 6,058.70.


11:30AM Stock markets recovered from sharp declines. The Dow bounced into the positive.
U.S. market averages gained some ground after the initial sharp decline. The Dow bounced into the positive territory, helped by technology socks. Blue-chip stocks were led higher by Hewlett-Packard (HPQ: chart) and IBM (IBM: chart), each rising over 1%. Coca-Cola (KO: chart) was another notable gainer on the Dow with its shares moving up 1.4%. However, the broader market remained below the flat line amid concerns in the subprime mortgage market and global markets jitters. Fremont General (FMT: chart) plunged 20.4% after the company said it plans to sell its sub-prime residential real estate lending operations. Housing stocks were under pressure throughout the morning session amid continuous concerns about the outlook for the housing market. Meritage Homes (MTH: chart) and Beazer Homes (BZH: chart) were notable decliners, falling 5% and 4%, respectively. The disk drive, computer hardware, and brokerage sectors also traded in the red.

On the economic news front, the Institute for Supply Management said that the nation''s service sector expanded at a slower pace than analysts expected. The ISM index gained only 54.3% in February, compared to expectations of 57% increase. In late morning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average was up 56.56, or 0.47%, at 12,170.55, having fallen 75 in earlier trading. The Standard & Poor''s 500 index was up 2.79, or 0.20%, at 1,389.96, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 2.12, or 0.09%, to 2,370.12. Bonds were little changed, with the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note at 4.50%, the same as late Friday.

U.S. service sector growth slowed more than expected in February.
Monday morning, the Institute for Supply Management released its report on business activity in the services sector in the month of February, showing that the pace of growth in the sector slowed more than economists had been expecting. The ISM said that its index of activity in the sector fell to 54.3 in February from 59.0 in January, although a reading of 50 or above still indicates growth in the sector. Economists had expected a more modest decline to a reading of 57.5. The bigger than expected slowdown in the pace of growth in the sector was partly due to slower new orders growth, as the new orders index fell to 54.8 in February from 55.4 in January. At the same time, the report also showed a faster pace of employment expansion, with the employment index rising to 52.2 from 51.7 in the previous month. Additionally, the report showed a slowdown in the pace of price growth, as the prices index slipped to 53.8 in February from 55.2 in January.


9:45AM U.S. stock markets opened sharply lower amid concerns about the sub-prime mortgage market.
Wall Street started trading sharply lower, reflecting rally in the Japanese yen, weakness across Asian and European markets, and growing concerns in the subprime mortgage market. Sub-prime lender New Century Financial (NEW: chart) slipped 57% after announcing that it is under investigation by federal regulators. Rival Fremont General (FMT: chart) slid 19% after the company said it will sell its subprime lending business after a proposed cease-and-desist order from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. HSBC Holdings plc (HBC: chart) erased earlier losses to gain nearly 1%. The world’s third-biggest bank said it will take a charge of $10.57 billion, mostly on the bad loans in the subprime sector. It also reported a 5% annual profit increase on emerging markets growth and lifted its dividend.

The Dow was led to the downside, by aluminum producer Alcoa (AA: chart), down 2.78% and broker J.P.Morgan Chase (JPM: chart), down 1.8%. In merger-and-acquisition news, Aeroflex (ARXX: chart) agreed to be acquired by private-equity firms General Atlantic and Francisco Partners in a deal worth $1 billion, or $13.50 in cash. The bid represents a 23% premium to Friday''s closing price of $11.01. Aeroflex’s shares surged over 19%. In another deal, Supermarket operator Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea agreed to buy smaller rival Pathmark Stores Inc. (PTMK: chart) for $1.3 billion in cash, stock and debt. Shares of Pathmark rose 10.2%.