Factory orders climbed 1.6% in January but the markets traded lower during the midday with the Dow losing 32 points to 16,866. Nasdaq fell 17 points to 4,686.
On the upside
Shares of Aeterna Zentaris (Nasdaq: AEZS) continued to soar.
Rising crude oil prices lifted shares of Denbury Resources (NYSE: DNR).
Canaccord Genuity trimmed its price target on Bill Barrett (NYSE: BBG) from $7 to $6 but the stock price rose.
On the downside
Stage Stores (NYSE: SSI) disappointed with sharply lower fourth quarter earnings that fell short of expectations and forecast full year results below estimates.
Herbalife (NYSE: HLF) overstated its new active members numbers.
Embraer (NYSE: ERJ) reported a loss for the fourth quarter as revenue tumbled.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of more than 5 to 3 on the NYSE and by more than 9 to 7 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 slipped 3 points to 1,983. Bitcoin lost $5 to $421.
