Upgrade Boosts Symantec

A Morgan Stanley analyst is certain its Veritas acquisition will close.
By Bill Snyder ,

Symantec's

(SYMC) - Get Report

hard-pressed stock bounced northward Thursday following an upgrade by Morgan Stanley.

Shares of the antivirus maker have dropped 25% since its merger with

Veritas Software

(VRTS) - Get Report

was announced in mid-December. But analyst Peter Kuper noted that its price is now nearly in line with his $21 valuation of the merged companies. In recent trading, Symantec shares were up 72 cents, or 3.5%, to $21.22.

Kuper raised his valuation from underweight to equal weight, saying that he is more certain that the transaction will indeed close. The merger has not been popular on Wall Street, largely because investors aren't sure the

two companies are a good fit.

Kuper also noted that Veritas appears to be having a good quarter, and that checks in the distribution channel show that disruption caused by the probable merger have been minimal. Shares of Veritas were also up, gaining 85 cents, or 3.8%, to $23.34.

At the time the all-stock deal was announced, it was valued at $13.5 billion, but it slipped significantly as investors sold off Symantec.

Morgan Stanley is seeking investment banking business with Symantec.

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