Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Stock Market News for Dec 29, 2020

Read MoreHide Full Article

U.S. stock markets closed at record highs on Monday following the signing of the COVID-19 relief bill. Hopes of economic recovery following the signing of the relief bill boosted travel stocks. Moreover, the rally was also supported by strong performance from large-cap technology stocks. All three major stock indexes ended the day in green.

How Did The Benchmarks Perform?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rallied 0.7%, or 204.10 points, closing at 30,403.97, a record high, continuing its 3-day winning run. Notably, 23 components of the 30-stock index ended in green while 6 finished the day in red and 1 unchanged. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed the day at 12,899.42, up 0.7%, an all-time high, on the back of strong performance by large-cap technology stocks, maintaining its 2-day winning streak.

The S&P 500 gained 0.9%, closing the day at 3,735.36, a record high, marking the third successive day of gains. The Communication Services Select Sector SPDR (XLC), the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) and the Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) surged 1.8%, 1.1% and 1.1%, respectively. Notably, nine out of eleven sectors of the benchmark index closed in the positive zone and two in the red.

The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) was up 0.8% to 21.70. A total of 9.93 billion shares were traded on Monday, lower than the last 20-session average of 11.45 billion. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 1.21-to-1 ratio. On Nasdaq, a 1.10-to-1 ratio favored advancing issues.

Signing of Relief Bill Boost Travel Stocks as Markets Move to Record Highs

Wall Street closed at record highs on Monday following President Donald Trump’s signing of the $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill. The President signed the bill after backing down from his earlier insistence that $2000 direct payments should be made to Americans instead of $600 proposed in the stimulus bill. The signing helped in extension of unemployment benefits and also averted a federal government shutdown.

Consequently, travel stocks gained as investors pinned hopes on economic recovery following the signing of the stimulus bill. Airlines stocks advanced as they are set to receive $15 billion in additional payroll assistance under the new stimulus aid. Shares of American Airlines Group Inc. (AAL - Free Report) and JetBlue Airways Corp. (JBLU - Free Report) advanced 2.6% and 2.6%, respectively. Notably, both companies carry a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here. Cruise-line operators like Carnival Corp. (CCL - Free Report) also popped 4.2%.

Technology Sector Supports Rally

The rally in Wall Street on Monday was also supported by gains in large-cap technology stocks. The technology sector has remained a favorite of investors during the pandemic with the Nasdaq Composite rising 43.8% year-to-date. Notably, shares of Facebook, Inc. , Apple Inc. (AAPL - Free Report) and Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN - Free Report) jumped 3.6%, 3.6% and 3.5%, respectively.

Just Released: Zacks’ 7 Best Stocks for Today

Experts extracted 7 stocks from the list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 Strong Buys that has beaten the market more than 2X over with a stunning average gain of +24.4% per year.

These 7 were selected because of their superior potential for immediate breakout.

See these time-sensitive tickers now >>

Published in