Stocks headed for a higher close late Wednesday afternoon as investors cheered strong company earnings from Intel and hospital operator HCA Holdings. Traders also welcomed the latest batch corporate deal news, bidding up shares in Time Warner nearly 18 percent following word that Twenty-First Century Fox made a takeover bid for the media giant.

KEEPING SCORE: The Dow Jones industrial average rose 62 points, or 0.4 percent, to 17,122 as of 3:24 p.m. Eastern time. The Standard & Poor’s 500 rose seven points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,981. The Nasdaq composite added 15 points, or 0.4 percent, to 4,432.

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