McDonald’s, Chevron Boost the Dow Thursday

June 7, 2018 by Paul Ausick

June 7, 2018: Markets opened slightly mixed Thursday and only the blue chips were able to keep trading in the green from the entire day. The tech sector took the brunt of the beating and traded down more than 1% late in the afternoon, dragging the Nasdaq Composite with it. The day’s top performing sector was energy, up more than 1.5%.

WTI crude oil for July delivery closed at $65.95 a barrel, up about 1.9% for the day. August gold added about 0.1% on the day to settle at $1,303.00. Equities were headed for a mixed  close about 10 minutes before the bell as the Dow traded up 0.30% for the day, the S&P 500 traded down 0.16%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded down 0.76%.

Bitcoin futures (XBTM8) for June delivery traded at $7,700, up about 2.3% on the CBOE after opening at $7,645 this morning. The trading range today was $7,645 to $7,770.

The Dow stock posting the largest daily percentage gain ahead of the close Thursday was McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE: MCD) which traded up 4.38% at $169.50. The stock’s 52-week range is $146.84 to $178.70. Volume was about 20% above the daily average of around 4 million shares. The fast-food giant’s stock received an analyst’s upgrade this morning. The WSJ reports that the company also plans a new round of layoffs. That always perks up the stock.

Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) traded up 3.00% at $127.08 in a 52-week range of $102.55 to $133.88. Volume was about equal to the daily average of around 6.7 million shares. The company had no specific news.

The Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG) traded up 1.74% at $75.64. The stock’s 52-week range is $70.73 to $94.67. Volume was about 15% below the daily average of around 9.4 million. Activist investor Nelson Peltz reportedly said that P&G’s board is considering his plan to revive the company.

The Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD) traded up 1.24% at $195.99. The stock’s 52-week range is $144.25 to $207.61. Volume was about 25% below the daily average of around 4.8 million. The company had no specific news.

Of the Dow stocks, 20 are on track to close higher Thursday and 10 are set to close lower.

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