Energy shares lift US stocks

Energy equities helped lift US stocks in early trade Thursday after Alcoa opened earnings season with a mixed report.

About 30 minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was at 17,921.34, up 18.83 points (0.11 percent).

The broad-based S&P 500 rose 2.29 (0.11 percent) to 2,084.19, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 10.68 (0.22 percent) to 4,961.50.

Devon Energy rose 2.2 percent and Marathon Oil jumped 2.0 percent as US oil prices opened higher. Many analysts also expect more consolidation in the energy industry on the heels of Royal Dutch Shell's acquisition of BG Group.

Alcoa, the first large industrial company to report for the first quarter, fell 4.6 even as earnings rebounded to $195 million compared with a $178 million loss in the year-ago period.

But the metals giant said it was studying whether to shut additional smelters and refineries. Previous closures of older assets have led to large charges.

Social gaming company Zynga slumped 13.3 percent on news co-founder Mark Pincus would return as top executive, less than two years after being replaced. The move comes on the heels of financial losses the last two years.

Walgreens Boots Alliance rose 2.8 percent as the drugstore chain reported second-quarter earnings of $1.18 per share, easily topping analyst forecasts for 95 cents per share. The company plans to shut about 200 stores in the US.

Semiconductor company Altera fell 4.9 percent after CNBC reported that Intel has ended talks to buy the company. Intel fell 0.7 percent.

Career social network LinkedIn shed 0.8 percent on news it will buy the online learning site lynda.com, which offers language training and other courses to governments, companies and individuals.

Bond prices fell. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury rose to 1.91 percent from 1.90 percent Wednesday, while the 30-year advanced to 2.54 percent from 2.53 percent. Bond yields and prices move inversely.