Investing.com -- U.S. stocks staged a late rally on Thursday to close moderately higher, ahead of a key monthly jobs report, as a rebound in oil prices provided a lift to the major indices.
Oil erased sharp losses from early in the session after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a draw of 1.4 million barrels in domestic crude inventories last week helping ease near-record stockpiles at storage facilities nationwide. Earlier, OPEC broke off talks at its semi-annual meeting in Vienna without reaching an agreement to cap its production ceiling. While Saudi Arabia pledged to resist the temptation of flooding global energy markets with a glut of supply, Iran offered few hints that it will slow production in the coming months. OPEC will meet next on November 30.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 48.89 or 0.27% to 17,838.56, while the NASDAQ Composite index added 19.11 or 0.39% to 4,971.36, each extending recent hot streaks. The NASDAQ closed higher for the seventh consecutive session. The S&P 500 Composite index, meanwhile, rose 5.93 or 0.28% to 2,105.26, as seven of 10 sectors closed in the green. With the slight gains, the S&P 500 closed above a key technical level at 2,100. Stocks in the Health Care, Technology and Consumer Services industries led, while stocks in the Technology and Utilities sectors lagged.
The top performer on the Dow was EI du Pont de Nemours and Company (NYSE:DD), which added 1.03 or 4.07% to 24.28. DuPont (NYSE:DD) finished as the top performer on the Dow for the second consecutive session. On Wednesday, DuPont named Rudy van Engen as its new regional director for its Europe, Middle East and Africa region. Van Engen, owns more than 20 years of experience in the plastics and rubber industry. The worst performer was Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), which fell 0.71 or 0.80% to 88.53, following OPEC's decision. Shares in ExxonMobil have slumped 15%, as the price of oil has tumbled over the last two years. In June, 2014, oil prices peaked at $115 a barrel.
The biggest gainer on the NASDAQ was Endo International PLC (NASDAQ:ENDP), which surged 0.86 or 5.17% to 17.48. Shares in Endo are up approximately 30% since the specialty drugmaker cut its forward guidance and completed a major shakeup of its executive leadership team in early-May. The worst performer was NetEase Inc (NASDAQ:NTES), which fell 2.16 or 1.23% to 174.00. Despite the slight losses, shares in the Chinese online video game manufacturer are still up by more than 24% over the last year.
Endo was also the top performer on the S&P 500, just ahead of Humana Inc (NYSE:HUM), which jumped 8.72 or 4.92% to 186.12. Humana (NYSE:HUM) shares have been in a holding pattern of late as investors await whether the Louisville-based managed health care company will receive regulatory approval in its comprehensive merger with Aetna Inc (NYSE:AET). Over the last three months, Humana shares are down 1.83%. The worst performer was Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc (NYSE:DO), which fell 1.03 or 4.07% to 24.28.
On the New York Stock Exchange, advancing issues outnumbered declining ones by a 1,951-1,060 margin.