Stocks Leap Out of the Gate

Invigorated by the three-day holiday, investors rushed to buy stocks of all stripes Tuesday, sending all major indices solidly higher.

At 11:30 a.m. Eastern, internet.com’s Internet Stock Index had jumped 33.34, or 5.63 percent, to 625.97, the Nasdaq Composite had soared 135.97 to 3,341.08 and the Dow Jones industrial average had leaped 127.48 to 10,426.72.

Helping matters were new numbers indicating consumers remain confident about the economy. The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index rose to 144.4 in May, up from a revised 137.7 in April.

Stocks on the climb included Freeserve PLC , up 16-1/16 to 72-9/16. The U.K. Internet provider is reportedly being eyed by Germany’s Deutsche Telekom and could fetch up to $9.7 billion, according to the Sunday Times.

Adaptive Broadband Corp. had gained 4-5/16 to 22-3/4. The maker of high-speed wireless equipment Tuesday agreed to sell its satellite-communications division to Comtech Telecommunications Corp.

Exodus Communications gained 4-7/8 to 66-7/8. Jefferies & Co. Internet analyst Fred Moran issued a research note Tuesday saying the Web hosting firm will likely help spark a recovery across the Net sector.

Ticketmaster Online-City Search Inc. was up 1 to 16-1/4. The company Tuesday purchased TicketWeb Inc. for $35.2 million in stock.

MP3.com Inc. had fallen 1/8 to 11-7/16. The online music service Tuesday formed a retail music licensing division that will supply retail establishments with music.

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