Financial stocks flat ahead of Barclays results

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) � Financial stocks rose modestly on Monday, as investors eyed the G-20 finance minister meeting later this week.

Bank of America BAC �rose nearly 1% while Citigroup Inc. C gained�just over 1%. J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. JPM �and Morgan Stanley MS were flat.

The Financial Select Spector SPDR FundXLF , which tracks financial stocks in the S&P 500, moved up by 0.43% and is up more than 14% for the year.

Nasdaq OMX Group NDAQ �had talks with The Carlyle Group CG �about a potential buyout of the exchange operator. The talks, which have since been halted, were in the very early stages when the private-equity firm realized it wasn�t going to be able to reach agreement with the exchange on price and the discussions broke down, a person familiar with the situation told MarketWatch.

The talks between the two firms happened in the past month, according to the person familiar with the situation. Just weeks earlier, exchange rival NYSE Euronext NYX announced an $8.2 billion deal to merge with IntercontinentalExchange Inc. ICE �

Nasdaq and The Carlyle Group had no comment. Nasdaq shares were up nearly 5% on Monday. The talks were first reported on Fox Business Network.

Moody�s Corp. MCO �shares were up 5% and shares in McGraw-Hill Cos. MHP , which owns Standard & Poor�s Ratings Agency, were up nearly 4%, ahead of McGraw-Hill results on Tuesday.

Shares for both firms have fallen after the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against S&P last week. The government says the ratings agency intentionally boosted ratings for certain financial products, specifically mortgage-backed securities related to collateralized-debt obligations, right before the financial crisis.

Barclays PLC BCS , is likely to cut costs by more than $3 billion and possibly lay off as many as 2,000 employees as part of some changes at the investment bank, according to reports. The British firm will report fourth-quarter earnings on Tuesday.

Barclays is likely to cut back some of the firm�s equity operations in Asia and some of the retail and commercial banking in parts of Europe, said a report in the Financial Times.

Click to Play Could the Dell deal die?

Dell's largest outside shareholder is opposing the Dell buyout deal, which might galvanize shareholders to resist the current offer. Andew Bary joins Markets Hub. Photo: AP.

Chief Executive Antony Jenkins is attempting to turn around the firm after the LIBOR scandal last year. The charges from regulators over manipulation of the interest rate led to several top executives leaving the firm. Barclays shares ended the day with a very small decline.

Goldman Sachs GS �veteran banker Gregg Lemkau has been named global co-head of mergers and acquisitions, according to a memo sent by the firm. Lemkau, who is currently the head of M&A in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, will co-head the unit with Gene Sykes, another veteran of the firm.

Goldman Sachs holds the top spot for the M&A business and the unit can be very lucrative for the firm. M&A has slowed in recent years but as the economy picks up, the business is likely to do the same.

Lemkau will be replaced by Gilberto Pozzi as head of M&A in Europe. Pozzi is currently global co-head of consumer and retail, according to a firm memo. Goldman Sachs shares were up modestly on the day. Read: While you were �Nemo� watching, Goldman got a little bearish on equities.

Dell Inc. DELL �on Monday filed a notice with the Securities and Exchange Commission saying that taking the company private is in the best interests of the shareholders.

Silver Lake Partners, not mentioned in the filing, is partnering with the CEO to do the deal. Dell�s largest investor, Southeastern Asset Management, which owns 8.5% of the company, has objected to the transaction.

Critics say the current LBO undervalues the company and investors have threatened to vote against the move, say reports. Dell shares were up slightly at $13.65. Read: Dell defends deal: �Shifts risk� to buyers.