NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - Stocks got a boost at the open Thursday after better-than-expected earnings from Pfizer and Merrill calmed concerns about corporate results.

The Dow Jones industrial average (down 41.46 to 10,854.86, Charts), the S&P 500 index (down 5.00 to 1,277.93, Charts) and the Nasdaq composite (down 23.05 to 2,279.64, Charts) all rose in the early going.

Oil prices remained below $66 a barrel, after falling Wednesday as unusually warm weather curbed heating demand in the United States.

In corporate news, Pfizer (unchanged at $24.09, Research) said fourth-quarter profit fell, hurt by generic competition, but cost cuts helped the drugmaker beat Wall Street's expectations and shares jumped.

Shares of Merrill Lynch (unchanged at $69.85, Research) rose after the brokerage said fourth-quarter earnings rose 25 percent as surging revenue from retail customers and the firm's own investments helped it beat analysts' expectations.

Advanced Micro Devices (Research) stock gained after the chipmaker said it missed analysts' earnings expectations but reversed a year-ago loss.

Apple (Research) reported a solid quarter after the bell Wednesday, beating Wall Street's earnings forecasts, but shares slumped on the computer company's lukewarm guidance.

Shares of eBay (Research) edged higher after the online auctioneer beat analysts' forecasts, although the outlook for 2006 remained below the average Wall Street estimates.

Walt Disney (Research) may be looking to acquire Pixar (Research) at a small premium to the company's current stock market value of $6.7 billion, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.

In economic news, initial claims for state jobless aid fell 36,000 in the week ended Jan. 14 to 271,000, their lowest level in nearly six years, the Labor Department said in a report suggesting a robust labor market.

Housing starts fell 8.9 percent in December as single-family house construction tumbled, pointing to further cooling after a five-year boom, the Commerce Department said.

Treasury prices turned lower, lifting the yield on the 10-year note to 4.37 percent from 4.33 percent late Thursday. The dollar was virtually unchanged against the yen but gained slightly against the euro.

COMEX gold for February delivery rose $4.80 to $549.30 an ounce.

In global trade, European shares traded higher following a rebound in Asia, with Tokyo's Nikkei bouncing back from Wednesday's sharp selloff that forced the market to close early.