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The WSJ reprots, citing ppl familiar with the matter, that Cemex (CX) is lining up an acquisition of Rinker (RIN) amid a flurry of deal discussions in the sector, say. Rinker has a mkt cap of nearly $10bn.

Barron’s Online discusses Dell (DELL), whose shares have fallen 23% this year. Based on ests by Gartner, Dell probably had its worst quarterly growth in PCs in the co's history in the 3Q. Nevertheless, Dell stock has garnered the attention of some of the most respected institutional value investors, who believe the mktplace's deeply skeptical attitude toward Dell is too extreme to be accurate. Dell shares have climbed 15.9% since hitting a low on July 21 as some sense a turnaround in the next year or two. In the 2Q, Southeastern Asset Mgmt, Dell's 2nd-largest holder after Chmn Michael Dell himself, added 39.2m shares of the co for a total of 111m shares, just under 5% of the co. Other buyers include funds managed by Barclays Global Investors, State Street and Vanguard Group. "We think they still have significant advantages as far as inventory and distribution costs," says Kevin Grant, who helps manage $6bn in assets in Harris Associates' The Oakmark Fund. "We think that over time this business model and this strong co will succeed."

“Inside Scoop” section reports that several weeks agi Saks (SKS) Chmn R. Brad Martin was nabbing profits selling the luxury-retailer's stock. Now he's buying up depressed shares of First Horizon National (FHN) where he also serves on the board. Martin, a First Horizon director since ‘94, spent nearly $9.6m to purchase 250K shares of the co on the open mkt earlier this week, increasing his stake fivefold to nearly 300K shares.