MARKET PULSE-Ford, Cliffs Natural, Wal-Mart, LogMeIn, Apollo Group

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March 27 (Reuters) - Some U.S. stocks to watch on Wednesday: FUTURES DROP ON RENEWED EURO ZONE WORRIES

U.S. stock index futures fell on Wednesday, after a robust rally a day earlier, as soft demand at an Italian debt auction sparked fresh jitters over the financial health of the euro zone.

S&P 500 futures fell 8.1 points and were below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures were down 64 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures were down 13.25 points.

** FORD MOTOR CO , Tuesday close $13.31

The car maker said on Tuesday that it will recall about 3,500 Taurus, Explorer and Lincoln MKS vehicles around the world to repair fuel tanks equipped with an improperly molded seam.

** CLIFFS NATURAL RESOURCES , Tuesday close $21.43, down 12.7 pct premarket

Morgan Stanley downgraded the iron ore and metallurgical coal producer's stock to "underweight" from "equal-weight", citing an oversupply of iron ore in the Great Lakes region in North America in the coming years which will lead to a cut in the company's production and price.

"As the only non-steelmaking producer in the region, we believe CLF will be most impacted. US Iron Ore segment EBITDA could halve vs. 2012 levels," analyst Evan Kurtz wrote in a note to clients.

** APOLLO GROUP , Tuesday close $17.76, down 3 percent premarket

Borkerage Wells Fargo downgraded the for-profit education company to "market perform" from "outperform", according to StreetInsider.com.

** WAL-MART STORES INC , Tuesday close $74.77

The world's biggest retailer said in a regulatory filing on Tuesday that is now "probable" it will incur losses related to allegations that company representatives had bribed officials in Mexico to speed up expansion there.

** LOGMEIN INC , Tuesday close $21.26, down 6 pct premarket

The remote-access software maker said on Tuesday it won a patent infringement lawsuit against 01 Communique Laboratory Inc .

The victory removes a significant overhang for LogMeIn's stock, JP Morgan said, and raised its price target on the stock to $25 from $23, but said it would maintain its "neutral" rating till there is "improved execution from the company".

"We are cautious on shares of LOGM because the company's rapid growth has slowed recently, and we anticipate growth to be tepid through 2013," analyst John DiFucci wrote in a note.

** LANDEC CORP , Tuesday close $13.34, down 6 pct after market

The company, which makes prepackaged vegetables and medical products, expects profit and revenue in the fourth quarter to be lower than the preceding quarter on reduced supply of green beans during March.

For the third quarter ended Feb. 24, Landec reported a flat profit due to produce-sourcing issues in California.

** PFIZER INC , Tuesday close $28.60

The company's new lung cancer pill Xalkori is too expensive to be worth using on Britain's state health service, the country's health cost watchdog said on Wednesday.

** UNITED TECHNOLOGIES CORP , Tuesday close $92.65

The U.S. environmental regulator said its Goodrich Corp unit has agreed to investigate and clean up contaminated groundwater and soil at a site in Rialto, California.

** JC PENNEY CO INC , Tuesday close $15

The retailer said it had resumed a marketing strategy of raising prices and then discounting them on its own brands in a move to protect profit margins and win back the bargain-conscious shoppers it lost last year.

** SAIC INC , Tuesday close $12.82, up 3 pct after market

The U.S. government IT contractor reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter profit on Tuesday on higher revenue from its defense solutions business.

** ACCESS MIDSTREAM PARTNERS LP , Tuesday close $41.23, down 4 pct premarket

The natural gas services provider on Tuesday said it would offer 9 million common units in an underwritten public offering and will use the proceeds to repay debt.

** PROTECTIVE LIFE INSURANCE , Tuesday close $35.86

The U.S. insurer is the leading candidate to buy some of AXA SA's U.S. life insurance assets in a deal that could be valued at around $1 billion, according to two people familiar with the situation.

** BOEING CO , Tuesday close $86.62

As the planemaker works to regain permission for its 787 Dreamliner to resume flights, the company faces what could be a costly new challenge: a temporary ban on some of the long-distance, trans-ocean journeys that the jet was intended to fly.

** ORACLE CORP , Tuesday close $31.53

Chief Executive Larry Ellison unveiled a new line of faster servers on Tuesday, the latest step to revive a shrinking hardware division and shore up a core software business threatened by smaller rivals.

(Compiled by Jochelle Mendonca)

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Keywords: MARKETS USA STOCKS/PULSE