Stock Market Today: Dow Racks Up Gains Ahead of Earnings Wave

Investing.com  |  Author Yasin Ebrahim

Published Oct 24, 2022 03:51PM ET

Updated Oct 24, 2022 04:18PM ET

By Yasin Ebrahim

Investing.com -- The Dow started the week on the front foot Monday as stocks added to strong gains from last week ahead of a wave of quarterly results from big tech.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.3% or 417 points, the Nasdaq was up 0.9%, the S&P 500 rose 1.2%.

Defensive corners of the market including consumer staples and health care led the gains in the broader market, with the latter boosted by a 7% jump in HCA (NYSE:HCA). Sentiment on health care stocks has improved as investors weigh up sectors that could be less vulnerable to the risk of slowing economic growth and higher interest rates.

“Our overweight recommendations (Health Care, Consumer Staples, Telecom, Energy) are generally defensive and reflect the significant risks to earnings and valuation in an environment of elevated inflation and interest rates,” Goldman Sachs said in a note.

The outlook on the economy deteriorated further following weaker-than-expected manufacturing and services activity.

The weaker data forced Treasury yields to ease slightly from session highs and boosted tech stocks amid hopes that the Federal Reserve may consider a less hawkish path of monetary policy after its widely expected 75 basis point rate hike next month. 

Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) rose more than 1% after raising the prices on its TV and Music streaming services. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) are set to kick off quarterly earnings for big tech on Tuesday, with Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META), Apple and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) set to report later in the week.

Chinese tech stocks, however, suffered a rout as Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) and JD.com Inc (NASDAQ:JD) slumped after Chinese President Xi Jinping’s leadership reshuffle raised fears about increased regulatory scrutiny on tech stocks.

Consumer discretionary stocks were one of the few sectors in the red, weighed down by a slump in China-sensitive casino stocks following fresh Covid-19 restrictions in Guangzhou. 

Melco Resorts & Entertainment (NASDAQ:MLCO), Las Vegas Sands Corp (NYSE:LVS), and Wynn Resorts Limited (NASDAQ:WYNN) fell sharply.

Energy continued to hold gains, shrugging off stuttering oil prices following a more than 3% rise in oil field services company Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB).

Goldman Sachs lifted its price target on SLB to $55 from $46 following the company’s “better guidance for 4Q22 and increased conviction in 2023/24 revenue growth driven by international activity.”

Get The News You Want
Read market moving news with a personalized feed of stocks you care about.
Get The App

Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.

Sign out
Are you sure you want to sign out?
NoYes
CancelYes
Saving Changes