NEW YORK, Jan 18 (Reuters) - The Nasdaq 100 index was near session highs and in positive territory on Tuesday afternoon, led by gains in Google Inc and as Apple Inc cut its losses.
Google shares rose 2.2 percent to $637.83 after at least four brokerages lifted their price targets on the Internet giant's stock. Apple, down as much as 6.5 percent on the news its chief executive was taking a medical leave of absence, cut losses in the afternoon to trade down 1.6 percent at $342.93.
Around 70 of the Nasdaq 100 components were in positive territory.
Among the broader benchmark indexes, the Dow Jones industrial average rose 68 points, or 0.52 percent, to 11,849.06. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index added 0.59 point, or 0.05 percent, to 1,293.83. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 2.57 points, or 0.09 percent, to 2,757.87, slightly off a fresh 52-week high at 2,758.53.
Earlier, the Dow climbed to a fresh 52-week high at 11,858.78 and the S&P 500 rose as high intraday as 1,294.48, which also was a fresh 52-week intraday high. (Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Jan Paschal)