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The markets are seeing early gains as AI names attempt one last push in the final stretch of the year, with Nvidia (Nasdaq: NVDA | NVDA Price Prediction) and Broadcom (Nasdaq: AVGO) both gaining ground. All three of the major stock market averages are in rally mode after yesterday’s tamer than anticipated inflation data. Oracle (Nasdaq: ORCL) is out to recapture lost ground, rallying 5% on reports the company is joining an investor cohort involving the U.S. arm of TikTok.
Citigroup strategists highlight today’s expiration of roughly $7.1 trillion in stock, ETF and index options today as the biggest quarterly witching day in history. These stars have aligned for derivatives to mature alongside one another, typically sparking volatility amid position rollovers. Citi pros note that actual swings are often less severe than feared.
Here’s a look at where things stand as of morning trading:
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 48,159.92 Up 208.07 (+0.43%)
Nasdaq Composite: 23,165.33 Up 155.96 (+0.66%)
S&P 500: 6,810.76 Up 36.38 (+0.54%)
Tech Talk
Wall Street firm Truist Securities has lifted its price target on AI chip leader Nvidia by $20 to $275 per share. Separately, Bernstein analysts believe NVDA stock valuation is compelling, tossing around themes like “cheap.”
According to a Reuters report, Google (Nasdaq: GOOGL) and Palo Alto Networks (Nasdaq: PANW) have bolstered their partnership in what’s being billed as Google Cloud’s biggest security services deal ever, with Palo Alto poised to pour billions of dollars into the venture over the coming years.
Meta Platforms (Nasdaq: META) is up 13.4% year-to-date; Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), with a market cap of $4 trillion, has gained 8.5% YTD; Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) stock has gained a mere 3.4% YTD.
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