Mid-Day Market Update: Cracker Barrel Surges On Upbeat Results, VIVUS Drops

Midway through trading Tuesday, the Dow traded up 0.46 percent to 13,848.02 while the NASDAQ fell 0.16 percent to 3,111.15. The S&P rose, gaining 0.07 percent to 1,488.84.

The S&P looks to have lost its key 1,497 support, with a 50 EMA set at 1,482.77. 1,460 looks to act as a lower support level if the EMA fails. The DOW also looks set to lose support, giving up the 13,860 level and 20 EMA of 13,886.14, with a 50 EMA set at 13,682.66. The NASDAQ is sitting right about its 50 EMA at 3,120.12, with the 3,040 area acting as a lower support level. The Russel looks poised to lost its 20 EMA at 907.31, while stalling just about its 50 EMA at 887.27.

Home Depot

reported upbeat fiscal fourth-quarter earnings and lifted its quarterly dividend. Home Depot's quarterly profit surged to $1.02 billion, or $0.68 per share, from $774 million, or $0.50 per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding special items, it earned $0.67 per share. Its sales climbed 14% to $18.25 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.64 per share on revenue of $17.7 billion. It also lifted its quarterly dividend by 34% to $0.39 per share. For FY13, Home Depot projects earnings of around $3.37 per share, versus analysts' estimates of $3.49 per share. It also announced its plans to buy back $17 billion of its common stock.

U.S. Silica Holdings

shot up 25.23 percent to $22.98 after the company reported strong Q4 earnings. Shares of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store

got a boost, shooting up 10.06 percent to $73.68 after the company reported upbeat Q2 results. CommonWealth REIT

was also up, gaining 32.49 percent to $21.00. Corvex Management LP and Related Fund Management LLC announced ownership of around 9.8% of the outstanding common shares of CommonWealth REIT.

Vitamin Shoppe

shares tumbled 19.27 percent to $51.04 after the company reported downbeat Q4 revenue. VIVUS

was also down, falling 11.85 percent to $10.94 after the company reported weak sales of its diet pill Qsymia. Shares of Titan International

were down 16.43 percent to $20.86, after the company posted a Q4 loss from operations of $1.1 million.

In commodity news, oil traded down 0.75 percent to $92.41, while gold traded up 1.61 percent to $1,612.10. Silver traded up 0.97 percent Tuesday to $29.33, while copper gained 0.30 percent to $3.57.

European shares were lower overnight led lower by Italian banks following the election results. The Spanish Ibex dipped 3.20 percent, while the Italian MIB index tumbled 4.89 percent. The STOXX Europe 600 Index fell 1.32 percent, London's FTSE 100 Index dropped 1.34 percent, French CAC 40 Index fell 2.67 percent and German DAX 30 index declined 2.27 percent.

The ICSC-Goldman Sachs Retail Chain Store Sales Index climbed 0.1% from the earlier week. However, the index increased 2.9% year-over-year. The Johnson Redbook Retail Sales Index rose 2.7% y/y, down from 3.1% in the prior week. The S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index rose 0.2% in December, versus a 0.1% drop in November. December's prices surged 6.8% y/y. US house prices surged 0.6% in December, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency. US new home sales climbed 15.6% to an annual rate of 437,000 in January, beating estimates of 384,000. The Conference Board's consumer-confidence index surged to 69.6 in February, from 58.4 in January, surpassing economists' estimates of 62.3. Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index climbed to 6 in February, from -12 in February, beating estimates of -4. The State Street Investor Confidence Index surged to 94.8 in February, up 8.7 points versus January.