US STOCKS-Nasdaq rallies as Nvidia, tech jump; investors look toward Jackson Hole

VMware

21/08/2023 21:00

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      GS weighs sale of part of wealth business, shares fall
    

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      Palo Alto Networks jumps on upbeat forecast
    

  
 (Updates to close)
    By Caroline Valetkevitch
       NEW YORK, Aug 21 (Reuters) - The Nasdaq ended more than
1% higher and S&P 500 also rose on Monday, with shares of Nvidia
jumping as investors were optimistic ahead of its earnings this
week and other technology-related stocks gained.
    The Dow Jones industrial average was little changed. 
    The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury rose to a
15-year high as investors looked warily toward a meeting of
central bankers who convene on Thursday at Jackson Hole in
Wyoming. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is due to speak on
Friday.
    The technology sector  .SPLRCT  gave the biggest boost to
the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, while an index of semiconductors  .SOX 
was also up sharply. 
    Nvidia  NVDA.O  led gains among semiconductor stocks as HSBC
raised its price target on the stock to $780, the second highest
on Wall Street. 
    Nvidia, one of the biggest winners in this year's artificial
intelligence tech stock rally, is expected to forecast quarterly
revenue above analysts' estimates when it reports late on
Wednesday. Nvidia's stock is up more than 200% for the year so
far, while the Nasdaq is up nearly 30%.
    "Nvidia is considered the brand for AI," said Quincy Krosby,
chief global strategist at LPL Financial in Charlotte, North
Carolina. "Their targets have been lifted dramatically, so the
question is, can they deliver... A catalyst coming in with
Nvidia would be extremely helpful."
    At the same time, she said, investors are anxious to hear
Powell's comments at Jackson Hole. Concerns the Fed will keep
interest rates higher for longer have pushed up U.S. Treasury
yields, and fanned worries about the impact of higher rates on
businesses and consumers.
    According to preliminary data, the S&P 500
 .SPX  gained 30.42 points, or 0.70%, to end at 4,400.13 points,
while the Nasdaq Composite  .IXIC  gained 206.65 points, or
1.55%, to 13,497.42. The Dow Jones Industrial Average
 .DJI  fell 37.40 points, or 0.11%, to 34,463.26.
    Among decliners in the Dow, Johnson & Johnson  JNJ.N  shares
fell after the healthcare conglomerate said it was expecting to
retain a stake of about 9.5% in its newly separated consumer
health unit, Kenvue  KVUE.N .
    Goldman Sachs  GS.N  also dipped after the bank said it was
weighing the sale of a part of its wealth business.
    Also in the tech space, Palo Alto Networks  PANW.O  surged
after the cybersecurity firm alleviated worries about its late
Friday release of results with a strong quarter and a forecast
for annual billings above expectations.
    And VMware  VMW.N  jumped after UK's competition regulator
cleared Broadcom's  AVGO.O  purchase of the cloud computing
firm. Broadcom's stock was also higher.

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The Jackson Hole effect The Jackson Hole effect    https://tmsnrt.rs/447x79j
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 (Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch; additional reporting by
Amruta Khandekar and Shristi Achar; Editing by Arun Koyyur,
Vinay Dwivedi and David Gregorio)
 ((caroline.valetkevitch@thomsonreuters.com))