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Key Takeaways
- The S&P 500 jumped 0.8% on Monday, Jan. 29, 2024, reaching another all-time high ahead of key tech earnings and the Fed’s interest rate decision this week.
- Shares of Archer Daniels Midland gained 5.6% as the agricultural firm announced it would suspend some executive bonuses until it has resolved an accounting-related investigation.
- International Paper shares fell 2.3% ahead of the company’s earnings report this week, with analysts anticipating lower profits as inflation affects packaging demand.
Major U.S. equities indexes moved higher to open a week featuring several events that could prove consequential for the markets.
Huge tech firms like Amazon ( AMZN ), Alphabet ( GOOGL ), Apple ( AAPL ), Meta ( META ), and Microsoft ( MSFT ) are due to report earnings over the coming days. The Federal Reserve is also set to meet tomorrow and announce its interest rate decision on Wednesday.
The S&P 500 added 0.8% on Monday, returning to its record-setting ways with its first-ever close above 4,900. The Nasdaq posted gains of 1.1%, while the Dow closed the session 0.6% higher.
Monday’s top slot on the S&P 500 belonged to shares of Archer-Daniels-Midland ( ADM ), which added 5.6%. The agricultural firm said it would pause bonus payouts to some of its executives throughout an investigation into its accounting practices. Today’s gains marked a partial recovery from sharp losses posted last week amid news of the accounting probe.
After tumbling last week following a weaker-than-expected earnings report and an underwhelming vehicle volumes forecast, shares of Tesla ( TSLA ) recovered on Monday, advancing 4.2%. The company said it anticipates capital expenditure of more than $10 billion this year, geared toward its next-generation electric vehicle (EV) and artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Shares of Builder FirstSource ( BLDR ) jumped 4.1% after Bank of America upgraded the stock to Buy from Neutral. According to the analyst team, the building products and equipment manufacturer has the opportunity to increase its profits as the construction of single-family homes gains momentum.
Shares of International Paper ( IP ) slid 2.3% ahead of the company’s fourth-quarter earnings report, which is set to be released on Friday. Analysts expect the company’s earnings per share (EPS) to decline more than 60% year over year as inflationary pressure on consumers leads to lower packaging demand.
Seagate Technologies ( STX ) shares dropped 2.0% after the company updated guidance for its fiscal third quarter of 2024. Although the data storage firm is fresh off reporting a surprise profit for the previous quarter, its EPS forecast for the current period was below analysts’ estimates.
Insurance brokerage Arthur J. Gallagher ( AJG ) fell 1.8% after it announced that it had acquired Forest Insurance Facilities, a wholesale commercial insurance broker serving clients in Louisiana. The companies did not disclose the details of the transaction.
Warner Bros. Discovery ( WBD ) shares lost 1.2% after Wells Fargo analysts downgraded the stock to Equal Weight and cut their price target to $12. In addition to seeing a lower likelihood of the entertainment firm being sold, analysts cited downside risks to earnings from higher amortization, ad spending moving to streaming services, and content licensing concerns.