U.S. stocks rose Wednesday following better-than-expected profit reports from Morgan Stanley, United Airlines and other big companies. The S&P 500 gained 0.5% to recover much of the slide from its all-time high the day before because of tumbling energy and technology stocks.

The S&P 500 was 0.3% higher in afternoon trading and flirting with its record set early this week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 183 points, or 0.4%, to its own all-time high set the day before,

U.S. stocks are drifting around their records Thursday following the latest signals that the U.S. economy continues to hum. The S&P 500 was 0.3% higher in afternoon trading and flirting with its record set early this week.