Jobless Claims Drop, Markets Open Higher

A drop in first time applications for unemployment benefits lifted the markets to a higher open with the Dow gaining 53 points to 12,139. Nasdaq climbed 17 points to 2715.

On the upside

Walgreen (NYSE: WAG) will acquire drugstore.com (Nasdaq: DSCM) in an all cash deal valued at approximately $429 million.

Second quarter earnings dropped for Micron Technology (Nasdaq: MU) but the results beat analyst expectations.

Red Hat (NYSE: RHT) reported higher fourth quarter earnings and revenue that surpassed analyst estimates.

On the downside

International Coal (NYSE: ICO) subsidiary ICG Eastern was sued by three environmental groups for discharging toxic selenium into waterways in violation of state and federal laws.

Shares of Prana Biotechnology (Nasdaq: PRAN) continued falling after announcing a private placement yesterday to raise approximately $6.19 million.

Shares of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NYSE: GMCR), maker of the popular Keurig single brewer, tumbled after Starbucks (Nasdaq: SBUX) announced that it will introduce a single-serve cofffee brewer next year.

In the broad market, declining issues edged out advancers by a slim margin of nearly 10 to 9 on the NYSE while advancers outpaced decliners by 10 to 9 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks eased a fraction to 810.

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