UPDATE 3-Thursday's biggest stock gainers and decliners.

(From CBS Marketwatch (Stories))

Byline: BARRY SCHWEID

Advancers

Accenture Ltd. shares rose ahead of the release of the company's fourth-quarter financial results. The average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson First Call is for a profit of 38 cents a share on revenue of $4.28 billion in the August period.

Align Technology shares jumped after the Santa Clara, Calif.-based company said it has signed a binding settlement term sheet with OrthoClear to end all pending litigation between the companies. OrthoClear will no longer accept new patient cases for treatment, and will consent to the entry of an exclusion order by the International Trade Commission, prohibiting importation of OrthoClear aligners into the United States, Align Technology said. Align has agreed to make a one-time cash payment of $10 million to OrthoClear, and will pay OrthoClear an additional $10 million if it obtains approval from its shareholders to discontinue all design, manufacture, marketing and sales of removable dental aligners worldwide.

Shares of AutoNation Inc. rose after Bear Stearns upgraded the auto retailer to outperform from peer perform, citing lower financing costs and attractive valuation. Analyst Michael Geoghagan said in a note to clients that production cuts at the Big 3 auto makers -- General Motors, Ford Motor and DaimlerChrysler -- could be a positive for AutoNation "to the extent that leaner inventory reduces floor-plan (inventory) financing costs and supports higher transaction prices (because of less pressure to liquidate)." He added that valuation "looks compelling," given that its 12-mo. forward price-to-earnings ratio is at the lower end of its 3-year range, and since its valuation premium relative to its peer group is also lower than usual.

Computer Sciences Corp. received a nine-year information technology services contract worth an estimated $3.73 billion if all options are exercised from the United Kingdom's National Health Service. The company said the deal is part of the National Health Service's Connecting for Health program.

Shares of Cost Plus Inc. rallied after Raymond James upgraded the retailer to market perform from underperform, citing increased confidence in the company's strategy to restore positive trends in traffic and same-store sales, following a meeting with management. Analyst Budd Bugatch also said the recent decline in energy prices "provides a financial and psychological lift for the Cost Plus consumer, typically a middle income, educated woman."

CRA International Inc. reported third-quarter earnings of $8.7 million, or 71 cents a share, up from a year-ago profit of $7.9 million, or 66 cents a share. The latest results include stock option expense of $950,000, or 8 cents a share. Revenue at the Boston-based provider of management consulting services increased 15.7% in the three months ended Sept. 1 to $107 million from $92.5 million in the same period a year earlier. The average estimate of analysts polled by Thomson First Call was for a profit of 68 cents a share in the August period. Looking ahead, CRA said it…