Stocks notch modest gains, led by banks and energy companies

Stocks notched modest gains on Wall Street Tuesday afternoon as investors returned from a three-day holiday weekend and digested a report showing more growth in manufacturing as the coronavirus pandemic wanes in the U.S.

The S&P 500 was up less than 0.1% as of 2:28 p.m. Eastern. The benchmark index swung been a gain of 0.7% and a loss of 0.2%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 82 points, or 0.2%, to 34,611. The Nasdaq was up less than 0.1% after having been down 0.5% in the early going. Small-company stocks outpaced the rest of the market. The Russell 2000 index added 1.1%.

Banks were among the biggest gainers as bond yields ticked higher, which allows them to charge more lucrative interest rates on loans. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 1.61% from 1.58% Friday. U.S. markets were closed Monday for Memorial Day. Bank of America rose 1.1%.

Energy companies also helped lift the broader market. Crude oil prices jumped more than 2%, helping to send producers higher. Exxon Mobil rose 3.6%.

Health care and technology companies fell, checking gains elsewhere in the market.

The Institute for Supply Management reported that manufacturing picked up again in May. The ISM"s manufacturing index came in at 61.2 last month, much better than the 60.6 expected by economists surveyed by FactSet.

The growth in manufacturing came despite supply shortages that have plagued many manufacturers for weeks, particularly those who require semiconductors.

It's the latest piece of economic data that has shown the U.S. economy growing quickly out of the coronavirus pandemic. Investors will get jobs data later this week, which is expected to show that U.S. employers created 663,000 jobs last month.

AMC Entertainment jumped 22.8% after the movie theater operator announced a stock sale. AMC, whose stock is up more than 1,000% this year, is one of a handful of companies that gained the attention of a group of online retail investors earlier this year, along with companies like GameStop.