The markets opened higher with the Dow rising 29 points to 19,644 as consumer confidence climbed. Nasdaq gained 23 points to 5,440.
On the upside
Aetna will now cover Interspace Diagnostics Group's (Nasdaq: IDXG) ThyraMir.
Sibanye Gold will pay a premium of approximately $2.2 billion in cash to acquire Stillwater Mining (NYSE: SWC).
Bargain hunters lifted shares of Seanergy Maritime Holdings (Nasdaq: SHIP).
On the downside
TETRA Technologies (NYSE: TTI) priced its public offering of 19.4 million common shares at $5.15 per share.
Duluth Holdings (Nasdaq: DLTH) reported lower third quarter earnings and cut its full year forecast.
Clearside BioMedical (Nasdaq: CLSD) priced its public offering of 4 million common shares at the discounted price of $9.00 per share.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 3 to 2 on the NYSE and by nearly 2 to 1 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 index gained 6 points to 2,252. Bitcoin edged up a fraction to $766.
