Upbeat Earnings Send Markets Soaring
Investors embraced upbeat earnings to send the Dow soaring to close above the 12,000 mark for the first time in more than two years. The blue chip index leaped 148 points to 12,040 while Nasdaq soared 51 points to 2751.
On the upside
Fourth quarter earnings for Entegris (Nasdaq: ENTG) more than doubled to beat expectations as revenue rose.
Lexmark International (NYSE: LXK) reported sharply higher fourth quarter earnings that surpassed analyst estimates.
Tupperware Brands (NYSE: TUP) blamed charges for lower fourth quarter earnings but the results topped estimates.
On the downside
Fourth quarter earnings rose for Paccar (Nasdaq: PCAR) but the truck maker warned that increasing commodity prices will hurt margins.
The Forensic Factor questioned AutoChina International's (Nasdaq: AUTC) accounting practices.Zoo Entertainment (Nasdaq: ZOOG) launched the online community indiePub Mobile for independent game developers but the stock price fell.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of more than 4 to 1 on the NYSE and by more than 3 to 1 on Nasdaq. The Russell 2000 which tracks small cap stocks surged 17 points 798.
