Stocks Opened Higher On Earnings

U.S. stocks opened modestly higher on Thursday as strong earnings from Tesla Motors Inc. and Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd helped boost the markets. The Dow industrial Average lately rose 41.57 points, or 0.24%, to 17,692.83. The S&P 500 gained 5.44 points, or 0.271% to 2,056.56. The Nasdaq
Composite climbed 7.93 points, or 0.17%, to 4,733.57.

Tesla Motors (TSLA) on Wednesday posted quarterly results that met Wall Street’s expectations.The electric automaker reported a first-quarter loss of 57 cents per share on $1.6 billion in revenue. The shortfall was wider than the 36 cents per share reported a year earlier, while sales climbed
45 percent from the prior-year period.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.(BABA,) beat fiscal fourth-quarter sales expectations, offsetting a profit miss. Earnings for the quarter ended March 31 increased 97% to the U.S. dollar equivalent of $793 million, or 33 cents a share. Revenue grew 39% to $3.75 billion.

Merck posted an 18 percent jump in first-quarter income, beating Wall Street expectations. Merck reported first-quarter earnings of $1.13 billion, or 40 cents per share, up from $953 million, or 33 cents per share, in 2015’s first quarter.

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week, posting the biggest gain in more than a year, but the underlying trend continued to point to a strengthening labor market. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 17,000 to a seasonally adjusted 274,000 for the week ended April30, the Labor Department said.

Another report on Thursday showed a 35 percent surge in planned layoffs by U.S.-based employers last month. Most of the announced job cuts were concentrated in the energy sector, which is reeling from low oil prices that have hurt profits.

 

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