Markets Extend Losses As Jobless Claims Rise
August 23, 2012 at 05:03 AM EDT
The markets extended its losses during the midday with the Dow dropping 79 points to 13,093 as first time applications for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose. Nasdaq fell 10 points to 3062.On the upsideMaxim Group initiated coverage of StemCells (Nasdaq: STEM) with a Buy rating. The Verge reported that Nokia (NYSE: NOK) and Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) will introduce two Windows 8 phones at a September 5 event.Hertz Global (NYSE: HTZ) contacted Dollar Thrifty (NYSE: DTG) shareholders to determine a fair price to acquire the rental car company.On the downsideCredit Suisse downgraded Adtran (Nasdaq: ADTN) to an Underperform rating. Jefferies & Co. analyst Scott A. Mushkin downgraded Safeway (NYSE: SWY) to a Hold rating.TechInAsia.com reported that Baidu (Nasdaq: BIDU) may sue Qihoo 360 (NYSE: QIHU) over its search engine.In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of nearly 5 to 3 on the NYSE and by more than 5 to 3 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks slipped 3 points to 809.
