US stocks up as Lockheed Martin seals deal

New York - US stocks opened slightly higher on Monday following solid earnings from Morgan Stanley and others and news that Lockheed Martin will buy Sikorsky Aircraft from United Technologies for $9bn.

Five minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was at 18 096.66, up 10.21 points.

The broad-based S&P 500 added 0.03% at 2 127.19, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.12% to 5 216.21.

Morgan Stanley vaulted 1.4% higher as second-quarter earnings of 79 cents per share bested analyst expectations by five cents behind robust merger and acquisition advising activity.

Lockheed Martin rose 0.5% and said the purchase of Sikorsky would add to its portfolio of aerospace and defense products. Dow member United Technologies dropped 0.6%.