Stocks Opened Little Changed Before Yellen Testimony

U.S. stocks opened little changed on Tuesday as investors awaited testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately gained 33.78 points, or 0.19%, to 18,150.62. The S&P 500 was up 1.27 points, or 0.06%, to 2,110.93. The Nasdaq Composite was off 3.27 points, or 0.07%, to 4,957.70.

Home prices in 20 U.S. cities appreciated at a faster pace in the year ended in December, a sign that a limited supply is forcing up property values. The S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values increased 4.5 percent from December 2013, after rising 4.3 percent in the year ended in November, a report from the group showed Tuesday in New York.

The European Commission on Tuesday backed proposals made by the Greek government for reworking its bailout program, putting Athens one step closer to securing a four-month extension to its expiring bailout.

Comcast Corp, the largest U.S. cable operator, posted higher fourth-quarter revenue as it added new video and high-speed internet customers. The owner of NBC Universal also increased its stock buyback program to $10 billion. Net income attributable to Comcast inched up 0.6 percent to $1.93 billion, or 74 cents per share.

Macy’s beat analyst expectations on earnings but missed on revenue in the fourth quarter, the company announced Tuesday. Macy’s earned $2.26 a share and net income of $793 million, down from $811 million, or $2.16 a share, in the same quarter of 2013.

Any hopes of a sustained rally in the price of oil disappeared Tuesday morning as doubts were raised over an anticipated cut in production from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Brent crude futures dropped to 58.56 a barrel by 8:00 a.m. GMT on Tuesday and U.S. crude was back at $48.97 a barrel after climbing above $50 on Tuesday afternoon.