Stocks edge mostly higher on Wall Street; Walmart lifts Dow

The New York Stock Exchange logo adorns a trading post on the floor of the Exchange on March 16, 2022, in New York. Stocks are rising again at the start of trading on Wall Street on Friday, Aug. 12, 2022, putting the S&P 500 on track for its first four-week winning streak since November. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

A person wearing a protective mask walks past an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Monday, Aug. 15, 2022, in Tokyo. Shares were mixed in Asia on Monday after China's central bank cut a key interest rate and Japan reported its economy expanded at a faster pace in the last quarter. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

A person wearing a protective mask rides a bicycle along an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Monday, Aug. 15, 2022, in Tokyo. Shares were mixed in Asia on Monday after China's central bank cut a key interest rate and Japan reported its economy expanded at a faster pace in the last quarter. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

People wearing protective mask walk past an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Monday, Aug. 15, 2022, in Tokyo. Shares were mixed in Asia on Monday after China's central bank cut a key interest rate and Japan reported its economy expanded at a faster pace in the last quarter. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

A staff wearing a protective mask cleans an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Monday, Aug. 15, 2022, in Tokyo. Shares were mixed in Asia on Monday after China's central bank cut a key interest rate and Japan reported its economy expanded at a faster pace in the last quarter. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

A person wearing a protective mask walks past an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Monday, Aug. 15, 2022, in Tokyo. Shares were mixed in Asia on Monday after China's central bank cut a key interest rate and Japan reported its economy expanded at a faster pace in the last quarter. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

People walk past an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm Monday, Aug. 15, 2022, in Tokyo. Shares were mixed in Asia on Monday after China's central bank cut a key interest rate and Japan reported its economy expanded at a faster pace in the last quarter. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

An NYSE sign is seen on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, on June 15, 2022. Stocks are opening mostly lower on Wall Street Tuesday, Aug. 16, despite some encouraging results from Walmart and Home Depot, which both beat analysts' forecasts for earnings in the latest quarter. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks edged mostly higher in afternoon trading on Wall Street Tuesday as investors cautiously reviewed mostly encouraging financial results from major retailers.

The S&P 500 rose 0.3% as of 12:03 p.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 241 points, or 0.7%, to 34,153 and the Nasdaq fell 0.1%.

Walmart jumped 5.9% and after the nation's largest retailer reported strong results that easily topped analysts' forecasts. Home Depot rose 5.3% after also reporting better-than-expected results. The gains from both companies did much of the heavy lifting for the Dow.

Retailers and consumer product makers made solid gains, along with banks and industrial companies. Technology stocks fell and checked some of the broader market's advance. Chipmaker Nvidia fell 0.7%.

Bond yields gained ground. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 2.84% from 2.79% late Monday.

U.S. crude oil prices fell 2.5%. European markets were slightly higher and Asian markets closed mixed overnight.

Consumers are facing the hottest inflation in 40 years and the latest results from retailers show that spending remains solid. Wall Street has been concerned that higher prices on everything from food to clothing could eventually stunt the economy's main engine of growth, consumer spending. Investors will get more updates on the retail sector this week, when Target reports its results on Wednesday.

The Commerce Department releases its July retail sales report on Wednesday. Economists surveyed by FactSet expect modest 0.2% growth from June, when sales rose 1%.

The retail reports are capping off the latest round of corporate earnings, which have been closely watched by investors trying to determine inflation's impact on businesses and consumers, while trying to gauge how Federal Reserve will react. The central bank is raising interest rates in an effort to slow down economic growth and rein in inflation, though it risks hitting the brakes too hard and veering the economy into a recession.

Investors are looking for any signs that inflation is peaking or cooling in the hopes that the Fed could ease its aggressive rate hike policy. The central bank in July raised its benchmark interest rate by three-quarters of a point for a second straight time. On Wednesday, Wall Street will get more details on the process behind that decision when the Fed releases minutes from that meeting.

Investors currently expect a half-point increase at the Fed's upcoming meeting in August, according to CME's FedWatch tool.

Stocks had their best month in a year-and-a-half in July and the winning streak has been continuing into August partially on hopes that inflation is easing. The latest government report on consumer prices showed that inflation essentially stalled from June to July.

Still, trading has been choppy, with major indexes swaying between gains and losses throughout each day.