Wall Street S&P 500 in record high

The US stock market eked out a record high yesterday, as investors weighed positive earnings from the technology industry against disappointing news from Boeing and other companies.

Biotechnology stocks were among the largest gainers. Among big tech names, Apple’s earnings topped Wall Street expectations, helped by rising shipments of iPhones. Microsoft also announced results that beat forecasts.

So far, with less than a fourth of US-listed companies reporting their quarterly financial performance, results have been coming in better than expected.

About 72% of Standard & Poor’s 500 companies that have reported earnings have beaten expectations, and 73% have beaten sales forecasts.

“It’s a little early, but things seem to be coming in OK,” said Sahak Manuelian, managing director of equity trading at Wedbush Securities.

Investors have become increasingly optimistic about the latest quarter. On June 30, they expected earnings to rise 4.9% from a year earlier. They now expect earnings to increase 5.5%.

The S&P 500 rose 3.48 points, or 0.2%, to close at 1,987.01, beating its previous record from July 3 by less than two points.

The Nasdaq composite rose 17.68 points, or 0.4%, to end at 4,473.70.

The Dow Jones industrial average bucked the trend. It fell 26.91 points, or 0.2%, to 17,086.63, and was dragged down by Boeing.

The aircraft maker slipped 3.03 dollars, or 2%, to 126.71 dollars, the biggest fall in the Dow, after reporting revenue yesterday that missed analysts’ expectations.

The Dow is a price-weighted index that has 30 stocks, so the movement of just one company can carry extra weight. Because Boeing is one of the Dow’s most expensive stocks, it has an outsized impact.

Biotechnology stocks, meanwhile, helped lift the other major indexes.

Puma Biotechnology, a drug development company, soared after the company disclosed positive trial results for an experimental breast cancer drug.

Puma rose 174.40 dollars, or 295%, to 233.43 dollars. Biogen Idec rose 33.93 dollars, or 11%, to 337.60 dollars after its quarterly results came in above investors’ expectations.

Unlike last week, investors were less focused on turmoil in Israel and Ukraine. However, market strategists say that with markets trading at all-time highs, any bad news could weigh on US stocks.

“Geopolitical flare-ups, European bank-related market jitters, today’s stretched valuations and relatively low market volatility leave (the market) vulnerable,” Russ Koesterich, chief investment strategist at Blackrock, wrote in a note to investors.