* Apple extends streak of strong numbers from big names
* Philly Fed, jobless claims tamper enthusiasm
* Biogen soars after clinical trial data
* Dow up 0.2 pct, S&P up 0.4 pct, Nasdaq up 0.5 pct
* For up-to-the-minute market news see []
(Updates prices, adds comment, UnitedHealth)
By Rodrigo Campos
NEW YORK, April 21 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on
Thursday as strong earnings reports lifted big names like
Apple, but underwhelming economic data and caution ahead of
the long weekend kept gains in check.
The S&P 500 bumped up once more close to 1,340, a level
that has triggered selling plenty of times this month. Some
see a failure to convincingly rise above 1,344, the recent
high in the benchmark, as a bearish technical signal.
But continuing with a recent swing in sentiment, Apple Inc
<AAPL.O>, up 2.7 percent at $351.51, posted results that
smashed Wall Street's expectations. The maker of the iPad and
iPhone joined Intel, United Technologies and other names that
have increased the perception of a healthy corporate America.
"Companies are proving the concern over expectations was
unwarranted because corporate earnings are looking very
strong," said Eric Kuby, chief investment officer of North
Star Investment Management Corp in Chicago.
Factory activity in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region slowed
sharply in April and the number of claims for unemployment
insurance fell less than expected last week, implying the
economy was struggling to regain momentum. For details see
[].
"Data is telling you we're experiencing a little bit of a
bump, a little bit slower growth," said Anthony Chan, chief
economist of J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Management in New
York.
But he said there was hidden good news in the "prices
paid" component of the Philadelphia Fed survey.
"The slowdown is also going to put a damper on price
inflation," he said.
The Dow Jones industrial average <> rose 26.30 points,
or 0.21 percent, to 12,479.84. The Standard & Poor's 500
<.SPX> added 5.44 points, or 0.41 percent, to 1,335.80. The
Nasdaq Composite <> gained 13.10 points, or 0.47 percent,
to 2,815.61.
The Dow climbed as high as 12,496.83, its highest intraday
level since early June 2008.
Travelers Cos Inc <TRV.N> gave the Dow its biggest lift
after the large property insurer reported a 30 percent rise in
quarterly profit as it recorded higher investment income.
Shares rose 3 percent to $60.90. []
Even Morgan Stanley <MS.N>, which reported a near 50
percent drop in profit, posted gains as the decline was
smaller than feared, thanks to stronger-than-expected
fixed-income trading results. Its shares gained 2.8 percent to
$26.77. [].
But McDonald's Corp <MCD.N> was off 1.7 percent at $77.09,
after the world's largest hamburger chain warned of
accelerating food price inflation. []
General Electric Co <GE.N> lost 2.5 percent to $19.89 as
results failed to impress investors even after the largest
U.S. conglomerate reported an 80 percent surge in
first-quarter profit and raised its quarterly dividend.
[]
Biogen Idec <BIIB.O> was the S&P 500's top gainer, up 18.3
percent at $102.41 after it released promising data from a
clinical trial of an experimental multiple sclerosis drug.
[].
UnitedHealth Group Inc's <UNH.N> quarterly profit flew
past estimates and its shares jumped 7.9 percent to $47.72.
The Morgan Stanley healthcare payor index <.HMO> gained 3.6
percent, the most in almost eight months.
Volume is expected to remain light on Thursday before a
three-day weekend. U.S. and many global markets are closed on
Friday in observance of Good Friday.
"As you approach every weekend, there seems to be some
concern about being long," said North Star's Kuby. "It's
becoming part of the dynamic."
(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Jan Paschal)
