On Wednesday, shares of German lender Deutsche Bank AG DB are up over 7.5% in mid-morning trading after the bank decided yesterday to stop its plans to add 250 jobs in North Carolina in response to the state’s controversial “religious freedom” bills. Last month, North Carolina’s state legislature ruled to overturn protections for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender residents in specific cities, resulting in widespread backlash from citizens, public figures, and corporations nationwide. Deutsche Bank will freeze plans to add 250 employees to the 900-count workforce at its software application development center in the city of Cary, NC. "We take our commitment to building inclusive work environments seriously," co-CEO John Cryan said in the statement. "We're proud of our operations and employees in Cary and regret that as a result of this legislation we are unwilling to include North Carolina in our U.S. expansion plans for now." Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report DEUTSCHE BK AG (DB): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research