US STOCKS-Stocks rise as megacaps lead; inflation data, earnings eyed

DocGo

10/01/2024 20:08

* 
      Nvidia rises after TSMC's Q4 revenue beat 
    

        * 
      Boeing bounces after two-day slump
    

        * 
      US SEC says bitcoin ETFs not yet approved, crypto stocks
slip  
    

        * 
      Indexes up: Dow 0.41%, S&P 0.54%, Nasdaq 0.75%
    

  
 (Updated at 2:38 p.m. ET/1938 GMT)
    By Chuck Mikolajczak
       NEW YORK, Jan 10 (Reuters) - 
    U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday, building steam on strength in
megacaps, but gains were limited ahead of inflation reports and
major bank earnings later in the week.
    Microsoft  MSFT.O , Meta Platforms  META.O  and Nvidia
 NVDA.O  were the biggest boosts to the S&P 500 index, as the
benchmark 10-year Treasury note yield  US10YT=RR  held near 4%
and a $37 billion auction of the notes drew above-average
demand.
        Communication services  .SPLRCL  was the best performing
of the 11 major S&P sectors, lifted by a roughly 4% rise in Meta
Platforms'  META.O  stock to the highest level since September
2021, after Mizuho 
    raised its price target
     to $470 from $400.
  
    Nvidia  NVDA.O  gained 2.1% to hit a record high after
fellow chipmaker TSMC  2330.TW   TSM.N , beat fourth-quarter
revenue expectations. 
    After closing out 2023 with a strong rally, stocks have
struggled to find upward momentum as mixed economic data and
comments from Federal Reserve officials have led investors to
dial back expectations for the timing and size of any rate cuts
from the central bank this year.
    "What the market is doing, it's reassessing its 2024
expectations in terms of earnings and in terms of interest
rates, and really looking to justify the surge in prices that we
saw in November and December," said Sam Stovall, chief
investment strategist at CFRA Research in New York.  
        "It's sort of a good sign that the market is treading
water early in the year because it implies that investors really
don't want to miss out on anything else that could be good."
  
        The Dow Jones Industrial Average  .DJI  rose 154.92
points, or 0.41% , to 37,680.08; the S&P 500  .SPX  gained 25.50
points, or 0.54 %, at 4,782.05 and the Nasdaq Composite  .IXIC 
gained 111.21 points, or 0.75 %, at 14,968.92.
    The focus will turn to the December consumer and producer
inflation reports, due on Thursday and Friday, respectively,
which could help determine the monetary policy path for the
central bank.
    Investors will also closely monitor comments by New York Fed
President John Williams, who is scheduled to speak later in the
day.
    Market participants have scaled back expectations to a 67.6%
chance for at least a 25-basis-point rate cut in March,
according to CME's FedWatch Tool.
    On Friday, banking giants JPMorgan Chase  JPM.N , Bank of
America  BAC.N , Citigroup  C.N  and Wells Fargo  WFC.N  are
expected to report lower fourth-quarter profits.
    Crypto stocks including Coinbase  COIN.O , Bitfarms  BITF.O 
and Riot Platforms  RIOT.O  each shed over 2.1%, as bitcoin
 BTC=  prices dipped after the U.S. securities regulator said a
hacked social media message was posted on its account regarding
the eagerly awaited approval of exchange traded funds (ETFs). 
    The stocks barely reacted to a notice from CBOE that several
spot bitcoin ETFs from multiple asset managers were approved. 
    Boeing  BA.N  rose 1.5% following a 9.3% tumble in the prior
two sessions, after CEO Dave Calhoun acknowledged errors by the
U.S. planemaker as more than 170 jets remained grounded for a
fourth day.
    DocGo  DCGO.O  plunged nearly 40% after Fuzzy Panda Research
revealed a short position on the health services company's
stock.
    Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.4-to-1 ratio
on the NYSE while decliners outnumbered advancers by a 1.1-to-1
ratio on the Nasdaq.
    The S&P index recorded 30 new 52-week highs and no new lows,
while the Nasdaq recorded 94 new highs and 89 new lows.

 (Reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Richard Chang)
 ((charles.mikolajczak@tr.com; @ChuckMik;))