Falling Oil Prices Lift Markets Modestly Higher At Midday

Falling crude oil prices lifted the markets modestly higher during the midday with the Dow rising 48 points to 10,454. Nasdaq gained 17 points to 2226.

On the upside

Cardica (Nasdaq: CRDC) narrowed fourth quarter losses expenses fell. The company also announced that Intuitive Surgical will pay $12 million for an exclusive licensing deal.

The Food and Drug Administration said that Jazz Pharmaceuticals' (Nasdaq: JAZZ) JZP-6 was effective in treating fibromyalgia patients but safety concerns were raised.

Jefferies & Co. analyst Corey Davis lifted his price target for Endo Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: ENDP) saying that the company should be able to prevent regulatory approval of generic versions of its Opana ER.

On the downside

Citi Trends (Nasdaq: CTRN) widened second quarter losses more than expected.

Eaton Vance (NYSE: EV) reported higher third quarter earnings but the results fell short of expectations.

Longbow Research analyst Alton Stump downgraded Safeway (NYSE: SWY) to a Sell rating.

In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of more than 7 to 5 on the NYSE and by nearly 5 to 4 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks gained 4 points to 630.