NEW YORK — U.S. stocks edged higher Tuesday morning as health care companies and banks made modest gains. Oil prices also held steady after they jumped to two-year highs a day ago. Investors are focused on company earnings, with travel booking sites Priceline and TripAdvisor taking steep losses.þþKEEPING SCORE: The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 4 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,595 as of 9:55 a.m. Eastern time. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 48 points, or 0.2 percent, to 23,596. The Nasdaq composite added 2 points to 6,789. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks fell less than 1 point to 1,497.þþThe S&P 500, Dow and Nasdaq have closed at record highs the last two days.þþTRAVELING MOOD: Travel website TripAdvisor plunged after its third-quarter revenue fell short of analyst estimates. Booking service Priceline Group had a better-than-expected quarter, but its forecasts for the current quarter disappointed Wall Street. Analysts said the company is spending a lot of money on advertising, but that may pay off with increased market share. TripAdvisor sank $6.37, or 16.1 percent, to $33.16 and Priceline lost $192.47, or 10.1 percent, to $1,710.53. Competitor Expedia shed $2.58, or 2.1 percent, to $120.40.þþRoyal Caribbean Cruises jumped $6.66, or 5.3 percent, to $132 after it had a strong quarter even though its business was affected by three major hurricanes.þþEARLY LEADERS: AbbVie climbed $2.42, or 2.6 percent, to $95.38 and Incyte rose $3.23, or 3.1 percent, to $108.68 as drugmakers helped the health care sector advance. Financial service company Prudential added $1.23, or 1.1 percent, to $113.62 and insurer Progressive picked up 68 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $50.89. Industrial firms also rose. Logistics services provider Expeditors International of Washington jumped $4.67, or 8.1 percent, to $62.17 after it did better than investors expected in the third quarter. Aerospace company Boeing picked up $2.62, or 1 percent, to $266.69.
Source: NY Times
