By Yasin Ebrahim
Investing.com – The Dow notched its fourth-straight daily gain on Wednesday as positive vaccine news and earnings from banks boosted investor sentiment.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.85%, or 227 points, the S&P 500 gained 0.93%, while the Nasdaq Composite added 0.59%.
Drugmaker Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) jumped 6.9% after reporting that its coronavirus vaccine candidate, mRNA-127, produced antibodies in patients aged 18 to 55, suggesting the treatment could protect against infection by the virus.
Some on Wall Street, however, said it was too early to draw a conclusion from the early-stage clinical data.
“Many open questions obviously remain, including on immune response durability, and what the profile might look like in older adults, but we believe the data represent a good start,” Chardan analysts said in a note.
Covid-19 cases meanwhile continued to mount, led by virus hotspots across the U.S. including California, Arizona, Florida and Texas.
American Airlines (NASDAQ:AAL) jumped 16%, Marriott International (NASDAQ:MAR) added 7.9%, Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ:WYNN) was up 9.3%, and Carnival (NYSE:CCL) surged 16%.
Financials, meanwhile, eased from session highs as Goldman Sachs pared some gains following a blowout quarterly report.
Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) rose 1.3% after reporting second-quarter earnings of $6.26, above consensus estimates of $3.90, led by strong performance in its trading division.
US Bancorp (NYSE:USB) also beat forecasts to rise 3.7%, while PNC Financial Services Group (NYSE:PNC) was up 2.8% despite swinging to an unexpected loss.
In tech, FAANG stocks traded mix as the intraday bid in megacap tech faded.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) gave up some gains after rising more than 2% following an upgrade from Needham and reports that the tech giant had won a legal dispute over a $14.8 billion tax battle with the European Union.
Needham upgraded its rating on the stock to $450 from $350, citing the value of its ecosystem.
Energy continued its strong start to the week boosted by rising oil prices as data showing a larger-than-expected draw U.S. crude supplies offset worries over waning demand amid reports that some major oil producing nations are set to rein in production cuts.
Elsewhere, Beyond Meat (NASDAQ:BYND) climbed 3% after the plant-based food company announced an expansion into Brazil.
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