S&P 500, Nasdaq end with record highs again. Dow jumps, too.
U.S. stocks closed higher, with the broad S&P 500 and tech-laden Nasdaq again scoring fresh record highs, on continued earnings momentum.
Slightly more than 20% of S&P 500 companies have reported earnings, said Thomas Shipp, Head of Equity Research for LPL Financial. "So far, it appears that results are good enough. The rate of results outpacing earnings expectations is near 90%, with average upside surprises around the historical average of approximately 7% on earnings per share, while about 2% upside on sales is coming in ahead of historical averages of roughly 1.2%."
Companies also seem to be managing tariffs well, feel President Donald Trump's mega tax bill will help companies, and are still planning to spend on artificial intelligence, Shipp said.
Next week will be one of the busiest weeks for earnings. More of the so-called Magnificent Seven influentia megacap technology companies are due to report. They include Facebook parent Meta, Microsoft. Amazon and Apple.
The blue chip Dow ended up 0.47%, or 208.01 points, to 44,901.92; the S&P 500 gained 0.4%, or 25.29 points, to 6,388.64, for its fifth straight record close and the 14th this year. The last time all five record highs came in one week was November 2021, according to Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst at S&P Dow Jones Indices. The Nasdaq gained 0.24%, or 50.36 points, to 21,108.32. All three major stock indexes ended the week in the green.
The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield slipped to 4.384%.
Stocks also got a boost from economic data that continue to show a resilient economy. Orders for so-called durable goods that are made to last at least three years fell 9.3% in June, mostly reflecting lower aircraft orders, from May. That was better than the average forecast of economists polled by The Wall Street Journal for an 11.1% decline.
Also, "that still only reversed just over half of the 16.5% month-over-month jump in orders in May," noted Thomas Ryan, North America economist for Capital Economics. There are "signs of resilience underneath the headline weakness." Excluding transportation, orders rose 0.2% in June from an upwardly revised 0.6% gain in May.
Trade deals
India expects preferential treatment, or a better tariff rate, in a U.S. trade deal compared with its economic rivals, according to CNBC, citing India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal.
Talks with South Korea are also ongoing with next week's Aug. 1 tariff deadline due for many countries.
In contrast, Trump said July 25 that trade talks with Canada aren't progressing well, warning that the country could face higher tariffs after his Aug. 1 deadline.
He said he sees about a 50-50 chance a deal can be struck with the European Union. After those comments, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she will travel to Scotland over the weekend to meet with Trump to talk trade.
Trump also expressed optimism of a trade deal with China.
Trump says Powell can stay (and cut rates?)
After Trump's tour of the Federal Reserve headquarters to examine an overbudget renovation there, he said he wouldn't fire Federal Chair Jerome Powell despite months of threats to do so.
"I don't think it's necessary," Trump told reporters shortly after the tour was over.
The president's rare presidential visit to the Federal Reserve building came as Trump has accused Powell of potential fraud related to the ballooning cost of the agency's $2.5 billion headquarters renovation of two historic buildings on the National Mall. Trump and several White House advisers requested the tour to inspect the work firsthand.
"Markets still fully expect Powell to finish his term," said Tom Essaye, founder and president of Sevens Report Research. For many investors, that would be a relief.
Trump continued to press Powell for rate cuts. He said the next day after the visit: “I think we had a very good meeting on interest rates. And (Powell) said to me ... very strongly, the country is doing well. I got that to mean that I think he’s going to start recommending lower rates.”
So far, Powell has resisted calls for rate cuts, saying instead, he would wait and see how Trump's tariffs would affect inflation and the economy.
The Fed meets next week to discuss monetary policy. Virtually no one expects the Fed to cut rates next week, but everyone will be looking for clues as to when it might.
Corporate news
- Intel's second-quarter results topped analyts' forecasts, but the semiconductor company said it's slashing its workforce by 15% and scrapping plans to spend tens of billions of dollars on new chip facilities in Europe. Shares dropped 8.5%.
- Charter Communications missed second-quarter earnings per share estimates, but sales were in line. The company lost a more-than-expected 111,000 residential high-speed internet customers in the period ended June 30. Shares tumbled 18.49%.
- Tesla's robotaxi service will debut in San Francisco as soon as this weekend, according to Business Insider. The electric vehicle giant's stock rose 3.5%.
- Centene unexpectedly reported a second-quarter adjusted loss per share and reported higher medical costs than Wall Street expected. The stock added 6%.
- MarineMax's results missed fiscal third-quarter forecasts. The company said tariff uncertainty weighed on consumers. Shares added 1.32%.
- AutoNation beat estimates with its second-quarter results, and the stock rose 1.5%.
- Sarepta Therapeutics shares plunged 7.38% after Roche Holding AG’s gene therapy Elevidys failed to win European regulatory approval. Sarepta Therapeutics, which developed Elevidys and sells it in the U.S., announced a temporary halt on shipments there this week.
- Booz Hamilton's results topped analysts' estimates in the first three months of its fiscal year. The company also reaffirmed its full year guidance. Shares declined 1.8%.
- Phillips 66 topped analysts' expectations for second-quarter profits and margins improved. Shares edged up.
- Deckers Outdoor results topped Wall Street's expectations in the first three months of its fiscal year with help from strong international sales. Its current quarter guidance is mostly in line with the Street's views. Shares soared 11.3%.
- Newmont Mining topped second-quarter profit forecasts. Shares jumped 6.89%.
- Boston Beer reported better-than-expected second-quarter results and said it now expects tariffs to have a more moderate effect on its earnings this year. Shares rallied 6.44%.
- Paramount Global's $8 billion merger with Skydance received approval from the Federal Communications Commission. Pararmount shares slipped 1.58%.
- Boyd Gaming topped second-quarter estimates. Shares rose 4.4%.
Cryptocurrency
Trump's Working Group on Digital Assets has finished its 180-day study and will release it publicly on July 30, said Bo Hines, executive director of president's Council of Advisers on Digital Assets of the White House, in a social media post.
Separately, a large Bitcoin investor, also called a whale, reportedly has transferred more than $1.1 billion worth of Bitcoin to centralized exchanges. The whale is said to be one of the original Bitcoin investors, holding its stash since 2011.
Bitcoin was last down 1.36% at $116,742.40.
(This story was updated with new information.)
Medora Lee is a money, markets, and personal finance reporter at Paste BN. You can reach her at mjlee@usatoday.com and subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter for personal finance tips and business news every Monday through Friday.