Markets News, December 20, 2024: Stocks Rise After Encouraging Inflation Data to Wrap Up Rough Week; Major Indexes Post Weekly Losses

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange

Michael Nagle / Bloomberg / Getty Images

Stocks finished higher on Friday, recovering a large portion of the massive losses posted earlier in the꧋ week, as the market reacted to tame inflation numbers and encoꦡuraging comments from a Federal Reserve official.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.2%, while the S&P 500 and Nasda♉q Composite added 1.1% and 1%, respectively.

Despite Friday's gains, the major indexes posted losses for the week, after suffering their worst one day performance in four months on Wednesday, when the Fed said ✅it expects to slow the pace of interest rate cuts next year as inflation ♉persists. For the Dow it was the third straight week of declines, while the S&P 500 fell for the second consecutive week and the Nasdaq snapped a four-week winning streak.

The Personal Consumption Expenditures index, which is the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩🐎网:Fed's preferred measure of inflation, showed Friday that prices edged higher in November, but not as much as economists had predicted. Speaking on CNBC, Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee wel𒈔comed the better-than-expected numbers and said that inflation remains on a path toward the Fed's 2% annual target.

"I'm hopeful that this suggests that the couple of months of firming (in inflation) were more of a bump than a change in path," said Goolsbee, who will be a voting member of the Fed's policy committee next year. "Over the next 12 to 18 months, if conditions keep on the way things have over the last 18 months, I think rates come down a fair bit more."

The yield on 10-year Treasurys, which is correlated with expectations about where interest rates are headed, fell to 4.53% from yesterday's closing level of 4.57%. The yield reached its highest levels since May this week.

Investors were also keeping a close eye on developments in Washington D.C. as lawmakers work to avoid a government shutdown. Adding to the volatile mix, Friday was a 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:triple-witching day, which refers to the simultaneous expiration of stock options, index options, and ind🍨ex futures contracts.

Large cap tech stocks turned in a mixed performance on Friday. AI investor favorite Nvidia (NVDA) rose 3.1%, leading Dow gainers, while Apple (AAPL), Amazon (AMZN) and Alphabet (GOOGL) also advanced. Tesla (TSLA) led S&P 500 decliners, falling 3.5%, while Microsoft (MSFT) and Meta Platforms (META) also slipped.

Among other noteworthy movers, shares of Novo Nordisk (NVO), maker of popular weight-loss drugs Ozempic and Wegovy, fell 18% after 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:disappointing trial results for a new obesity shot. Shares of rival Eli Lilly (LLY) finished up 1.4%, well off its intraday highs.

FedEx (FDX) finished near unchanged after the shipping giant announced plans to 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:spin off its freight business as a separate public company, overshadowing a lowered full year outlook. The stock ha𒐪d gained as much as 7% ♏in the opening minutes of trading Friday.

Nike (NKE) ended down slightly, recovering from steep early declines, after the athletic apparel maker released its first 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:earnings report under new CEO Elliott Hill, with results that topped expectations but a sluggish outlook.

Bitcoin w✃as at $97,000 recently, up from an earlier low of around $92,000 but well below the record high of around $108,000 set earlieꦍr this week.

Gold futures were up 1.2% at ar༒ound $2,640 an ounce, while crude oil futures rose slighไtly.

Biggest S&P 500 Movers on Friday

December 20, 2024 05:38 PM EST

Advancers

  • Shares of solar technology provider Enphase Energy (ENPH) rose 8.6%, gaining the most of any S&P 500 stock, after OTR Global lifted its view on the stock to "mixed" from "negative." According to channel-checks by the market research firm, Enphase is benefitting as competitor SolarEdge (SEDG) experiences a drop in U.S. orders for solar string inverters. Earlier this week, Enphase launched shipments of its home battery system in India.
  • Palantir Technologies (PLTR) stock jumped 8.5%, extending a run-up that has now carried shares of big data analytics firm around 369% higher in 2024. Palantir said earlier this week that it 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:extended its contract with the U.📖S. Army, which uses the company's artificial intelligence (AI) software to help accelerate key decision-making processes. Palantir stock is set to 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:join the influential Na👍sdaq 100 Index next week.
  • Match Group (MTCH) shares gained 6.7% on Friday, bouncing back from earlier losses this week following downgrades by Jefferies and Morgan Stanley. Although analysts are concerned about growth trends for Tinder, the online dating company's largest platform, a recent Wall Street Journal report highlighted investments to improve the app's user experience and noted that reduced expectations could offer Match some flexibility to execute its turnaround plan.
  • Cruise operator Carnival (CCL) posted 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体𝕴彩网:better-than-expected fourth-quarter prof🅺its, boosted by year-over-year gains in passenger ticket, onboard and other revenue. The company struck an upbeat tone for 2025, noting the volume of bookings taken during the fourth quarter for voyages next year exceeded equivalent figures from last year despite lower available inventory. Carnival shares sailed 6.4% higher Friday, while shares of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH) added 5.9%.

Decliners

  • Tesla (TSLA) shares wrapped up a volatile week of trading with a daily decline of 3.5%, logging the S&P 500's weakest performance. Friday's downturn came as the carmaker recalled around 700,000 vehicles in the U.S. to address an issue affecting tire pressure monitors.
  • Package delivery giant FedEx (FDX) trimmed its full-year revenue guidance and announced . While FedEx shares were essentially flat on Friday, the announcement raised concerns about the near-term performance of the less-than-truckload, or LTL, freight industry, weighing on other trucking stocks. Old Dominion Freight Line (ODFL) shares sank 3.4%

-澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Michael Bromberg

Nasdaq Snaps Four-Week Winning Streak

December 20, 2024 04:56 PM EST

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rebounded on Friday from steep losses earlier in the week but still finished the week in the red. It was🐠 the first time in five weeks that all three indexes posted we🦋ekly losses.

The Dow fell 2.3% this week, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq declined 2% and 1.8% respect♍ively. 🌜The Nasdaq snapped a four-week winning streak, while the S&P 500 lost ground for the second straight week and the Dow recorded its third consecutive weekly decline.

Dow vs S&P 500 vs Nasdaq Composite this week

TradingView

With this week's losses, the Dow has risen 13.7% since the start of 2024, while the S&P 500 and and Nasdaq have gained 24.3% and 30.4%, respectively.

DJIA vs S&P 500 vs Nasdaq Composite YTD

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S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 Changes Take Effect Monday

December 20, 2024 03:10 PM EST

Software company Workday (WDAY) and asset manager Apollo Global Management (APO澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:will replace tech hardware company Qorvo (QRVO) and engineering firm Amentum Holdings (AMTM) in the ꦇS&P 500 effective Mon✱day morning. 

AI darling Palantir Technologies (PLTR), Bitcoin proxy MicroStrategy (MSTR), and taser-maker Axon Enterprise (AXON澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:will replace biotech Illumina (ILMN), AI server maker Super Micro Computer (SMCI), and vaccine maker Moderna (MRNA) in the Nasdaq 100, also effective Mo🦄nday. 

-澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Colin Laidley

What Today's Triple Witching Means for Your Stocks

December 20, 2024 01:47 PM EST

Stock traders and investors had a lot to be concerned about on Fr🐼iday. Not only was the federal government flirting with a government shutdown on Saturday morning, but Wall Street also awaited triple-witching and its attendant volatility. ☂

澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Triple-witching refers to the simultaneous expiration of 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:stock options, index options, and 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:index futures. It occurs four times a year, on the third Fridays of March, June, September, and December♓. Triple-witching usually triggers a flurry of activity as investors are forced to close out or extend their positions, and that activity can come with volatility. 

While triple-witching can prompt abnormal trading volume and some surprising price swings, buy-and-hold investors don’t have too much to worry about. Any vol♌atility related to options and futures activity 🍬should be short-lived. Plus, Wall Street is aware that triple-witching comes with volatility, so unexpected price swings are unlikely to have much bearing on market sentiment. 

Active traders have much more incentive to be paying attention today, and not only because they’re more likely than your average retail investor to own a contract that’s expiring. The final hour of the day, the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:triple-witching hour, can sometimes result in a less 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:liquid market for certain securities. That can increase spreads and give savvy traders the opportunity to trade the same security at different prices across multiple markets, known as 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:arbitrage

Read the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:full article here.

-澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Colin Laidley

Nike Levels to Watch as Turnaround Efforts Weigh on Outlook

December 20, 2024 12:37 PM EST

Nike (NKE) shares bounced around Friday morning after the sports apparel company reported quarterly results that 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:topped Wall Street’s estimates but provided an outlook that came i𒆙n below expectations, as the company undergoes an ambitious strategy ꩵshift.

The company anticipates current quarter revenue to contract by low double digits from a year earlier. CEO Elliott Hill, who assumed the role in October, said on Nike's 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:earnings call late Thursday that the company plans to refocus on s⛎ports and selling more items at premium prices, but cautioned that the turnaround will take time and weigh on short-term results.

Nike shares have lost nearly 30% of their value since the start of the year amid intensifying competition in both domestic and international markets that has eroded its 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:market share. The stock was flat at around $77 in midday trading Friday, after fa✅lling below $75 early in the session.

Source: TradingView.com.

The stock has traded within a 15-month falling wedge, a chart pattern consisting of two converging downward sloping trendlines th♓at often precedes an💧 upward breakout.

Investors should watch major support levels on Nike's chart around $71 and $65, while observing key resistance levels near $89 and $105.

Read the full 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:technical analysis piece here.

-澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Timothy Smith

Novo Nordisk Sinks on Disappointing Weight Loss Drug Trial

December 20, 2024 11:18 AM EST

Novo Nordisk (NVO) shares plunged Friday after the company released trial results for its next generation of wei𒅌ght loss drug, meant to add to its current lineup of Ozempic 🐎and Wegovy.

The Danish drugmaker said that in the study of just over 3,400 patients, its new injectable weight loss drug CagriSema met its primary goal, with an average weight loss of 22.7% of a patient's body weight. That compared to 11.8% and 16.1% of body weight lost by the patients who took doses of just one of the two drugs that make up CagriSema, cagrilintide and semaglutide — the latter of which is the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy.

The 22.7% average mark fell short of Novo Nordisk's goal reported last month by Bloomberg of 25% weight loss. Novo Nordisk♏ said about 40% of people taking CagriSema rಌeached the 25% mark.

Novo Nordisk ADR chart price YTD

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Novo Nordisk's U.S.-traded shares were down 21% in recent trading. The had already been trending lower 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:since September, when 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:sales slowed slightly and concerns started to grow about the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:increasing competition in the 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:weight loss drug market.

-澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Aaron McDade

FedEx Levels to Watch as Stock Rises on Freight Spinoff Plan

December 20, 2024 10:03 AM EST

FedEx (FDX) shares rose in early trading Friday after the shipping giant announced plans to 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:spin off its freight business as a separat🐽e public company, overshadowing a lowered full yဣear outlook.

The stock has oscillated in an orderly asꦰcenꦰding channel since July last year, with the price recently finding buying interest around key moving averages.

Source: TradingView.com.

Investors should watch key overhead areas on FedEx's chart around $305 and $370, while also monitoring important support levels near $278 and $255.

FedEx sඣhares were up 2% at aroun🌠d $282 in recent trading.

Read the full 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:technical analysis piece here.

-澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:Timothy Smith

Stock Index Futures Point to Lower Open

December 20, 2024 08:22 AM EST

Futures tied to the Dow Jon꧃es Industrial Average were down 0.5%.

DJIA futures - Dec. 20, 2024

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S&P 500 futures were off 0.9%.

S&P 500 futures - Dec. 20, 2024

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Nasdaq 100 futures fell 1.4%.

Nasdaq 100 futures - Dec. 20, 2024

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