US HOT STOCKS TO WATCH: Wachovia, Deutsche Bank, Circuit City

Among the companies whose shares are expected to see active trade in Monday’s
session are Wachovia Corp., Deutsche Bank AG, Circuit City Stores Inc. and
Philips Electronics NV.

Wachovia Corp. (WB) announced it will raise $7 billion in capital through stock
sales and cut its dividend by 41%, a consequence of its ill-timed move into
becoming a major mortgage player, as it posted a first-quarter net loss of $350
million caused by $2 billion in “market-disruption” losses and sinking credit
quality. Terms weren’t disclosed in a press release, but The Wall Street Journal
reported that Wachovia was expected to sell shares for $23 to $24 apiece, a more
than 15% discount to Friday’s closing price of $27.81.

Deutsche Bank AG (DB) is seeking to sell as much as $20 billion of debt related
to leveraged buyouts to a collection of investors that include private-equity
firms, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Blockbuster Inc. (BBI) offered to buy Circuit City Stores Inc. (CC) for at least
$6 a share. The offer was made in a letter sent to Circuit City Feb. 17. Circuit
City shares closed Friday at $3.90. The company recently had 168.4 million shares
outstanding. Blockbuster said it was confident that it can provide a substantial
premium to Circuit City shareholders with an all cash offer in the range of $6 to
$8 a share.

Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL) and Northwest Airlines Corp. (NWA) may unveil their
long-delayed merger announcement as early as Tuesday, The Wall Street Journal
reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The deal could value Northwest
at roughly $3 billion, these people said, though terms were still being
negotiated. That would be well below Northwest’s market value of more than $4.6
billion as of Feb. 1, reflecting the industry’s worsening prospects in recent
weeks.

Philips Electronics NV (PHG) posted first quarter net income of EUR219 million
($347 million), down from EUR875 million ($1.39 billion), in the same period a
year ago and below analysts’ expectations for EUR273 million ($433 million).

Eaton Corp. (ETN) first-quarter net income rose 5.6% to $247 million, or $1.64 a
share. A Thomson Financial survey of analysts, on average, projected earnings of
$1.66 a share. Sales rose 12% to $3.50 billion from $3.11 billion. Eaton said it
expects second-quarter earnings of $1.80 to $1.90 a share, and non-GAAP operating
earnings of $1.90 to $2 a share. The company raised its full-year forecast by 5
cents a share, due to stronger first-quarter results, to $7.30 to $7.80 a share,
and operating earnings of $7.80 to $8.30 a share.

Equity Lifestyle Properties Inc. (ELS) is expected to report funds from
operations of $1.05 a share in the first quarter.

After Friday’s closing bell, AirTran Airways, a subsidiary of AirTran Holdings
Inc. (AAI), said its balance sheet is “ample” to fund operations, in light of the
company’s stock volatility. AirTran said it has $358 million in cash and
investments on its balance sheet.

AT&T Inc. (T) secured a $3 billion revolving credit agreement with several banks,
the telecommunications company said in a Securities and Exchange Commission
filing. The funds, if drawn, will be used for general corporate purposes, which
may include repayment of maturing commercial paper, said AT&T.
Citigroup Inc. (C) will not be selling debt from EMI Group in a planned sale of
other debt because of concerns over the music company’s restructuring, The Wall
Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the situation. Citigroup was
part of a group of banks that helped London private-equity firm Terra Firma
Capital Partners Ltd. acquire EMI for about $4.9 billion.

Lam Research Corp.’s (LRCX) may have its BB- corporate credit rating hiked by
Standard & Poor’s because of stable operating performance during recent periods.

Skywest Inc. (SKYW) said March traffic rose 2.2% to 1.56 billion revenue
passenger miles from 1.53 billion in the prior-year period. The St. George, Utah,
carrier which operates SkyWest Airlines and Atlantic Southeast Airlines, said
combined load factor was 79.2%, down 0.6 percentage points. Capacity rose 3% to
1.97 billion available seat miles from 1.91 billion last year.

Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. said it started its tender offer for outstanding shares
of Millennium Pharmaceuticals Inc. (MLNM) Takeda said the tender offer is
scheduled to end on May 8. On Thursday, Takeda offered $25 a share, or about $8.8
billion, for Millennium.

Windstream Corp. (WIN) had its rating outlook raised to stable from negative by
Standard & Poor’s because of success in mitigating revenue losses related to its
declining voice business with growth in Internet and data revenues. S&P affirmed
its BB+ corporate credit rating on Windstream.

W.W. Grainger (GWW) is expected to report first-quarter earnings of $1.36 a
share, according to analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial.

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