Shares of Take-Two Interactive rose 4% after the company reported revenue that topped forecasts, but the software firm cut its earnings and sales outlook for the current quarter.

PVH Corp. shares surged 18% after the owner of the Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger brands agreed to buy Warnaco Group in a deal worth $2.9 billion. Warnaco had licensed the Calvin Klein jeans brand from PVH, so the deal brings all Calvin Klein-branded apparel under one company's umbrella. Shares of Warnaco jumped 38%.

The Walt Disney Company agreed to buy Lucasfilm late Tuesday in a stock-and-cash deal valued at $4 billion, gaining control of the blockbuster Star Wars franchise.

Economy: Investors are also gearing up for the crucial October jobs report, which is the final reading on the health of the job market before the presidential election next week. While there had been some concern about the report being delayed, the Bureau of Labor Statistics says the report will come out on Friday morning as scheduled.

World Markets: European stocks closed lower. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.1%, the DAX in Germany sank 0.3% and France's CAC 40 slid 0.9%.

Unemployment in the eurozone rose in September to a record high of 11.6%, the European Commission's Eurostat statistics agency reported Wednesday.

Asian markets closed higher. The Shanghai Composite added 0.3%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong and Japan's Nikkei increased 1%.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar fell against the euro and the British pound but gained ground versus the Japanese yen.

Oil for December delivery rose 50 cents to $86.18 a barrel.

Gold futures for December delivery gained $7 to settle at $1,719.10 an ounce.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, pushing the yield down to 1.70%.