Dow Jones Up As Merck Rockets On Covid Pill; Disney Up On ScarJo
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained as Merck (MRK) rocketed on positive trials for a Covid-19 treatment. Vaccine plays Moderna (MRNA) and BioNTech (BNTX) plunged. Disney (DIS) rose after it settled a “Black Widow” lawsuit with star Scarlett Johansson.
X
President Joe Biden moved to get an infrastructure bill back on track.
Microsoft (MSFT) and Airbnb (ABNB) were two Leaderboard stocks making gains. Finally, two stocks passed buy points despite the challenging market conditions: Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) and CF Industries (CF).
Biden Makes Infrastructure Move
Biden headed to Congress to try to hammer out an infrastructure deal Friday.
Moderate and liberal Democrats in the House are battling over the size and scope of the $3.5 trillion so-called human infrastructure bill.
The White House said Biden will meet with members of the House Democratic Caucus. He is hoping to break a deadlock that has prevented a vote on the separate $1 trillion infrastructure bill, which has bipartisan support.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had said early Thursday that a vote on the latter package would be held that day, but this failed to occur.
Nasdaq Gains, Growth Stocks Lag
The Nasdaq lagged the other major indexes, rising 0.9%. The fact that the tech-heavy index is getting support is a good sign.
The S&P 500 rose more than 1%. It was holding around last week’s lows, which is encouraging.
U.S. Stock Market Today Overview |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Index | Symbol | Price | Gain/Loss | % Change |
| Dow Jones | (0DJIA) | 34385.42 | +541.50 | +1.60 |
| S&P 500 | (0S&P5) | 4364.25 | +56.71 | +1.32 |
| Nasdaq | (0NDQC ) | 14576.85 | +128.27 | +0.89 |
| Russell 2000 | (IWM) | 223.17 | +4.42 | +2.02 |
| IBD 50 | (FFTY) | 47.17 | -0.20 | -0.42 |
Last Update: 2:58 PM ET 10/1/2021 |
||||
The S&P sectors were all green, with energy and financials turning in the best gains. Utilities and health were the worst laggards, but still moved higher.
Small caps were outperforming, with the Russell 2000 gaining around 2%.
Growth stocks were still lower, with the Innovator IBD 50 ETF (FFTY) having trimmed its loss to about 0.4%.
Dow Jones Today: Disney Pops On Scarlett Johansson Settlement
The Dow Jones Industrial Average was making a strong start to the month, rising 1.6%. Merck was a major reason.
But Disney stock was another of the top performers on the blue-chip index. Shares were up around 4.5% on news the media giant had settled a lawsuit with Johansson involving the Marvel tentpole movie “Black Widow.”
ScarJo had sued Disney for breach of contract after it released the film on its Disney+ streaming service at the same time it was debuting in theaters.
“I am happy to have resolved our differences with Disney,” Johansson said in a statement. “I look forward to continuing our collaboration in years to come.”
The stock remains near the bottom of a consolidation pattern with an entry of 203.12, according to MarketSmith analysis. It is closing in on its converged 50-day and 200-day moving averages
Merck Stock Hits Buy Zone On Covid Pill
Merck was the…
Read More: Dow Jones Up As Merck Rockets On Covid Pill; Disney Up On ScarJo