Opening Bell: Stocks Rise; Time Warner Gets Downgraded

U.S. stocks gained steam on Monday, following declines of more than 1 percent last week. Halliburton's (HAL) - Get Report merger with Baker Hughes (BHI) is dead, both companies announced on Sunday. The deal, which was initially valued at $35 billion, was nixed following the Justice Department's move to block the deal last month. The failed merger shows the divide between big business and big government. 'Big government obviously has their sights on big business,' said David Nelson, chief strategist at Belpointe Asset Management. 'They don't like big mergers like this. Anything they view as even a little bit anticompetitive, they're going to go after hard.' Food distributor Sysco (SYY) - Get Report reported fiscal third-quarter adjusted net income of $0.46, beating estimates of $0.42, thanks in part from a drop in food costs. Sales of $12 billion eclipsed Wall Street's estimates of $11.9 billion. Shares of Time Warner (TWX) were downgraded by the analysts at Pacific Crest Securities to sector weight from overweight, saying the stock is expensive and that there aren't many catalyst for growth ahead. TheStreet's Scott Gamm reports from Wall Street.