The Dow 30 hit the magical 20,000 number today after many weeks of waiting. Investors have been gaining confidence in the new President and the financial sector helped push all the major indices higher. The Nasdaq 100 also made new, all time highs today, as did the S&P 500. For now the strength continues and investors have very little concern about the economy going forward.
Tomorrow investors will look to some new home sales numbers along with the weekly natural gas storage numbers. Friday will be the big numbers though as we get another look into GDP.
Boeing (BA ) was a big winner today as the company reported earnings that beat expectations on both its top and bottom lines for the fourth quarter. Revenue was a sore spot as it fell more than 1% from a year ago driven by a big drop in sales of military aircraft, but that didn't seem to mind investors as they bought the stock up all day, pushing it to new highs.
Alcoa (AA ) started the day higher yet again after having an amazing rally over the past 2 weeks. The company reported revenue that slightly beat estimates for the fourth quarter thanks, in part, to a rise in aluminum and alumina prices. The problem was that the gains were so good in the short term that investors chose to take profits, causing a sharp selloff into the close.
Bob Evans (BOBE ) blasted off today to new highs as the company said it's "getting out of the restaurant business." Bob Evans is selling its food chain to private-equity firm Golden Gate Capital for $565 million, including debt, and will focus instead on its packaged food business. This move was seen as a huge win for investors who rallied around the name today.