US STOCKS-Wall St gains after strong US data, waning virus fears; Tesla limits Nasdaq's rise

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* Jan. private sector payroll rises more than expected
* U.S. services sector activity picks up in Jan -ISM
* Biogen shares soar after drug patent ruling
* Ford slumps after weak 2020 forecast
* Indexes up: Dow 1.45%, S&P 0.97%, Nasdaq 0.27%

(Updates to mid afternoon)
By Lewis Krauskopf
Feb 5 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rallied for a third straight
day on Wednesday on encouraging U.S. economic data and waning
fears of the financial fallout from a virus out of China but
losses in Tesla shares pulled the Nasdaq off its record high.
The ADP National Employment Report showed private payrolls
jumped by 291,000 jobs in January, the most since May 2015,
while a separate report showed U.S. services sector activity
picked up in January, suggesting the economy could continue to
grow moderately this year even as consumer spending is slowing.
The benchmark S&P 500 .SPX has more than recovered from
last week's steep losses after China boosted liquidity to limit
the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak. "There is at least not as much of a fear of an outcome of a
pandemic that will have as much economic pressure globally as
maybe initially was thought,” said Delores Rubin, senior
equities trader at Deutsche Bank Wealth Management in New York.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 417.1 points,
or 1.45%, to 29,224.73, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 31.88 points,
or 0.97%, to 3,329.47 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added
25.73 points, or 0.27%, to 9,493.71.
Energy .SPNY was the best performing S&P 500 sector,
jumping 3.6% along with a rise in crude prices. The healthcare sector .SPXHC climbed 2.1%, led by health
insurers as well as by a 21.6% jump in shares of Biogen BIIB.O
after the biotech company won a patent ruling on a multiple
sclerosis drug. Shares of Tesla TSLA.O cooled off after a huge six-day
rally, dropping 18.6%. Fourth-quarter reporting season for large U.S. companies is
more than halfway done, with S&P 500 companies seen posting a
1.6% rise in earnings for the period, according to IBES data
form Refinitiv.
"We have had some mixed results, but the big names have been
surprising to the upside," Rubin said. "As that continues, folks
are not finding that many reasons not to be in the market."
In earnings news, Ford Motor Co F.N shares fell 9.4% after
the company delivered a weaker-than-expected 2020 forecast.
Coty Inc COTY.N shares rose 12.7% after the cosmetics and
fragrance maker reported quarterly profit above expectations.
Merck MRK.N shares dropped 3.1% after the drugmaker said
it will spin off its women's health, biosimilar drugs and older
products into a separate publicly traded company. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a
2.88-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.37-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 70 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the
Nasdaq Composite recorded 119 new highs and 20 new lows.