Agere Slashes IPO Price:

Agere Systems Inc., a subsidiary of Lucent Technologies Inc., revised the terms of its initial public offering a day after postponing its launch. Allentown, Pa.-based Agere now plans a larger offering of 600 million shares priced at $6 to $7 per share, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The newly revised IPO would raise $3.6 billion to $4.2 billion for the integrated circuit manufacturer. The company had been planning to sell 500 million shares at $12 to $14. The change in the IPO parameters was “based on current market conditions,” Lucent said. Separately, Moody’s lowered Agere’s bond ratings to “Baa3,” just above junk status, and Standard & Poor’s reaffirmed its rating in the same range.