Markets Up As Russia Seeks To End Military Activity Near Ukraine

Related BZSUM Sotheby's Slips On Downbeat Earnings; NVIDIA Shares Surge Markets Rise; Zynga Lowers 2014 Forecast

Markets exploded higher Friday on reports that Russia is ending military activity near the Ukrainian border.

The United States attacked ISIS fighters in Iraq on two separate occasions, prompting little market response. This suggests investors are much more interested in the Russian conflict than the one in Iraq.

Major Indexes

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 185.7 points, or 1.13 percent, to close at 16,554.

The S&P 500 added 22 points, or 1.15 percent, to finish at 1,932.

The NASDAQ rose 36 points, or 0.8 percent, to 4,371.

Related Link: 3 Analyst Outlooks On Market Response To U.S. Actions With Iraq

Other Stories

General Motors (NYSE: GM) announced five more recalls Friday, affecting 269,001 vehicles. Across all issues, GM said it is aware of two crashes and one injury that may involve the issues recalled.

Stock Movers

Mercadolibre (NASDAQ: MELI) shares shot up 14.5 percent to $105.85 after the company reported stronger than expected quarterly results.

Shares of Air Methods (NASDAQ: AIRM) saw a boost, shooting up 12.5 percent to $59.81 on upbeat quarterly results.

NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) shares were also up, gaining 8.8 percent to $19 after the company posted higher Q2 earnings and issued a strong revenue forecast for the current quarter.

Shares of Post Holdings (NYSE: POST) were down 15.9 percent to $37.43 after the company reported a Q3 loss of $0.30 per share on revenue of $633.0 million. The company also announced its plans to acquire American Blanching Company. SunTrust Robinson Humphrey downgraded Post from Buy to Hold and lowered the price target from $70.00 to $45.00.

Volcano (NASDAQ: VOLC) shares tumbled 20.4 percent to $12.56 on Q2 results. The company reported Q2 earnings of $0.01 per share on revenue of $102.60 million. Volcano announced its plans to divest its Axsun Technologies subsidiary and also announced the litigation settlement agreement with St. Jude Medical (NYSE: STJ).

Sotheby's (NYSE: BID) was down, falling 7.9 percent to $37.50 after the company reported weaker than expected second quarter earnings.

Volume and Volatility

Volume was a bit light on the day, with 114 million shares of the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (NYSE: SPY) exchanging hands. This compares to the 10-day and three-month averages of 125 million.

Volatility trickled lower after a run up. The CBOE measure (VIX), was down 5.3 percent to 15.8.

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