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player ready...It’s may be too early to trumpet the arrival of the dog days, but stocks have been locked in a trading range, with traders transfixed by the price of oil.
Conversely, many Chicago-area stocks are enjoying a summer rally.
Shares of Exelon Corp. hit a 52-week high, as the nation’s largest operator of nuclear plants adjusted its executive lineup.
Following its merger with Public Service Enterprise Group Inc., it will become known as Exelon Electric & Gas. Exelon Chief Executive John Rowe, 60, will serve as CEO, and E. James Ferland, 63, CEO of PSEG, will stay on as non-executive chairman of the board until his retirement in 2007.
Exelon’s highest-ranking woman executive, Pamela Strobel, 52, said she is leaving the company after 12 years. She joins a growing list of Chicago-area female business leaders who have traded work for retirement in recent months.
The stock of Exelon finished the week at $52.25, up 59 percent from a 52-week low of $32.85.
A new fruit salad proved to be a winner for the Golden Arches, pushing shares of McDonald’s Corp. higher. The fast-food giant also reported rising sales in Europe.
Oak Brook-based McDonald’s said it expects second-quarter operating earnings of 51 cents a share, 3 cents better than estimates. The earnings report is due out Thursday.
McDonald’s shares finished at $30.99, up 21 percent from their 52-week low of $25.64. Shares hit a four-year high of $34.56 in March.
A 52-week high was recorded for shares of Northbrook-based insurer Allstate, after damages from Hurricane Dennis proved far less devastating than feared. The stock finished at $62.26, up 37 percent from a 52-week low of $45.50.
And Walgreen Co., the largest U.S. drugstore chain, hit a 52-week high after boosting its quarterly dividend 24 percent, to 6.5 cents a share. The move came as the Deerfield-based company remains locked in a labor dispute with its Chicago-area pharmacists.
Walgreens stock finished at $47.10, a gain of 35 percent from its 52-week low of $34.89.
Abbott sags amid revamp
Among stocks that struggled, investors sold off shares of Abbott Laboratories. The North Chicago-based pharmaceutical giant said its second-quarter earnings rose 38 percent from last year, helped by stronger sales of diagnostic products and arthritis drugs.
However, it also said it would realign its global manufacturing operations, meaning layoffs for hundreds of workers. Abbott will take charges totaling $215 million and offered a downbeat forecast for the third quarter.
After closing at a three-year high of $49.99 on Tuesday, its shares finished the week at $46.87. However, that’s still up 22 percent from their 52-week low of $38.26.
And Illinois Tool Works Inc., which makes automotive parts, construction supplies and food-service equipment, said that W. James Farrell will step down as chief executive on Aug. 5 and turn over the top job to President David Speer. Farrell will remain on as chairman until he retires at age 64 in May.
Shares of Glenview-based ITW closed at $83.01, down 14 percent from their 52-week high of $96.68.
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