Today's Financial Stock Winners and Losers

Downey Financial (DSL Quote), the parent company of a savings and loan, said Brian E. Cote will become chief financial officer March 13. Cote will be assuming the CFO responsibilities from Thomas E. Prince, who will continue as Downey's chief operating officer. Shares of Downey rose 41 cents, or 0.7%, to $62.48.

Prudential Financial (PRU Quote) saw its shares edge higher after the company said it would buy Allstate's (ALL Quote) variable-annuity business in a $560 million deal. The purchase, through a reinsurance transaction, will give Prudential an additional $16 billion in annuities to manage. Shares of Prudential tacked on 20 cents, or 0.3%, to $75.71.

Shares of OptionsXpress Holdings (OXPS Quote) fell 4% after the provider of securities brokerage products and services reported its monthly performance statistics for February. Daily average revenue trades totaled 29,200, up 64% from the same month in 2005 but down 11% from January. The company had 5,500 net new customer accounts. OptionsXpress shares were losing $1.18 to $28.95. ...