The markets advanced during the midday with the Dow soaring 92 points to 13,972 as investors embraced upbeat corporate earnings. Nasdaq climbed 21 points to 3152.
On the upside
WebMD Health (Nasdaq: WBMD) fell to a loss for the fourth quarter but revenue beat expectations and the company forecast 2013 revenue ahead of estimates.
Cabot Oil & Gas (NYSE: COG) reported higher fourth quarter earnings that surpassed analyst estimates as revenue rose.
Fourth quarter earnings slipped for Sourcefire (Nasdaq: FIRE) but revenue climbed more than expected.
On the downside
CombiMatrix (Nasdaq: CBMX) chief executive R. Judd Jessup will retire on March 15, 2013 and will be replaced by chief commercial officer Mark McDonough.
Frontline (NYSE: FRO) narrowed fourth quarter losses but warned of upcoming challenges.
Immunomedics (Nasdaq: IMMU) priced its public offering of more than 6 million common shares at the discounted price of $2.30 per share.
In the broad market, advancing issues outpaced decliners by a margin of nearly 5 to 2 on the NYSE and by nearly 7 to 3 on Nasdaq. The broader S&P 500 index gained 8 points to 1511.
