US STOCKS-S&P 500, Nasdaq end up with Nvidia; Walmart jumps after forecast

Univest Financial

19/11/2024 21:01

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      Walmart gains after raising annual sales, profit forecast
    

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      Super Micro surges after auditor appointment
    

  
 (Updates to close)
    By Caroline Valetkevitch
       NEW YORK, Nov 19 (Reuters) - 
    The Nasdaq and S&P 500 ended higher on Tuesday, led by a
jump in technology shares as investors eagerly awaited results
this week from Nvidia, while Walmart shares climbed after the
retailer raised its annual forecasts.
    The Dow edged lower.
        All three major indexes started the day lower, with the
benchmark index dropping as much as 0.64% after Russian
President Vladimir Putin lowered the threshold for a nuclear
strike in response to a broader range of conventional attacks
earlier in the day, and Moscow said Ukraine had struck deep
inside Russia with U.S.-made long-range missiles.
    Stocks pared losses as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei
Lavrov said Moscow will do everything possible to prevent a
nuclear war.
    Nvidia  NVDA.O , which will report quarterly results after
the bell on Wednesday, climbed and was the biggest positive on
the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. Technology  .SPLRCT  led gains among S&P
500 sectors.
        Other megacap stocks also rose, including Amazon.com
 AMZN.O .
    "The biggest takeaway today is caution around what's going
on in Ukraine. Largely investors are hiding out in some of the
megacap names, which is a little bit surprising ahead of Nvidia
earnings, but they are highly liquid," said Timothy Chubb, chief
investment officer at Girard, a Univest Wealth Division.
        The Dow Jones Industrial Average  .DJI  fell 120.66
points, or 0.28%, to 43,268.94, the S&P 500  .SPX  gained 23.35
points, or 0.40%, to 5,916.97 and the Nasdaq Composite  .IXIC 
added 195.66 points, or 1.04%, to 18,987.47.
    Walmart  WMT.N  shares hit a record intraday high after the
retailer raised its annual sales and profit forecasts for the
third consecutive time.
    "Walmart came in and delivered optimistic guidance," said
Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist, LPL Financial in
Charlotte, North Carolina.
        "One of the components that was important for the market
was that it said more of their customers are going in and
purchasing items in the higher margin categories, which is
something that has been watched."
  
    Super Micro Computer  SMCI.O  jumped after the artificial
intelligence server maker named BDO USA as its auditor and said
it has submitted a plan to the Nasdaq to avoid delisting.
    Shares of Netflix  NFLX.O  also rose after the streaming
media company said 108 million people watched a boxing match
between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson.
    Adding to optimism, Goldman Sachs strategists forecast the
S&P 500 would reach 6,500 by the end of 2025.
    Investors are also awaiting key cabinet appointments for
President-elect Donald Trump's administration.
        Trump said on Tuesday he 
    will nominate
     Wall Street CEO Howard Lutnick to serve as commerce
secretary.
  

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Walmart earnings    https://reut.rs/48VOnCg
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 (Additional reporting by Lisa Mattackal and Purvi Agarwal in
Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Shinjini Ganguli and
Richard Chang)
 ((caroline.valetkevitch@thomsonreuters.com))