Yahoo Finance Stock Market News for Apr 23, 2024
U.S. stocks closed higher on Monday to start the final week of April on a positive note after a tough week of selloffs as investors looked forward to the release of major earnings reports. All three major indexes ended in positive territory.
How Did The Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) gained 0.7% or 253.58 points to end at 38,239.98 points to close in the green for the third consecutive session and record its biggest single-day percentage gain since Apr 5.
The S&P 500 rose 0.9% or 43.37 points, to close at 5,010.60 points, ending its sixth straight session of losses. Tech, financial, utilities and consumer staple stocks were the biggest winners.
The Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) advanced 0.9%, while the Communication Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) gained 1%. The Financials Select Sector SPDR (XLF) rose 1.2% and the Utilities Select Sector SPDR (XLU) climbed 0.9%. All 11 sectors of the benchmark index ended in positive territory.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq jumped 1.1% or 169.30 points to finish at 15,451.31 points, snapping its sixth straight session of declines.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 9.46% to 16.94. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 2.87-to-1 ratio. On Nasdaq, a 1.79-to-1 ratio favored advancing issues. A total of 10.33 billion shares were traded on Monday, lower than the last 20-session average of 11.03 billion.
Tech Stocks Drive Rally, Geopolitical Tensions Ease
Stocks rebounded on Monday from last week’s lows that saw a massive selloff after concerns grew over the timing of rate cuts and escalating tensions in the Middle East. On Monday, tech stocks, which had taken a beating last week, rebounded to drive the broader market rally.
Shares of NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) rose 4.4% after plummeting 10% on Friday. The chipmaker suffered a 14% selloff last week, its worst since September 2022. NVIDIA has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Also, Treasury yields stabilized on Monday which further fueled the tech rally. Shares of Apple, Inc. (AAPL) gained 1.4%, while Arm Holdings plc (ARM) jumped 6.8%.
Also, geopolitical tensions eased a bit after Iran assured that it would not escalate the conflict with Israel. Fears were mounting that higher oil prices could fuel inflation which could lead the Federal Reserve to delay its rate cuts.
Investors Look Forward to Earnings
The first quarter earnings season has started and a spate of big companies are scheduled to report their quarterly results this week. Companies like Tesla, Inc. (TSLA), Meta Platforms (META), Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) and Alphabet, Inc. (GOOGL) are all scheduled to report earnings this week.
However, on Monday, Tesla was a big drag as the company’s shares fell 3.4% after the company slashed the prices of its vehicles after reducing its price in the United States.
Among major companies reporting quarterly results on Monday, Verizon Communications (VZ) reported first-quarter 2024 earnings of $1.15 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.12 per share. However, the company reported revenues of $32.98 billion for the first quarter, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1.05%.
No major economic data was released on Monday.
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