Maguire, Crimson: Midday Volume Plays

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Several stocks trading near $5 were moving on above-average volume during Thursday's session.

Maguire Properties (MPG) gained by 30 cents, or 20.1%, to $1.79 after the company late Wednesday said it had completed the sale of the Lantana Media Entertainment Campus to an affiliate of Lionstone Group. Additionally, Maguire sold a property on the Campus to NARAS Properties. The asset sale is part of Maguire's plan to sell certain properties to address near-term debt maturities. Volume topped 2.16 million shares, compared to the three-month average daily volume of 2.94 million, according to Yahoo! Finance.

Rite Aid (RAD) added 13 cents, or 9.8%, to $1.46 after the company reported a third-quarter loss of 10 cents a share, although that was better than the Thomson Reuters average estimate for a loss of 18 cents a share. However, revenue in the quarter missed expectations, and the company narrowed its earnings guidance for 2010. Volume topped 19.24 million shares, compared to the three-month average daily volume of 12.34 million.

Sonic Solutions (SNIC) jumped by $1.28, or 13.2%, to $10.97 after the company announced a public offering of 3 million shares at a price of $9.70 per share. Sonic expects to receive $27.1 million in proceeds, net of fees and other expenses, through the offering. Volume topped 917,000 shares, compared to the 50-day average daily volume of 394,000, according to the Nasdaq.

Central Jersey Bancorp (CJBK) plummeted by $1.12, or 23.1%, to $3.72 after the bank and OceanFirst Financial (OCFC) said they had terminated their plan to merge. The companies jointly said "the current environment is such that obtaining regulatory approval has taken much longer than we anticipated and has reached a point where we believe that continuing to wait for this approval is not in the best interest of either company." Volume topped 73,000 shares, compared to the 50-day average daily volume of 11,000, according to the Nasdaq.

Crimson Exploration (CXPO) tumbled by 70 cents, or 13.5%, to $4.50 in the debut of the natural gas and crude oil company's stock. The private equity-backed initial public offering priced at $5 a share, belowe the expected range of $6 to $8 a share, and the company sold 20 million shares vs. the 18 million expected. Volume topped 6.11 million shares in the stock's debut.

-- Written by Robert Holmes in Boston.

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