The nation’s economy expanded at a slower than expected pace in the first quarter to weigh the markets down to a lower open with the Dow slipping 5 points to 14,695. Nasdaq fell 16 points to 3273.
On the upside
The committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use of the European Medicines Agency granted a positive opinion to Avanir Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: AVNR) for its pseudobulbar affect treatment NUEDEXTA.
Billionaire George Soros acquired a 7.9% stake in J.C. Penney (NYSE: JCP).
Qlik Technologies (Nasdaq: RRD) widened first quarter losses but the results were better than expected and the company lifted its full year outlook.
On the downside
Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) reported higher first quarter earnings and revenue but profit growth slowed.
First quarter earnings rose for PerkinElmer (NYSE: PKI) but the results fell short of analyst expectations.
Desarrolladora Homex (NYSE: HXM) disappointed with sharply lower first quarter earnings and revenue.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of more than 7 to 5 on the NYSE and by 5 to 3 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 index eased a fraction to 1584.
