U.S. stocks rise as energy stocks rally following big slump

NEW YORK – U.S. stocks closed higher Thursday, led by a rebound in oil and gas companies as energy prices recovered from a steep drop the day before.

Many of the top gainers in the Standard & Poor’s 500 index Thursday were energy companies. Consol Energy and Southwestern Energy each soared 19 percent.

Railroad operator Union Pacific slumped 4 percent after reporting a drop in the amount of freight hauled and weaker results than analysts were expecting.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 115 points, or 0.7 percent, to close at 15,882.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose nine points, or 0.5 percent, to 1,868. The Nasdaq composite inched up less than a point to 4,472.