An unexpected drop in durable goods orders along with disappointing earnings results weighed the markets down to a sharply lower close with the Dow skidding 291 points to 17,387. Nasdaq slumped 90 points to 4,681.

On the upside

Courier (Nasdaq: CRRC) received an unsolicited acquisition offer from R.R. Donnelly & Sons.

WWE (NYSE: WWE) announced that its WWE Network surpassed 1 million subscribers.

II-VI (Nasdaq: IIVI) reported higher second quarter earnings and revenue that surpassed analyst expectations.

On the downside

Sterling Construction (Nasdaq: STRL) warned of losses for the fourth quarter.

Plantronics (NYSE: PLT) disappointed with lower third quarter earnings that missed analyst estimates.

Peabody Energy (NYSE: BTU) widened fourth quarter losses more than expected and cut its quarterly dividend.

In the broad market, declining issues outpaced advancers by a margin of 9 to 7 on the NYSE and by 5 to 3 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 plunged 27 points to 2029. Bitcoin lost $8 to $256.