Stocks end lower as earnings season, Brexit uncertainty continue The major averages ended the day lower, despite the Dow being helped by a bounce in shares of Boeing (BA) ahead of the company's earnings report tomorrow, while pullbacks in Facebook (FB) and Netflix (NFLX) were a drag on the Nasdaq. Meanwhile overseas, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson lost a vote to fast-track Brexit legislation, raising the spectre of a possible "no-deal" exit from the European Union. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., existing home sales dropped 2.2% to a 5.38M rate in September, which was worse than expected. The Richmond Fed manufacturing index bounced 17 points back to 8 in October after having fallen to a -9 reading in September. In the U.K., Parliament rejected a timetable bill for the U.K.'s exit from the European Union after having voted earlier this afternoon to accept the deal that Prime Minister Boris Johnson had reached with the leadership of the EU regarding Brexit. Bloomberg reported, citing a spokesman for Johnson, that the U.K. government is not ruling out seeking a short Brexit delay with an October 31 deadline approaching. TOP NEWS: Shares of Biogen (BIIB) jumped 26.1% after the drugmaker announced plans to pursue regulatory approval for aducanumab, an investigational treatment for early Alzheimer's disease. Phase 3 clinical studies for aducanumab previously had been discontinued in March 2019 following a futility analysis. However, a new analysis, conducted by Biogen in consultation with the FDA, of a larger dataset from the Phase 3 clinical studies that were discontinued shows that aducanumab is pharmacologically and clinically active in reducing brain amyloid and in reducing clinical decline, the company said. In earnings news, four members of the Dow issued quarterly updates this morning. Following the reports from the blue-chip quartet, Procter & Gamble (PG) rose 2.6% on the strength of its better than expected sales and profits and United Technologies (UTX) was 2.2% higher after raising its FY19 adjusted earnings outlook. On the other side, McDonald's (MCD) shares slid over 5% after the burger giant's earnings and U.S. same store sales growth disappointed and Travelers (TRV) is the leader on the downside with an 8.3% decline following the insurer's report. Facebook shares finished 3.9% lower after New York Attorney General Letitia James released an update on the status of the multistate antitrust investigation into the social media giant. The investigation now has the support of 47 attorneys general from around the nation, according to James. Also, Senators Mark Warner, Josh Hawley, and Richard Blumenthal announced that they will introduce the Augmenting Compatibility and Competition by Enabling Service Switching, or "ACCESS," Act, which they called bipartisan legislation that will encourage market-based competition to "dominant social media platforms." Meanwhile, Boeing (BA) shares were 1.8% higher after the company confirmed that Stan Deal has been named to succeed Kevin McAllister as president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Ted Colbert will succeed Deal as president and CEO of Boeing Global Services, effective immediately. Earlier this morning, Boeing announced that it has "made significant progress over the past several months in support of safely returning the 737 MAX to service as the company continues to work with the FAA and other global regulators on the process laid out for certifying the 737 MAX software and related training updates." As part of that update, Boeing said: "Some 445 participants from more than 140 customers and regulators around the globe, including the FAA, have participated in simulator sessions to experience the proposed MCAS software update. Just last week the company successfully conducted a dry-run of a certification flight test." MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Stamps.com (STMP), which rose 19.1% after entering a logistics services deal with UPS (UPS). Also higher was Lyft (LYFT), which gained 6.6% after co-founders Logan Green and John Zimmer said they expect being adjusted EBITDA profitable by Q4 of 2021, which is ahead of analysts' existing expectations. Among the notable losers was ServiceMaster (SERV), which dropped 20.4% after it announced preliminary third quarter results and guidance. Also lower was Hasbro (HAS), which fell 16.8% after reporting quarterly results. Additionally, Netflix (NFLX) shares were 4.1% lower after Verizon (VZ) announced that it will offer all its wireless unlimited customers, new Fios Home Internet and 5G Home Internet customers 12 months of Disney+, the streaming service that Walt Disney Company (DIS) plans to launch on November 12. INDEXES: The Dow fell 39.54, or 0.15%, to 26,788.10, the Nasdaq lost 58.69, or 0.72%, to 8,104.30, and the S&P 500 declined 10.73, or 0.36%, to 2,995.99. Symbols: $BIIB $PG $UTX $MCD $TRV $UPS $BA $STMP $LYFT $SERV $HAS $NFLX $VZ $DISSource: (thefly.com)Disclosure: I may trade in the ticker symbols mentioned, both long or short. My articles represent my personal opinion and analysis and should not be taken as investment advice. Readers should do their own research before making decisions to buy or sell securities. Trading and investing include risks, including loss of principal. If you liked this article, please click the LIKE (thumbs up) button. 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