U.S. stocks rose Wednesday, with the S&P 500 extending record gains into a fifth session, after companies including Electronic Arts Inc. projected earnings that beat estimates. A day after closing above 15,000 for the first time, The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 48.92 points to 15,105.12, its second straight record close. Closing with a fifth consecutive record, the S&P 500 index gained 6.72 points to 1,632.68. Materials and technology fed sector gains, while utilities led losses among the S&P 500's 10 major industry groups. “The baton seems to be getting passed from defensive names like utilities to consumer discretionary, industrial and energy names," noted Dave Gedeon, managing director at Nasdaq OMX Global Indexes. Friday's nonfarm payrolls report for April, which relayed a better-than-expected increase of 165,000 jobs, combined with rising home values, “continue to add to market confidence that economic conditions are improving," Gedeon said. Electronic Arts rallied 17% and Whole Foods Market Inc. jumped 10% after the upscale grocer raised its full-year profit forecast. Wednesday's session began with first-quarter earnings having been reported by 436 of the S&P 500's companies, with 67.2% beating, 9.2% in line and 23.6% missing consensus estimates by analysts, according to Thomson Reuters. Of the 293 companies that exceeded earnings estimates, 48% missed their revenue estimate. In a typical quarter, 31% of those beating on earnings miss on revenue, according to Greg Harrison, corporate earnings research analyst at Thomson Reuters. The Nasdaq Composite advanced 16.64 points to 3,413.26. For every stock on the decline, nearly two rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where 728 million shares traded. Composite volume neared 3.5 billion. Crude moves The price of gold closed at a more-than three-week high, with futures for June delivery rising $24.90 to end at $1,473.70 an ounce on the Comex in New York. Treasury yields fell, with the benchmark 10-year note used to determine mortgage rates and other consumer loans at 1.762%. The U.S. dollar fell against other global currencies, including the euro . Crude costs increased, with oil futures for June delivery rising $1.00 to a five-week high of $96.62 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Equities began the session lower, but the recent trend of sidelined investors waiting for dips to buy stocks came back into play, with stocks bouncing back during the morning. Wall Street hasn't yet been able to sustain much of a decline with monetary easing by the U.S. Federal Reserve and healthy corporate earnings propelling the market's advance. Ahead of Wednesday's open, economic reports from Germany and China surpassed expectations, with Germany's industrial production rising for a second month in March and China's export growth increasing in April. Marketwatch
