On the upside
A South Korean newspaper reported that Woori America Bank may be seeking a 51% stake in Hanmi Financial (Nasdaq: HAFC).
Briefing.com reported that The New England Journal of Medicine would be publishing an article on Cyclacel Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: CYCC).
Brinker International (NYSE: EAT) reversed year ago losses to post a better than expected profit for the second quarter.
On the downside
Dr. Reddy's Laboratories (NYSE: RDY) blamed charges and lower revenue for swinging to a third quarter loss.
Shares of hospital operator Universal Health Services (NYSE: UHS) dropped after a Republican victory in the Massachusetts Senate race guaranteed that health care reform will not pass.
Falling gold prices weighed down shares of Yamana Gold (NYSE: AUY).
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of more than 7 to 2 on the NYSE and by nearly 4 to 1 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks plunged 13 points to 635.