The S&P 500 closed at 7,743.98, up 21.38 points, a gain of 0.28 percent. Breadth was close to even, with 244 of the index's 494 members higher on the day, and the index's equal-weight version was essentially flat, up just 0.01 percent. That gap between the cap-weighted gain and the flat equal-weight reading is the tell: a handful of large names did the lifting while the rest of the index went nowhere in particular.
Micron led, adding 7.27 points on a 5.86 percent jump, followed by Broadcom at 5.49 points and Advanced Micro Devices at 3.6 points. Alphabet's two share classes together added 6.08 points, with the Class A shares up 1.34 percent and the Class C shares up 1.6 percent. On the other side, Nvidia subtracted 7.84 points on a 1.17 percent decline, Apple took off 6.03 points, and Meta Platforms, Tesla and Fortinet each shaved smaller amounts, with Fortinet down 5.9 percent even though its point drag was modest.
The Dow
The Dow closed at 52,475.00, up 97.43 points, a gain of 0.19 percent, trailing the S&P 500's percentage move. Breadth was split exactly down the middle at 15 of 30 members higher, and the concentration reading of 139 percent shows the winners did more than all of the index's net gain, with losses elsewhere eating into it.
Goldman Sachs did the heavy lifting, adding 79.64 points on a 1.47 percent gain, with American Express contributing 29.9 points, Alphabet 25.62 points, Amgen 23.06 points and JPMorgan Chase 20.86 points. That is a financials-and-Alphabet story, distinct from the chip-led S&P 500 session. Sherwin-Williams was the heaviest drag at negative 30.97 points on a 1.6 percent decline, with UnitedHealth, Apple, Travelers and Nvidia also subtracting from the average.
The Nasdaq 100
The Nasdaq 100 closed at 29,813.16, up 161.72 points, a gain of 0.55 percent, the strongest of the three indexes today. Breadth was about even at 51 of 99 members higher, but the equal-weight version of the index still gained 0.53 percent, nearly matching the cap-weighted move, a sign the advance had more support underneath it than the S&P 500's did.
Alphabet's two classes together added 117.4 points here, far larger than their S&P 500 contribution given the index's weighting, with Micron close behind at 63.14 points, Broadcom at 46.36 points and Advanced Micro Devices at 30.4 points. Nvidia was the single biggest drag at negative 63.21 points, with Apple subtracting 48.89 points and Space Exploration Technologies off 46.61 points on a 2.25 percent decline. Meta Platforms and Tesla rounded out the laggards. The same Nvidia-and-Apple weakness that limited the S&P 500 showed up here too, just outweighed by a bigger chip-and-Alphabet push.
The sectors
The eleven sectors spread from a 0.89 percent gain to a 0.83 percent decline, a narrow range for the session. Technology led, Financials and Energy posted smaller gains, and Real Estate and Utilities brought up the rear.
Technology was the day's strongest sector, up 0.89 percent, with Micron as its top driver, adding 0.53 points on that same 5.86 percent gain.
Utilities was the weakest, down 0.83 percent, with NextEra Energy the leading drag, off 0.09 points on a 1.66 percent decline. Real Estate was close behind at negative 0.75 percent, pulled down by CoStar Group, which fell 13.96 percent.
None of today's index moves were large by this site's standard. The S&P 500's move sits at the 62nd percentile of the past year, the Dow's at the 58th percentile, and the Nasdaq 100's at the 65th percentile, all comfortably below the 85th-percentile threshold for a large day.
The numbers
- The S&P 500 closed at 7,743.98, up 21.38 points, a gain of 0.28 percent.
- The Dow closed at 52,475.00, up 97.43 points, a gain of 0.19 percent.
- The Nasdaq 100 closed at 29,813.16, up 161.72 points, a gain of 0.55 percent.
- S&P 500 breadth was 244 of 494 members higher, close to even despite the index's gain.
- Micron Technology was the S&P 500's biggest point contributor, adding 7.27 points on a 5.86 percent gain.
- Nvidia was the S&P 500's biggest drag, subtracting 7.84 points on a 1.17 percent decline.
- Technology was the day's strongest sector, up 0.89 percent, led by Micron.
- Utilities was the day's weakest sector, down 0.83 percent, led lower by NextEra Energy.
- The S&P 500's move ranks at the 62nd percentile of the past year, below the threshold for a large move.
From Babylon Burns
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