U.S. stocks rose for the week, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average to the highest level since 2007, as better-than-estimated economic data overshadowed concern over federal spending cuts and Italian elections.
An index of homebuilders climbed 1.5 percent as home sales increased more than forecast. Home Depot (HD) Inc. jumped 5.3 percent after it raised its dividend and approved a $17 billion share buyback amid better-than-estimated earnings. J.C. Penney Co. tumbled 21 percent and Sears Holdings Corp. sank 6 percent on quarterly losses. Apple Inc. dropped 4.5 percent as Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook failed to assuage investors seeking more clarity on his plans for the company’s growing cash pile.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.2 percent to 1,518.20 for the five days, rebounding after its only weekly loss in 2013.
The Dow added 89.09 points, or 0.6 percent, to 14,089.66, the highest since October 2007. Both gauges gained in February, as the S&P 500 climbed 1.1 percent for a fourth straight monthly increase and the Dow advanced 1.4 percent.
Equities tumbled on the first day of the week, giving the S&P 500 its biggest drop since November, as Italian elections spurred concern about prospects for a stable government and a worsening of Europe’s debt crisis.
Stocks rebounded as economic reports showed purchases of new homes in the U.S. jumped in January to the highest since July 2008.
Consumer spending rose even as incomes fell by the most in 20 years and American factories expanded at the fastest pace in almost two years.
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