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Cigna ( CI ) falls after missing Q4 profit estimates

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Lam Research ( LRCX ) rises on upbeat Q3 revenue forecast

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UPS down after lower-than-expected 2025 revenue forecast

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Indexes up: Dow 0.23%, S&P 500 0.47%, Nasdaq 0.39%

(Updates after market open)

By Shashwat Chauhan and Sukriti Gupta

Jan 30 (Reuters) -

Wall Street's main indexes rose on Thursday, driven by

post-earnings advances in Meta and Tesla, although Microsoft's ( MSFT )

weak cloud forecast and downbeat results from Cigna ( CI ) dampened

investor enthusiasm.

Microsoft ( MSFT ) dropped 4.7% after forecasting

disappointing growth in its cloud computing business.

Meta Platforms ( META ) rose 4.5% after beating

estimates for fourth-quarter revenue, but forecast that

first-quarter sales might miss estimates.

Tesla gained 0.5% after saying it was on track to

roll out new, cheaper EV models in the first half of 2025. It

also said it would start testing a paid autonomous car service

in June, overshadowing quarterly results that fell short of

expectations.

"We had a number of results yesterday, which showed that

grand ambitions are still rewarded," said Frédérique Carrier,

head of investment strategy for RBC Wealth Management.

"We saw that with the difference in performance between

Tesla and Meta, which both have grand ambitions, compared to the

market reaction to Microsoft ( MSFT ) earnings."

At 10:01 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

rose 102.06 points, or 0.23%, to 44,815.58, the S&P 500

gained 28.19 points, or 0.47%, to 6,067.50, and the

Nasdaq Composite added 74.76 points, or 0.39%, to

19,707.08.

Ten of the 11 S&P 500 sectors traded higher, with

communication services leading broader market gains

with a 2.1% rise, on a boost from Meta. Technology stocks

were down 0.5%.

The Russell 2000 index advanced 1.3%.

Health insurer Cigna ( CI ) slid 9.7% after it forecast

annual profit below expectations and missed fourth-quarter

estimates, while United Parcel Service ( UPS ) lost 14.8% after

forecasting 2025 revenue below expectations.

Lam Research ( LRCX ) rose 5.2% after the chip-making

equipment supplier forecast third-quarter revenue above

expectations, driven by a surge in orders from chip firms amid

the AI boom.

Chip-related companies Broadcom ( AVGO ) and Marvell

Technology ( MRVL ) jumped 5.8% and 3.8%, respectively. A gauge

of semiconductor stocks advanced 1.4%.

Apple ( AAPL ) and Intel ( INTC ) are scheduled to report

results after markets close.

The U.S. Federal Reserve held interest rates steady on

Wednesday, removing language acknowledging easing inflation from

its latest policy meeting statement. Chair Jerome Powell said

there would be no rush to cut rates again until inflation and

job numbers made it appropriate.

Meanwhile, data showed U.S.

economic growth

slowed in the fourth quarter, while a

jobless claims

report for the previous week showed claims fell more than

expected.

Markets were rocked earlier this week by the meteoric rise

of Chinese startup DeepSeek's AI models, which posed stiff

competition to leading U.S. artificial-intelligence model

providers and sparked worries of a price war.

Among other movers, IBM ( IBM ) jumped 12.9% after the

company surpassed fourth-quarter profit expectations. ServiceNow ( NOW )

lost 11.8% after the software firm forecast annual

subscription revenue below Wall Street estimates.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 5.09-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE, and by a 2.58-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 33 new 52-week highs and seven new

lows, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 67 new highs and 48

new lows.