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CNNfn market movers
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March 17, 1999: 11:21 a.m. ET
Tekelec falls on earnings, downgrade; Falcon defies analysts, climbing instead
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Stock analysts set the tempo to which many of Wall Street's market movers marched Wednesday, lifting a wide range of stocks through judicious upgrades and recommendations.
It was a good morning for heavy machinery after Salomon Smith Barney analyst Tobias Levkovich raised his ratings on several equipment makers to "buy" from "neutral."
Massive vehicle maker and Dow component Caterpillar (CAT) climbed 2-7/8 to 46-7/8 on Levkovich's recommendation, while vehicular electronics firm Eaton (ETN) surged 1-1/4 to 68-7/16. Shareholders also followed the "buy" in respect to farm equipment makers, pushing Deere (DE) up 1-13/16 to 34-15/16 and Case (CSE) up 1-3/4 to 23-5/16.
In the broader heavy-vehicle sector, JLG Industries (JLG) powered up 9/16 to 12-7/16 without benefit of specific mention from Smith Barney, while New Holland (NH) advanced 7/16 to 9-1/2. Agco (AG) gained 9/16 to 6-5/8.
Among other stocks reaping the benefits of analyst support, software maker Novell (NOVL) climbed 1-15/16 to 26 after being rated a "long-term buy" by Merrill Lynch.
Resort operator Station Casinos (STN) upped its ante 1/4 to 12-7/8 on the back of several encouraging words from Wall Street's opinion-makers. BB Robertson Stephens raised its recommendation on the stock to "buy" from "perform," while Merrill Lynch started covering the company at a "buy" rating.
On the losing team, communications manufacturer Tekelec (TKLC) suffered the wrath of BT Alex. Brown, which knocked its "strong buy" rating down to a straight "buy" and knocked shares down 2-13/16 to 7-15/16 in the process. The company overnight warned that millennial Y2K fears would cause its first quarter to disappoint shareholder expectations.
Irish luck proved inscrutable as ever for Galway-based Saville Systems (SAVLY), which fell 3/16 to 9-13/16 in particularly heavy trading after Hambrecht & Quist downrated the billing software firm to "hold" from "buy."
Also inscrutable, offshore driller R&B Falcon (FLC) defied the analysts, pushing up 1/4 to 6-15/16 despite being knocked to "buy" from "strong buy" by CS First Boston. Investors instead looked toward the oil-field sector's upward momentum, especially Halliburton (HAL), which climbed 1-3/8 to 36-1/4, and Schlumberger (SLB), up 1-5/8 to 57-1/2. Nabors Industries (NBR) added 3/4 to 14-3/4.
From buzz to fundamentals
Outside the circle of ratings and recommendations, RealNetworks (RNWK) soared 11-3/8 to 126-3/8 after rival Microsoft (MSFT) included the company's RealGuide media software in the new release of Internet Explorer.
Instrument maker SeaMed (SEMD) climbed 3 to 10-11/16 after accepting an $83 million buyout from Plexus (PLXS), which fell 2-1/4 to 30-15/16.
California Water Service Group (CWT), meanwhile, inched up 1/8 to 24-1/2 after its unpopular proposed $58 million acquisition of fellow utility Dominguez Services (DOMZ) hit a snag in the form of rival suitor American States Water (AWR). Dominguez climbed 1-1/2 to 28, while American States shed 7/16 to 27-5/8. 
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