Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Markets Remain Down as Aegerion Pharma Rises On J.P. Morgan Price Target

Toward the end of trading Wednesday, the Dow traded down 0.54 percent to 15,326.06, while the NASDAQ fell 0.39 percent to 3,475.82. The S&P was also down, dropping 0.50 percent to 1,651.33. Top Headline
Smithfield Foods SFD agreed to be bought by Chinese Shuanghui Group for around $4.8 billion, making it the largest acquisition of an American company by a Chinese firm since the purchase of AMC Theaters. Smithfield shareholders will receive $34 per share, a 31% premium to the Smithfield's closing price of $25.97 on Tuesday. The transaction is projected to close in the second half of the year. Equities Trading UP
Stewart Enterprises STEI shot up, gaining 33.26 percent to $12.98, after the company agreed to be bought by Service Corporation International SCI for $13.25 per share in cash. Shares of Aegerion Pharmaceuticals AEGR were also up, gaining 14.26 percent to $69.40 after the company after J.P. Morgan raised its price target on the company from $48 per share to $69 per share. Perfect World Co PWRD got a boost, shooting up 14.77 percent to $14.79 after the company reported upbeat first-quarter earnings. Equities Trading DOWN
Chico's FAS CHS was down, falling 6.82 percent to $18.01, after the company reported downbeat Q1 results. Shares of Pinnacle Entertainment PNK were down as well, falling 6.84 percent to $19.21 after the company's deal with Ameristar received a complaint from the FTC. MRC Global MRC was down 14.28 percent to $28.46 after the company issued weak sales forecast in its earnings report this morning. Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded down 2.09 percent to $93.02, while gold gained 1.00 percent to $1,392.30. Silver traded up 0.57 percent Wednesday to $22.47, while copper fell 0.45 percent to $3.30. Eurozone
European shares were lower following mixed economic data. The number of Germans claiming unemployment benefits jumped much more than expected in May, as 21 thousand Germans claimed benefits for the first time vs. only 5 thousand expected. The unemployment rate remained flat at 6.9 percent. The Spanish Ibex Index fell 0.87 percent and the Italian FTSE MIB Index dropped 1.61 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX fell 1.70 percent and the French CAC 40 declined 1.89 percent while U.K. shares tumbled 1.91 percent. Economics
The Mortgage Bankers Association reported that its index of mortgage application activity declined 9% versus the earlier week. The ICSC/Goldman Sachs Retail Chain Store Sales Index fell 0.9% in the recent week ended Saturday versus the earlier week. The Johnson Redbook Retail Sales Index climbed 0.6% in the first three weeks of May versus April. The Treasury is set to auction 5-year notes.