Mid-Day Market Update: US Stocks Extend Gains; Lexicon Shares Surge

Midway through trading Tuesday, the Dow traded up 0.42 percent to 15,193.37 while the NASDAQ surged 1.04 percent to 3,810.79. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.79 percent to 1,694.81.

Walgreen Co

reported an

in its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings. Walgreen's quarterly profit surged to $657 million, or $0.69 per share, from $353 million, or $0.39 per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding special items, its earnings climbed to $0.73 from $0.63 per share. Its revenue gained 5.1% to $17.94 billion, while total same-store sales rose 4.6%. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $0.72 per share on revenue of $17.95 billion. Walgreen's gross margin rose to 28.9% from 28.3%.

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals

shot up 25.21 percent to $2.98 on

data. Shares of Myriad Genetics

got a boost, shooting up 8.55 percent to $25.51 after the company reported that

should take a 'week or two' to correct. Ladenburg Thalmann upgraded the stock from Neutral to Buy. Cree

was also up, gaining 11.41 percent to $67.06 after Canaccord upgraded the stock from Hold to Buy.

Shares of Universal Display

were down 5.71 percent to $30.20 after Canaccord Genuity downgraded the stock from Hold to Sell. Aixtron SE

shares tumbled 4.19 percent to $16.25 after Canaccord Genuity downgraded the stock from Hold to Sell. Beacon Roofing Supply

was down, falling 7.05 percent to $34.27 after Robert W. Baird downgraded the stock from Outperform to Neutral.

In commodity news,

to $101.29, while gold traded down 2.79 percent to $1,290.00. Silver traded down 4.21 percent Tuesday to $20.80, while copper fell 1.67 percent to $3.27.

European shares

today. The Spanish Ibex Index rose 1.69 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index gained 3.11 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX climbed 1.10 percent and the French CAC 40 rose 1.28 percent while U.K. shares declined 0.03 percent.

The ICSC-Goldman Sachs store sales index rose 0.2% in the week ended Saturday versus the earlier week. The Johnson Redbook Retail Sales Index fell 0.4% in the first four weeks of September from August. The final reading of Markit manufacturing PMI came in unchanged at 52.8 in September, versus 53.1 in August. The ISM manufacturing composite index rose to 56.20 in September, from a prior reading of 55.70. However, economists were expecting a reading of 55.00.