Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Crude Oil Down 1.2%; Macrocure Shares Surge Following Merger Agreement With Leap Therapeutics

Toward the end of trading Monday, the Dow traded up 0.61 percent to 18,507.41 while the NASDAQ climbed 0.42 percent to 5,240.58. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.58 percent to 2,181.72.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Monday afternoon, basic materials shares gained by 1.15 percent. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included USG Corporation USG, and Allegheny Technologies Incorporated ATI.

In trading on Monday, technology shares rose by just 0.4 percent. Meanwhile, top losers in the sector included Formula Systems (1985) Ltd. (ADR) FORTY, down 5 percent, and American Software, Inc. AMSWA, down 5 percent.

Top Headline

USG Corporation USG and ABC Supply disclosed that they reached a definitive deal through which the former would divest its L&W Supply Corporation to the latter for $670 million cash.

The transaction is expected to be completed before the current year ends.

Equities Trading UP

Macrocure Ltd MCUR shares shot up 85 percent to $2.24 as the company agreed to be acquried by Leap Therapeutics.

Shares of Allegheny Technologies Incorporated ATI got a boost, shooting up 10 percent to $18.37. Deutsche Bank upgraded Allegheny Technologies from Hold to Buy.

USG Corporation USG shares were also up, gaining 7 percent to $30.11. USG and ABC Supply disclosed that they reached a definitive deal through which the former would divest its L&W Supply Corporation to the latter for $670 million cash.

Equities Trading DOWN

Caesars Entertainment Corp CZR shares dropped 17 percent to $6.25 after a court ruling leaves the company exposed to $11 billion in legal claims. On Friday, a U.S. judge ruled that Caesars Entertainment Operating Corp (CEOC) con no longer protect parent company Caesars Entertainment Corp from lawsuits concerning CEOC bond debt issued prior to its Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January 2015.

Shares of BOS Better OnLine Sol (USA) BOSC were down 14 percent to $3.00. Better Online Solutions posted Q2 earnings of $0.14 per share on revenue of $14.38 million.

Core-Mark Holding Company, Inc. CORE was down, falling around 14 percent to $38.63. Core-Mark reported the expiration of its supply agreement with 1,100 Circle K stores.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded down 1.22 percent to $47.06 while gold traded up 0.11 percent to $1,327.30.

Silver traded up 0.72 percent Monday to $18.88, while copper fell 0.19 percent to $2.08.

Eurozone

European shares closed lower today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 slipped 0.15 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index declined 0.50 percent, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index dropped 1.12 percent. Meanwhile the German DAX declined 0.41 percent, and the French CAC 40 declined 0.40 percent.

Economics

U.S. consumer spending rose 0.3 percent for July, versus economists’ expectations for a 0.3 percent growth. Personal income increased 0.4 percent last month.

The Dallas Fed manufacturing business index dropped to -6.20 in August, versus a prior reading of -1.30. Economists were expecting a reading of -3.90.