MARKET SNAPSHOT: U.S. Stocks Flirt With Record Levels On Better-than-feared Earnings

By Anora Mahmudova and Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch

Delta soars on earnings beat

Wednesday's gains on Wall Street sent key U.S. stock indexes close to record levels, as better-than-expected earnings and a jump in oil prices invigorated stock market bulls.

Broadly, investors appeared to have brushed off weaker-than-expected economic reports, while the ECB's success rolling out its quantitative-easing program over the past month has provided a favorable backdrop for global stocks.

Read: Draghi weathers confetti storm to make case for continued QE (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/draghi-let-quantitative-easing-do-its-job-2015-04-15)

The S&P 500 (SPX) added 14 points, or 0.7%, to 2,109 and was within striking distance from the record level reached in March. Energy stocks rallied more than 2% following a 6% surge in crude-oil prices.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) added about 100 points, or 0.6%, to 18,136.

The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) gained 40 points, or 0.8%, to 5,017.4.

James Abate, chief investment officer at Centre Funds, with over $1 billion in assets under management, said companies so far are beating or meeting lowered expectations, driving bullish sentiment.

"The main reason equity markets are inching higher in an environment where the economic growth is decelerating and earnings falling, is because of monetary policy of abundant liquidity from the ECB, Bank of Japan and even the Federal Reserve," Abate said.

"So far in the earnings season, 35 of 37 companies on the S&P 500 either beat or met expectations,"Abate said. Most estimates for quarterly results had been lowered heading into th this earnings period, Abate noted. "Companies have become very adept at boosting their earnings per share by cutting cost, managing taxes and share buybacks," he said.

Investors also dismissed weaker-than-expected manufacturing data released ahead of the opening bell.

In economic news, the Empire State manufacturing index plunged, falling to a negative reading, while, industrial production fell by more than expected in March. Both reports suggested a deceleration in economic growth. Meanwhile, a gauge of confidence among home builders (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/homebuilder-confidence-increases-in-april-nahb-2015-04-15)rose in April, according to the National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo housing-market index released Wednesday.

St. Louis Fed President James Bullard (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/feds-bullard-says-rate-hikes-are-needed-for-coming-boom-2015-04-15), speaking at the annual Hyman Minsky conference, made a case for raising interest rates soon, arguing the level needs to be appropriate for the coming "boom" for the U.S. economy.

Also read: Beige Book finds layoffs due to low oil prices (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/beige-book-finds-layoffs-due-to-low-oil-prices-2015-04-15)

Wednesday's earnings:Bank of America Corp.(BAC)swung to a profit in the first quarter (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/bank-of-america-swings-to-quarterly-profit-2015-04-15-748540) as it started to recover from its large legal losses in prior years. Earnings, however, missed analyst forecasts. Shares were down 0.7%.

Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL) posted first-quarter profits that were better than analysts' estimates (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/delta-shares-up-as-profit-beats-to-cut-capacity-to-combat-dollar-strength-2015-04-15). Although the strong dollar is creating headwinds, the airline said the strengthening buck contributes to a lower fuel bill. Shares jumped 2.3%.

Late Tuesday, Intel Corp.(INTC) reported a 3% rise in first-quarter earnings (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/intel-reports-3-rise-in-earnings-2015-04-14-164851539), in line with analyst expectations. Shares were up 4.6% ahead of the bell. RBC Capital Markets lifted the company to outperform from sector perform and raised its target price to $40 from $38.

For more on today's notable movers, read our Movers & Shakers column ().

Other markets: Chinese stocks slumped after data showed the country's gross domestic product rose 7% in the first quarter (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/china-data-what-the-experts-are-saying-2015-04-15), confirming economic expansion is slowing down.

European stocks closed higher after the European Central Bank, as expected, left rates unchanged Wednesday (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ecb-leaves-rates-unchanged-draghi-to-detail-qe-progress-2015-04-15).

Crude-oil (CLK5) prices jumped nearly 6% (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid) to settle at $56.39 - the highest level of this year. The gains were driven by a smaller-than-expected increase in stockpiles as well as forecast of higher demand from the International Energy Agency (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/iea-sees-acceleration-in-oil-demand-growth-in-2015-2015-04-15).

In other markets, gold futures finished higher, reclaiming the $1,200-an-ounce level and the dollar gave up earlier gains and moved lower (http://www.marketwatch.com/storyno-meta-for-guid) against most major currencies.

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