Markets News, December 4, 2024: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq Hit Record Highs as Tech Stocks Soar; Bitcoin Surges Above $100K

Traders work on the New York Stock Exchange

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Stocks rose to new highs Wednesdayღ, led by big gains for shares of technology companies, while bitcoin surpassed $100,000 for the first time, as a month-long post-election rally shows no signs of fading.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 50ও0 gained 0.7% a✤nd 0.6%, respectively, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.3%, as each of the major indexes hit record intraday and closing highs today.

Stocks are off to a strong start this month, after posting their biggest monthly gains of the yꩲear in November, as investor optimism runs high that the incoming Trump administration will implement pro-growth policies that translate into strong corporate earnings and continued stock market gains.

Bitcoin has also surged amid market ex🧔pectations that the White House and a crypto-friendly Congress will approve measures that support the asset class. Bitcoin was trading at around $103,300 at around 11:15 p.m. ET, up from a low earlier Wednesday of around $95,000.

The surge followed news Wednesday afternoon that President-elect 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Trump named Paul Atkins to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission. Atkins would succeed Gary Gensler, a critic of the crypto industry who last month said 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:he would step down in January. 

Among the big movers on the stock market Wednesday, Salesforce (CRM) shares jumped 11% to lead Dow and S&P 500 gainers, after the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:cloud software company reported better-than-expected quarterly results and issued a rosy full-year outlook, boosted by booming demand for AI. Shares of Marvell Technology (MRVL) soared 23%, topping the list of Nasdaq advancers, after the chipmaker released a 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:strong earnings report.

Large-cap technology stocks were higher across the board, led by a 3.5% gain for AI investor favorite Nvidia (NVDA). Apple (AAPL) Microsoft (MSFT), Alphabet (GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), Meta Platforms (META), Tesla (TSLA) and Broadcom (AVGO) also gained ground.

Investors were keeping a close eye on remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Powell, who spoke at an event in New York this afternoon, ahead of the critical 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:November jobs report that is slated to be released Friday morning.

The Fed chief said that the U.S. economy is in good shape—with unemployment remaining low and progress being made on inflation—and that the Fed can be cautious as it considers further cuts to interest rates. The Fed's final rate-policy meeting of the year is set for two weeks from today, and investors expect the central bank to announce a quarter-point cut to the benchmark fed funds rate.

The yield on 10-year Treasurys, which is correlated with expectations about where rates are headed, fell to 4.19%, down from Tuesday's closing level of 4.22%.

Gold futures rose slightly on Wednesday to $2,675 an ounce, while crude oil futures were 🙈down about 1.5%.

Bitcoin Levels to Watch as Cryptocurrency Soars Above $100K

December 04, 2024 11:18 PM EST

Bitcoin (BTCUSD) soared above $100,000 for the first time late Wednesday as investors bet that the incoming Trump administration and Cong🃏ress will support po🗹licies that benefit the cryptocurrency market. 

Wednesday's rally followed news that President-elect Donald Trump 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:named crypto enthusiast Paul Atkins to lead the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Securi🌞tꦗies and Exchange Commission (SEC). Atkins would replace 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:crypto critic Garry Gensler, who said he woul🐭d step down in January.

Bitcoin was recently trading at $103,300, up from around $95,000 before news of the SEC nomination. Since the election, Bitcoin has surged more than 45% as investors bid up the digital asset on expectations of more 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:crypto-friendly policies.

With the move, Bitcꦅoin has broken out above a newly formed pennant, a chart pattern that𒈔 signals a continuation of the cryptocurrency’s current move higher.

Source: TradingView.com.

A measure moved, which calculates the move higher that❀ preceded the pennant and adds that amount to the patt꧋ern’s top trendline, projects a bullish target of $129,930.

Investors should monitor key support levels on Bitcoin's chart around $90,500, $80,500 and $70,000.

Read the full 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:technical analysis piece here.

Biggest S&P 500 Movers on Wednesday

December 04, 2024 05:50 PM EST

Advancers

  • Shares of customer relationship management software provider Salesforce (CRM) led the S&P 500 higher on Wednesday, popping 11%. Several research analysts 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:lifted their price targets on the stock after Salesforce 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:ඣboosted its full-year sales and profit guidance. Analysts noted that Agentforce, the company's autonomous artificial intelligence offering, has been drawing attention from clients since its October launch.
  • Salesforce was not the only enterprise software stock to enjoy strong gains. ServiceNow (NOW), which also offers AI solutions to help automate business processes, announced an expansion of its partnership with Amazon (AMZN), further integrating ServiceNow's platform with Amazon's Web Services and Bedrock generative AI capabilities. ServiceNow shares surged 6.2% on Wednesday, while Amazon shares were up 2.2%.
  • Edwards Lifesciences (EW) shares added 5.7% after the medical device maker laid out its growth strategy at its annual investor conference. The specialist in structural heart solutions highlighted its pipeline of new technologies, upbeat financial outlook, and market opportunities from several of its heart valve repair and replacement treatments.

Decliners

  • Shares of Texas Pacific Land (TPL) dropped 11.6%, suffering the heaviest daily decline in the S&P 500 for the second time this week. The stock has been volatile since its addition to the benchmark index late last month. A major landowner in the oil-rich Permian Basin, the century-old land trust has been exploring opportunities to diversify its revenue streams, including bitcoin mining and renewable energy projects.
  • Campbell's (CPB) shares sank 6.2% after the packaged food maker reported lower-than-expected quarterly sales, with elevated marketing expenses contributing to a year-over-year profit decline. CEO Mark Clouse said he would step down from his role at the soup and snack manufacturer to become president of the National Football League's Washington Commanders.
  • Bank of America's commodities team reduced its lithium price outlook. Analysts noted that, even as high-cost producers of the key battery mineral scale back their operations, surplus conditions are likely to remain in the lithium market over the next two years. Shares of Albemarle (ALB), the world's largest lithium miner, fell 5.9%.
  • MarketAxess Holdings (MKTX) shares slipped 5.5% after the operator of an electronic trading platform for fixed-income securities released trading data from November. Although average daily trading volume grew 56% year-over-year, the figure fell 3% month-over-month. The platform saw sequential declines in volumes and market share in the U.S. high-grade and U.S. high-yield segments.

-澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Michael Bromberg

Major Indexes Keep Adding to Post-Election Gains

December 04, 2024 05:18 PM EST

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite each h🍬it intraday and 🔯closing highs on Wednesday, led by a rally in technology stocks, extending a month-long post-election rally.

Since the close of tಞrading on election day, Nov. 5, the Nasdaq has ga🀅ined 7%, while the Dow and the S&P 500 have added 6.6% and 5.3%, respectively.

Nasdaq, S&P 500, Dow since election day

TradingView

Investors are optimistic that the incoming Trump administration and Republican-led Congress will implement pr♈o-growth policies that will translate into strong corporate earnings and continued stock ma🔜rket gains.

Since the start of the year, the Nasdaq is now up 31.5%. The S&P 500 has risen 27.6%, while the Dow has tacked ᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚon 19.4%.

Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq Composite YTD

TradingView

Chipotle Stock Climbs as Menu Prices Increase

December 04, 2024 04:15 PM EST

Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) is raising prices across the U.S., the company said Wednesday. “For the first time in over a year, we have taken a modest price increase of approximately 2% nationally to offset inflation,” Chipotle Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Laurie Schalow said in an email to Investopedia

New 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Scott Boatwrigh𓆏t, elevated to the top job last month, on the company’s most-recent 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:earnings conference call in October said there was “nothing planned today, but that's not to say we wouldn't look at a pricing action at some point in the future.” A Wall Street Journal article last week alluded to the possibility of higher pri🐟ces at C🐲hipotle.

A Chipotle restaurant stands in New York City.
A Chipotle restaurant stands in New York City.

Spencer Platt / Getty Images

Shares of Chipotle rose 4.9% to $63.90 Wednesday, leaving them 40% higher this year so far🍌. 

“The menu price increase is earlier than we … expected” and “a positive for the stock, in our view,” Truist Securities analysts wrote Wednesday. “We believe CMG is taking the menu price from a point of strength.” The analysts edged their 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:price target on the shares up $2♈ to $74, a bit above Wall Street’s average of $68 per Visible Alpha data.

The ꩲeffects of the menu price increases would likely be seen in the company’s fourth-quarter financial results, set for release in early February.

-澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:David Marino-Nachison

Chewy Stock Slides After Weak Earnings

December 04, 2024 03:26 PM EST

Chewy (CHWY) shares fell Wednesday after the online pet supplies retꦜailer missed profit forecasts as the number of active customers fell and costs𒐪 rose.

The company reported third-quarter adjusted 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:earnings per share (EPS) of $0.20, while the average estimate of analysts surveyed by Visible Alpha was $0.23. Revenue rose 4.8% year-ov🐭er-year to $2.88 b🎐illion, slightly more than expected.

Chewy said active customers declined 0.5% to 20.16 million a༺nd op𝓰erating expenses rose 3.3% to $818.2 million.

Chewy anticipates current-quarter sales of $3.18 billion to $3.20 billion. It revised its full-year sales outlook to $11.79 billion to $11.81 billion from the previous🃏 $11.60 billion to $11.80 billi▨on.

Chewy stock price chart YTD

TradingView

Chewy shares were down 4% in recent trading. Despite today's decline, they're up about 35% higher this year.

The stock has had an interesting run in 2024 after 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:meme stock hero Keith Gill, better known as "澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Roaring Kitty," took a large stake in the company over the summer, only to dump it a few months later.

-澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Bill McColl

Okta Stock Rises on Strong Earnings, Outlook

December 04, 2024 02:36 PM EST

Shares of Okta (OKTA) roꦬse Wednesday, a day after the business security software provider posted better-than-expected ♈results and current-quarter guidance as subscription revenue rose.

The company reported third-quarter fiscal 2025 adjusted 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:earnings per share (EPS) of $0.67, with revenue rising 14% year-over-year to $66🧸5 million. Both exceeded consensus estimates of analysts polled by Visible Alpha. Subscription revenue gained 1♒4% to $651 million.

Okta anticipate꧟s fourth-quarter adjusted EPS in the range of $0.73 to ꦬ$0.74, and revenue of $667 million to $669 million, ahead of forecasts.

Okta shares were up 5% in mid-afternoon trading, narrowing𒁏 their year-to-date losses to about 5%.

-澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Bill McColl

Trump Names Paul Atkins to Lead SEC

December 04, 2024 01:41 PM EST

President-elect Donald Trump named Paul Atkins to lead the 澳洲幸运5开奖ಌ号码历史查询:Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), his latest move to fill keyꦡ financial roles in the 💛next administration. 

Atkins, CEO of Washington, D.C.-based consulting firm Patomak Global Partner♉s, was an SEC Commissioner under former President George W. Bush and has worked lately on issues related to digital assets—a subject expected to be a focus of the incoming Trump administration.

Paul Atkins, founder and chief executive officer of Patomak Global Partners LLC, speaks during a Bloomberg Television interview at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., on Monday, May 1, 2017.
Paul Atkins, founder and chiefಌ executive officer of Patomak Global Partners LLC, speaks during a Bloomberg Television interview at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, on May 1, 2017.

David Paul Morris / Bloomberg / Getty Images

"Paul is a proven leader for common sense regulations," Trump wrote Wednesday on the Truth Social platform.

 "He believes in the promise of robust, innovative capital markets that are responsive to the needs of Investors, & that provide capital to make our Economy the best in the World. He also recognizes that digital assets & other innovations are crucial to Making America Greater than Ever Before."

The SEC is broadly responsible for oversight of financial markets and investor protection. Atkins, who would require Senate confirmation, would succeed Gary Gensler, who last month said 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:he would step down in January. 

Trump recently named billionaire hedge-fund manager Scott Bessent his 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:pick for Treasury Secretary and Cantor Fitzgerald CEO 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Howard Lutnick to lead the Commerce Department. Media reports have also suggested that Trump is considering 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:possible replacements for Fed Chair Jerome Powell. 

Trump likely would have the opportunity to replace several SEC commissioners whose terms are set to expire during his admi♈nistration. 

-澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:David Marino-Nachison

Wall Street Bullish on Salesforce Amid AI Demand

December 04, 2024 12:11 PM EST

Salesforce (CRM) shares jumped to a record high Wednesday after the company 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:raised its full-year outlook, and anal🐈ysts are offering increasingly bullish pr🙈ice targets. 

Stifel maintained its “❀outperform” rating and raised its price target to $425 fr🐻om $390.

The firm called Salesforce “the best way to play AI” due to its multi-cloud customer base and its ability to “drive market penetration” with its Customer 360 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:customer relationship management platform.

Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff in September.
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff in September.

Brontë Wittpenn / San Fr💝ancisco Chronicle via Getty Images

Then there’s Agentforce, Salesforce’s suite of autonomous AI agents made generally available on October 25. Agentforce was included in 200 deals in the quarter, “underscoring healthy early interest,” analysts at 🤪Bank of America said.

 The bank upped its price target to $440 🐟from $390.

Salesforce has “a combined market share of only 15% and a formidable competitive moat,” BofA added. “[W]e believe a long runway exists for Salesforce to continue ♒growing.”

Salesforc🌊e shares were up 8% at around $3﷽58 in recent trading.

-澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Andrew Kessel

Marvell Levels to Watch as Stock Soars After Strong Earnings

December 04, 2024 11:35 AM EST

Marvell Technology (MRVL) jumped Wednesday morning after the ch❀ipmaker posted strong quarterly results and issued a rosy outlook amid robust demand 🔯for its custom AI chips.

The stock broke out from an a🎃scending triangle on above-average volume early this week, a bullish chart pattern that ꦓindicates a continuation of the uptrend.

Source: TradingView.com.

A bars pattern, which takes the price bars from th⛄e stock’s trending move between October and November and repositions them from the ascending triangle’s lower trendline, forecasts a price target of🍬 around $120.

Investors should monitor important support levels on Marvell's chart around $95, $84 and $76.

The stock was up 22% at around $117 in recent t꧙rading and is up about 90% since the start of 2024.

Read the full 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:technical analysis piece here.

Foot Locker Stock Slides on Surprise Loss, Slashed Guidance

December 04, 2024 10:22 AM EST

Foot Locker (FL) shares tumbled Wednesday after theꦉ company posted an unexpected third-quarter loss and cut its full-year 🍰outlook. 

The athletic sneaker retailer r🧔eported a lꦑoss of $33 million or 34 cents per share, compared to a profit of $28 million or 30 cents per share a year earlier. Analysts tracked by Visible Alpha had called for profit to increase year-over-year to $37 million. Revenue was $1.96 billion, down 1.4% year-over-year and above the Street’s expectations. 

CEO Mary Dillon said the loss occurred as "[c]onsumer spending trends softened following the peak back-to-school period" and "the promotional environment was more elevated than anticipated." Selling, general, and administrative expenses (SG&𒁏amp;A), which includes marketing spending, rose 8% yea🐼r-over-year toꦆ $482 million. 

Foot Locker also got more conservative with its full-year forecast. It now expects sales to fall between 1.5% and 1% from $8.15 billion in 2023, compared to a prior range of a 1% loss to 1% growth. Adjusted 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:earnings per share are expected to land ཧbetween $1.20 and $1.30, down from $1.50 to $1.70. Analysts had called for $1.55.

Foot locker stock price chart YTD

TradingView

Shares of Foot Locker ꧋were down 12% in recent trading and have lost ⭕nearly a third of their value since the beginning of the year.

-澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Andrew Kessel

Dollar Tree Stock Rises as Earnings Top Estimates

December 04, 2024 09:51 AM EST

Dollar Tree (DLTR) shares rose🌄 Wednesday morning after the discount 🤪retailer reported better-than-expected third-quarter results.

The company recorded $7.57 billion in revenue and $233.3 million in 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:net income, up from $7.31 billio🅘n and $21ও2.0 million a year ago.

The company the projects full-year revenue of between $30.7 billion and $30.9 billion, with the bottom end lifted from $30.6 billion previously. Full-year adjusted 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:earnings per share (EPS) is seen between $5.31 and $5.51, compared with the 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:previous range of $5.20 to $5.60.

Dollar Tree said that its 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:"strategic review" of options for the Family Dollar brand announced in June "remains on track," with no set timeline to be completed. Roughly a decade ꦚafter Dollar Tree acquired the brand, a sale or spinoff remains a possibility.

Of the nearly 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:1,000 "underperform🎀ing" Family Dollar locations that the company said it planned to shut down earlier this year, Dollar Tree has closed about 670 through🎶 Q3, and expects to close anothಌer 25 in the fourth quarter.

Dollar Tree stock price chart YTD

TradingView

Dollar Tree shares jumped 5% at the open Wꦡednesday and were up about 1.5% recently. The stock has lost half its value since the start of the yꦉear.

-澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Aaron McDade

Palantir Levels to Watch as Stock Hits Record High

December 04, 2024 08:35 AM EST

Palantir (PLTR) shares are likely to remain in focus today after jumping to a new high yesterday following news that the analytics software provider's entire product suite has received approval ꧂for use in processing sensitive federal workloads.

Since breaking out from a pennant last week, Palantir shares have continued to trend higher, with gains accelerating following Tuesday's news.

Source: TradingView.com.

Whileꦿ the relative strength index confirms bullish price moment🧜um above the 70 threshold, the indicator also flashes overbought conditions that could lead to short-term profit-taking.

The measuring principle, which calculates the distance of the impulsive trend that preceded the pennant and adds that amount to the pattern’s upper trendline, forecasts an upsi🀅de⭕ price target in the stock of $89.

Investors should watch important support levels on Palantir's chart around $58.50, $45, and $38.

Palantir shares were up 1% at $71.70 about an hour before Wednesday's opening bell. The stock gained nearly 7% on Tuesday.

Read the full 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:technical analysis piece here.

-澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Timothy Smith

Major Stock Indexes Poised to Open Higher

December 04, 2024 08:04 AM EST

Futures ꦍtied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up 0.4%.

DJIA futures - Dec. 4, 2024

TradingView

S&P 500 futures were up 0.3%.

S&P 500 futures - Dec. 4, 2024

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Nasdaq 100 futures were up 0.7%.

Nasdaq 100 futures - Dec. 4, 2024

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