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Stocks closed sharply higher yesterday, finishing near their highs of the day. The Nasdaq led the way with a gain of 2.87%, followed by the small-cap Russell 2000 with 2.42%, and the S&P 500 with 2.30%.
Kevin Matras   
Profit from the Pros
By Kevin Matras
Executive Vice President
Zacks Investment Research
  

Stocks Closed Sharply Higher Yesterday, Major Indexes Within Striking Distance Of Closing Higher For The Week

Stocks closed sharply higher yesterday, finishing near their highs of the day. The Nasdaq led the way with a gain of 2.87%, followed by the small-cap Russell 2000 with 2.42%, and the S&P 500 with 2.30%.

Yesterday morning's drop in Weekly Jobless Claims set the tone for the day after sending stocks soaring in pre-market trading. They opened higher in the regular session and built on those gains throughout the day.

The drop of -17,000 to 233K vs. views for 240K helped ease concerns of a slowing jobs market.

Strong earnings from Eli Lilly before the open kept the party going. They reported a positive EPS surprise of 48.5%, and a positive sales surprise of 15.0%. That translated to a quarterly EPS growth rate of 86% vs. this time last year, and a sales growth of 46%. They were up 9.48% on the day.

Datadog also reported before the open and posted a positive EPS surprise of 22.9%, and a positive sales surprise of 3.62%. That equated to a quarterly EPS growth rate of 19.4% vs. this time last year, and a sales growth of 26.7%. They were up 5.57% on the day.

After the close we heard from The Trade Desk. They posted a positive EPS surprise of 8.33%, and a positive sales surprise of 1.22%. That showed a quarterly EPS growth rate of 39.3% vs. this time last year, and a sales growth of 25.9%. They were up 3.96% in the regular session before earnings, and another 5.30% in after-hours trade following earnings.

Today we'll hear from another 176 companies.

As for economic reports, the only thing on the docket is the Baker Hughes Rig Count report.

And we'll see if the markets can hold onto yesterday's gains. Better yet, if the market can add to them, it will turn what looked like a down week into an up week.

The S&P is only 0.51% away, while the Nasdaq is only 0.69% away, and the Dow is 0.73% away from closing positive for the week.

Best,

Kevin Matras

Executive Vice President, Zacks Investment Research

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