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NEW YORK, Nov. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Standard & Poor's will make the following changes to the S&P 500, S&P MidCap 400 and S&P SmallCap 600 indices: * CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. (NYSE:CBG) will replace Fisher Scientific International Inc. (NYSE:FSH) in the S&P 500 after the close of trading on Thursday, November 9. Fisher Scientific is being acquired by S&P 500 constituent Thermo Electron Corp. (NYSE:TMO) in a deal expected to close on or about that date, pending final approvals. CB Richard Ellis had originally been announced as a replacement for S&P 500 constituent BellSouth Corp. (NYSE:BLS), which is being acquired by S&P 500 and S&P 100 index constituent AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T). A new replacement for BellSouth will be named at a later date. * Ventana Medical Systems Inc. (NASDAQ:VMSI) will replace Texas Regional Bancshares Inc. (NASDAQ:TRBS) in the S&P MidCap 400 after the close of trading on Friday, November 10. Texas Regional is being acquired by S&P Global 1200 constituent Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. in a deal expected to close on or about that date, pending final approvals. * John Wiley & Sons Inc. (NYSE:JW.A) will replace AmerUs Group Co. (NYSE:AMH) in the S&P MidCap 400 after the close of trading on a date to be announced. AmerUs Group is being acquired by S&P Global 1200 constituent Aviva plc in a deal that is still pending final approvals. * First Financial Bancorp. (NASDAQ:FFBC) will replace NCO Group Inc. (NASDAQ:NCOG) in the S&P SmallCap 600 after the close of trading on a date to be announced. NCO Group is being acquired by a group including One Equity Partners and Michael Barrist, NCO's chairman, president and chief executive officer, in a deal that is still pending final approvals. Standard & Poor's will monitor these transactions, and post any relevant updates on its website: http://www.standardandpoors.com/. CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. is a global commercial real estate services firm. The company offers a range of services to occupiers, owners, lenders, and investors in commercial real estate assets. Headquartered in El Segundo, CA, the company will be added to the S&P 500 GICS (Global Industry Classification Standard) Real Estate Management & Development Sub-Industry index. Ventana Medical Systems Inc. engages in the development, manufacture, and marketing of instrument-reagent systems that automate slide staining in anatomical pathology and drug discovery laboratories worldwide. Headquartered in Tucson, AZ, the company will be added to the S&P MidCap 400 GICS Life Sciences Tools & Services Sub-Industry index. John Wiley & Sons Inc. publishes print and electronic products, providing content to professionals, consumers, researchers, students, and educators worldwide. Headquartered in Hoboken, NJ, the company will be added to the S&P MidCap 400 GICS Publishing Sub-Industry index. First Financial Bancorp. engages in commercial banking and banking-related activities. Headquartered in Hamilton, OH, the company will be added to the S&P SmallCap 600 GICS Regional Banks Sub-Industry index. Following is a summary of the changes: S&P 500 INDEX - November 9, 2006 COMPANY GICS ECONOMIC SECTOR GICS SUB-INDUSTRY ADDED CB Richard Ellis Financials Real Estate Management & Development DELETED Fisher Scientific Health Care Life Sciences Tools & Services S&P MIDCAP 400 INDEX - November 10, 2006 COMPANY GICS ECONOMIC SECTOR GICS SUB-INDUSTRY ADDED Ventana Medical Health Care Life Sciences Tools & Services DELETED Texas Regional Financials Regional Banks S&P MIDCAP 400 INDEX - To Be Announced COMPANY GICS ECONOMIC SECTOR GICS SUB-INDUSTRY ADDED John Wiley & Sons Consumer Discretionary Publishing DELETED AmerUs Group Financials Life & Health Insurance S&P SMALLCAP 600 INDEX - To Be Announced COMPANY GICS ECONOMIC SECTOR GICS SUB-INDUSTRY ADDED First Financial Financials Regional Banks DELETED NCO Group Industrials Diversified Commercial & Professional Services 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 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 240 offices in 36 countries. Sales in 2005 were $6.0 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com/. DATASOURCE: Standard & Poor's CONTACT: David M. Blitzer, Ph.D. Managing Director & Chairman of the Index Committee +1-212-438-3907 Web site: http://www.standardandpoors.com/ http://www.mcgraw-hill.com/

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