Stocks Appear Set To Open Higher

Stocks appear set to open in the
green on Tuesday.

Macrovision
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reported Q2
earnings of 20 cents a share, up 26% from the same quarter one year ago. The
company’s earnings also beat Wall Street’s estimates of 18 cents a share
according to Thomson Financial/First Call.

Drug company Biovail
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announced Q2 earnings that beat expectations. The company reported earnings of
30 cents a share, while analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call were
expecting 28 cents a share.

HealthSouth
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reported Q2
earnings of 21 cents a share. According to Thomson Financial/First Call,
analysts surveyed were looking for earnings of 20 cents a share.

Sony
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and Yahoo!
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have signed a multi-year agreement to disseminate collaborated content on
co-branded products over the Internet to customers.

Cardinal Health
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reported Q2
numbers Tuesday morning. The company reported operating profits for the quarter
rose 24%. The healthcare company earned 58 cents a share in line with analysts’
expectations according to data collected by Thomson Financial/First Call.

JP Morgan upgraded a number of
disk drive makers this morning. Maxtor
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and Read-Rite
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were
upgraded to Buy, while Western Digital
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was raised to Long Term Buy.

Lehman Brothers initiated coverage on
Adminstaff
(
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at Strong Buy with a 12-month price target of $57.

Biotechnology companies XOMA Limited
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and Genetech
(
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reported phase III results on the companies’ treatment
drug Xanelim which is used to treat plaque psoriasis.

Western Wireless
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was
downgraded by Prudential Securities from Buy to Hold.

RSA Security
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announced an
agreement to acquire Securant Technologies, a privately held company, for $136.5
million.

Ameritrade
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said it will
acquire National Discount Brokers for approximately $154 million.

Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway
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reported the company will buy transportation leasing company XTRA
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for
approximately $590 million.

EMC
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is scheduled to have an
analyst meeting on Thursday.

Verizon Communications
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reported Q2 earnings of 77 cents a share in line with analysts’ estimates
according to a survey taken by Thomson Financial/First Call.

Mercury Computer Systems
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warned of short-term earnings weakness due to a slowdown in domestic defense
spending in the industry.