Mid-Afternoon Market Update: American Superconductor Gains On Strong Q3 Outlook; First Solar Shares Drop

Toward the end of trading Thursday, the Dow traded up 1.14 percent to 17,691.50 while the NASDAQ climbed 1.01 percent to 5,073.54. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.93 percent to 2,066.62.

In trading on Thursday, healthcare shares rose by 1.22 percent. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included

, up 13 percent, and

, up 8 percent. Utilities shares tumbled by 0.85 percent in the US market on Thursday. Top losers in the sector included

,

, and

.

reported better-than-expected results for the fourth quarter, but the company issued a weak revenue forecast. The company reported adjusted earnings of $0.42 per share on revenue of $692 million. However, analysts were expecting a profit of $0.38 per share on revenue of $683.56 million. For the first quarter, Ciena expects revenue of $555 million to $590 million, versus analysts' expectations of $636.61 million.

shares shot up 84 percent to $9.88 after the company agreed to be acquired for $10.00 per share in cash. Shares of

got a boost, shooting up 49 percent to $5.18 after

offered to acquire LoJack for $5.50 per share in cash.

shares were also up, gaining 12 percent to $4.32 after the company raised its outlook for the third quarter.

shares tumbled 9 percent to $53.25 after the company issued guidance for 2016. The company now projects full-year fiscal 2016 earnings of $4 to $4.50 per share range, on sales of $3.9 billion to $4.1 billion. Shares of

were down 15 percent to $15.71. Men's Wearhouse reported in-line loss for the third quarter, but the company's revenue missed analysts' estimates. Comparable sales slipped 14.6 percent at Jos. A. Bank.

was down, falling 16 percent to $20.22. Ciena reported better-than-expected results for the fourth quarter, but the company issued a weak revenue forecast.

In commodity news, oil traded down 1.13 percent to $36.74, while gold traded down 0.46 percent to $1,071.60. Silver traded down 0.59 percent Thursday to $14.11, while copper rose 0.17 percent to $2.07.

European shares closed mostly lower today. The eurozone's STOXX 600 fell 0.27 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index declined 0.58 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index dipped 0.42 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX gained 0.06 percent, and the French CAC 40 slipped 0.05 percent, while U.K. shares fell 0.63 percent.

US jobless claims surged by 13,000 to 282,000 in the week ended December 5. However, economists were expecting initial claims to rise to 269,000. US import prices slipped 0.4 percent in November, while export prices declined 0.6 percent in November. Supplies of natural gas declined 76 billion cubic feet for the week ended December 4, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said. However, analysts were projecting a drop of 59 billion cubic feet to 63 billion cubic feet. The U.S. budget deficit widened 14 percent year-over-year to $65 billion in November, the Treasury Department reported.