Stocks Opened Higher on Robust Earnings, M&A Activity

U.S. stocks opened higher on Monday as strong earnings and a round of deal news boosted positive sentiment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 165.44 points, or 0.67%, to 24,476.63. The S&P 500 added 10.45 points, or 0.39%, to 2,680.36. The Nasdaq Composite gained 36.46 points, or 0.51%, to 7,156.26.

Oil prices declined on Monday, trimming their monthly advances as a rise in U.S. oil rigs spurred concerns of an increase in production stateside. West Texas Intermediate crude oil dropped 61 cents, or 0.9%, to $67.50 a barrel. Brent fell 62 cents, or 0.8%, to $73.17 a barrel.

The boards of Sprint Corp. and T-Mobile US Inc. struck an all-stock $26 billion merger that, if allowed by antitrust enforcers, would leave the U.S. wireless market dominated by three national players.

Americans boosted their spending by 0.4 percent in March, the best showing in three months. An inflation gauge tied to consumer spending advanced 1.9 percent in March compared to 12 months ago. That was the fastest pace since a similar 12-month gain of 1.9 percent in February 2017.

McDonald’s Corp (MCD.N) reported first quarter results that topped analysts’ forecast on Monday. Net income rose to $1.38 billion, or $1.72 per share, from $1.21 billion, or $1.47 per share, a year earlier. Excluding items, the company earned $1.79 per share, beating the estimate of $1.67. Revenue overall fell 9 percent.