Stocks Hold Gains As Microsoft Amazon.com Aid The Nasdaq

The stock market's morning advance stalled at midday, but the main indexes were holding most of the day's gains in afternoon trading Thursday.

[ibd-display-video id=2327695 width=50 float=left autostart=true]The Nasdaq composite and S&P 500 were an hour away from making it eight up days in a row. The Nasdaq led with a 0.7% increase and the S&P 500 added 0.5%. The Dow Jones industrial average, also trying to extend a winning streak, was up 0.4%. The small-cap Russell 2000 climbed 0.2%. All those indexes were near session highs.

Volume was flat on the NYSE and lower on the Nasdaq compared with the same time Wednesday. Advancers led decliners by 7-to-4 on the NYSE and by 3-to-2 on the Nasdaq.

Two major Nasdaq components saw positive action. Microsoft ( MSFT ) rallied 1.6% to a new high after Canaccord Genuity upgraded the stock to buy from hold and raised the price target to 86 from 76.

The analysts believe there are some overlooked growth drivers for the software giant, including some in office productivity and gaming, which suggest Microsoft faces a sustained period of accelerating growth. "While the (Office 365) upgrade cycle is obvious and well-known, investors are missing the explosive potential of eSports ... as well as an emerging marketing effort that we believe will increasingly look like, and compete with, Salesforce.com ( CRM )," the analysts said.

Amazon.com ( AMZN ) gave investors a little bit to cheer when the stock rose back above the 50-day moving average for the first time in nearly three weeks. Amazon.com is forming a new base, but most of it has been below the 50-day line, a flaw. The online retailer and IBD Leaderboard stock is testing a new home delivery service with third-party merchants that use its platform.

Biogen ( BIIB ) rose sharply to its highest level since July 2015 after Morgan Stanley upgraded the biotech to overweight from equal weight and raised the price target to 375 from 311. A fuller discussion of the stock is in the New Highs column .

LGI Homes ( LGIH ) climbed to an all-time high in heavy trading. The Texas-based builder announced strong growth in home closings for September and the third quarter. The stock was up 3% and is extended from the 46.99 buy point of a cup-with-handle base.

The casino industry has been shaken by the massacre at a Las Vegas music festival Sunday night, but some gaming stocks have been resilient.

Boyd Gaming (BYD) leapt above its 50-day line in heavy volume. The Las Vegas-based company's stock has been erratic since clearing the 26.30 buy point of a flat base in July. Pinnacle Entertainment (PNK) - which owns 15 casinos in the U.S. - broke out of a saucer pattern , clearing a 22.20 buy point. But volume was soft.

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