NEW YORK, Feb. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Abaxis Inc. (Nasdaq: ABAX) will replace Alabama National BanCorporation (Nasdaq: ALAB) in the S&P SmallCap 600 after the close of trading on a date to be announced. ALAB is being acquired by a wholly-owned subsidiary of S&P/TSX 60 constituent Royal Bank of Canada in a deal expected to close soon.

Standard & Poor's will monitor this transaction, and post any relevant updates on its website: www.standardandpoors.com.

Abaxis manufactures point-of-care blood analyzers. Headquartered in Union City, CA, the company will be added to the S&P SmallCap 600 GICS (Global Industry Classification Standard) Health Care Equipment Sub-Industry index.

    Following is a summary of the change:


                         S&P SMALLCAP 600 INDEX - TBA

             COMPANY            GICS ECONOMIC          GICS SUB-INDUSTRY
                                   SECTOR

    ADDED    Abaxis             Health Care            Health Care
                                                       Equipment

    DELETED  Alabama            Financials             Regional Banks
             National
             BanCorporation

Additions to and deletions from an S&P equity index do not in any way reflect an opinion on the investment merits of the companies concerned.

About Standard & Poor's

Standard & Poor's, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP), is the world's foremost provider of financial market intelligence, including independent credit ratings, indices, risk evaluation, investment research and data. With approximately 7,500 employees, including wholly-owned affiliates, located in 21 countries, Standard & Poor's is an essential part of the world's financial infrastructure, and has played a leading role for more than 140 years in providing investors with the independent benchmarks they need to feel more confident about their investment and financial decisions. For more information, visit http://www.standardandpoors.com.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies:

Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2007 were $6.8 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com.

SOURCE Standard & Poor's

Source: PR Newswire (February 21, 2008 - 5:41 PM EST)

News by QuoteMedia
www.quotemedia.com