US STOCKS-Nasdaq hits record high as Treasury yields ease

BY Reuters | TREASURY | 10/25/24 12:51 PM EDT

(For a Reuters live blog on U.S., UK and European stock markets, click or type LIVE/ in a news window.)

*

Nvidia (NVDA) market cap briefly overtakes Apple's (AAPL)

*

Capri plummets after US judge blocks Tapestry merger

*

Nasdaq set to rise, Dow and S&P 500 to fall for the week

*

Indexes: Dow down 0.19%, S&P 500 up 0.51%, Nasdaq up 1.22%

(Updated at 12:10 p.m. ET/1610 GMT)

By Lisa Pauline Mattackal and Purvi Agarwal

Oct 25 (Reuters) -

The Nasdaq rallied to a fresh intraday record on Friday, lifted by megacaps as Treasury yields slipped from the week's high while investors looked ahead to quarterly results from some of Wall Street's biggest companies next week.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose slightly on the day to 4.218%, but eased off the 4.26% high touched earlier in the week.

The so-called "Magnificent Seven" group of rate-sensitive stocks leapt. Chip heavyweight Nvidia (NVDA) gained 2.1%, briefly overtaking Apple (AAPL) as the world's most valuable company by stock market value.

Tesla's shares rose 2.6%, adding to a 22% surge in the previous session, Apple (AAPL) gained 0.9% and Microsoft (MSFT) was up 1.3%.

However, a 1.7% loss in Goldman Sachs (GS) and a 2.4% fall in McDonald's as the fast-food chain copes with an E. coli outbreak linked to its hamburgers, dragged the Dow.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 81.79 points, or 0.19%, to 42,292.57, the S&P 500 gained 29.68 points, or 0.51%, to 5,839.54 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 224.76 points, or 1.22%, to 18,640.24.

The Nasdaq's gains took it into positive territory for the week, though the benchmark S&P 500 and the blue-chip Dow looked set to snap six-week winning streaks. The Nasdaq was on track to rise 1.2%, the S&P 500 to fall 0.4%, and the Dow set to lose 2.3%.

Equities have been unsettled this week by a rapid rise in yields as Fed rate-cut bets unraveled on expectations of a stronger economic outlook.

"The Fed perhaps got a little too dovish ahead of the data ... the growth and inflation numbers don't necessarily justify easing behavior," said Arnim Holzer, global macro strategist at EAB Investment Group.

Investors are still pricing in another 25-basis-point rate cut at the U.S. Federal Reserve's November meeting and about two rate cuts by the end of the year, according to LSEG data.

The week starting Oct. 28, the final stretch before the Nov. 5 U.S. presidential election, promises to be crucial for Wall Street. This is when results from megacap technology firms including Alphabet, Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT) are also due, along with the nonfarm payrolls report for October.

"With such high valuations ... at this point, these high growth tech companies need to confirm both AI (artificial intelligence) growth and execution - they need to show and deliver," Holzer said.

Meanwhile, Capri Holdings (CPRI) slumped 47.3% after a U.S. judge blocked a pending merger between the company and handbag maker Tapestry. Shares of Tapestry rose 14.3%.

Regional lender New York Community Bancorp (NYCB/PA) dropped 6.9% after reporting its fourth straight quarter of

loss

, primarily due to its commercial real estate loans.

Continued uncertainty around the U.S. election has also made investors cautious, though markets have started pricing in a second Donald Trump administration in recent weeks.

The information technology sector led gains, while financials were the biggest decliner.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.24-to-1 ratio on the NYSE and by a 1.5-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted 30 new 52-week highs and one new low, while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 70 new highs and 61 new lows.

(Reporting by Lisa Mattackal and Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai, Saumyadeb Chakrabarty and Maju Samuel)

In general the bond market is volatile, and fixed income securities carry interest rate risk. (As interest rates rise, bond prices usually fall, and vice versa. This effect is usually more pronounced for longer-term securities.) Fixed income securities also carry inflation risk and credit and default risks for both issuers and counterparties. Unlike individual bonds, most bond funds do not have a maturity date, so avoiding losses caused by price volatility by holding them until maturity is not possible.

Lower-quality debt securities generally offer higher yields, but also involve greater risk of default or price changes due to potential changes in the credit quality of the issuer. Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to loss.

Before investing, consider the funds' investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses. Contact Fidelity for a prospectus or, if available, a summary prospectus containing this information. Read it carefully.

fir_news_article