Stocks to Watch: RHT, PAYX, FOSL & More

Take a look at some of Thursday’s morning movers:

Red Hat - The software provider reported quarterly profit of 29 cents a share, two cents above estimates. The company also said it would buy back $300 million in stock. Revenue, however, did fall short of forecasts.

Best Buy - The electronics retailer earned $2.47 per share for its fourth quarter vs. estimates of $2.16, though revenues were short of analyst forecasts. Best Buy plans to close 50 big box stores this year, while announcing plans to open 100 mobile small format stand-alone stores.

Sprint Nextel - Deutsche Bank is out with positive comments on Sprint, following meetings with management it characterizes as "positive." Among the notable observations — that tests of Sprint's 4G LTE network yield comparable results to those of Verizon Communications and AT&T .

Speaking of AT&T and Verizon - R.W. Baird has downgraded both telecom stocks to "neutral" from "outperform," due to slow revenue growth, surging data traffic, and the need for additional spectrum.

Whole Foods Market - Goldman Sachs has downgraded the grocer's shares to "neutral" from "buy." Goldman's call is on a valuation basis, saying its view of the company's fundamental story is unchanged.

Paychex

- The payment processor earned 37 cents per share for its fourth quarter, in line with consensus, with revenue above analyst projections. It says its primary metric — checks per client — will be “moderate” for the rest of the year.

Fossil - The watchmaker's stock will replace Medco Health Solutions in the S&P 500 index, upon completion of Medco’s acquisition by Express Scripts.

Millennial Media - The mobile ad company debuts today on the New York Stock Exchange after pricing its IPO at $13 a share, at the top of the expected range of $11 to $13.

Another initial public offering today: print-on-demand website Cafepress priced its IPO at $19 per share, above the expected range of $16 to $18.

Illumina - Roche Holding has increased its bid for the gene sequencing company to $6.7 billion or $51 per share, up 15 percent from its initial $44.50 per share offer.

Mosaic - The fertilizer and feed ingredient maker reported profit of 64 cents a share for its latest quarter, 10 cents shy of estimates. Mosaic suffered the effects of lower potash sales and higher input costs.

Ford Motor - Citi has added the automaker's stock to its "top picks" list, citing stronger U.S. demand, upcoming product launches, and a low valuation.

Nordstrom - Goldman Sachs has upgraded the retailer's stock to "buy" from "neutral," and raised its price target to $65 per share from $54. Goldman says Nordstrom's ability to gain market share on an ongoing basis is underappreciated by investors.

American Express - The stock has been downgraded by Wells Fargo to "market perform" from "outperform," because of what Wells Fargo terms "limited upside potential."

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