May 2, 2016: Markets opened higher Monday with markets in Hong Kong and Shanghai closed for a holiday and Japan’s Nikkei down about 3%. The failure of the Halliburton-Baker Hughes merger and the lower price for crude combined with a weakening dollar all contributed to a decent start that got better in the mid-afternoon. As the close nears, only the energy sector was on track to post a drop today. WTI crude oil for June delivery settled at $44.78 a barrel, down about 2.5% for the day. June gold added 0.4% on the day to settle at $1,295.80 after rising above $1,300 during the trading session. Equities were headed for a higher close shortly before the closing bell as the DJIA traded up 0.72% for the day, the S&P 500 traded up 0.82%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded up 0.93%.
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The DJIA stock posting the largest daily percentage gain ahead of the close Monday was The Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) which traded up 1.70% at $136.17. The stock’s 52-week range is $92.17 to $137.00. Trading volume was about 20% below the daily average of around 5 million. The home improvement store had no specific news today, but the consumer discretionary sector was the day’s top performer.
Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) traded up 1.50% at $78.39. The stock’s 52-week range is $60.00 to $81.73. Volume was about 30% below the daily average of around 9.3 million shares. The credit card issuer had no specific news Monday.
The Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG) traded up 1.25% at $81.13. The stock’s 52-week range is $65.02 to $83.87. Volume was about 30% below the daily average of around 9.2 million shares traded. The company had no specific news Monday.
Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) traded up 1.25% at $30.66. The stock’s 52-week range is $24.87 to $35.59. Trading volume was about a third below the daily average of around 24 million. The chip maker had no specific news Monday.
Of the Dow 30 stocks 27 are set to close higher Monday and just 3 are on track to close higher.
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