BANK DEALS

Shares of Bank of New York Mellon (BNY) are higher after a U.S. bankruptcy court judge approved a settlement between the bank and Lehman Brothers Holdings over clauses in derivatives deals, according to The Wall Street Journal. Bank of New York Mellon shares are up 0.14%, or $0.06, to $29.25.

Convenience or better deals? Banks and credit unions both have pros and cons.

What did you get for Black Friday? I got a HP Laptop from Office Depot! It's a Intel Core 2 Duo Processor with 4 Gb of RAM! AWESOME! I called the IRS and they are expediting my return. Then I went to the bank, picked up my dad, and I helped my mom wrap a gift for Hannah!

Financial shares are tilting higher in late-trading and Northern Trust (NTRS) shares slip after acquiring a Citadel unit. In late-session financial news, shares of Goldman Sachs (GS) are down and Reuters reports that the bank slid to 10th place in deal advisory rankings--its worst showing in more than two decades. Goldman advised on $71 billion worth of deals in the first quarter, the report said. By comparison, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) advised on $170 billion in deals. Meanwhile, Northern Trust Corp. (NTRS) shares are down following news it has agreed to buy hedge fund manager Citadel LLC's fund administration business, Omnium LLC, a person familiar with the situation said Thursday, according to Dow Jones Newswires. The value of the deal was not known.

"Morgan Stanley analysts said they came away from their Analyst Day with Chesapeake Energy (NYSE:CHK) with an improved view of the medium- and longer-term value proposition at the company.Analysts Stephen I. Richardson, Stuart Young and Brian Lasky said, ""While aggressive leasehold expenditures have been a market concern, CHK has delivered on monetization efforts YTD. Partner carries continue to supplement the capital budget (expect $3.1 bn+ through 20112012) with more deals to come. Although major liquids plays remain in their early stages (10 Eagle Ford and 3 Niobrara wells on production, respectively), CHK provided better visibility on the development plan here and in legacy emerging plays in the Anadarko and Permian basins. Given increased clarity, we expect market focus to shift to the build out of the liquids growth programs (well results, midstream) and execution on the plan to produce ~25% from liquids by 2016.""The bank maintained its equal-weight rating on the company. It se