The markets closed modestly higher with the Dow adding 13 points to 11,372 as deficit fears eased. Nasdaq climbed 10 points to 2609.

On the upside

Wunderlich Securities analyst Theodore O'Neill said that GT Solar's (Nasdaq: SOLR) valuation makes it a prime acquisition target.

Second quarter earnings for Korn/Ferry International (NYSE: KFY) surged to beat analyst expectations by a wide margin and the executive search firm forecast third quarter results ahead of estimates.

Omnicare (NYSE: OCR) declared a quarterly dividend of $0.0325 per common share payable on December 30, 2010 to shareholders of record December 20, 2010.

On the downside

Men's Wearhouse (NYSE: MW) reported higher third quarter earnings as revenue rose but the clothing retailer forecast fourth quarter results that fell short of analyst expectations.

Green Dot (NYSE: GDOT) priced its public offering of approximately 4.2 million common shares at $61.00 per share.

W&T Offshore (NYSE: WTI) announced that its acquisition of assets from Shell Offshore will no longer include the Marlin and Dorado Fields. BP Exploration & Production exercised its preferential rights to purchase the Marlin and Dorado Fields.

In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of more than 3 to 2 on the NYSE while decliners barely edged out advancers by a slim margin on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks eased a fraction to 764.