YAHOO [BRIEFING.COM]: Stocks got off to a quiet start as mixed quarterly reports continued to pour in. Indecision was apparent in the early going as the major averages traded near their respective unchanged levels. As the day progressed, the S&P 500 and Dow headed lower. However, the final hour brought out bargain-hunters who lifted the major averages near their respective session highs. As a result, the S&P 500 ended unchanged. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq outperformed and settled higher by 0.4%.

Caterpillar (CAT 85.08, +1.22) advanced 1.5% after reporting mixed earnings. The industrial bellwether announced earnings of $2.54 against the Capital IQ consensus estimate of $2.24. However, the company's revenue of $16.45 billion missed the Capital IQ consensus by $470 million. In addition, the company lowered its full-year 2012 earnings and revenue guidance below consensus. Management commented on its cautious outlook by saying "CAT dealers have lowered order rates well below end-user demand to reduce their inventories."

The technology sector was the top performer after posting the largest loss during Friday's sell-off. Apple (AAPL 634.03, +24.19) gained 4.0% ahead of an event scheduled for 13:00 ET tomorrow. At the event, the company is expected to unveil a smaller version of the iPad tablet. The strong gains in Apple supported the Nasdaq throughout the day.

Cirrus Logic (CRUS 39.66, +1.44) rose by 3.8% after Feltl & Co. upgraded the stock to ‘strong buy' on an expectation of an earnings beat.

Elsewhere in tech, Netflix (NFLX 67.88, +2.90) advanced 4.5% after reports indicated the company is considering moving into seven new markets, including Asia.

Also of note, OpenTable (OPEN 46.36, +2.77) gained 6.4% after reports indicated Yahoo! (YHOO 15.77, -0.07) may be interested in purchasing the restaurant reservation service. Note that Yahoo! is scheduled to report its third quarter earnings after today's close.

Philips Electronics (PHG 26.23, +1.63) surged 6.6% after the electronics manufacturer reported a 13.6% year-to-year rise in revenues. The revenue of EUR6.13 billion was ahead of the Capital IQ consensus estimate of EUR5.96. Today's buying has lifted the stock to levels not seen since June of last year.

Utility stocks underperformed the broader market. Avista (AVA 25.54, -0.92), which specializes in generating and delivering electricity, lost 3.5% after the company lowered its third quarter and full-year 2012 earnings guidance below consensus. In addition, the company issued in-line guidance for full-year 2013 as it sees earnings between $1.62 and $1.76. Peer Public Service Enterprise (PEG 32.43, -0.28) slipped 0.9% after Credit Suisse downgraded the stock to ‘underperform' from ‘neutral.'

Elsewhere in utilities, electricity provider The AES Corporation (AES 10.81, -0.23) slid 2.1%.

The Dow Jones Transportation Average trailed the remaining industrials, and closed lower by 0.4%. Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG 1.23, -2.02) sank 62.2% after announcing it is evaluating its strategic options, including a potential filing of Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The company also said that its past financial statements are not to be relied upon, and restatements may be needed. The uncertainty regarding the company's future prompted Dahlman Rose to downgrade the stock to ‘sell' from ‘hold' with a $0.50 price target.

Railroad stocks within the transportation average were mixed. Norfolk Southern (NSC 66.83, +1.19) advanced 1.8%, while CSX (CSX 21.29, +0.19) added 0.9%. Meanwhile, Kansas City Southern (KSU 78.36, -0.07) shed 0.1% after reporting mixed quarterly results. The company's earnings of $0.82 fell $0.03 short of the Capital IQ consensus estimates, while the revenue was reported in-line with Capital IQ analyst expectations. Following the earnings release, the stock received a pair of downgrades. BB&T downgraded the stock to ‘hold' from ‘buy' while BMO Capital lowered the rating on KSU to ‘underperform' from ‘market perform.'

Also of note, FedEx (FDX 91.48, -0.63) and United Parcel Service (UPS 71.56, -0.74) lost 0.7% and 1.2%, respectively. Note that United Parcel Service will report third quarter earnings before tomorrow's open.

Peabody Energy (BTU 28.95, +3.06) reported third quarter earnings of $0.51. This exceeded the Capital IQ consensus estimates by $0.17. In addition, the company's revenues of $2.06 billion also beat the Capital IQ analyst expectations. The company's management issued in-line full-year 2012 guidance and said that "global macroeconomic conditions continue to be constrained due to the sluggish U.S. economy, European recession, and decelerating China growth." Peabody Energy settled higher by 11.8% following the earnings release. Meanwhile, peers Alpha Natural Resources (ANR 9.48, +0.51), Arch Coal (ACI 8.41, +0.50), and James River Coal (JRCC 5.31, +0.31) registered gains between 5.7% and 6.3%.

Monster Beverage (MNST 45.73, -7.58) fell 14.2% after the Food and Drug Administration received death reports citing the popular Monster energy drink. The company has since denied any wrongdoings. Today's selling has dropped the stock to levels not seen since January of this year.

Over the weekend, AMC Networks (AMCX 47.30, +1.77), Cablevision Systems (CVC 18.45, +0.06), and DISH Network (DISH 36.63, +1.16) announced a settlement in the VOOM HD litigation. Per the settlement, DISH Network paid a cash settlement of $700 million to Cablevision and AMC Networks. In addition, DISH has entered into a long-term distribution agreement with AMC to carry AMC, IFC, Sundance Channel, and WE tv. Following the settlement, DISH added 3.3%, AMC Networks gained 3.9%, and Cablevision tacked on 0.3%.

Crude oil slid deeper into negative territory as the dollar regained momentum. Also adding to the pressure were reports that TransCanada (TRP) was to restart its Keystone pipeline today. Crude fell off its pit session high of $90.59 per barrel and settled 1.9% lower at $88.70 per barrel, or just above its session low of $88.58 per barrel.

Natural gas tumbled off its session high of $3.64 per MMBtu and after steadily trending lower, it settled at its session low of $3.45 per MMBtu for a 4.7% loss. Precious metals chopped around in positive territory during today's pit trade despite the lack of any U.S. economic data.

Gold brushed a session high of $1730.30 per ounce and settled with a 0.1% gain at $1726.10 per ounce. Silver touched a session high of $32.47 per ounce in morning action but pulled-back slightly in afternoon floor trade. It still managed to book a 0.5% gain as it closed at $32.27 per ounce

There is no economic data scheduled for tomorrow's release.DJ30 +2.38 NASDAQ +11.34 SP500 +0.62 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 1221/1.61 bln/1234 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 1442/634.5 mln/1535