S&P 500 ends at record high for fifth day

By Caroline Valetkevitch

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The S&P 500 closed at an all-time high for a fifth day on Wednesday in a broad rally that keeps surprising investors with its longevity and resilience.

The Dow also ended at a record high for a second straight day, pushing further above 15,000.

The S&P 500 has climbed 14.5 percent so far this year.

Financials, materials and technology sectors were among the strongest performers, with shares of International Business Machines leading the Dow higher.

Among the S&P 500's biggest percentage gainers was Whole Foods Market Inc , whose shares jumped 10.1 percent to $102.19 a day after it reported a rebound in same-store sales and raised its full-year profit view.

Apple shares finished the day up 1.1 percent at $463.84 after falling in the previous session.

Solid corporate earnings along with continued accommodative monetary policies have supported the market's climb, which had been led by mostly defensive sectors. The recent trend, though, appears to reflect a shift to an advance led by growth-oriented sectors.

"Cyclicals will probably be fairly strong in the short term, based on the strengthening parts of the economy," said Bryan Evans, investment advisor and portfolio manager at Cozad Asset Management, in Champaign, Illinois.

While volume has been below average all week, the three major U.S. stock indexes have ended sessions higher than where they began, suggesting momentum will continue.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> gained 48.92 points, or 0.32 percent, to end at a record high of 15,105.12. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> rose 6.73 points, or 0.41 percent, to finish at a record high of 1,632.69. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> advanced 16.64 points, or 0.49 percent, to close at 3,413.27.

The Dow also reached an all-time intraday high of 15,106.81, while the S&P 500 set a record intraday high of 1,632.78.

Still, the potential for the market to pause increases as the earnings reporting period winds down, said Bruce Zaro, chief technical strategist at Delta Global Asset Management in Boston.

"Now that earnings are over and done ... there's no real fundamental reason to buy stocks," he said.

Results are in from about 440 companies so far. Earnings have largely been better than expected this quarter, with the majority of companies surpassing estimates.

Late on Tuesday, Dow component Walt Disney Co reported earnings that beat expectations and revenue that rose 10 percent. Shares of Disney dipped 0.1 percent to $65.99.

Volume was roughly 6.2 billion shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and the NYSE MKT, below the average daily closing volume of about 6.4 billion this year.

Advancers outpaced decliners on the NYSE by a ratio of nearly 2 to 1, while on the Nasdaq, seven stocks rose for every five that fell.

(Editing by Bernadette Baum and Jan Paschal)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/futures-flat-dow-p-500-closing-highs-111726360.html

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