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Stock Market News for Nov 3, 2020

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U.S. stock markets closed sharply higher on Monday, recovering some losses of the previous week’s rout ahead of the U.S. Presidential election on Nov 3. Investors’ sentiment was also buoyed by a positive set of economic data. All three major stock indexes ended the day in green.

How Did The Benchmarks Perform?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rallied 1.6%, or 423.45 points, closing at 26,925.05, reversing its losses from Friday. Notably, 25 components of the 30-stock index ended in green, 1 remained unchanged while 4 finished the day in red. The blue-chip index is 5.7% below to become green year to date.

Honeywell International Inc. (HON - Free Report) was the biggest gainer of the Dow and it gained 5.3%. Honeywell carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed the day at 10,957.61, up 0.4%, snapping its losses from Friday.

Meanwhile, the S&P 500 gained 1.2%, closing the day at 3,310.24, giving up its losses from Friday. The Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) and the Materials Select Sector SPDR (XLB) popped 3.4% and 3.3%, respectively. Notably, ten out of eleven sectors of the benchmark index closed in the positive zone and one in red.

The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 2.3% to 37.13. A total of 9.01 billion shares were traded on Monday, lower than the last 20-session average of 9.1 billion. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 2.94-to-1 ratio. On Nasdaq, a 2.04-to-1 ratio favored advancing issues.

Impending U.S. Presidential Elections

Wall Street took a breather to start November on a positive note, following last week’s sell-off as it awaits the presidential election on Nov 3 with various political experts having predicted a close contest. Nonetheless, investors will be observant of the resumption of stimulus talks post the elections.

Economic Data

The U.S. Census Bureau reported that construction spending increased 0.3% in September compared to 0.8% growth in August, missing the consensus estimate of 0.9% increase.

The Institute of Supply Management (ISM) reported that the U.S. manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) for October came in at 59.3, which was the highest reading since September 2018. The consensus estimate was 55.9 for October while September’s PMI was 55.4. Notably, any reading above 50 indicates expansion in manufacturing activities. Moreover, September was the sixth successive month of manufacturing uptrend after the index hit an 11-year low of 41.5% in April.

Furthermore, 15 of the 18 industries tracked by ISM expanded in October. The Employment Index also expanded for the first time since July 2019 as it came in at 53.2 compared to September’s reading of 49.6. Meanwhile, the New Orders Index also registered a growth of 67.9, compared to 60.2 in September.

The IHS Markit final U.S. manufacturing purchasing manager’s index (PMI) came in at 53.4 in October compared to the initial reading of 53.3, and reading of 53.2 in September. Separately, the Caixin/Markit China manufacturing purchasing manager’s index (PMI) came in at 53.6 for October, compared to a reading of 51.5 in September.

Stocks That Have Made Headline

Williams Q3 Earnings Match Estimates, Revenues Top

The Williams Companies, Inc. (WMB - Free Report) reported third-quarter 2020 adjusted earnings per share of $0.27, meeting the Zacks Consensus Estimate, attributable to a strong contribution from the Northeast G&P unit. (Read More)

Diamondback Q3 Earnings Top Estimates on Solid Output

Diamondback Energy, Inc. (FANG - Free Report) delivered strong third-quarter 2020 earnings. Better-than-expected production led to this outperformance. (Read More)

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