The Nasdaq and S&P 500 ended higher on Thursday and touched nearly five-month highs as a more dovish-than-expected message from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell sent equities and Meta Platforms shares stiffer costs. increased control.
The Dow declined due to losses in some large healthcare stocks.
Investors were still digesting the Fed’s policy decision on Wednesday and comments from Powell, who acknowledged progress in the fight against inflation and appeared reluctant to push back against the rally in stocks and bonds.
“I think the reaction to yesterday’s Fed comments really encouraged risk aversion to investors,” said Rick Meckler, partner at Cherry Lane Investments in New Vernon, New Jersey. “I think the bottom line for investors is that the Fed’s comments were unexpected.”
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 39.02 points, or 0.11%, to 34,053.94, the S&P 500 rose 60.55 points, or 1.47%, to 4,179.76 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 384.50 points, or 3.25%, to 12,200.82.
Shares of megacap stocks Apple, Amazon and Google parent Alphabet also gained strongly after the market closed on Thursday, with Apple rising 3.7% and Amazon and Alphabet both climbing more than 7%.
In early trading hours, however, shares of all three companies fell following their respective results.
After a strong start to 2022, US stock markets have started the year strong, with tech and other stocks that lagged behind last year amid hopes that the Fed will reduce its aggressive rate hikes, which in turn will weigh on equities. Might take some of the pressure off. Evaluation.
This trend continued on Thursday as well. The communication services sector rose 6.7%, its biggest daily gain in nearly three years, led by a 23.3% increase for Facebook parent Meta. The company unveiled tighter cost controls and $40 billion in share buybacks this year, as CEO Mark Zuckerberg calls 2023 “the year of efficiency.”
The 50-day moving average of the S&P 500 crossed above the 200-day moving average, a pattern known as the “golden cross” seen by many as a bullish technical signal for near-term momentum. I am considered.
The energy sector, one of last year’s outstanding performers, fell 2.5%, while healthcare fell 0.7%.
Shares of UnitedHealth Group fell 5.3% after the US government proposed Medicare Advantage reimbursement rates lower than analyst estimates and the stock dragged down the Dow. Shares of Merck, down 3.3%, also dragged on the blue chip index after the drugmaker forecast 2023 earnings below Wall Street’s estimates.
Shares of drugmaker Eli Lilly declined 3.5% after sales of its closely watched diabetes drug missed estimates.
Data showed jobless claims fell to a nine-month low last week, highlighting the resilience of the labor market, ahead of monthly US employment numbers.
Forward issues trailed by a 2.29-to-1 ratio on the NYSE; On the Nasdaq, the 2.55-to-1 ratio was in favor of advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 36 new 52-week highs and one new low; The Nasdaq Composite recorded 162 new highs and 16 new lows.
Nearly 15 billion shares changed hands on US exchanges, compared to an 11.7 billion daily average over the past 20 sessions.
The text of this story is published from a wire agency feed without any modification.
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