The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose and other major indexes surged in the shortened Christmas Eve trading session on Tuesday. A Warren Buffett stock hit fresh highs despite the Oracle of Omaha's recent unloading of the issue. And Tesla and Palantir Technologies basked in the technology sector's glow on the stock market today.
Stocks popped on the first day of the so-called Santa Claus rally period — the last five trading days of December and the first two of the new year. It is a truncated session, with markets closing at 1 p.m. ET.
The Dow surged 390 points, or 0.9% as Walmart led the index's charge with a 2.5% gain. Magnificent Seven member Amazon.com and Goldman Sachs were also strong. Only two stocks, UnitedHealth Group and Verizon Communications, barely ventured into the red.
The Nasdaq composite fared best out of the major indexes on the stock market today with a jump of more than 1.4% as Big Tech continues to do well. The index rose for the third session in a row and is back near record levels and just above the 20,000 mark. It also has moved clear of all of its short-term moving averages once again and sits comfortably above its 50-day moving average.
Top performers on the tech-heavy Nasdaq included bitcoin play MicroStrategy, which popped nearly 8%. Tesla was also strong as it rose more than 7%. Pinduoduo parent PDD dawdled, though, dipping nearly 1%.
Stock Market Today: Consumer Discretionary Stocks Shine
The benchmark S&P 500 climbed 1.1%. Palantir Technologies, the top performing stock on the index this year, was at it again as it rose more than 2%. It touched a record high in the process and is now up nearly 380% for 2024.
Also on the S&P, investment management play Super Micro Computer fared even better with a gain of 6%. Celanese and Walgreens Boots Alliance were among the stragglers.
The S&P 500 sectors were all in positive territory. Consumer discretionary and financials were the strongest areas while health care made the slimmest gain.
Small caps reversed higher, with the Russell 2000 up 0.6%. Growth stocks surged, with the Innovator IBD 50 exchange traded fund up 8%.
Warren Buffett Stock Apple Hits New High
Investor Warren Buffett is widely regarded as one of the greatest investors of all time. But he may be ruing his decision to unload massive amounts of his Apple holdings after it roared to fresh heights Tuesday.
The stock, which has been boosted by hopes its artificial intelligence offerings could be a boon, rose more than 1%, and closed near session highs.
Apple stock is now extended past the buy zone out of a flat base with an entry at 237.49, according to MarketSurge analysis. All around performance is strong, which is reflected in its IBD Composite Rating of 96 out of 99.
Apple released iOS 18.2 earlier this month. It offers AI capabilities such as integrated ChatGPT support within Siri. The firm is hoping its Apple Intelligence software will lead to handset upgrades among users eager to use its features.
Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway slashed its position in the iPhone maker nearly in half in the second quarter and by a further 25% in the third quarter.
Nevertheless, Apple remains one of the biggest holdings in the investment portfolio. Berkshire retains 300 million shares in the company.
12:03 a.m. ET
Santa Claus Rally: Why Being On Naughty List Isn't Nice
Investors should be rooting for the Santa Claus rally to provide good returns this year according to Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist for LPL Financial.
He said that the period correlates closely to January and following year returns. So if investors find lumps of coal in their stockings it could be a bad sign.
"When investors are on the 'nice' list, and Santa delivers a positive Santa Claus rally return, the S&P 500 has generated an average January and forward annual return of 1.4% and 10.4%, respectively," he said in a note to clients.
He also said that when stocks are lower over this period that the "S&P 500 has generated an average January and forward annual return of -0.02% and 5.0%, respectively."
Turnquist looked back at results dating back to 1950. Today's S&P 500 stock index was launched in 1957. Performance before then utilized the performance of the predecessor index, the S&P 90.
10:48 a.m. ET
Stock Market Today: American Airlines Dips
American Airlines stock edged lower after the carrier's flights were briefly grounded as the busy Christmas Eve travel day got underway. The carrier now says it is resuming flights delayed at the start of one of the busiest travel days of the year.
A technical issue was reportedly the cause for the halt order. Bloomberg cited a possible problem with software used to calculate weight and balance factors in aircraft.
The Federal Aviation Administration said American had requested a ground stop for all its flights.
American Airlines pared most of its losses on the stock market today, and was off 0.2% in recent action. The stock sits near a recent high after previously clearing its 20% profit goal from a 14.66 cup-with-handle entry.
Before First Day Of Christmas: 3 Stocks Eye Entries
The markets are just about to enter what the proverbial song calls the first day of Christmas. Rather than three French hens, though, here is a hat trick of equities eyeing buy points.
Premium clothing play Ralph Lauren is close to a consolidation entry of 237.16, according to MarketSurge analysis. This is a midstage pattern, which is neutral.
Overall performance is strong here, which is reflected in the stock's IBD Composite Rating of 91 out of 99.
Both earnings and price performance are solid. It boasts an Earnings Per Share Rating of 92 out of 99 and is in the top 10% of issues in terms of price performance over the past 12 months.
Santa Claus Rally Underway; Tesla Surges, Nvidia Tops Buy Point
Adtalem, Fortinet Also Near Buy Points
Higher education stock Adtalem Global Education is nearing a flat base entry of 92.93. It has recaptured the 21-day exponential moving average, an encouraging sign
Earnings performance is key for Adtalem, with its EPS Rating a muscular 97 out of 99. Big Money has also been snapping up the stock lately, netting it an Accumulation/Distribution Rating of A-. In total, 72% of its stock is held by funds, according to MarketSurge data.
The company operates institutions including the American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine, Chamberlain University, and the Ross University School of Medicine.
Finally, cybersecurity play Fortinet has formed a flat base with an ideal buy point of 100.59. This is an early stage base, which means it has a better chance of netting good gains.
The stock has a best-possible Composite Rating of 99, and a rare perfect EPS Rating of 99. It has rallied by nearly 65% in 2024 so far.
It has an Accumulation/Distribution Rating of B, with the highly rated Fidelity Contrafund among its noteworthy holders.
Please follow Michael Larkin on X at @IBD_MLarkin for more analysis of growth stocks.
