Stock Market News: Bank Of America Raises $19bln, Smith & Wesson, Big Lots Beat Estimates

• Bank of America (BAC: 16.28 +0.52 +3.30%) said it raised $19.3 billion through the sale of 1.286 billion common-equivalent shares at $15 each, as it plans to repay government TARP borrowings of $45 billion
• Human Genome Sciences (HGSI: 28.16 +0.15 +0.54%) announced it priced a planned offering of 15.5 million common shares at $26.75 a share, expected to close on December 8
• Ford (F: 8.94 0.00 0.00%) announced plans to launch its new subcompact, the Fiesta, at a starting price of $13,995. The new model is due out next year
• Take-Two (TTWO: 7.74 -3.18 -29.12%) said its fiscal fourth quarter results are likely to fall short of its prior outlook. The company now sees adjusted earnings of 5-10 cents. For 2010, the firm expects a loss of 40-60 cents on revenues of $1-1.2 billion, versus estimates of $0.64-$1.24 billion
• Smith & Wesson (SWHC: 4.45 -0.82 -15.56%) reported fiscal second quarter earnings of 10 cents a share, one cent above estimates, on revenues of $108.8 million, a 49% increase from last year and ahead of analyst estimates of $104.9 million
• Big Lots (BIG: 28.08 +4.54 +19.29%) reported adjusted fiscal third quarter earnings of 27 cents a share, 9 cents above analyst estimates, on revenues of $1.04 billion, which topped estimates of $1.02 billion. The firm lifted its fourth quarter guidance to $1.09-$1.14, and fiscal 2009 to $2.15-$2.20, ahead of estimates of $1.04 and $2.10, respectively. The company’s board also authorized a $150 million share repurchase program
• Oppenheimer initiated coverage of Visa (V: 80.27 +0.24 +0.30%) and MasterCard (MA: 241.33 +5.17 +2.19%) with “outperform,” with price targets of $95 and $290, respectively
• Bank of America (BAC: 16.28 +0.52 +3.30%) initiated coverage of ratings firms: Moody’s (MCO: 25.36 +1.82 +7.73%) and McGraw-Hill (MHP: 31.93 +1.87 +6.22%), both at “buy” ratings. Price targets were set for Moody’s at $28 and McGraw-Hill at $38