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Stock Market News for May 20, 2024
US stocks ended largely higher on Friday, with the Dow finishing above the 40,000 level for the first time in history, as expectations of rate cuts from the Federal Reserve rose again. The S&P 500 ended in positive territory, but the Nasdaq closed slightly lower.
How did the benchmarks perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 0.3% or 134.21 points to end at 40,003.59, setting a new record.
The S&P 500 gained 0.1% or 6.17 points to finish at 5,303.27 points. Materials and financial stocks were the best performers in the index.
The Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) gained 0.9%, while the Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) added 0.6%. Eight of the 11 sectors in the benchmark index ended in positive territory.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.1% or 12.35 points to close at 16,685.97.
The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), which measures fear, fell 3.46% to 11.99. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 1.18-to-1 ratio. On the Nasdaq, a 1.09-to-1 ratio favored declining issues. A total of 15.6 billion shares were traded on Friday, above the last 20 session average of 11.7 billion.
Dow reaches new high, markets rise on positive economic data
Wall Street has been on the rebound following the release of some positive economic data last week. The upbeat sentiment persisted on Friday, further extending the recovery.
The Dow Jones ended the day above the 40,000 point mark for the first time in history, recording another successful week. The blue-chip index hit an intraday high of 40,051.05 points on Thursday, before closing 0.1% lower.
The Dow’s rally was led by Walmart Inc. (WMT) and Caterpillar Inc. (CAT), which rose 1% and 1.6%, respectively. Caterpillar has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see The complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
This week’s recovery gained momentum after new economic data showed that inflation declined in April for the first time, after rising in the first three months of the year. Rising inflation has raised hopes that the Federal Reserve will finally begin cutting rates.
Markets are betting on a 68% chance that the Federal Reserve will make its first rate cut in September, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
No major economic data was released on Friday.
Weekly summary
All three indices ended the week in positive territory. The Dow ended the week up 1.2%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq ended the week up 1.5% and 2.1%.
The Dow posted its fifth straight week of gains, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 posted their fourth straight weeks of gains. It was also the longest winning streak for all three indices since the period ending February 9.
The story continues
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