Gen-Probe, Intel, PetSmart, Thermo Fisher: U.S. Equity Preview

Shares of the following companies may have unusual moves in U.S. trading. Stock symbols are in parentheses, and prices are as of 8:55 a.m. in New York.

Advance Auto Parts Inc. (AAP) plunged 8 percent to $65. The auto parts retailer reported first-quarter profit of $1.35 a share, missing the average analyst estimate by 2 cents.

Alkermes Inc. (ALKS) fell 3.9 percent to $17.25. The maker of the Vivitrol addiction therapy forecast a loss in fiscal 2012 of at least 38 cents a share, wider than the 21-cent loss predicted by analysts on average.

Baidu Inc. (BIDU US) rose 0.7 percent to $132.80. The owner of China’s most-popular search engine was sued by eight Chinese residents of New York who say the company helps the government censor political expression in violation of the U.S. Constitution. Kaiser Kuo, a spokesman for Baidu, declined to comment. China guarantees “freedom of speech” on the Internet, Jiang Yu, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, said today.

Big Lots Inc. (BIG) slumped 9.6 percent to $34.15. The discount retailer decided not to sell itself after failing to get satisfactory bids from private-equity firms, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Hot Topic Inc. (HOTT) retreated 1 percent to $7.58. The teen retailer forecast a loss in the second-quarter of as much as 11 cents a share. On average, the analysts surveyed by Bloomberg estimated loss of 10 cents a share.

Jack in the Box Inc. (JACK) : The fast-food restaurant chain said same-store sales in the second quarter rose 0.8 percent and forecast comparable sales in the following period will be up at least 2 percent.

Intel Corp. (INTC) : fell 2.3 percent to $23.34. The world’s largest chipmaker, KLA-Tencor Corp. (KLAC) and Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT) were downgraded by Goldman Sachs Group Inc., which cited increased competition from tablet computers and excess supply.

KLA-Tencor dropped 2.9 percent to $41.57. Applied Materials declined 2.2 percent to $14.18.

NetEase.com (NTES) Inc: China’s second-biggest online games operator said first-quarter profit rose 63 percent, as titles such as “World of Warcraft” helped attract players in the world’s biggest Internet market.

PetSmart Inc. (PETM) added 5 percent to $44.61. The pet- store chain said profit in the first-quarter was 61 cents a share, exceeding the average analyst estimate of 55 cents.

Smart Technologies Inc. (SMA) tumbled 19 percent to $7.84. The producer of interactive whiteboards used in classrooms forecast revenue in fiscal 2012 to fall as much as 5 percent.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (TMO) gained 4.1 percent to $65.32. The world’s largest maker of laboratory instruments agreed to buy Swedish diagnostics company Phadia AB for 2.47 billion euros ($3.5 billion) to grow in testing for allergies and autoimmune diseases. Thermo said the accord will add immediately to adjusted profit and contribute as much as 30 cents a share next year.

Gen-Probe Inc. (GPRO) fell 1.8 percent to $85.09. The diagnostic product maker that is said to be seeking a buyer rallied 9.4 percent yesterday after the Wall Street Journal reported it got bids from companies including Thermo Fisher Scientific.

To contact the reporters on this story: Rita Nazareth in New York at rnazareth@bloomberg.net; Nikolaj Gammeltoft in New York at ngammeltoft@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Baker at nbaker7@bloomberg.net