Markets fall on lower crude oil prices

The markets opened lower with the Dow slipping 17 points to 17,901 as crude oil prices fell. Nasdaq fell 29 points to 5,178.

On the upside

St. Jude Medical (NYSE: STJ) offered a premium of approximately $3.4 billion in cash to acquire Thoratec (Nasdaq: THOR).

Solar3D (Nasdaq: SLTD) expects to report record revenue for the second quarter.

Check Point Software Technologies (Nasdaq: CHKP) reported higher second quarter earnings and revenue.

On the downside

XOMA (Nasdaq: XOMA) reported disappointing results from a Phase 3 EYE-GUARD-B study of the Behcet's disease uveitis treatment gevokizumab.

Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) reported higher third quarter earnings and revenue that surpassed estimates but the company forecast current quarter revenue that missed analyst expectations prompting a downgrade.

Second quarter earnings rose for Illumina (Nasdaq: ILMN) but revenue fell short of expectations.

In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of 7 to 5 on the NYSE and by more than 7 to 5 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 slipped a point to 2117. Bitcoin lost $1 to $274.