U.S. stocks higher at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.27%

© Reuters U.S. stocks higher at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.27%

AiVIF.com – U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Technology, Consumer Goods and Consumer Services sectors led shares higher.

At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.27% to hit a new 3-months high, while the S&P 500 index added 1.73%, and the NASDAQ Composite index added 2.09%.

The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS), which rose 3.30% or 3.88 points to trade at 121.57 at the close. Meanwhile, Merck & Company Inc (NYSE:MRK) added 2.35% or 2.09 points to end at 91.02 and Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) was up 2.15% or 3.63 points to 172.12 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), which fell 1.10% or 1.84 points to trade at 165.30 at the close. Amgen Inc (NASDAQ:AMGN) added 0.02% or 0.04 points to end at 248.39 and Visa Inc Class A (NYSE:V) was up 0.12% or 0.25 points to 211.33.

The top performers on the S&P 500 were Broadridge Financial Solutions Inc (NYSE:BR) which rose 7.93% to 183.19, Albemarle Corp (NYSE:ALB) which was up 5.98% to settle at 281.60 and Penn National Gaming Inc (NASDAQ:PENN) which gained 5.90% to close at 37.70.

The worst performers were Illumina Inc (NASDAQ:ILMN) which was down 8.40% to 208.32 in late trade, PerkinElmer Inc (NYSE:PKI) which lost 1.89% to settle at 157.91 and Organon & Co (NYSE:OGN) which was down 1.34% to 30.99 at the close.

The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Embark Technology Inc (NASDAQ:EMBK) which rose 84.80% to 1.07, Twin Vee Powercats Co (NASDAQ:VEEE) which was up 77.50% to settle at 7.10 and AN2 Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:ANTX) which gained 64.66% to close at 19.38.

The worst performers were Performance Shipping Inc (NASDAQ:PSHG) which was down 44.88% to 0.34 in late trade, PLx Pharma Inc (NASDAQ:PLXP) which lost 36.68% to settle at 1.64 and Imac Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:BACK) which was down 33.36% to 0.63 at the close.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 2497 to 605 and 106 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 2758 rose and 1004 declined, while 168 ended unchanged.

Shares in Twin Vee Powercats Co (NASDAQ:VEEE) rose to 52-week highs; rising 77.50% or 3.10 to 7.10. Shares in PLx Pharma Inc (NASDAQ:PLXP) fell to 3-years lows; falling 36.68% or 0.95 to 1.64. Shares in AN2 Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:ANTX) rose to all time highs; rising 64.66% or 7.61 to 19.38. Shares in Imac Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:BACK) fell to 52-week lows; down 33.36% or 0.32 to 0.63.

The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 3.32% to 19.53 a new 3-months low.

Gold Futures for December delivery was up 0.53% or 9.55 to $1,816.75 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in September fell 2.68% or 2.53 to hit $91.81 a barrel, while the October Brent oil contract fell 1.75% or 1.74 to trade at $97.86 a barrel.

EUR/USD was down 0.56% to 1.03, while USD/JPY rose 0.38% to 133.51.

The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.53% at 105.55.