A surge in homebuilder sentiment boosted the markets to a sharply higher open with the Dow soaring 117 points to 18,241. Nasdaq climbed 30 points to 5,275.
On the upside
Bargain hunters snapped up shares of Novavax (Nasdaq: NVAX).
Eldorado Resorts will acquire Isle of Capri (Nasdaq: ISLE) in a cash and stock deal valued at approximately $1.7 billion including the assumption of debt.
Infoblox (NYSE: BLOX) will be taken private by Vista Equity Partners in a deal valued at approximately $1.6 billion.
On the downside
WebMD (Nasdaq: WBMD) chief executive David Schlanger is leaving the company and will be replaced by Steven Zatz.
A shareholder sued Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) for misleading investors on its growth prospects.
Community Health Systems (NYSE: CYH) is exploring various options with financial sponsors.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 9 to 1 on the NYSE and by nearly 7 to 2 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 gained 13 points to 2,152. Bitcoin added $1 to $609.
