The markets traded lower during the midday with the Dow losing 35 points to 16,300 after the Federal Reserve indicated that it would lower its bond purchases. Nasdaq slipped 8 points to 4324.
On the upside
First Solar (Nasdaq: FSLR) forecast higher earnings and revenue for 2015.
Maxim Group analyst Echo He said that Galena Biopharma's (Nasdaq: GALE) were sound despite an Securities and Exchange Commission investigation.
RBC Capital lifted its price target on Prothena (Nasdaq: PRTA) from $38 to $52.
On the downside
Kandi Technologies (Nasdaq: KNDI) announced a registered direct offering with two institutional investors of more than $11 million worth of common stock.
Investors locked in profits on Central European Media (Nasdaq: CETV).
Goldman Sachs downgraded Orbitz Worldwide (NYSE: OWW) from a Neutral rating to a Sell rating.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of nearly 5 to 4 on the NYSE and by 7 to 5 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 held steady at 1872. Bitcoin eased $4.08 or 0.66% to $611.42.
