US stocks mostly higher on solid retail results

US stocks Tuesday closed mostly higher following some solid retail earnings reports. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 7.75 (0.05 percent) to 15,002.99. The broad-based S&P 500 gained 6.29 (0.38 percent) at 1,652.35, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose 24.50 (0.68 percent) to 3,613.59. All three indices had fallen over the prior four sessions. But analysts cited strong earnings reports Tuesday from Home Depot, Best Buy and others as giving the market "a reason to rally," as Brent Schutte of BMO Private Bank put it. Additionally, stocks got help from bond yields, which retreated from recent peaks. Dow component Home Depot opened higher, but fell 1.2 percent after earnings gained 17.2 percent and the company raised its full-year forecast on the strength of the housing recovery. However, the company's upgraded full-year earnings forecast of $3.60 per share still lags analyst expectations by four cents. Netflix jumped 5.2 percent after announcing a contract to exclusively stream the Weinstein Company's first-run films starting in 2016. Best Buy shot up 13.2 percent after earnings of 32 cents per share exceeded analyst expectations by 20 cents. Credit Suisse said the report was evidence Best Buy "is moving in the right direction and that management's ambitious plans are beginning to translate into better results." Troubled department store operator JC Penney rose 6.0 percent despite reporting a loss of $586 million compared with last year's loss of $147 million on lower-than-expected revenues. On the positive side, the company saw sequential sales improvement through the quarter and expects to see a continued rise in the second half of the year. Bookseller Barnes & Noble sank 16.3 percent after reporting an $87 million loss for the quarter on lower-than-expected revenues. Comparable store sales declined 9.1 percent. It said chairman Leonard Riggio had suspended a plan to acquire the company's retail business. Popular garment chain Urban Outfitters rose 8.2 percent after profits exceeded expectations by three cents at 51 cents per share. Bond prices rose. The yield on the 10-year US bond fell to 2.81 percent from 2.88 percent Monday, while the 30-year dropped to 3.85 percent from 3.90 percent. Bond prices and yields move inversely.