By Dan Strumpf 

U.S. stocks rose Thursday, putting them on track for a third straight session of gains amid a steady stream of earnings reports.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 41 points, or 0.2%, to 18153 in afternoon trading, bouncing back from a morning loss.

The S&P 500 climbed three points, or 0.1%, to 2110. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained three points, or 0.1%, to 5014.

Traders said an afternoon rally in the oil market helped lift shares. Buyers included investors with bearish positions looking to cover negative bets, they said.

"It's definitely forcing people back into the market," said Justin Wiggs, managing director in equity trading at Stifel Nicolaus, of the afternoon gains. "With earnings season kicking off, people seem to be a little more on edge than normal."

In earnings news, shares of Citigroup Inc. rose 2% after the bank reported its first-quarter profit jumped a bigger-than-expected 21%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said its first-quarter profit and revenue rose, with results beating analysts' expectations. Still, shares fell 0.7%.

Stocks have risen this month, advancing back toward all-time highs. The Dow and S&P have both gained 2% so far in April and are approaching records last seen in early March.

Crude-oil futures gained 1.6% to $57.25 a barrel, rising for a sixth straight session. The gains pulled energy stocks out of negative territory, with the S&P 500 Energy Index gaining 0.1%.

Losses in European markets had kept shares under pressure Thursday, traders said. Germany's DAX fell 1.9% and France's CAC 40 lost 0.6%, as German government bonds hit record highs.

"There's still nervousness about Europe for sure," said Steve Bombardiere, trader at Conifer Securities. "We have these days where it just overtakes whatever the earnings news is."

Stocks rose Wednesday, pushing the Nasdaq Composite closer to its all-time high. The Russell 2000 index of small-capitalization stocks hit an all-time high Wednesday. The index pulled back 0.1% on Thursday.

Much of investors' attention, however, remained on the steady stream of earnings reports. Money managers are bracing for a pullback in quarterly earnings in the first quarter, as the slump in oil prices and the strong dollar tripped up many companies. Analysts expect S&P 500 companies to report a 4.5% fall in first-quarter earnings, according to FactSet.

"It's a market that is no longer cheap," said Stephen Freedman, head of cross-asset strategy at UBS Wealth Management Americas. "You need to have earnings growing at a reasonable pace for the market to progress."

Mr. Freedman says he expects earnings to grow between 8% and 10% for the full year, excluding energy companies. Against that backdrop, he says broad market benchmarks can see high single-digit returns this year.

"It's an earnings-driven market," he said.

In other earnings news, UnitedHealth Group Inc. lifted its full-year guidance due to a stronger-than-expected 13% increase in first-quarter revenue. Shares jumped 3.6%.

Netflix Inc. said Wednesday it added 4.88 million subscribers in the March quarter, which topped Netflix's own forecast for 4.05 million additions. Shares soared 14%.

SanDisk Corp. shares sank 5.5% after the chip maker said its first-quarter profit plunged 86%, as revenue fell and the company booked acquisition and restructuring-related charges.

In economic news, jobless claims rose 12,000 to 294,000 in the week ended April 11, the Labor Department said. Economists had expected 280,000 claims.

U.S. housing starts rose 2% in March from a month earlier to an annual rate of 926,000, the Commerce Department said. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected an annual rate of 1.04 million.

In other markets, gold futures added 0.4% to $1205.60 an ounce.

Write to Dan Strumpf at daniel.strumpf@wsj.com

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