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Strong earnings lift
Dow above 9,800
NEW YORK >> Stocks struggled higher yesterday, lifting the Dow within striking distance of 10,000 for the first time since May 2002, as a strong start to earnings season eased worries that the market's rally has been overly optimistic.
Nasdaq stocks pushed to their highest levels in 20 months as investors anxiously awaited a third-quarter profit report from Intel Corp., which topped most analyst forecasts after the close of trading.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 48.60, or 0.5 percent, to 9,812.98, the first close above 9,800 since May 31, 2002.
Among major market measures, the Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 4.13, or 0.4 percent, to 1,049.48. Like the Dow, the S&P 500 finished at its highest level since May 2002.
The Nasdaq composite index rose 9.66, or 0.5 percent, to 1,943.19, its best finish since Jan. 28, 2002. The Nasdaq last closed above 2,000 earlier that same month.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 4-to-3 ratio on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 1.62 billion shares, up from 1.34 billion in Monday's light holiday session.
The Russell 2000 index of small-company shares rose 4.27, or 0.8 percent, to 531.84.
The NYSE composite index gained 19.53, or 0.3 percent, to 5,960.28. The American Stock Exchange composite index slipped .06 to 1,023.63.
The two-year Treasury note fell 332 to 99 2832, with its yield rising 6 basis points to 1.68 percent. The 10-year note lost 2332 to 99 832, with its yield gaining 9 basis points to 4.34 percent.
Johnson & Johnson led the Dow's advance, rising $1.14 to $50.93 after the drug and medical product maker posted a 20 percent improvement in third-quarter profits, beating most analyst estimates.
Other big names that topped expectations for the just-ended quarter included Merrill Lynch & Co. and Bank of America Corp.
Merrill Lynch reported a 50 percent increase in third-quarter earnings. Although the results topped most analyst forecasts, Merrill's stock fell 82 cents to $58.07 after rising $8 so far this month.
"Merrill was the number that everybody latched onto today," Ed Peters chief investment officer at PanAgora Asset Management Inc., in Boston.
Intel rose 28 cents to $31.08 in advance of its quarterly report. After the close, the world's largest semiconductor company reported that third-quarter profits doubled to $1.7 billion amid strong demand for personal computers. The results beat Wall Street expectations by 2 cents a share, and Intel was up 62 cents a share in extended trading.
In other earnings news, Bank of America rose 72 cents to $82.46 after posting strong results, and Delta Air Lines Inc. fell 98 cents to $13.74 after posting a smaller-than-expected loss of $168 million.
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