All three main indices saw a late rally
Fed Reserve comments calm investors on pace of rate hikes
Hewlett Packard Enterprise and HP Inc soar after results
CLOSE: Late rally sees indices gain more than 1%
Stocks in the US saw a late rally, with all three indices closing more than 1.0% after the Federal Reserve eased investor concerns over a possible aggressive hike in interest rates in 2018.
“The Fed has come out and made an announcement basically reinforcing the idea they are still on track for three rate hikes this year, which had been their forecast before we got some of the increased inflation news over the last month,” Alec Young, the managing director at FTSE Russell said.
“It signals to the markets that while there is increased concern about higher rates and inflation, the Fed has really not seen enough to justify getting much more hawkish,” he added.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.39% or 347.51 points to 25,309.99 while the S&P 500 edged up 1.60% to 2,747.30.
The Nasdaq also closed up, gaining 1.60% or 43.34 points to 7,247.30.
The Fed comments also saw US Treasury 10-year note yields ease from its highs that it hit on Wednesday.
Technology stocks were the biggest percentage gainers.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co (NYSE:HPE) and HP Inc (NYSE:HPQ) were the biggest gainers on the S&P 500, after both companies released their results. HPE also said it plans to return US$7bn to shareholders.
HPE closed at US$18.019, up 10.48% while HP Inc gained 3.51%.
MID SESSION: Fed comments lift shares further
All three main indices were on the uptick, with Nasdaq clawing back losses made yesterday. The Federal Reserve's comments managed to calm investors over concerns on the pace of the interest rate hikes planned for 2018.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.61% or 153.48 points at 25,115.96 while the S&P 500 edged up 0.83% at 2,726.41.
The Nasdaq turned around from yesterday's close, to trade up 0.93% at 7,277.21.
The Fed comments also saw US Treasury 10-year note yields ease from its highs that it hit on Wednesday.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co (NYSE:HPE) and HP Inc (NYSE:HPQ) were the biggest gainers on the S&P 500, after both companies released their results. HPE also said it plans to return US$7bn to shareholders.
HPE was up 9.75% at US$18.01 after HP Inc gained 4.75% at US$22.41.
EARLY TRADE
US stocks rose higher in early trade after a mixed finish on Thursday when the Dow Jones and S&P 500 closed up but the Nasdaq ended the day in the red.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.30% or 75.40 points at 25,037.88 while the S&P 500 edged up 0.39% at 2,714.61.
The Nasdaq turned around from yesterday's close, to trade up 0.34% at 7,234.65.
The market is looking for clues from scheduled speeches from a number of Federal Reserve members. Speakers include New York Fed president William Dudley and Boston Fed president Eric Rosengren in the morning and Cleveland Fed president Loretta Mester and Kansas City's Ester George due to speak in the afternoon.
As expected, Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co (NYSE:HPE) shares extended gains, up 9.66% at US$18.00 after the release of its market-busing first quarter results.
Fast food chain and franchise operator, Wingstop Inc (NASDAQ:WING) saw its shares plunge 9.06% pre-market, after its guidance failed to match Wall Street’s expectations.
The company had released market-beating fourth-quarter results.
Xcerra Corp (NASDAQ:XCRA) was down 1.39% at US$9.57 after the company said it was calling off its US$580mln sale to a Chinese group, blaming difficulty in securing federal approval.
Blue Buffalo Pet Products Inc (NASDAQ:BUFF), saw its share lift 16.91% at US$39.89 after it agreed to be taken over by General Mills Inc (NYSE:GIS) for US$40 per share in cash, or a total of US$8bn.
General Mills shares however slipped 3.91% to trade at US$52.80.
PRE-OPEN
US stocks are seen opening in the black after a mixed finish on Thursday when the Dow Jones and S&P 500 closed up but the Nasdaq ended the day in the red.
The market will be waiting for some clues from scheduled speeches from a number of Federal Reserve members, including newly-appointed chair Jerome Powell.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures is up 0.49% while the S&P Index futures gained 0.43% and Nasdaq-100 futures rose 0.56%.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co (NYSE:HPE), which saw its shares soar by as much as 19% after hours following the release of its market-busing first quarter results, has kicked off with a more demure rise, up 0.98% premarket.
HPE also provided offered better-than-expected guidance for the next quarter and for full fiscal year 2018.
Our first quarterly earnings are out, and we delivered strong business performance, announced innovative new solutions and won new customers. Here are a few takeaways that go beyond the numbers: https://t.co/897MTJqugE
— Antonio Neri (@AntonioNeri_HPE) 22 February 2018
For the first quarter, HP said earnings per share came in at 48 US cents on revenue of US$14.52bn, against analysts’ expectations of 42 US cents on US$13.49bn in revenue.
GoDaddy Inc. (NYSE:GDDY) also saw some action – rising 8.06% in pre-market trade extending gains after the bell, following the release of its strong fourth-quarter and fiscal 2018 results.
Fast food chain and franchise operator, Wingstop Inc (NASDAQ:WING) saw its shares plunge 9.06% pre-market, after its guidance failed to match Wall Street’s expectations.
The company had released market-beating fourth-quarter results.
Xcerra Corp (NASDAQ:XCRA) lost 2.16% in pre-market trading after the company announced plans to call off its US$580mln sale to a Chinese group, blaming difficulty in securing federal approval.
Blue Buffalo Pet Products Inc (NASDAQ:BUFF), the natural pet products maker saw its shares surge 16.71% pre-market after it agreed to be taken over by General Mills Inc (NYSE:GIS) for US$40 per share in cash, or a total of US$8bn. The deal is expected to be closed by the end of General Mills’ fiscal year in May.
General Mills shares however were headed downwards, trading 4.04% lower in pre-market.
FedEx Corp (NYSE:FDX) and United Parcel Service Inc (NYSE:UPS) will also come under scrutiny after Bernstein upgraded FedEx to ‘outperform’ from ‘market perform’, saying that the company is enjoying the fastest earnings growth in its history.
FedEx shares are trading up 1.31% in pre-market.
Deutsche Bank turned negative, cutting its recommendation on UPS to ‘hold’ from ‘buy’ raised concerns on the ability of UPS to contain its capital spending requirements.
UPS was trading down 0.27% in premarket.