Today’s Top Gainers (BBT,CCRN,CIT,IVZ,LVS)

BB&T Corporation (NYSE: BBT)  jumped up 4.6% to $26.71 on 13.71 million shares  after tThe seventh- largest U.S. bank by deposits was raised to “outperform” from “market perform” by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Inc. The bank has “strategic advantages” as a Troubled Asset Relief Program re- payer, Keefe Bruyette said, raising its price estimate to $33 from $28.

Cross Country Healthcare, Inc. (NASDAQ: CCRN) rallied 8.5%, the most since June 1, to $9.61 on over 162K shares after it was raised to “buy” from “neutral” at SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, which cited increasing job postings at teaching hospitals and the potential for healthcare reform and flu season to drive demand.

CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT) rose 10.38% to $1.17 on massive volume of 185 million shares. The 101-year-old commercial lender is seeking to cut at least $5.7 billion of debt as part of a plan to avoid collapse and return to profitability after nine quarters of losses.

Invesco Ltd. (NYSE: IVZ) jumped up  5.5% to $22.98 with 10 million shares traded. The money manager is in the lead to buy the Van Kampen mutual-fund business from Morgan Stanley (MS:US), the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unidentified people.

Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS) rose 4.4% to $16.13 on 62.73 million shares, the biggest gain since Sept. 15. Singapore began work today on a S$500 million ($353 million) terminal building that will double the island’s cruise berthing capacity and boost the number of tourists arriving by sea, complementing the nation’s plan to develop the area where Las Vegas Sands is building a casino resort. The project is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2011.