The stock market closed the day higher, but closes the week in the red thanks to a slew of Washington shake ups, and rumors. The Dow 30 closed higher on the day by 72, the S&P 500 added 4, and the Nasdaq was higher by only 1 as tech continues to hold near highs.
Consumer sentiment came in much higher than expected today. The monthly report from the University of Michigan rose to it's highest levels since 2004 as consumers cited confidence in their personal finances and a favorable economic outlook.
Ulta Beauty, Inc. (ULTA ) was the leader in the S&P 500 today despite the company reporting earnings that came in under Wall Street expectations. Investors chose to focus on revenue which was in line with estimates, along with a strong increase in comparable store sales. Shares have struggled since last summer and remain just off lows.
Shares of Adobe (ADBE ) shot to new highs today as the company announced earnings that comfortably beat Wall Street's expectations. The software company announced $1.55 per share on revenue that also beat expectations. The beat was driven by increased subscriptions to it's Creative Cloud software suite. Shares are higher by almost 30% on the year so far.
Tiffany (TIF ) shares were lower on the day despite posting earnings per share of $1.67 which beat estimates by $0.03. Revenue was also better than expected but investors chose to focus on same store sales and forward guidance which came in lower than expected. They also cited one time charges in response to the new tax law. Shares are now lower on the year by about 5%.