The Dow settled with a 239-point drop
Stocks saw a strong return today, with the Dow and Nasdaq both settling with triple-digit pops, as the former rose 239 points and the latter notching a fresh record high. The S&P 500 also logged a sizeable win, as well as a new all-time closing high. Earnings season saw another good show today, with Ford (F) in the spotlight after a beat-and-raise, while investors look ahead to reports from several big tech names, including Apple (AAPL) and Amazon.com (AMZN), due out after the close this evening.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- A new vaccine update from Pfizer ahead of earnings.
- The online dating stock to cozy up with in November.
- Plus, TXN flashes bull signal; a surging cloud stock; and options bulls circle a blue chip.
The Dow Jones Average (DJI - 35,730.48) added 239.8 points or 0.7% for the day. Merck (MRK) paced the gainers with a 6.1% rise, while Visa (V) fell to the bottom, shedding 2.8%.
The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 4,596.42) added 44.7 points, or 1% for the day, while the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC - 15,448.12) tacked on 212.28 points, or 1.4% for the day.
Lastly, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX - 16.53) lost 0.5 point, or 2.7% for the day.
- Facebook (FB) has changed its company name to Meta, announced at its Facebook Connect conference, in an effort to rebrand itself amid a slew of controversies. The company's ticker will change to MVRS on Dec. 1. (CNBC)
- A subvariant of the Covid-19 delta variant, called AY.4.2. is being tracked by the World Health Organization (WHO) to see if it's more transmissible than the original delta. (MarketWatch)
- One semiconductor stock ready for more record highs.
- The cloud stock hitting record highs after earnings.
- Options bulls targeted this blue chip after a profit and revenue beat.
Oil Rally Cools Over EIA Update
Oil rose slightly on Thursday, taking back some of its losses suffered yesterday amid news that Iranian nuclear deal talks could soon resume. December-dated crude added 42 cents, or 0.2% to settle at $82.81 a barrel.
A disappointing gross domestic product (GDP) reading for the third quarter helped buoy gold prices back above the $1,800 mark. December-dated gold rose $3.80, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,802.60 an ounce.