Stock Market News: Prudential (NYSE:PRU), American International Group (NYSE:AIG), Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC)

Prudential (NYSE:PRU) is in the process of acquiring American International Group Inc’s (NYSE:AIG) Asian operations.  The move is expected to save Prudential an average of $340 million annually, and CEO Tidjane Thiam is quoted as having said the take over of AIA is expected to bring “significant revenue synergies which can increase the new business profit on a net basis by something like $700 million per annum.”  Stock futures for the two companies rose after the news of the $35.5 billion deal was announced. - Wall St. Journal

In other good news for investors, it was announced that consumer spending rose 0.3% in January.  This is a sign of modest economy recovery, and spelled good tidings for stock futures this morning.  Futures for the Dow rose 28 points, futures for Nasdaq 100 increased 5 points, and futures for the S&P 500 increased 2.9 points. This is the highest spending level since March of 2008. – MarketWatch

In banking news, SmarTrend.com is reporting that Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) CEO Brian Moynihan received six million dollars in compensation for the year 2009.  According to a recent proxy filing, this is reportedly more than double his salary from 2008.  The banking giant’s former CEO, Ken Lewis, received zero compensation after stepping down on December 31^st.  – SmarTrend.com

While the news was good for BAC’s CEO, it would appear Wells Fargo & Co’s (NYSE:WFC) chief executive is feeling the bailout pinch.  In a recent regulatory filing, the embattled giant reported that it’s CEO, John Stumpf, was having his salary reduced from $5.6 million annually to approximately $2.8 million.  Other compensations were reported down across the board for senior management of the banking behemoth.

-Interested in further research?  Read writer Matt McAbby’s exploration of the Greek debt tragedy and what it means for investors by clicking here