U.S. Stocks Headed For Another Positive Close; Nasdaq Outperforms

(RTTNews) - U.S. stocks are turning in a fine performance on Wednesday, with those from the technology sector outperforming on some upbeat earnings updates and corporate news.

The major averages are all up in positive territory, with the Nasdaq rising about 265 points or 1.35 percent to 20,021.78. The Dow is up 112.47 or 0.26 percent, at 44,138.28, while the S&P 500 is up 41.87 points or 0.69 percent, at 6,091.11.

Netflix Inc.'s shares soared more than 12 percent after the company reported an addition of 19 million subscribers in the fourth quarter, the biggest ever subscriber gains in any quarter. Netflix's bottom line came in at $1.869 billion, or $4.27 per share in the fourth quarter, compared with $938 million, or $2.11 per share, last year.

Oracle Corporation is extending gains from previous session, and is up nearly 8 percent.

NVIDIA is gaining about 4.7 percent. Microsoft Corporation is up nearly 4 percent. Amazon, Meta Platforms, Eli Lilly, Procter & Gamble, Salesforce, American Express and Analog Devices are up 1 to 3 percent.

Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, Bank of America, Exxon Mobil Corporation, Berkshire Hathaway and Tesla are among the prominent losers.

In overseas trading, Asian stocks ended mixed on Wednesday, with Chinese and Hong Kong markets falling sharply after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened tariffs on the EU and China to address trade imbalances and combat fentanyl trafficking.

European stocks closed broadly higher on Wednesday, and several markets in the region posted record highs, reacting to some upbeat earnings updates and on optimism about interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and a few other central banks, including the ECB, this year.