Stocks retreated again with momentum stocks taking the brunt of the
sell-off ahead of corporate earnings news. The Dow tumbled 117 points
to close at 16,906 while Nasdaq fell a steeper 60 points to finish the
session at 4,391.
On the upside
Shares
of TherapeuticsMD (Nasdaq: TXMD) surged after FBR Capital upgraded the
pharmaceutical company for its promising hormone treatment of
post-menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes.
Macquarie Instrastructure (NYSE: MIC) announced plans to buy up the rest of International-Matex Tank Terminals for $1.025 billion and expects the transaction to be accretive to cash flow immediately.
Wal-Mart
Stores (NYSE: WMT) were among the few gainers today. CEO Doug McMillon
hinted at new small store concept and online strategies to fend off
rivals like Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN).
On the downside
Shares
of Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) were among the sharpest decliners among
momentum stocks which retreated for a second day in a row.
Shares of Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) joined the tech sell-off despite an analyst upgrade.
Shares of Eagle Bulk Shipping (Nasdaq: EGLE) fell to a 52-week low on bankruptcy worries.
In
the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of 3
to 2 on the NYSE and by a ratio of nearly 4 to 1 on Nasdaq. The broader
S&P 500 fell 13 points to 1963. Bitcoin rose $2 to $621.