On the upside
Commerical lender CIT Group (NYSE: CIT) reportedly approved a deal with bondholders to secure $3 billion in funding possibly to avert a bankruptcy filing.
Shares of Human Genome Sciences (Nasdaq: HGSI) soared after the drug maker reported positive results for its lupus drug treatment. The company has partnered with GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: GSK) to develop and market the product.
Oil services provider Halliburton (NYSE: HAL) posted lower 2nd quarter profits, but the results beat expectations.
On the downside
Weatherford International (NYSE: WFT) posted lower 2nd quarter profits mostly due to weak commodity prices.
An analyst downgraded Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) and Sanderson Farms (Nasdaq: SAFM). The two stocks promptly fell.
Shares of Ruby Tuesday (NYSE: RT) slipped after the casual dining chain announced a stock offering of 10 million shares.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 3 to 1 on the NYSE and by more than 2 to 1 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks added 4 points to 523.