Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Crude Oil Up Over 1%; Vuzix Shares Plummet

Toward the end of trading Monday, the Dow traded up 0.16% to 26,642.04 while the NASDAQ rose 0.69% to 8,061.43. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.38% to 2,952.87.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

Information technology shares rose 1.1% on Monday. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included CyberOptics Corporation CYBE, up 14%, and ACM Research, Inc. ACMR, up 12%.

In trading on Monday, utilities shares fell 0.7%.

Top Headline

Brookfield Infrastructure BIP and GIC, along with Brookfield Infrastructure’s institutional partners, will acquire U.S. freight railroad owner and operator Genesee & Wyoming Inc. GWR in a transaction valued at approximately $8.4 billion including debt.

Genesee & Wyoming stockholders will receive $112 in cash per share of common stock.

Equities Trading UP

Pioneer Power Solutions, Inc. PPSI shares shot up 23% to $5.85 after the company announced it plans to sell its transformer business to Mill Point Capital for $65.5 million.

Shares of Infrastructure and Energy Alternatives, Inc. IEA got a boost, shooting up 30% to $2.66 after the company announced it has won two wind contract awards in Texas valued at $150 million.

Emmis Communications Corporation EMMS shares were also up, gaining 24% to $5.89 after the company reported a deal to form new public co., Mediaco Holding, with Standard General.

Equities Trading DOWN

Cemtrex, Inc. CETX shares tumbled 25% to $2.40 after the company priced its registered offering of 224,215 shares at $2.23 per share.

Shares of Vuzix Corporation VUZI were down 15% to $3.4946 after the company announced a $20 million registered direct offering.

Coty Inc. COTY was down, falling 16% to $ 11.27 after reporting a $600 million restructuring plan.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded up 1.1% to $59.09, while gold traded down 1.9% to $1,387.40.

Silver traded down 1.1% Monday to $ 15.17, while copper fell 1.2% to $2.681.

Euro zone

European shares closed higher today. The eurozone’s STOXX 600 rose 0.78%, the Spanish Ibex Index rose 0.72%, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index gained 0.09%. Meanwhile, the German DAX gained 0.99%, and the French CAC 40 rose 0.52% while UK shares rose 0.97%.

Economics

The manufacturing PMI rose to 50.6 in June, versus initial reading of 50.1.

The ISM manufacturing index fell to a reading of 51.7 in June, compared to 52.1 in the previous month.

U.S. construction spending dropped 0.8% for May, versus economists’ expectations for a 0.3% rise.