MARKET PULSE- Apple, Blyth, Micron, Boise, Pluristem, Dryships

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Sept 16 (Reuters) - Some U.S. stocks on the move on Monday:

WALL ST GAINS AS SUMMERS' EXIT AUGURS CONTINUED DOVISH FED

U.S. stocks rose on Monday after former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers' withdrew as a candidate for Federal Reserve chairman, removing market uncertainty about a long confirmation process that already had plenty of opposition. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.93 percent, Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 0.80 percent, Nasdaq Composite Index was up 0.57 percent.

** APPLE INC (NasdaqGS: AAPL - news) , $453.57, down 2.4 pct (10:56 a.m. ET)

** CHINA TELECOM CP, $53.42, up 2.4 pct (10:57 a.m. ET)

China Telecom Corp Ltd, one of China's three mobile carriers, cut back subsidies on the iPhone 5S, the Wall Street Journal said. (http://link.reuters.com/wyk23v)

The company is forcing users to pay more upfront for the iPhone 5S than it did for the iPhone 5 last year, the report said.

Excluding today's fall, Apple shares have declined 8 percent since the company launched its new iPhones on Sept 10.

** ALLEGHENY TECHNOLOGIES INC (NYSE: ATI - news) , $31.45, up 10 pct (10:22 a.m. ET)

** KENNAMETAL INC (NYSE: KMT - news) , $46.95, up 2 pct (10:22 a.m. ET)

Industrial toolmaker Kennametal said it would buy Allegheny Technologies' tungsten materials business for $605 million to strengthen its materials and cutting tools business and expand in the aerospace and energy markets.

** OMEROS CORP, $7.53, up 48 pct (10:28 a.m. ET)

Wedbush analysts doubled their estimates for Omeros's eye drug's potential penetration in the United States, citing U.S. Food and Drug Administration rules that would restrict the use of similar drugs used in lens replacement surgery.

The analysts raised their target price on the stock to $28 from $18. They said the drug, OMS 302, could be approved around mid 2014.

The drug combines a pupil dilating agent and a painkiller, making it unnecessary for surgeons to mix the agents for use during surgery - a current practice that could compromise sterility - the analysts wrote in a note.

** STAR BULK CARRIERS CORP (NasdaqGS: SBLK - news) , $10.12, up 3 pct (11:30 a.m. ET)

** GENCO SHIPPING AND TRADING LTD, $4.05, up 3 pct

** EAGLE BULK SHIPPING INC (NasdaqGS: EGLE - news) , $5.14, up 2 pct

** DRYSHIPS INC DRYS.O, $2.95, up 2 pct

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index, which tracks freight rates for ships carrying dry bulk commodities such as coal, iron ore and grain, was up about 1 percent on Monday.

** BLYTH INC (NYSE: BTH - news) , $14.37, up 11 pct (10:34 a.m. ET)

Shares of the largest candle maker in the U.S. continued its rally on Monday after a SeekingAlpha report said the company's stock could make a "parabolic" move higher in the very near future. The stock rose 17 percent on Friday.

The article said the company's shares, which are heavily shorted, are being short squeezed due to a 46 percent rise over the past 11 trading days and its small free float. About 90 percent of the outstanding shares are held by insiders and institutional investors, the report said. (http://link.reuters.com/qyk23v)

According to Thomson Reuters data, about 34 percent of the company's outstanding shares were in short positions as of Aug. 30.

** AMERICAN SUPERCONDUCTOR CORPORATION (NasdaqGS: AMSC - news) $2.39, down 5.2 pct (11:27 a.m. ET)

The company, which mainly supplies electrical systems used in wind turbines, said it would sell shares worth $30 million in a public offering. Its shares had closed at $2.52 on the Nasdaq on Friday.

** LOCAL CORP, $2.05, up 4 pct (11:08 a.m. ET)

Brokerage Merriman Capital initiated coverage on the company's stock with a "buy" rating and a price target of $4.50, streetinsider.com reported. Local Corp runs the local.com search site.

** REGADO BIOSCIENCES INC (NasdaqCM: RGDO - news) , $6.28, up 37 pct (10:47 a.m. ET)

Analysts at Cowen and Co initiated coverage of the biotechnology company with an "outperform" rating, saying the company's experimental anticoagulant REG1 could be more effective than bivalirudin, a competing drug sold by The Medicine Co under the brand name Angiomax.

** WI-LAN INC, $3.69, up 13 pct (9:50 a.m. ET)

Shares of the patent licensing company jumped after it said it had settled all pending litigation with telecom gear maker Alcatel (Paris: FR0000130007 - news) -Lucent.

Wi-Lan will also acquire a portfolio of patents and pending applications related to current and next-generation wireless technology from Alcatel-Lucent.

** D.R.HORTON INC, $19.97, up 4 pct (10:45 a.m. ET)

** PULTEGROUP INC (NYSE: PHA - news) , $17.24, up 4 pct

** TOLL BROTHERS INC (NYSE: TOL - news) , $35.69, up 4 pct

** LENNAR CORP (NYSE: LEN - news) , $35.69, up 4 pct

** KB HOME (NYSE: KBH - news) , $17.64, up 4 pct

Homebuilding stocks rallied on a report that U.S. industrial production rose in August as a bounce back in motor vehicle assembly lifted manufacturing output, a hopeful sign for the economy after growth got off to a slow start in the third quarter.

In a separate report, the New York Federal Reserve said its Empire State general business conditions index slipped to 6.29 from 8.24 in August. However, firms expect an improvement in the months ahead. The index of six-month business conditions touched its highest level in nearly 1-1/2 years in September.

** MICRON TECHNOLOGY INC (NasdaqGS: MU - news) , $16.59, up 2.3 pct (9:45 a.m. ET)

The chipmaker has seen nearly 30 percent of its PC-use DRAM production capacity booked up by large clients, and its supply available for other clients in September-December 2013 will decrease significantly, the website digitimes.com reported citing the Taiwan-based memory supply chain makers. (http://r.reuters.com/wak23v)

** COOPER TIRE AND RUBBER CO, $32.31, down 3 pct (9:44 a.m. ET)

A U.S arbitrator said Cooper Tire and Rubber Co cannot sell two of its factories in the country to India's Apollo Tyres (BSE: APOLLOTYRE.BO - news) until a collective bargaining agreement is reached between Apollo and members of the plants' union.

The decision could delay Apollo's plan to buy Cooper in a debt-funded $2.5 billion deal, which is already facing opposition at a factory in China.

** SOHU.COM INC, $67.50, up 4 pct (9:44 a.m. ET)

** QIHOO 360 TECHNOLOGY CO LTD, $84.63, down 3.5 pct (10:14 a.m. ET)

Tencent Holdings Ltd (HKSE: 0700.HK - news) said on Monday that it will buy a 36.5 percent stake in Sohu.com Inc's Sogou search engine, China's third-largest, to lift its presence in the fast-growing China market for search and Internet services.

** BOISE INC (NYSE: BZ - news) , $12.61, up 27 pct (9:44 a.m. ET)

** PACKAGING CORP OF AMERICA, $57.42, up 5 pct (9:43 a.m. ET)

Packaging Corp of America said it would acquire smaller rival Boise for about $1.28 billion to increase its container board capacity. Packaging Corp's offer of $12.55 per share represents a premium of 26 percent to Boise's .

** HILLTOP HOLDINGS INC (NYSE: HTH - news) , $17.66, up 7 pct (10:11 a.m.ET)

The financial holding company said that its wholly-owned subsidiary, PlainsCapital Bank, has entered into an agreement with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) to buy Texas-based First National Bank. The transaction is expected to be immediately accretive to PlainsCapital's earnings.

** GYRODYNE COMPANY OF AMERICA, $75.72, up 6.60 pct (10:23 a.m. ET)

The REIT said it will liquidate itself and declared a special dividend of $66.56 per share.

** PERION NETWORK (NasdaqGM: PERI - news) , $11.40, up 13.5 pct (10:40 a.m. ET)

The Israeli consumer internet company will merge with privately held Conduit's "client connect" business in an all-stock transaction, the companies said on Monday.

** PLURISTEM THERAPEUTICS INC (NasdaqCM: PSTI - news) , $3.47, up 8 pct (9:43 a.m. ET)

The Israel-based company said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration lifted its clinical hold on a mid-stage trial of the company's experimental drug for muscle pain. Pluristem said the FDA allowed it to go ahead with the study, saying that Pluristem had addressed all issues related to the hold.

** HARSCO CORP, $26.34, up 5 pct (10:20 a.m. ET)

The engineering company said it would sell its infrastructure business for $300 million to private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice. Its infrastructure division would be merged with Brand Energy & Infrastructure Services Inc, a company that Clayton, Dubilier & Rice is buying from private equity firm First Reserve. Harsco will get a 29 percent stake in the combined company, which will have an enterprise value of about $2.5 billion, the company said.

** HUNTSMAN CORP, $19.80, up 3 pct (9:42 a.m. ET)

Brokerage KeyBanc Capital Markets raised its rating on the chemical maker's stock to "buy" from "hold" on Friday, according to theflyonthewall.com. Jefferies on Monday also upgraded Huntsman to "buy", citing gains in 2014-2015 from its propylene oxide-making joint venture with China's refiner Sinopec Corp , which is expected to be completed by the end of next year and its presence in Europe, among other things.

** BOEING CO (NYSE: BA - news) , $113.63, up 2 pct (9:42 a.m. ET)

Top (Taiwan OTC: 8419.TWO - news) decision makers in South Korea's 8.3 trillion won ($7.64 billion) fighter jet tender have briefed the president on the outcome of an assessment process and told her that Boeing Co's F-15 Silent Eagle was the sole eligible bid, a source with knowledge of the process told Reuters.

** POST HOLDINGS CO, $43.25, up 3 pct (09:40 a.m. ET)

The breakfast cereal maker said it will buy the Dakota Growers Pasta company from Viterra Inc, a unit of Glencore Xstrata Plc, for $370 million in cash.

** CLEAN HARBORS INC (NYSE: CLH - news) , $59.34, up 2 pct (11:45 a.m. ET)

The environmental clean-up company said it had bought California-based waste oil collector Evergreen Oil Inc out of bankruptcy for $60 million. Evergreen filed for bankruptcy protection in April, primarily due to a fire that damaged its refinery in Newark. (Compiled by Varun Aggarwal)