Key Takeaways
Major U.S. equities indexes moved higher Wednesday, boosted by outperformance from the technology sector.
Although Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stressed that the central bank will take a cautious approach to future policy moves, optimism for another interest-rate cut at this month's Fed meeting remained intact. Data released by payroll processor ADP showing a slowdown in private-sector hiring during November supported the case for further interest-rate reductions.
The S&P 500 advanced 0.6%, extending a streak of record closing highs that dates back to last week's abbreviated Black Friday trading session. The Dow jumped 0.7% to close above the 45,000-point level for the first time. The Nasdaq rode strength in the tech sector to a gain of 1.3%, also notching its highest-ever close.
Shares of customer relationship management software provider Salesforce ( CRM ) led the S&P 500 higher on Wednesday, popping 11%. Several research analysts lifted their price targets on the stock after Salesforce boosted its full-year sales and profit guidance . Analysts noted that Agentforce, the company's autonomous artificial intelligence offering, has been drawing attention from clients since its October launch.
Salesforce was not the only enterprise software stock to enjoy strong gains. ServiceNow ( NOW ), which also offers AI solutions to help automate business processes, announced an expansion of its partnership with Amazon ( AMZN ), further integrating ServiceNow's platform with Amazon's Web Services and Bedrock generative AI capabilities. ServiceNow shares surged 6.2% on Wednesday, while Amazon shares were up 2.2%.
Edwards Lifesciences (
EW
) shares added 5.7% after the medical device maker laid out its growth strategy at its annual investor conference. The specialist in structural heart solutions highlighted its pipeline of new technologies, upbeat financial outlook, and market opportunities from several of its heart valve repair and replacement treatments.
Shares of Texas Pacific Land ( TPL ) dropped 11.6%, suffering the heaviest daily decline in the S&P 500 for the second time this week. The stock has been volatile since its addition to the benchmark index late last month. A major landowner in the oil-rich Permian Basin, the century-old land trust has been exploring opportunities to diversify its revenue streams, including bitcoin mining and renewable energy projects.
Campbell's ( CPB ) shares sank 6.2% after the packaged food maker reported lower-than-expected quarterly sales, with elevated marketing expenses contributing to a year-over-year profit decline. CEO Mark Clouse said he would step down from his role at the soup and snack manufacturer to become president of the National Football League's Washington Commanders.
Bank of America's commodities team reduced its lithium price outlook. Analysts noted that, even as high-cost producers of the key battery mineral scale back their operations, surplus conditions are likely to remain in the lithium market over the next two years. Shares of Albemarle ( ALB ), the world's largest lithium miner, fell 5.9%.
MarketAxess Holdings ( MKTX ) shares slipped 5.5% after the operator of an electronic trading platform for fixed-income securities released trading data from November. Although average daily trading volume grew 56% year-over-year, the figure fell 3% month-over-month. The platform saw sequential declines in volumes and market share in the U.S. high-grade and U.S. high-yield segments.
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