Stocks have been on a roller coaster ride throughout the morning. The averages opened higher but saw their best levels shortly after the open, paring their opening gains and eventually crossing into negative ground. While the Nasdaq held up pretty well, the Dow and S&P gained downside momentum in what looked like a continuation of last week’s selling. As fast as the market had lost ground it regained it, but the sellers emerged again to push the Dow and S&P lower while leaving the Nasdaq in the green. The pace of earnings reporting was calm this morning, but it will pick up quickly as nearly a third of the S&P and Dow are set to report during this week.
ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., the Chicago Fed National Activity index fell 0.10 points to 0.17 in September, reversing a gain seen in August. In China, a report from The Wall Street Journal indicated that Chinese officials are shifting stimulus away from large infrastructure projects and towards initiatives such as tax cuts.
COMPANY NEWS: Shares of Hasbro (HAS) have fallen 5% after the toymaker reported third quarter earnings and revenue that missed expectations, which it blamed on lost Toys"R"Us revenues impacting many markets around the world, including the U.S., Europe, Australia and Asia. The volume of product liquidated in the second quarter had a near-term impact on the third quarter sell through and shipments, said the company, which added that a "growing array of retailers are now ramping new programs to take share this holiday season and we are well positioned to meet their demand"...
Halliburton (HAL) said it was "pleased" with its overall financial results for the third quarter, but the company gave a lower than expected outlook for its earnings in the last three months of the year, leading its shares to slide almost 3%...
In M&A news, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCAU) confirmed a definitive agreement to sell its automotive components business Magneti Marelli S.p.A. to a holding company of Calsonic Kansei, a wholly owned portfolio company of KKR (KKR), in a transaction with a value of EUR6.2B. Additionally, Jacobs Engineering (JEC) announced a deal to sell its Energy, Chemicals and Resources segment to WorleyParsons for $3.3B in cash and stock.
MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was American Railcar (ARII), which surged 51% after agreeing to merge with a wholly-owned subsidiary of ITE Rail Fund for $70 per share. Also higher was CollPlant (CLGN), which gained 20% after it entered into a license, development and commercialization agreement with United Therapeutics (UTHR).
Among the notable losers was Aduro Biotech (ADRO), which fell 38% after William Blair analyst Matt Phipps said that Merck's (MRK) MK-1454 data will dampen enthusiasm for Aduro. Also lower was Aveo Pharmaceuticals (AVEO), which slipped 9% after it announced updated interim results from its Phase 2 TiNivo study.
INDEXES: Near midday, the Dow was down 176.54, or 0.69%, to 25,267.80, the Nasdaq was up 22.77, or 0.31%, to 7,471.79, and the S&P 500 was down 12.48, or 0.45%, to 2,755.30.
