Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Crude Oil Up 1.7%; Insys Therapeutics Shares Slide


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Toward the end of trading Monday, the Dow traded up 0.38 percent to 17,643.39 while the NASDAQ climbed 0.24 percent to 4,862.37. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.22 percent to 2,052.13. Leading and Lagging Sectors

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On Monday, basic materials shares gained by 2.13 percent. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Cliffs Natural Resources Inc (NYSE: CLF), up 13 percent, and Silver Standard Resources Inc. (USA) (NASDAQ: SSRI), up 11 percent. In trading on Monday, healthcare shares fell by 0.20 percent. Meanwhile, top losers in the sector included Insys Therapeutics Inc, down 19 percent, and Anthera Pharmaceuticals Inc (NASDAQ: ANTH), down 7 percent.Top HeadlineHertz Global Holdings Inc (NYSE: HTZ) issued an update to its outlook.Hertz Global said it expects its first quarter and full year U.S. car rental revenue and consolidated first-quarter earnings per share to be lower than previously expected. The company cited "excess industry capacity" for its poor outlook.Hertz added it expects its first-quarter U.S. car rental revenue per available car day to fall 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent compared to the same quarter a year ago. For the full fiscal year, the company expects the same metro to be flat to 1.5 percent lower compared to a prior guidance of 1.5 to 2.5 percent growth year-over-year.Hertz did, however, affirm its full year fiscal 2016 earnings per share to be in a range of $0.95 to $1.05. The company also reaffirmed its expectation of realizing $350 million of incremental savings in 2016.Equities Trading UP Viking Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: VKTX) shares shot up 9 percent to $1.32 as the company highlighted positive data from a phase 1b clinical trial of VK2809 in subjects with mild hypercholesterolemia during a presentation at the 65th Annual Scientific Session & Expo of the American College of Cardiology.Shares of

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Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE: CHK) got a boost, shooting up 15 percent to $4.33 after the company announced an amendment to its $4 billion secured revolving credit facility agreement which matures in 2017. Chesapeake Energy stated its senior secured revolving credit facility borrowing base was reaffirmed at $4 billion. Hatteras Financial Corp. (NYSE: HTS) shares were also up, gaining 11 percent to $15.81 after Annaly Capital Management, Inc. (NYSE: NLY) announced plans to acquire Hatteras Financial for $1.5 billion.Equities Trading DOWN Odyssey Marine Exploration Inc (NASDAQ: OMEX) shares dropped 59 percent to $3.51 after the company announced a key business update. Odyssey Marine said it was informed by the Mexican Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) it was denied an application for an environmental license for the Don Diego region.Shares of Insys Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ: INSY) were down 19 percent to $14.37 after the company issued a weak forecast for the first quarter. The company projects Subsys revenue of $61 million to $62 million, versus analysts' estimates of $86 million. National-Oilwell Varco, Inc. (NYSE: NOV) was down, falling around 6 percent to $27.40 after the company provided an update to its revenue outlook and a change to its dividend. National-Oilwell said it expects its first quarter revenue to fall 20 percent year-over-year from $2.7 billion a year ago. However, the company did add that while the outlook remains "challenging," its balance sheet remains "strong financially." Accordingly, the Board of Directors made the decision to slash the stock's quarterly dividend payout to $0.05 per share from a previous $0.46 per share.CommoditiesIn commodity news, oil traded up 1.7 percent to $40.40 while gold traded up 1.13 percent to $1,257.80. Silver traded up 3.65 percent Monday to $15.95, while copper rose 0.05 percent to $2.09.EurozoneEuropean shares closed mostly higher today. The eurozone's STOXX 600 gained 0.30 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index rose 0.83 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index surged 1.25 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX climbed 0.63 percent, and the French CAC 40 surged 0.22 percent, while U.K. shares fell 0.07 percent.EconomicsThere were no major US economic releases Monday.

Crypto Whales Are Loading Up — Are You?

New research shows the biggest crypto buyers are back. And this time? They could hold for the possibility that Bitcoin will surpass $100,000 in 2024. You don’t want to miss the next massive crypto bull run like we saw in 2020 and 2021. To know exactly what’s going on and what to buy… Get Access To Benzinga’s Best Crypto Research and Investments For Only $1.


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