US stocks are little changed after jobs survey

Stocks were little changed Wednesday after a survey showed that U.S. companies added slightly more jobs in February than in the previous month. The Standard & Poor's 500 surged to an all-time high a day earlier with its biggest gain since October.

KEEPING SCORE: The S&P 500 index rose two points, or 0.1 percent, to 1,876 as of 11:23 a.m. Eastern Time. The Dow Jones industrial average fell nine points, or less than 0.1 percent, to 16,376. The Nasdaq composite rose eight points, or 0.2 percent, to 4,359.

JOBS: Payroll processor ADP said Wednesday that businesses added 139,000 jobs last month, up from 127,000 in January, however January's figure was revised sharply lower from an original estimate of 175,000. The ADP numbers cover only private businesses and often differ from the government's more comprehensive survey of the U.S. employment market. The Department of Labor releases its monthly report Friday. Economists believe the U.S. will report that employers generated 145,000 jobs in February.

WHISKEY IN THE JAR: Brown-Forman, the maker of Jack Daniel's Whiskey and other alcoholic drinks, rose $3.15, or 3.8 percent, to $87.16 after the company reported earnings that beat analyst's expectations and raised its full-year earnings forecast.

GAME ON: GameStop, a retailer of video games, climbed $1.22, or 3.3 percent, to $38.58 after the company said late Thursday that it would increase its annual dividend by 20 percent to $1.32 a share.

RISING PROFITS: Smith & Wesson jumped $1.99, or 17.1 percent, to $13.82 after the gun maker's quarterly performance topped expectations and its outlook surprised Wall Street. Gun sales surged last year in the wake of the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., and other shootings. Many gun enthusiasts went on a buying spree, fearing new laws restricting gun ownership.