Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Mostly Flat; PepsiCo Profit Tops Expectations

Following the market opening Wednesday, the Dow traded up 0.05 percent to 22,652.6 while the NASDAQ declined 0.1 percent to 6,524.75. The S&P also fell, dropping 0.04 percent to 2,533.46.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Wednesday morning, the non-cyclical consumer goods & services shares surged 0.47 percent.

In trading on Wednesday, energy shares fell 0.42 percent. Meanwhile, top losers in the sector included Flotek Industries Inc FTK, down 5 percent, and TETRA Technologies, Inc. TTI down 4 percent.

Top Headline

PepsiCo, Inc. PEP reported better-than-expected profit for its third quarter, while sales missed estimates.

Pepsico reported Q3 adjusted earnings of $1.48 per share on sales of $16.24 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $1.44 per share on sales of $16.31 billion.

Equities Trading UP

Real Goods Solar, Inc. RGSE shares shot up 228 percent to $2.69 following announcement of exclusive license agreement with Dow to commercialize POWERHOUSE solar shingles system.

Shares of Medical Transcription Billing Corp MTBC got a boost, shooting up 53 percent to $4.85 after surging 109.27 percent on Tuesday.

Catabasis Pharmaceuticals Inc CATB shares were also up, gaining 22 percent to $3.45 after the company disclosed positive results from open-label extension of Phase 2 MoveDMD trial evaluating edasalonexent.

Equities Trading DOWN

Sequans Communications SA ADR SQNS shares dropped 35 percent to $2.00 after the company lowered its guidance for the third quarter.

Shares of Strongbridge Biopharma plc SBBP were down 18 percent to $6.18. Stronebridge Biopharma priced offering of 4 million shares at $6.25 per share.

Office Depot Inc ODP was down, falling around 17 percent to $3.80 after the company announced plans to acquire CompuCom for $1 billion and lowered its FY17 adjusted operating income outlook.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded down 0.22 percent to $50.31 while gold traded up 0.41 percent to $1,279.80.

Silver traded up 0.27 percent Wednesday to $16.695, while copper rose 0.03 percent to $2.9645.

Eurozone

European shares were mostly lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 declined 0.23 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index fell 2.24 percent, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index fell 1.19 percent. Meanwhile the German DAX gained 0.19 percent, and the French CAC 40 slipped 0.32 percent while U.K. shares fell 0.03 percent.

Economics

Private-sector employers added 135,000 jobs in September, ADP reported. Economists were expecting a gain of 125,000 jobs.

The IHS Markit services index declined to 55.3 in September, versus prior reading of 56.

The ISM non-manufacturing index rose to 59.80 in September, versus prior reading of 55.30. Economists expected a reading of 55.50.

The Energy Information Administration’s weekly report on petroleum inventories in the U.S. is schedule for release at 10:30 a.m. ET.

St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard is set to speak in St. Louis at 3:00 p.m. ET.

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen will speak in St. Louis at 3:15 p.m. ET.