Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Croc's Surges as Markets Rise Across the Board

Toward the end of trading Wednesday, the Dow traded up 0.20 percent to 15,782.73 while the NASDAQ gained 0.77 percent to 3,950.48. The S&P also fell, declining 0.47 percent to 1,765.34.

Macy's

reported a rise in its

profit. Macy's quarterly profit surged to $177 million, or $0.47 per share, versus a year-ago profit of $145 million, or $0.36 per share. Its sales climbed 3.3% to $6.28 billion. However, analysts were expecting a profit of $0.39 per share on sales of $6.18 billion. Its same-store sales increased 3.5%, beating analysts' expectations for a 2.1% rise.

Potbelly

gained 9.76 percent to $29.80 after the company reported an upbeat Q3 profit. Shares of Crocs

were up as well, gaining 9.17 percent to $13.81 after a report surfaced that the company is exploring strategic alternatives. SINA

was also up, gaining 11.63 percent to $84.74 after the company reported a

in its Q3 profit.

Shares of Safe Bulkers

were down 5.17 percent to $7.73 after the company priced 6 million shares at $7.43 per share. Frank's International NV

shares tumbled 13.60 percent to $25.50 on Q3 results. Citrix Systems

was down as well, falling 8.17 percent to $55.99 after Amazon

announced its new AppStream product, which is seen as a major competitor to Citrix.

In commodity news,

to $93.93, while gold traded up 0.20 percent to $1,273.70. Silver traded down 0.62 percent Wednesday to $20.61, while copper fell 2.24 percent to $3.16.

European shares

today. The Spanish Ibex Index tumbled 0.36 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index fell 1.28 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX dropped 0.32 percent and the French CAC 40 declined 0.53 percent while U.K. shares fell 1.19 percent.

The MBA's index of mortgage application activity declined 1.80% in the week ended November 8. The Treasury budget data for October will be released at 2:00 p.m. ET, while the Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke is expected to speak at 7:00 p.m. ET.