Stocks ended in positive territory for the fourth straight day Thursday after lukewarm housing starts and jobless claims reports didn’t give investors much direction about the economy.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 12.28 points, or 0.1 percent, to end at 10,578.65, its highest close since March 18. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 4.38 points, or 0.4 percent, to finish at 1,210.96, its highest close since March 8. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 14.23 points, or 0.7 percent, to end at 2,089.15.
U.S. housing starts rose in May, but fell shy of expectations, while a report on Thursday showed the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits edged higher. May housing starts increased 0.2 percent to a 2.009 million unit rate from a revised 2.005 million unit pace in April, the U.S. Commerce Department said. Economists had expected housing starts to increase 0.5 percent in May to a 2.048 million unit rate. And a Labor Department report showed jobless claims rose by 1,000 to 333,000 in the week ended June 11.
Among local movers, shares of WPT Enterprises Inc. rose 12.2 percent to $22.50 after the L.A.-based gaming-themed entertainment company’s stock was rated “buy” in new coverage by analyst Todd Eilers at Roth Capital Partners. The 12-month price target was set at $23.50 per share.
And Cadiz Inc. gained 2 percent to $17.50 after the L.A.-based water resource management firm announced that effective June 20, it will begin trading on the NASDAQ National Market. The company will retain the “CDZI” symbol it used to trade on the Over the Counter Bulletin Board.
On the down side, LJ International Inc. fell 5.2 percent to $2.35 after the Hong Kong-based jewelry maker with U.S. headquarters in Walnut reaffirmed its guidance for revenue and earnings in the second quarter ended June 30. As before, the company projected sales between $17.5 million and $18 million, with earnings between 2 cents and 3 cents per diluted share. Analysts anticipated revenues of $18.3 million and earnings of 2 cents.
