US STOCKS-Wall Street edges higher on robust earnings, Brexit deal

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* Britain, EU reach Brexit deal, awaits parliament approval
* Netflix jumps on better-than-expected subscriber adds
* Morgan Stanley caps big bank earnings with profit beat
* IBM falls after revenue miss, weighs on Dow
* Indexes up: Dow 0.08%, S&P 500 0.28%, Nasdaq 0.34%

(Updates to late afternoon, changes dateline, byline)
By Stephen Culp
NEW YORK, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Wall Street gained ground on
Thursday as positive geopolitical developments and a string of
corporate earnings beats put investors in a buying mood.
A moderate but broad-based rally sent all three major U.S.
indexes into the black.
Britain and the European Union agreed to a severance deal,
potentially wrapping up three years of uncertainties after
Britons voted to leave the bloc. A parliamentary thumbs-up is
still needed to seal the deal. Positive statements from Beijing and Washington raised hopes
that a phased agreement could be reached to resolve the
market-rattling trade war between the world's two largest
economies. "Earnings are shorter-term, it's what happened last quarter
and expectations for next quarter," said Paul Nolte, portfolio
manager at Kingsview Asset Management in Chicago. "Brexit and
trade have a much longer runway. If we solve those, you're
talking about multiple years of better growth."
Analysts currently see third-quarter S&P 500 earnings
dropping by 2.9%, according to Refinitiv I/B/E/S, marking the
first contraction since the earnings recession that ended
mid-2016.
But of the 63 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported so
far, 82.5% have come in above estimates.
"Earnings have been above expectations," Nolte added. "(But)
a millipede could get over those expectations, the bar has been
set so low."
Morgan Stanley MS.N rounded out big bank earnings with
better-than-expected third-quarter profits, driven by bond
trading and M&A advisory strength, sending its shares up 1.9%.
Streaming bellwether Netflix Inc NFLX.O advanced 3.5%
after the company reported a rebound in subscribers in the third
quarter.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI rose 21.86 points,
or 0.08%, to 27,023.84, the S&P 500 .SPX gained 8.24 points,
or 0.28%, to 2,997.93 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC added
27.75 points, or 0.34%, to 8,151.93.
Of the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500, all but technology
.SPLRCT and energy .SPNY were trading in the black, with
healthcare .SPXHC , real estate .SPLRCR and industrials
.SPLRCI enjoying the largest percentage gains.
Among other earnings news, shares of International Business
Machines Corp were the biggest drag on the blue-chip Dow,
sinking 5.6% after missing quarterly revenue estimates due to
weakness in its global technology services unit. Union Pacific Corp UNP.N missed third-quarter consensus
estimates as lower crude oil shipments hurt the railroad
operator's bottom line. Still, its operating ratio, a measure of
efficiency and profitability, improved year-on-year, and its
stock was last up 0.7%. Union Pacific rival CSX Corp CSX.O rose 2.6% after beating
profit expectations. Honeywell International Inc's HON.N quarterly results fell
short of analyst expectations as its customers curbed spending
in the face of geopolitical uncertainties, including Brexit and
trade. Positive developments on those fronts helped the stock
gain 2.8%. On the economic front, a spate of underwhelming data
supported the notion that the longest period of expansion is
U.S. history could be running out of steam. Housing starts,
industrial production and mid-Atlantic factory output all fell
short of economist expectations. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a
1.98-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.92-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 34 new 52-week highs and two new lows;
the Nasdaq Composite recorded 50 new highs and 50 new lows.