US close: Stocks edge forward as S&P closes at record high
US stocks advanced on Thursday, as investors analysed a raft of economic data that showed the US economy continued to move forward, albeit at a subdued pace.
Best Buy Co. Inc.
$75.24
11:10 25/04/24
Dow Jones I.A.
38,085.80
04:30 15/10/20
Hewlett-Packard Co.
$28.13
11:10 25/04/24
Nasdaq 100
17,430.50
12:15 25/04/24
NetApp Inc.
$100.94
12:09 25/04/24
Salesforce.Com Inc.
$273.14
11:10 25/04/24
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed virtually flat after gaining less than a point, while the S&P 500 closed at a record high of 2,130.84 after gaining 4.99 points and the Nasdaq rose 24 points.
Weekly jobless claims in the US increased a little more than expected in the week ending May 16, according to data released by the Labor Department on Thursday.
Initial jobless claims rose by 10,000 to 274,000 from the previous week, compared with analysts’ expectations for a rise to 270,000.
“Looking through the uptick in initial claims due to this week’s seasonal adjustment factor, labor market separations remain at historically low levels and US labor market momentum remains solid in mid-May,” analysts at Barclays said in a note.
The Chicago Fed’s national activity index edged up to -0.15 from -0.36 in March, while the three-month average rose to -0.23 from -0.27.
The index declined from 7.5 in April to 6.7 this month, falling short of the 8.8 reading analysts had expected, although it remained way above the expansion threshold.
Existing-home sales in the States unexpectedly slumped 3.3% in April after a revised 6.5% jump in March, missing the +0.8% forecast, while the flash Markit US manufacturing PMI dropped to 53.8 in May from 54.1 in April, surprising analysts who had expected a rise to 54.5. “
The survey is likely to encourage policymakers to err on the side of caution, especially in relation to any further damaging impact of the stronger dollar on growth and earnings if policy were to be tightened,” said Markit chief economist Chris Williamson.
“Any decision on hiking interest rates is therefore likely to be put off until later in the year.”
Mixed earnings on Wall Street
In company news, electronics retailer Best Buy advanced 4.04% after reporting better-than-expected first quarter results earlier on Thursday.
Drugstore chain CVS Health climbed 2.42% after announcing it had reached an agreement worth $12.7bn to takeover healthcare service group Omnicare, while software and technologies provider Hewlett-Packard rose 0.82% in after-hour trading after posting better-than-expected earnings after the closing bell.
Cloud-computing group Salesforce.com rose 3.95% ahead of the bell after its quarterly earnings beat analysts’ expectations late on Wednesday, while storage data company NetApp plunged 10.5% after its earnings fell short of Wall Street’s estimates.
Hardwood flooring retailer Lumber Liquidators Holdings plummeted 16.50% after its chief executive, Robert M. Lynch, resigned unexpectedly as concerns over the safety of the group's products continue to mount.
Oil prices moved north, with West Texas Intermediate surging 2.8% to $60.67 a barrel, while Brent rose 2.2% to $66.50 a barrel.
The dollar lost 0.76% against the pound, dropping 0.1% against the euro and 0.17% against the yen, while gold futures edged 0.22% lower to $1,206.10.
S&P 500 - Risers
Rowan Companies plc (RDC) $23.35 +5.28%
Noble Corporation plc (NE) $17.63 +4.51%
Denbury Resources Inc. (DNR) $7.61 +4.39%
Transocean Ltd. (RIG) $20.08 +4.26%
Best Buy Co. Inc. (BBY) $35.15 +4.04%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $72.93 +3.95%
Chesapeake Energy Corp. (CHK) $15.31 +3.80%
Ensco Plc. (ESV) $25.30 +3.27%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $78.68 +3.17%
Windstream Holdings Inc (WIN) $8.53 +3.14%
S&P 500 - Fallers
NetApp Inc. (NTAP) $31.77 -10.08%
Allegheny Technologies Inc. (ATI) $34.40 -3.72%
AFLAC Inc. (AFL) $62.89 -2.81%
Newmont Mining Corp. (NEM) $27.01 -2.35%
United States Steel Corp. (X) $23.89 -2.23%
Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. (CCE) $45.30 -2.05%
Gannett Co. Inc. (GCI) $36.01 -1.69%
Yum! Brands Inc. (YUM) $93.44 -1.51%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $125.05 -1.34%
Harman International Industries Inc. (HAR) $125.10 -1.15%
Dow Jones I.A - Risers
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $89.33 +1.59%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $131.39 +1.02%
Boeing Co. (BA) $147.40 +0.67%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $33.55 +0.54%
E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (DD) $70.99 +0.47%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $49.92 +0.46%
General Electric Co. (GE) $27.74 +0.36%
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) $76.12 +0.29%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $66.65 +0.26%
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $105.51 +0.25%
Dow Jones I.A - Fallers
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $102.42 -1.14%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $99.27 -0.84%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $29.43 -0.64%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $120.48 -0.63%
Visa Inc. (V) $69.36 -0.60%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $103.08 -0.60%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $60.10 -0.60%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $47.42 -0.34%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $41.24 -0.27%
American Express Co. (AXP) $80.78 -0.22%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Vodafone Group Plc ADS (VOD) $38.68 +4.15%
Nxp Semiconductors Nv (NXPI) $106.79 +3.80%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $78.68 +3.17%
Vimpelcom Ltd Ads (VIP) $6.31 +2.94%
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $168.57 +2.51%
Baidu Inc. (BIDU) $200.13 +2.36%
Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) $43.67 +2.07%
Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $431.63 +1.83%
Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $56.37 +1.75%
Express Scripts Holding Co (ESRX) $90.24 +1.70%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
NetApp Inc. (NTAP) $31.77 -10.08%
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $125.05 -1.34%
Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) $65.49 -1.04%
Sba Communications Corp. (SBAC) $113.55 -1.00%
Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) $40.32 -0.84%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class A (DISCA) $33.30 -0.80%
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $86.70 -0.76%
Mylan Inc. (MYL) $69.94 -0.72%
Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) $20.89 -0.71%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $29.43 -0.64%