Closing Stock Market SummaryThe S&P 500 gained 0.7% on Monday, but it was the Nasdaq Composite (+1.1%) that continued to steal the spotlight. The tech-sensitive index closed at another record high and rose for the seventh straight day amid strength in the mega-cap technology stocks. The Dow Jones Average increased 0.6%, and the Russell 2000 increased 1.1%.
Notably, Apple (AAPL 358.87, +9.15, +2.6%) and Microsoft (MSFT 200.57, +5.42, +2.8%) gained more than 2.5%, hit fresh all-time highs, and boosted the top-weighted S&P 500 information technology sector (+1.9%) to the top spot today. The utilities sector (+1.3%) followed suit, while the health care (-0.4%) and financials (-0.5%) sectors lagged.
Apple received a lot of attention today due to its annual Worldwide Developers Conference, although most of the stock's gains came prior to the widely-watched event. On a related note, Cowen raised its price target on AAPL to $400 from $335 before the open. Microsoft and other tech giants rose on no specific news catalysts.
As for the coronavirus situation, the U.S. exceeded 30,000 new cases on Saturday for its highest daily level since May, but some of the hotspots in the country did report a lower count on Sunday. Vice President Pence also called attention to the increasing rate of infections among younger people, according to ABC News.
In other developments, Nike (NKE 99.51, +3.73, +3.9%) received a price target increase to $112 from $96 at Piper Sandler, American Airlines (AAL 14.92, -1.08, -6.8%) announced plans to raise $3.5 billion in capital through stock and bond sales, and Virgin Galactic (SPCE 17.39, +2.39, +15.9%) partnered with NASA for a private orbital astronaut readiness program.
U.S. Treasuries finished little changed after starting the session with small gains. The 2-yr yield was unchanged at 0.19%, and the 10-yr yield increased one basis point to 0.71%. The U.S. Dollar Index declined 0.6% to 97.09. WTI crude futures rose 2.2%, or $0.86, to $40.60/bbl.
Monday's economic data was limited to the Existing Home Sales report for May:
- Existing home sales declined 9.7% m/m in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.91 million (consensus 3.98 million). May marked the third straight month of a decline in sales.
- The key takeaway from the report is that closed sales in May reflect most contract signings completed in March and April, which is when the brunt of the COVID-19 shutdown effects were felt. Accordingly, the disappointment over weak sales in May should be mitigated by a belief that coming months will feature stronger sales activity.
Looking ahead, investors will receive the New Home Sales report for May on Tuesday.
- Nasdaq Composite +1.1% YTD
- S&P 500 -3.5% YTD
- Dow Jones Industrial Average -8.8% YTD
- Russell 2000 -14.1% YTD