U.S. Indexes Reach New Highs
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 reached new highs on Wednesday. For the day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 18372.12 for a gain of 24.45 points or 0.13 percent. The S&P 500 closed at 2152.43 for a gain of 0.29 points or 0.01 percent. The Nasdaq Composite closed at 5005.73 for a loss of -17.09 points or -0.34 percent. The VIX Volatility Index was lower at 12.96 for a loss of -0.59 points or -4.35 percent.
Wednesday’s Market Movers
On Wednesday the rally in stocks continued with the DJIA and S&P 500 reaching new highs. Gains continue to be fueled by positive earnings, and other factors are also now becoming more of a consideration.
Yields and credit rates continued to remain in focus with the Mortgage Bankers Association reporting its Mortgage Applications report on Wednesday. The report showed mortgage applications and refinancings continuing to increase as mortgage rates remain low. For the week, mortgage applications increased by 7.2 percent and refinancings increased by 11 percent. The market’s leading economic report for the day was the Beige Book. The Beige Book showed an optimistic outlook for the U.S. market with 11 of 12 federal districts reporting positive growth.
Stocks actively trading on Wednesday included the following: Bank of America, Chesapeake Energy, General Electric, Intel, Ford, Alcoa and Apple.
In the Dow Jones Industrial Average, stocks leading gains included the following:
Gains (percent)
UnitedHealth 1.14
Verizon 0.92
IBM 0.72
United Technologies 0.56
Microsoft 0.55
Top sectors for the broad market were utilities and consumer staples. Technology stocks traded mixed for the day with the Nasdaq Composite closing at 5005.73 for a loss of -17.09 points or -0.34 percent. The Nasdaq 100 was also lower at 4566.12 for a loss of -11.50 points or -0.25 percent. Stocks gaining in the technology sector included the following:
Gains (percent)
JD.com Inc. ADR -2.66
Electronic Arts -2.21
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. -1.84
In commodities, gold traded higher as evidenced by the SPDR Gold Trust which reported a gain of 1.17 points or 0.92 percent. The dollar was lower for the day with the U.S. Dollar Index down -0.19 points or -0.20 percent to 96.32.
Small-Cap Stocks
In small-caps, the Russell 2000 was lower for the day, closing at 1201.16 for a loss of -4.73 points or -0.39 percent. The S&P 600 closed at 739.28 for a loss of -0.95 points or -0.13 percent. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Growth TSM Index was lower at 7315.48 for a loss of -49.39 point or -0.67 percent. The Dow Jones Small-Cap Value TSM Index was higher at 8651.99 for a gain of 4.88 points or 0.06 percent.
Other Notable Indexes
Other notable index closes included the S&P 400 Mid-Cap Index closing at 1540.69 for a loss of -3.03 points or -0.20 percent; the S&P 100 closing at 951.02 for a gain of 0.03 points or 0.01 percent; the Russell 3000 closing at 1270.15 for a loss of -0.58 points or -0.05 percent; the Russell 1000 closing at 1191.62 for a loss of -0.21 points or -0.02 percent; and the Dow Jones U.S. Select Dividend Index closing at 623.57 for a gain of 0.97 points or 0.16 percent.
