Major indexes raced higher to the finish line Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at the day's highs, up nearly 400 points, or 1.2%, after fresh data indicated a cooling economy.
The Dow Jones index gained 0.7% for the week and is holding at converged 50- and 200-day moving averages.
Consumer sentiment was below the consensus forecast of 63.5, coming in at 60.4 for November, according to Econoday. The news likely allayed some investor jitters after Fed Chair Jerome Powell's words of caution Thursday.
He left open the question whether tightening policy was restrictive enough, which weighed on stocks late Thursday. The Dow and the S&P 500 fell to test their 50-day moving averages but are rebounding from the line today.
The S&P 500 rose 1.6% in the stock market today, while the Nasdaq led with a 2% gain. The signs of recovery followed a distribution day for both indexes on Thursday.
Volume on the NYSE and on the Nasdaq was lower, according to preliminary data. Advancers beat decliners by almost 3-to-1 on the NYSE and less than 2-to-1 on the Nasdaq.
The small-cap Russell 2000 added 1.2%, while the Innovator IBD 50 ETF outperformed, gaining 1.5%.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note was unchanged at 4.62%.
Dow Jones Stocks
Intel, Microsoft, Boeing, Caterpillar and Apple led gains in the Dow, while Disney, Merck and Nike lagged. Microsoft hit an all time high on Friday.
Copart broke out from a buy point of 47.38. The relative strength line is at a new high. Volume was about 70% above average, another good sign for the breakout.
Payments company Affirm dived more than 7% below a buy point of 25.63 and triggered a sell signal. The stock broke out Thursday following Affirm's September-quarter results, but faded and closed below the buy point.
Digital advertising company Trade Desk edged past Q3 views by a slight margin but gave a weak outlook. Shares dived but pared some losses after undercutting a flat base that's been forming.
Unity Software reported third-quarter results with a strong sales increase of 69%. But a loss of 32 cents per share was more than double a 13-cent loss a year ago. Shares dived more than 10% early but reversed higher for a 7% gain.
Plug Power, Taiwan Semi And Other Movers
Plug Power, a hydrogen fuel cell maker, also fell on third-quarter results. Sales decelerated sharply to $198.7 million, growing just 5% from $188.6 million a year ago. Plug also continued to post losses, with a loss of 47 cents per share that was steeper than a 30-cent loss in the prior year. The company also warned it may run out of money. Shares were down over 40% Friday.
Outside the Dow Jones, chip stocks rose after Taiwan Semiconductor said its October revenue rose 35% from the prior month. TSM shares rose over 6% and regained the 200-day moving average.
TSM is a stock that Cathie Wood's ARK Invest has been accumulating since June 23. The ARK Autonomous Tech ETF was the latest to buy 30,467 shares of TSM, in October. The ARK Invest funds have more than 200,000 shares of TSM, according to company disclosures.
Chip stocks Marvel Technology, Axcelis Technologies, and Aehr Systems gained 4% to 5.7%.
Third-quarter sales for medical research company Illumina were flat while earnings came in one cent lower than the prior year. The company lowered its 2023 revenue outlook by 3%. The stock fell over 10% Friday to a 10-year low but pared some losses at the closing bell.
Wynn also fell but managed to recover some losses. Wynn reported results that showed sales accelerated for the third straight quarter. Earnings were on a similar track after the company reversed from losses.
Among other earnings movers, Blink Charging held the bulk of its gains, rising above the 50-day moving average after sales grew 151%. Medical software provider Doximity gapped above its 50-day moving average. Sales grew 11% while earnings were unchanged from the prior year.
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