Investors went bargain hunting to lift the market to a modestly higher open with the Dow rising 38 points to 15,034 after two days of losses. Nasdaq gained 20 points to 3795.
On the upside
The Food and Drug Administration agreed to Discovery Laboratories' (Nasdaq: DSCO) updated product specification for Surfaxin Intratracheal Suspension to prevent respiratory distress syndrome in premature infants.
Shares of Idera Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: IDRA) continued climbing after Baker Bros. Advisors acquired 4.5 million shares of the biotech.
Shares of Potbelly (Nasdaq: PBPB) more than doubled in its market debut.
On the downside
Ballard Power Systems (Nasdaq: BLDP) priced its offering of 9 million units at the discounted price of $1.40 per unit.
Neostem (Nasdaq: NBS) priced its public offering of 5 million common shares at the discounted price of $7.00 per share.
Investors locked in profits on Galena Biopharma (Nasdaq: GALE).
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of more than 2 to 2 on the NYSE and by more than 5 to 3 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 rose 6 points to 1685.
