Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Mostly Lower; Global Payments Earnings Beat Views

Following the market opening Monday, the Dow traded down 0.28 percent to 19,908.24 while the NASDAQ gained 0.12 percent to 5,527.42. The S&P also fell, dropping 0.23 percent to 2,271.69.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Technology shares gained around 0.32 percent in trading on Monday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Ultra Clean Holdings Inc UCTT, and Ceragon Networks Ltd CRNT.

In trading on Monday, energy shares fell by 1 percent. Meanwhile, top losers in the sector included Tidewater Inc. TDW, down 7 percent, and PrimeEnergy Corporation PNRG, down 7 percent.

Top Headline

Global Payments Inc GPN reported better-than-expected earnings for its second quarter.

Global Payments reported Q2 earnings of $0.89 per share on revenue of $817.2 million. Analysts were expecting earnings of $0.85 per share on revenue of $803 million.

Equities Trading UP

Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ARIA shares shot up 73 percent to $23.76 after Japan's Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd announced plans to buy the company in a $5.20 billion deal.

Shares of VCA Inc WOOF got a boost, shooting up 28 percent to $90.79 after Mars, Incorporated agreed to acquire the company.

Merrimack Pharmaceuticals Inc MACK shares were also up, gaining 13 percent to $4.08 after the company confirmed a Reuters report Sunday that it has entered into a definitive asset purchase and sale agreement with Ipsen to sell its first commercial product ONIVYDE and its generic version of DOXIL in a transaction valued at up to $1.025 billion, plus up to $33 million in net milestone payments.

Equities Trading DOWN

Acuity Brands, Inc. AYI shares dropped 17 percent to $196.70 after the company reported downbeat quarterly results.

Shares of Galena Biopharma Inc GALE were down around 11 percent to $1.85 after the company disclosed that the DoJ investigation into Abstral tablets is now a criminal investigation.

Stage Stores Inc SSI was down, falling around 17 percent to $3.31 as the company reported a drop in its holiday season same-store sales and lowered its earnings guidance. The retailer’s same-store sales dropped 7.3 percent for the nine-week period ending December 31, 2016.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded down 2.09 percent to $52.89 while gold traded up 0.68 percent to $1,181.40.

Silver traded up 0.52 percent Monday to $16.61, while copper fell 0.75 percent to $2.52.

Eurozone

European shares were mostly lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 fell 0.60 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index declined 0.54 percent, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index fell 1.76 percent. Meanwhile the German DAX dropped 0.59 percent, and the French CAC 40 fell 0.76 percent while U.K. shares rose 0.28 percent.

Economics

The Treasury is set to auction 3-and 6-month bills at 11:30 a.m. ET.

The TD Ameritrade Investor Movement Index for December will be released at 12:30 p.m. ET.

Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Dennis Lockhart is set to speak at 12:40 p.m. ET.

Data on consumer credit for November will be released at 3:00 p.m. ET.