Midday Report: Walmart, Macy's Beat Earnings; Dow Climbs Day 8

Stocks post solid gains with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up for its eighth straight session on the back of positive retail earnings.

Author:: Keris Alison Lahiff
Publish date:: Feb 21, 2017 12:02 PM EST

Stocks posted solid gains with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up for its eighth straight session on the back of positive retail earnings. Retailers Walmart (WMT) - Get Report , Home Depot (HD) - Get Report and Macy's (M) - Get Report each topped quarterly profit estimates.

Yahoo! (YHOO) was on watch following reports that Verizon (VZ) - Get Report had agreed to go forward with its acquisition. The telecom will reportedly shave off as much as $350 million from its original offer.

Popeyes (PLKI) surged after agreeing to be acquired by Restaurant Brands (QSR) - Get Report in a deal worth nearly $2 billion. Restaurant Brands, which owns Burger King, said Popeyes will be managed independently in the U.S.

Kraft Heinz (KHC) - Get Report slumped after scrapping its pursuit of Unilever (UL) - Get Report . The latter had expressed little interest in negotiating and said Kraft's offer undervalued the company.