Credit: Shutterstock photo"Markets in Europe were higher once again today, and the U.S. followed suit," noted Schaeffer's Senior Trading Analyst Bryan Sapp. "Stocks were able to shake off a miss on today's consumer confidence data and continued their trend higher. The next three days should be very telling, as there will be a glut of economic data released. Today's price action could be a sign that the path of least resistance remains higher for stocks." Ahead of tomorrow's latest rate decision from the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) reached new closing highs.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including :
- Our founder and CEO, Bernie Schaeffer, presents a postmortem on Nokia Corporation (ADR) ( NOK ) following the firm's turn in the earnings confessional.
- One pre-earnings speculator purchased a block of near-term calls on Groupon Inc ( GRPN ), but is his wager as bullish at it seems?
- As earnings loom, Facebook Inc ( FB ) attracted a bevy of options players , including a longer-term spread strategist.
plus...
- Retail sales fell for the first time in six months, home prices gained notable ground on a year-over-year basis, and Yelp Inc ( YELP ) received a bullish brokerage note ahead of tonight's quarterly earnings report.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI - 15,680.35) surged higher at the start of the session, and remained in positive territory throughout the day, tagging a session peak of 15,683.08 just ahead of the closing bell. The index finished up 111.4 points, or 0.7% -- securing an all-time closing high. International Business Machines Corp. ( IBM ) led the Dow's 24 gainers with an advance of 2.7%, while Caterpillar Inc.'s (CAT) loss of 0.3% paced the six decliners.
The S&P 500 Index (SPX - 1,771.95) also surged at the opening bell, touching a record intraday peak of 1,772.09 during the last few minutes of trading. By the end, the index added 9.8 points, or 0.6% -- also notching another all-time closing high. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite (COMP - 3,952.34) gained 12.2 points, or 0.3%.
Elsewhere, the CBOE Volatility Index (VIX - 13.41) spent time on both sides of breakeven before finishing with an advance of 0.1 point, or 0.8%, on the day.
3 Things to Know About Today's Market :
- The Commerce Department said retail sales fell by a seasonally adjusted 0.1% in September, marking the first decline in six months. The drop was largely due to a 2.2% decrease in auto sales last month. Excluding auto figures, overall retail says climbed 0.4%. (MarketWatch)
- The S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index denoted a seasonally adjusted 0.9% rise in housing prices in August, topping the consensus view. More notably, home prices increased by 12.8% on a year-over-year basis -- marking the largest annual gain since February 2006, and surpassing economists' expectations for an advance of just 12.5%. (Reuters via CNBC)
- Although Apple Inc. (AAPL) reported a larger-than-expected fiscal fourth-quarter profit of $7.51 billion, or $8.26 per share, the latest numbers marked an 8.6% drop from the year-ago period. Meanwhile, revenue climbed 4.2% to $37.5 billion. For the current quarter, AAPL is expecting revenue between $55 billion and $58 billion, denoting a modest 0.9% to 6.4% increase from the year prior. (Bloomberg)
5 Stocks We Were Watching Today :
- Yelp Inc ( YELP ) scored some bullish analyst attention this morning, ahead of tonight's turn in the earnings confessional.
- With quarterly earnings due this evening, LinkedIn Corp's (LNKD) sentiment backdrop shows a bearish bias in the options pits.
- Pre-earnings call volume swelled on General Motors Company (GM) , but some of these bets may not have been bullish in nature.
- Cisco Systems, Inc.'s (CSCO) positive price action lured option bulls to the trading table, who bet on extended gains by early 2014.
- Optimistic speculators pounced on AT&T Inc. (T) , and scooped up the telecom concern's front-month call options.
For a look at today's options movers and commodities activity, head to page 2.
Commodities :
Crude futures snapped their three-day winning streak ahead of tomorrow's weekly crude report, as an expected rise in oil supplies dragged prices lower. By the close, the December contract fell 48 cents, or 0.5%, to finish at $98.20 per barrel.
Meanwhile, gold futures drifted south of the key $1,350 mark, as investors continued to scrutinize the latest economic data for signs as to when the Fed may start tapering its bond-buying program. December-dated gold declined $6.70, or 0.5%, to end at $1,345.50 an ounce.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
