Stocks Opened Higher, Eyed on Earnings

U.S. stocks opened slightly higher on Wednesday, as investors continued to focus on earnings releases, including results from Bank of America and Goldman Sachs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 103.60 points, or 0.40%, to 25,896.46. The S&P 500 gained 5.36 points, or 0.19%, to 2,781.78. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 15.25 points, or 0.21%, to 7,238.94.

Oil prices weakened following early gains on Wednesday, but remained underpinned by tightening supply and strong global demand. Brent crude futures were at $68.90 a barrel at 1314 GMT, down 25 cents from the last close, after hitting $69.37. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $63.63 a barrel, down 10 cents on the day and down from an earlier high of $63.96.

Bank of America (BAC) reported fourth-quarter earnings results. The bank reported fourth-quarter net income of $2.4 billion, down from $4.5 billion a year ago. Per-share earnings were 20 cents in the most recent quarter, down from 39 cents a year ago. Total revenue came to $20.44 billion, an increase from the $19.99 billion booked a year ago.

Goldman Sachs on Wednesday reported fourth-quarter earnings of $5.68 a share that topped Wall Street estimates. The investment bank titan also beat on revenue, reporting $7.83 billion against estimates of $7.61 billion.

Tiffany & Co said on Wednesday its same-store sales in the Americas rose 6 percent in the holiday period, helping the upscale jeweler raise its full-year earnings forecast. Tiffany now expects earnings to rise in high-single digit percentage range for its fiscal year ending Jan. 31, from its prior forecast of mid-single digit rise.

U.S. factory production rose for a fourth straight month in December, capping the strongest quarter since 2010 and underscoring a resurgence in manufacturing that’s primed for further advances, Federal Reserve data showed Wednesday.