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Dow Surges 44.27 To Record High

Associated Press

Stocks shot to record highs on Wednesday for the second consecutive session, bolstered by investor enthusiasm about corporate earnings and fresh evidence that economic growth isn’t producing inflation.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained more than 44.27 points at 4,373.15, well above its closing high record of 4,328.88 set on Tuesday.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by nearly 2 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange. Big-Board volume was heavy at 392.3 million shares as of 4 p.m., up from 300.66 million on Tuesday.

Stocks got a big boost from the bond market, where the 30-year Treasury was up 7-16 point late in the day and yielding 7.23 percent. The dollar was mixed.

Bonds rallied after the Commerce Department said its chief forecasting gauge of future economic activity fell 0.5 percent in March, reinforcing recent evidence that economic growth is slowing from its rapid pace of expansion last year.

The bond market has been responding favorably to indications of a slowing economy, pushing stocks higher with it.

Some of the stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily Wednesday:

NYSE

Eastman Kodak, rose 3 to 60 1/2.

Morgan Stanley said the stock could hit 100 by 1998. The company reported two weeks ago that its firstquarter profits were up 80 percent. On Tuesday, company officials told analysts and investors that it could continue the strong earnings growth.

Unisys rose 5/8 to 11 1/8.

CNBC commentator Dan Dorfman said Alfred Kingsley, a money manager with Greenway Partners L.P., is bullish on the stock since the company has restructured and cut its debt.

PepsiCo rose 1 3/4 to 44 3/4.

The soft-drink maker raised its quarterly dividend to 20 cents per share from 18 cents. S.G. Warburg upgraded the issue, citing strong earnings.

NASDAQ

Lotus Development fell 1 to 30 1/4.

The software company said Tuesday that it expects revenues to grow 15 percent in future years, and pretax operating margins to grow between 15 percent and 18 percent.

AMEX

Viacom “B” rose 3/4 to 48 3/8.

The entertainment corporation reported a first-quarter profit of 15 cents per share, compared with a loss of $3.59 per share in the year-earlier period. The company attributed its strong performance to gains from Paramount Communications and Blockbuster Entertainment.