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NEW YORK (CNN/Money) -
A broad-based stock market rally Thursday lifted the major stock gauges, sending the Nasdaq to a nearly year high.
As of 5:30 p.m. ET, Nasdaq and S&P 500 futures pointed to a mostly flat open Friday when fair value is taken into account.
The Nasdaq composite (up 32.22 to 2,220.46, Charts) gained 1.5 percent, closing at its highest point since June 7, 2001, when it closed at 2,264.
The S&P 500 (up 11.59 to 1,242.80, Charts) index added close to 1 percent, closing at its highest point since August.
The Dow Jones industrial average (up 45.46 to 10,720.22, Charts) saw a smaller advance as weakness in Altria tempered strength in General Motors and Hewlett-Packard.
Treasury prices slipped modestly, lifting the corresponding yields. The dollar fell versus other major currencies.
After the close, Hewlett-Packard (Research) reported quarterly earnings and revenue that was above analysts' average estimates. HP shares gained more than 5 percent in extended-hours trading.
Also after the close, Walt Disney (Research) reported lower quarterly profit, hurt by weakness in its movie business. Excluding charges, the company reported higher quarterly earnings that improved from a year ago. Shares slipped more than 2 percent after the close.
Earnings due Friday include retailers AnnTaylor (Research) and Dillard's (Research). There are no economic reports on tap.
Tech gains, falling oil prices and reassuring comments from General Motors all helped fuel an advance Thursday, as did some of the morning's economic reads.
The stock advance was positive and likely tied to hopes for an end-of-year run-up, said David Briggs, head of equity trading at Federated Investors. But it also put the S&P 500 near the top of its recent trading range.
"A lot of times in the last few months, we've seen a good day, but no follow through," Briggs said. "The advance today is nice to see and looks good technically, but I want to wait until tomorrow."
Briggs said that the tech sector strength on the day was likely tied to end-of-year sector rotation, with investors starting to pull money out of energy and put it into financials, technology and other sectors.
In addition, the sector may have benefited from some of the morning's economic news, including the read on industrial production.
"The tech portion of the industrial production number was strong, and that's probably helping tech issues," said John Forelli, portfolio manager at Independence Investments.
On the move
General Motors (Research) jumped 6.3 percent after the company's CEO reportedly posted a letter on the automaker's internal Web site saying that GM's financials are sound and that talk of bankruptcy is overblown.
GM stock has slid over the last few sessions amid ongoing worries about a potential bankruptcy. (Full story)
Google (up $5.30 to $403.45, Research) crossed the $400 a share level for the first time Thursday. That gave a lift to other Internet stocks, including Yahoo! (up $2.19 to $42.23, Research).
Brocade Communications Systems (Research) gained nearly 4 percent after the company boosted its fiscal fourth-quarter earnings per share and revenue forecast late Wednesday.
Other networking and telecom shares gained as well, including ADC Telecommunications (up $1.77 to $20.07, Research), Adtran (up $2.29 to $29.29, Research) and Tellabs (up $0.53 to $9.69, Research). The Amex Networking (up 6.14 to 232.66, Charts) index rose 2.8 percent.
Homebuilding stocks rallied, sending the Dow Jones Home Construction (up $40.92 to $919.75, Research) index up by 4.7 percent.
On the downside, Altria (down $2.09 to $71.80, Research) slipped 2.8 percent after Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock on concerns that the company's proposed break up could be delayed due to ongoing litigation.
Applied Materials (down $0.43 to $17.34, Research) slipped after reporting quarterly earnings and revenue late Wednesday that fell from a year earlier. The chipmaker also issued a current-quarter earnings forecast that was short of earlier estimates.
Taro Pharmaceutical Industries (down $7.50 to $14.40, Research) slumped 34 percent in active Nasdaq trade after reporting weaker quarterly earnings that missed forecasts.
Market breadth was positive. On the New York Stock Exchange, winners beat losers three to one on volume of 1.69 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, advancers topped decliners by close to three to one on volume of 1.84 billion shares.
Economic news is mixed
A bigger-than-expected drop in weekly jobless claims added to the morning's positives, as did the broadly upbeat readings on industrial production and capacity utilization.
On the downside, a separate report showed that the pace of housing starts and building permits slowed more than expected in October.
Released at noon, the Philadelphia Fed index, a look at business activity in the Mid-Atlantic region, fell to 11.5 in November from 17.3 in October, below forecasts.
U.S. light crude oil for December sank $1.48 to settle at $56.40 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after having risen in the early morning.
Treasury prices edged moderately higher. The gains lowered the yield on the 10-year note to about 4.46 percent from 4.47 percent late Wednesday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
The dollar declined versus the euro and yen.
COMEX gold rallied $7.80 to settle at $486.90 an ounce.
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