kraft

JMP Securities also downgraded Cephalon (CEPH) to Market Perform from Outperform. The firm cited the acquisition proposal by Valeant (VRX), which the firm views as attractive and thinks shareholders will ultimately accept an offer

Meanwhile, Citigroup downgraded Gannett (GCI) to Hold from Buy.

JMP Securities has reportedly downgraded Rural/Metro (RURL) to Market Perform from Outperform. The firm cited the company's acquisition by Warburg Pincus as its reason. Shares closed at $17.04.

This is what's in the news for Friday, March 4th. Bloomberg reports that Federal Reserve policy makers may now abruptly end $600B in Treasury purchases in June, and not gradually pull back on intervention in bond markets, ...Reute

General Mills now trades at a discount to the rest of the sector, and possesses a rich $1.12 per share annual dividend.

A Barron's feature report on big American food makers touted General Mills (NYSE:GIS) as the company best positioned in the sector to benefit from the recent spike in agricultural commodities by passing on the increased costs to c

At the 2011 conference of the Consumer Analyst Group of New York, executives of Kraft Foods reviewed the company's growth strategy and highlighted progress toward top-tier financial performance. CEO Irene Rosenfeld said, "Kraft Fo

Consumer shares are down in mid-session trading along with MGM Resorts (MGM) after the company's narrowed loss fails to inspire investors. Meanwhile, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR) is seeing its shares slide 4% as the compe

On Monday, Humana, Hasbro, Lorillard and Sysco all report their earnings and you can also expect economic data on Consumer Credit.

On Tuesday, look for earnings from Martin Marietta, Sara Lee, NYSE Euronext, Walt Disney, OpenTable, Take-Two Interactive and Evergreen Solar.

Wednesday, Intercontinental Exchange, Coca-Cola Co, Polo Ralph Lauren, Akamai Technologies, Allstate Corp, MetLife, GSI Commerce, Terex, Activision Blizzard, Whole Foods and Cisco Systems all make their quarterly

Looking ahead at next week, it's looking to be filled with plenty of earnings reports and economic data.