The markets started the week with a small down day and very little trading news on the day. The Dow 30 closed down 15 (-0.09%), the S&P 500 closed down 4 (-0.20%) and the Nasdaq 100 finished down 3 (-0.08%) on the day. News is light this week, but tomorrow investors will be looking at the new home sales numbers which are expected to show an uptick in volume.
Lending Club (LC ) continues to make headlines as Affiliates of investment firm Shanda Group reported an 11.7% stake in Lending Club. Investors cheered the confidence from Shanda by sending the stock up 8.02% today. The company's shares have fallen more than 40% since its CEO Renaud Laplanche resigned earlier this month following an internal probe.
Shares of Boeing (BA ) saw a surge of buying pressure today causing shares to close well off their lows (0.15%) as Vietnam's VietJet has agreed to buy 100 Boeing 737 MAX 200 jets. The deal, signed during President Obama's visit to Vietnam, is worth $11.3 billion at list prices. This news halts a 5 day slide for BA.
Monsanto (MON ) popped 4.40% today as rival Bayer (BAYRY ) announced that they have made an all-cash offer to acquire Monsanto for $62 billion. The deal, if successful, would create the world's largest agrochemical company. This news today sends Monsanto up to new 2016 highs.
Lastly, Tribune Publishing (TPUB ) fell 15.04% today as the company rejected the latest buyout bid from Gannett (GCI ). Gannet had recently raised its per-share offer to $15 from $12.25. Tribune also revealed a $70.5 million investment from Nant Capital to try and stave off the need for an acquisition.
