US stocks closed solidly higher on Thursday, and close to fresh record highs negotiated intraday after President Donald Trump vowed “phenomenal” corporate tax cuts within weeks.
The S&P 500 market bellwether closed up 0.6% at 2307. Earlier it hit a record high of 2,311.08.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended up 0.6% at 20,172. Earlier it hit a record high of 20,206.36.
Meanwhile, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite finished up 0.6% at 5715. It also hit an intraday record high, of 5,722.71,
The S&P 500 top gainer was Teradata Corp (NYSE:TDC) up 8.5% at $32.73.
The S&P Midcap 400, which also marked a record high of 1,713.70, finished up 1% at 1711 and was led by Treehouse Foods (NYSE:THS) up 12.4% at $84.96.
Meanwhile, the S&P Smallcap 600 ended up 1.6% at 842. It was led by First Pactrust Bancorp (NYSE:BANC) up 23% to $19.80.
Early trading
US stocks marked fresh record highs on Thursday, as rising oil prices and airline stocks as well as optimism about a “phenomenal” tax concession from new US President Donald Trump lit up trading screens.
The S&P 500 marked a fresh intraday high of 2,309.63. It was last up 0.5% at 2306.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.6% at 20.180. Earlier, it struck a record high of 20,197.95.
The Nasdaq Composite also hit a record, of 5,722.71, and was last up 0.6% at 5714.
Buoying stocks, the US oil benchmark WTI was up 1.4% at $53.05.
Donald Trump said the administration plans to make a corporate tax announcement over the next two to three weeks, a move that has been eagerly-awaited by Wall Street.
The US president said during a meeting with US airline executives that the policies would seek to roll back “burdensome regulations”, while “lowering the overall tax burden of American businesses.”
Trump said that the scheme would be “phenomenal in terms of tax”.
US airlines have seen their shares climb this morning as their executives huddled with Trump. Delta (NYSE:DAL) shares were up 3% at $49.52, Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV) gained 2.8% to $54.40 and United Continental (NYSE:UAL) increased 1.8% to $73.00.
Expectations that the property developer cum politician will cut the US corporate tax rate — currently at 35%, among the highest across developed countries — has been one factor in the post-election rally that has sent US stock prices to record highs and driven Treasuries lower.
But the top riser on the S&P 500 was Teradata Corp (NYSE:TDC) up 9.4% at $32.99 after reporting fourth-quarter 2016 results where adjusted earnings per share of 57 cents easily topped the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 51 cents.
The S&P Midcap 400 also hit a record high of 1,713.70. It was last up 0.9% at 1710 and led by Treehouse Foods (NYSE:THS) up 12.3% at $84.95.
The S&P Smallcap 600 was up 1.6% at 842 in one of its biggest percentage gains in a year. But it was shy of a record.
Pre-Open
US stocks are expected to open firmer on Thursday but low volatility in the market means investors may be willing to try for fresh record highs on Wall Street this session.
The S&P 500 market bellwether and the Dow Jones Industrial Average are indicated up 0.1%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite is seen up 0.06%.
Investors don't appear to be ruffled by increased policy uncertainty in Washington following three weeks of Donald Trump’s new Administration. The much-watched VIX volatility index is near its lowest level since early 2007 – before the interbank financial crisis that followed that August. US stock markets are trading near their highest levels ever.
Adding a bit of fizz to the proceedings will be soft drinks maker Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) which posted higher-than-expected sales in the fourth quarter, as strong demand in developed markets, particularly North America, helped mitigate some of the strength of the dollar hurting overseas revenue.
Net revenue dropped 6% to $9.4bn in the final three months of the year, compared with analysts’ expectations for an 8.6 per cent decline to $9.15bn.
However, Coca-Cola shares were down 2.1% at $41.14 pre-market.
Looks like there is one US business even US President Donald Trump can’t help. Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) on Thursday disclosed a small increase in quarterly revenues, as ad sales ticked lower, weighing on hopes that a heated US political season that prominently featured the social network would have would have provided a bigger boost.
Trump has been an ubiquitous user of Twitter to channel his emotions and even policy diktats before and since his Jan 20 inauguration.
The California-based company said its sales edged higher by 1% in the fourth quarter from the same period in the previous year to $717mln. That came in shy of the consensus Wall Street forecast of $740mln, and not far above the lowest estimate in a Bloomberg survey of $713mln.
Twitter shares were down 8.9% at $17.09.
After the drum roll, there will be no symphony for Anthem (NYSE:ANTM) proposed $54bn deal to take over medical insurer Cigna (NYSE:CI).
A federal judge has blocked Anthem's bid. The deal would have created the largest health insurer in the US.
Anthem and Cigna are the country's second- and third-largest health insurance providers.
The Department of Justice sued to halt the merger in July, claiming anti-trust law violations. The district court judge ruled in agreement with the DOJ on Wednesday.
Anthem shares were up 0.3% at $159.00 and Cigna down 0.9% at $146.50.
KKR (NYSE:KKR), the US private equity group, posted a rise in earnings for the fourth quarter thanks to large exits, including the sale of its remaining stake in Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ:WBA).
Earnings also benefited from growth in its private equity portfolio, the company said in a statement on Thursday.
The group’s economic net income, a measure of profit that includes unrealised gains on investments, was $339.2m compared with $70.5m a year earlier.
KKR shares were down 1.2% at $18.15.
The decision to spin off its struggling China business did little to fire up Yum Brands (NYSE:YUM) domestic sales during the fourth quarter.
The company behind Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut, said same-store sales – a key industry metric – rose by just 1 per cent in the three months to December, below expectations for a 2.1 per cent rise, amid ever rising competition in the fast dining sector.
Total revenue for the quarter rose 2.4 per cent to $2.024bn thanks to new store openings and new franchisees. However, that is still slightly short of the $2.038bn analysts had forecast.
Yum shares were up 0.5% at $66.62 before the bell.
Top aviation executives are heading to the White House on Thursday to meet with President Trump.
The executives are hoping to find a receptive ear as they discuss airport infrastructure, aviation's impact on jobs, air traffic modernization, tax and regulatory reform and a host of other issues.
The chief executives of Delta Air Lines (NYSE:DAL), United Airlines (NYSE:UAL), Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV), JetBlue Airways (NYSE:JBLU) and Alaska Airlines (NYSE:ALK) are expected to attend. Executives from cargo carriers FedEx (NYSE:FDX), UPS (NYSE:UPS) and Atlas Air (NASDAQ:AAWW) will also be in attendance.
American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL) CEO Doug Parker is not able to attend due to a scheduling conflict.
In data, there was evidence of the economy heating up and more fuel for a future Federal Reserve rate hike. The number of Americans filing for first-time jobless benefits fell last week to just above the lowest level since 1973, the latest sign of tightening in the labour market.
Jobless claims declined to 234,000 last week, from 246,000 in the previous week. The figure was just above the 233,000 notched in November and came in below the Wall Street forecasts of 249,000.