Unusual 11 Mid-Day Movers 9/8: GEHL, NCEM, CHB, RAMR Higher; FNM, FRE, LEH, WM Lower

September 8, 2008 12:19 PM EDT

Gehl Company (NASDAQ: GEHL) 116% HIGHER; signed a definitive agreement to be acquired for $30 per share by its largest shareholder, Manitou BF S.A. The transaction, with an aggregate enterprise value of approximately $450 million, will be effected through a tender offer for all outstanding shares of Gehl by a Manitou subsidiary, Tenedor Corporation, followed by a second step, cash-out merger. The all-cash $30 per share purchase price reflects a 120% premium over the Company's closing price on September 5, 2008. It is expected that the current management team will be retained following the transaction.

Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) 84.7% LOWER; U.S. is putting the two into a conservatorship with the Federal Housing Finance Agency. Common and Preferred holders to bear first losses.

Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) 80.1% LOWER; see Fannie.

Nevada Chemicals, Inc. (Nasdaq: NCEM) 34.6% HIGHER; announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by Calypso Acquisition Corp., an affiliate of Cyanco Holding Corp. and OCM Principal Opportunities Fund IV, L.P., a fund managed by Oaktree Capital Management, L.P., for $13.37 per share of common stock.

Champion Enterprises (NYSE: CHB) 19.8% HIGHER; the homebuilders are feeling a pop today as the Fannie/Freddie news should certainly be positive for the stocks. Notably, Champion had about 17% of its float shorted at the beginning of August, so part of today's sharp gap higher could be attributed to short sellers covering their downside bets. Elsewhere in the sector: Beazer Homes (NYSE: BZH) up 8.4%, KB Home (NYSE: KBH) up 8.1%, Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL) up 4.2%.

Ram Holdings (Nasdaq: RAMR) 18.5% HIGHER; after rallying on the Fannie/Freddie news in pre-market trading, financials are selling-off heading into the afternoon trading session. The property & casualty insurance industry continues to trade in positive territory, although these stocks have also come off intraday highs.

Lehman Brothers (NYSE: LEH) 17.6% LOWER; after surging as much as 11% to above $18 in pre-market trading, Lehman shares have tumbled as traders are now realizing that with the Fannie/Freddie bailout, Lehman is very unlikely to be the target of a government action. Notably, Oppenheimer's Meredith Whitney cut estimates on Lehman this morning, along with Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER) and Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS).

Washington Mutual (NYSE: WM) 17% LOWER; shares of WaMu gapped 19% higher this morning. Since then, the stock has experienced a nearly 30% swing, now trading just above $3.50. This morning, the company announced that Alan Fishman has been appointed CEO and has joined WaMu's Board of Directors. WaMu also announced that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Office of Thrift Supervision concerning aspects of the bank's operations, principally in several areas of its risk management and compliance functions, including its Bank Secrecy Act compliance program.

Huntsman Corp. (NYSE: HUN) 15% LOWER; the company disclosed a letter from founder Jon Huntsman and family shareholders to Hexion proposing a lower capital infusion from $500 million to $416.5 million. The stock was also downgraded from Buy to Neutral at UBS this morning.

Anworth Mortgage (NYSE: ANH) 13.6% HIGHER; benefiting from Fannie/Freddie announcement and an upgrade to Outperform over at Credit Suisse.

Meritage Homes (NYSE: MTH) 12.1% HIGHER; see Champion Enterprises.

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• Credit Suisse
• UBS
• Goldman Sachs
• Merrill Lynch
• Lehman Brothers
• Meredith Whitney

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