Stocks Mixed as Market Eyes Start of Earnings

(TheStreet) -- Stocks held mostly higher Monday, although the Nasdaq wavered in and out of positive territory, as investors cheered a wave of deals news and looked ahead to the start of earnings season with Alcoa(AA) results due after the closing bell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up by 40 points, or 0.3%, at 12,420. The S&P 500 was higher by 1 point, or 0.09%, at 1329 while the Nasdaq was lower by 6 points, or 0.2%, at 2775. "We expect investors to view [first quarter] results as good but not great," said UBS Strategist Thomas M. Doerflinger in a recent note. "Many companies will report strong earnings. But there should also be quite a few [earnings per share] misses caused by rising input costs, and some companies are likely to cut [second quarter] guidance due to rising input costs, regulatory pressure, and disruptions from Japan." Continue reading the article.