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From Briefing.com: 6:10 pm SolarCity closes second financing within its renewable energy tax equity program (SCTY) : SCTY has closed the second financing within its renewable energy tax equity investment program with Bank of America Merrill Lynch and another investor. The program will finance approximately $188 million in solar projects, covering the capital cost of the solar equipment and installation, enabling thousands of homeowners to pay for the power the system produces, typically at a lower rate than their local utility charges.

4:09 pm Pixelworks implements restructuring plan; Sees Q1 revenues of approx $11.1 mln, Capital IQ consensus $10.5 mln; sees a GAAP loss of approx ($0.15) (PXLW) :

Co announced a restructuring to streamline its product offerings and organization, including an approximately 24% reduction in workforce, in the areas of development, operations, sales and marketing. Pixelworks expects the restructuring to result in annualized savings of at least $5.0 million. The Company expects to incur total charges of approximately $4.4 million related to asset disposal costs and employee severance and benefits, which will largely be recorded in the first quarter of 2016. Pixelworks expects the restructuring to be substantially completed by the end of its third quarter.Co reported preliminary Q1 results with revenue of approximately $11.1 million. Q1 GAAP net loss per share excluding anticipated charges of $4.2 million, or $0.15 per share, is expected to be within the Company's original quarterly guidance range of a net loss between $0.16 and $0.23 per share. Reports Thursday, April 28th at 2:00 p.m. Pacific Time. 4:10 pm : The stock market ended the day on a broadly lower note as uncertainty over the global economy led investors towards safe havens. Today's loss dragged the S&P 500 (-1.2%) back into negative territory for the year (year-to-date -0.1%) as relative weakness from the heavily-weighted financial (-1.9%) and technology (-1.4%) pressured the broader market. The Nasdaq Composite (-1.5%) ended its day behind the benchmark index (-1.2%) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (-1.1%).

Today's session started on a lower note as weakness in overseas trade undercut yesterday's post-Fed minutes rally. The major headlines overnight included an extended gain in the yen, a downturn in oil, and a bid in safe havens. The defensive posture continued throughout today's session as investors shifted their attention to growth concerns here at home. On that note, first quarter earnings are scheduled to pick-up next week as investors continue to lower their expectations for the quarter. Additionally, if earnings fall, this would mark the fourth consecutive quarterly decline in corporate earnings.

All ten sectors ended their day beneath their flat lines with financials (-1.9%), telecom services (-1.4%). technology (-1.4%), and materials (-1.3%) leading the downside. Conversely, utilities (UNCH), energy (-0.6%), and industrials (-0.7%) ended with the slimmest losses.

A downturn in European banks led to a tumble in the heavyweight financial sector (-1.9%) as money center banks, investment brokerages, asset management companies, and life insurance names all traded lower in sympathy. The broader financial sector extended its week to date decline to 3.4% and its year to date loss to 8.1%. Separately, Dow component Goldman Sachs (GS 150.41, -4.78) ended its day as the worst performer in the price-weighted index.

In the technology space (-1.6%), heavily-weighted Apple (AAPL 108.54, -2.42) moved into negative territory for the month (month-to-date 0.4%) after having its price target lowered to $130 from $140 at BTIG Research. Elsewhere, Yahoo! (YHOO 36.17, -0.49) briefly moved into the green after reports indicated that both Verizon (VZ 52.00, -1.52) and Alphabet's (GOOGL 760.12, -7.95) Google were considering bids for the web portal.

Biotechnology underperformed in the health care (-1.1%) group after yesterday's 6.0% gain in the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB 280.69, -5.11). The ETF lost 1.8% today, but remains higher by 4.5% for the week.

The commodity-sensitive energy (-0.8%) sector was able to finish near the top of the leaderboard despite a downturn in crude oil. WTI crude ended its day down 2.4% ($36.84/bbl), extending its April loss to 2.7%. In the space, refining names displayed relative strength after yesterday's dip by the group. Separately, Baker Hughes (BHI 41.93, -0.90) lost 2.1% in light of a declining rig count and as its merger with Halliburton (HAL 36.25, -0.19) remains in jeopardy.

The U.S. Dollar Index (94.56, +0.13) ended its day slightly higher after recouping some losses against the yen and gaining some ground against the euro. The dollar/yen pair finished lower by 1.3% at 108.41 while the euro lost 0.3% against the dollar (1.1370).

The Treasury complex gained as equities continued their retreat. By the end of the session, the yield on the 10-yr note was lower by seven basis points at 1.69%.

Today's participation was above the recent average as more than 913 million shares changed hands on the NYSE floor.

Today's economic data included weekly initial claims and consumer credit for February:

The latest initial claims report provided some economic news worth cheering about. Claims for the week ending April 2 were 267,000 (Briefing.com consensus 270,000), a decrease of 9,000 from the previous week's unrevised level.
That marked the 57th straight week initial claims have been below 300,000, which is the longest streak since 1973.
The four-week moving average for initial claims increased slightly to 266,750, yet still remains near its lowest level since April 2000.
Continuing claims for the week ending March 26 rose to 2.191 million from 2.172 million in the prior week.
Even so, the four-week moving average for this series dipped to 2.189 million from 2.191 million.
Total outstanding consumer credit increased by $17.3 billion in February (Briefing.com consensus $14.4 billion) after increasing an upwardly revised $14.8 billion (from $10.5 billion) in January.
The growth in February was powered by a $14.3 billion increase in nonrevolving credit. Revolving credit increased by $3.0 billion.
In the preceding 12-month period leading up to February, consumer credit had risen by an average of $18.3 billion.
In February, consumer credit increased at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.75%.

Tonight, Fed Chair Yellen and former Fed Chairs Ben Bernanke, Alan Greenspan, and Paul Volcker will take part in a panel titled, "When the Federal Reserve Speaks...the World Listens." The discussion will begin at 17:30 ET.

Tomorrow's data will be limited to Wholesale Inventories for February (Briefing.com consensus -0.2%), which will cross the wires at 10:00 ET.

Russell 2000 -3.8% YTD
Nasdaq Composite -3.2% YTD
S&P 500 -0.1% YTD
Dow Jones +0.7% YTD

DJ30 -174.09 NASDAQ -72.34 SP500 -24.67 NASDAQ Adv/Vol/Dec 755/1.727 bln/2076 NYSE Adv/Vol/Dec 684/913.9 mln/2338

3:30 pm :

The dollar index consolidates near the highs of the day in afternoon pit trading, weighing on commodities
Commodities, as measured by the Bloomberg Commodity Index, are down -0.3% at 77.45
Crude oil initially saw losses in the morning before bouncing of the low of the day and rallying into the close, still below the previous day's closing price
May crude oil futures closed down $0.47 (-1.3%) at $37.27/barrel
Natural gas initially spikes upward and remains in a sustained uptrend all day into the close of pit trading after the release of EIA inventory data
May natural gas futures closed up $0.11 (+5.8%) at $2.02/MMBtu
EIA weekly natural gas inventory data showed a build of +12 bcf vs expectations for a build of about +7 bcf
In precious metals, gold heads slightly lower and consolidates, closing near its lows for the day but still above the previous day's closing price
June gold futures closed up $13.20 (+1.1%) at $1237.30/oz
Silver saw a similar move compared to gold, dropping slightly lower during the day, but still closing above the previous day's pit trading closing price
May silver futures closed today's session $0.12 higher (+0.8%) at $15.18/oz
Base metal copper consolidated around the lows seen in the morning to close afternoon pit trading notably lower
May copper futures closed $0.06 lower (-2.8%) at $2.08/lb

When the bell rang on Thursday, the three major US indices were all well lower. Action took the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite down 72.35 points (-1.47%) to 4848.37. The S&P 500 was lower by 24.75 points (-1.20%) to end 2041.91. The mildest losses today were in the Dow Jones Industrial Average which lost 174.09 points (-0.98%) to close Thursday 17541.96. Today's negative bias was interesting for a few reasons -- 1) the lack of follow through on yesterday's rally; 2) the renewed decline in oil prices; 3) the ongoing, and surprising strength in the yen; 4) and valuation concerns stemming from declining earnings growth and weak global economic activity.

Today's market data came in the form of the latest initial claims reading for the week ending April 2, which was down 9,000 from last week to 267,000. Continuing claims for the week ending March 26 rose to 2.191 million from 2.172 million in the prior week. Additionally, the February Consumer Credit reading showed an increase by $17.3 billion after increasing an upwardly revised $14.8 billion (from $10.5 billion) in January.

In the Technology (XLK 43.89, -0.58 -1.30%) space, trading followed the tepid broader market bias. Component F5 Networks (FFIV 97.72, -6.17 -5.94%) was notably weak today as the stock was downgraded to a 'Negative' rating this morning at OTR Global. Other sectors closed XLF -1.88%, XLB -1.45%, IYZ -1.35%, XLY -1.13%, XLV -1.10%, XLP -1.08%, XLI -0.96%, XLE -0.59%, XLU -0.04% as Financials and Materials were notably weak.

Trading in the S&P 500 Information Technology (728.90, -10.60 -1.43%) sector was also weak as action took a leg lower at the open and never looked back. Component Yahoo! (YHOO 36.17, -0.49 -1.34%) popped higher in afternoon action as a Bloomberg report came out detailing that Verizon (VZ 52.00, -1.52 -2.84%) is planning on moving ahead with a bid for the company's web business. At the end of the day, EBAY -5.23%, QRVO -3.50%, WDC -3.29%, NTAP -3.16%, EA -2.89%, AKAM -2.74%, CTXS -2.70%, HPQ -2.36%, XLNX -2.35%, PYPL -2.25% were among the worst performing components.

Other notable news items among sector components:

Yahoo! (YHOO) rose modestly in the afternoon session following a Bloomberg report that Verizon (VZ) is planning to move ahead with a bid for YHOO's web business. Additionally, the article suggested that

Alphabet's (GOOG 740.28, -5.41 -0.73%) Google may be mulling a bid for the core business.

Pfizer (PFE 32.77, -0.16 -0.49%) and IBM (IBM 148.25, -1.77 -1.18%) announced a first-of-its-kind research collaboration to develop innovative remote monitoring solutions aimed at transforming how clinicians deliver care to patients suffering from Parkinson's disease. The experimental approach will rely on a system of sensors, mobile devices, and machine learning to provide real-time, around-the-clock disease symptom information to clinicians and researchers.

IBM (IBM) announced Interra Systems has integrated high-speed transfer technology from Aspera, an IBM company into Baton, a leading enterprise-class quality control solution for file-based content.

As discussed in a Re/Code report, Softbank (SFTBY 25.46, +0.27 +1.07%) wants to end $240 million in annual fees it pays to Yahoo! (YHOO) instead of purchasing the company.

According to Bloomberg, EMC (EMC 26.02, -0.39 -1.48%) and Dell are negotiating the sale of EMC's Documentum as part of the acquisition financing between the two parties.

Red Hat (RHT 73.62, -1.11 -1.49%) announced C.A. Mobile built a flexible infrastructure to support its websites with an OpenStack cloud solution from Red Hat and Dell.

eBay (EBAY 24.10, -1.33 -5.23%) and BigCommerce announced a strategic relationship to enable BigCommerce merchants to seamlessly list their products and manage their inventory on the eBay marketplace.

Paychex (PAYX 52.87, -0.77 -1.44%) is announcing solutions to assist financial advisors in meeting the new requirements regarding retirement investment advice.

Elsewhere in the tech space:

Sprint (S 3.51, -0.09 -2.50%) entered into a transaction with several bankruptcy remote entities for the sale and leaseback of certain existing network assets, which is expected to close next week and provide the company with $2.2 billion of funding. When closed, the transaction will immediately improve the company's liquidity position at an attractive cost of capital in the mid-single digits.

GoDaddy (GDDY 31.60, +0.77 +2.50%) announced the pricing of an underwritten public offering of 16,500,000 shares of its Class A common stock offered by certain of its existing stockholders at a price to the public of $30.25 per share.

MAXIMUS (MMS 47.88, -4.11 -7.91%) responded to a recent press article in the United Kingdom reporting that the new Secretary of State for Work and Pensions is considering terminating one specific program for which MMS serves as a contractor to the Department of Work and Pensions. In fact, MAXIMUS serves as a contractor to DWP under two similar but unrelated programs.

Agilent's (A 39.47, -0.77 -1.91%) Dako announced the commercial availability in the EU of a new test that can identify PD-L1 expression levels on the surface of non-small cell lung cancer tumor cells and provide information on the survival benefit with OPDIVO (nivolumab) for patients with non-squamous NSCLC.

TriNet (TNET 14.94, +0.21 +1.43%) has completed the acquisition of assets from Teleborder, a provider of immigration HR services for employers. As part of the acquisition, James Richards, Teleborder's co-founder and CEO, along with the entire Teleborder team, will join TriNet and help drive TriNet's expansion into servicing international companies and their employees.

DragonWave (DRWI 6.91, -1.89 -21.48%) is raising about $4.35 million in gross proceeds in a registered direct offering and a concurrent private placement to institutional investors in the United States. DRWI intends to use the net proceeds from the sale of shares in the registered direct offering for general corporate purposes, which may include working capital, general and administrative expenses, capital expenditures and implementation of its strategic priorities.

Analyst actions:

CHKP was upgraded to Positive from Mixed at OTR Global,
AUO was upgraded to Buy from Sell at Citigroup;
VZ was downgraded at Bernstein and Jefferies,
FFIV was downgraded to Negative from Mixed at OTR Global,
WSTC was downgraded to Underweight from Equal Weight at Morgan Stanley,
EMC was downgraded to Outperform from Strong Buy at Raymond James;
INTC was initiated with a Buy at Brean Capital,
VG was initiated with a Buy at Needham,
AMD was initiated with a Hold at Craig Hallum,
WNS was initiated with an Outperform at Barrington Research

11:02 am Agilent and Applied Spectral Imaging announce co-marketing agreement for fluorescence in situ hybridization (A) : According to Agilent, this agreement is expected to bring to pathology labs the components for a fully automated, end-to-end FISH workflow.

8:04 am Silicon Motion follow up: SIMO guides Q1 revenue well above consensus; sees gross margins at upper end of guidance (SIMO) :

SIMO sees revenue significantly better than guidance; sees Q1 revs up 14-15% sequentially vs. guidance for -2.5% to +2.5%. The sequential guidance equates to Q1 revenue of $111.8-$112.7 mln vs. the $97.6 mln Capital IQ consensus. Gross margin (non-GAAP) is expected to be in the upper half of the company's original guidance range of 49% to 51%.

4:05 am Advanced Semi reports Q1 revs declined 3.5% YoY to NT$62.37 bln vs NT$61.46 bln consensus (ASX) :