TheStreet Live

Stocks held slight gains as investors looked toward a speech from Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen this afternoon. It's unlikely she will say anything explicit about interest rates, though investors will be on the lookout for hints. Consumer sentiment rebounded in May from April, though worries over the presidential election overshadowed improving confidence in the economy. The University of Michigan reading was slightly weaker than expected. FEI Co. surged after Thermo Fisher agreed to purchase the microscopy tech developer in an all-cash deal worth $4.2 billion. The acquisition is expected to close early 2017. Palo Alto Networks slumped after forecasting slower growth in its fourth quarter.

U.S. stocks opened higher on Thursday as oil prices broke $50 a barrel for the first time in seven months. Production has been falling over the past several months, but analysts said the rally may soon fade as $50 oil makes it more profitable for oil companies to boost production. Meanwhile, weekly jobless claims fell by 10,000 over the last week to 268,000. Claims have remained below the 300,000 mark for 64 weeks in a row. Plus, Dollar Tree shares surged on Thursday after first quarter comparable store sales rose 2.3 percent. The discount retailer reported earnings of $0.98 a share, beating estimates of $0.81. Finally, Williams Sonoma shares gained steam after beating Wall Street's estimates on both the top and bottom lines. Revenue rose 6 percent to $1.09 billion. TheStreet's Scott Gamm reports from Wall Street.

Brent crude tops $50 a barrel for the first time since November. The gains came after bullish inventory data released by the U.S. Department of Energy showed a 4.2 million barrel reduction in oil stocks. Analysts polled by the Wall Street Journal had expected a decrease of 2.5 million barrels. Takata hired investment bankers to seek a cash infusion and negotiate with automakers over the ballooning costs it faces for rupture-prone airbags. The problem airbags have been linked to 11 deaths and 100 injuries worldwide. The Wall Street Journal says the company hopes to find a financial investor or automotive company to provide more cash, and reach a deal with car makers on sharing the costs of the recall. Costco

Stocks stayed range-bound as investors sat on the sidelines, awaiting any new clues on a rate-hike timeline from the Federal Reserve. Crude oil closed under $50 after topping that level earlier in the session. LionsGate rose thanks to a 22% increase to its topline over the fourth quarter. TV revenue reached a new quarterly record. Profit declined, however, as box-office bomb 'Gods of Egypt' fell short of expectations. McDonald's is the latest U.S. company to come under scrutiny from France's government. Officials raided McDonald's France headquarters as part of an investigation into potential tax fraud. Police raided Google's French HQ earlier this week.

Stocks turned lower as a fading crude oil rally prompted the bears to sell, while better-than-expected economic data sided with the bulls. Crude briefly topped $50 a barrel earlier for the first time since November. Pending home sales in the U.S. surged to a 10-year high in April, the latest sign of a robust housing sector. The number of home contract signings rose just over 5%, its third straight month of growth. US Foods jumped in its trading debut, topping its pricing of $23 a share. The food services company sold more than 44 million shares in the second-largest IPO of the year. Costco rose after a mixed third quarter in which a stronger U.S. dollar and lower gas prices ate into the topline. The second-largest retailer in the U.S. by sales said comps rose 3% when excluding currency exchange and fuel prices.

U.S. stocks opened higher on Wednesday as oil prices moved closer to $50 a barrel. Fresh data showed U.S. crude inventories continue to fall. Meanwhile, Greece reached a deal with the International Monetary Fund, securing $11.5 billion in fresh loans on Wednesday. In July 2015, Greece defaulted on a $1.7 billion payment to the Washington-based fund. Wednesday's deal comes in addition to the $96 billion bailout program Greece agreed to last summer, which capped months of drama that rocked global markets. Wells Fargo shares were in focus after the banking giant cut its profit targets for the next two years. Return on equity, a key profitability gauge for banks, is expected to stand between 11 percent and 14 percent, compared to a previously anticipated 12 percent to 15 percent. Hewlett Packard Enterprise shares surged some 13 percent Wednesday after announcing plans to sell its enterprise services division to Computer Sciences . TheStreet's Scott Gamm reports from Wall Street.

Wall Street kicked losses to the curb again as more gains led stocks to post their best two-day run in two months. Crude boosted equities after nearing $50 a barrel and ending the session at its highest settlement since October 9. Best Buy bounced back from a selloff suffered a day earlier following a disappointing quarterly performance and not even a downgrade from Deutsche Bank could squash gains. Analysts cut their rating to HOLD, citing concerns over recently-announced changes to the C-suite. Western Digital , meanwhile, was upgraded to OVERWEIGHT at Barclays. The firm said the move was a valuation call. Express tumbled after falling short of earnings and sales estimates in its first quarter, while comparable store sales dropped 3%.

Wall Street's rally entered day two, propelling stocks higher and erasing all May losses for the Dow Jones. Equities gained as investors overcame the shock over the higher likelihood of a June rate hike. Crude oil prices held onto gains after an official weekly read on inventories confirmed an expected decrease. The EIA said U.S. stocks fell by 4.2 million barrels in the past week, pushing crude to trade at seven-month highs. Alibaba tumbled on news of an investigation from the Securities and Exchange Commission. Regulators are looking into data reported from Singles Day, a massive online-sales holiday in November which generated more than $14 billion in sales. Tiffany & Co. fell after issuing a soft earnings forecast for the full year.

Stocks rocketed higher as the fears over rate hikes that have plagued Wall Street for nearly a week began to fade. Crude also boosted stocks, closing with gains for the first session in five. Toll Brothers spiked after posting a better-than-expected second quarter. The homebuilder has benefited from a robust housing sector which has seen resilient construction growth despite a downturn elsewhere in the economy. DSW slumped after reporting a smaller-than-expected first-quarter profit and reducing its full-year outlook on weaker shoe sales. The shoes and accessories retailer blamed a "challenging retail environment." Monsanto (MON) rose after announcing that Bayer's bid was too low, though it was open to continued negotiations. The U.S.-based agricultural company said the bid undervalues Monsanto and does not adequately address regulatory risks.

Bayer has gone public with its offer to by Monsanto