US stocks edge higher as investors assess earnings and wait on fresh Fed comments

• Stocks ticked higher on Wednesday as traders took in an overall strong earnings season.
• 75% of S&P 500 firms that have reported so far beat analysts' earnings estimates, according to FactSet.

US stocks ticked higher on Wednesday as traders took in strong earnings and awaited guidance on the path of rate cuts this year from a slew of Federal Reserve officials set to speak. All three benchmark indexes traded slightly higher early on Wednesday.

Of the S&P 500 companies that have reported earnings so far, 75% have beat analysts' estimates, according to FactSet. Companies surpassed estimates by an average 7.3% — amounting to around $16 billion of net earnings surprises over the fourth quarter, the analytics firm said. Firms that beat fourth-quarter earnings estimates this week include Ford, Uber, and Roblox.

Markets are also waiting on comments from Fed officials, which could give more guidance on the timing and pace of interest rate cuts in 2024. Fed Governors Adriana Kugler and Michelle Bowman as well as Fed presidents Susan Collins and Tom Barkin are all scheduled to deliver remarks on Wednesday.

The officials will speak just a few days Fed Chair Powell pushed back on hopes for a March rate cut, causing stocks to start the week lower. Markets, though, are still expecting aggressive rate cuts by the end of 2024, with a 64% chance that rates will end the year at least 125 basis-points lower, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

Here's where US indexes stood at the 9:30 a.m. opening bell on Wednesday:

• S&P 500: 4,975.95, up 0.44%
• Dow Jones Industrial Average: 38,669.65, up 0.38% (+148.29 points)
• Nasdaq Composite: 15,680.71, up 0.47%

Here's what else happened today:

• Stocks will drop, US debt is worrying, and Elon Musk is way overpaid, according to elite investor Leon Cooperman.
• NYCB stock plunged 60% in five days after disappointing earnings and a Moody's downgrade. The stock is rising Wednesday after the bank provided more information on deposits and named a new chairman.

In commodities, bonds, and crypto:

• West Texas Intermediate crude oil climbed 0.5% to $73.62 a barrel. Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 0.4% to $78.92 a barrel.
• Gold slipped to $2,050.80 per ounce.
• The 10-year Treasury yield inched higher one basis-point to 4.11%.
• Bitcoin climbed 0.57% to $43,150.