UnitedHealth and Johnson & Johnson earnings are lifting the blue-chip index
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is trading modestly higher this afternoon, with the index hitting a fresh all-time high during intraday trading. A handful of blue-chip earnings reports lifted the Dow above 23,000 for the first time ever, with UnitedHealth Group (UNH) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) stocks soaring to new highs. At last check, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) were fighting a stubborn battle with the breakeven mark.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Analyst: This stock will underperform because of Amazon.
- History isn't in this airline stock's favor ahead of earnings.
- Plus, Netflix's unusual options volume; the best stock on the Big Board; and Impax's M&A news.
Among the stocks with unusual options volume is entertainment streaming company Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX), with over 235,000 options traded -- four times the average intraday norm, and pacing for the 99th percentile of its annual range. The December 205 and 220 calls have seen notable attention, with over 20,000 total contracts exchanged, and with Trade-Alert pointing to possible bull call spreads initiated. NFLX stock has already touched a fresh record high of $204.38 today, but was last seen down 0.1% at $200.66, as traders react to Netflix earnings.
One of the biggest gainers on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is industrial distributor WW Grainger Inc (NYSE:GWW). The shares of GWW are soaring after the company reported stronger-than-expected earnings, and offered upbeat full-year guidance. The stock was last seen 9.3% higher at $198.56, but is running into a roadblock in the round $200 area -- home to GWW's 200-day moving average.
One of the worst stocks on the Nasdaq today is pharmaceutical concern Impax Laboratories Inc (NASDAQ:IPXL), with the shares gapping 12% lower to trade at $17.62, after the company announced plans to merge with privately held drugmaker Amneal Pharmaceuticals. IPXL stock has now fallen 17% year-over-year, and nearly 32% since its late September high of $25.70.
