Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Markets Sell off on Syrian Conflict Fears; 3D Systems Rises on Citi Report

Toward the end of trading Monday, the Dow traded down 0.25 percent to 14,970.92 while the NASDAQ rose 0.09 percent to 3,661.49. The S&P also fell, declining 0.24 percent to 1,659.80. Top Headline
Amgen AMGN announced its plans to buy Onyx Pharmaceuticals ONXX for $10.4 billion. Under terms of the deal, Amgen will buy Onyx for $125 per share in cash. Amgen projects the deal to complete at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Equities Trading UP
Qihoo 360 Technology Co QIHU shot up 7.90 percent to $78.86 after the company reported upbeat Q2 results. Shares of Magnum Hunter Resources MHR were up as well, gaining 7.35 percent to $4.7235 after the company announced a dividend in the form of warrants this morning that would entitle holders to purchase shares at $8.50 per share. 3D Systems DDD was also up, gaining 7.54 percent to $52.12 following a bullish report from Citigroup this morning that they expect 3D printing stocks to rally, and as such, rated 3D Systems with a Buy. Equities Trading DOWN
Shares of Tyson Foods TSN were down 7.08 percent to $29.25 after analysts at Bank of America downgraded the stock from Buy to Neutral. CNH Global NV CNH shares tumbled 4.12 percent to $47.74 after the company announced the resignation of its Chief Financial Officer Pablo Di Si. Microsoft MSFT was down, falling 1.44 percent to $34.24. On Friday, the company reported that its CEO Ballmer will step down within the next 12 months. Nomura reiterated its Buy rating on the stock. Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded up 0.04 percent to $105.00, while gold traded up 0.04 percent to $1,397.00. Silver traded down 0.09 percent Monday to $24.05, while copper fell 0.83 percent to $3.33. Euro zone
European shares were mostly lower today. The Spanish Ibex Index dropped 0.42 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index tumbled 2.10%. Meanwhile, the German DAX gained 0.22 percent and the French CAC 40 dropped 0.06 percent. Economics
US durable-goods orders declined 7.3% in July, versus economists' expectations for a 4.9% fall. However, core durable-goods orders dropped 0.60% in the month. The Dallas Fed general business activity index rose to 5.00 in August, versus a prior reading of 4.40. However, economists were expecting a reading of 4.00.