Stocks girding for more gains

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The Dow, Nasdaq and S&P 500 are bumping up against the best levels in roughly a year-and-a-half, with little to interrupt the flow.

But the lack of catalysts right now has left markets vulnerable to pullbacks, as seen last Friday. Key readings on housing, employment and durable goods orders are on this week's docket, along with earnings reports from Best Buy, Oracle and a handful of other companies.

If investors can get through these reports with minimal surprises, the market will most likely keep drifting higher, at least until the first-quarter corporate reporting period starts getting underway next month.

"There tends to be a 'buy before the earnings, sell when they come out' bias," said Kenny Landgraf, founder at Kenjol Capital Management.

Stocks have been on the rise over the last month or so, recovering from a selloff between mid-January and early February. The Dow, S&P 500 and the Nasdaq have all gained in five of the last six weeks, leaving the Nasdaq at a nearly 19-month high and the Dow and S&P 500 at a nearly 18-month high.

However, the pace of the latest leg of the advance has been slower than earlier in the year, with investors still reluctant to commit much after a massive rally off last year's lows and ahead of crucial readings on the economy due out in the next few months.

"The last few weeks haven't seen a lot of market moving news and the volume has been pretty light," said Matt King, chief investment officer at Bell Investment Advisors. "The big focus for investors remains the labor market and the health of the economy."

Monday: There are no market-moving economic or profit reports scheduled Monday. In the late afternoon, the Senate Banking Committee holds a hearing on Sen. Christopher Dodd's, D-Conn., financial reform bill.

Tuesday: The February Existing Home Sales index from the National Association of Realtors is due out in the morning. Sales are expected to have fallen to a 5 million unit annualized rate, according to Briefing.com estimates, from a 5.05 million unit annualized rate in January.

The FHFA Home Price index is also due out in the morning.

Wednesday: Durable goods orders, from the Commerce Department, are expected to have risen 0.5% in February after rising 2.6% in the previous month. Durable goods excluding autos are expected to have risen 0.3% after falling 1% in January.

February new home sales are expected to have risen to a 315,000 annualized unit rate from a 305,000 annualized unit rate in January. The Census Bureau report is due out shortly after the start of trade.

The weekly crude oil supplies report from the Energy Information Administration is also due in the morning, but it is not typically a market mover.

Thursday: Weekly jobless claims and continuing jobless claims are due out from the Department of Labor in the early morning.

Claims are expected to have fallen to 450,000 last week from 457,000 in the previous week. Continuing claims, a measure of Americans who have been receiving benefits for a week or more, are expected to have fallen to 4.560 million from 4.579 million in the previous week.

Although the quarterly earnings reporting period is mostly over, a few companies are still reporting results this week.

Best Buy (BBY, Fortune 500) reports in the morning and is expected to report earnings of $1.79 per share, versus $1.61 per share a year ago, according to analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.

Oracle (ORCL, Fortune 500) also reports after the bell and is expected to have earned 38 cents versus 35 cents a year ago.

Friday: The government's revision of fourth-quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth is due out shortly before the start of trade. However, GDP is expected hold steady at the same 5.9% annualized rate it was reported at previously.

The final March reading on consumer sentiment from the University of Michigan is due shortly after the start of trade. It is expected to have risen to 73 from 72.5.

The state-by-state unemployment news is also on tap.