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Stocks opened sharply higher courtesy of solid earnings reports from Netflix (NFLX), UnitedHealth (UNH), Goldman Sachs (GS), and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). Once the market opened it went into drift mode for the remainder of the session as investors looked toward the next round of reports. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., industrial production rose 0.5% in March, with capacity at 78.0%, which was better than expected. Housing starts rebounded 1.9% to a 1.319M rate in March, while building permits rose 2.5% to a 1.354M rate. Additionally, the IMF issued its latest projections for global growth of 3.9% in 2018 and 2019, unchanged from its prior forecasts in January. COMPANY NEWS: Shares of Goldman Sachs initially rose after the bank reported better than expected earnings and revenue and boosted its quarterly dividend to 80c per share. However, like the other big banks that have reported recently, the stock finished the day 1.7% lower after investors digested the report and associated earnings call... Netflix (NFLX), on the other hand, jumped in afterhours trading and added to its gains, closing 9.2% higher after its earnings, and most notably its subscriber figures, topped expectations... Two of the largest names in healthcare, Johnson & Johnson and UnitedHealth, moved in opposite directions following their reports, with the drug and device seller sliding 1% and the insurer gaining 3.5%... Starbucks (SBUX) said it will close all of its U.S. stores on the afternoon of May 29 to conduct "racial-bias education geared toward preventing discrimination in its stores." The move follows an incident from last week when two black men were arrested at one of the company's Philadelphia stores, sparking accusations of racial profiling at the coffee chain... Southwest Airlines (LUV) shares ended the day 1.1% lower after a Southwest flight made an emergency landing at Philadelphia International Airport after an issue involving one of the jet's engines. According to NBC News, a passenger on the flight was partially sucked out of the plane when a window imploded after a piece of engine flew into and broke the window. National Transportation Safety Board chairman Robert Sumwalt said at a news conference on the matter that one passenger on said flight has died, the first fatality on a U.S. airline in nine years. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Twitter (TWTR), which rose 11% after Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak upgraded the stock to Equal Weight, stating that recent advertiser conversations have been more positive about Twitter's ad business and he is also more optimistic about its monthly active user growth. Also higher was Roku (ROKU), which jumped 9% after it said it will be offering Disney's (DIS) ESPN+ on its platform. Among the notable losers was GoPro (GPRO), which fell nearly 10% after Longbow analyst Joe Wittine placed the odds of the company being bought this year at "60/40." Also lower was Ladder Capital (LADR), which dropped about 4% after Related Fund Management withdrew its proposal to acquire the company. INDEXES: The Dow rose 213.59, or 0.87%, to 24,786.63, the Nasdaq gained 124.81, or 1.74%, to 7,281.10, and the S&P 500 advanced 28.55, or 1.07%, to 2,706.39.

Stocks opened with solid gains thanks in large part to strong earnings reports from Netflix (NFLX), United Healthcare (UNH), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), and Goldman Sachs (GS). The reports are providing a strong starting point as earnings season picks up, which may bode well for stock prices. Since the open the market has drifted higher while adding to its opening gains, putting the Dow back in positive territory for the year a day after the S&P managed the same feat. ECONOMIC EVENTS: In the U.S., industrial production rose 0.5% in March, with capacity at 78.0%, which was better than expected. Housing starts rebounded 1.9% to a 1.319M rate in March, while building permits rose 2.5% to a 1.354M rate. Additionally, the IMF issued its latest projections for global growth of 3.9% in 2018 and 2019, unchanged from its prior forecasts in January. COMPANY NEWS: Shares of Goldman Sachs initially advanced after the financial giant reported better than expected earnings and revenue and increased its quarterly dividend to 80c per share. However, like the other big banks that have reported over the last two sessions, the stock weakened as investors digested the report and associated earnings call, leaving Goldman shares down 1% near noon... Netflix, on the other hand, jumped in afterhours trading and has added to its gains after its earnings, and most notably its subscriber figures, topped expectations. The streaming service operator, which added over 7M members in the first quarter of the year and sees adding more than 6M more in the next three months, saw a number of analysts raise their price targets following its report and rose about 9% near midday... Two of the largest names in healthcare, Johnson & Johnson and UnitedHealth, were heading in opposite directions following their reports, with the drug and device seller sliding 1% and the insurer gaining over 3%. MAJOR MOVERS: Among the noteworthy gainers was Roku (ROKU), which jumped 11% after it said it will be offering Disney's (DIS) ESPN+ on its platform. Also higher was Carvana (CVNA), which gained 7% after it said it had acquired Car360. Among the notable losers was GoPro (GPRO), which fell 8% after Longbow analyst Joe Wittine placed the odds of the company being bought this year at "60/40." Also lower was Ladder Capital (LADR), which fell 6% after Related Fund Management withdrew its proposal to acquire the company. INDEXES: Near midday, the Dow was up 260.64, or 1.06%, to 24,833.68, the Nasdaq was up 119.28, or 1.67%, to 7,275.56, and the S&P 500 was up 28.80, or 1.08%, to 2,706.64.