U.S. stocks traded higher midway through trading, with the Dow Jones index surging over 100 points on Thursday. The Dow traded up 0.32% to 38,024.10 while the NASDAQ rose 0.74% to 15,720.29. The S&P 500 also rose, gaining, 0.31% to 5,033.86.                                         . Check This Out: Top 4 Defensive Stocks You’ll Regret Missing This Quarter Leading and Lagging SectorsInformation technology shares rose by 1% on Thursday. In trading on Thursday, materials shares fell by 1%. Top Headline ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) reported downbeat earnings for its first quarter. ConocoPhillips posted adjusted earnings of $2.03 per share, missing market estimates of $2.04 per share. The company's quarterly sales came in at $14.476 billion versus expectations of $15.047 billion. Equities Trading UP                        Aspen Aerogels, Inc.. (NYSE:ASPN) shares shot up 46% to $22.19 after the company reported better-than-expected first-quarter financial results. Shares of Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE:EBS) got a boost, surging 129% to $4.4199 after the company announced operational changes to stabilize its financial position and reported first-quarter financial results. Carvana Co. (NYSE:CVNA) shares were also up, gaining 39% to $121.17 after the company reported upbeat sales for the ...