Midway through trading Wednesday, the Dow traded up 0.67 percent to 21,553.29 while the NASDAQ climbed 0.83 percent to 6,244.87.
The S&P also rose, gaining 0.67 percent to 2,441.84.
Leading and Lagging Sectors
Non-cyclical consumer goods & services shares rose by 1.18 percent in the US market on Wednesday. Top gainers in the sector
included Microvision, Inc. (NASDAQ: MVIS), and ACI
Worldwide Inc (NASDAQ: ACIW).
In trading on Wednesday, financial shares rose by just 0.5 percent. Meanwhile, top losers in the sector included Peoples
Bancorp of North Carolina, Inc. (NASDAQ: PEBK), down 3
percent, and Och-Ziff Capital Management Group LLC (NYSE: OZM), down 2 percent.
Top Headline
Fastenal Company (NASDAQ: FAST) posted
stronger-than-expected results for its second quarter.
Fastenal posted quarterly earnings of $0.52 per share on revenue of $1.122 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of
$0.50 per share on sales of $1.11 billion.
Equities Trading UP
I.D. Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: IDSY) shares shot up
15 percent to $6.40. I.D. Systems priced 2.6 million share offering at $5.75 per share and announced plans to buy Keytroller for $9
million.
Shares of Nam Tai Property Inc. (NYSE: NTP) got a
boost, shooting up 22 percent to $9.95. Kaisa Group Holdings reported a 17.7 percent stake in Nam Tai Property.
NRG Energy Inc (NYSE: NRG) shares were also up,
gaining 19 percent to $19.33 after the company reported launch of transformation plan targeting $2.5 billion to $4 billion targeted
asset sale net cash proceeds plus removal of $13 billion debt. NRG Energy also raised its FY17 outlook.
Equities Trading DOWN
Ocular Therapeutix Inc (NASDAQ: OCUL) shares
dropped 18 percent to $6.20 after the biopharmaceutical company confirmed a major setback for its eye drug Dextenza, a therapy used
for the treatment of ocular pain following ophthalmic surgery. Ocular confirmed in a press release after Tuesday's close it has
received a Complete Response Letter (CRL) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration relating to its re-submission of a New Drug
Application (CRL) for Dextenza. The CRL states that the FDA can't approve the company's NDA in its present form.
Shares of Alder Biopharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: ALDR) were down 13 percent to $10.60. Alder BioPharmaceuticals announced intent to
offer 12.5 million shares.
MSC Industrial Direct Co Inc (NYSE: MSM) was down,
falling around 15 percent to $74.14. MSC Industrial Direct reported in-line profit for its third quarter, but issued weak earnings
forecast for the current quarter.
Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded up 1.07 percent to $45.52 while gold traded up 0.46 percent to $1,220.30.
Silver traded up 1.21 percent Wednesday to $15.935, while copper rose 0.47 percent to $2.6845.
Eurozone
European shares were higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 climbed 1.70 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index rose 1.20 percent,
while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index surged 1.59 percent. Meanwhile the German DAX climbed 1.61 percent, and the French CAC 40 gained 1.87
percent while U.K. shares rose 1.11 percent.
Economics
Domestic crude supplies slipped 7.6 million barrels for the week ended July 7, the U.S. Energy Information Administration
reported. However, analysts were expecting a drop of 2.6 million barrels. Gasoline stockpiles dropped 1.6 million barrels, while
distillate stockpiles rose 3.1 million barrels last week.
The Treasury will auction 10-year notes at 1:00 p.m. ET.
The Federal Open Market Committee will release Beige book report at 2:00 p.m. ET.
Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Esther George is set to speak in Denver at 2:15 p.m. ET.
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