The markets opened higher with the Dow gaining 43 points to 21,453 as crude oil prices edged up. Nasdaq rose 8 points to 6,242.
On the upside
Oracle (NYSE: ORCL) reported higher fourth quarter earnings and revenue that beat analyst expectations.
Enel Group will pay a premium of approximately $300 million in cash to acquire EnerNOC (Nasdaq: ENOC).
Reuters reported that Sycamore Partners was engaged in advanced discussions to acquire Staples (Nasdaq: SPLS).
On the downside
Steelcase (NYSE: SCS) reported lower first quarter earnings that fell short of expectations and forecast current quarter results below estimates.
Third quarter earnings fell for Accenture (NYSE: ACN) prompting the consulting firm to lower its margin outlook.
Jernigan Capital (NYSE: JCAP) priced its upsized public offering of 3.5 million common shares at the discounted price of $22.00 per share.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of more than 5 to 3 on the NYSE and by nearly 3 to 2 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 rose 5 points to 2,440. Bitcoin soared $49 to $2685.