The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 29,551.42 on Wednesday with a gain of 275.08 points 0.94%. The S&P 500 closed at 3,379.45 for a gain of 21.70 points or 0.65%. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 9,725.96 for a gain of 87.02 points or 0.90%. The VIX Volatility Index was lower at 13.81 for a loss of 1.37 points or -9.03%.
Wednesday’s market movers
U.S. indexes continued their rally, closing higher for a third day on Wednesday. Stocks continued to gain as fears over the coronavirus subsided. In political news, Bernie Sanders won the New Hampshire primary election, setting him up as the leading Democratic presidential candidate. On Capital Hill, Jerome Powell gave his second day of Congressional testimony, reporting that the economy was on a good track for growth.
On the earnings calendar:
- Channeladvisor (ECOM, Financial): Stock gained 18.9% after earnings per share beat estimates by 3 cents.
- Shopify (SHOP, Financial): Stock gained 9.18% after earnings beat estimates by 43 cents.
- Teva Pharmaceuticals (TEVA, Financial): Stock gained 8.92% with earnings per share announcement of 62 cents.
- Cisco (CSCO, Financial): Revenue of $12.01 billion decreased 3.5% year over year and beat estimates by $30 million. Second-quarter GAAP earnings of 68 cents per share beat estimates by 3 cents and non-GAAP earnings of 77 cents beat estimates by 1 cent.
Economic reports affecting market trading included the following:
- The MBA Mortgage Applications Index increased 1.1% following an increase of 5%. The MBA’s average 30-year mortgage rate increased to 3.72% from 3.71%.
- The EIA’s Weekly Petroleum Status report showed an increase of 7.459 million in crude oil stock inventory.
- The Treasury held an auction for 10-year notes at a rate of 1.622%.
- The Treasury’s January Monthly Budget Statement showed a deficit of $33 billion.
In the S&P 500, energy and technology led gains. In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the following stocks led gains:
- UnitedHealth (UNH, Financial) 4.26%
- Nike (NKE, Financial) 3.02%
- Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA, Financial) 2.74%
- Caterpillar (CAT, Financial) 2.69%
- Apple (AAPL, Financial) 2.26%
Small-cap stocks
In small caps, the Russell 2000 closed at 1,689.38 for a gain of 11.87 points or 0.71%. The S&P 600 closed at 1,019.72 for a gain of 6.75 points or 0.67%. The Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Growth Index closed at 10,947.98 for a gain of 82.83 points or 0.76%. The Dow Jones U.S. Small-Cap Value Index closed at 9,784.12 for a gain of 64.58 points or 0.66%.
Other notable indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index at 2,091.35 for a gain of 14.68 points or 0.71%; the S&P 100 at 1,517.81 for a gain of 9.48 points or 0.63%; the Nasdaq 100 at 9,613.20 for a gain of 95.34 points or 1.00%; the Russell 3000 at 1,977.99 for a gain of 12.81 points or 0.65%; the Russell 1000 at 1,869.15 for a gain of 12.04 points or 0.65%; the Wilshire 5000 at 34,536.91 for a gain of 227.30 points or 0.66%; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index at 760.93 for a gain of 2.58 points or 0.34%.
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