Stocks traded choppily with indexes slightly higher on Thursday after a survey showed the pace of growth in the U.S. manufacturing sector picked up in November to its strongest level since June,

The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> gained 5.19 points, or 0.04 percent, to 12,050.87. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> gained 3.14 points, or 0.25 percent, to 1,250.10. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gained 14.14 points, or 0.54 percent, to 2,634.48.

(Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

Manufacturing