text: Stocks Higher; Investors Await Fed NEW YORK - Strong earnings from financial services companies and upbeat economic data pushed stocks higher Tuesday, but many investors clung to the sidelines ahead of the Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates, expected later in the session.    Investors may be seeing some buying opportunities after Monday, when gloomy outlooks from the consumer staples group weighed heavily on the market; a strong reading on new housing construction provided additional incentive...