Stocks finished lower after well-known banking analyst Dick Bove downgraded his rating on Wells Fargo.

Stocks advanced Wednesday as investors were encouraged by a few earnings reports, including Morgan Stanley, Yahoo and SanDisk. The VIX, widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market, dropped to just above 20.

Stocks opened lower Wednesday as a raft of companies beating earning estimates but failed to impress investors.

Earnings season continues in earnest Wednesday, as we roll on with a week that will ultimately see 25 percent of the S&P 500 report their quarterly numbers. 

There are signs the nation's factories are stirring from one of the worst recessions in decades.  If nothing else, hints of a rebound at big industrial firms will boost the stock market and lift people's 401ks.

Slow economic growth coupled with a meteoric stocks rally that will be difficult to sustain is making for a challenging second half for investors.

After months of wondering whether the recovery is for real, investors may get the chance to find out when second-quarter earnings start rolling in.

Charl Malan, Senior Metals & Mining Analyst on the Van Eck Global Hard Assets fund which is rated 5-stars by Morningstar and up 24.96% this year, said now is a good time to invest in commodities because of “unprecedented monetary and fiscal stimulus in the United States, China and Europe.”