Apple, energy shares shine as Wall Street rallies

Record ID: 103401

  • Title: Apple, energy shares shine as Wall Street rallies
  • Date: 16th May 2016
  • Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (MAY 16, 2016) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) JONATHAN CORPINA, SENIOR MANAGING PARTNER AT MERIDIAN EQUITY PARTNERS, SAYING: "We continue to see volatility here today, and I think there's not a real major catalyst that's getting all those sellers from Friday back into this market today. So that's showing me there is some confusion as to the overall effective earnings season, effect of economic data, the political trend continues to shift every single day. So that forces investors to move away from that market, causing less participation."
  • Embargoed: 31st May 2016 21:09
  • Keywords: Wall Street Apple oil Warren Buffett Berkshire Hathaway
  • Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • City: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Economic Events,Equities Markets
  • Reuters ID: LVA0024I26EFH
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:Wall Street rallied sharply on Monday (May 16), juiced by a jump in Apple shares and gains from energy stocks that were backed by stronger oil prices.
    Apple shares finished up 3.7 percent after Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway reported a stake worth about $1 billion (USD) in the iPhone maker. The stock, which had lost about one-fifth of its value in the past month, gave the biggest boost to the three indexes.
    The S&P energy sector gained 1.6 percent as oil prices hit six-month highs. Crude prices were supported by worries about global supply outages and as long-time bear Goldman Sachs sounded more positive on the market.
    Oil prices have recovered some ground after touching 12-year lows earlier in 2016, with volatility in oil causing jitters in other markets.
    The Dow Jones industrial average rose 175.39 points, or 1 percent, to 17,710.71, the S&P 500 gained 20.05 points, or 0.98 percent, to 2,066.66 and the Nasdaq Composite added 57.78 points, or 1.22 percent, to 4,775.46.
    All 10 major S&P 500 sectors finished higher, led by materials and energy.
    "I think overall, we have more upside than downside at this point," Jonathan Corpina said, senior managing partner at Meridian Equity Partners. "Any negative news we've gotten so far this year really hasn't rattled this market so much, meaning, any negative headlines we got out of China, Europe concerning oil, currencies, home here in the United States, any economic data that might seem considered soft, it really hasn't rattled the market."
    Last week, the Dow and S&P 500 fell for a third straight week, while the Nasdaq's losing streak hit four weeks.
    Gloomy quarterly reports from retailers had clouded the market last week. The retail sector is in focus again, with Wal-Mart, Home Depot and Target set to report results this week.
    The S&P 500 is up just over 1 percent this year. While the benchmark index has risen about 14 percent since February lows, the rally fizzled out in the last few weeks amid mixed corporate earnings and economic data.
    "We continue to see volatility here today, and I think there's not a real major catalyst that's getting all those sellers from Friday back into this market today," Corpina said. "So that's showing me there is some confusion as to the overall effective earnings season, effect of economic data, the political trend continues to shift every single day. So that forces investors to move away from that market, causing less participation."
    On Monday, Anacor Pharmaceuticals soared 57.2 percent to $100.67 after Pfizer said it would buy the drugmaker in a deal valued at $5.2 billion. Anacor gave one of the biggest boosts to the Nasdaq Biotechnology index, which gained 3 percent.
    Tribune Publishing climbed 22.8 percent to $14.08 after Gannett raised its buyout offer to $15 per share. Gannett closed up 2.2 percent at $15.98.
    About 6.5 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, below the 7.2 billion daily average for the past 20 trading days, according to Thomson Reuters data.
    Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by 2,318 to 699, for a 3.32-to-1 ratio on the upside; on the Nasdaq, 1,990 issues rose and 844 fell for a 2.36-to-1 ratio favoring advancers.
    The S&P 500 posted 21 new 52-week highs and 3 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 42 new highs and 66 new lows.
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