Nasdaq leaps 3% as investors cheer tech earnings and sidestep weak GDP report

• US stocks popped higher Thursday, cementing a gain of 3% for the Nasdaq Composite.
• Investors piled into Meta Platforms' shares after the social media company reported results on Wednesday.

Stocks soared Thursday, paced by tech shares after Meta Platforms' quarterly report raised expectations for upbeat results from other giants in the sector just before investors close the books on a losing month.

The tech-concentrated Nasdaq Composite scored its second consecutive rise of at least 3%. The session's star was Meta Platforms as the company posted a first-quarter rise in daily active users by 3 million from the last quarter to 1.96 billion, beating analyst expectations of 1.95 billion. Qualcomm also jumped following a solid sales forecast from the smartphone chips maker.

Meta's stock surge inspired gains for Amazon and Apple ahead of quarterly results due late Thursday from the tech giants.

The information technology sector was the best performing on the S&P 500 Index and lead gains among 10 other groups. Thursday's gain for the Nasdaq Composite helped tug the index modestly away from bear-market territory.

Here's where US indexes stood at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday:

• S&P 500: 4,287.59, up 2.48%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 33,916.26, up 1.84% (614.33 points)
• Nasdaq Composite: 12,871.53, up 3.06%

Investors appeared to set aside the Commerce Department's report that US gross domestic product shrank by 1.4% in the first quarter of 2022, a contraction that was unexpected. "Volatile inventory and net exports were the primary contributors, partially offset by strong private final domestic demand. That said, strong consumer spending momentum will provide a solid take-off point for growth in Q2," said economists at Barclays in a note.

Around the markets, bearish sentiment in the stock market has surged to its highest level since the great financial crisis.

Twitter rose after its first-quarter report was released, with the social media platform in focus this week after it agreed to sell itself to billionaire investor and Tesla boss Elon Musk for $44 billion. The FTC reportedly is looking at whether Elon Musk's initial 9% stake in Twitter violated antitrust rules.

Elsewhere, Teladoc tanked more than 40% during the session after a massive first-quarter loss, costing Cathie Wood's ARK more than $400 million.

Oil prices turned higher. West Texas Intermediate crude notched a 3.2% increase to $105.33 per barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 2.2% to $107.68.

Gold added on 0.1% at $1,891.40 per ounce. The 10-year yield flipped up, gaining 3 basis points at 2.87%.

Bitcoin rose 1.5% to $39,690.35.