Thursday's Financial Winners & Losers

Updated from 1:27 p.m. EDT

Epoch (EPHC Quote) jumped 17% Thursday after its assets under management surged 26.2% sequentially to $5.38 billion in the quarter ended March 31. Shares closed up $3.35 to $16.16.

Waddell & Reed (WDR Quote) climbed after an analyst with Bear Stearns raised its rating to outperform from peer perform, saying the Kansas-based asset manager is undervalued and a good buyout candidate. Shares added 77 cents, or 3.3%, to $24.31.

A Goldman Sachs analyst upped Janus Capital (JNS Quote) to neutral from sell, spurring the Denver-based asset manager's shares higher by 82 cents, or 3.8%, to $22.54.

PNC Financial (PNC Quote) moved higher after raising its quarterly dividend by 14.5% to 63 cents a share. The Pittsburgh-based bank tacked on 65 cents, or 0.9%, to $72.77.

Shares of CIT (CIT Quote) traded actively on news that both the company and its Student Loan Xpress unit had been subpoenaed in a larger New York State probe into improper financial arrangements between certain universities and some of their "preferred lenders." CIT said Student Loan Xpress' questionable transactions -- issuance of stock options to school officials -- took place before it bought the business in 2005. Shares were off 63 cents, or 1.2%, to $53.45 earlier in the day but closed up 2 cents to $54.10.

Webster Financial (WBS Quote) dropped after saying it will take a first-quarter pretax charge of $2.3 million due to the sale of its Peoples Mortgage Co. subsidiary (first announced late last week). Other severance-related restructuring charges should come to $2.2 million. Shares lost 55 cents, or 1.2%, to $46.71.