S&P 500, Nasdaq gain as Disney weighs on Dow

New York - US stocks finished mostly higher on Wednesday following mixed economic data, but a disappointing earnings report from Disney weighed on the Dow.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 10.22 points (0.06%) at 17 540.47.

The broad-based S&P 500 gained 6.52 (0.31%) at 2 099.84, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index rose 34.40 (0.67%) to 5 139.94.

The Institute for Supply Management said the service sector expanded 4.3% in July to a record high. But payroll firm ADP estimated the US private sector added 185 000 jobs in July, much below the analyst estimate for 220 000 additional jobs.

Disney was by the far the biggest loser in the blue-chip index, falling 9.2% after trimming its forecast for its cable business and saying its Shanghai Disney theme park would not be profitable until after 2016.

Time Warner, another big media company, slumped 9.0% despite reporting a 14.2% rise in second-quarter earnings to $971m. A note from Charles Schwab said the weak Disney report "fostered some uneasiness toward media stocks."

Viacom fell 7.5%, 21st Century Fox lost 7.0%, CBS shed 4.6% and Comcast dropped 4.7&.

Apple snapped a five-day skid, gaining 0.7%.

Pharma Company Baxter International jumped 4.5% after Dan Loeb of the activist hedge fund Third Point said he had taken a seven percent stake in the company and would seek two board seats. Baxter said it has "engaged in various discussions with representatives of Third Point and expects to continue a constructive dialogue."

Priceline climbed 5.2% after reporting second-quarter net income of $12.45 per share, much above the analyst forecast for $11.98 per share. Gross bookings jumped 11% to $15bn.

First Solar surged 16.7%as it reported second-quarter earnings of $94.5m, up from $4.5m in the year-ago period, on a 65% rise in revenues.

Videogame developer Activision Blizzard bolted 11.8% higher after lifting its full-year forecast on better-than-expected second-quarter results. Sales of its "Warcraft" and "Destiny" games were particularly strong.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury rose to 2.27% from 2.23% on Tuesday, while the 30-year advanced to 2.94% from 2.90%. Bond prices and yields move inversely.