On the upside
Shares of Barrick Gold (NYSE: ABX) rose toward a new 52-week high.
AIG (NYSE: AIG) completed the spin-off of two subsidiaries giving the federal government preferred stock in exchange for a $25 billion reduction in debt.
Office supply retailer Staples (Nasdaq: SPLS) posted slightly higher revenues and sharply higher earnings due to reduced charges.
Shares of Guess (NYSE: GES) surged after the apparel retailer posted a profit and boosted its forecast. Analysts promptly upgraded the stock.
On the downside
Linktone (Nasdaq: LTON) posted unaudited 3rd quarter results. The China-based wireless entertainment company recorded lower revenues and a slim profit.
OmniVision Technologies (Nasdaq: OVTI) announced higher revenues and a profit for the 2nd quarter, but the outlook for the semiconductor image device marker missed analysts' targets.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of more than 5 to 1 on the NYSE and by 3 to 1 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks rose 5 points to 585.
