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Molina bounces higher, Altera gains after hours

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Shares of Molina Healthcare Inc. jumped Thursday evening after the company said it won back business in the state of Ohio, and shares of Altera Corp. advanced after the programmable-chip maker backed its quarterly sales-growth forecast.

Molina Healthcare shares (MOH) climbed 18% to $21.40, with the company announcing that the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services has decided to allow Molina Healthcare of Ohio to continue providing services to the state's Medicaid beneficiaries.

The news from Ohio follows Molina's update late Wednesday that it was withdrawing its full-year earnings forecast because of high costs in the Texas market. Molina's shares finished the day session with a 31% slide. Read about Molina's business in Texas.

Molina in April acknowledged it hadn't been selected to participate in Ohio's Medicaid program starting in 2013, with the move following a shake-up by the state of its Medicaid providers. Molina's Ohio unit appealed the decision. Molina said it will now begin an assessment with the state's Department of Job and Family Services ahead of the Jan. 1 start of a new Medicaid managed-care contract.

Altera shares (ALTR) gained 1.6% to $33.55, cutting into their 2.2% loss during the regular session. Altera said during late trading that it still expects revenue growth in the second quarter to rise 14% to 18% from the first quarter. Altera in April reported first-quarter net sales of $383.8 million.

The company's 40-nanometer and 28-nanometer products "will be up strongly from first-quarter levels," Altera said in a statement. "As previously expected, growth will be broad across most of the company's vertical markets."

Elsewhere, Quiksilver Inc. (ZQK) shares picked up 0.8% to trade at $2.46 in modest volume after the sports-apparel and accessories retailer said the second half of the year should compare favorably to the same period last year. Read about Quiksilver's results.

Ahead of late trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) finished higher after China unexpectedly cut its interest rate and as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the Fed would move if the economic climate worsens. Read more in Market Snapshot.

Dow pared much of its gains as Bernanke didn't indicate more immediate plans for stimulus. The index closed up 46 points, or 0.4%, to 12,460.96. The S&P 500 Index (SPX) , meanwhile, lost grip of gains, closing fractionally lower at 1,314.99. The Nasdaq Composite Index (COMP) fell 0.5% at 2,831.02.