Stocks finished at their highest levels in three years, as investors cheered another batch of earnings results and a better-than-expected report on consumer confidence. Corporate earnings have been strong and are a good sign of global growth. IBM, which reported a better-than-expected first-quarter last week, announced a 15% quarterly dividend increase and said it would buy back more of its shares. Netflix tumbled more than 9%, a day after the company reported solid earnings but issued a weak outlook. After the bell, Amazon fell almost 6% the company reported Q1 earnings that sharply missed Wall Street forecasts.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Finished higher
Stocks finished at their highest levels in three years, as investors cheered another batch of earnings results and a better-than-expected report on consumer confidence. Corporate earnings have been strong and are a good sign of global growth. IBM, which reported a better-than-expected first-quarter last week, announced a 15% quarterly dividend increase and said it would buy back more of its shares. Netflix tumbled more than 9%, a day after the company reported solid earnings but issued a weak outlook. After the bell, Amazon fell almost 6% the company reported Q1 earnings that sharply missed Wall Street forecasts.
