Stock market cruises to new heights after four years with small caps leading the surge
In a noteworthy development on Wall Street, tech stocks rallied on Thursday, making technology the best-performing sector of the 11 S&P 500 sectors. This surge was particularly evident in the Nasdaq Composite, which closed at 22,470, adding 0.9%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which closed at 46,142, up 0.3%.
The tech-led rally was fuelled by positive news surrounding some key players. Nvidia, for instance, saw a boost after its CEO, Jensen Huang, announced a significant collaboration with Intel. Under this partnership, Nvidia will invest $5 billion in Intel, a move that sent Intel's stock soaring nearly 23%. Huang stated that the collaboration will "expand our ecosystems and lay the foundation for the next era of computing."
The expanded partnership, while not expected to significantly improve Intel's data center prospects, could set up possibilities for Nvidia to leverage Intel's foundry business, according to CFRA Research analyst Angelo Zino. Zino maintains his Buy rating on Nvidia and reiterates a Hold rating on Intel.
Meanwhile, CrowdStrike Holdings (CRWD) also saw a 12.8% jump after a number of Wall Street analysts' positive responses to the company's investor day. Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives, who has an Outperform (Buy) rating and $545 price target on CRWD, considers CrowdStrike to be the "cybersecurity gold standard." Of the 54 analysts covering CRWD, 34 say it's a Buy or Strong Buy, 19 have it at Hold, and just one rates it at Sell, resulting in a consensus Buy recommendation.
Stifel analyst Adam Borg also weighed in on CRWD, lifting his price target for the company to $515 from $495 after the investor day.
Elsewhere, the Russell 2000, an index of small-cap stocks, also saw significant gains. It surpassed its previous all-time peak of 2,442.74 from November 9, 2021, closing at 2,467, up 2.5% and setting a new record high.
In other economic news, initial jobless claims fell by 33,000 last week to 231,000, signalling a continued recovery in the labour market.
The S&P 500 also saw gains, closing at 6,631, up 0.5%. However, it's worth noting that the investment between Nvidia and Intel for data center and PC chips requires regulatory approval.
As the financial conditions continue to loosen, cyclically oriented, rate-sensitive areas of the economy are expected to benefit. Whether this trend continues remains to be seen, but for now, the tech sector appears to be leading the charge.
Read also:
- Reporter of Silenced Torment or Individual Recording Suppressed Agony
- EPA Administrator Zeldin travels to Iowa, reveals fresh EPA DEF guidelines, attends State Fair, commemorates One Big Beautiful Bill
- Musk announces intention to sue Apple for overlooking X and Grok in the top app listings
- Cybertruck's Disappointing Setback, Musk's New Policy, Mega-Pack Triumphs, Model Y's Anticipated Upgrade Prior to Refresh (Week of January 25 for Tesla)
