US close: Markets mixed as investors look to Fed speeches
US equity markets were mixed on Wednesday as investors looked to speeches from Federal Reserve officials and kept abreast of events in Europe as Britain started divorce proceedings with the EU.
Dow Jones I.A.
37,986.40
04:30 15/10/20
Nasdaq 100
17,037.65
12:15 19/04/24
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.2% at 20,659.32, while the S&P 500 rose 0.11% to 2,361.13, and the Nasdaq 100 was 0.43% higher at 5,430.27.
Investors were eyeing speeches by Federal Reserve presidents to look for hints on another possible interest rate hike in June after dovish comments from central bank officials recently.
Chicago Fed president Charles Evans told a conference in Germany that he supported “another one or two increases this year” due to progress in full employment and stable inflation in the US.
Across the pond, British Prime Minister Theresa May signed a letter on Tuesday evening to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon treaty which will start a two-year clock on negotiations to leave the trading bloc.
The country’s EU ambassador, Sir Tim Barrow hand delivered the letter to Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council on Wednesday.
Immediately after the clause was triggered, the pound rose against the dollar to a daily high.
Analysts at Monex Europe said: “After taking a pummelling last week on the failure of ‘Trumpcare’ legislation, dollar is attempting a rally this week, and made progress against most of the G10 overnight after yesterday’s advances versus sterling and the euro.
“Yesterday’s fundamental data was positive, including a smaller than expected goods trade deficit, which, somewhat humorously given recent rhetoric from President Trump, may well be due to the timing of the Chinese New Year holiday in the nation that is the key source of US imports.”
On the data front, US pending home sales rose a lot more than expected in February, according to data from the National Association of Realtors.
The NAR's monthly index rose 5.5% to 112.3 from 106.4 in January and now sits 2.6% above a year ago, marking the highest level since last April. Economists had expected a 2.1% jump on the month.
On the corporate front, Vertex Pharmaceuticals soared 20.45% following news late on Tuesday that its drug for cystic fibrosis met endpoints in two late-stage clinical studies.
Restoration Hardware parent RH climbed 14.95% following better-than-expected earnings late on Tuesday.
Restaurant chain Dave & Buster’s Entertainment fell 3.38% after disappointing updates, while rival Sonic Corp surged 5.43% after quarterly earnings beat expectations.
Amazon extended gains, rising 2.14% to a record high after launching a new grocery service, Amazonfresh Pickup, on Tuesday.
Dow Jones - Risers
Chevron Corp. (CVX) $108.07 0.84%
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) $70.74 0.60%
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $34.33 0.50%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $63.64 0.47%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $65.47 0.28%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $144.12 0.22%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $82.02 0.22%
General Electric Co. (GE) $29.68 0.20%
Boeing Co. (BA) $177.63 0.15%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $56.68 0.11%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $163.44 -1.16%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $120.56 -1.04%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $33.74 -0.82%
United Technologies Corp. (UTX) $112.06 -0.60%
Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) $124.92 -0.59%
American Express Co. (AXP) $78.25 -0.50%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $128.84 -0.47%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $112.53 -0.46%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $228.46 -0.38%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $88.27 -0.37%
S&P 500 - Risers
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $108.01 20.45%
Chesapeake Energy Corp. (CHK) $5.81 7.79%
Endo International Plc (ENDP) $11.46 6.70%
Nordstrom Inc. (JWN) $45.92 5.37%
Hess Corp. (HES) $49.76 4.87%
Urban Outfitters Inc. (URBN) $24.41 4.54%
Kohls Corp. (KSS) $40.19 4.53%
Range Resources Corp. (RRC) $28.95 4.17%
Marathon Oil Corp. (MRO) $15.84 4.07%
Devon Energy Corp. (DVN) $41.22 4.04%
S&P 500 - Fallers
F5 Networks Inc. (FFIV) $142.10 -3.42%
Mylan Inc. (MYL) $40.35 -3.28%
Paychex Inc. (PAYX) $59.06 -2.51%
Tenet Healthcare Corp. (THC) $17.92 -2.29%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $268.53 -2.04%
US Bancorp (USB) $51.75 -1.82%
Westrock Company (WRK) $52.04 -1.57%
Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (CFG) $34.49 -1.54%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $41.96 -1.50%
Royal Caribbean Cr (RCL) $98.92 -1.40%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. (VRTX) $108.01 20.45%
Liberty Global Plc Lilac Class C (LILAK) $23.63 3.59%
Liberty Global Plc Lilac Class A (LILA) $22.80 3.54%
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. (REGN) $394.14 3.03%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $78.51 2.56%
Amazon.Com Inc. (AMZN) $874.32 2.14%
O'Reilly Automotive Inc. (ORLY) $274.78 1.88%
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $120.72 1.85%
Symantec Corp. (SYMC) $30.83 1.55%
Discovery Communications Inc. Class A (DISCA) $28.06 1.37%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Mylan Inc. (MYL) $40.35 -3.28%
Paychex Inc. (PAYX) $59.06 -2.51%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $283.32 -2.08%
Biogen Inc (BIIB) $268.53 -2.04%
American Airlines Group (AAL) $41.96 -1.50%
J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc. (JBHT) $91.16 -1.28%
Automatic Data Processing Inc. (ADP) $102.13 -1.11%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class A (FOXA) $32.11 -1.02%
Amgen Inc. (AMGN) $163.06 -1.00%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class B (FOX) $31.51 -0.97%