Plans by the Federal Reserve to begin tapering its bond buying program as early as next month weighed the markets down during the midday with the Dow falling 56 points to 15,462. Nasdaq lost 17 points to 3647.
On the upside
Second quarter earnings surged for Santarus (Nasdaq: SNTS) to surpass analyst expectations by a wide margin as revenue jumped prompting the biopharmaceutical to lift its full year forecast.
Live Nation (NYSE: LYV) reported sharply higher second quarter earnings and revenue that beat analyst expectations.
Oxygen Biotherapeutics (Nasdaq: OXBT) updated shareholders on its clinical trials and business partnerships.
On the downside
Nanosphere (Nasdaq: NSPH) narrowed second quarter losses as revenue rose but the company lowered its 2013 revenue outlook prompting a downgrade.
Sandridge Energy (NYSE: SD) fell to a loss for the second quarter.
YRC Worldwide (Nasdaq: YRCW) narrowed losses for the second quarter but the results fell far short of analyst expectations.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of 5 to 2 on the NYSE and by nearly 7 to 3 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 lost 6 points to 1690.
