Stocks Close Higher on Markit PMI

U.S. stocks finished with solid gains on Thursday after a survey showed that U.S. manufacturing expanded at the fastest pace in almost four years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 92.67 points, or 0.58%, to 16,133.23. The S&P 500 rose 11.03 points, or 0.60%, to close at 1,839.78. The Nasdaq Composite rose 29.59 points, or 0.70%, to finish at 4,267.55.

Manufacturing in the U.S. expanded at the fastest pace in almost four years in February, according to a private survey by Markit. The survey reflected a strong rebound following a slowdown in January. The Markit Flash U.S. Manufacturing index rose to 56.7 from 53.7 in January. Numbers above 50 indicate manufacturing is increasing.

Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) reported quarterly earnings and revenue that beat analysts’ expectations on Thursday. The company posted fiscal first-quarter earnings ex-items of 90 cents per share, up from 82 cents a share in the year-earlier period. Revenue decreased slightly to $28.15 billion from around $ 28.36 billion a year ago.

Groupon posted stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter results, but offered a mixed outlook for the current quarter that pressured its shares. Overall, Groupon reported a loss of $81.2 million, compared with a year-earlier loss of $81 million. Revenue rose 20% to $768.4 million.