'Fast Money' Recap: In the Ring With WWE

The U.S. stock market rallied Monday after Standard & Poor's reaffirmed triple-A ratings on struggling monoline insurers MBIA (MBI Quote) and Ambac (ABK Quote). The Dow climbed 1.5%, the S&P 500 rose 1.4% and the Nasdaq ticked up 1.1%.

On CNBC's "Fast Money" TV show, Karen Finerman expressed confusion about the rally. She saw the market's move as a continuation of Friday's news of a potential bailout for the insurers.

However, she noted that despite the affirmation of MBIA and Ambac's triple-A ratings, which are crucial to their business, S&P issued a negative outlook. She saw the net result as null for the insurers.

Meanwhile, Pete Najarian drew viewers' attention to biotech stocks, which performed well "right out of the gate." He pointed to GTx's (GTXI Quote) new prostate drug, good news for Genentech's (DNA Quote) Avastin. He also predicted that the market will continue to be volatile, but the trading range should begin contracting.

Speaking of the continued commodities boom, Guy Adami reaffirmed his affinity for the natural gas trade, noting success from Schlumberger (SLB Quote) and Baker Hughes (BHI Quote). He cautioned investors to stay away from gold miners like Newmont Mining (NEM Quote) and Barrick Gold (ABX Quote).

He said there's risk from those companies in terms of execution, and he prefers the streetTracks Gold Shares (GLD Quote) ETF. In coal, he also likes Joy Global (JOYG Quote).

Najarian quipped, "Forget gold." He said he prefers the coal trade, calling Goldman Sachs' downgrade of the sector "wrong." He suggested getting into Arch Coal (ACI Quote) on dips. He was also bullish on Fording Canadian Coal (FDG Quote).

Chart of the Day

Alcoa (AA Quote) took off today. Adami advised that investors get long, because the stock is still cheap. Macke begged to differ, observing that the company "never hit earnings."

Electronic Arts' Take-Two Takeout

Electronic Arts (ERTS Quote) made a $2 billion offer for fellow video-game developer Take-Two (TTWO Quote). Take-Two resisted.

Macke said he didn't understand how Take-Two could refuse, and recommended that the company take the money. Najarian added that Take Two's Grand Theft Auto franchise is not very valuable. Finerman noted that the company has no defense against a takeover except for great numbers from Grand Theft Auto sales. Macke further averred that Electronic Arts needs a pipeline of creative content, and that Take-Two alone wouldn't help their business.

Getty Gets Got

Getty Images (GYI Quote) likewise spiked today after agreeing to a $2.1 billion buyout by private equity group Hellman & Freeman. Najarian called the deal a "take-under." He acknowledged that Hellman & Freeman paid a premium, but believes the deal was a bargain.

Tiffany May Not Be Alone Now

On speculation that French luxury brand holder LVMH may buy jeweler Tiffany (TIF Quote), Adami reminded viewers of the company's exposure to platinum. With that commodity's price rising, he said that Tiffany had better hope for a deal. Macke expressed skepticism about a takeover.

Yacrosoft? Microhoo?

Of the proposed merger between Microsoft (MSFT Quote) and Yahoo! (YHOO Quote), Finerman remarked that it's time for Microsoft to get more aggressive. She proposed a proxy fight or a tender offer.

In other news, MBIA announced that it had eliminated its dividend. Najarian questioned the company's triple-A rating, and Adami said the dividend cut makes sense. Macke agreed, adding that MBIA is not a triple-A company.

On bad news from Lowe's (LOW Quote), Finerman suggested that the company was setting guidance so low that it can't underperform. Najarian praised the company for cutting its expansion, saying that, like Starbucks (SBUX Quote), it was growing too fast.

Visa made headlines with a planned initial public offering valued at $17 billion, which would be the largest IPO in U.S. history. Adami predicted that the company would achieve the milestone, likely by the end of March, adding that investors would likely see volatility from MasterCard (MA Quote) in advance of Visa's debut. He suggested buying MasterCard on dips.

Writedowns Ahead

Noting that Goldman Sachs and other banks will likely announce credit losses in the coming week, the "Fast Money" crew welcomed CNBC reporter Charlie Gasparino to discuss turmoil in the credit markets.