The Nasdaq ended sharply higher on Thursday after Alphabet and Advanced Micro Devices sparked a megacap rally on fresh optimism about artificial intelligence.
Market Snapshot
The S&P 500 climbed 0.80% to end the session at 4,585.59 points, the Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.37% to 14,339.99 points, while Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.18% to 36,117.57 points.
Market Movers
Alphabet gained 5.3%, a day after Google’s unveiling of Gemini, its most advanced artificial intelligence software model. There are three versions for various applications, the group said, with the most powerful under safety test and review ahead of an expected launch early next year.
Semtech gained 16% after the semiconductor supplier reported a surprise adjusted profit for its third fiscal quarter.
Nikola tumbled 23% after the hydrogen trucking and technology company announced plans to raise about $100 million via the sale of common stock and $200 million via the sale of convertible notes.
JetBlue Airways climbed 15% after the low-cost carrier raised its current quarter guidance on strong holiday travel demand.
Cerevel Therapeutics soared 11% after pharmaceutical company AbbVie said it would acquire the maker of treatments for schizophrenia, Parkinson’s disease, and mood disorders for $45 a share, or about $8.7 billion in an all-cash deal. AbbVie edged 1.1% higher.
C3.ai plunged 11% after the provider of enterprise AI software posted mixed results for the October quarter, with per-share earnings ahead of analyst expectations but sales coming in short of estimates. The company’s January quarter guidance was weaker than Wall Street forecasts.
Advanced Micro Devices stock popped 9.9% after the chip maker announced new products that could make it a player in the artificial intelligence chip space to rival Nvidia. Wall Street analysts were tentatively optimistic.
Rivian Automotive was up 4.4% and Lucid Group rose 1.8% after Stifel initiated coverage of the electric-vehicle start-ups at Buy and Hold, respectively.
Take-Two Interactive Software fell 2% after BofA Securities downgraded shares to Neutral from Buy, citing uncertainty for the launch of the new Grand Theft Auto videogame.
PayPal Holdings dropped 1.8% after Amazon.com told Prime users it would stop offering the ability for shoppers to use Venmo as a form of payment. Amazon shares rose 1.6%.
MBIA (NYSE: MBI) 55% HIGHER; declared an extraordinary cash dividend on MBIA common stock of $8.00 per share to shareholders of record as of December 18 to be paid on December 22, which totals approximately $409 million. the yield represents 108.4%.
RH (NYSE: RH) 8% LOWER; the trendy home goods retailer missed on the top an bottom line for its thrid quarter.
Gates Industrial (NYSE: GTES) 7% LOWER; announced today that certain selling stockholders affiliated with Blackstone Inc.have commenced a secondary offering of 15,000,000 of Gates' ordinary shares.
lululemon athletica (NASDAQ: LULU) 2% LOWER; beat on the top and bottom line for its third quarter but full year revenue guidance was slightly below the Street on the high end.
Crown Castle Inc. (NYSE: CCI) 2% HIGHER; CEO to retire amid activist investor pressure on the company.
Broadcom Inc (NASDAQ: AVGO) 1% LOWER; beat on the top and bottom line in its fourth quarter but full year revenue guidance was modestly below the Street
DocuSign Inc . (NASDAQ: DOCU) 1% LOWER; falls despite a beat on the top and bottom line in the third quarter and revenue guidance slightly better at the mid-point.
Qorvo, Inc. (NASDAQ: QRVO) 1% HIGHER; upgraded to Overweight at Morgan Stanley
Qualcomm Incorporated (NASDAQ:QCOM) 1% LOWER; downgraded at Morgan Stanley
Market News
US Initial Jobless Claims Edge up Slightly, Roughly in Line With Consensus
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits increased less than expected last week as the labor market continues to gradually slow amid cooling demand.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 220,000 for the week ended Dec. 2, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 222,000 claims for the latest week.
Claims data are volatile around this time of the year because of holidays, making it harder to get a clear signal on the labor market.
US Bitcoin ETF Issuer Talks With SEC Have Advanced to Key Details
Discussions between the U.S. securities regulator and asset managers hoping to list bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have advanced to key technical details, in a sign the agency may soon approve the products, industry executives said.
Thirteen firms including Grayscale Investments, BlackRock, Invesco, and ARK Investments, have pending applications with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for ETFs that track the price of bitcoin.
Proponents argue that a regulated product, like an ETF, tied to the spot price of the cryptocurrency , offers investors the best way to invest in bitcoin. But the agency has long rejected such products, arguing they fail to meet its bar for investor protections.
