NEW YORK, March 5 (Reuters) - Standard & Poor's said on Thursday Northeast Utilities, which operates New England's largest utility system, will replace Tyco International Ltd in its flagship S&P 500 stock index after the close of trading on a date to be announced.
S&P also said Monsanto Co, the agricultural products company, will replace Tyco in the S&P 100 index of the largest blue-chip companies. Northeast Utilities is based in Springfield, Massachusetts, and Monsanto in St. Louis.
Tyco, the industrial company, is leaving both indexes because it is moving its place of incorporation to Switzerland, making it ineligible for continued inclusion, S&P said.
Shares of companies joining the S&P 500 often rise because many portfolio managers try to track the index, and must buy shares of companies that enter it. Northeast Utilities shares rose 4.4 percent to $20.55 after-hours within minutes of S&P's announcement. They closed regular trading down 61 cents at $19.68.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel, editing by Leslie Gevirtz) Keywords: SP500/CHANGES (jon.stempel@thomsonreuters.com +1 646 223 6317; Reuters Messaging: jon.stempel.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
S&P also said Monsanto Co, the agricultural products company, will replace Tyco in the S&P 100 index of the largest blue-chip companies. Northeast Utilities is based in Springfield, Massachusetts, and Monsanto in St. Louis.
Tyco, the industrial company, is leaving both indexes because it is moving its place of incorporation to Switzerland, making it ineligible for continued inclusion, S&P said.
Shares of companies joining the S&P 500 often rise because many portfolio managers try to track the index, and must buy shares of companies that enter it. Northeast Utilities shares rose 4.4 percent to $20.55 after-hours within minutes of S&P's announcement. They closed regular trading down 61 cents at $19.68.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel, editing by Leslie Gevirtz) Keywords: SP500/CHANGES (jon.stempel@thomsonreuters.com +1 646 223 6317; Reuters Messaging: jon.stempel.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.