MARKET PULSE- Sarepta, Intermune, Best Buy, B&G Foods, Monsanto

Oct 3 (Reuters) - Some U.S. stocks to watch on Wednesday:

(For The Day Ahead newsletter click on ) FUTURES FLAT AHEAD OF LABOR, SERVICES DATA

U.S. stock index futures were little changed Wednesday as expectations that Spain will request a bailout offset concern over a slowing Chinese economy, with modest volume indicating a pause ahead of the release of key U.S. data.

** SAREPTA THERAPEUTICS INC , Tuesday close $14.99, up 135 pct premarket

The company said its experimental drug met the main goal of improving walking ability in patients with a rare muscle disorder in a mid-stage trial.

** INTERMUNE INC , Tuesday close $8.85, up 10.7 pct premarket

The biotechnology company said Canadian health regulators approved its drug to treat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a fatal lung disease.

** B&G FOODS INC , Tuesday close $33.51, down 8.4 pct premarket

The company, which sells Ortega Mexican food and Cream of Wheat hot cereals, said it priced its public offering of 3.6 million shares at $30.25 per share - a 3.5 percent discount. The proceeds from the offering would be used to pay down its debt and costs related to the acquisition of the New York Style and Old London brands.

** METROPCS INC , Tuesday close $13.57, up 7.6 percent premarket

The board of the company has approved to merge with Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile USA unit, German newspaper Financial Times Deutschland said on its website on Wednesday, citing unidentified people familiar with the process.

** BEST BUY CO INC , Tuesday close $16.97, up 4 pct premarket

The company's founder Richard Schulze and at least four private equity firms have started examining the books of the world's largest consumer electronics chain, early steps toward what could become a potential $11 billion buyout, according to people familiar with the matter.

** WALGREEN CO , Tuesday close $36.91, down 2.5 pct premarket

The largest U.S. drugstore chain reported a nearly 8 percent decline in September sales as calendar day shifts hurt pharmacy sales along with generic drug introductions.

** FAMILY DOLLAR STORES INC , Tuesday close $66.00, up 2.4 pct premarket

The retailer posted a higher quarterly profit, helped by sales of food, but margins remained under pressure, and the company recorded a charge from a litigation settlement with some workers.

** RPM International Inc , Tuesday close $26.63, up 1.4 pct premarket

The company's quarterly profit fell as the coatings and sealants maker incurred one-time charges.

** GOOGLE INC , Tuesday close $756.99

** APPLE INC , Tuesday close $661.31, up 0.6 pct premarket

Google's subsidiary Motorola Mobility has dropped a complaint of patent infringement against Apple Inc without explanation.

** MONSANTO CO , Tuesday close 90.56, up 3.8 pct premarket

The global agribusiness group posted a fourth-quarter loss on Wednesday, as expected, amid a seasonally sluggish sales period.

** VIVUS INC , Tuesday close $18.38, up 2.5 pct premarket

The obesity drugmaker said a class action lawsuit against the company related to Vivus's claims about its drug Qsymia has been dismissed.

** XYRATEX LTD , Tuesday close $8.70, down 14 pct post-market

The network and storage equipment maker's third-quarter results missed analysts estimates as demand in the enterprise sector fell, and the company forecast a surprise loss for the current quarter.

The company will reduce headcount by 10 percent and scale back production in the United States in the current quarter, it said in a conference call with analysts.

** SOURCEFIRE INC , Tuesday close $47.96, up 2.3 pct post-market

The cyber-security software maker said Chief Executive John Burris will step down effective immediately, three months after he had taken medical leave of absence to undergo treatment for colon cancer.

** MARRIOTT INTERNATIONAL INC , Tuesday close $38.63

The second-largest U.S. hotelier is likely to report weak results for the third quarter on softness in some international markets, after markets close.

** HEWLETT-PACKARD CO , Tuesday close $17.13

Wall Street investors at the company's analyst day meeting may grill Chief Executive Meg Whitman on how she plans to reverse a share price that has lost more value this year than almost any other major technology company.

** CITRIX SYSTEMS , Tuesday close $75.49 ** PALO ALTO NETWORKS , Tuesday close $62.00

Business software maker Citrix Systems and security software company Palo Alto Networks have entered a strategic partnership to offer joint application delivery and security products.

** ANCESTRY.COM INC , Tuesday close $29.69

Permira Advisers LLP has emerged as the front-runner to take genealogy website private, two people familiar with the matter said, in a deal that could top $1.5 billion.

** LINKEDIN CORP , Tuesday close $118.77

The professional social network will let its users "follow" and receive updates from people outside their personal contact list, a move that could entice users to spend more time on its website.

** ARQULE INC , Tuesday close $2.18

The biotechnology company said it will discontinue a late-stage trial of the lung cancer drug it is co-developing with Japan's Daiichi Sankyo Co Ltd after an interim analysis showed the drug would not improve overall survival, sending ArQule's shares down as much as 60 percent.

** THERAVANCE INC , Tuesday close $26.39

The biotechnology company and private pharmaceutical group Alfa Wassermann said they entered into an agreement for a mid-stage study of Theravance's gastrointestinal disorder drug velusetrag.

(Complied by Aditi Shrivastava in Bangalore)

(aditi.shrivastava@thomsonreuters.com, within U.S. +1 646 223 8780, outside U.S. +91 80 4135 5783, Reuters messaging: aditi.shrivastava.reuters.com@reuters.net)

Keywords: MARKETS USA STOCKS/PULSE