Stocks rallied, pushing the Dow Jones industrial average to a new record high. But concerns over Europe, particularly the Italian elections, and the ongoing budget drama in Washington, could serve as catalysts for a brief slide. The ISM service sector index rose to 56 in February, a slight improvement from 55.2 in January and above 55.4 projected. Tech stocks maintained their strong gains, fueled by a broad market surge, as well as notable pickups by Apple and Qualcomm. Groupon gained 4.0% after CFO Jason Childs announced that the co. is not contemplating major changes to its business model following last week’s ouster of CEO Andrew Mason. Qualcomm jumped 2.0% after the co. raised its quarterly dividend by 40% to $0.35 a share and added a new $5 billion buyback to replace a previous $4 billion program. Yahoo rose 1.1% after the co. was upgraded to a buy rating by Cantor Fitzgerald. JC Penney tumbled 10.7% as Vornado Realty Trust reportedly dumped 40% of its stake.
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Extended gains on economic data
Stocks rallied, pushing the Dow Jones industrial average to a new record high. But concerns over Europe, particularly the Italian elections, and the ongoing budget drama in Washington, could serve as catalysts for a brief slide. The ISM service sector index rose to 56 in February, a slight improvement from 55.2 in January and above 55.4 projected. Tech stocks maintained their strong gains, fueled by a broad market surge, as well as notable pickups by Apple and Qualcomm. Groupon gained 4.0% after CFO Jason Childs announced that the co. is not contemplating major changes to its business model following last week’s ouster of CEO Andrew Mason. Qualcomm jumped 2.0% after the co. raised its quarterly dividend by 40% to $0.35 a share and added a new $5 billion buyback to replace a previous $4 billion program. Yahoo rose 1.1% after the co. was upgraded to a buy rating by Cantor Fitzgerald. JC Penney tumbled 10.7% as Vornado Realty Trust reportedly dumped 40% of its stake.
