U.S. stocks gained in the last hour of trading as a rally in energy and technology shares overpowered earlier declines spurred by a drop in homebuilder confidence to the lowest level on record.

Hewlett-Packard Co. jumped 14 percent as earnings topped analysts’ estimates, while Exxon Mobil Corp. climbed more than 4 percent. The advance in equities accelerated near the close as investors tracking the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index bought shares to replace Anheuser-Busch Cos., which was removed from the gauge following its takeover by InBev NV.

The S&P 500 added 1 percent to 859.12. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 151.17 points, or 1.8 percent, to 8,424.75. The Nasdaq Composite Index rose less than 0.1 percent to 1,483.27.

(Bloomberg.com)