Wall Street buoyed by energy, reporting companies slip
NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday as oil prices lifted energy shares and investors were upbeat about the overall profits recovery, even as some high-profile results fell short of lofty expectations.
Goldman Sachs earnings trounced forecasts, but its stock slipped 2.1 percent to $159.98. UK regulators launched a probe into alleged fraud by the company, adding to worries caused by U.S. fraud charges.
The broad market benefited from the view that earnings are showing the economy is recovering, even though some of the big names that reported solid results, such as UnitedHealth Group , ended lower.
"Earnings overall are good, but you'd better beat these heightened expectations or else your stock is going to take a breather after the run we've had going into earnings," said Peter Boockvar, equity strategist at Miller Tabak & Co in New York.
More than four stocks rose for every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange, while on the Nasdaq, three stocks rose for every decliner.
The Dow Jones industrial average added 25.01 points, or 0.23 percent, to 11,117.06. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 9.65 points, or 0.81 percent, to 1,207.17. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 20.20 points, or 0.81 percent, to 2,500.31.
Energy shares led the upside as oil rebounded as some European flights resumed with the threat from Iceland's volcanic ash cloud receding. Crude was up more than 2 percent at $83.45 a barrel, though trade volumes for the May contract were low on the contract's last day. The S&P energy index rose 1.9 percent.
"What we're seeing is a lot of the sectors that were sold off late last week have found a little support and are rebounding here," said Richard Sparks, senior equities analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research, in Cincinnati, Ohio.
International Business Machines Corp posted better-than-expected profits but disappointing gross margins. The stock eased 1.9 percent to $129.69 and was the top weight on the Dow, followed by Coca-Cola , which fell 1.5 percent to $54.47.
Coke reported mixed results, Johnson & Johnson topped quarterly forecasts but trimmed its full-year profit forecast, while UnitedHealth soared past estimates.
Johnson & Johnson dipped 0.1 percent to $65.99 and UnitedHealth was off 0.8 percent to $30.98.
Investors will take in another round of results after the closing bell with Apple Inc and Yahoo Inc on tap. Apple shares were down 1 percent to $244.59 and Yahoo slipped 0.1 percent to $18.38.
(Additional reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Kenneth Barry)