Oil and gold also marked a day of wins
Despite an afternoon lull, the Dow closed at a record high today. The blue-chip index also touched a new all-time high of 29,408.05 earlier in the day, boosted by a nearly 3% surge in Boeing (BA) shares. Not to be outdone, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq also both closed at record highs, while all three benchmarks picked up their fourth straight win.
Bolstering markets today was news China will halve tariffs on imported goods by next Friday, Feb. 14, and an impressive post-earnings surge out of social media giant Twitter (TWTR). Amidst this broad market rally, Wall Street's "fear gauge," the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX), turned in its fourth-straight loss.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Analysts wax optimistic on this airliner.
- Pre-earnings bulls bet big before Chegg earnings.
- Plus, TWTR's big day; LL's CEO shake-up; and a look at next week's earnings schedule.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 29,379.77) added 88.9 points, or 0.3% for the day. Boeing paced the 17 winners with a 3.6% gain, while Exxon Mobil (XOM) paced the 13 losers with a 1.4% drop. As aforementioned, the blue-chip index hit a record intraday high of 29,405.05 earlier.
The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 3,345.78) marked a record close and tacked on 11.1 points, or 0.3%, earlier also hitting an intraday high of 3,347.96. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 9,572.15) marked its own closing high, adding 63.5 points, or 0.7%, earlier hitting an intraday peak of 9,575.65.
The Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 14.96) shed 0.2 point, or 1.3%.
5 Items on Our Radar Today
- Mattress producer Casper saw its public trading debut today, launching on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker CSPR. The equity surged nearly 30% following its initial public offering (IPO), which was priced in at $12. CSPR opened at $14.50 and closed at $13.50. (CNBC)
- Seemingly overshadowed during a hectic day of earnings, the New York Times (NYT) surged to a 15-year high of $39.33 after a blowout fourth-quarter earnings report. The newspaper giant shared a net income of $68.2 million, or 41 cents per share. (MarketWatch)
- The Twitter stock post-earnings pop everyone's talking about.
- A surprise CEO shake-up just shot LL higher.
- Take a closer look at what's on deck for next week's earnings schedule.
Data courtesy of Trade-Alert
Oil, Gold Mark Another Day of Gains
It was another win in the bucket for crude futures today, after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries' (OPEC) proposal to reduce output awaits approval from Russia. March-dated oil tacked on 20 cents, or 0.4%, to settle at $50.95 per barrel.
Gold futures gained as well, rising on the back of anticipation central banks will keep interest rates low moving forward, as well as the lingering uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus. Gold for April delivery gained $7.20, or 0.5%, to settle at $1,570 an ounce.