June 16, 2016: Markets opened lower Thursday but equities showed some spunk by trading on an upward trend for nearly the whole day. Asian and European markets traded lower and economics data from the U.S. was only mixed at best. Investors pumped money into the counter-cyclical sectors today, with the consumer staples, telecom, and utilities sectors leading stocks higher. The energy sector traded down the most as oil prices sagged again today. WTI crude oil for July delivery settled at $46.21 a barrel, down 3.8% for the day. August gold added 0.8% on the day to settle at $1,298.40 after taking a trip over the $1,300 mark earlier in the day. Equities were headed for a higher close shortly before the bell as the DJIA traded up 0.60% for the day, the S&P 500 traded up 0.25%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded up 0.31%.
The DJIA stock posting the largest daily percentage gain ahead of the close Thursday was Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) which traded up 2.61% at $57.55. The stock’s 52-week range is $45.69 to $60.07. Volume was more than double the daily average of around 8.3 million shares.The company’s lung cancer drug met its primary endpoint in a phase 3 trial.
3M Company (NYSE: MMM) traded up 1.47% at $170.26. The stock’s 52-week range is $134.00 to $171.93. Volume was about equal to the daily average of around 2 million shares. The industrial giant had no specific news.
E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (NYSE: DD) traded up 1.31% at $66.62. The stock’s 52-week range is $47.11 to $75.742. Trading volume was about 460% below the daily average of around 3 million. The company had no specific news Thursday.
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Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) traded up 1.29% at $50.33. The stock’s 52-week range is $39.72 to $56.85. Trading volume was around 10% below the daily average of about 29 million shares. The company had no specific news Thursday.
Of the Dow 30 stocks 26 are set to close higher Thursday and 4 are on track to close lower.
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