US stocks hit 16-month highs, aided by Motorola
( 2003-10-14 00:04) (Agencies)
US stocks surged to fresh 16-month highs on Monday after mobile phone maker
Motorola Inc. delivered better-than-expected results and an upbeat sales
forecast, reinforcing investors' faith that corporate America will deliver
strong earnings reports this week.
"The fail-safe for this market is to recognize that the economic recovery is
continuing and it is especially beneficial to profits," said Milton Ezrati,
senior economic strategist at money manager Lord Abbett & Co. "Absent other
news, or something to worry about, it rises."
The blue-chip Dow Jones industrial average rose 95.18 points, or 0.98
percent, to 9,769.86. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 9.23
points, or 0.89 percent, at 1,047.29. The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite
Index added 20.01 points, or 1.04 percent, at 1,935.32.
That marked fresh 16-month highs for the Dow and S&P 500, and a 19-month
high for the Nasdaq.
Motorola was the New York Stock Exchange's most heavily traded stock, up 15
cents, or 1.09 percent, to $13.94 after the world's No. 2 mobile phone maker
posted quarterly profit twice Wall Street estimates and forecast
stronger-than-expected sales in its current fourth quarter.
Manufacturing conglomerate Honeywell International Inc. led the Dow in gains,
up $1.22, or 4.4 percent, to $28.72 after its late Friday announcement that it
would buy Canada's Silent Witness Enterprises Ltd., a video monitoring
technology firm.
|
