Stocks Climb As Upbeat Earnings Boost Market; Nasdaq Trades In Record Territory

Stocks opened higher on Thursday, with the Nasdaq Composite Index trading above its highest-ever closing level, as a spate of encouraging corporate earnings lifted the broader market. The S&P 500 index advanced 2 points, or 0.1%, to 2,389, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 19 points, or 0.1%, to 20,990. The Nasdaq gained 12 points, or 0.2%, to 6,037. Shares of Ford Motor Co. rose after the car giant's earnings and revenue topped analysts' expectations. Dow Chemical Co. shares rose after its earnings came in above expectations. Shares of Under Armour Inc. soared after the athletic-apparel maker reported a smaller-than-expected loss for the first quarter. Stocks finished marginally lower on Wednesday after the White House unveiled the broad strokes of its long-anticipated tax plan. The plan largely hewed to policies that President Donald Trump advocated during the campaign, which had already been incorporated into the market's valuation, market strategists said.