The markets rebounded to open higher with the Dow climbing 72 points to 15,910 as emerging markets stabilized. Nasdaq rose 11 points to 4094.
On the upside
Cliffs Natural Resources (NYSE: CLF) 5.2% shareholder Casablanca Capital recommended that the company spin off its international assets, double its annual dividend, convert is domestic assets to an MLP and cut costs.
AK Steel Holding (NYSE: AKS) swung to a better than expected profit for the fourth quarter as revenue rose.
BG Medicine (Nasdaq: BGMD) reported that a clinical research study validated the performance of automated VIDAS® Galectin-3 assay.
On the downside
Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) reported higher first quarter earnings and revenue but iPhone sales disappointed and the company forecast current quarter revenue that fell short of expectations.
Corning (NYSE: GLW) reported sharply higher fourth quarter earnings that topped analyst estimates but the specialty glass maker warned of falling LCD glass prices.
VimpelCom (Nasdaq: VIP) will reduce debt by slashing its dividend.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 3 to 1 on the NYSE and by more than 2 to 1 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 gained 9 points to 1790. Bitcoin rose $24.31 or 2.54% to $956.39.
