Disappointment that the Federal Reserve may stop purchasing assets sent the markets tumbling to a sharply lower close with the Dow plummeting 108 points to 13,927. Nasdaq plunged 49 points to 3164.
On the upside
Shares of Novogen (Nasdaq: NVGN) continued rising after a Proactive Investors Australia reported that the biotechnology firm's ovarian cancer treatment CS-6 was effective.
Clean Harbors (NYSE: CLH) reported sharply higher fourth quarter earnings and revenue that surpassed analyst expectations.
Third quarter earnings and revenue rose for La-Z-Boy (NYSE: LZB) to top analyst estimates.
On the downside
Newfield Exploration (NYSE: NFX) blamed charges for falling to a significant loss for the fourth quarter.
PVR Partners (NYSE: PVR) fell to a loss for the fourth quarter as revenue slipped.
Anadigics (Nasdaq: ANAD) widened fourth quarter losses more than expected.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of more than 3 to 1 on the NYSE and by 7 to 2 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 index tumbled 18 points to 1511.
