21.   Ascend Communications Inc. rose amid speculation that the company will be acquired.

22.   Bank stocks, even those of acquiring companies, have generally been rising, as investors bet on the improvements banks can make by buying each other.

23.   Barry Diller, whose HSN Inc. has acquired the company, is expected to assume control.

24.   Bayer said it would also be acquiring further companies this year in both the U.S and Europe, without giving details.

25.   Besides style differences with Spindler, Graziano is said to have run afoul of the board by pushing for the company to be acquired.

26.   Bitro will expand by merging and acquiring other companies with direct connections throughout Asia.

27.   Bookspan also recently acquired a company that provides e-mail newsletters to members interested in specialized subjects like military history or cooking.

28.   Both Met Life and Mass Mutual are moving to acquire companies with slightly weaker credit ratings, which should increase after the mergers.

29.   Both of those companies have built marketing alliances with Lotus, and Oracle also was rumored to be interested in acquiring the company last year.

30.   Bombardier has a reputation for acquiring companies in financial difficulty.