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MARKET PULSE-Prosensa, Verenium, Cyclacel, Apple, Microsoft

(For more market insights, including options activity, click on ; for the Day Ahead newsletter http://link.reuters.com/mex49s; for the Morning News Call newsletter, http://link.reuters.com/nex49s)

Sept 20 (Reuters) - Wall Street was set for a slightly lower open on Friday following comments by a senior Federal Reserve official who said that the U.S. central bank's stimulus efforts could be scaled back from as early as October. S&P 500 futures fell 1.5 points, Dow Jones (DJI: ^DJI - news) industrial average futures fell 19 points, while Nasdaq 100 futures added 3.25 points. Some U.S. stocks to watch on Friday:

** PROSENSA, Thursday close $24.00, down 75 pct premarket

** SAREPTA THERAPEUTICS (NasdaqGM: SRPT - news) , Thursday close $36.69, down 8 pct premarket

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An experimental drug for Duchenne muscular dystrophy from GlaxoSmithKline (Other OTC: GLAXF - news) and Prosensa failed to meet its goal in a late-stage clinical trial, the companies said on Friday. The drug, drisapersen, did not show a statistically significant improvement in the distance that patients could walk in six minutes compared to a placebo in the Phase three test.

Shares of rival Sarepta, which is also making a drug for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, also fell 8 percent in premarket trade.

** VERENIUM CORP, Thursday close $2.51, up 60 pct premarket

The company announced that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement with BASF Corporation, a chemicals company, under which BASF will commence a cash tender offer for all of the outstanding shares of Verenium's common stock. Based on all outstanding shares and including all net financial liabilities, the enterprise value would be approximately USD62 million (approximately EUR 48 million).

** MICROSOFT CORP, Thursday close $33.64

Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer has made an impassioned plea to investors to support his vision of the world's largest software company as a unified devices and services powerhouse in his swan song before Wall Street.

** APPLE INC (NasdaqGS: AAPL - news) , Thursday close $472.30, up 1.4 pct premarket

Apple's new iPhones 5C and 5S will be available for purchase at Apple retail stores from today in the U.S., Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Puerto Rico, Singapore and the U.K. "We believe Apple will sell 6-6.5 million new iPhones this weekend," Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Brian White said in a note.

** CYCLACEL PHARMACEUTICALS INC (NasdaqGM: CYCC - news) , Thursday close $3.80, up 40 pct premarket

The drugmaker said on Thursday that updated data from a clinical study showed its experimental product, sapacitabine, has activity against a majority of ovarian cancer samples taken from patients, including resistant tumors. The drug is currently being tested in late-stage studies as a as front-line treatment for acute myeloid leukemia in the elderly.

** GOODYEAR TIRE & RUBBER CO, Thursday close $22.23, up 5 pct premarket

The U.S. tire maker on Friday affirmed its profit forecast for the year and reinstated a common stock dividend. The company also announced a $100 million share buyback program. It said the program was intended to offset new shares issues under stock compensation programs.

** TIBCO SOFTWARE INC (NasdaqGS: TIBX - news) , Thursday close $25.25, up 7 pct after market

The company on Thursday said its contract pipeline for the next year was robust as customers become more willing to spend on large deals, and the business software maker added that its Americas business was "back to strength".

At least five brokerages, including Barclays (LSE: BARC.L - news) and JP Morgan (Other OTC: JPYYL - news) , raised their price targets on Tibco's stock on Friday. Susquehanna upgraded the stock to "positive" from "neutral".

** FIREEYE INC, IPO price $20.00

The cybersecurity company FireEye priced its initial public offering of about 15.2 million shares above its proposed price range. The IPO price values FireEye at about $2.3 billion. The company raised about $304 million from the offering. All the shares in the IPO were sold by the company.

** ROCKET FUEL INC, IPO price $29.00

The advertising technology company's initial public offering was priced at the higher end of its proposed price range, an underwriter told Reuters. The company raised $116 million from the offering of about 4 million shares. All the shares in the IPO were sold by Rocket Fuel.

** CLUBCORP HOLDINGS INC IPO price $14.00

The golf club operator offered 18 million shares in its IPO and would receive net proceeds of about $168.8 million.

** SOLARWINDS INC (NYSE: SWI - news) , Thursday close $39.12

Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS-PB - news) downgraded the stock to sell from neutral, according to the website theflyonthewall.com.

** DARDEN RESTAURANTS INC (NYSE: DRI - news) , Thursday close $49.30, down 5 pct premarket

The restaurant operator reported a lower quarterly profit and higher sales on Friday and said President and Chief Operating Officer Drew Madsen would retire at the end of this quarter.

** TITAN INTERNATIONAL INC (NYSE: TWI - news) , Thursday close $16.11

The equipment parts supplier announced that it was withdrawing its fiscal 2013 guidance relating to revenue and EBITDA. It is unlikely to issue any updates until its fiscal 2014 guidance on January 2014, it said.

** KAR AUCTION SERVICES INC (NYSE: KAR - news) , Thursday close $28.27, down 3 pct premarket

The vehicle auction company announced an underwritten offering of 12 million shares by existing stockholder KAR Holdings LLC.

** BALTIC TRADING LTD, Thursday close $5.10, down 10 pct after market

The drybulk shipper on Thursday said it was offering its common shares to fund vessel acquisitions, working capital and other activities.

** NGL ENERGY PARTNERS LP (NYSE: NGL - news) , Thursday close $33.73, down 4 pct after market

The propane gas supplier on Thursday said it would offer 4.1 million units in an offering. The proceeds from the sale will be used to repay debt, the company said.

** TOWERS WATSON CO, Thursday close $100.09

British insurance broker Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group Plc said it would acquire the reinsurance brokerage business of Towers Watson Co for $250 million in cash.

** CINTAS CORP, Thursday close $50.89, up 3 pct after market

The supplier of rental uniforms for corporates reported a higher first-quarter profit, helped by higher sales across segments, and raised its 2014 earnings outlook.

** JINKOSOLAR HOLDING CO LTD, Thursday close $16.48, up 3.7 pct premarket

The solar panel maker said on Thursday it would offer 3.8 million American depositary shares (ADS) priced at $16.25 each to expand its manufacturing capacity, develop solar projects and fund working capital.

** AK STEEL HOLDING CORP, Thursday close $4.40, down 7.5 pct after market

The steel maker estimated a wider-than-expected loss for the third quarter as production was hit by a mechanical failure at its Ohio facility, sending its shares down 7 percent in after-market trading. The steelmaker said it expects to incur a loss of 22 cents to 27 cents per share. Analysts were expecting a loss of 11 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

** TRANSCEPT PHARMACEUTICALS INC (NasdaqGM: TSPT - news) , Thursday close $3.76, up 4 pct after market

The drugmaker's largest shareholder, Roumell Asset Management, said on Thursday it believed that Retrophin Inc (Other OTC: RTRX - news) 's offer to buy Transcept at $4 per share was "woefully inadequate," and urged the company to launch an open auction process to solicit interest from additional parties.

The investor further said it had been contacted by many shareholders who expressed their "deep dissatisfaction" with Transcept's management team. (http://r.reuters.com/mej33v)

** HUNTSMAN CORP, Thursday close $20.38, up 2 pct after market

BofA Merrill Lynch on Thursday upgraded the chemical maker's stock to "buy" from "neutral", according to theflyonthewall.com. The rating change comes two days after Huntsman said it was buying Rockwood Holdings Inc's titanium dioxide pigments business for $1.1 billion. Huntsman expects demand for the white pigment, used in paint and many consumer goods, to recover in coming quarters, partly due to a recovery in the housing and automobile industries in North America.

** NAVIOS MARITIME PARTNERS LP, $14.93, down 6.6 pct premarket

The shipping company said it plans to offer 5 million common units in a public offering. Navios expects to use the net proceeds to fund its fleet expansion and for general partnership purposes.

** VALERO ENERGY CORP, Thursday close $34.73, up 1 pct after market

Valero Energy Partners LP filed with U.S. regulators on Thursday to raise up to $345 million in an initial public offering of common units. The company was formed by Valero Energy Corp to operate pipelines and terminals for the transportation of crude oil and refined petroleum products.

** TATA MOTORS LTD , Thursday close $27.67, down 2.5 pct premarket

Tata Motors, India's largest automaker by revenue, is looking to raise prices by 1 percent-1.5 percent across its range of commercial and passenger vehicles, following similar moves by rival carmakers.

** FOX FACTORY HOLDING CORP, Thursday close $18.38, down 3 pct after market

The maker of suspension products used on mountain bikes and all-terrain vehicles reported second-quarter earnings lower than analysts' estimates. The company forecast full-year 2013 earnings to be 61 to 67 cents per share and revenue to be $264 million to $270 million.

** GOLDMAN SACHS, Thursday close $167.78

The company was hit by a clerical error at the New York Federal Reserve that left the bank without any of the three-month Treasury bills it ordered at a debt auction, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

** GLAXOSMITHKLINE PLC , Thursday close $50.27

** THERAVANCE INC (NasdaqGS: THRX - news) , Thursday close $41.20

GlaxoSmithKline and Theravance's new inhaled lung drug Relvar has been approved in Japan, a day after winning a positive recommendation in Europe.

** SANOFI SA , Thursday close $50.84

Sanofi (NasdaqGM: GCVRZ - news) has reached a $40 million settlement of a U.S. lawsuit accusing the French drugmaker of misleading investors about the safety of a weight loss pill that a U.S. regulatory panel linked to suicidal thoughts.

** WALT DISNEY CO, Thursday close $65.72

The Walt Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer, the producer behind the blockbuster "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise and the summer flop "The Lone Ranger," will end their long-running film deal next year, the media company announced on Thursday. (Compiled by Varun Aggarwal)