U.S. stocks finished higher on Friday, with all three major indexes posting gains and the S&P 500 closing at a record high. Still, storage-related names weakened across the board and stood out as one of the session’s main laggards, according to BlockBeats on Aug. 8.
Major indexes ended the day and the week in the green
At the close, the S&P 500 rose 0.62% to a record closing high. The Nasdaq Composite gained 1.3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.28%.
For the week, the Dow climbed 2.96%, the Nasdaq advanced 5.19%, and the S&P 500 gained 3.58%. BlockBeats said those were the biggest weekly increases for all three indexes since mid-April.
Big Tech advanced, and SpaceX jumped more than 15%
Large technology stocks were broadly higher. Nvidia and Tesla each rose more than 2%, while Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, and Meta closed modestly higher.
SpaceX surged more than 15%. The market view cited by BlockBeats was that the company did not see obvious selling after its first large-scale lock-up expiration, while expectations for long-term growth improved.
Gold miners and optical communications stocks also rose
Gold-related U.S. equities moved higher as precious metals prices increased. Coeur Mining gained more than 11%, Gold Fields and Harmony Gold rose more than 9%, and Newmont and Kinross Gold added more than 7%.
Optical communications stocks also turned in strong performances. Coherent rose more than 13%, and Applied Optoelectronics gained more than 9%.
Storage stocks fell, with SanDisk price targets cut
In contrast with the broader market rally, storage stocks were mostly lower. Seagate Technology dropped more than 4%, while Western Digital, SanDisk, and SK Hynix ADR each fell more than 3%. Micron Technology slipped 0.44%.
Among the notable analyst actions mentioned in the report, Jefferies cut its 12-month price target on SanDisk from $3,000 to $1,750. Citi also lowered its SanDisk target from $2,500 to $2,100.
Jobs data and earnings season shaped trading
BlockBeats said the market’s advance was driven mainly by two factors. First, U.S. nonfarm payrolls data for July unexpectedly turned negative, reducing expectations that the Federal Reserve would continue tightening policy in September. CME FedWatch data showed the probability of a rate hike at the Fed’s next meeting had fallen to about 44%, below its earlier level.
Second, the U.S. earnings season remained strong. So far, 436 companies in the S&P 500 have reported results, and 85.1% of them posted earnings above analyst expectations, well above the long-term average.