BUZZ-U.S. Steel falls on report that Ancora pushes to end Nippon merger

** United States Steel's X.N shares fall 2.4% to $36.5 premarket after a report said activist investor Ancora Holdings is pushing to end its merger with Nippon Steel 5401.T

** Wall Street Journal reports that Ancora has built a stake in the steelmaker and wants it to drop its merger agreement with Nippon Steel

** The activist investor also intends to rally shareholders to oust U.S. Steel's top boss David Burritt, the report said

** It also nominated nine director candidates to the company's 12-person board, the report said

** Eight of 12 brokerages rate the stock "buy" or higher, 4 "hold"; their median PT is $39.50 - data compiled by LSEG

** Shares of U.S. Steel are up 10.6% YTD after falling 30.1% in 2024