04:54 PM EST, 01/22/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US benchmark equity indexes closed higher Wednesday, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite getting a boost from a post-earnings rally in Netflix ( NFLX ) shares.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq jumped 1.3% to 20,009.3, while the S&P 500 rose 0.6% to 6,086.4. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 0.3% to 44,156.7. Tech and communication services were the only sectors to post gains. Utilities saw the steepest decline.

In company news, Netflix ( NFLX ) shares jumped 9.7%, the top performer on the S&P 500 and among the best on the Nasdaq. Late Tuesday, streaming giant's fourth-quarter financial results exceeded Wall Street's estimates as it reported a record addition of new subscribers.

Netflix's ( NFLX ) latest price hikes are expected to drive revenue growth this year, while its ad tier is seen accelerating sales in 2026, Wedbush Securities said in a Wednesday note.

Nvidia ( NVDA ) shares increased 4.4%, the best performer on the Dow, followed by Microsoft ( MSFT ) , up 4.1%. Oracle (ORCL) was among the top gainers on the S&P 500, up 6.8%, while Arm (ARM) surged nearly 16%, the second-best Nasdaq performer.

On Tuesday, Japan's SoftBank and Microsoft ( MSFT )-backed OpenAI announced a new company called Stargate that plans to invest $500 billion over the next four years building new artificial intelligence infrastructure for OpenAI in the US.

SoftBank, OpenAI, Oracle and MGX are the initial equity funders in Stargate, while Arm, Microsoft ( MSFT ), Nvidia ( NVDA ), Oracle and OpenAI will be the key initial technology partners.

Home Depot ( HD ) announced new partnerships with Uber ( UBER ) and DoorDash's ( DASH ) delivery services, expanding its one-hour delivery options for home improvement shoppers. The home improvement retailer's shares decreased 2%, the worst performer on the Dow. Uber ( UBER ) rose 0.1%, while DoorDash ( DASH ) lost 0.2%.

Johnson & Johnson's ( JNJ ) fourth-quarter results topped market expectations, while the healthcare products conglomerate anticipates results in 2025 to be higher than the previous year. Its shares fell 1.9%, the second-steepest decline on the Dow.

The US 10-year yield rose 4.1 basis points to 4.62%, while the two-year rate advanced 2.1 basis points to 4.30%.

"With day two of the (Donald) Trump presidency, more details of the administration's agenda are coming to light, including intentions to potentially add a 10% tariff to all Chinese goods as soon as (Feb. 1), along with a potential 25% tariff on goods coming from Mexico and Canada," Stifel said in a note.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil fell 0.6% to $75.39 a barrel Wednesday.

In economic news, the income required to afford US apartment rents dropped to the lowest level since March 2022, Redfin (RDFN) said.

"Rental affordability will continue improving this year, as wages grow and rents remain flat, thanks to the recent boom in apartment construction," the real estate brokerage's senior economist, Sheharyar Bokhari, said.

Mortgage applications in the US were little changed last week as 30-year fixed interest rates remained around 7%, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.

Gold gained 0.2% to $2,765.60 per troy ounce, while silver dropped 0.4% to $31.38 per ounce.