Stocks finished higher Friday, powered in part by Apple's better-than-expected quarterly earnings and a softer-than expected April jobs report.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 450 points, or 1.18%, to finish at 38,675.68, the S&P 500 gained 63 points, or 1.26%, to 5,127.79, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed 315 points, or 1.99% to 16,156.33.
For the week, the Dow and Nasdaq added 1.1% and 1.4%, respectively, while the S&P is up 0.5%, according to CNBC.
Regarding the April jobs report, Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer for Independent Advisor Alliance, said "the market should love this report."
"In an environment where the market is worried about inflation, a softer jobs report with (slightly) higher unemployment, lower-than-expected wage growth and job creation shows that inflation pressure from wages is easing," he said.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, Zaccarelli said, "already signaled to the market that rate hikes are off the table in almost any scenario (although rapidly rising inflation would be met with rate hikes), so the market is back to risk on mode as long as the Fed maintains an easing bias."
"The number of rate cuts will be debated all year long - and will vary with the economic data - but as long as the Fed maintains rates where they are or cuts once or twice, the market can keep moving higher and that’s our base case for 2024," he said.
Updated at 11:39 AM EDT
Audit opinion
Trump Media and Technology shares were marked 4.3% lower in late-morning trading after the Securities & Exchange Commission fined its former auditor and permanently barred it from working on U.S.-listed filings.
BF Borgers was fined $12 million, while founder Ben Borgers agreed to pay $2 million in civil penalties.
“Ben Borgers and his audit firm, BF Borgers, were responsible for one of the largest wholesale failures by gatekeepers in our financial markets,” said the SEC's enforcement director, Gurbir Grewal.
Updated at 10:44 AM EDT
Not over yet
Stocks are paring some of their earlier gains following data from the Institute of Supply Management that suggested a big jump in the price paid component of the benchmark manufacturing activity survey for the month of April, as well as increases in overall employment costs.
The S&P 500 was last marked 47 points, or 0.93.% higher on the session while the Nasdaq gained 284 points, or 1.75%.
Inflation Re-Accelerating….
— PlungeProtectionTeam (@gamesblazer06) May 3, 2024
April ISM Service Prices Paid 59.2. pic.twitter.com/DNwIHCufFv
Updated at 9:46 AM EDT
Apple boost
The S&P 500 was marked 61 points, or 1.2% higher, in the opening minutes of trading, thanks in part to a 6.7% gain for Apple and solid advances or Magnificent 7 peers Microsoft MSFT and Meta Platforms META.
The Dow, meanwhile, surged 516 points while the Nasdaq gained 300 points, or 1.9%, following a 'goldilocks' jobs report that showed slowing overall hires but growth-supporting gains heading into the spring and summer months.
The April jobs report appears to be a goldilocks print for investors. Jobs and average hourly earnings came in below expectations, while the unemployment rate inched higher," said eToro investment analyst Bret Kenwell. "The April jobs report doesn’t create an urgent concern for the labor market or the economy, and it found a way to thread the needle between being soft enough, but not too weak."
Related: Jobs report shows marked April slowdown, prompting Fed rate-cut bets
Updated at 8:49 AM EDT
Cool breeze
The job market showed its first early signs of a slowdown Friday as the Labor Department reported a weaker-than-expected 175,000 new hires over the month of April with slowing wage gains.
The overall tally, while still solid, could provide relief to investors worried that inflation pressures would remain elevated well into the summer months and push Fed rate cut projects deeper into the end of the year.
U.S. stocks extended earlier gains following the data release, with futures contracts tied to the S&P 500 indicating a 64 point opening bell gain and those tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average suggesting a 505 point advance. The tech-focused Nasdaq is set to gain 290 points.
Benchmark 10-year Treasury note yields were marked 9 basis lower higher at 4.473% following the data release, while 2-year notes fell 13 basis points to 4.751%.
⚠️ US RATE FUTURES NOW PRICE IN TWO CUTS OF 25 BPS IN 2024 VS ONE BEFORE JOBS DATA
— *Walter Bloomberg (@DeItaone) May 3, 2024
Check back for updates throughout the trading day
Apple's (AAPL) share move, which boosted global tech stocks, looks set to lead both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq following a solid set of March quarter earnings that included a smaller-than-expected slide in overall revenue and the unveiling of a $110 billion stock buyback, the largest on record.
The tech giant's modestly upbeat forecast, meanwhile, surprised analysts and could help the stock claw back most of its year-to-date decline over the Friday session.
Apple shares were last marked 6.1% higher in premarket trading to indicate an opening bell price of $183.50 each.
Dow component Amgen (AMGN) shares were also on the move, rising nearly 15% after the biotech reported stronger-than-expected first-quarter earnings and said it was moving its anti-obesity drug into late-stage trials.
Related: A red-hot job market that’s defied Fed rate hikes is cooling (finally)
Investors are also braced for what could be a market-moving jobs report, slated for release at 8:30 am Eastern time, that follows a mixed set of labor-market data earlier in the week and a warning from the Federal Reserve that inflation pressures could keep interest rates elevated well into the autumn months.
Analysts expect the economy added around 243,000 new jobs last month, with the headline unemployment rate holding at 3.8% and extending a run of 26 consecutive months below 4%.
Win McNamee/Getty Images
Benchmark 10-year-note yields eased to 4.567% in the overnight session, while 2-year notes were marked at 4.883% in moves that likely reflect the chances of a weaker-than-expected reading that could revive bets on an autumn Fed rate cut.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six global currency peers, was marked 0.12% lower at 105.169.
On Wall Street, futures contracts tied the S&P 500, which ended 0.91% higher on Thursday, are priced for a 20 point opening bell gain.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, meanwhile, is called 310 points higher, thanks in part to Apple's premarket surge and the surge in Amgen, while the tech-focused Nasdaq is set for a 122 point advance.
In overseas markets, Europe's Stoxx 600 rose 0.42% in Frankfurt, while Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.5% in London after hitting an all-time high of 8,215.29 points earlier in the session.
More Wall Street Analysts:
- Analyst unveils new Nike price target ahead of big summer for sports
- Analysts weigh in on Google-parent Alphabet’s stock after cloud event
- Analysts revamp Disney stock price target after proxy fight
Overnight in Asia, the regionwide MSCI ex-Japan benchmark rose 0.4%, with stocks in China closed for Labor Day celebrations. Japan's Nikkei 225 was closed for its annual Constitution Day holiday.
Related: Veteran fund manager picks favorite stocks for 2024
