Stocks opened little changed but better than expected earnings from Dow components UnitedHealth (UNH) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) helped the blue chip index gain some momentum. The Dow pushed past the 23,000 level for the first time during the session, but closed right below that round number milestone. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., industrial production rose 0.3% in September, with capacity at 76.0%. The NAHB housing market index bounced 4 points to a reading of 68. The trade price report beat estimates with big September headline gains of 0.7% for imports and 0.8% for exports. In Europe, the final Eurozone CPI figures for September were inline with the flash readings while Germany's ZEW current situation and expectations readings came in a bit short of expectations. COMPANY NEWS: Netflix (NFLX) reported the addition of 5.3M subscribers in Q3, topping consensus expectations, and its guidance for Q4 also came in slightly above forecasts. However, expectations were elevated heading into the report and the stock responded to the quarterly update with a 1.6% decline... UnitedHealth was the clear winner among the three Dow members that reported this morning, rising 5.6% after its "beat and raise." Johnson & Johnson, which also raised its guidance, gained 3.5% while Goldman Sachs (GS) fell 2.5% despite posting earnings and revenues that topped consensus... In addition to Goldman, big bank peer Morgan Stanley (MS) reported this morning and also posted better than expected top and bottom-line results. Unlike Goldman, the stock advanced 0.3% after the report... Meanwhile, the Hill reported that Republican Senator Lamar Alexander said that he and Democratic Senator Patty Murray have reached a bipartisan deal to extend key Affordable Care Act payments to insurers for two years. The news follows an announcement last week by President Trump that he was cutting off such payments. Shares of a number of health insurance companies as well as shares of hospital operators rose following the news. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the notable gainers was Harley-Davidson (HOG), rising 2% after reporting Q3 earnings. Also higher was Ionis Pharmaceuticals (IONS), which gained over 4% after Morgan Stanley said its survey predicts U.S sales of the spinal muscular atrophy drug Spinraza that are ahead of the consensus view. Freeport McMoran (FCX) was among the noteworthy losers, sliding 2% after Deutsche Bank downgraded the stock to Sell. Also lower was Impax (IPXL), which slipped more than 3% after the company announced an agreement for an all-stock deal to combine with Amneal Pharmaceuticals. INDEXES: The Dow rose 40.48, or 0.18%, to 22,997.44, the Nasdaq dipped 0.35, or 0.01%, to 6,623.66, and the S&P 500 added 1.72, or 0.07%, to 2,559.36.
