Stocks opened in negative territory on concerns surrounding the latest chapter in the trade war with China. The latest rounds of U.S. tariffs were implemented at midnight and while China responded with their own tariffs, they also said they would not get back to the negotiating table as long as tariffs were used as a threat. As the day progressed the Dow and S&P lost more ground, but the Nasdaq remained little changed. Oil prices jumped by more than 2% at one point in the session, but they closed off their best levels at just above $72 a barrel. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., the Dallas Fed manufacturing index dropped 2.8 points to 28.1 in September. COMPANY NEWS: Shares of Comcast (CMCSA) closed 6% lower following the announcement that the company outbid 21st Century Fox (FOXA) in the auction for Sky (SKYAY) held this weekend. Meanwhile, Disney's (DIS) shares rose 2% as Bernstein analyst Todd Juenger argued that this weekend's outcome was "the best possible result" for the company, which is in the process of buying most of Fox... In other M&A news, Sirius XM (SIRI) agreed to acquire Pandora Media (P) in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $3.5B, or an implied price of $10.14 per Pandora share. Sirius shares finished down 10% after the news... Additionally, Barrick Gold (ABX) announced that it has reached agreement on the terms of a recommended share-for-share merger of Barrick and Randgold Resources (GOLD). Following completion of the merger, Barrick shareholders will own approximately 66.6% and Randgold shareholders will own approximately 33.4% of the new Barrick Group on a fully-diluted basis... Meanwhile, Business Insider reported that Amazon (AMZN) applied for a patent on September 19 with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for "For Keeps by Amazon." The filing indicates that the patent would be used for both "precious metals and their alloys and goods in precious metals" and the "online retail sales of jewelry," according to the report. Shares of several companies in the jewelry space, including Tiffany (TIF), Signet (SIG), DGSE (DGSE) and Birks Group (BGI) dropped after the news. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Amarin (AMRN), which skyrocketed 315% after the REDUCE-IT outcomes trial of Vascepa succeeded in meeting its primary endpoint. Also higher was Intrexon (XON), which gained 32% after it announced advances in production of medical cannabis. Among the notable losers was Michael Kors (KORS), which slipped 8% after Bloomberg reported that the handbag maker is close to buying Versace in a deal valued at roughly $2B. Also lower was Nutanix (NTNX), which fell 9% after Susquehanna analyst Mehdi Mosseini downgraded the stock to Negative from Neutral and cut his price target on the shares to $33 from $55. INDEXES: The Dow fell 10.30, or 0.35%, to 2,919.37, the Nasdaq gained 6.29, or 0.08%, to 7,993.25, and the S&P 500 declined 181.45, or 0.68%, to 26,562.05.
