A trader works on the floor of the New York...

A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2014 in Manhattan. Wall Street was expected to drop on the open on Thursday, with Dow and S&P 500 futures down 0.8 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively. Credit: Getty Images / Spencer Platt

Financial markets ended higher Thursday after an early morning plunge. Even the Dow Jones industrial average only had a small loss.

At the close on Wall Street, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 24.5 points, or nearly 0.2 percent, to 16,117.24. It was down as much as 206 in morning trading.

Broader indexes fared better. The Standard & Poor's 500 ended with a gain of less than a point at 1,862.76. The Nasdaq composite gained 2.07 points, or 0.05 percent, to 4,217.39.

Energy companies rose the most after the price of crude oil turned higher.

Netflix plunged 19 percent after the company's subscriber growth fell short of its own forecasts following a rate increase.

The price of oil recovered slightly after three days of declines.

Benchmark U.S. crude rose 92 cents to close at $82.70 a barrel. It's still down 4 percent for the week.

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Updated 28 minutes ago Suozzi visits ICE 'hold rooms' ... U.S. cuts child vaccines ... Coram apartment fire ... Out East: Custer Institute and Observatory

U.S. cuts child vaccines ... Malverne hit-and-run crash ... Kids celebrate Three Kings Day Credit: Newsday

Updated 28 minutes ago Suozzi visits ICE 'hold rooms' ... U.S. cuts child vaccines ... Coram apartment fire ... Out East: Custer Institute and Observatory

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