US stocks edged up on Wednesday, buoyed by the latest merger news, but pulled back from earlier highs as investors sifted through the latest batch of corporate earnings. Merger and acquisition activity continued to thrive on Wall Street. Time Warner shares jumped 16.4 percent to $82.63 as the best performer on the S&P 500 after Twenty-First Century Fox confirmed it made an $80 billion takeover offer for the company that was turned down.
Twenty-First Century Fox shares lost 5.2 percent to $33.37. Also supporting gains was chipmaker Intel, which climbed 6.7 percent to $33.85 following second-quarter results that topped analysts' estimates. The company also forecast third-quarter revenue above Wall Street's expectations.
A partnership struck between IBM and Apple Inc helped boost indexes. IBM will exclusively sell iPhones and iPads loaded with applications geared at enterprise clients this fall. IBM shares gained 2.1 percent to $191.53 as the Dow's biggest boost, while Apple advanced 1 percent to $96.24. The S&P technology sector gained 0.8 percent. Bank of America lost 2.2 percent to $15.48 after the second-largest US bank by assets reported a 43 percent drop in second-quarter profit as mortgage revenue fell and litigation costs increased.
Yahoo shares slumped 5 percent to $34.03 after disappointing results and outlook, although the company pledged to pay shareholders at least half the proceeds from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd's mega-IPO this fall. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 34.49 points or 0.2 percent, to 17,095.17, the S&P 500 gained 2.89 points or 0.15 percent, to 1,976.17 and the Nasdaq Composite added 5.28 points or 0.12 percent, to 4,421.67.
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