Fannie Mae fell 1 percent to $2.95 at 9:35 a.m. in New York, after dropping 25 percent from mid-August through last week. Freddie Mac slipped 2 percent today.
U.S. stocks rose, with benchmark gauges poised for a sixth weekly gain, as investors assessed data on factory production amid growing speculation the Federal Reserve will maintain the pace of its monthly bond buying.
Jefferies Group Inc. agreed to be acquired by its biggest shareholder, Leucadia National Corp., in a $2.8 billion deal the companies said would make the investment bank better able to weather market turmoil.