U.S. shares were pushing higher as investors assessed better-than-expected economic reports and continued to monitor developments in Greece debt talks. The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) added 0.2 percent to 2,112.63 at 11:48 a.m. in New York. The 30-company Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:.DJI) advanced 0.1 percent to 17,990.09, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) gained 0.3 percent to 5,135.20. Most followed shares included Barnes & Noble, Winnebago Industries, Bed Bath & Beyond, Cree, Netflix, Eli Lilly , Fitbit, Merrimack Pharmaceuticals, Citigroup, and Accenture.
In consumer shares, Barnes & Noble (NYSE:BKS) fell 2.5 percent to $25.66 after the largest U.S. bookstore chain posted a drop in sales for the fourth quarter in a row as demand for its Nook tablets continued to fall and customers stayed away from its brick-and-mortar bookstores. Net loss narrowed to $19.4 million, or $0.37 per share, in the fourth quarter ended May 2, from $36.7 million, or $0.72 per share, a year earlier. On average, three analysts polled by Capital IQ expected the company to report a loss per share of $0.39 for the quarter. Revenue fell 10.4 percent to $1.18 billion and matched three Wall Street analysts' consensus estimate of $1.18 billion.
Winnebago Industries (NYSE:WGO) rose 6.4 percent to $22.02 after the motorhomes maker reported a 7.6 percent rise in quarterly revenue helped by higher shipments of its motorhomes.
Bed Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ:BBBY) fell 2.6 percent to $68.51 after the retailer reported quarterly results that missed expectations.
In technology stocks, IAC/InterActive (NASDAQ:IACI) gained 4.5 percent to $80.81 after the media and Internet company announced it is planning an initial public offering of its online dating site Match.com. The company controlled by media mogul Barry Diller expects the IPO of Match Group to include less than 20 percent of its common stock and be completed in the fourth quarter.
Cree (NASDAQ:CREE) sank 11 percent to $27.11, a day after the provider of lighting-class light emitting diode (LED) products cut its revenue forecast for the fourth quarter on lower demand for its LED business.
Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) fell 2.4 percent to $660.74 after Societe Generale cut the online-streaming service to “sell” from “buy”.
Fitbit (NYSE:FIT) climbed 2.4 percent to $26.87 after Leerink Partners rated the maker of fitness-tracker bracelets similar to a “buy”.
In health-care shares, Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) increased 5.1 percent after saying a U.K. court ruled in its favor in a vitamin patent suit. The drugmaker’s rating was also raised to “buy” at Bank of America.
Merrimack Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:MACK) gained 6.9 percent to $12.72 after the biopharmaceutical company and Baxter International’s Baxalta unit said their new drug application for a pancreatic cancer drug was given priority review status.
In other stocks, Molycorp (NYSE:MCP) fell 39 percent after the rare earths miner filed for bankruptcy protection to restructure $1.7 billion of debt. The only U.S. miner and producer of rare-earth elements—15 elements used as niche ingredients in magnets, batteries, catalytic converters and other high-tech products—said it had secured an agreement with creditors to restructure its $1.7 billion in debt. The deal also provides $225 million in new financing to continue operations.
Citigroup (NYSE:C) added 0.2 percent after data compiled by Freeman & Co. showed the U.S. bank more than quadrupled investment banking fee income in the Middle East in the first five months of this year.
Accenture (NYSE:ACN) gained 2.3 percent to $99.96 after the provider of management consulting raised its full-year guidance, citing a weaker-than-expected impact from the strong dollar, which also buoyed its results for the May quarter.