Stocks opened sharply higher as the prospects for tax reform cleared another hurdle when the Senate voted to approve its version of a tax overhaul proposal. The Nasdaq lagged, as it has over the past week, crossed into negative ground late in the morning and picked up downside momentum. By the close, the Dow had cut its gains drastically and the S&P was little changed. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., the Senate narrowly passed the Republican’s tax reform legislation following a marathon voting session this weekend. This moves the process forward to the next stage, which will be the reconciliation of the differences between the House and Senate tax reform proposals. On the domestic data front, factory orders slipped 0.1% in October, versus the consensus forecast for them to have been down 0.4% for the month. Durable goods orders were down 0.8% in October, versus expectations for them to have declined 1.1%. COMPANY NEWS: Shares of CVS Health (CVS) fell 4.5% after the retail pharmacy and PBM operator confirmed it has struck a deal to buy health insurer Aetna (AET) for $207 per share in cash and stock, or approximately $69B. Including the assumption of Aetna’s debt, the total value of the transaction is $77B. Aetna shares finished the day 1.4% lower at $178.70 following the announcement of the long-rumored deal… In other M&A news, Broadcom (AVGO) went hostile in its pursuit of Qualcomm (QCOM), announcing it will nominate a slate of 11 individuals for election to Qualcomm’s board. In response, Qualcomm called this a “blatant attempt to seize control” in order to advance Broadcom’s acquisition agenda… Meanwhile, shares of Discovery Communications (DISCA) rose about 7% after the company purchased an additional 24.5% stake in the Oprah Winfrey Network, its joint venture with Harpo, for $70M. Harpo, Oprah’s production company, will still maintain a 25.5% stake in the venture. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was General Cable (BGC), which surged 35% after it agreed to be acquired by Prysmian Group for $30 per share. Also higher was Blue Apron (APRN), which gained 17% after Barclays analyst Ross Sandler upgraded the stock to Equal Weight from Underweight, saying the risk/reward appears more favorable. Among the notable losers was Ra Pharmaceuticals (RARX), which fell 37% after it said that its trial of RA101495 SC met its primary endpoint. Following the news, Piper Jaffray analyst Christopher Raymond said that the data “underwhelms on efficacy” compared to Alexion’s (ALXN) Soliris. Also lower was Align Technology (ALGN), which slid 11%, underperforming the weak medical technology space. Leerink analyst Richard Newitter attributed the underperformance as potentially related to worries about competition stoked by some recent comments to investors made by the company’s CEO. INDEXES: The Dow gained 58.46, or 0.24%, to 24,290.05, the Nasdaq lost 72.22, or 1.05%, to 6,775.37, and the S&P 500 dipped 2.78, or 0.11%, to 2,639.44.