The markets advanced during the midday with the Dow rising 35 points to 15,857 over optimism that the Federal Reserve may maintain low interest rates for the next few years. Nasdaq eased a point to 3963.
On the upside
Shares of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (Nasdaq: HMHC) surged on its first trading day.
Tandem Diabetes Care (Nasdaq: TNDM) stock soared in its market debut.
Biostar Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: BSPM) regained compliance with Nasdaq's minimum bid rule.
On the downside
Gotham City Research claimed that Tile Shop Holdings (Nasdaq: TTS) overstated its 2013 earnings.
Kohl's (NYSE: KSS) reported lower third quarter earnings that fell short of analyst expectations prompting the company to cut its full year earnings guidance.
Multimedia Games (Nasdaq: MGAM) reported higher fourth quarter earnings and revenue that topped analyst expectations but the company forecast 2014 earnings below estimates.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of more than 5 to 3 on the NYSE and by a margin of nearly 7 to 5 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 rose 6 points to 1788.