Market Wrap-Up for Nov.4 (MRK, HIG, MA, PFE, PNC, more)

Created by Dividend.com

There was no surprise from the Federal Reserve this afternoon as they left interest rates unchanged. Some initial comments had the markets moving off the earlier highs, but the markets soon recovered to jump back up. But by the close, sellers did come back in and pushed the markets to close mixed.

Volume finished at 5.63 Billion shares traded on the NYSE and over 2.17 Billion shares traded on the NASDAQ. As for today’s action, there were several dividend plays that moved higher on the back of positive earnings news. They included Tyco Electronics (TEL) and Solera Holdings (SLH). Dividend plays that did not do well on the back of their earnings results included Baker Hughes (BHI), Garmin (GRMN), Pegasystems (PEGA), Hartford Financial (HIG), Con-Way Inc. (CNW), and Molson Coors (TAP).

Bullish analyst calls helped move shares of Mastercard (MA), Anadarko Petroleum (APC) and General Dynamics (GD) higher. Other names doing well today, include an assortment of healthcare-related plays like Pfizer (PFE), Walgreen (WAG) and Merck (MRK). Part of this move may be related to last night’s election results which some market watchers believe will help these companies. Financials were mixed, with weakness in shares like State Street (STT) and PNC Financial (PNC).

Be sure to visit our complete recommended list of the Best Dividend Stocks, as well as a detailed explanation of our ratings system here.