US STOCKS-Dow ends at record high after upbeat jobless claims report

* Weekly jobless claims fall more than expected
* Pharma slides as Biden backs COVID-19 vaccine IP waiver
* Regeneron up on better-than-expected quarterly profit
* Indexes: Dow +0.93%, S&P 500 +0.82%, Nasdaq +0.37%

(Updates with price moves after the close)
By Shreyashi Sanyal and Krystal Hu
May 6 (Reuters) - The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI
closed at a record high on Thursday, bolstered by an upbeat
weekly jobless claims report, while vaccine makers dipped after
U.S. President Joe Biden backed plans to waive patents on
COVID-19 shots.
Lifted by Apple Inc AAPL.O , the S&P 500 rose after a Labor
Department report showed initial claims for state unemployment
benefits totaled a seasonally adjusted 498,000 for the week
ended May 1, compared with 590,000 in the prior week.
Investors were awaiting a more comprehensive non-farm
payrolls report on Friday for clues on the strength of the labor
market and potentially the U.S. Federal Reserve's stance on
monetary policy.
"Investors are encouraged by the low-interest rates and the
stimulus that the government is putting into the economy. We're
also seeing substantial increases in economic projections and
earnings forecasts," said Sam Stovall, chief investment
strategist at CFRA Research.
Pharmaceutical companies dropped after the White House said
Biden made the decision to back a proposed waiver for COVID-19
vaccine intellectual property rights.
Shares in Pfizer Inc PFE.N and Moderna Inc MRNA.O fell
1% or more. Johnson & Johnson JNJ.N and Novavax Inc NVAX.O
ended higher after spending much of the day in negative
territory. The Nasdaq biotechnology index .NBI dropped 0.4%.
Moderna's shares cut some losses after it said countries
around the globe would continue buying its COVID-19 vaccine for
years even if patents on the shots are waived. The S&P 500 financials index .SPSY was the top performer
among the 11 sectors, gaining 1.4%.
"One sector we are seeing a lot of opportunities in is the
financial sector. We see it as one that should benefit from
higher interest rates and a stronger economic recovery," said
Ann Guntli, portfolio manager at Chicago-based RMB Capital.
Microsoft Corp MSFT.O , Apple AAPL.O , Facebook FB.O and
Amazon.com Inc AMZN.O rose more than 1%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.93% to end at
34,548.53 points, while the S&P 500 .SPX gained 0.82% to
4,201.62.
The Nasdaq Composite .IXIC climbed 0.37% to 13,632.84.
In extended trade, Square SQ.N rose 3% after the mobile
payments company announced a 266% jump in quarterly total net
revenue. During the trading session, Costco Wholesale COST.O jumped
2.75% after the retailer said late on Wednesday that its April
sales surged 33.5%. That rally helped push the S&P 500 consumers
staple index higher. Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc REGN.O rose 3.37% after the
drugmaker reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit and
said it expected demand for its COVID-19 antibody therapy to
hold up. Uber Technologies Inc UBER.N tumbled 8.85% after it
signaled it would pay drivers more to get cars back on the road
as the pandemic recedes, and disclosed a $600 million charge to
provide UK drivers with benefits.
Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a
1.33-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.38-to-1 ratio favored decliners.
The S&P 500 posted 121 new 52-week highs and no new lows;
the Nasdaq Composite recorded 118 new highs and 155 new lows.
Volume on U.S. exchanges was 11 billion shares, compared
with the 10 billion average for the full session over the last
20 trading days.