Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Markets Float Higher on Relatively Thin Volume

Toward the end of trading Friday, the Dow traded up 0.18 percent to 15,537.89 while the NASDAQ surged 0.20 percent to 3,936.43. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.22 percent to 1,755.61. Top Headline
Procter & Gamble Co PG reported a 7.6% rise in its fiscal first-quarter earnings. P&G's quarterly profit surged to $3.03 billion, or $1.04 per share, from $2.81 billion, or $0.96 per share, in the year-ago period. Excluding special items, its core earnings declined to $1.05 per share from $1.06 per share. Its sales rose 2.2% to $21.21 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $1.05 per share on sales of $21.04 billion. Equities Trading UP
Zynga ZNGA shot up 7.50 percent to $3.80 after the company posted a narrower-than-expected third-quarter loss. Shares of Microsoft MSFT got a boost, shooting up 6.17 percent to $35.80 on better-than-expected fiscal first-quarter results. Callaway Golf Co ELY was also up, gaining 20.25 percent to $8.73 after the company reported a narrower third-quarter loss and lifted its 2013 forecast. DA Davidson upgraded the stock from Neutral to Buy and lifted the price target from $7.50 to $11.00. Equities Trading DOWN
Shares of Qlik Technologies QLIK were down 19.06 percent to $27.10 after the company reported downbeat Q3 revenue and lowered its full-year view. ResMed RMD shares tumbled 11.83 percent to $49.60 after the company reported weaker-than-expected Q1 results. Synaptics SYNA was down, falling 15.48 percent to $44.83 after the company issued a downbeat Q2 revenue outlook. Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded up 0.75 percent to $97.84, while gold traded down 0.13 percent to $1,352.70. Silver traded down 0.66 percent Friday to $22.55, while copper rose 0.14 percent to $3.26. Euro zone
European shares were mostly lower today. The Spanish Ibex Index fell 1.01 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index tumbled 1.45 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX climbed 0.06 percent and the French CAC 40 fell 0.08 percent while U.K. shares gained 0.12 percent. Economics
US durable-goods orders rose 3.7% in September, versus economists' expectations for a 2.3% gain. However, core durable-goods orders fell 0.1% in the month. The final reading of the Reuter's/University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index declined to 73.2 in October, versus a final reading of 77.5 in September. However, economists were projecting a final reading of 75.0. US wholesale inventories rose 0.50% in August, versus economists' expectations for a 0.30% gain.