Stocks rose again Thursday after more companies reported better profits than expected, while yields climbed after a Federal Reserve official cautioned the end to its interest rate hikes may not arrive as soon as Wall Street hoped.
- The S&P 500 rose 39.28 points, or 0.9%, to 4,198.05.
- The Dow rose 115.14 points, or 0.3%, to 33,535.91.
- The Nasdaq rose 188.27 points, or 1.5%, to 12,688.84.
Video game maker Take-Two Interactive shot to the biggest gain in the S&P 500 after it forecast a huge jump in revenue for the fiscal year following this one, per the AP. That stoked speculation that Grand Theft Auto VI is on the way, and its stock jumped 11.7%. Bath & Body Works was close behind with a gain of 10.7%. It reported stronger revenue and earnings for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Also helping to support Wall Street was another retailer, Walmart, which rose 1.3% after reporting stronger results for the latest quarter than expected. It raised its financial forecast for the full year, though it said it's seeing shoppers remain cautious about spending.
Much scrutiny has been on the retail industry because strong spending by US households has been one of the main pillars keeping the slowing economy out of a recession. Stocks have remained remarkably resilient since early April despite a long list of worries. A major reason for that is hope the Fed would take it easier on its hikes to rates, which have slowed inflation at the expense of risking a recession and knocking down prices across financial markets. The widespread bet was that the Fed would take a pause at its next meeting in June. But Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan cooled some of those hopes in a prepared speech for the Texas Bankers Association. "The data in coming weeks could yet show that it is appropriate to skip a meeting," Logan said. "As of today, though, we aren't there yet."
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