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Small-cap stocks opened flat, rose higher in morning trading, and have settled down in midday action. Investors were encouraged by easing crude oil and NRG Energy’s (NYSE:NRG) $11.3 billion offer to buy power generation company Calpine Corp. (NYSE:CPN). At 12:21 p.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) was up 6.71, or 0.92%, at 733.82.

News that NRG Energy tendered a bid to buy Calpine Corp. for a stock deal worth $11 billion injected some enthusiasm back into the M&A picture, and played a supportive role in market psychology. Calpine shares were up 7.07% in midday trading.

Large caps in the news early today include Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE), which tumbled 1.36% on news that its anti-smoking drug had serious side effects. Also, NetApp Inc. (Nasdaq:NTAP) tumbled about 6% as the company’s forward projections disappointed.
Among broad market sectors, apparel retailers, fabricated plastics and rubbers, catalog and mail order retailers and trucking companies were on the upside. Sectors attracting sellers include water transportation, oil well services and equipment, . . .

Here are Wednesday’s biggest percentage gainers and losers, along with top volume leaders, among companies with a market cap between $50 million and $750 million:

Biggest percentage gainers:

• Samson Oil & Gas Ltd. (AMEX:SSN), up 68.7% to $6.51 after the Australian oil and gas producer signed an agreement to give Samson a 100% working interest and 75% revenue interest in a 320-acre area close to an oil producing field. Samson paid $300 per acre and is required to drill an initial well within a year or risk forfeiting the lease for the acreage.
• CREDO Petroleum Corp. (Nasdaq:CRED), up 32.1% to $16.46 despite no significant announcements.
• The Walking Company Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq:WALK), up 26.3% to $6.00 despite no reports from the company.

Biggest percentage losers:

• US Airways Group, Inc. (NYSE:LCC), down 22.1% to $5.35 after the Tempe, Ariz.-based airline operator said Wednesday afternoon that it had no plans to charge passengers for the first checked bag. American Airlines (NYSE:AMR) said Wednesday that it will start charging passengers $15 for the first checked bag. Also sending the stock lower, US Airways posted a 2.5% increase in the number of full-time employees in March, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
• ShengdaTech, Inc. (Nasdaq:SDTH), down 13.6% to $8.42 despite no announcements from the company.
• Guaranty Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:GFG), down 13.4% to $5.17 after the Austin, Texas-based regional bank announced a stock offering of up to $350 million.

Small caps traded marginally in the green midday, while the other major indices skidded, as oil continued its record-setting skyward hike for the second straight session, stoking inflation concerns.

At 12:48 p.m. ET, the Russell 2000 (NYSE:IWM) edged up 5.1, or 0.69%, to 740.74, while the Dow slumped 39.73, or 0.31%, to 12,788.95.

Crude oil bolted north of $132 a barrel this morning, setting another record after the Energy Department reported a surprising decline in crude inventories last week after reporting gains in inventories for the preceding four straight weeks. After jumping as high as $132.08 a barrel, a barrel of crude retreated slightly to $131.75 midday.

While crude gained, the dollar sold off against the euro and the yen and gold gained $7.80 to $928 per troy ounce.

Midday, oil prices and inflation concerns are the major drivers behind the market; however sentiment and the market’s direction could change when the Federal Reserve releases its FOMC minutes at 2:00 p.m. ET.

In major large-cap headlines, media conglomerate Time Warner Inc. (NYSE:TWX) said this morning that it will separate both structurally and legally from its cable television division Time Warner Cable Inc. Technological juggernaut Hewlett-Packard Co. (NYSE:HPQ) reported after Tuesday’s close that second-quarter earnings increased 16%, noting that growth in the overseas arena offset domestic weakness. However, investors are still pouring over the printer and computer maker’s recent . . .