S&P 500 Stock Index

… biggest intraday decline since Oct. 15. Sonic shares rose 17 percent this year through March 15, exceeding the Standard and Poor ' s 500 Index's 9.4 percent increase during that span. AutoNation Inc. and Penske Automotive Group Inc. are the …

… of which will be discretionary. Ford shares rose 0.1 percent Friday to close at $13.45 in New York trading. The shares have advanced 3.9 percent this year, compared with a 9.4 percent gain for the Standard and Poor ' s 500 Index.

… Ratings lifted the company to the status in April. Standard and Poor ' s ranks Ford's debt BB+, the highest level of ..... ago, rose 20 percent last year, outpacing the Standard and Poor ' s 500 Index's 13 percent climb. The shares rose 0 …

DETROIT (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Treasury, which is exiting its ownership stake in General Motors, accelerated its sell-down of the automaker in February, saying it received $489.9 million in proceeds from the sale of common shares. The government disclosed the trading results Monday in its monthly report to Congress on the status of the Troubled Asset Relief Program. A similar report last month said the Treasury received $156.4 million from selling GM shares in January. The number of GM shares sold and average price per share will be disclosed when each pre-arranged trading plan is completed, the report said. The United States invested about $50 billion in GM, the biggest portion of an auto industry bailout that was a centerpiece of President Barack Obama's first term. The investment drew criticism from Republican officials and GM received the label "Government Motors" that CEO Dan Akerson now is trying to shed. "The story is moving on at GM," Matthew Stover, an analyst with Guggenheim Securities LLC in Boston, who has a neutral rating on the shares. "They have to get on with the business of growing and moving past the crisis period, and one of the important pieces of all that is the government leaving the business." GM in December purchased 200 million of its shares for $5.5 billion from the Treasury, moving the government a step closer to ending the auto bailout. After that transaction, the Treasury was left holding about 300 million shares, or 19 percent on a fully diluted basis and planned to sell its entire holding within 15 months. GM shares have climbed 11 percent since Dec. 18, the day before the company disclosed the share purchase from Treasury, through Monday. The Standard and Poor's 500 Index increased 7.6 percent during that span. GM shares closed Tuesday at $28.37, up 6 cents from Monday's close, on the New York Stock Exchange. Akerson, 64, took command of GM in September 2010, overseeing the final stages of the company's initial public offering in November of that year. He is trying to boost GM's profit margins, regain market share in the United States and break even in Europe by mid-decade as it competes with Toyota Motor Corp. and Volkswagen AG for global auto sales leadership.

… euros. It exceeded that goal and had total deposits of 893 million euros at end of December, RCI Banque said last month. Standard and Poor ' s Ratings Services cut PSA's debt in February by one level and downgraded debt at the banking unit to junk. France's …

… 8.45 in Nasdaq trading on Wednesday. The shares had gained 13 percent this year through Tuesday, as the Standard and Poor ' s 500 Index rose 5 percent. The auto-parts supplier is controlled by billionaire Carl Icahn, who controlled 78 …

… Chief Financial Officer Kevin Clark said last year he expected Delphi to earn such a rating by the end of April 2013. Delphi has a corporate credit rating of BB+, the highest non-investment grade, from Standard and Poor ' s Ratings Services.

… close in New York on Wednesday. They've risen 14 percent this year, compared with a 6 percent gain in the Standard and Poor ' s 500 Index. andnbsp; Bloomberg contributed to this report andnbsp;

… and its shares climbed 20 percent, outpacing the Standard and Poor ' s 500 Index's 13 percent rise. The agreement for the ..... Ratings lifted the company to the status in April. Standard and Poor ' s ranks Ford's debt BB+, the highest level of …

PARIS (Bloomberg) -- PSA/Peugeot-Citroen has been downgraded by Standard and Poor ' s Ratings Services while its banking unit has been cut to junk by the ratings firm on sluggish sales forecasts in Europe. PSA …

… much as $1.5 billion in capital to shareholders, said Stover, who recommends buying the shares. Lear had increased 13 percent in the past 12 months through Thursday, compared with a 12 percent gain in the Standard and Poor ' s 500 Index.

… percent decline in revenue was in line with what analysts had forecast. The company, which was added to the Standard and Poor ' s 500 index in December, saw growth in all regions but Europe, where demand fell 18 percent. In November, Delphi …

… money available to lend. In addition, investors are buying up securities backed by subprime auto loans, according to Standard and Poor ' s Credit Ratings. That's one of the main ways independent, subprime auto lenders raise money to make new loans. Said …

… president of the carmaker in June 2009, the company was reeling from its biggest annual loss and downgrades from Moody's and Standard and Poor ' s Ratings Services highest credit ratings. The global recession triggered a 35 percent contraction in U.S. auto demand …

… Delphi's chief financial officer, said last year he expected Delphi to earn that rating by the end of April 2013. Standard and Poor ' s Ratings Services on March 16 raised its corporate credit rating on Delphi to BB+, the highest non- investment grade …

… to tell Crain's via email that "existing shareholders continue to hold the majority" after the sale. On Wednesday, Standard and Poor ' s released a statement that said it lowered Guardian's corporate credit rating from A to BBB+, with a stable outlook …

… news. But the real harbinger of happy days in the auto world may be the latest data on home prices. According to the Standard and Poor ' s /Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, prices were up 3.6 percent in the third quarter compared with the same period of …