IBM invests in 'Internet of Things'; Charter buys Bright House; Movado clocks big jump

Here’s a look at some of the stocks the Yahoo Finance team will be tracking for you today.

IBM (IBM) is investing $3 billion over the next four years to create an "Internet of Things” division that will gather and analyze real time data from smartphones, tablets and other devices to be used by businesses. Separately, IBM is teaming up with the owner of the Weather Channel. The partnership will allow companies to use weather forecasts to improve their business.

Charter Communications (CHTR) shares are sharply higher this morning. The cable provider is buying Bright House Networks for $10.4 billion. Bright House is the country's 6th-biggest cable operator with about 2 .5 million subscribers, many of those in Florida.  Charter says the deal is contingent on federal government approval of the huge Comcast (CMCSA) acquisition of Time Warner Cable (TWC). Time Warner Cable currently negotiates carriage arrangements for Bright House.

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Philips (PHG) shares are lower ahead of the open. The Dutch conglomerate is taking another major step in exiting the lighting business it has dominated for more than a century. It’s selling its 80% stake in its lighting components business to a group of investors led by GO Scale Capital for $2.8 billion. This comes as Philips gets set to spin off its main lighting unit into a separate public company sometime next year.

Conn's (CONN) shares are down in early trading.  The furniture retailer said it’s exploring the sale or the refinancing of its loan portfolio as its credit financing business continued to struggle in the fourth quarter. The company reporting a big earnings per-share miss. Profits fell 44% from a year earlier. However, revenue topped forecasts, rising 18% percent from a year ago.

Movado (MOV) shares are higher before the bell. The luxury watchmaker raised its earnings outlook for the year after reporting earnings that blew past estimates in the holiday quarter as profits jumped 40%. However, revenue came in slightly below forecasts. The company also said it needs to raise prices to offset the impact of a strong dollar and slow retail growth.