Stocks to watch Friday: Sara Lee, Vishay

By MarketWatch

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Among the stocks that could see active trade in Friday’s session are Sara Lee Corp., Vishay Intertechnology Inc. and OmniVision Technologies Inc.

It’s a light one on the earnings front, with just Graham Corp.  GHM   +3.27%  , Thermon Group Holdings Inc.  THR   -1.84%   and Modine Manufacturing Co.  MOD   -0.92%   scheduled to report quarterly results. Late Thursday, Wisconsin-based Modine agreed to buy privately held Canadian company Geofinity Manufacturing for undisclosed terms.

The board of Sara Lee  SLE   -0.71%   approved moving ahead with the separation of the company’s international coffee and tea business, clearing the way for payment of a special dividend as well as a reverse stock split. A distribution of common stock in the business will be made after the June 28 close of trading to Sara Lee stockholders of record as of June 14, the Downers Grove, Ill.-based company said late Thursday. Immediately thereafter, the holders will receive a $3-a-share special dividend. And after that, the stockholders will become owners of ordinary shares in D.E Master Blenders 1753 NV, at the rate of one share for each of their Sara Lee common shares. Whatever fractional shares of D.E Master Blenders 1753 there are will be sold in the open market, net proceeds from which will be distributed in the form of cash on a pro-rata basis. Sara Lee also said it’s received an Internal Revenue Service ruling that the distribution will qualify as tax-free for federal income tax purposes. Upon completion of the separation, a 1-for-5 reverse stock split of shares of Sara Lee common stock will take effect, the company said.

Also late Thursday, Vishay Intertechnology  VSH   -0.84%  announced the repurchase nearly 14 million common shares, after having closed on the sale to institutional buyers of $150 million in 2.25% convertible senior debentures due 2042. The debentures will be initially convertible, subject to certain conditions, into cash, shares of Vishay common or a combination thereof, at Vishay’s option, at an initial conversion rate of 84.6937 shares of common stock per $1,000 principal amount of debentures. This represents an initial effective conversion price of about $11.81 a share, Malvern, Pa.-based Vishay said. Terms specify that the company may not redeem the debentures prior to June 7, 2022, except in connection with certain tax-related events. On or after that date, Vishay may in certain circumstances redeem for cash all or part of the debentures at a price equal to 100% of the principal amount of the debentures, plus accrued and unpaid interest.

Along with reporting results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended April 30, OmniVision Technologies  OVTI   -7.91%   forecast a profit shortfall for the first quarter of fiscal 2013. The Santa Clara, Calif.-based company projected earnings of 16 cents to 27 cents a share on an adjusted basis, less than the 29-cent consensus in a survey of analysts by Thomson Reuters. It was a different matter for first-quarter revenue, which the company projected at $235 million to $255 million, as opposed to analysts’ consensus of $219 million, essentially flat on a sequential basis.

Vera Bradley Inc.  VRA   -2.28%   affirmed its full-year profit forecast but tweaked its sales projection as the accessories designer reported results for the first quarter ended April 28 late Thursday. As revised, the Ft. Wayne, Ind.-based company sees sales of $535 million to $540 million for the year, down from a range of $540 million and $545 million previously forecast.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp Inc.  BHLB   -0.64%   is expanding further into upstate New York, saying it’s agreed to acquire Beacon Federal Bancorp Inc.  BFED   -2.71%   via a cash-and-stock transaction valued at about $132 million. Beacon, which operates seven full-service offices primarily in the Syracuse area, had $677 million in deposits as of March 31. The merger will augment Pittsfield, Mass.-based Berkshire Hills’ previous moves into the area so that when the Beacon merger’s completed, it will have deposits in central and eastern regions of New York state exceeding $1.4 billion. “We expect that this business combination will produce approximately 22 cents per share in core earnings accretion in 2013,” said Michael Daly, president and chief executive of Berkshire Hills, in a statement.

Boyd Gaming Corp.  BYD   +0.13%   said it expects to realize about $340 million in net proceeds as a result of increasing the size of its offering of 9% senior notes due 2020. The $350 million offering, raised from the $300 million previously contemplated, is expected to close June 8. The notes will pay interest twice a year starting Jan. 1, 2013, the Las Vegas-based company said. The net proceeds will be used to repay a portion of the revolving balance outstanding under Boyd Gaming’s bank credit facility.

Boston Properties LP priced at 99.779% $1 billion senior unsecured notes to be sold in an underwritten public offering expected to close June 11, parent Boston Properties Inc. BXP   +0.25%   said. The 3.85% notes are due to mature in 2023, according to the Boston-based real estate investment trust. Net proceeds, pegged at $989.4 million, will be used for investment opportunities and debt reduction among general business purposes, Boston Properties said.

Ventas Inc.  VTR   +1.68%   said Citigroup, in its role as sole underwriter, agreed to purchase 5.2 million Ventas common stock to be put up for sale via a secondary public offering. The Chicago-based real estate investment trust specializing in senior housing and health-care properties had about 290.8 million weighted average shares outstanding on a fully diluted basis in the three months ended March 31. Ventas also granted Citigroup a 30-day option to buy up to 780,000 additional shares if investor demand warrants. Chicago-based Ventas said net proceeds would be used to pay down debt under its revolving credit facility and for working capital and other general corporate purposes, including to fund future acquisitions or investments.