Middle-market deals poured in on Wednesday as investors analyzed an Automated Data Processing Inc. employment report that said 532,000 jobs were cut in May, falling in line with expectations. More job losses may ensue with the rise of the flurry of midmarket deals that were announced Wednesday. Overall, the markets finished in the red after four days of gains. The Dow fell 65.63, or 0.75%, to 8,675.24, while the Nasdaq slipped 10.88, or 0.59%, to 1,825.92.
Shares of American International Group Inc. (NYSE:AIG) fell 9 cents, or 5.77%, to $1.47 as the insurer reportedly sold its New York City headquarters in a middle-market deal worth $100 million to a group of foreign investors. In related AIG news, Aon Corp. (NYSE:AOC) will replace AIG as the leading sponsor of Premier League soccer franchise Manchester United. The markets shrugged off the news and sent shares of Aon down 5 cents, or 0.14%, to close at $35.77.
Meanwhile, in more middle-market news, shares of Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU) finished flat at $27.72 as it agreed to acquire privately held online payroll services provider PayCycle Inc. for about $170 million.
In more financial services news, Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) raised nearly $2.2 billion, selling 16 million shares to Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and 44.7 million shares to Chinese sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp. at $27.44 apiece. Shares of Morgan Stanley finished down 37 cents, or 1.23%, to $29.72. - Gerald Magpily
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