Stocks Opened Higher as Investors Shook off Coronavirus Fears

U.S. stocks opened higher on Wednesday, buoyed by signs of a continued slowdown in the number of new cases of coronavirus in China. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately rose 229.14 points, or 0.78%, to 29,505.48. The S&P 500 added 19.07 points, or 0.57%, to 3,376.82. The Nasdaq Composite gained 67.36 points, or 0.70%, to 9,706.30.

Oil futures rose Wednesday, as worries eased over coronavirus disease’s hit to crude demand. West Texas Intermediate crude for March delivery rose 78 cents, or 1.6%, to $50.72 a barrel, while April Brent was $1.12 higher, at $55.13 a barrel, a rise of 2.1%.

CVS Health Corporation (CVS) posted fourth-quarter results that topped consensus estimates. Fourth-quarter adjusted earnings were $1.73 per share on net revenue of $66.89 billion, better than the $1.68 per share on net revenue of $63.95 billion expected.

Lyft (LYFT) reported fourth-quarter results that beat consensus expectations, topping $1 billion in quarterly revenue for the first time as riders grew more than expected.Lyft said it sees revenue of between $1.055 and $1.06 billion, topping consensus expectations for as much as $1.05 billion.