Wall Street buoyed by energy, Apple at life high
U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday as oil prices lifted energy shares and investors were upbeat about the overall profits recovery, even as some high-profile results fell short of lofty expectations.
Goldman Sachs earnings trounced forecasts, but its stock slipped 2.1 percent to $159.98. UK regulators launched a probe into alleged fraud by the company, adding to worries caused by U.S. fraud charges.
The broad market benefited from the view that earnings are showing the economy is recovering, even though some of the big names that reported solid results, such as UnitedHealth Group , ended lower.
Earnings overall are good, but you'd better beat these heightened expectations or else your stock is going to take a breather after the run we've had going into earnings, said Peter Boockvar, equity strategist at Miller Tabak & Co in New York.
Investors took in another batch of results after the bell, including heavy-hitters Apple Inc and Yahoo Inc . Shares of Apple jumped more than 6 percent to $260.99, extending its record high, in after-hours trading. Apple reported results above expectations, led by strong sales of the iPhone.
Yahoo's shares gave up 1.9 percent to $18.03 in extended trade after its earnings beat expectations but revenue fell a little short.
During the regular session, more than four stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange, while on the Nasdaq, three stocks rose for every decliner.
The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> added 25.01 points, or 0.23 percent, to 11,117.06. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> rose 9.65 points, or 0.81 percent, to 1,207.17. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gained 20.20 points, or 0.81 percent, to 2,500.31.
Energy shares led the upside as oil rebounded as some European flights resumed with the threat from Iceland's volcanic ash cloud receding. Crude was up more than 2 percent at $83.45 a barrel, though trade volumes for the May contract were low on the contract's last day. The S&P energy index <.GSPE> rose 1.9 percent.
What we're seeing is a lot of the sectors that were sold off late last week have found a little support and are rebounding here, said Richard Sparks, senior equities analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research, in Cincinnati, Ohio.
International Business Machines Corp posted better-than-expected profits but disappointing gross margins. The stock eased 1.9 percent to $129.69 and was the top weight on the Dow, followed by Coca-Cola , which fell 1.5 percent to $54.47.
Coke reported mixed results, Johnson & Johnson topped quarterly forecasts but trimmed its full-year profit forecast, while UnitedHealth soared past estimates.
Johnson & Johnson dipped 0.1 percent to $65.99 and UnitedHealth was off 0.8 percent to $30.98.
About 8.84 billion shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, below last year's estimated daily average of 9.65 billion.
Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by 2,499 to 556, while on the Nasdaq, advancers beat decliners 2,045 to 651.
(Additional reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
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