Walgreens, United Technologies Boost the Dow Friday

July 13, 2018 by Paul Ausick

July 13, 2018: Markets opened slightly higher Friday, dipped lower soon after the opening bell, and then traded mostly in the green for the rest of the day. The Nasdaq Composite traded right on the break-even line for much of the afternoon. Industrials, energy, and consumer staples were the day’s leading sectors while telecom and financials lagged. Three big banks—Citi, Wells Fargo, and JPMorgan—reported second-quarter results this morning to no boisterous reception.

WTI crude oil for August delivery settled at $71.01 a barrel, up about 1% on the day but down about 3.8% for the week. August gold settled down 0.4% at $1,241.20 for a loss of 1.2% for the week and the yellow metal’s lowest close in nearly a year. Equities were heading for a slightly higher close about 10 minutes before the bell as the Dow traded up 0.36% for the day, the S&P 500 traded up 0.09%, and the Nasdaq Composite traded up 0.05%.

Bitcoin futures (XBTN8) for July delivery traded at $6,190, up about 0.3% on the CBOE after opening at $6,135 this morning. The trading range today was $6,065 to $6,335.

The Dow stock posting the largest daily percentage gain ahead of the close Friday was Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. (NASDAQ: WBA) which traded up 2.07% at $65.21. The 52-range on the stock is $59.07 to $83.89. Volume of around 6.3 million was just over the daily average.

United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) traded up 1.68% at $129.49. The stock’s 52-week range is $109.10 to $139.24. Volume was also about equal to the daily average of around 3.9 million shares.

The Walt Disney Col (NYSE: DIS) traded up 1.64% at $110.02. The stock’s 52-week range is $96.20 to $113.19, and the high was posted today. Volume was about 25% below the daily average of around 8.5 million. The company’s bid to acquire assets from Fox got a nod today from institutional investor adviser Glass Lewis.

The Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) traded up 1.38% at $350.80 in a 52-week range of $206.74 to $374.48. Volume was more than double the daily average of around 1.6 million shares.

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

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