The markets opened higher with the Dow rising 16 points to 18,448 over corporate consolidations. Nasdaq gained 31 points to 5,193.
On the upside
Top Ships (Nasdaq: TOPS) swung to a profit for the first six months of 2016.
Verizon (NYSE: VZ) will pay a premium of approximately $2.4 billion in cash to acquire Fleetmatics Group (NYSE: FLTX).
Ionis Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: IONS) reported positive results from a late-stage clinical trial of nusinersen to treat infants with spinal muscular atrophy which triggered a $75 million payment from Biogen (Nasdaq: BIIB).
On the downside
Keryx Biopharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: KERX) withdrew its full year forecast citing a production issue with its kidney disease treatment Auryxia that will delay delivery of the drug until the fourth quarter.
KLR Group cut its price target on Whiting Petroleum (NYSE: WLL) from $18 to $15.
Investors locked in profits on WPX Energy (NYSE: WPX).
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of 5 to 3 on the NYSE while decliners barely edged out advancers by a slim margin on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 added 2 points to 2,176. Bitcoin fell $5 to $621.
