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Wall Street closed higher on Friday buoyed by market participants' expectation of more fiscal stimulus and reduction in COVID-19 infections. All the three major stock indexes ended at record high levels. For the week as a whole, these indexes finished in the green. U.S. stock markets were closed on Monday to observe President Day.
How Did The Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) was up 0.1% to close at 31,458.40, marking a fresh closing high. Notably, 18 components of the 30-stock index ended in the green while 12 in red and. Major gainer of the Dow was Intel Corp. (INTC - Free Report) with a gain of 1.9%. Intel carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
The Nasdaq Composite finished at 14,095.47, gaining 0.5% due to strong performance by large-cap tech stocks and reflecting a fresh closing high. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 rose 0.5% to end at 3,934.38, reflecting a fresh closing high. In the intraday trading, the index touched an all-time high of 3,937.23. The Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) surged 1.5%. Notably, nine out of eleven sectors of the benchmark index closed in the green and two in red.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 6% to 19.97, marking its first closing below 20 since February 2020. A total of 13.27 billion shares were traded on Friday, lower than the last 20-session average of 15.83 billion. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 1.3-to-1 ratio. On Nasdaq, a 1.4-to-1 ratio favored advancing issues.
Expectations of Large Fiscal Stimulus
The Democrats are moving forward with President Joe Biden’s proposed $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief package. Investors' are expecting that the Congress will clear the path of President Biden's coronavirus-aid package in a law.
On Feb 12, the Ways and Means Committee of the House approved $940 billion of Biden's proposal. This includes $1,400 payments for millions of U.S. citizens. On Feb 10, the Education and Labor Committee approved the hike in federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 per hour over five years.
Positive Developments on Coronavirus Front
The Biden administration is on track to administer at least 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine during its first 100 days in office. In the past three weeks. more than 26 million doses of vaccines were injected.
Per CDC, around 34.7 million out of nearly 331 million Americans have received at least their first dose of vaccine so far. On Feb 11, President Biden said that by the end of the summer, the U.S. will have adequate doses of COVD-19 vaccines to administer more than 300 million citizens.
Economic Data
The University of Michigan reported that the preliminary reading of its consumer sentiment index dropped to 76.2 in February from 79 in January, reflecting the lowest reading of the index in six months.
The sub-index of current conditions edged down to 86.2 in February from 86.7 in January. Likewise, the sub-index of future expectations for next six months declined to 69.8 in February from 74 last month, marking its six month low reading.
Weekly Roundup
Wall Street closed in positive territory last week, reflecting second straight weekly gains. The Dow, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite were up 1%, 1.2% and 1.7%, respectively. All the three major stock indexes recorded all-time highs and closing highs last week.
Investors' expectations for a large fiscal stimulus, Fed's reaffirmation of pursuing easy monetary policies and positive developments on COVID-19 vaccine administration along with reduction in new cases were primary reasons for Wall Street rally.
The Hottest Tech Mega-Trend of All
Last year, it generated $24 billion in global revenues. By 2020, it's predicted to blast through the roof to $77.6 billion. Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce "the world's first trillionaires," but that should still leave plenty of money for regular investors who make the right trades early.
Image: Bigstock
Stock Market News for Feb 16, 2021
Wall Street closed higher on Friday buoyed by market participants' expectation of more fiscal stimulus and reduction in COVID-19 infections. All the three major stock indexes ended at record high levels. For the week as a whole, these indexes finished in the green. U.S. stock markets were closed on Monday to observe President Day.
How Did The Benchmarks Perform?
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) was up 0.1% to close at 31,458.40, marking a fresh closing high. Notably, 18 components of the 30-stock index ended in the green while 12 in red and. Major gainer of the Dow was Intel Corp. (INTC - Free Report) with a gain of 1.9%. Intel carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
The Nasdaq Composite finished at 14,095.47, gaining 0.5% due to strong performance by large-cap tech stocks and reflecting a fresh closing high. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 rose 0.5% to end at 3,934.38, reflecting a fresh closing high. In the intraday trading, the index touched an all-time high of 3,937.23. The Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) surged 1.5%. Notably, nine out of eleven sectors of the benchmark index closed in the green and two in red.
The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was down 6% to 19.97, marking its first closing below 20 since February 2020. A total of 13.27 billion shares were traded on Friday, lower than the last 20-session average of 15.83 billion. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 1.3-to-1 ratio. On Nasdaq, a 1.4-to-1 ratio favored advancing issues.
Expectations of Large Fiscal Stimulus
The Democrats are moving forward with President Joe Biden’s proposed $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief package. Investors' are expecting that the Congress will clear the path of President Biden's coronavirus-aid package in a law.
On Feb 12, the Ways and Means Committee of the House approved $940 billion of Biden's proposal. This includes $1,400 payments for millions of U.S. citizens. On Feb 10, the Education and Labor Committee approved the hike in federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 per hour over five years.
Positive Developments on Coronavirus Front
The Biden administration is on track to administer at least 100 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine during its first 100 days in office. In the past three weeks. more than 26 million doses of vaccines were injected.
Per CDC, around 34.7 million out of nearly 331 million Americans have received at least their first dose of vaccine so far. On Feb 11, President Biden said that by the end of the summer, the U.S. will have adequate doses of COVD-19 vaccines to administer more than 300 million citizens.
Economic Data
The University of Michigan reported that the preliminary reading of its consumer sentiment index dropped to 76.2 in February from 79 in January, reflecting the lowest reading of the index in six months.
The sub-index of current conditions edged down to 86.2 in February from 86.7 in January. Likewise, the sub-index of future expectations for next six months declined to 69.8 in February from 74 last month, marking its six month low reading.
Weekly Roundup
Wall Street closed in positive territory last week, reflecting second straight weekly gains. The Dow, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite were up 1%, 1.2% and 1.7%, respectively. All the three major stock indexes recorded all-time highs and closing highs last week.
Investors' expectations for a large fiscal stimulus, Fed's reaffirmation of pursuing easy monetary policies and positive developments on COVID-19 vaccine administration along with reduction in new cases were primary reasons for Wall Street rally.
The Hottest Tech Mega-Trend of All
Last year, it generated $24 billion in global revenues. By 2020, it's predicted to blast through the roof to $77.6 billion. Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce "the world's first trillionaires," but that should still leave plenty of money for regular investors who make the right trades early.
See Zacks' 3 Best Stocks to Play This Trend >>