Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Dow Gains Over 200 Points; Astrotech Shares Spike Higher

Toward the end of trading Monday, the Dow traded up 0.86 percent to 24,438.98 while the NASDAQ declined 0.08 percent to 6,841.97. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.56 percent to 2,657.01.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Monday afternoon, the financial sector proved to be a source of strength for the market. Leading the sector was strength from Bank of Marin Bancorp BMRC and BankUnited BKU.

In trading on Monday, information technology shares fell 1.11 percent.

Top Headline

CVS Health Corp CVS agreed to acquire Aetna Inc AET for $69 billion.

CVS will acquire Aetna in a deal worth approximately $69 billion ($77 billion including Aetna's debt), or $207 per share. As part of the agreement, CVS will pay Aetna shareholders $145 for each Aetna share in addition to 0.8378 CVS Health shares.

Equities Trading UP

Astrotech Corp ASTC shares shot up 60 percent to $4.37. Astrotech reported that it has completed its successful 1st Detect demo with Department of Homeland Security and Transportation Security Administration personnel.

Shares of Pyxis Tankers Inc PXS got a boost, shooting up 118 percent to $8.94 after climbing 103.98 percent on Friday. Maxim Group downgraded Pyxis Tankers from Buy to Hold.

General Cable Corporation BGC shares were also up, gaining 35 percent to $29.45. Prysmian Group announced plans to acquire General Cable for $30.00 per share in cash.

Equities Trading DOWN

Ra Pharmaceuticals Inc RARX shares dropped 38 percent to $8.85 as the company reported reported interim results from Phase 2 study of RA101495 SC in paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria.

Shares of Zynerba Pharmaceuticals Inc ZYNE were down 7 percent to $13.56. Zynberba reported new clinical data from a completed Phase 2 STAR 1 (Synthetic Transdermal Cannabidiol for the Treatment of Epilepsy) study and STAR 2 18-month open label extension study evaluating the company's ZYN002 cannabidiol transdermal gel in patients with focal seizures. The firm announced that it has achieved clinically meaningful responses to ZYN002 as measured by the reduction in focal seizures from the baseline period of STAR 1.

Zogenix, Inc. ZGNX was down, falling around 11 percent to $34.75 after the company disclosed new efficacy and safety data from its pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial of ZX008 in Dravet syndrome.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded down 1.08 percent to $57.73 while gold traded down 0.44 percent to $1,276.70.

Silver traded down 0.38 percent Monday to $16.325, while copper rose 0.06 percent to $3.0945.

Eurozone

European shares closed higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 surged 0.91 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index rose 1.23 percent, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index jumped 1.16 percent. Meanwhile the German DAX gained 1.53 percent, and the French CAC 40 climbed 1.36 percent while U.K. shares rose 0.53 percent.

Economics

U.S. factory orders declined 0.1 percent for October, versus economists’ expectations for a 0.4 percent drop.