New York equities markets were slightly higher on Monday. By midday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.1 percent to 12,504.88, while the Nasdaq Composite had gained 0.15 percent to 2,439.12 and the S&P 500 added 0.04 percent to 1,422.71.

The banking sector was mixed on mergers news and rumors. First Republic Bank added 40.2 percent to $53.69 after Merrill Lynch announced that it would buy the bank. Merrill Lynch dropped 1.5 percent to $93.15. Bank of America dropped 1 percent to $51.50 and Countrywide Financial added 4.3 percent to $43.80 on investor reaction to a Friday report that the two were in talks about a merger. Meanwhile, Citigroup was 1.1 percent lower to $54.07 on the announcement that it will purchase Egg Banking from Prudential in the UK.

In the semiconductors sector, Intel gained 2.1 percent to $20.96 after it said it has had success in making, smaller, more powerful microchips.

Pharmaceutical company Bristol-Myers Squibb added 5.9 percent to $27.75 on rumors of a buyout.

Tyson Foods was 3.8 percent higher to $17.33 after it said that profits were up 46 percent in its fiscal first quarter. Earnings were 16 cents per share, well above predictions of 6 cents per share.

At midday on Monday, Wall Street was running behind due to less than desirable corporate earnings reports as well as investor uncertainty about events in the Middle East. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 were each 0.2 percent lower at mid-session, to 11,194.88 and 1,275.46 respectively, while the Nasdaq Composite had dropped 0.3 percent to 2,088.29.

Among the companies issuing disappointing quarterly reports were Avon and Tyson Foods. Cosmetics maker Avon was down 9.3 percent to $29.75 after it said its profits dropped by 54 percent in the second quarter. It blamed most of the decline on costs incurred during a restructuring. Meanwhile, Tyson Foods reported that it lost $52 million in the second quarter, more than had been expected. Tyson dropped 2.3 percent to $14.23.

On the other hand, health insurer Humana added 5.3 percent to $54.28 on a quarterly report that was better than had been expected.

Office Depot also had an earnings report, issued on Friday, that topped analyst estimates. By noon on Monday the office supplies retailer had added 5.4 percent to $36.20.

Coal producers were also having a good day after Merrill Lynch said that there would be more demand for coal as other energy sources cost increasingly more. Peabody Energy was 6.2 percent higher to $48.89, while Arch Coal added 7.2 percent to $37.18.

On reports that it might be purchased by Grupo Mexico, miner Phelps Dodge gained 7.2 percent to $87.40.

Computer makers were mixed on the day. Dell was 2.5 percent lower to $21.66. On the other hand, Apple Computer added 3.6 percent to $67.96 after it was upgraded from “neutral” to “buy” from Bank of America.