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Wall Street rose on Wednesday on the back of a jump in technology stocks, with the benchmark S&P 500 (SP500) narrowly touching the historic 5,000-point mark for the first time ever.
The majority of the “Magnifico The 7″ club gained, while cybersecurity stocks received a boost after Fortinet’s listing (FTNT) solid quarterly results and guidance.
The Nasdaq Composite, with high technological content (COMP.IND) added 0.90% at 15,750.10 points in afternoon trading, while the Dow (DJI) era up 0.45% at 38,694.77 points. The blue-chip index’s rise was capped by a post-earnings decline in pharmaceutical giant Amgen (AMGN).
The S&P 500 (SP500) was higher than 0.82% at 4,995.02 points. Previously he had reached the session high of 4,998.65 points, a short distance from the 5,000 threshold.
Of the 11 S&P sectors, nine were in the green.
The continued rally in tech stocks this year has largely helped traders offset worries about massive valuations and a reaction from the Federal Reserve against the market’s aggressive interest rate cut expectations. Even the continued collapse of New York Community Bank (NYCB) shares, which has reignited fears about the health of regional banks, does not appear to have dented Wall Street’s upward march.
A deluge of earnings reports from several big names grabbed attention Wednesday.
Enphase Energy (ENPH) and Emerson Electric (EMR) rose more than 10% each and were the top two percentage gainers on the S&P 500 (SP500). The solar equipment maker said it expects inventory levels to normalize and demand to increase by the end of next quarter. Meanwhile, the electrical equipment maker reported faster quarterly sales growth.
Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) also posted a notable percentage gain in the S&P Index, after the restaurant chain reported another strong quarter, driven by continued demand for tacos, burritos and salad bowls.
Uber Technologies (UBER) swung as investors analyzed its quarterly earnings and earnings, led by an increase in gross bookings.
VF Corp (VFC) was the top percentage loser on the S&P 500 (SP500) index, after parent company Vans’ latest quarterly results left little doubt that the footwear and apparel maker needed a complete strategic revamp and, most likely, painful.
Gilead Sciences (GILD) was another major S&P percentage loser after the drug company posted lackluster annual sales guidance.
Theme park and movie theater giant Walt Disney (DIS) will report earnings after the shutdown.
As for fixed income markets, Treasury bond yields were slightly higher. Earlier, a record $42 billion 10-year note auction was traded, for the first 10-year stop auction in a year. The results showed that there was strong demand for bonds.
The long-term 30-year yield (US30Y) rose 2 basis points to 4.32%, while the 10-year yield (US10Y) also rose 2 basis points to 4.11%. The more rate-sensitive short-term 2-year yield (US2Y) rose 1 basis point to 4.42%.
View real-time data on how Treasury yields are moving across the curve on the Seeking Alpha bonds page.
Looking at non-earnings moves, Paramount Global (PARA) (PARAA) slipped and was among the top percentage losers in the S&P 500 (SP500) after CNBC’s David Faber said Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD ) probably has no “real interest” in acquiring Paramount (PARA) (PARAA). Warner Bros. (WBD) also slipped.