US stocks were flat on Wednesday as investors paused for the first time above 15,000 the day after the Nasdaq Composite closed.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 11 points. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite gained about 0.1%
The Nasdaq Composite climbed to a record close of 15,019.80 for the fourth year in a row on Tuesday, up more than 16% since the start of the year. Amazon led the profits on Tuesday. It was the 29th record high on the Nasdaq in 2021. The tech-heavy benchmark is now up more than 126% from its pandemic low. The S&P 500 also hit a record on Tuesday.
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Markets have been bolstered by signs that delta variant cases may be peaking. Fundstrat’s Tom Lee said in a customer note late Tuesday that the worst may be behind us, citing declining positivity rates in Florida and Texas.
“We are aware that the stock markets have been restless and the wide variance in perspectives means that investors do not have a simple consensus. But our central case remains that we continue to switch to full risk tolerance with an ‘all rallies’ to the Year-end, Lee wrote, “The frequency of incoming data has improved in recent days, with the peak of COVID-19 cases being most notable in a number of states.”
Johnson & Johnson said Wednesday that its Covid vaccine booster shot had shown promising results in early clinical trials and had significantly increased antibodies to viruses.
Christopher Harvey, head of equity strategy at Wells Fargo Securities, also sees further gains in sight. He raised his year-end target to 4,825 on Tuesday, 7.5% above the index’s daily close. Harvey’s appeal is based on the strength of the S&P in August that carried over into the last few months of the year.
“In the past 31 years there have been nine cases in which the S&P 500 achieved a price return of more than 10% in the first eight months of the year; in the next four months the index averaged a further + 8.4% instances in the last four months achieved a negative return, “he wrote in a statement to his clients.
Dick’s Sporting Goods hit an all-time high of $ 134.80 on Wednesday after reporting strong quarterly earnings before the bell.
The much-anticipated Jackson Hole symposium begins Thursday, when central bankers may release updates on their plan to reduce monetary stimulus. The Federal Reserve has bought at least $ 120 billion in bonds a month to contain longer-term interest rates and stimulate economic growth as the pandemic ravages the economy.
Chairman Jerome Powell is due to comment on Friday.
“Taper talk is the concern, but if inflation continues to heat up and economic data continues to be mixed, the timing for the tapering could be postponed,” said Lindsey Bell, chief investment strategist at Ally Invest. “The Fed is unlikely to force an economic slowdown that isn’t ready yet and the outlook is becoming more uncertain with the rise of the Delta variant.”
Bell added that the determining factor could be the August job report due September 3, as Covid cases skyrocketed last month with the spread of the Delta variant.
Several tech companies will report their results on Wednesday after the market closes, including the Dow component Salesforce. Box and Snowflake are also on deck.
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