US stocks rose Bernanke awaits more positive data

U.S. stocks advance, after the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index broke an eight day streak of gains yesterday, as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said the central banks actions still depend on upcoming data.

The S&P 500 jumped back 0.3% to 1,680.91 at 4 p.m. in New York, after falling from a record high yesterday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 18.67 points, or 0.1%, to 15,470.52 today.

“The market is responding to the fact that the Fed is not going to create an arbitrary definition of when and how the QE program is going to end,” Stephen Wood, the New York-based chief market strategist from Russell Investments, said by phone for Bloomberg. “They want to maintain flexibility in their policies.” Wood added.

Bernanke said the central bank’s stimulus tapering, “are by no means on a preset course” and could be reduced more quickly or expanded as economic conditions warrant. Feds bond purchasing program has boosted stocks worldwide, with the benchmark U.S. index jumping 148% from its March 2009 lowest. Fed policy makers have been debating the timing and pace of any cuts in the central bank’s $85 billion in monthly bond purchases.

As earning season is already here, some 21 companies, including EBay Inc. and International Business Machines Corp., released results yesterday. Per-share earnings topped estimates at about 71% of S&P 500 members that have reported for the quarter so far, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

IBM rose 1.7% at 5:25 p.m. New York time, as the computer-services company beat earnings estimates and raised its full-year forecast after the end of regular trading. Among other companies reporting after the market close, eBay declined 6.3% and Intel Corp. sank 3.4% as their revenue forecasts fell short of estimates.

Bank of America gained 2.8% to $14.3. The second-biggest U.S. lender beat analysts’ estimates by posting a 63% gain in profit that was driven by better credit choices and a drop in expenses.

Yahoo surged 10% to $29.66, the highest level since February 2008. The company reported second-quarter earnings of 35 cents a share, beating analysts’ estimates.

Mattel Inc., the largest U.S. toy-maker, and McDonalds lost 6.8% and 0.8% respectively. Second-quarter profit for Mattel missed analyst forecasts, as declining demand for the aging Barbie doll line and increased costs to expand the American Girl chain hurt results. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC downgraded the world’s largest restaurant chain to “neutral” from a “buy” rating, with a 12-month price target of $105 a share.