The Dow Jones Industrial Average rallied amid rising hopes on interest rates. The Donald Trump SPAC Digital World Acquisition jumped on a key shareholder vote. Retail stocks gained after Best Buy issued bullish guidance. Warren Buffett stock Chevron is in a buy zone.
A few noteworthy stocks made bullish moves. Catalyst Pharmaceuticals and Reliance Steel & Aluminum staged breakouts.
Volume was mixed, rising on the Nasdaq but falling on the New York Stock Exchange, according to early data.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell six basis points to 3.77%. West Texas Intermediate crude oil popped over 1% to trade at just over $81 per barrel.
Stocks Boosted Amid Rising Fed Hopes
Securities were given a helping hand as comments from a key Fed official raised hopes interest rate hikes may moderate.
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President Loretta Mester said she is open to the idea of the FOMC reducing the size of interest-rate hikes from 75 basis points in December.
Oanda senior market analyst said a moderation of rate hike expectations was one of two key reasons stocks were moving higher.
"U.S. stocks are rallying as Wall Street continues to expect the Fed to downshift their tightening pace next month and on optimism that the risk of a railroad strike fueling inflation is low," he said in a note to clients.
Nasdaq Gains, IBD 50 Leads
The Nasdaq closed near highs for the day as it gained 1.4%. Analog Devices was a standout, lifting 5.8%.
The S&P 500 also turned in a 1.4% gain. Agilent Technologies was strong here, rising 8.1%.
The S&P 500 sectors were all positive, with energy, materials and technology having the best gains.
Small caps rallied well into the close, with the Russell 2000 closing up 1.2%.
The Innovator IBD 50 ETF, a bellwether for growth stocks, benefited from rich energy exposure and turned in a gain of 3.4%.
S&P 500 Tops 4,000 As 5 Stocks Flash Buy Signals
Dow Jones Today: Home Depot Shines
The Dow Jones Industrial Average enjoyed another strong session, lifting just shy of 400 points or 1.2%.
Intel posted the strongest gain on the Dow Jones today as it rallied 3%. It pulled further away from its 50-day moving average, MarketSmith analysis shows.
Salesforce, Walgreen Boots Alliance and Dow Inc. followed closely behind.
Walt Disney suffered a hangover after Monday's strong gains, falling 1.4%.
Donald Trump SPAC Spikes On Key Vote
The Donald Trump SPAC Digital World Acquisition jumped after a key shareholder vote went in a favorable direction.
The fate of Digital World Acquisition, a blank check special purpose acquisition company, had been in limbo after a vote on whether to push back the deadline for the merger was delayed multiple times.
Executives at Digital World, which is led by Patrick Orlando, now have until Sept. 8 of next year to complete the deal after shareholders approved the delay.
It still faces hurdles though, including investigations by the SEC and federal prosecutors.
Trump Media and Technology Group's main product at the moment is conservative social media site Truth Social, a right-leaning alternative to Twitter.
DWAC stock rallied into the close, rising 5.7%. It closed off highs for the day however. It is down about 56% for the year, but off 12-month lows.
The stock is in the bottom 9% of stocks in terms of stock market performance over the past 12 months.
Retail Stocks Pop Amid Bullish Best Buy Earnings Report
Retail stocks benefited broadly after a bullish earnings report from Best Buy.
The consumer electronics chain beat Wall Street views on both the top and bottom lines. Comparable sales also fell by less than the firm had feared.
But it was optimism about the Christmas shopping season that delivered the biggest boost. The firm raised its full-year forecast and reiterated its holiday-quarter outlook.
Best Buy stock ended the day up 12.7%, closing just below the 200-day moving average.
Among other retail stocks, Dick's Sporting Goods beat views and raised guidance for the rest of the year. Dollar Tree topped views but gave mixed guidance.
DK s stock surged 10.1%, pulling away from its 50-day line. Dollar Tree plunged 7.8% but found support at the 50-day moving average.
The SPDR S&P Retail ETF popped 2.7% and closed at highs.
Outside Dow Jones: Warren Buffett Stock In Buy Zone
Chevron stock is trading bullishly in a buy zone above a 182.50 entry. The relative strength line is turning higher after a dip.
This is a first-stage consolidation pattern after it undercut the lows of the previous second-stage flat base. Nevertheless, gains so far in 2022 are handsome, coming in at nearly 56%.
The Warren Buffett stock has now been added to the prestigious IBD Leaderboard list.
Catalyst Pharma is trading near the top of a buy zone after breaking past a cup-with-handle entry of 16.76. The RS line has hit new heights.
The biotech develops and commercializes therapies for people with rare debilitating chronic neuromuscular and neurological diseases. It is a member of IBD Sector Leaders, our most stringent proprietary screen.
Reliance Steel is trading in a buy zone after breaking past a consolidation pattern entry of 211.76, MarketSmith analysis shows.
All-around performance is good. It is also in the top 7% of stocks in terms of price performance over the past 12 months.
Please follow Michael Larkin on Twitter at @IBD_MLarkin for more analysis of growth stocks.
