Afternoon Market Update (MEDQ, RELL, ARW, UAL)

Shares of MedQuist Inc

surged after the company announced to pay a special dividend of $4.70 per share to its shareholders, as of record on October 11. The company is likely to pay the dividend on October 15. MEDQ has also signed financing agreements worth $310 million. MEDQ shares jumped about 27%. Shares of Richardson Electronics Ltd

gained after the company agreed to sell its RF, Wireless and Power Division to Arrow Electronics

. RELL is selling its division for $210 million in cash. Arrow has planned to operate the same division as a separate business unit. The unit will operate under the name Richardson RFPD. RELL's shares moved up about 13%. Analysts at JP Morgan initiated its coverage of United Continental Holdings Inc

with an “overweight” rating. The target price for the company is set to $34. After the merger of Continental and United, the shares of UAL jumped immediately more than 5%. JP Morgan said, "We continue to envision a prosperous 2011 for U.S. airlines, assuming tepid economic trends and oil in the $80 range." The investment firm added, "It is against this backdrop that we anticipate balance sheet repair will emerge as a collective industry theme." Read more