On the upside
Construction equipment maker Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) posted lower 2nd quarter profits, but boosted its 2009 profit forecast citing particularly strong demand in China.
Shares of JDA Software Group (Nasdaq: JDAS) surged after the company reported higher revenues and earnings that nearly tripled versus year-ago levels.
Dow Agrosciences, a unit of Dow Chemical (NYSE: DOW) and Monsato (NYSE: MON) received approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for a new corn seed.
On the downside
Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) posted lower 2nd quarter earnings that beat expectations. However, investors focused on lower revenues in North America and single-digit growth guidance.
Printer and copier maker Lexmark International (NYSE: LXK) reported sharply lower profits and revised its 3rd quarter outlook due to sluggish consumer demand.
Shares of Zions Bank (Nasdaq: ZION) fell after the regional bank reported a 2nd quarter loss due to loan losses. An analyst downgraded the stock.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 3 to 2 on the NYSE, but were edged out by a margin of 5 to 4 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks held steady at 526.
