The S&P 500 closed at 7,666.45, up 14.91 points, a move of 0.19% on the day. Breadth was positive, with 291 of the index's 498 members higher. Concentration ran at 86%, the sign of an advance carried by a relatively small group of names even as the majority of the index also rose.
NVIDIA added 6.90 points, the largest single contribution in the index, with Micron Technology next at 4.11 points on a 3.03% gain. Accenture, Lam Research and Applied Materials rounded out the top five. On the other side, Corteva subtracted 31.21 points on an outsized swing, while Apple shed 4.62 points and Broadcom, Alphabet's Class A shares and Alphabet's Class C shares each gave back between 3 and 5 points.
The Dow
The Dow closed at 50,927.00, up 20.95 points, a move of 0.04%, essentially flat even though only 14 of its 30 members advanced. That split, less than half the index higher while the price barely budged, is a clear divergence from the S&P 500's broader gain. Caterpillar did the heavy lifting, adding 92.48 points on a 1.92% rise, with Salesforce, Boeing, IBM and Travelers also contributing gains.
Amgen erased 84.64 points on a 3.38% decline, the single largest drag in the index, followed by Johnson & Johnson, Alphabet, Goldman Sachs and Disney. The gains and losses roughly offset, leaving the Dow pinned near unchanged despite sizable moves underneath the surface.
The Nasdaq 100
The Nasdaq 100 closed at 30,501.56, up 93.06 points, a move of 0.31%, with 57 of 99 members higher. Where the S&P 500's gain concentrated in chip names, the Nasdaq 100 carried that same group with far more force: NVIDIA contributed 38.69 points, Micron 23.60, Lam Research 9.39, Applied Materials 9.21 and Synopsys 6.90 points on a 12.78% jump.
The index's laggards told a different story than its leaders. Alphabet's two share classes together subtracted 92.24 points, Apple gave back 25.51, Space Exploration Technologies Corp lost 24.52 and Broadcom fell 23.33. Alphabet's weight shows up as a drag in the Dow, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 alike, the one name pulling against the advance in all three.
The sectors
Across the sectors, Energy led with a 1.93% gain, Technology followed at 1.09% and Industrials at 1.01%. Health Care was the day's weakest group at -1.32%, with Real Estate, Communication Services and Materials also lower.
Energy's advance was led by Marathon Petroleum, which added 0.17 points on a 6.32% move, the clearest single driver behind the sector's gain.
Health Care's decline traced back to Johnson & Johnson, which subtracted 0.41 points on a 2.30% drop, consistent with the stock's place among the Dow's largest laggards for the day.
None of today's index moves register as large by this measure. The S&P 500's 0.19% gain sits at the 57th percentile of the past year, the Dow's 0.04% move at the 50th percentile, and the Nasdaq 100's 0.31% gain at the 56th percentile, all unremarkable by recent history.
The numbers
- The S&P 500 closed at 7,666.45, up 14.91 points, a gain of 0.19% on the day.
- The Dow closed at 50,927.00, up 20.95 points, a gain of 0.04%.
- The Nasdaq 100 closed at 30,501.56, up 93.06 points, a gain of 0.31%.
- Breadth on the S&P 500 was positive, with 291 of 498 members higher, while the Dow saw only 14 of 30 members advance.
- NVIDIA was the S&P 500's and the Nasdaq 100's biggest driver, adding 6.90 points and 38.69 points respectively.
- Corteva was the S&P 500's biggest drag, subtracting 31.21 points on an 83.82% decline.
- Energy was the day's strongest sector at 1.93%, while Health Care was the weakest at -1.32%.
- The S&P 500's move ranks at the 57th percentile of the past year, the Dow's at the 50th percentile, and the Nasdaq 100's at the 56th percentile.
From Babylon Burns
WMTMT is brought to you by the founders of Babylon Burns. If you want to stay ahead of the markets, read their recent piece on Loss-making business bet: Explosive setup: When the market changes its mind about a loss-making business.
Want our free weekly recap of what moved the market, straight to your inbox? Subscribe to the WMTMT Substack.