Ireland's Credit Rating Downgraded, Markets Open Mixed
The markets opened mixed with the Dow losing 23 points to 11,475 while Nasdaq rose 5 points to 2643 after a downgrade of Ireland's credit rating.
On the upside
A European health regulator advisory panel recommended approval for InterMune's (Nasdaq: ITMN) idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis treatment Esbriet.
Oracle (Nasdaq: ORCL) reported higher second quarter earnings that topped analyst estimates as revenue surged.
The Bank of Montreal will pay approximately $4.1 billion in stock to acquire Marshall & Ilsley (NYSE: MI).
On the downside
The Food and Drug Administration requested additional data from AstraZeneca (NYSE: AZN) for its blood thinner Brilinta.
Moody's Investors Service downgraded Ireland's credit rating sending shares of Allied Irish Banks (NYSE: AIB) and The Governor and Company of The Bank of Ireland (NYSE: IRE) lower.
Smart Modular (Nasdaq: SMOD) reported higher first quarter earnings and revenue that beat analyst expectations but the company forecast second quarter results well below estimates.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of more than 5 to 4 on the NYSE and by more than 7 to 5 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks slipped 2 points to 773.
