The Dow Jones Industrial Average turned higher for the month Thursday as shares in International Business Machines Corp. surged following an acquisition, offsetting a sharp drop in Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on disappointing earnings.
But other key benchmarks were generally lower a day after logging their first three-day winning streak since December and the S&P 500 scored its biggest three-day gain since August.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.12% rose 29 points, or 0.2%, to 16,478 after IBM IBM, +5.55% announced plans to acquire Truven Health Analytics. Wal-Mart WMT, -4.26% another Dow component, was the biggest loser after the retailing giant cut its sales outlook and as its fourth-quarter sales undershot expectations.
