A rise in volatility amid nagging concerns that a meltdown in subprime mortgages will spread to the banking sector caused stock prices to retreat.
Among winners, shares of United Airlines parent UAL Corp. enjoyed their biggest leap in seven months after a Lehman Brothers analyst raised his profit estimate, saying the carrier is beating revenue and cost expectations.
The analyst boosted his UAL estimate for the second quarter to $1.35 a share from $1.15, while keeping an “overweight” rating on shares.
His vote of confidence occurred as the Chicago-based carrier suffered an embarrassing 2-hour shutdown of all departures, blamed on human error and computer problems. The snafu caused ripple effects on flights during the busiest travel week of the summer.
On a brighter note, United said it is planning to hire 100 pilots, its first such move in a half-dozen years.
UAL stock finished at $39.37, nearly double its 52-week low of $21.90.
The stock of Fortune Brands got a boost after it said it is the best partner for the maker of Absolut Vodka, after the Swedish parliament voted to privatize the spirits-maker.
Fortune said, thanks to an earlier agreement with Absolut’s parent, the Deerfield-based company “is in a unique position … to protect the heritage of the brands and preserve jobs in Sweden.”
The company’s stock ended at $83.21, a gain of 22 percent from a 52-week low of $68.45.
And the stock of Nuveen Investments surged after the Chicago-based company received an acquisition offer of $5.75 billion from Madison Dearborn Partners LLC.
Officials of Nuveen said the deal would mean it will ramp up its expansion efforts with help from the deep-pocketed Madison Dearborn, a leading player in leveraged buyouts.
Shares of Nuveen closed at $62.83, up 56 percent from a 52-week low of $40.27.
On the downside, shares of Boeing Co. lost altitude as the aerospace leviathan was outgunned at the Paris Air Show by European rival Airbus SAS.
While Chicago-based Boeing rolled out an order for 52 of it new 787 Dreamliners, Airbus officials logged a barrage of 425 new orders for its A350-XWB, which has been a distant second.
Boeing already has an order book totaling more than $100 billion at list prices for its new entry, which begins flying in early July. Its stock finished at $95.92, off 5 percent from a recent high of $101.45.
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wsluis@tribune.com
