Sector Snap: Office suppliers climb

Goldman Sachs analyst Matthew J. Fassler's rating of the world's largest office supplier came as the Framingham, Mass.-based company said it acquired 99 percent of the outstanding shares of Dutch office supply company Corporate Express NV.

Corporate Express agreed to the $2.7 billion acquisition deal last month.

"(Staples) continues to produce the best results in its sector, which we expect to continue through the current tumultuous environment," Fassler wrote in a note to clients. "At the same time, office superstores are experiencing pressure beyond that explained by historical relationships between macro factors and sales."

Fassler said he expects the deal to add significantly to earnings even when considering likely lost sales and lower adjusted margins in the Corporate Express North American delivery business. He has a price target of $27 on the shares.

Staples shares rose 33 cents, or 1.6 percent, to $21.51 per share. Earlier in the day, the stock was up more than 3.5 percent.

Elsewhere in the sector, shares of Itasca, Ill.-based OfficeMax Inc. climbed $1.03, or 8.2 percent, to $13.65 per share. And shares of Delray Beach, Fla.-based Office Depot Inc. rose 27 cents, or 4.6 percent, to $6.30 per share.