U.S. Stocks Advance Amid $21.5 Billion in Takeovers, Valuation

U.S. Stocks Advance Amid $21.5 Billion in Takeovers, Valuation

By Rita Nazareth

Aug. 15 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rose, erasing last week’s drop, as $21.5 billion in takeovers and valuations near the cheapest level in two years helped the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index extend its best three-day rally since 2009.

Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. soared 56 percent as Google Inc. agreed to buy the company for about $12.5 billion in cash. Bank of America Corp. rallied 7.6 percent on plans to exit the international credit-card business by selling its $8.6 billion card business in Canada to TD Bank Group and leaving the U.K. and Irish markets. Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. advanced at least 2.6 percent, pacing energy-company gains, as oil rose.

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