Short Reports

Shares of Lucent Technologies Inc. rose 5 percent Thursday amid reports the maker of communications equipment is planning to spin off a unit that makes semiconductors, lasers and other components used to build fiber-optic networks. Lucent, itself a spin-off from AT&T, declined to comment on the potential follow to its previously announced plan to sell off another unit that makes office telephone equipment and computer network gear.

H.J. Heinz Co. matched Wall Street expectations Thursday by reporting a 5 percent increase in profit before one-time items for its fourth quarter, crediting rising sales of ketchup and stronger results in Asia and the Pacific.

AT&T Corp. finalized its acquisition of MediaOne Group on Thursday, completing the long-distance phone company’s transformation into the nation’s largest provider of cable TV and high-speed Internet services.

Mortgage rates fell this week for the second week in a row amid recent signs that the economy is slowing a bit. The average interest rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages slipped to 8.22 percent for the week ending June 16, down from 8.32 percent the previous week, according to a survey released Thursday by Freddie Mac, the mortgage company. Four weeks ago, the 30-year rate hit a five-year high of 8.64 percent. This time a year ago, 30-year rates were at 7.65 percent.