Unusual 11 Mid-Day Movers 1/8: ANDS, SWIM, ABK, BQI Higher; IO, ULTA, HNSN, AOB Lower

January 8, 2009 12:45 PM EST

Anadys Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: ANDS) 79% HIGHER; results from the first cohort of an ongoing Phase Ib clinical trial of ANA598, the Company's investigational non-nucleoside polymerase inhibitor. ANA598 was very well-tolerated and demonstrated potent antiviral activity in patients infected with chronic Hepatitis C virus in this first cohort of the study.

thinkorswim Group Inc. (NASDAQ: SWIM) 45% HIGHER; AMERITRADE (NASDAQ: AMTD) and thinkorswim entered into a definitive agreement for TD AMERITRADE to acquire thinkorswim in a cash and stock deal valued at approximately $606 million as of Jan. 7, 2009.

ION Geophysical Corporation (NYSE: IO) 34.5% LOWER; expects to report fourth quarter revenues of approximately $145 million to $165 million, versus the consensus of $244.25 million and revenues of $209.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2007. As a result, ION now expects 2008 consolidated revenues to range between $685 and $705 million. The consensus is $775.6 million.

Ambac Financial (NYSE: ABK) 24% HIGHER; the entire property & casualty insurance group is surging today as investors are betting that Obama's huge stimulus package will be a boon to these businesses. Elsewhere in the sector: PMI Group (NYSE: PMI) up 13.7%, Assured Guaranty (NYSE: AGO) up 12.3%, MBIA (NYSE: MBI) up 7.2%, Radian (NYSE: RDN) up 7%.

Oilsands Quest Inc. (Amex: BQI) 22.6% HIGHER; today announced the resumption of its overburden characterization program and the reservoir test activities at Test Sites 1 and 3 at Axe Lake in northwest Saskatchewan. Also being resumed is Oilsands Quest's 2009 winter exploration drilling program on its Raven Ridge lands in Alberta.

Sears Holdings (Nasdaq: SHLD) 21.2% HIGHER; reports comparable store sales for the month of December were down 7.3%. Sees Q4 EPS of $2.44-$3.09, versus the Street estimate of $1.90.

Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc. (NASDAQ: ULTA) 20.5% LOWER; Same store sales down 5.8%. For Q4, Ulta lowers its sales, comparable store sales and EPS estimates from $354-$368 million to $339-$343 million, minus 2%-plus 2% to minus 6%-minus 5%, and $0.24-$0.28 to $0.18-$0.19, respectively. The Street is currently expecting Q4 sales of $363.80 million and EPS of $0.26. For FY08, Ulta lowers its sales guidance from $1.1-$1.11 billion to $1.082-$1.086 billion, and its EPS guidance from $0.47-$0.51 to $0.41-$0.42. Same store sales for the year are expected to be flat to plus 0.4%.

Hansen Medical, Inc. (NASDAQ: HNSN) 20.4% LOWER; downgraded to Underweight at Morgan Stanley.

American Oriental Bioengineering Inc. (NYSE: AOB) 19.6% LOWER; Downgraded at Piper Jaffray on real estate acquisition.

Spectrum Control (Nasdaq: SPEC) 17.9% HIGHER; reports Q4 EPS of $0.20, 1 cent better than the analyst estimate of $0.19. Revenue for the quarter was $33.8 million, versus the consensus of $33.90 million. Spectrum Control sees Q1 EPS 18c to 20c versus consensus of 19 cents. Spectrum Control sees Q1 revenue $33.0M to $34.5M versus consensus of $35 million.

The Manitowoc Company, Inc. (NYSE: MTW) 15.3% LOWER; said for FY08, the company estimates that adj-EPS will be within the low end of the previous guidance range of $3.15-$3.25, which includes the results of its recently divested Marine segment and excludes special items and the impact of the Enodis acquisition. For FY09, the company anticipates a revenue reduction of approximately 20% for its Crane segment, which will be offset by an approximate 200% revenue increase by its Foodservice segment. This is driven by the full-year impact of the Enodis acquisition.

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