Stock Market News For Feb 20, 2018
Zacks Investment Research | Feb 19, 2018 09:55PM ET
Markets closed mostly higher on Friday. While the Dow and the S&P 500 eked out gains to post their sixth straight session of gains, the Nasdaq slumped and ended in the negative territory. However, all three major benchmarks posted their biggest weekly closes.
However, gains were curbed after Special Counsel Robert Mueller indicted a group of Russian nationals and a few entities from the country regarding their involvement in the U.S. Presidential Elections of 2016. Meanwhile, housing starts surged to its highest levels since the financial crisis of 2008. Also, building permits rose to a 66-month high. Markets remained closed on Monday due to the observance of President's Day.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) increased about 0.1%, to close at 25,219.38. However, the S&P 500 rose a little more than a point to close at 2,732.22. The tech-laden Nasdaq Composite Index closed at 7,239.47, losing 0.2%. The fear-gauge CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) increased 7.8% to close at 20.63.
A total of around 7.1 billion shares were traded on Friday, lower than the last 20-session average of 8.5 billion shares. Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 1.43-to-1 ratio. On Nasdaq, a 1.34-to-1 ratio favored advancing issues.
How Did the Benchmarks Perform?
The S&P 500 added a meager 1.02 points to close in the green, extending its streak of gains for the sixth straight session. Moreover, the broader index posted its biggest weekly increase in the last five years. Of the 11 major segments of the S&P 500, six ended in the green, with utilities and healthcare leading the advancers. The Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (NYSE:XLU) and the Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF (NYSE:XLV) increased 0.9% and 0.7%, respectively.
The Dow amassed 19.01 points to finish in the positive territory for the sixth straight session. The blue-chip index rallied as much as 232.1 points, marking its highest level during the session. Gains for the Dow were also supported by an increase in the shares of Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) , which gained 1.5% on Friday. Meanwhile, the Dow is currently about 5.3% below its all-time high. You can see Zacks Investment Research
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