Strong earnings from Wal-Mart, Cisco drive US stocks higher

FAN Editor

Strong quarterly earnings from Wal-Mart Stores, Cisco Systems and other companies drove U.S. stocks higher in morning trading Thursday as the market bounced back from a modest decline a day earlier. Technology companies, consumer product makers and health care stocks accounted for some of the biggest gains. Energy and utilities stocks declined.

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KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 25 points, or 1 percent, to 2,589 as of 2:15 p.m. Eastern Time. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 218 points, or 0.9 percent, to 23,490. The Nasdaq composite index added 99 points, or 1.5 percent, to 6,805. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks picked up 20 points, or 1.4 percent, to 1,484. A day ago, stocks suffered their worst decline in two months.

THE QUOTE: “Investors have been looking to buy on weakness and they got a little bit of it,” said Erik Davidson, chief investment officer for Wells Fargo Private Bank.

TECH RALLY: Technology sector stocks, which have done far better than the rest of the market this year, accounted for some of the biggest gains in early trading. Data storage company NetApp led the sector, vaulting 15.3 percent as investors applauded its quarterly results and forecasts. The stock rose $7.01 to $52.83.

IN HIGH GEAR: Cisco Systems leapt 6 percent, its biggest move since February 2016, after the internet gear maker reported a bigger profit than analysts expected and said revenue should grow in its next quarter after two years of declines. The stock added $2.05 to $36.16.

BIG RETAIL: Wal-Mart jumped 8.9 percent after the retail giant reported strong third-quarter results and raised its annual profit outlook. The company said online sales continued to surge and food sales were strong as well. Its shares posted their biggest gain since May 2016, rising $7.98 to $97.81.

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BOARDROOM BLITZ: Procter & Gamble was up 1.6 percent after activist investor Nelson Peltz said an independent count showed he won election to the consumer products company’s board. The shares gained $1.37 to $89.60.

EAT IT UP: J.M. Smucker climbed 9.6 percent after the food company served up a good second quarter and forecast slightly better sales for the full year. The company noted that higher prices for peanut butter and its Smucker brands helped boost results. The stock picked up $10.21 to $116.72.

HOLIDAY DOWNER: Best Buy slumped 5.5 percent after the electronics retailer’s latest quarterly results and forecast for the holiday season fell short of estimates. Its shares slid $3.16 to $54.14.

BOND YIELDS: Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.35 percent from 2.32 percent late Wednesday.

OIL: Crude oil prices fell. Benchmark U.S. crude slipped 28 cents to $55.05 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Brent crude, used to price international oils, fell 52 cents to $61.35 a barrel in London.

CURRENCIES: The dollar fell to 112.88 yen from 112.89 yen on Wednesday. The euro weakened to $1.1774 from $1.1794.

MARKETS OVERSEAS: Major stock indexes in Europe were headed higher. Germany’s DAX gained 0.5 percent, while France’s CAC 40 rose 0.7 percent. Britain’s FTSE 100 was up 0.2 percent. Earlier in Asia, Japan led the region higher as its benchmark Nikkei 225 snapped a six-day losing streak and jumped 1.5 percent. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.7 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 0.6 percent. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.2 percent.

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