Claxson Interactive Group, Inc. (OTC:XSONF) shares moved down 4.26% today after Black Horse Capital Advisors disclosed an 8.4% stake in the company and revealed the disturbing details of a March 23rd proposed transaction in which Claxson and its controlling shareholders indicated their desire to purchase the remaining minority shares at $10.50 per share - below the current price of $11.25.

The problem arises when we see that Claxson announced the sale of certain Pay TV assets to Turner Broadcasting for $235 million along with the sale of Ibero American Radio Chile to the Prisa Group for $75 million. The hedge fund noted that the closing of these two transactions and the interim cash flow generation will likely produce a net cash position (afer paying all the remaining holders of company debt) that will significantly exceed the offer price. Furthermore, the proposed transaction does not compensate minority shareholders for Claxson's remaining valuable assets. These amount to an even higher price well above the $10.50 per share offer price. Consequently, the hedge fund recommended that the Special Committee in the board of directors should reject the offer as inadequate. If the offer is rejected and a higher offer is made, it could mean significant appreciation for shareholders. this makes XSONF a stock worth watching!

Point.360 (NDAQ:PTSX) announced yesterday that it had entered a merger agreement with DG FastChannel, Inc. (NDAQ:DGFC). Under the terms of the agreement, DGFC will acquire Point.360's spot advertising distribution business, and Point.360 will spin off its remaining businesses to its shareholders. DGFC will also be assuming up to $7 million in Point.360's debt while providing it with $3 million in cash for the working capital of the other business.

As a result of the spin-off, Point.360 shareholders will continue to own shares in the New 360, which focuses on high definition and standard definition mastering, sophisticated computer graphics, data conversion and video, film and media asset management services. The existing Point.360 senior management will stay with the new company that will be basically debt free and generating revenues of about $45 million to $50 million with EBITDA around $4 million to $6 million during the next 12 months. This is great news for shareholders as they will not only receive a payment from DGFC, but also shares in a new spinoff - which tend to outperform the overall market in their first year. This makes PTSX a stock worth watching!

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BCE Inc. (NYSE:BCE) share moved up $1.98, or 6.17%, to $34.05 today after the company announced that it began discussions with a group of Canadian pension funds in connection with its review of strategic alternatives. The announcement confirmed rumors that have already brought the stock up about 26% since March 29th. Many analysts warn that any buyout may not come at much of a premium to the current market price while the downside if a deal falls through could be quite steep.

The company confirmed that it was in talks with the pension consortium consisting of Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Caisse De Depot et Placement Du Quebec and Public Sector Pension Investment Board; however, the company restated its dismissal that it was working with KKR or private equity funds on a possible deal. Overall, BCE may not be the best stock to purchase right now as the premium is too high; however, it could be a shorting target if a deal falls through or a buyout target if other bidders surface that would be willing to push up the price. Either way, this is a stock that is worth watching!

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BCE Inc. (BCE) rose 6.3% after the company said it entered into talks with three major institutional investors and a large private-equity firm about a potential buyout.

Black & Decker Corp (BDK) shares moved up 4.4% after the company raised its first quarter profit target amist strong international demand for power tools and other accessories.

Commerce Group (CGI) shares added 8.7% after the company was assigned to the S&P MidCap 400 index, replacing Adesa Inc.

East West Bancorp (EWBC) moved up 11% after the company reported first quarter earnings of 68 cents per share, up a year ago from 55 cents per share. The company also raised its guidance from $2.52 to $2.60 for the FY2007.

InsWeb Corp (INSW) shares more than doubled today after the company reported net earnings of 10 cents per share, compared with a net loss of 41 cents per share a year ago.

Lithia Motors (LAD) shares rose 7.2% after the company was selected to joing the S&P SmallCap 600 Index, replacing MapInfo Corp.

Nanogen (NGEN) shares rose 4.9% after the company submitted a 510(k) application to the FDA for its cystic fibrosis kit and NanChip 400 microarray system.

Telik (TELK) shares rose 9.2% after the company announced results from a Phase II clinical trial of the combination of Telcyta, carboplatin and paclitaxel in the first-line treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Fair Isaac Corp (FIC) shaers lost 8.6% after the company cut its fiscal second quarter and 2007 forecasts.

Google Inc.'s (NDAQ:GOOG) buyout of DoubleClick Inc. is fueling speculation that there may be consolidation in the online advertising sector. Online advertising companies aQuantive Inc. (NDAQ:AQNT), 24/7 Real Media Inc. (NDAQ:TFSM), and ValueClick Inc. (NDAQ:VCLK) all moved up significantly on the news after investors and analysts suggested that they could become the next buyout targets. Meanwhile, others suggest that large players will likely seek more reasonably priced companies in the private sector instead of going after any of the larger public targets. Regardless, these are definitely stocks to keep a close eye on following Google's blockbuster acquisition!

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Atmel Corporation (NDAQ:ATML) shares rose 1.19% in early trading after George Perlegos announced the filing of a definitive proxy statement with the SEC in connection with his planned solicitation of proxies at the company's next annual shareholders meeting on May 18th. The founder and former president, CEO, and chairman of the company hopes to replace the company's current board with his own nominees and appoint an additional three candidates that he feels are highly qualified.

If successful, the 5.2% holder proposed several initiatives designed to unlock shareholder value:

• Promptly hiring a new, highly qualified and experienced CEO to replace the current underperforming one who had only 10 weeks of public company CEO experience before joining the company!
  
• Spinning-off Atmel's Smart Card business to its shareholders in order to convert the company to a microcontroller pure-play and deliver value to shareholders. We know that spin-offs tend to outperform the overall market in their first year!
  
• Selling Atmel's automotive business in Germany, which Mr. Perlegos believes can be sold for $400 to $500 million - a far better option than the current proposal to sell the company's wafer business in Germany.
  
• Divesting non-core assets, such as the company's NOR-flash business. This furthers the company's move to become a microcontroller pure-play and provides it with the cash to fund a share repurchase.
  
• Initiating a $500 million to $1 billion share repurchase program designed to boost the company's share price and unlock value for shareholders.
  
• Removing the current poison pill in accordance with the highest standards of corporate governance.

Clearly all of these proposed initiatives would be greatly beneficial to shareholders. The company's stock has already dropped close to 20% since the beginning of 2007 after the company announced further sequential decline in revenue of up to 8% for the first quarter. Obviously changes are needed and perhaps George Perlegos is the one to bring them; after all, he did successfully create and run the company for nearly 20 years! Combined, these factors make ATML a stock worth watching...

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ABN Amro (NYSE:ABN) shares moved up $2.49, or 5.44%, to $48.28 today after the Wall Street Journal reported that the Royal Bank of Scotland officially made a bid for the company. Up until now, the merger talks surrounding the company included only Barclays with mere speculation that there could be others in the mix. The Royal Bank of Scotland is supposedly teaming up with Fortis and Banco Santander Central Hispano to buy ABN and carve it up. It has been widely speculated that other suitors would be willing to pay more than Barclays - especially in the event of a breakup bid.

While ABN management may not be too enthusiastic about these additional bids, a bidding war is certainly in the best interest of shareholders as evidenced by today's jump. We know that one activist investor, The Children's Investment Fund, already announced that it would support the consideration of the RBoS consortium saying: "As ABN Amro shareholders, we believe that the fiduciary duties of the supervisory and management boards require that the Royal Bank of Scotland consortium is allowed to proceed immediately with due diligence on a basis equivalent to Barclays for there to be a fair and transparent process which maximizes shareholder value". Clearly the situation makes ABN a stock worth watching!

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Monster Worldwide Inc. (NYSE:MNST) shares rose over 3% today after the company announced that Sal Iannuzzi would replace William Pastore as Chairman and CEO of the company in the second management shakeup in six months. The CEO switched has led to speculation that Monster may be interested in putting itself back on the block, especially given Iannuzzi's past roles in high profile deals.

Many analysts believe that if the company did put itself up for sale, it could potentially be a target for Yahoo! or eBay who are looking to take market share from Google in areas outside of search. The company could also be a target for newspaper chains or private online recruiting companies like CareerBuilder.com. Given the company's strong market position, solid financial performance, and large number of potential bidders, many analysts are predicting that the company could see more than $60 per share or almost 20x projected 2007 EBITDA. While no deal is certain, there is definitely a possibility for M&A in what has become a strange story on Wall Street. This makes MNST a stock worth watching!

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Motorola, Inc. (NYSE:MOT) board members may face some opposition at the company's next annual meeting after Carl Icahn filed a proxy statement soliciting shareholder votes to elect him to the Motorola board of directors. In his letter to shareholders, Icahn commented that his experience tells him that Motorola's problems reflect not only operational failures, but also symptoms of a passive and reactive board. The move comes after the company's surprise fourth-quarter drop in earnings for its Mobile Devices segment and recently announced expectations for disappointing results through 2007.

Shares did not rally on the news, however, since Icahn added that buy-backs and other transactions that might have looked appropriate earlier need to take a "back seat". It was his recommendations to unlock value through such transactions that helped move the stock significantly during his past announcements. In the end, it may be best for the company to concern itself with improving its operational performance before exploring any strategic options, despite the fact that it may take some time. Meanwhile, this is definitely a stock to watch as the situation unfolds!

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Google Inc. (NDAQ:GOOG) announced Friday that it has agreed to buy online-advertising company DoubleClick Inc. for $3.1 billion in cash, capping takeover talks that reportedly featured interest from other companies including Microsoft. The acquisition will help Google boost its efforts to sell more graphics-based display ads - a market pioneered by the venture-funded DoubleClick.

Merck & Co. (NYSE:MRK) shares jumped on Friday after a greatly improved 2007 earnings forecast hit the markets as well as the dismissal of a class-action lawsuit filed by shareholders over its handling of the recalled Vioxx. There were also rumors that a Texas judge is poised to throw out a key Vioxx case, which could derail another 1,000 Vioxx cases filed in Texas courts.

eBay Inc. (NDAQ:EBAY) is expected to report higher sales and a surge in profit on Wednesday, fueled by growth in its PayPal division and improving selling prices of items sold on its website. Sales are projected to climb 22% to $1.7 billion while profits are expected to come in at 30 cents per share - the higher end of eBay's guidance.

McDonald's Corp. (NYSE:MCD) shares added 2.2% after the company said it expects earnings of 62 cents for Q1, including a one cent gain from foreign currency translation. This tops analyst estimates of 57 cents.

Apple, Inc. (NDAQ:AAPL) shares fell over 2% after the comany said it would delay the release of Leapard, the next upgrade of its Mac operating system, until October.

Comverge (NDAQ:COMV) shares jumped over 16% on their first day of trading on the Nasdaq. The maker of software and related technology is tapping into the so-called "Cleantech" sector aimed at reducing the world's carbon footprint by making electricity transmission grids smarter.

General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE) rose 0.6% after the company's first quarter results came in line with analysts' expectations, while it also reaffirmed its earnings guidance for 2007.

Sirius Satellite Radio Inc. (NDAQ:SIRI) and XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (NDAQ:XMSR) advanced slightly after the Justice Department said it had requested more information on their planned merger.