Dow rings up another record close, but GDP drags

NEW YORK: The Dow Jones industrial average rose on Friday, with robust earnings pushing the blue-chip index to its third straight record close even as data showed the economy grew in the first quarter at its slowest pace in four years.   

Microsoft rose 3.5 per cent, helping to lift the Nasdaq composite index to its highest level in six years after the software maker reported a strong quarterly profit and joined the likes of Apple Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. with positive surprises on the technology front.   

"On balance, this move on the market has got to be considered impressive," said Michael Metz, chief investment strategist of Oppenheimer & Co. in New York.   

"It's partly earnings, but it's more importantly liquidity. There's a huge amount of money in the system and frankly it's finding alternatives not very attractive."   

Still, the data showing sluggish economic growth kept investors on edge and caused some to sell some of this week's winners that had fueled the stock market's surge.   

The Dow Jones industrial average finished up 15.44 points, or 0.12 per cent, to end at a record 13,120.94. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index dipped 0.18 of a point, or 0.01 per cent, to finish at 1,494.07. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 2.75 points, or 0.11 per cent, to close at 2,557.21.   

Friday's close was the Dow's 37th record finish  since the beginning of last October, when it first crossed the 12,000 threshold, and its third such feat since crossing 13,000 for the first time on Wednesday this week.   

All three major stock indexes notched their fourth straight week of gains, despite the S&P 500 ending slightly in the red.    For the week, the Dow rose 1.23 per cent, the S&P 500 gained 0.66 per cent and the Nasdaq advanced 1.22 per cent.   

During the session, the Dow set an intraday record high of 13,148.00. The blue-chip average sailed through the 13,000 threshold for the first time on Wednesday.   

While Microsoft led the Nasdaq's climb, it finished in second place within the S&P 500's major advancers, behind General Electric Co. GE's stock rose more than 2 per cent as an analyst suggested the conglomerate should spin off NBC and some of its other units.   

Shares of 3M Co., whose profits also eclipsed Wall Street's forecasts on Thursday, were another standout after a brokerage raised its price target on the stock.   

3M shares finished up 1.4 per cent at $81.55 on the New York Stock Exchange. It was the Dow's second-biggest advancer, behind shares of Honeywell International Inc. Honeywell's stock has climbed steadily since the diversified manufacturer posted strong earnings last Friday. Honeywell gained 2.2 per cent to close at $54.89 on the NYSE.   

In Nasdaq trading, Microsoft shares shot up 3.5 per cent to close at $30.12, after rising as high as $30.74.   

General Electric's shares rose 2.8 per cent to $36.84 on the NYSE after a Citigroup analyst wrote that GE should spin off NBC and several other units to make itself more focused and attractive to investors.   

Credit Suisse on Friday raised its price target on shares of 3M, the maker of Scotch tape and Post-It notes.   

Friday's other data also showed that a consumer sentiment index -- the ReutersUniversity of Michigan Surveys of Consumers -- slipped in April from March's level but it beat Wall Street's forecast, lending support to stocks.   

Through midday on Friday, 312 companies in the S&P 500 have reported results, with 68.6 per cent beating estimates, 17.9 per cent missing estimates and 13.5 per cent matching estimates.   

Volume was moderate on the NYSE, where about 1.50 billion shares changed hands, below last year's estimated daily average of 1.84 billion. On the Nasdaq, about 2.15 billion shares traded, above last year's daily average of 2.02 billion.   

Declining stocks outnumbered advancing ones by a ratio of about 9 to 7 on the NYSE and by about 3 to 2 on Nasdaq.