On the upside
Thinkorswim Group (Nasdaq: SWIM) received a $606 million cash and stock offer from retail brokerage firm TD Ameritrade Holding (Nasdaq: AMTD).Retailer Sears Holdings (Nasdaq: SHLD) posted lower sales in December, but performance at its Kmart stores was better than expected.
Shares of Immucor (Nasdaq: BLUD) rose after the blood-testing equipment maker posted higher quarterly earnings and sales.
On the downside
Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT) posted a smaller than expected sales gain in December. Analysts had expected the world's largest retailer to buck the weak trend among retailers by attracting cost-conscious consumers.Macy's (NYSE: M) announced plans to shut down 11 department stores while lowering its earnings outlook for the year.
Walgreen (NYSE: WAG) announced plans to slash 1000 jobs or 9% of corporate management in order to cut costs. The drugstore retailer employs about 237,000 people altogether.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of more than 7 to 2 on the NYSE and by more than 5 to 2 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks plummeted 18 points to 497.
