The markets opened flat with the Dow edging up a fraction to 17,793 as crude oil prices eased. Nasdaq added a point to 4,916.
On the upside
Virgin America (Nasdaq: VA) will be acquired by Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK) for a premium of approximately $2.6 billion in cash.
Brocade Communications (Nasdaq: BRCD) will pay approximately $1.5 billion in cash and stock to acquire Ruckus Wireless (NYSE: RKUS).
Zafgen (Nasdaq: ZFGN) reported new upbeat data from a Phase 3 study of beloranib to treat Prader-Willi syndrome.
On the downside
BB&T downgraded Smith & Wesson (Nasdaq: SWHC) from a Buy rating to a Hold rating.
The Wall Street Journal reported that a shortage of parts will delay delivery of Facebookâs (Nasdaq: FB) Oculus Rift virtual reality headset.
RBC Capital Markets initiated coverage of BlackBerry (Nasdaq: BBRY) with a Sector Perform rating.
In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of nearly 5 to 3 on the NYSE and by 10 to 9 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 held steady at 2,072. Bitcoin eased a fraction to $416.
