Upbeat homebuilder sentiment boosted the markets to a higher close with the Dow climbing 92 points to 17,733. Nasdaq gained 9 points to 4,844.
On the upside
Vascular Biogenics (Nasdaq: VBLT) closed its $24 million registered direct offering.
Shares of Biostar Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: BSPM) climbed for the third day in a row.
Bridgeline Digital (Nasdaq: PULM) entered a loan agreement with Heritage Bank of Commerce.
On the downside
Hynes Keller & Hernandez initiated an investigation into possible breaches of fiduciary duty by certain directors of Cobalt International Energy (NYSE: CIE).
Falling crude oil prices weighed down shares of SM Energy (NYSE: SM) and Whiting Petroleum (NYSE: WLL).
Investors locked in profits on Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE: FCX).
In the broad market, declining issues barely edged out advancers by a slim margin on the NYSE while delivers outpaced advancers by more than 10 to 9 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 rose 6 points to 2,077. Bitcoin surged $66 to $747.
