Upbeat economic data lifted the markets to a higher open with the Dow gaining 65 points to 14,974. Nasdaq climbed 31 points to 3434.
On the upside
Zynga (Nasdaq: ZNGA) chief executive Mark Pincus will be replaced by Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) entertainment business president Don Mattrick.
Renesola (NYSE: RSOL) restarted its Sichuan polysilicon plant today after completing upgrades to its furnaces and hydrochlorination technology.
BB&T upgraded YRC Worldwide (Nasdaq: YRCW) to a Buy rating with a $40 price target.
On the downside
J.P. Morgan Katherine Lucas Minyard downgraded HollyFrontier (NYSE: HFC) to an Underweight rating.
Healthways (Nasdaq: HWAY) announced a private placement of $100 million of cash convertible senior notes.
Investors locked in profits on Chambers Street Properties (NYSE: CSG) after the company joined the Russell 3000 and Russell Global Indexes after market close on June 28.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of more than 5 to 2 on the NYSE and by nearly 5 to 2 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 index gained 8 points to 1614.
