Markets
Luke Kawa
12/6/24

US stocks close out week at record high

The S&P 500 rose 0.2% and the Nasdaq 100 gained 0.9%, both ending the week at record highs, while the Russell 2000 was up 0.5%.

US stocks caught a bid after the release of a middling nonfarm payrolls report for November, which seemingly cemented hopes for a rate cut at the Federal Reserve’s December meeting. Two-year Treasury yields fell about 5 basis points on the day.

Nonetheless, more S&P 500 constituents fell than rose on Friday, as was the case for every session this week.

Consumer discretionary was far and away the top S&P 500 sector ETF, gaining more than 2% with Tesla’s advance continuing to boost Elon Musk’s fortune.

Lululemon was the best-performing S&P 500 constituent, rising 15.9% after reporting better-than-expected earnings and boosting its full-year guidance. It was a similar story for another consumer-facing firm, Ulta Beauty, where surprisingly strong sales and profit figures fueled a 9% rally.

Utilities and energy each fell by more than 1%.

UnitedHealth was the worst performer in the S&P 500, down 5.1% to end a tragic week for the company.

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Automakers spike on report that Trump administration is considering tariff relief

The Trump administration is considering significant tariff relief for many major automakers, according to reporting by Reuters.

“The signal to the car companies around the world is, look, you have final assembly in the US, we’re going to reward you,” Ohio Republican Senator Bernie Moreno told Reuters. “For Ford, for Toyota, for Honda, for Tesla, for GM, those are the almost in order the top five domestic content vehicle producers — they’ll be immune to tariffs.”

The senator told Reuters that President Trump could potentially extend the higher levels of tariff offsets announced by the Commerce Department in June.

According to the White House, Moreno’s comments should be considered “speculative,” but shares of vehicle makers including Ford, GM, Toyota, Honda, and Stellantis all rose after the report came out.

markets

Palantir disputes report of flaws in Army product

Palantir says security vulnerabilities with a prototype battlefield communications product highlighted in a September 5 Army memorandum have already been addressed, according to a Bloomberg report.

The company said any conclusions that the product was seriously flawed, drawn from reports in Reuters and an online publication known as Breaking Defense, were “out of date and inaccurate.”

Separately, Army officials also told Breaking Defense that deficiencies with the battlefield communication product were “mitigated immediately.”

Going into the last hour of trading, Palantir shares were on track for their worst day since August in the wake of the reports.

Separately, Army officials also told Breaking Defense that deficiencies with the battlefield communication product were “mitigated immediately.”

Going into the last hour of trading, Palantir shares were on track for their worst day since August in the wake of the reports.

markets

Novo says it will offer weight-loss pill via telehealth, Bloomberg reports

Hims & Hers slipped after Novo Nordisk’s US head, David Moore, told Bloomberg that the company plans to sell its upcoming weight-loss pill through its current telehealth partners.

The companys weight-loss pill recently reported encouraging results in a late-stage trial.

Novo currently has partnerships with Hims competitors like Ro and Weight Watchers. Hims had a deal with Novo earlier this year, which blew up epically in less than two months.

markets

Shopify soars after Rothschild Redburn hikes price target to $200

Shopify popped nearly 7% Friday afternoon after Rothschild Redburn reiterated its “buy” rating and raised its price target to $200 from $180, tying the highest on Wall Street and about 23% above current levels.

The firm pointed to Shopify’s new partnership with OpenAI’s ChatGPT as a key growth driver, saying it opens up a fresh sales channel that, for now, only Shopify and Etsy merchants can tap into. 

Analysts also highlighted that unlike the Magnificent 7 tech names, Shopify can fold AI revenue into its model without heavy capital spending, meaning those contributions could offer a quick boost to free cash flow. 

On that note, the firm also bumped its 2025 to 2027 earnings estimates by about 6% to 8%. Shopify shares have already more than doubled over the past year and are up roughly 50% year to date.

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