Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Markets Turn Red as Analyst Ratings Dominate Stock Moves

Toward the end of trading Monday, the Dow traded down 0.26 percent to 16,044.39 while the NASDAQ tumbled 0.14 percent to 4,054.40. The S&P also turned red, falling 0.01 percent to 1,805.25.

Akamai Technologies

announced it

Prolexic Technologies, a provider of cloud-based security solutions, for about $370 million. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2014. Akamai reaffirmed its Q4 earnings forecast of $0.49 to $0.53 per share on revenue of $412 million to 430 million.

Pretium Resources

shot up 6.70 percent to $5.79 after the company

of underground exploration in Valley of the Kings. Shares of Axiall

were also on the rise, gaining 10.00 percent to $49.82 after Dow Chemical announced the plan sale of its Commodity Chemicals unit. The sale was stated as a positive for the company by Cowen analyst Charles Neivert, and looks to be giving shares a strong boost. Marketo

was also up, gaining 7.49 percent to $31.28 after Goldman Sachs added the stock to “Conviction Buy” list.

Shares of Cobalt International Energy

were down 16.69 percent to $18.53 after the company confirmed that it has

earlier announced Lontra #1 Pre-salt discovery well in Block 20, offshore Angola. Petroleo Brasileiro SA- Petrobras

shares tumbled 11.48 percent to $14.11 after Citigroup downgraded the stock from Buy to Neutral. Trulia

was also down, falling 7.65 percent to $31.71 after the company was dropped from Buy to a Neutral rating at Goldman Sachs.

In commodity news,

to $93.93, while gold traded down 2.55 percent to $1,218.90. Silver traded down 4.11 percent Monday to $19.17, while copper fell 0.94 percent to $3.17.

European shares

today. The Spanish Ibex Index tumbled 0.79 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index declined 1.52 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX dropped 0.01 percent and the French CAC 40 declined 0.22 percent while U.K. shares fell 0.83 percent.

US manufacturing PMI climbed to 54.7 in November, from the flash estimate of 54.3 and versus a reading of 51.8 in October. However, economists were expecting a reading of 54.3. The ISM manufacturing index rose to 57.30 in November, versus a prior reading of 56.40. However, economists were expecting a reading of 55.10. US construction spending rose 0.80% in October, versus economists' expectations for a 0.40% gain.