Zale, Huntington Bancshares: Midday Volume Plays

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Zale (ZLC) was among several stocks trading under $5 on above-average volume following a report that the jewelry retailer will sell a minority stake to a private-equity firm.

Zale is planning to sell a minority stake to Golden Gate Capital, two people familiar with the decision told Bloomberg late Tuesday. The report said Golden Gate Capital could take a $100 million to $150 million stake in the struggling retailer, although a deal has not been finalized.

Zale shares were up 21 cents, or 6.6%, to $3.39. Volume topped 1.15 million shares about an hour into the trading day, compared to the three-month average daily volume of 2.3 million, according to Yahoo! Finance.

Elsewhere, Bionovo (BNVI) shares surged by 9 cents, or 21%, to 53 cents after the company said the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has issued a patent covering a method of using Bionovo's proprietary drug candidate Bezielle for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer. Volume topped 7.35 million shares, compared to the 50-day average daily volume of 779,000, according to the Nasdaq.

Huntington Bancshares (HBAN) jumped by 75 cents, or 12.9%, to $6.58 after the bank swung to a first-quarter profit of $10.4 million, or a penny a share, compared with a year-ago loss of $2.49 billion, or $6.79 a share. Volume topped 47.7 million shares, compared to the 50-day average daily volume of 22 million.

Jones Soda (JSDA) rose 3% to $1.29, as more than 1.3 million shares changed hands. On Tuesday, Jones Soda said Target (TGT) will being to sell its Gaba line of beverages in May.

Ocean Bio-Chem (OBCI) rallied 31.7% to $2.37 after the company said revenue in the first quarter rose 26% from a year ago to $5.2 million. Volume topped 595,000 shares, compared to the 50-day average daily volume of 68,000.

Pacific Capital Bancorp (PCBC) jump 16.4% to $4.10 on 3 million shares, more than double the 50-day average daily volume, in the absence of any company-specific news.

-- Written by Robert Holmes in Boston.

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