Stocks ticked higher as market participants reacted to the latest batch second-quarter earnings season reports and awaited results from tech heavyweights Netflix (NFLX ) and Tesla (TSLA ) after closing bell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 100 points, while the S&P 500 added 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite closed at a positive flatline.
Here's how the market settled on Wednesday:
S&P 500 Index (SPY ): +0.24% or +10.74 points to 4,565.72
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA ): +0.31% or +109.28 points to 35,061.21
Nasdaq Composite Index (QQQ ): +0.03% or +4.38 points to 14,358.02
In the spotlight, Goldman Sachs (GS ) reported a profit miss for the second-quarter due to losses in real estate and the sale of its GreenSky lending unit. The big bank had previously warned investors that the quarter may deliver disappointing results.
"This quarter reflects continued strategic execution of our goals," CEO David Solomon said in the earnings release. "I remain fully confident that continued execution will enable us to deliver on our through-the-cycle return targets and create significant value for shareholders."
Elsewhere for earnings, Carvana (CVNA ) shares popped 40% Wednesday after the company announced it had reached a debt restructuring agreement to reduce its total debt by more than $1.2 billion.
"This transaction significantly increases our financial flexibility by reducing our total debt, extending maturities, and lowering near-term cash interest expense as we continue to execute our plan of driving significant profitability and returning to growth," Carvana CFO Mark Jenkins said in a statement.
In economic news, U.S. housing starts fell 8% in June over the previous month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.434 million units, according to the Census Bureau on Wednesday. Meanwhile, building permits also slipped 3.7% in June as demand wanes in response to higher mortgage rates.
For single stocks, Apple (AAPL ) shares rose Wednesday on a Bloomberg report that the tech giant is developing its own framwork to create large languauge models to rival those from companies like OpenAI and Google (GOOGL ), according to people familiar with the matter.
Netflix (NFLX ) quietly removed its lowest ad-free subscription tier in the United States ahead of its earnings report after market close on Wednesday. "The Basic plan is no longer available for new or rejoining members. If you are currently on the Basic plan, you can remain on this plan until you change plans of cancel your account," Netflix said on its website. The company's ad-free plans now start at $15.49 per month, with Netflix also offering a $6.99 per month ad-supported tier.
Looking ahead, market participants will weigh earnings reports from Tesla, Netflix, United Airlines (UAL ) and IBM (IBM ) after the bell.
