U.S. stocks surged this morning, with the Nasdaq Composite catapulting nearly 300 points on Thursday.
At the market open on Thursday, the Dow climbed 0.63% to 38,857.02, while the NASDAQ soared 1.95% to 15,884.67. The S&P 500 also saw gains, rising 1.20% to 5,041.45.
Sector Performance Snapshot
Information technology shares surged by 3.1% on Thursday, underscoring the sector’s vitality.
Conversely, utilities shares took a hit, dropping by 0.8% in Thursday’s trading.
Highlight of the Day
Semiconductor giant NVIDIA Corporation bore the standard for exemplary corporate performance, reporting exceptional fourth-quarter financial results and offering robust revenue projections for the first quarter.
NVIDIA’s revenue of $22.10 billion exceeded expectations, outpacing Street estimates of $20.62 billion. Impressively, the company’s fourth-quarter revenue surged by 265% year-over-year. Moreover, NVIDIA reported fourth-quarter non-GAAP earnings per share of $5.16, surpassing the Street’s consensus estimate of $4.64.
Winners and Losers in Equities Trading
In a dramatic turnaround, La Rosa Holdings Corp. saw its shares skyrocket by 186% to $4.00 following the announcement of the acquisition of La Rosa Realty Winter Garden LLC in Winter Garden, Florida.
Meanwhile, BuzzFeed, Inc. experienced a significant uptick, with shares surging 78% to $0.3901, driven by the sale of Complex Networks to NTWRK. This strategic deal, valued at $108.6 million, also led to a 16% reduction in BuzzFeed’s workforce.
Venus Concept Inc. also exhibited a strong performance, with shares climbing by 45% to $1.8606 as the company secured CE Mark from DEKRA Certification B.V. to market Venus Versa Pro in Europe.
Market Decliners
Draganfly Inc. grappled with a 46% decline in its shares, falling to $0.1951 subsequent to the announcement of the pricing of a $3.6 million underwritten public offering.
Likewise, Greenbrook TMS Inc. witnessed a 42% drop in its shares to $0.2201 after revealing a $1.2 million registered direct offering of 6 million shares at $0.20 per share purchase price. Additionally, Bel Fuse Inc. experienced a 23% decline, falling to $57.00 post the release of disappointing fourth-quarter financial results.
Commodity Market Update
In the commodities market, oil prices edged up by 0.1% to $77.94, while gold traded up marginally at $2,038.10.
Silver experienced a 0.9% increase, reaching $23.09 on Thursday, while copper faced a slight dip of 0.1% to $3.8740.
Insight into the Euro zone
European shares surged on the day, with the eurozone’s STOXX 600 rising by 0.8%. Notable boosts were observed in London’s FTSE 100 (0.3%), Spain’s IBEX 35 Index (0.5%), Germany’s DAX (1.4%), French CAC 40 (1%), and Italy’s FTSE MIB Index (1.2%).
Economic indicators revealed a subtle easing in the Eurozone’s inflation rate to 2.8% in January from 2.9% in December. Additionally, manufacturing PMIs showed a mixed trend, with the HCOB Eurozone manufacturing PMI declining to 46.1 in February, and the services PMI climbing to 50. Notably, the HCOB France composite PMI surged to 47.7 in February, while the German composite PMI dipped slightly to 46.1.
Across the Channel, the S&P Global UK services PMI remained steady at 54.3 in February, while the manufacturing PMI saw a modest uptick to 47.1 from 47 in January.
Asia Pacific Markets Update
Asian markets exhibited a mixed picture, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 soaring by 2.19%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rising by 1.45%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index gaining 1.27%, and India’s S&P BSE Sensex jumping by 0.74%.
Inflation trends showed a moderation in Hong Kong’s annual inflation rate to 1.7% in January from 2.4%. Additionally, composite PMIs for India and Japan displayed nuanced shifts, with the HSBC India composite PMI rising to 61.5 in February and the au Jibun Bank Japan composite PMI declining to 50.3 in the same month.
Economic Indicators
The Chicago Fed National Activity Index dipped to -0.30 in January, contrasting with a revised reading of 0.02 in the prior month.
Further, U.S. initial jobless claims dropped by 12,000 to 201,000 for the week ending Feb. 17, surpassing market estimates of 218,000.