Disappointing corporate earnings sent the markets tumbling during the midday with the Dow plunging 162 points 12,597. Nasdaq plunged 38 points to 2833.
On the upside
Top Image Systems (Nasdaq: TISA) reversed year ago losses to post a profit for the first quarter.
Discovery Laboratories (Nasdaq: DSCO) narrowed first quarter losses.
Shares of OxiGene (Nasdaq: OXGN) continued climbing after both The Bedford Report and World Street Fundamentals issued reports yesterday highlighting the growth potential of the biopharmaceutical.
On the downside
Stec (Nasdaq: STEC) swung to a first quarter profit but the results missed analyst expectations and the company forecast current quarter results below estimates.
Allos Therapeutics (Nasdaq: ALTH) disappointed with a loss for the first quarter as sales of its blood cancer treatment Folotyn fell short of expectations.
Falling silver prices weighed down shares of Silver Wheaton (NYSE: SLW).
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of more than 3 to 1 on the NYSE and by nearly 7 to 2 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks tumbled 14 points to 841.