The major averages are drifting near record levels as investors digest another heavy dose of earnings reports as well as a rare bidding war in the energy sector.
ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., the MBA mortgage market index dropped 7.3% in the week ended April 19.
TOP NEWS: In M&A news, Occidental Petroleum (OXY) revealed that it has sent a letter to the Anadarko (APC) board offering to outbid Chevron (CVX) with a proposed buyout of $76 per share, which is 20% higher than Chevron previously accepted offer and has greater proportion of cash. Following the announcement, Occidental shares are down 2.2% just after noon, while Anadarko is up 12.1% and Chevron is down 2.4%.
Boeing (BA) reported worse than expected first quarter core EPS and revenue and also withdrew its previously issued 2019 guidance "due to the uncertainty of the timing and conditions surrounding return to service of the 737 MAX fleet." The planemaker, whose shares rose about 1% following the report, said it is "making steady progress on the path to final certification for a software update for the 737 MAX" and continues to work closely with global regulators and its airline partners.
Among other notable mega-cap companies reporting earnings this morning, AT&T (T) shares have slipped 4.1% after the communications services and media giant posted in-line earnings and lower than expected revenue, while Caterpillar (CAT) is down 2.6% after the heavy machinery maker raised its fiscal year outlook but attributed the better view to a discrete tax benefit related to U.S. tax reform.
Shares of CBS (CBS) are fractionally higher and shares of Viacom (VIAB) are up about 2% after Joseph Ianniello agreed to extend his role as President and Acting CEO of the former, fueling additional merger speculation.
MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was SAP (SAP), which rose 11.6% in New York after Reuters reported that Elliott Management disclosed a roughly $1.35B stake in the company and said it supports a management strategy review. Also higher were Silicon Labs (SLAB) and eBay (EBAY), which gained a respective 12.5% and 4.5% after reporting quarterly results.
Among the notable losers was RPC (RES), which slid 14% after it reported lower than expected quarterly results and cut its quarterly dividend. Also lower after reporting quarterly results were iRobot (IRBT) and Snap (SNAP), which fell 20.9% and 4.3%, respectively.
INDEXES: At midday, the Dow was down 25.92, or 0.09%, to 26,630.47, the Nasdaq was down 3.56, or 0.04%, to 8,117.52, and the S&P 500 was down 1.11, or 0.04%, to 2,932.57.
Occidental Petroleum
-1.44 (-2.31%)
Bought by OXY
+7.77 (+12.12%)
Chevron
-3.2 (-2.62%)
Boeing
+4.67 (+1.25%)
AT&T
-1.36 (-4.24%)
Caterpillar
-3.9 (-2.74%)
Use VIAC, VIACA
+0.09 (+0.18%)
Via Renewables
+0.53 (+1.46%)
VIAB
+
SAP
+13.12 (+11.42%)
Silicon Labs
+12.195 (+13.02%)
eBay
+1.59 (+4.34%)
RPC, Inc.
-1.8 (-13.95%)
iRobot
-27.22 (-20.87%)
Snap
-0.63 (-5.25%)