Closing index values
Dow Jones Industrial: 18,003.75, +21.23
S&P 500: 2,091.58, +0.10
Nasdaq Composite: 4,906.23, -39.66
S&P 400: 1,477.05, +11.90
Russell 2,000: 1,146.69, +10.92
Mid-session
The Dow and the S&P 500 have now joined the Nasdaq Composite in the red in the wake of underwhelming manufacturing data.
“A below expectations performance by US manufacturing will be cause for concern, particularly among those who had predicted the sector was heading towards growth,” said Dennis de Jong, managing director at UFX.com.
“Optimists pointed to last month’s up-tick in new orders as a sign of resurgence; however, pressure from a strong dollar and an uncertain business outlook ahead of a turbulent presidential race appear to be taking their toll,” he added.
“The challenge for Janet Yellen and her colleagues at the Fed will be to build some momentum for a sector which has stubbornly avoided significant growth in recent months,” de Jong opined.
While the blue-chip indices were off the pace, the S&P 400, which tracks mid-caps, was holding on to an eight point gain at 1,473 during the lunchtime trading session.
The small-cap measure, the Russell 2,000 index, was also ahead of the game, up seven points at 1,143.
It was heavyweights Microsoft, American Airlines, Starbucks and Alphabet that hamstrung the major indices, as all were in the doghouse after disappointing updates.
Further down the food chain, Aradigm Corporation (NASDAQ:ARDM) swam against the tide, rising 155 to $4.97 as the pharmaceutical company placed $23mln of senior convertible notes due 2021.
Sector peer Adaptimmune Therapeutics PLC (NASDAQ:ADAP) was also on the up, rising 8.6% to $10.25 as it the specialist in the use of TCR engineered T-cell therapy to treat cancer hosted an investor and analyst meeting in New York today, and presented clinical and corporate updates that included progress with pipeline development and manufacturing process optimization.
Open
Stocks got off to a mixed start, with the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index burdened by sharp falls for tech titans Microsoft and Alphabet.
Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), the world’s largest software company saw net income fall to $3.76bn in the third quarter, compared to $4.99bn the previous year.
The shares were down almost 9% in early trades.
Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL), the Google parent company, fared slightly better, sliding 5.6% after it spent more money on experimental projects, engineers, data centers and YouTube shows, causing it to miss investor expectations.
The Nasdaq Composite may have been down 39 points at 4,907 after 45 minutes' trade, but the S&P 500 was unchanged at 2,091.
The mid-cap index S&P 400 made a bit of headway, rising 12 points to 1,478, while the small-cap focused S&P 600 put on six points at 701.
Parnell Pharmaceuticals Holdings Ltd (NASDAQ:PARN) was wanted after its first quarter business update.
The animal health drugs developer confirmed the imminent launch of two new products in the US through our companion animal team. 'Luminous' is a novel nutraceutical product developed for use in dermatological conditions, while it also has a liquid bandage called Reviderm on the runway.
The shares rose 18% to $2.62.
Reduced losses at China Information Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:CNIT) had investors rushing to buy shares in the provider of internet-based platforms and digital advertising technologies in China.
The company posted a net loss of $7.5mln for 2015, versus a loss of $29.2mln the year before.
Canadian pharmaceutical company Concordia Healthcare Corp (TSE:CXR) is in play as it confirmed it has formed a special committee to assess "various strategic alternatives" for the company.
News agency Bloomberg reported that Blackstone Group is in early-stage buyout talks.
The shares were up 6.2% at C$40.93.