Today's Stock Market News Abuzz from Brewing Lawsuit Over PFE's Lipitor

Today's stock market news, August 8, 2014: U.S. stocks fell sharply in the final hour of trading Thursday despite declining jobless claims in the U.S. economy.

On Thursday, Moscow banned most food imports from Western nations in response to heightened economic sanctions. The deal isolates Russians from global trade to a level that hasn't been seen since the end of the Cold War, with specific imports from the United States, Australia, Canada, the European Union, and Norway banned.

Here are the top stories in stock market news today:

• Drug Problem: Shares of pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) are on the decline in pre-market hours on news that the company is confronting a wave of lawsuits from women over possible side effects from its anti-cholesterol drug Lipitor. The news comes on the same day that the company settled a $35 million claim on accusations that one of its subsidiaries unlawfully promoted its kidney rejection prevention drug, Rapamune.
• Gaming Problems: Zynga stock (Nasdaq: ZNGA) slumped nearly 13% after market hours after the company reported weaker second-quarter earnings than expected. The company tallied a quarterly loss of $62.5 million, accelerating red ink from last year's $15.8 million loss in the same quarter. Quarterly revenue registered at $153.2 million, a steep fall from Wall Street's expectations of $190.5 million.
• Stretching for Profits: Shares of Lululemon Athletica Inc. (Nasdaq: LULU) saw a 6% gain in post-hours trading on news that the company's founder, Dennis "Chip" Wilson, will sell half of his 27% stake to private equity firm Advent International for $845 million. The announcement ends a possible proxy fight over two board members after his own board forced him to resign in December 2013. The deal will provide Advent with two board members and lead to a shakeup atop the company's leadership.

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Garrett Baldwin

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Garrett Baldwin is a globally recognized research economist, financial writer, and consultant with degrees from Northwestern, Johns Hopkins, Purdue, and Indiana University. He is a seasoned financial and political risk analyst, with a focus on stocks, hedge funds, private equity, blockchain, and housing policy. He has conducted risk assessment projects for clients in 27 countries, and consulted on policy and financial operations for some of the nation's largest financial institutions, including a $1.5 trillion credit fund, a $43 billion credit and auto loan giant, as well as two of the largest Wall Street banks by assets under management.

Garrett joined Money Map Press as an economist and researcher in 2011, specializing in alternative strategies with an emphasis on fundamental and technical analysis.

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