A drop in the 30-year mortgage rate lifted the markets to a higher open with the Dow gaining 82 points to 11,918. Nasdaq rose 7 points to 2647.
On the upside
Medivation (Nasdaq: MDVN) reported positive interim results from a Phase 3 AFFIRM trial of its prostate cancer treatment MDV3100.
Fourth quarter earnings climbed for Qualcomm (Nasdaq: QCOM) to top analyst estimates and the chipmaker forecast 2012 results ahead of expectations.
Aeropostale (NYSE: ARO) boosted its third quarter earnings guidance as gross margins improved.
On the downside
Dendreon (Nasdaq: DNDN) widened third quarter losses even as revenue more than tripled and warned of slower than expected sales growth for its prostate cancer treatment Provenge.
MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) narrowed third quarter losses but revenue fell short of expectations.
Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE: ANF) reported higher third quarter revenue but warned of slowing international sales .
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 10 to 9 on the NYSE while decliners edged out advancers by nearly 9 to 7 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks lost 2 points to 730.
