US stocks rose on Wednesday on news of major investors taking stakes in companies such as Citigroup Inc, but gains were limited in the aftermath of the market's recent run-up.
Shares of Citigroup climbed 3.9 percent to $54.83 on the New York Stock Exchange after an affiliate of Edward Lampert's hedge fund disclosed it owned more than 15 million shares in the largest US bank.
But with the S&P 500 index coming off its sixth straight week of gains, some investors opted to lock in profits and were switching investment strategies. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 41.77 points, or 0.31 percent, at 13,425.61. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 5.86 points, or 0.39 percent, at 1,507.05. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 5.68 points, or 0.22 percent, at 2,530.97.
Shares of Citigroup were the biggest advancer on both the Dow and the S&P 500. Limiting gains was Applied Materials Inc, which was among the biggest drags on the Nasdaq and the S&P 500. The largest supplier of equipment for producing microchips forecast a drop in orders. Applied Materials fell 4.5 percent to $18.89 on the Nasdaq. The Philadelphia Stock Exchange index of semiconductors was down 0.5 percent.