Referenced Symbols: AMRI , CAT , DD , EPZM , LOGI
After moving notably higher early in the session, stocks continue to see considerable strength in mid-day trading on Tuesday. With the upward move on the day, the tech-heavy Nasdaq has reached a new record intraday high.
Currently, the major averages are hovering firmly in positive territory. The Dow is up 237.05 points or 1.1 percent at 21,000.94, the Nasdaq is up 40.17 points or 0.7 percent at 6,023.99 and the S&P 500 is up 14.18 points or 0.6 percent at 2,388.33.
Buying interest has been generated in reaction to upbeat earnings news from a number of well known companies, including DuPont ( DD ), Caterpillar ( CAT ) and McDonald's (MCD).
McDonald's also reported first quarter earnings and revenues that exceeded analyst estimates, with the fast good giant also reporting an unexpected increase in comparable sales.Construction equipment maker Caterpillar is also moving notably higher after reporting better than expected first quarter results and raising its full-year guidance.
Meanwhile, Coca-Cola (KO) reported first quarter earnings that came in below analyst estimates, although the beverage giant's revenues were better than expected.
On the U.S. economic front, the Commerce Department released a report showing that new home sales saw a substantial increase in the month of March.
The Commerce Department said new home sales jumped by 5.8 percent to an annual rate of 621,000 in March from a revised 587,000 in February.
Economists had expected new home sales to drop to a rate of 585,000 from the 592,000 originally reported for the previous month.
Meanwhile, a separate report from the Conference Board showed a bigger than expected pullback in consumer confidence in the month of April.
The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index fell to 120.3 in April from a revised 124.9 in March. Economists had expected the index to dip to 123.1 from the 125.6 originally reported for the previous month.
"Consumer confidence declined in April after increasing sharply over the past two months, but still remains at strong levels," said Lynn Franco, Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board.
She added, "Despite April's decline, consumers remain confident that the economy will continue to expand in the months ahead."
Sector News
Biotechnology stocks have shown a substantial move to the upside on the day, driving the NYSE Arca Biotechnology Index up by 1.9 percent. With the jump, the index has reached its best intraday level in a month.
Epizyme ( EPZM ), Albany Molecular Research ( AMRI ), and Sangamo Therapeutics (SGMO) are turning in some of the sector's best performances.
Significant strength is also visible among computer hardware stocks, as reflected by the 1.6 percent advance by the NYSE Arca Computer Hardware Index. Logitech ( LOGI ) is leading the sector higher.
Banking, chemical, and networking stocks are also seeing notable strength, while gold stocks are bucking the uptrend amid a decrease by the price of the precious metal.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region moved mostly higher during trading on Tuesday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged up by 1.1 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index jumped by 1.3 percent.
The major European markets also moved to the upside on the day. While the German DAX Index inched up by 0.1 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index and the French CAC 40 Index both rose by 0.2 percent.
In the bond market, treasuries are moving notably lower amid the strength on Wall Street. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 3.4 basis points at 2.307 percent.
Source: https://goo.gl/ug5nKG
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