US stocks fluctuate as Nasdaq bounces back from three-day hit
U.S. stocks mostly climbed on Tuesday, with the Nasdaq Composite bouncing back from its worst three-day hit since 2011, as investors sought recently hammered social media and Internet shares and waited for quarterly earnings.
"The market has been kind of dealing with a correction since January; after a really good end to last year, stocks might have been a little ahead of themselves. So stocks that did well the last nine months of last year, that's the profit taking we've seen. Utilities had underperformed, so those yields are more attractive," said Stuart Freeman, chief equity strategist at Wells Fargo Advisors.
"Recently, investors became more nervous, and started to take profits in stocks that had been piling on; some of the larger bellwether tech companies lost some of their froth. Today, techs are number three out of 10, so they are coming back," said Freeman, referring to the S&P 500's 10 major industry groups.
Momentum stocks including Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL - News), Facebook (NASDAQ:FB - News) and Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN - News) were among those rising.
"The retail investor is still looking at these stocks that went so high so fast. They are still trying to buy into these names like Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX - News), and even Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL - News). I still get questions on Apple, is now the time, long after the professionals have moved on to other targets," said Kim Forrest, senior equity analyst at Fort Pitt Capital.
"It's not my style of investing, to buy high and hope to sell higher," she added.
After rising and falling as much as 65 points, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (Dow Jones Global Indexes: .DJI) was lately up 8.41 points, or 0.1 percent, at 16,254.28, with Nike (NYSE:NKE - News) pacing gains that included 16 of its 30 components.
The S&P 500 (INDEX:^GSPC - News) added 4.03 points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,849.07, with utilities and consumer discretionary faring best and health care and telecommunications the poorest performers and among its 10 major sectors.
Also reversing course, the Nasdaq (NASDAQ:^IXIC - News) gained 32.05 points, or 0.8 percent, to 4,111.80.
For every stock falling, nearly two rose on the New York Stock Exchange, where 422 million shares traded as of 2:25 p.m. Eastern. Composite volume neared 2.5 billion.
The unofficial start of the quarterly earnings season begins after Tuesday's close, with aluminum producer Alcoa (NYSE:AA - News) slated to release earnings.
Banks JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM - News) and Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC - News) also report this week, along with retailer Bed, Bath & Beyond (NASDAQ:BBBY - News).
"We're waiting for earnings to begin in earnest next week; it not only gives you a snapshot of what individual companies are doing, but you can also piece together what the economy at large is doing as the different industries report," said Forrest.
Gigamon (NYSE:GIMO - News) fell sharply after the maker of communications devices cut its first-quarter revenue outlook.
"It's a tense time; markets should react to this," said Forrest of uncertainties in Ukraine, where pro-Moscow protesters reportedly seized weapons in one city and declared a separatist republic in another, moves Kiev described as a Russian-orchestrated plan to justify an invasion.
Russia is "rattling the saber, lining up troops and doing all these aggressive moves; I think they're hoping to be invited in," Forrest said.
The dollar declined against the currencies of major U.S. trading partners and the 10-year Treasury yield used in determining mortgage rates and other consumer loans fell 3 basis points to 2.677 percent.
Crude-oil futures for May delivery added 84 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $101.28 a barrel; gold futures for June delivery added $10.50, or 0.8 percent, to $1,308.80 an ounce.
The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday forecast the global recovery would gain traction this year as output in wealthier nations picks up, but warned of rising risks in emerging economies.
On Monday, stocks fell for a third session as investors shed high-profile assets that fared well in 2013 in search of better values.
-By CNBC's Kate Gibson
Coming Up This Week:
Tuesday
Earnings: Alcoa, WD-40, International Speedway
1:00 p.m.: $30 billion three-year auction
1:30 p.m.: Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota
2:45 p.m.: Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser
4:00 p.m.: Chicago Fed President Charles Evans on a panel at the IMF spring meeting
4:00 p.m.: Fed open meeting on rulemakings for leverage ratios
Wednesday
Earnings: Constellation Brands, Ruby Tuesday, Bed Bath and Beyond, Apogee
10:00 a.m.: Wholesale trade
1:00 p.m.: $21 billion 10-year auction
2:00 p.m.: FOMC minutes
3:30 p.m.: Chicago Fed's Evans on economy and monetary policy
7:30 p.m.: Fed Gov.Daniel Tarullo
Thursday
Earnings: Family Dollar, Pier 1 Imports, Shaw Communications, Commerce Bancshares, NQ Communications
Monthly chain store sales
8:30 a.m.: Jobless claims
8:30 a.m.: Import prices
8:45 a.m.: IMF Director Christine Lagarde press briefing
11:30 a.m.: Chicago Fed's Evans
1:00 p.m.: $13 billion 30-year auction
2:00 p.m.: Federal budget
Friday
Earnings: JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Fastenal
8:30 a.m.: PPI
9:55 a.m.: Consumer sentiment
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