The markets opened up with sizable gains, but a late swoon at the end of the trading session cut into them. However, the broad indices still maintained to hold on to start the week off in the green for the first time in 10 weeks.  The Dow Jones Industrials (INDEX: ^DJI) finished the day up .16% on a mild day, with the only macro news coming from Germany, where Chancellor Angela Merkel backed the ECB’s short-term bond-buying program. The goal is to buy government bonds from troubled countries in order to hold down the borrowing costs. However, nothing more than discourse has been accomplished, meaning that today’s news that's  coming from Europe is just one more tune on this draw- out ballad of ill repute. Long term investors should monitor news coming from overseas, but the main focus should be on earnings, and potential opportunities that may arise.

Index Gain/ Loss Gain/ Loss %
Dow Jones Industrial Average 21.34 .16%
S&P 500 (INDEX: ^GSPC) 3.24 .23%
Nasdaq 22.01 .74%
WTI Crude -.10 -.11%
Source: Yahoo! Finance

The Dow Jones was quiet on the earnings front, as American Express turned in today’s worst performance of all the components, losing .89% of its market cap.

To find the day's true laggards, one needs to look just beyond the blue chips. Before the markets opened this morning, Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) reported its third-quarter numbers, missing analyst estimates on the top and bottom lines, before falling 8%. The meat producer also lowered its outlook, pointing to higher prices as the reason for slowing meat consumption in the U.S. The draught that has engulfed the country is boosting input costs, causing tremendous headwinds for the beef and pork segments.

Beyond the meat market, Caribou Coffee Company's (Nasdaq: CBOU) quarterly results sent the company into a tailspin, losing 4.37% during trading hours, and then dropping another 5% after the markets closed. Caribou’s second quarter net income dropped to $2.8 million from $4.4 million over the same quarter last year. For the second half of the year, the coffee maker does not see any growth compared to 2011; however, management sees the slowing sales as temporary and, once it strengthens  its relationship with Green Mountain (Nasdaq: GMCR), it will have more avenues from which  to drive growth.

Once again, Knight Capital was the market's whipping boy, dropping 25% on the day, and 70% since last week's trading miscue. Today, the company significantly diluted its stock in an attempt to keep the company solvent. Knight Capital sold $400 million of 2% convertible preferred stock in a desperate move to secure financing for the trading mistake that might ultimately lead to the firm’s breakup.

The foolish takeaway

The sentiment seemed favorable throughout most of the day, but looming obstacles still need to be traversed before the dark cloud of debt can be removed. According to S&P Capital IQ, six of the 10 sectors are expected to see growth decreased over the last quarter, meaning it's as important as ever to find solid companies that will help achieve your goal of a secure retirement. For this reason, our analysts have selected 3 Stocks That Will Help You Retire Rich!This report is absolutely free, but you need to get your detailed report now, because it will not be available much longer.