Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Mixed; Vera Bradley Tops Q3 Views

Following the market opening Wednesday, the Dow traded up 0.28 percent to 17,617.94 while the NASDAQ declined 0.35 percent to 5,080.55. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.11 percent to 2,065.88. Leading and Lagging Sectors In trading on Wednesday, basic materials shares rose by 1.46 percent. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Dow Chemical Co DOW, up 11 percent, and Rio Tinto plc (ADR) RIO, up 5 percent. Technology shares tumbled by 0.26 percent in the US market on Wednesday. Top losers in the sector included Gilat Satellite Networks Ltd. GILT, Jabil Circuit, Inc. JBL, and The9 Limited (ADR) NCTY. Top Headline Vera Bradley Inc. VRA reported upbeat results for the third quarter and issued a strong forecast for the current quarter. The company posted quarterly income from continuing operations of $10.3 million, or $0.27 per share, compared to $8.7 million, or $0.21 per share, in the year-ago period. Its adjusted earnings came in at $0.27 per share. Its sales climbed to $126.7 millon from $125.2 million. Analysts were expecting earnings of $0.20 per share on revenue of $121.14 million. Equities Trading UP Vera Bradley, Inc. VRA shares shot up 28 percent to $15.00 after the company reported upbeat results for the third quarter and issued a strong forecast for the current quarter. Shares of Sunedison Inc SUNE got a boost, shooting up 23 percent to $4.24 on Vivint Solar agreement. SunEdison and Vivint Solar Inc VSLR reached an agreement to amend the terms of the merger agreement. AeroVironment, Inc. AVAV shares were also up, gaining 20 percent to $29.48 after the company reported stronger-than-expected results for its fiscal second quarter. Equities Trading DOWN Oxford Industries Inc OXM shares tumbled 8 percent to $63.19. Oxford Industries reported downbeat Q3 revenue and lowered its FY16 forecast. Shares of Lululemon Athletica inc. LULU were down 5 percent to $49.40 following quarterly results. Lululemon reported Q3 earnings of $0.35 per share on revenue of $479.7 million. Costco Wholesale Corporation COST was down, falling 6 percent to $158.75 after the company reported downbeat quarterly earnings. Commodities In commodity news, oil traded up 0.91 percent to $37.85, while gold traded up 0.73 percent to $1,083.10. Silver traded up 1.34 percent Wednesday to $14.31, while copper rose 1.78 percent to $2.09. Eurozone European shares were lower today. The eurozone's STOXX 600 declined 0.84 percent, the Spanish Ibex Index fell 0.88 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index dropped 0.55 percent. Meanwhile, the German DAX dipped 1.04 percent, and the French CAC 40 slipped 1.07 percent, while U.K. shares fell 0.22 percent. Economics US wholesale inventories declined 0.10 percent in October, versus economists' expectations for a 0.10 percent growth.