By Anora Mahmudova, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch)--U.S. stocks edged higher Thursday, with
the main indexes set to finish a holiday-shortened week with solid
gains. The benchmark S&P 500 is on track for the best weekly
gain since July 2013.
U.S. markets are closed Friday for the Good Friday holiday.
On Thursday, investors weighed a mixed batch of earnings reports
against largely positive economic data. Thursday has one of the
busiest schedules in the earnings season, as 25 companies on the
S&P 500 are scheduled to report profits, according to
FactSet.
The S&P 500 (SPX) was 4 points, or 0.2% higher at 1,866.40,
building on three straight days of gains, which on Wednesday sent
the benchmark index into positive territory for the year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) was 11 points higher at
16,436.33.
The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) rose 14 points, or 0.3%, to
4,100.11.
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action.
"We expect today's trading to be quiet, as a lot of investors
are probably consolidating ahead of the long weekend," said Jim
Russell, senior equity strategist at U.S. Bank Wealth
Management.
"It appears the investing community will give somewhat of a free
pass to companies this quarter, as the cold-weather excuse for
lower profits is legitimate. This will not be the case in the next
quarter," he added.
In economic news, two separate reports pointed to more evidence
that softening in the economy was largely weather related.
The number of people who applied for unemployment-insurance
benefits increased less than expected, a slight increase from the
lowest level since 2007, signaling that employers are maintaining a
slow pace of layoffs, according to government data released
Thursday.
A reading of manufacturing sentiment in the Philadelphia region
improved in April, according to data released Thursday,
contradicting a disappointing regional index from the New York Fed
released earlier in the week.
Google, IBM sink after disappointing results, Goldman, Morgan
Stanley rise
Shares of IBM Corp. (IBM) dropped 3% after the tech bellwether
late Wednesday reported an eighth straight quarter of revenue
declines and missed analyst expectations.
Google Inc. (GOOG) (GOOGL) dropped 3% after a disappointing
earnings report published late Wednesday.
American Express Co.(AXP) fell 1.3% after it reported quarterly
revenue that missed expectations late Wednesday.
Banking giant Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) was nearly unchanged
after it reported fall in first-quarter earnings, which nonetheless
were above expectations.
Morgan Stanley (MS) rose 3.4% after its profit topped
estimates.
General Electric Co. (GE) said it made an adjusted 33 cents a
share in the first quarter, slightly beating FactSet estimates of
32 cents a share. Shares gained 2.1%.
UnitedHealth Group Inc.(UNH) slid 3.3% after its earnings beat
expectations, but revenue missed.
Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) shares fell 2.5%, after initially
rising as much as 4% following the release of results. The
fast-food restaurant chain's first-quarter profit and revenue
surged, largely attributed to a 13.4% jump in same-store sales.
Shares of Sabre (SABR), the travel-tech firm which owns the
Travelocity website, rose 3.9% to $16.63 on debut.
Weibo (WB), China's microblog equivalent of Twitter, surged 21%
to $20.75 on the first day of trading.
In other financial markets, European stocks traded mostly lower
amid escalating tensions in Ukraine after three pro-Russia
activists were killed and 13 wounded in fighting. Asia markets
closed mostly higher. Gold prices edged lower, while oil prices
were little changed.
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