On The Fly: Top stock stories for Friday

Stocks opened with modest gains and moved in a relatively narrow range throughout most of the session. The week's action was characterized by volatility, as several times the market opened higher in the morning and sold off in the afternoon, with the Dow moving several hundred points in the process. Today, the market moved from its highs, but the swing was not as dramatic and the Dow and S&P each finished higher while the Nasdaq eked out a barely noticeable gain. Investors are still trying to determine the impact of the steel and aluminum tariffs, and the potential trade actions involving China, and any potential reaction from the rest of the world. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., housing starts fell 7.0% to a 1.24M rate in February, while building permits dropped 5.7% to a 1.3M rate, both of which were worse than expected. Industrial production grew 1.1% month-over-month in February, topping the consensus call for a 0.4% increase. The University of Michigan consumer confidence index rose to 102.0 in the preliminary reading for March. In had been forecast to dip slightly from February's reading of 99.7. In energy news, Baker Hughes reported that the U.S. rig count is up 6 from last week to 990 rigs. COMPANY NEWS: Qualcomm (QCOM) shares were in focus after the Financial Times reported that former chairman Paul Jacobs has approached a number of global investors in an attempt to acquire the chipmaker. However, a leveraged buyout of Qualcomm seems highly improbable, CNBC's David Faber subsequently reported, and a Wall Street Journal report echoed that sentiment. The Journal added that Qualcomm's board is meeting to discuss the fate of its former CEO and that Jacobs may step down from the board after being stripped of his executive chairman title last week. Qualcomm shares closed 1.2% higher, while Broadcom (AVGO), which was just blocked from buying Qualcomm, slipped 4.8% after reporting earnings last night... Rising after its own stronger than expected results was creative software company Adobe (ADBE), whose shares rose just over 3%. Seeing a less favorable reaction to its quarterly report is luxury jeweler Tiffany (TIF), which slipped more than 5%... Meanwhile, Nike (NKE) shares were in focus after the Wall Street Journal said in two separate reports that two executives at the sneaker giant are no longer with the company in the wake of the company having received numerous reports of inappropriate workplace behavior. The Journal reported first that Nike brand president Trevor Edwards is stepping down immediately and later that Jayme Martin, vice president and general manager of global categories for Nike, was forced out of his position. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Opko Health (OPK), which surged 10.1% after it said that data from a study shows that a 4Kscore test is a "strong predictor" of prostate cancer. Also higher after reporting quarterly results were Zumiez (ZUMZ) and Jabil (JBL), which gained a respective 10.5% and 10.1%. Among the notable losers was Overstock.com (OSTK), which fell 5.2% after it reported downbeat quarterly results and provided an update on the SEC's investigation into subsidiary tZero. Also lower after reporting quarterly results was Cara Therapeutics (CARA), which fell 5.6%. INDEXES: The Dow rose 72.85, or 0.29%, to 24,946.51, the Nasdaq gained 0.25, or 0.003%, to 7,481.99, and the S&P 500 added 4.68, or 0.17%, to 2,752.01.