Stocks Finished Higher on Solid Earnings

U.S. stocks finished higher on Thursday as investors welcomed a deluge of stronger-than-expected corporate earnings reports and economic data. The Dow Jones industrial Average advanced 174.22 points, or 0.85%, to 20,578.71. The S&P 500 climbed 17.67 points, or 0.76%, to 2,355.84. The Nasdaq Composite rose 53.74 points, or 0.92%, to 5,916.78.

Oil prices finished on a mixed note Thursday, with West Texas Intermediate crude extending a decline after a drop of nearly 4% a day earlier, on continued concerns about growing U.S. crude production. May WTI crude fell 17 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $50.27 a barrel. June WTI ended at $50.71, down 14 cents, or 0.3%.

Comments by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who said that President Donald Trump’s tax overhaul plans aren’t linked to the outcome of a health care bill, also bolstered sentiment, analysts said.

Initial jobless claims rose by 10,000 to a still-low 244,000 in mid-April. Meanwhile, the number of out-of-work people collecting unemployment checks fell to a 17-year low last week, underscoring the strongest U.S. labor market in years.

Verizon Communications Inc (VZ.N) on Thursday reported its first-ever quarterly loss of subscribers. Net income attributable to Verizon fell to $3.45 billion, or 84 cents per share, in the first quarter ended March 31, from $4.31 billion, or $1.06 per share, a year earlier. Total operating revenue fell to $29.81 billion from $32.17 billion a year earlier.