Stock Indexes Modestly Higher

(AP) -- U.S. stock indexes were modestly higher in early trading Thursday as investors weighed earnings from Twitter, Kellogg, Viacom and other big companies. Energy stocks led the gainers as the price of crude oil headed higher. Utilities were down the most.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 53 points, or 0.3 percent, to 20,107 as of 10:15 a.m. Eastern Time. The Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 6 points, or 0.3 percent, to 2,301. The Nasdaq composite index added 18 points, or 0.3 percent, to 5,700. The Nasdaq was pushing further into record territory after closing at new highs the past two days.

STOP THE PRESSES: Gannett jumped 7.1 percent after the publisher of USA Today and other newspapers turned in better-than expected earnings. The stock picked up 62 cents to $9.32.

TUNED IN: Traders welcomed Viacom's latest quarterly results and the media giant's plans to turn its business around. The owner of BET, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon and the Paramount film studio gained $2.21, or 5.3 percent, at $44.29.

TASTY RESULTS: Kellogg rose 3.1 percent after the company served up earnings that beat Wall Street's expectations. The stock added $2.30 to $75.79.

YUM, INDEED: Restaurant operator Yum Brands was 1.4 percent higher after it delivered better-than-expected earnings as stronger U.S. sales at KFC and Taco Bell offset weakness at the company's Pizza Hut chain. The stock gained 92 cents to $67.51.

GOOD BREW: Dunkin' Brands climbed 5.5 percent after its earnings beat financial analysts' expectations. The stock was up $2.85 at $54.82.

TWEET THIS: Twitter slumped 10.6 percent after the social media company's latest quarterly earnings, which topped analyst expectations, were overshadowed by a weak profit forecast. The stock slid $1.98 to $16.74.

FIZZLED: Coca-Cola fell 2.1 percent after its profit fell 55 percent in the most recent quarter. The stock lost 90 cents to $41.13.

UGLY RESULTS: Coty tumbled 9.2 percent after the beauty products maker's latest quarterly results fell short of Wall Street's estimates. The stock skidded $1.84 to $18.20.

MARKETS OVERSEAS: In Europe, Germany's DAX was up 0.7 percent, while France's CAC 40 was 1 percent higher. Britain's FTSE 100 was up 0.4 percent. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 stock index slid 0.5 percent ahead of meetings Friday between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and President Donald Trump. Most other regional benchmarks notched gains. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index gained 0.2 percent, while the Kospi in South Korea was almost flat. Australia's S&P ASX/200 rose 0.2 percent. Shares in Southeast Asia were mostly higher.

OIL & GAS: Benchmark U.S. crude was up 82 cents, or 1.6 percent, at $53.16 a barrel in New York. Brent crude, the benchmark for international oil prices, was up 62 cents, or 1.1 percent, at $55.74 a barrel in London. Natural gas futures were up 5 cents, or 1.5 percent, at $3.17 per 1,000 cubic feet.

CURRENCIES: The dollar rose to 112.29 yen from 112.05 on Wednesday. The euro strengthened to $1.0688 from $1.0687.

TREASURY YIELDS: Bond prices fell. The 10-year Treasury yield rose to 2.37 percent from 2.34 percent late Wednesday.

(KA)