The Dow Jones Industrial Average and other key indexes wrapped up the week on a high note after President Donald Trump's latest tariff update Friday eased the worst fears for investors. Dow component American Express shot up, flexing technical strength, while a regional bank's earnings assuaged some lending concerns on the stock market today.
After a mixed start to the session, indexes posted strong results at the finish. The Dow climbed 0.5%, or 238 points. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq composite also gained 0.5% each.
The Russell 2000 small-cap index trimmed its early losses to 0.6%. After slumping 2.1% Thursday, the Russell tested its 21-day exponential moving average.
The Nasdaq finished at its 21-day moving average. For the week, the Nasdaq gained 2.1% with the S&P 500 following closely with a 1.7% rise. The Dow was up 1.6% for the week.
Volume Falls; Treasuries Rise
Volume on the New York Stock Exchange and on the Nasdaq was lower compared with the same time on Thursday. Advancers had a slight edge over decliners on the NYSE but they lagged by nearly 3-to-2 on the Nasdaq.
The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rose to 4.01%. In commodities, the West Texas Intermediate oil futures climbed near $57.70 a barrel.
Gold fell to around $4,250 an ounce.
In stocks, American Express topped the Dow by jumping more than 7% and climbing above its 329.14 buy point. Shares soared as the credit card giant raised its outlook and beat third-quarter expectations. Apple was the Dow's second-best performer, up 2%.
The stock market was recently rattled by Trump's threat to raise tariffs on goods from China by 100% in his dispute with the country over access to rare-earth minerals. Higher levies are "not sustainable," Trump said in a Fox Business interview on Friday.
3:09 p.m. ET
Oracle Dives After Analyst Day
Oracle plunged more than 5%, undercutting its 21-day moving average, after hosting a day for analysts. Though the company gave a strong long-term earnings and sales outlook, analysts were concerned about the lack of guidance on its capital expenditure plans and the possibility that Oracle may need more debt to finance its artificial intelligence expansion agenda.
In the Dow, Salesforce fell more than 1% before paring some losses. Among Magnificent Seven stocks, Amazon fell as Microsoft made strides upward.
Salesforce has been struggling to get past its 50-day moving average since May. Amazon undercut a flat base with a buy point of 238.85. Microsoft held its 50-day line in a flat base with a buy point of 555.45.
In the Nasdaq, On Semiconductor fell but remained in a consolidation base with an entry at 63.63.
2:02 p.m. ET
CSX On The Move
Elsewhere in the market, CSX rose and approached a buy point of 37.25 in an early-stage cup base. The company announced third-quarter earnings per share of 44 cents on sales of $3.6 billion. Analysts' estimates called for 42 cents in earnings. Sales met views.
Following Friday's session, the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee, or FOMC, will enter a blackout period on Saturday, less than two weeks before the rate-decision meeting on Oct. 28-29.
12:33 p.m. ET
Stock Market Today: Bank Rises On Earnings Beat
Fifth Third Bancorp rose 1.4% after better-than-expected results for its third quarter. Earnings of 91 cents a share beat estimates of 86 cents. Revenue of $2.31 billion edged past analyst estimates of $2.29 billion. Shares rose but remained stuck near their 200-day moving average.
It was an encouraging sign for the banking sector, which caused markets to tumble Thursday after Zions Bancorp and Western Alliance disclosed some fraudulent loans. The SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF clawed back 1.2% in the wake of Thursday's 6% drop.
On Friday, Marc Pinto, Moody's head of global private credit, said that though there were concerns about loose lending conditions, it does not appear to be a systemic problem.
"When we look to see if there's a turn in the credit cycle, which is effectively what the market seems to be focusing on, we can find no evidence," Pinto told CNBC.
11:44 a.m. ET
Distribution Days Cluster On S&P 500
It was shaping up to be a tough open for the stock market Friday, at least around 6:30 a.m. ET when Nasdaq 100 futures were down more than 1%. The weakness came after the S&P on Thursday notched its third distribution day since Oct. 9.
Gold Hit By Profit-Taking; Growth Stocks Pressured
Gold stocks succumbed to more profit-taking Friday with the group down more than 3%. Inside the MarketSurge Growth 250, several gold producers were down 9% to 10%, including Harmony Gold, Idaho Strategic Resources, Seabridge Gold and Hecla Mining. December gold was down 1.5% to around $4,250 an ounce.
Growth stocks generally came under more selling pressure, with the Innovator IBD 50 ETF down nearly 5%. After a breakout on Wednesday, sellers nailed Hims & Hers Health for the second straight session. Shares were down more than 13% in late morning trade.
Bitcoin miner and data center operator CleanSpark slumped nearly 5%. Another data center operator, Iren, lost more than 6%.
10:50 a.m. ET
Apple Inks Racing Deal
Apple didn't move much on the Dow despite news the company inked a five-year deal streaming deal to carry all races from Liberty Formula One on Apple TV in the U.S.
Shares of Apple added 0.8% as the stock traded tightly just below the 250 level. A new buy point of 259.24 is within reach, with the stock less than 5% from an all-time high. Liberty Formula One was down 1% after breaching its 50-day moving average Thursday.
Early gainers in the Nasdaq 100 included Intel, up 1.5% ahead of next week's earnings report. But a couple of chip stocks lagged, including Arm Holdings and Leaderboard stock Broadcom, posted losses of more than 2% each.
Sentiment was negative Thursday after two banks, Zions Bancorp and Western Alliance, disclosed some fraudulent loans. The SPDR S&P Regional Bank ETF rebounded 1.3% after crashing 6% Thursday. The SPDR S&P Bank ETF rallied 1% after slumping 5.4% Thursday.
9:43 a.m. ET
Stock Market Today: Lilly, Novo Nordisk Sink
Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk were early losers on the stock market today after President Donald Trump's comments on weight-loss drug pricing.
The 10-year Treasury yield moved higher to 4%. And oil prices dipped, as West Texas Intermediate futures traded around $56.80 a barrel.
Discover Profitable Trades Each Day With MarketDiem. See How.
Nasdaq 100 Winners, Losers: Gilead, Workday, Arm, Micron
Among the Nasdaq 100 stocks, Gilead Sciences and Workday jumped nearly 2% each, making them some of the best performers at the market open. Gilead stock is approaching a 121.83 buy point.
Meanwhile, Arm Holdings and Micron Technology lost roughly 2% each. Arm stock fell below a 168.31 entry.
8:48 a.m. ET
Dow Jones Movers: Chevron, Nvidia, UnitedHealth
Inside the blue chip index, Nvidia and UnitedHealth Group traded lower in premarket trading.
Nvidia stock dropped 0.9%, still trying to hold onto its 50-day moving average. And UnitedHealth shares lost 1.2%.
On the upside, Chevron climbed 0.6% Friday. Shares of the energy giant are forming a flat base with a 161.86 buy point.
8:12 a.m. ET
Novo Nordisk, Eli Lilly Sell Off On Trump Comments
Novo Nordisk stock sold off nearly 4% in premarket trading Friday after Trump said the price of Novo's weight-loss drug Ozempic could come down to just $150 a month. The U.S. list price of Ozempic is around $1,000 for a month's supply.
During a press conference in the Oval Office Thursday, Trump said the cost of Ozempic will soon be "much lower" and "those are going to be $150 out of pocket."
Shares of Eli Lilly, which makes Wegovy and Zepbound, also tumbled close to 4% in early morning action.
Stock Market Today: Earnings Movers
Other key earnings movers included American Express, Ally Financial, CSX, Interactive Brokers, SLB and Truist Financial.
American Express shares moved up modestly in early trading. Ally stock jumped nearly 5% in premarket action, while CSX shares climbed 3.5%. Interactive Brokers shares declined nearly 3% in recent trades, while SLB stock lost nearly 2%. Finally, Truist stock was up nearly 3%.
Bad Loan Fears Spark Stock Market Drop
Zions Bancorp and Western Alliance disclosed bad loans, slamming regional banks on Thursday's stock market. Credit concerns have mounted following recent bankruptcies by auto parts maker First Brands and auto lender Tricolor. In addition to credit woes, some regional banks this week have reported disappointing net interest income or a weak outlook.
Zion stock plummeted 13.1% on Thursday with Western Alliance tumbling 10.8%. Also, the SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF sold off 6.3%.
However, Zion stock bounced nearly 4% Friday morning as Baird analysts said "buy the dip" after an "excessive" sell-off. Meanwhile, Western shares moved up nearly 2% and the KRE ETF gained 1.3% premarket.
Breakout Stocks Watch: What Looms For October?
Be sure to follow Scott Lehtonen on X at @IBD_SLehtonen for more on growth stocks, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the stock market today.
Follow Ken Shreve on X at @IBD_KShreve for more stock market analysis and insight.
Please follow VRamakrishnan on X/Twitter for more news on the stock market today.
