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Stock Market News for Feb 25, 2021

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U.S. stock markets closed higher on Wednesday after further positive comments from the U.S. Federal Reserve Chair eased concerns on inflation. Moreover, investors’ sentiment was also buoyed following more positive news on the COVID-19 vaccine front. All the three major stock indexes ended the day in green.

How Did The Benchmarks Perform?

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) rose 1.4% or 424.51 points, closing at 31,961.86, a record high, continuing its four-day winning streak. Notably, 25 components of the 30-stock index ended in green while 5 finished the day in red.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite closed the day at 13,597.97, up nearly 1% or 132.77 points, reversing its two-day losing streak, on the back of strong performance by large-cap technology stocks. The S&P 500 rose 1.1%, closing the day at 3,925.43, continuing its two-day winning streak. The Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) and the Financials Select Sector SPDR (XLF) popped 3.5% and 1.9%, 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 down 7.7% to 21.34. A total of 13.68 billion shares were traded on Wednesday, lower than the last 20-session average of 16.01 billion. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 2.10-to-1 ratio. On Nasdaq, a 2.62-to-1 ratio favored advancing issues.

Further Positive Comments on Inflation From Federal Reserve Chair Eases Concerns

Wall Street moved higher on Wednesday following further positive comments on inflation from the Fed Chair Jerome Powell. Notably, Powell said before the U.S. House of Representatives Financial Services Committee, during his second day of testimony, that it could take more than three years to reach the Fed’s inflation goals.

More Positive News on COVID-19 Vaccine

Investors’ sentiment was also boosted by further positive development with regards to the COVID-19 vaccine. Notably, on Wednesday, the FDA’s staff said that the single-shot COVID-19 vaccine candidate of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ - Free Report) appeared to be safe and effective in trials. Following the news, shares of Johnson & Johnson gained 1.3%. Notably, the company carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Economic Data

The Energy Information Administration reported that U.S. commercial crude oil inventories (excluding those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve) for the week ending Feb 19, increased by 1.3 million barrels per day from the previous week.

The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development jointly reported that the sales of new single-family houses in January 2021 increased 4.3% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 923,000, compared to the revised December rate of 885,000, beating the consensus estimate of 857,000.

Stocks That Have Made Headline

Apache Q4 Loss Narrower Than Expected, Sales Beat

U.S. energy explorer Apache Corporation (APA - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2020 loss per share — excluding one-time items — of $0.05, narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of $0.08. (Read More)

ExxonMobil Sells Over $1B of UK North Sea Upstream Assets

Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM - Free Report) recently agreed to divest a chunk of upstream assets in U.K. central and northern North Sea region to NEO Energy, an affiliate of HitecVision. (Read More)

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