Stocks Opened Higher on Strong Earnings

U.S. stocks opened higher on Tuesday, helped by strong results from Verizon and Caterpillar as well as gains in technology stocks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 59.91 points, or 0.25%, to 24,508.60. The S&P 500 added 7.38 points, or 0.28%, to 2,677.67. The Nasdaq Composite gained 21.70 points, or 0.30%, to 7,150.31.

Oil prices moved firmly higher on Tuesday, with Brent crossing $75 for the first time since 2014 as tensions between Saudi Arabia and Yemen heated up. Brent for June delivery rose 41 cents, or 0.6%, to $75.14 a barrel. West Texas Intermediate crude for June jumped 53 cents, or 0.8%, to $69.15 a barrel.

Home prices in the U.S. rose in February with no sign of changing direction. Standard & Poor’s said Tuesday that its S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller national home price index reported a 6.3% annual increase in February, up from 6.1% a month earlier.

Caterpillar Inc on Tuesday upgraded the outlook for 2018 profits after it beat estimates for first-quarter earnings on strong global demand for its equipment. For the first quarter, the company reported a net profit of $2.74 per share, above analysts’ consensus forecast of $2.04 per share and now it expects the full-year profit to range between $9.75 to $10.75 per share.

Verizon Communications Inc (VZ) reported better-than-expected first-quarter results on Tuesday. Net income attributable to Verizon rose to $4.55 billion, or $1.11 per share, in the first quarter ended March 31 from $3.45 billion, or 85 cents per share, a year earlier.

Corning Inc. (GLW) on Tuesday reported a first-quarter loss of $589 million, after reporting a profit in the same period a year earlier. The company said it had a loss of 72 cents per share.