U.S. stocks rose broadly Thursday afternoon as investors awaited Apple’s quarterly earnings report after markets close and the monthly jobs report due Friday.

Despite Apple’s rough start to 2024, some analysts are optimistic about the tech giant’s performance. Crypto companies Coinbase and Block will also release their earnings reports after the closing bell.

Meanwhile, investors are also watching the April jobs report, which might influence the Federal Reserve’s decision to cut interest rates this year. The central bank suggested Wednesday that it’s unlikely to raise interest rates, even as inflation remains elected.

As the day ended, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 322 points, 0.85%, to trade at 38,225. The tech-heavy Nasdaq was up 1.5%, while the S&P 500 had added 0.9% and was close to breaking a multi-day losing streak.

Paramount stock spikes as Sony and Apollo make $26 billion offer

Sony Pictures and Apollo Global Management have made a $26 billion all-cash offer to buy Paramount Global, the parent company of CBS, MTV, and Paramount Pictures, according to a new report.

The Wall Street Journal, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, reports that Sony Pictures CEO Tony Vinciquerra and Apollo partner Aaron Sobel signed an offer letter that was sent on Wednesday. The offer letter is non-binding and is meant to start talks, The Journal reports.

The news comes just one day before Paramount’s exclusive merger talks with the movie production company Skydance Media are set to end. It sent Paramount stock surged 13% by closing time, making it one of the day’s best performers on the S&P 500.

Moderna stock soars despite plummeting COVID-19 vaccine sales

Moderna stock soared over 12% by closing time after its first-quarter earnings report sailed past Wall Street’s expectations.

The company reported $167 million in sales of its COVID-19 vaccine, Spikevax, in the first three months of 2024. That amounts to its total revenue for the period given that the vaccine is Moderna’s only product on the market. The plummet has Moderna’s revenue down 91% from $1.9 billion in the same quarter last year.

But there is a small bright spot for the pharma giant: Those results surpassed Wall Street’s expectations, coming in well above the $93 million in estimated revenues compiled by FactSet. The Massachusetts-based company said the decline aligned with the expected transition to a seasonal COVID-19 vaccine market, similar to that of the flu shot. The prior year’s results were bolstered primarily by delivered doses deferred from 2022, the company said.

Peloton stock drops as the CEO leaves and layoffs start

Peloton stock dropped 2.4% on Thursday following the announcement of 400 job cuts and the departure of CEO Barry McCarthy, who took the position in 2022. Karen Boone and Chris Bruzzo will serve as interim co-CEOs until the company completes its search for McCarthy’s replacement.

In its quarterly earnings report released on Thursday, the at-home fitness company reported lower revenues and losses. The company’s fiscal third-quarter revenue was $717.7 million, down from $748.9 million a year ago. Its net loss narrowed to $167.3 million, or 45 cents per share, from $275.9 million, or 79 cents a share, a year earlier.

When gyms and fitness centers were closed during the pandemic, Peloton bikes were popular as a means of exercising at home. The company, however, has struggled to sell its products in the post-pandemic era.

Etsy stock plunges 15% on weak sales

The stock of the online marketplace Etsy fell 15% by closing time and was the worst performer on the S&P 500. Its latest earnings report showed a drop in gross merchandise sales and a weak guidance report.

For the March-ending quarter, the company earned 48 cents per share on sales of $646 million, which is in line with expectations. It posted revenue of $646 million for the March quarter, up 0.8% from the prior year. The company’s expected revenue was $645 million. Gross merchandise sales were $2.99 billion, a drop of 3.7%, whereas analysts expected them to be $3.03 billion.

Carvana stock skyrockets 33% after reporting profit

Carvana stock hit its highest level in years on Thursday after the used car retailer reported record results and made a profit last quarter. The company recorded $3.06 billion in revenue, compared to analysts’ expected $2.69 billion. Net income hit $49 million, up from a $286 million loss during the first quarter in 2023. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization hit $235 million, up from a $24 million loss a year prior, marking a record for the company.

The Tempe, Arizona-based company’s stock lurched up more than 33% as the market closed.

Novo Nordisk stock slips despite weight loss drug boom

Novo Nordisk on Thursday raised both its full-year sales and operational profit guidance for the year after reporting booming sales of its blockbuster diabetes and weight loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy in the first quarter. Sales of the Danish pharma giant’s diabetes and obesity drugs grew 25% year over year to 60.9 billion Danish Krone ($8.7 billion) in the first quarter of 2024.

Despite that, the stock was down 4% as the day ended.

Qualcomm stock jumps on strong earnings

Qualcomm stock surged more than 9% by closing time as the mobile phone chip company announced fiscal second-quarter earnings that beat Wall Street expectations. In its latest earnings report, the company posted earnings per share of $2.44 compared with $2.32 expected, and revenue of $9.39 billion adjusted compared with $9.34 billion expected.

Doordash stock plunges despite surge in sales

Despite better-than-expected sales, DoorDash stock plunged almost 10% by the end of the day as it reported wider losses than expected. The online delivery company reported a 21% increase in total orders to reach $19.24 billion, while revenue increased 23% to $2.51 billion. The company also reported a loss of $25 million and adjusted earnings between $325 million and $425 million, while Wall Street had predicted $394 million.

–William Gavin, Rocio Fabbro, and Bruce Gil contributed to this article.