US stocks move higher a day after big loss
NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market rebounded Tuesday, putting it on track for the best day of the year. Gains were led by the technology sector, which got a lift from some positive comments from analysts.
KEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index climbed 19 points, or 1 percent, to 1,838 as of 3:20 p.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 102 points, or 0.6 percent, to 16,360. The Nasdaq composite rose 68 points, or 1.7 percent, to 4,181.
CABLE BID: Time Warner Cable rose $4.59, or 3.5 percent, to $136.97 after Charter Communications intensified its pursuit of the company. Charter said Monday it would bring an offer directly to shareholders if needed after getting rebuffed by Time Warner Cable's management.
TECH MOVERS: Technology companies rose 1.8 percent, the most of the 10 sectors that make up the S&P 500.
Intel climbed 96 cents, or 3.8 percent, to $26.46 after analysts at JPMorgan raised their rating on the stock and predicted that demand for PCs will stabilize this year and that the company's CEO will focus improving margins and returns.
Jabil Circuit jumped $1.24, or 7.5 percent, to $17.83 after Goldman Sachs recommended buying the stock of the electronics company, predicting that its earnings for next year could be better than most analysts are expecting.
BANK EARNINGS: Investors were watching results from two big banks. JPMorgan Chase, the nation's biggest bank by assets, rose 18 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $57.88 after reporting gains in most of its divisions except for investment banking.
Wells Fargo was flat at $45.59 after the nation's biggest mortgage lender reported a sharp drop in its mortgage business even as its bottom-line income rose 11 percent.
CONSOLIDATION, NOT CAPITULATION: Despite the slow start to the year — the S&P 500 index is down 0.7 percent in 2014 after a gain of almost 30 percent last year — many investors remain optimistic that stocks will end this year higher as well, and will come to see the current slump as a pause rather than a collapse.
"Valuations have been certainly been pushed higher, so (stocks) are no longer cheap," said Eric Wiegand, senior portfolio manager at U.S. Bank Wealth Management. "But we would contend that they are still fair."
RETAIL SALES: Investors got some encouraging news on the economy on Tuesday, as report showed that Americans spent more on clothing and online in December Retail sales rose 0.2 percent last month, the Commerce Department said Tuesday. Excluding auto sales, retail sales gained 0.7 percent, compared to a forecast of 0.4 percent.
SURGING SURGERY: Intuitive Surgical jumped $26.53, or 6.8 percent, to $419.61 after the company said it will report revenue in the fourth quarter that is higher than Wall Street analysts are forecasting, as procedures performed with its robotic da Vinci system increased.
GAMESTOPPED: GameStop plunged $9.01, or 20 percent, to $36.30 after the world's largest video game retailer gave a profit forecast that fell below Wall Street's expectations for its crucial holiday quarter, despite higher-than-expected sales.
TREASURYS AND COMMODITIES: Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.87 percent from 2.83 percent on Monday. The price of oil climbed 79 cents, or 0.9 percent, to $92.59. Gold fell $5.70, or 0.5 percent, to $1,245.40 an ounce.
