Stocks Ended with Gains on Housing Data

U.S. stocks finished with mild gains on Wednesday, after data had new-home construction hitting a four-year high.The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 5.22 points to 13,557.00. The S&P 500 index climbed 5.99 points to 1,460.91. The Nasdaq Composite gained 2.95 points to 3,104.12.

EBay (EBAY) reported a third-quarter profit of $597 million, or 45 cents a share, on $3.4 billion in revenue, compared with a profit of $491 million, or 37 cents a share, on sales of $3 billion in the same period a year ago. Excluding one-time items, eBay would have earned $718 million, or 55 cents a share.

Drug and medical device maker Abbott Laboratories (ABT) reported a higher third-quarter profit Wednesday, edging past analyst expectations, even as revenue slipped. For the three months through Sept. 30, Abbott’s net income jumped to $1.94 billion, or $1.21 per share, from $303 million, or 19 cents per share, a year ago. Revenue fell less than 1 percent to $9.77 billion from $9.82 billion.

Xilinx Inc.(XLNX) said Wednesday afternoon that revenue and earnings declined by 2% in its second fiscalquarter. It reported net income of $123.4 million, or 46 cents a share, compared to net income of $126.3 million, or 47 cents per share, for the same period last year. Revenue was $543.9 million.

Greece is close to reaching a deal with its international lenders to unlock aid for the near-bankrupt country, its Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said on Wednesday.