March 4, 2016: Markets opened slightly higher on Friday then promptly sank into the red following the employment situation report for February. As traders weighed the odds of another Fed interest rate hike, equity prices turned positive and remained there the rest of the day. Utilities and basic materials were today’s leading sectors, with telecom being the laggard. WTI crude oil for April delivery settled at $35.92 a barrel, up 3.9% on the day following another drop in the U.S. rig count. Crude has gained 10% this week. April gold rose 1.1% to settle at $1,272.00 for the day, up about 4.2% for the week. Equities were headed for a higher close shortly before the closing bell as the DJIA traded up 0.39% for the day, the S&P 500 traded up 0.39%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded up 0.25%.
The DJIA stock posting the largest daily percentage gain ahead of the close Friday was E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (NYSE: DD) which traded up 1.87% at $63.06. The stock’s 52-week range is $47.11 to $76.59. Volume reached about 10% above the daily average of around 6.1 million shares. The company said had no specific news today.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) traded up 1.43% at $102.95. The stock’s 52-week range is $92.00 to $134.54. Trading volume was about 15% below the daily average of around 49.4 million. The company had no specific news today, but there was chatter that a dividend increase is on the way.
Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) traded up 1.40% at $72.75. The stock’s 52-week range is $56.36 to $89.62. Trading volume was about 15% above the daily average of around 7.2 million. The heavy equipment maker had no specific news today, the stock’s dividend yield of nearly 4.5% is beginning to get some attention. What that yield is based on and whether it can last are reasonable questions.
The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) traded up 1.19% at $157.18. The stock’s 52-week range is $139.05 to $218.77. Volume was about equal to the daily average of around 4.8 million shares traded. The investment bank began cutting jobs in its fixed-income group today. Apple and Goldman combined account for more than 10% of the weight in the DJIA, although 3M has taken over as the most heavily weighted single stock in the index.
Of the Dow 30 stocks 19 are set to close higher today and 11 are on track to close lower.
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