Mid-Day Market Update: Sodastream Gains Following Earnings Beat; NewLink Genetics Shares Decline

Midway through trading Tuesday, the Dow traded up 1.08 percent to 17,897.68 while the NASDAQ climbed 0.83 percent to 4,789.39. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.97 percent to 2,078.63.

On Tuesday, the telecommunications services sector proved to be a source of strength for the market. Top gainers in the sector included

,

, and

. In trading on Tuesday, healthcare shares rose by just 0.2 percent. Meanwhile, top losers in the sector included

, down 33 percent, and

, down 12 percent.

reported adjusted earnings of $3.04 a share, compared to $2.65 a share in the previous year quarter. This was $0.03 a share higher than the estimations of $3.01 a share. The company's adjusted top line grew 48.1 percent to $3.9 billion from $2.56 billion in the same quarter last year. Analysts predicted the company to generate revenue of $3.95 billion. Allergan's board has authorized a fresh share buyback program of a maximum of $10 billion of its common stock.

shares shot up 41 percent to $2.96 following announcement of license agreement for CCX168. ChemoCentryx posted a Q1 loss of $0.34 per share. Shares of

got a boost, shooting up 27 percent to $9.82 after the company reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results.

shares were also up, gaining 21 percent to $17.89 as the company reported better-than-expected Q1 results.

shares dropped 33 percent to $11.09 following announcement of failed pancreatic cancer trial. Shares of

were down 25 percent to $16.87 as the company reported a wider-than-expected loss for its first quarter and issued a weak outlook for its current quarter.

was down, falling around 25 percent to $0.987. MannKind reported a Q1 loss of $0.06 per share and priced registered direct public offering of 48.54 million common stock and warrants at a combined purchase price of $1.03 per share.

In commodity news, oil traded up 2.26 percent to $44.42 while gold traded down 0.42 percent to $1,261.30. Silver traded up 0.01 percent Tuesday to $17.09, while copper fell 0.33 percent to $2.10.

European shares were higher today. The eurozone's STOXX 600 surged 0.83 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index climbed 0.91 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index rose 1.41 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX gained 0.65 percent, and the French CAC 40 gained 0.36 percent while U.K. shares rose 0.68 percent.

U.S. wholesale inventories rose 0.10 percent for March, versus economists' expectations for a 0.10 percent growth.