U.S. stock benchmarks closed higher on Friday, propelled by strength in the Technology, Financials and Industrials sectors. At the close in NYSE trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.72% to register a new all-time high, the S&P 500 added 0.22% and the NASDAQ Composite climbed 0.21%.
Among Dow components, International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) led the index, jumping 12.71% or 33.58 points to finish at 297.80. Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM) gained 8.46% or 14.91 points to close at 191.08, and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) advanced 5.45% or 23.25 points to end the session at 450.24.
Not all blue chips participated in the rally. Walmart Inc (NASDAQ:WMT) was one of the weakest performers, slipping 2.69% or 3.20 points to 115.70 at the close. Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE) declined 2.41% or 1.14 points to 46.23, and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) fell 2.37% or 5.47 points to 225.33.
On the S&P 500, a number of technology-related and enterprise software names posted outsized gains. Dell Technologies Inc (NYSE:DELL) surged 32.82% to 421.10, while NetApp Inc (NASDAQ:NTAP) climbed 22.39% to 174.29. ServiceNow Inc (NYSE:NOW) added 14.40% to close at 124.39.
Conversely, several stocks in the consumer staples and healthcare sectors lagged. Clorox Co (NYSE:CLX) fell 6.41% to 90.03, ResMed Inc (NYSE:RMD) lost 6.32% to 190.57, and Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) dropped 5.17% to 114.64.
The NASDAQ Composite saw extreme moves at the small-cap end of the market. Silexion Therapeutics Corp (NASDAQ:SLXN) posted a dramatic intraday rise of 1,047.20% to 4.91. Hub Cyber Security Ltd (NASDAQ:HUBC) jumped 136.55% to 0.26 and DevvStream Corp (NASDAQ:DEVS) climbed 132.48% to 0.29.
There were also large decliners on the Nasdaq. Zhongchao Inc (NASDAQ:ZCMD) plunged 69.09% to 0.17, Netcapital Inc (NASDAQ:NCPL) fell 38.55% to 1.10 and CN Energy Group Inc (NASDAQ:CNEY) declined 36.96% to 1.01 at the close.
On the exchanges overall, decliners outnumbered advancers on the New York Stock Exchange, where 1,587 stocks fell, 1,148 advanced and 98 were unchanged. On the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 1,869 issues fell, 1,556 advanced and 167 finished unchanged.
The session included a mix of record moves and new lows for individual names. Shares of Dell Technologies (NYSE:DELL) rose to an all-time high, up 32.82% or 104.05 to 421.10, and NetApp (NASDAQ:NTAP) also hit an all-time high, gaining 22.39% or 31.89 to 174.29. ResMed (NYSE:RMD) fell to 52-week lows, down 6.32% or 12.85 to 190.57, and Zhongchao (NASDAQ:ZCMD) declined to an all-time low, falling 69.09% or 0.37 to 0.17.
Market sentiment indicators showed reduced short-term volatility. The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures implied volatility on S&P 500 options, fell 2.54% to 15.34, marking a new three-month low for the index.
In commodities, Gold Futures for August delivery were up 0.93% or 42.10 to $4,574.50 a troy ounce. Crude oil prices eased, with July delivery for U.S. crude down 1.14% or 1.01 to $87.89 a barrel and the August Brent contract off 1.06% or 0.98 to $91.72 a barrel.
Currency markets were largely unchanged. The EUR/USD pair was effectively flat, moving 0.09% to 1.17, while USD/JPY rose 0.02% to 159.27. The US Dollar Index Futures dipped 0.09% to 98.88.
Market takeaways
- Major U.S. indices closed higher, led by the Dow, which set a record close.
- Large-cap technology and enterprise software names produced some of the strongest gains.
- Notable volatility persisted among small-cap and speculative Nasdaq-listed names, with several extreme percentage moves.
Note: All price changes and percentages referenced above reflect session closes as reported in market data at the end of trading.