Stocks Opened Higher on Strong Earnings

U.S. stocks opned higher on Tuesday, as earnings continue to come in largely ahead of expectations. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 161.55 points, or 0.69%, to 23,435.51. The S&P 500 gained 2.97 points, or 0.12%, to 2,567.95. The Nasdaq Composite added 1.09 points, or 0.02%, to 6,587.91.

Oil prices edged up Tuesday morning, as market players weighed geopolitical risk against rising U.S. crude exports. December West Texas Intermediate crude rose 33 cents, or 0.6%, to $52.23 a barrel. Brent oil rose 35 cents, or 0.6%, to $57.72 a barrel.

Caterpillar Inc on Tuesday blew past Wall Street’s profit and revenue estimates on surprisingly strong demand for its construction equipment in North America and robust sales in China. Excluding restructuring costs, Caterpillar earned $1.95 per share. Total revenue rose to $11.41 billion. The company said it now expects 2017 sales and revenue of $44 billion, up from its earlier forecast of $42 billion to $44 billion. It expects adjusted earnings of $6.25 per share, up from the $5.00.

General Motors Co posted a stronger than expected pre-tax profit for the third quarter. GM posted a third-quarter net loss of $2.98 billion, or $2.03 per share, compared with a profit of $2.77 billion, or $1.71 per share a year earlier. But excluding one-time charges, the company earned $1.32 a share, above analyst expectations of $1.14. Revenue in the quarter fell to $33.6 billion from $38.9 billion a year earlier.

McDonald’s Corp same-store sales beat expectations in the third quarter. Excluding items, McDonald’s earned a profit of $1.76 per share, only just missing an average analyst estimate of $1.77 per share. Total revenue beat forecasts but overall was down 10.4 percent at $5.75 billion.