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Stock market news live updates: S&P 500 ekes out record high ahead of packed earnings week

7
Emily McCormick
·Reporter
·5 min read

Stocks eked out a new record high on Monday, with traders bracing for a busy week of corporate earnings results, a Federal Reserve monetary policy decision and deluge of economic data.

[Click here to read what's moving markets heading into Tuesday, April 27]

The S&P 500 ticked up to narrowly eke out a record high. The Dow was little changed, while the Nasdaq edged lower ahead of a bevy of Big Tech earnings.

Expectations are high heading into one of the busiest weeks of corporate earnings reports this earnings season. The vast majority of companies that have reported first-quarter results so far have handily exceeded estimates, with the vaccine-enabled recovery helping stoke demand across a wide variety of industries. Tesla (TSLA) is poised to post its quarterly earnings after market close on Monday. And altogether, companies comprising nearly half of the S&P 500's total market capitalization will report results this week, including mega-cap tech names like Amazon (AMZN), Alphabet (GOOGL), Facebook (FB), Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT).

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Eighty-four percent of the S&P 500 companies that have reported first-quarter results to date posted a positive earnings per share surprise, according to data from FactSet. This would mark the highest percentage of companies reporting upside surprises since FactSet began tracking this metric in 2008, assuming this beat rate holds through the end of earnings season.

Investors are also continuing to digest reports last week that the Biden administration was eyeing an increase on the capital gains tax rate for individuals earning more than $1 million. The initial reports of this proposal sent stocks plunging on Thursday last week, with traders contemplating the possible net effects of such a move in light of a strengthening economic backdrop that has already helped boost corporate profits.

"There is also a potential risk from higher capital gains tax if we get indication that it will materialize and go into effect starting next year (vs. retroactive to 2021) causing certain investors to take profits early. However, this proposal would be contentious and likely to face significant opposition," JPMorgan Chase equity strategist Dubravko Lakos-Bujas wrote in a note Friday.

"With respect to corporate taxes, S&P 500 companies are now better positioned to absorb a potential tax increase given: (1) robust economic and earnings recovery; (2) elevated corporate cash balance of $2.1T ex-financials (up 28% vs. 4Q19); (3) partial offset from large NOL [net operating loss] balance of ~$290B; and (4) the spending component of the plan should boost aggregate demand," he added.

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4:05 p.m. ET: S&P 500 ekes out record high as investors await Big Tech earnings; Nasdaq gains 0.9%

Here were the main moves in markets as of 4:05 p.m. ET:

  • S&P 500 (^GSPC): +7.45 (+0.18%) to 4,187.62

  • Dow (^DJI): -61.92 (-0.18%) to 33,981.57

  • Nasdaq (^IXIC): +121.97 (+0.87%) to 14,138.78

  • Crude (CL=F): -$0.20 (-0.32%) to $61.94 a barrel

  • Gold (GC=F): +$2.80 (+0.16%) to $1,780.60 per ounce

  • 10-year Treasury (^TNX): +0.3 bps to yield 1.5700%

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1:57 p.m. ET: S&P 500, Nasdaq hold higher while Dow turns negative

The three major indexes traded mixed on Monday as investors awaited a slew of earnings results from Big Tech companies especially later this week.

The S&P 500 added 0.2% intraday, with the cyclical energy, materials and financial sectors leading the way higher. The health-care, utilities and consumer staples companies lagged.

The Dow erased earlier gains to to trade lower by about 24 points, or 0.1%, as shares of Procter & Gamble and Coca-Cola declined amid a broader drawdown in defensive, staples stocks. The Nasdaq was the outperformer among the three major indexes, extending gains to climb 0.8%.

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9:30 a.m. ET: Stocks tick up as investor await earnings

Here's where markets were trading Monday morning just after the opening bell:

  • S&P 500 (^GSPC): +7.92 points (+0.19%) to 4,188.09

  • Dow (^DJI): +61.47 points (+0.18%) to 34,104.96

  • Nasdaq (^IXIC): +39.65 points (+0.28%) to 14,055.34

  • Crude (CL=F): -$0.79 (-1.27%) to $61.35 a barrel

  • Gold (GC=F): +$1.60 (+0.09%) to $1,779.40 per ounce

  • 10-year Treasury (^TNX): +0.1 bps to yield 1.568%

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8:30 a.m. ET: Durable goods orders rise less than expected in March

U.S. orders for goods intended to last three years or longer rose far less than expected in March, rebounding by a smaller than expected margin after inclement weather weighed on the manufacturing sector in February.

Durable goods orders rose by 0.5% in March over February, according to the Commerce Department's preliminary monthly report. This was below the 2.3% rise expected, and followed an upwardly revised 0.9% drop in February.

However, excluding transportation orders, durable goods orders rose 1.6% as expected. Non-defense capital goods orders excluding aircraft, which serve as a proxy for business spending plans, rose 0.9%, coming in well below the 1.7% increase expected.

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7:01 a.m. ET Monday: Stock futures edge lower

Here's where markets were trading ahead of the opening bell:

  • S&P 500 futures (ES=F): 4,166.5, down 5 points or 0.12%

  • Dow futures (YM=F): 33,947.00, up 6 points or 0.02%

  • Nasdaq futures (NQ=F): 13,885.50, down 41.5 points or 0.3%

  • Crude (CL=F): -$1.03 (-1.66%) to $61.11 a barrel

  • Gold (GC=F): +$1.60 (+0.09%) to $1,779.40 per ounce

  • 10-year Treasury (^TNX): +2.1 bps to yield 1.588%

A trader makes a phone call outside the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on July 20, 2020 at Wall Street in New York City. - Wall Street stocks were mixed early July, 20, 2020 as markets awaited congressional debate on another round of stimulus spending and major earnings releases later in the week. (Photo by Johannes EISELE / AFP) (Photo by JOHANNES EISELE/AFP via Getty Images)

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Emily McCormick is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter: @emily_mcck

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