Wall St closed flat overnight. Weak bank stocks dragged on the market and disappointing sales from Johnson & Johnson caused concern for the strength of earnings.
The Dow Jones industrial average fell 15 points to 9,871. The S&P500 Index dropped 3 points to 1,073 and the NASDAQ finished almost a point higher at 2,140.
In company news: Shares in healthcare products manufacturer Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) declined 2.43 per cent to $61.01. The company posted earnings for the quarter that topped expectations, but revenue that missed estimates. Johnson & Johnson also raised its full year outlook for earnings of between $4.54 to $4.59 per share.
Shares in designer and manufacturer of internet protocol based networking and other products Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ:CSCO) rose 0.45 per cent to $23.89. The company says it is to acquire Starent Networks for $2.9 billion in cash. Starent is a maker of products that enable wireless carriers to connect their networks to the internet.
Shares in commercial financing company CIT Group Inc (NYSE:CIT) lost 11.54 per cent to $0.92. There are reports that the company’s proposed debt exchange offer is not garnering much interest from bondholders, increasing the likelihood of bankruptcy.
And shares in insurance company American International Group Inc (NYSE:AIG) added 0.29 per cent to $44.53. According to Reuters AIG has reached a deal to sell its life insurance business in Taiwan in a deal worth $2.15 billion.
Checking the NASDAQ Top 100: The best performer was Akamai Technologies adding 3.38% to $20.81. Symantec Corp and Intuit were the next best performers. First Solar lost the most ground, falling 3.55% to $154.32. Followed by Juniper Networks and Joy Global.
