On the upside
Shares of Hercules (NYSE: HPC) leaped after the specialty chemical company received a $2.6 billion cash and stock offer from Ashland (NYSE: ASH).
InBev NV reportedly raised its takeover offer Anheuser-Busch (NYSE: BUD) after the brewery rejected the original $65 a share offer.
The oil sector rebounded with shares of Chesapeake Energy (NYSE: CHK) rising.
On the downside
An erosion in investor confidence triggered a collapse in the shares of Fannie Mae (NYSE: FNM) and Freddie Mac (NYSE: FRE) making it nearly impossible to raise new capital.Shares of Lehman Brothers (NYSE: LEH) fell to an 8-year low on worries of its exposure to mortgage-related securities.
Microchip assembly and test company Amkor Technology (Nasdaq: AMKR) lowered its 2nd quarter guidance due to production problems.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin
of nearly 3 to 1 on the NYSE and by more than 2 to 1 on Nasdaq. The
Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks lost 3 points to 667.