U.S. stocks open higher amid earnings, data

U.S. stocks opened higher Thursday as Wall Street digested a batch of generally positive earnings reports amid economic data.

Shares of Macy's Inc. rocketed nearly 16 percent in early trading Thursday following the release of the U.S. retailer's better-than-expected quarterly results.

Before Thursday's opening bell, Macy's Inc. reported a net income of 11 million U.S. dollars, or three cents per share for the second fiscal quarter of 2016, compared with 217 million dollars, or 64 cents per share, for the same period last year.

Shares of Alibaba soared over five percent in early trading Thursday following the release of the Chinese giant's stellar quarterly results.

On the economic front, in the week ending Aug. 6, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 266,000, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week's revised level, the U.S. Labor Department announced Thursday.

The four-week moving average was 262,750, an increase of 3,000 from the previous week's revised average.

Shortly after the opening bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 49.75 points, or 0.27 percent, to 18,545.41. The S&P 500 added 6.59 points, or 0.30 percent, to 2,182.08. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 19.39 points, or 0.37 percent, to 5,223.97.

On Wednesday, U.S. stocks ended lower after wavering in a tight range as investors digested a string of earnings reports. Endi