The markets closed flat with the Dow rising 11 points to 13,564 despite retreating crude oil prices as corporations warned of economic weakness. Nasdaq eased a fraction to 3177. On the upside
Stockpickr listed Catalyst Pharmaceutical Partners (Nasdaq: CPRX) as one of five stocks under $5 with much upward momentum. TheStreet said that Nanosphere (Nasdaq: NSPH) was a biotechnology stock with low risk but high growth potential. BWS Financial upgraded SciClone Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: SCLN) to a Buy rating. On the downside Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC) plans to sell its entire 7.8% stake in Clearwire (Nasdaq: CLWR). Louisiana-Pacific (NYSE: LPX) rival Georgia-Pacific will begin production at a new Clarendon County, South Carolina facility in the first quarter of 2013. Deutsche Bank downgraded WMS Industries (NYSE: WMS) to a Sell rating and cut its price target from $15 to $13. In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of more than 9 to 7 on the NYSE and by more than 10 to 9 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks eased a point to 856.