US stocks rise on earnings, big pharma deals

US stocks rose in early trade Tuesday following solid earnings and huge deals announced by major pharmaceutical companies. About 35 minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 59.69 (0.36 percent) to 16,508.94. The broad-based S&P 500 added 7.04 (0.38 percent) at 1,878.93, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose 28.97 (0.70 percent) to 4,150.52. Strong or solid quarterly reports came from Netflix and Comcast, while McDonald's results came in below expectations. A series of deals between Novartis, GlaxoSmithKline and Eli Lilly shuffled more than $20 billion in assets. Meanwhile, Valeant Pharmaceuticals, backed by activist shareholder William Ackman, offered to acquire Botox-maker Allergan for more than $45 billion. Most of the pharmaceutical stocks involved in Tuesday's headlines moved higher. GlaxoSmithKline gained 4.7 percent and Novartis rose 1.3 percent, while Eli Lilly and Company dipped 0.3 percent. Valeant jumped 4.5 percent, while Allergan surged 15.4 percent. Video-streaming company Netflix shot up 5.9 percent as quarterly revenues topped $1 billion and the company added four million new subscribers. Dow member McDonald's reported a 5.2 percent dip in profits to $1.2 billion, translating to $1.26 per share, three cents below expectations. Shares dipped 0.4 percent. Comcast earnings came in at 68 cents per share on revenues of $17.4 billion, beating analyst estimates on both counts. The company said the broadcasts of the Sochi Olympics by its NBCUniversal unit were "tremendously successful." Shares rose 2.3 percent. Motorcycle company Harley-Davidson reported earnings of $1.21 per share, well above the $1.08 forecast on increased sales and shipments. Shares jumped 7.5 percent. Bond prices were mixed. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury rose to 2.74 percent from 2.72 percent Monday, while the 30-year held steady at 3.53 percent. Bond prices and yields move inversely.