U.S. Stocks Rise; S&P 500 Targets 1,500

U.S. stocks gained Tuesday, with the S&P 500 index posting its longest winning streak in nearly six weeks, as Wall Street embraced quarterly results from corporations including insurer and Dow component Travelers Cos. Inc.

“We’re right in the middle of the thick of earnings season, and materials actually came out and beat expectations, which could mean the economy is stronger than we realized,” said Randy Frederick, managing director of active trading and derivatives at the Schwab Center for Financial Research.

Closing at its highest level since Dec. 10, 2007, the Dow Jones Industrial Average  advanced 62.43 points, or 0.5%, to 13,712.13, with Travelers   among the 22 of its 30 components rising after reporting profit that easily beat Wall Street’s expectations as it charged more for its coverage but still retained customers.

The S&P 500 Index  rose 6.53 points, or 0.4%, to 1,492.51, with materials and financials performing best and consumer staples the only decliner among its 10 major industry sectors.

The S&P 500’s rise, which has it up 4.7% since the start of the year, puts it well above the old resistance level of 1,465, which is now viewed as a technical support level, according to Frederick, who said he does not see any resistance until 1,516.

“Earnings aren’t growing very much overall, but expectations are so low that I don’t think earnings are going to hurt the market much,” said Bruce Bittles, chief investment strategist at Robert W. Baird & Co.

“The glaring potential problem is sentiment; it’s hard to find anyone who believes the market is not going up now, which is always some cause for concern, at least in the short term,” Bittles added.

Wall Street‘s optimism could hit a peak in short order and prompt a market consolidation or market correction, according to Bittles, who lists as among the possibilities a compromise to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, the S&P 500 crossing 1,500 or an upside surprise in results from Apple Inc. .

House Republicans have set a vote for Wednesday on raising the U.S. debt limit through the middle of May, in a move the White House has welcomed as a means of scaling back brinkmanship over the budget debate.

Apple reports fiscal first-quarter results on Wednesday, with the world’s most valuable company facing increased production costs and competition from Samsung Electronics. Apple shares rose 1% on Tuesday.

The Nasdaq Composite Index  rose 8.47 points, or 0.3%, to 3,143.18.

For every stock falling more than two gained on the New York Stock Exchange, where almost 699 million shares traded.

Composite volume surpassed 3.5 billion.

Moving issues

Among individual stock movers, Boeing Co.  shed 1.2% after the aerospace manufacturer stopped deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner, which has been grounded by regulators looking into whether its batteries are safe.

Fellow Dow component Verizon Communications Inc.  gained 0.9% after its chief financial officer said the telecommunications provider might be able to repurchase shares sooner than expected.

Shares of Johnson & Johnson declined 0.7% after the largest provider of health-care products offered a full-year forecast that came in below estimates.

DuPont  rose 1.8% after fourth-quarter profit exceeded expectations.

Stock indexes had been briefly dented by a report from the National Association of Realtors, which found U.S. existing-home sales fell 1% in December.

The trade-group report followed data from real-estate provider Zillow Inc., which showed the value of American homes rose 5.9% last year.

In the short run, market indexes “are entirely out of energy and overbought,” said Jeffrey Saut, chief investment strategist at Raymond James. “That counsels for caution despite the halfhearted Dow Theory buy signal generated by last Friday’s closing high by the industrials, which confirmed the DJ Transports  sprint to new all-time ‘highs’ last week.”

“Whatever happens in the near term, there is nothing to suggest the path of least resistance is not higher over the intermediate and longer term,” Saut added.

Marketwatch