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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — U.S. stocks straddled the breakeven line Thursday as investors digested a mixed batch of corporate earnings results and kept an eye on ongoing debt talks in Greece.
The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) gained 40 points, or 0.3%, while the S&P 500 (SPX) was down 1 point, or 0.1%, and the Nasdaq (COMP) fell 2 points, or 0.1%.
The Dow’s gains were led by Caterpillar (CAT, Fortune 500) and 3M (MMM, Fortune 500) , which both posted better-than-expected earnings results.
Meanwhile, Netflix (NFLX) was the biggest winner on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, with shares surging more than 20%.
Late Wednesday, the streaming video and DVD-by-mail company topped earnings and sales expectations, and said it began to add customers again last quarter after a series of blunders damaged its reputation with consumers and investors.
JCPenney (JCP, Fortune 500) and LSI (LSI) were also big gainers among the S&P 500, after the companies delivered upbeat forecasts for the first quarter of 2012.
On the flip side, AT&T (T, Fortune 500) was the biggest laggard on the Dow after it reported quarterly earnings that fell short of forecasts. And disappointing results from SanDisk (SNDK, Fortune 500) weighed on both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.
E*Trade (ETFC) was the worst performing stock in the S&P 500, after the company posted an unexpected fourth-quarter loss.
“Earnings continue to drive trading this week,” said Michael Sheldon, chief investment strategist at RDM Financial Group. “Overall, results haven’t been as strong as recent quarters, but they’re holding up pretty well and propelling the market higher.”
Investors are also still waiting for news out of Athens, where Greek officials are negotiating with private-sector creditors to reduce the country’s debt burden.
“As long as the talks continue, a resolution is still a good possibility,” noted Sheldon.
A stall or end to the talk, however, would be a major concern. Greece is in desperate need of an agreement to receive additional bailout funds from the European Union and International Monetary Fund. Without these funds, the country may not be able to make a €14 billion debt payment that’s due March 20.
Investors also continued to cheer the Federal Reserve’s latest move to support the U.S. economy. Following its two-day policy meeting Wednesday, the central bank pledged to keep interest rates near historic lows through late 2014 — an extension from the its original pledge to keep rates low through mid 2013. The Fed’s policy change helped stocks finish higher Wednesday.
World markets: European stocks finished higher. Britain’s FTSE 100 (UKX) gained 1.1%, the DAX (DAX) in Germany jumped 1.7% and France’s CAC 40 (CAC40) added 1.3%.
Asian markets ended mixed. The Hang Seng (HSI) in Hong Kong added 1.6% while Japan’s Nikkei (N225) fell 0.4%. Shanghai was closed for Chinese New Year.
Economy: Initial jobless claims for the week ended Jan. 21 rose to 377,000, up from a revised 356,000 the week prior, according to the Labor Department. Economists had anticipated 375,000 claims, according to a survey of analysts by Briefing.com.
Durable orders for the month of December rose 3% in December. Economists had expected orders to have risen 2%.
New home sales slid 2.2% to an annual rate of 307,000 in December, according to a government report. Analysts were expecting sales to rise to an annual rate of 321,000.
The Conference Board’s Leading Economic Indicators Index for December rose 0.4%. Economists were expecting the index to rise by 0.7%.
Companies: Nokia (NOK) shares climbed after the mobile phone maker posted a fourth-quarter loss of €1.1 billion, and sales slumped 21% compared to the same period a year earlier. Chief Executive Officer Stephen Elop said the Finnish company has sold well over 1 million Lumia devices, a smartphone using Microsoft (MST) Windows Phone software.
Currencies and commodities: The dollar fell against the euro, the British pound and the Japanese yen.
Oil for March delivery added $1.28 to $100.68 a barrel.
Gold futures for February delivery gained $27.50 to $1,727.60 an ounce.
Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, pushing the yield down to 1.95% from 2.01% late Wednesday. ? 
First Published: January 26, 2012: 9:49 AM ET
