Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Mostly Lower; PepsiCo Profit Tops Views

Following the market opening Wednesday, the Dow traded down 0.29 percent to 17,816.71 while the NASDAQ climbed 0.12 percent to 4,793.20. The S&P also fell, dropping 0.11 percent to 2,066.39.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

In trading on Wednesday, technology shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 0.25 percent. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Interxion Holding NV INXN, up 16.1 percent, and Multi-Fineline Electronix, Inc. MFLX, up 3.8 percent.

Energy shares fell by 1.21 percent on Wednesday. Top losers in the sector included EXCO Resources Inc. XCO, down 8.9 percent, Stone Energy Corp. SGY, off 8.5 percent.

Top Headline

PepsiCo Inc. PEP reported better-than-expected results for the fourth quarter and lifted its annual dividend by 7.3 percent.

The Purchase, New York-based company reported a quarterly profit of $1.31 billion, versus a year-ago profit of $1.74 billion. On a per-share basis, earnings shrank to $0.87 from $1.12. Excluding items, the company earned $1.12 per share.

Equities Trading UP

Ballard Power Systems Inc. BLDP shares shot up 61.54 percent to $2.73 on announcement of deal with Volkswagen and Audi.

Shares of Euronet Worldwide Inc. EEFT got a boost, shooting up 11.99 percent to $52.87 after the company reported better-than-expected Q4 results.

Interxion Holding NV INXN shares were also up, gaining 16.07 percent to $32.50 after the company reached a merger agreement with TelecityGroup.

Equities Trading DOWN

Pier 1 Imports, Inc. PIR shares tumbled 27.75 percent to $12.26 after the company lowered its outlook for the fiscal year. The company named Laura A. Coffey as Executive Vice President -- Interim Chief Financial Officer.

Shares of Marketo, Inc. MKTO were down 15.57 percent to $29.87 after the company reported an adjusted loss of $0.18 per share for the fourth quarter and issued a downbeat outlook. Wells Fargo downgraded Marketo from Outperform to Market Perform.

AOL Inc. AOL was down, falling 12.47 percent to $39.24 after the company reported stronger-than-expected earnings for the fourth quarter, but the company’s revenue missed analysts’ estimates.

Commodities

In commodity news, oil traded down 1.62 percent to $49.21, while gold traded up 0.20 percent to $1,234.70.

Silver traded up 0.37 percent Wednesday to $16.94, while copper rose 0.18 percent to $2.56.

Euro zone

European shares were lower today. The Eurozone’s STOXX 600 fell 0.35 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index slipped 0.95 percent, while Italy’s FTSE MIB Index declined 0.53 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX slipped 0.09 percent, and the French CAC 40 tumbled 0.49 percent while UK shares fell 0.53 percent.

Economics

The MBA reported that its index of mortgage application activity fell 9 percent in the week ended February 6, 2015.

The U.S. Treasury monthly budget report for January will be released at 2:00 p.m. ET.

The Treasury is set to auction 10-year notes.