Stocks climbed in choppy trade on Friday as investors weighed more corporate earnings reports and the prospect of a Federal Reserve rate hike.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 727 points, or 2.4%. The S&P 500 rose 2.3%. The Nasdaq Composite rose 2.2%.
Treasury yields fell from their highs on Friday morning after a Wall Street Journal report that some Fed officials fear excessive tightening with large rate hikes. This report also appeared to boost stocks.
The central bank’s aggressive rate hikes have been a major factor in sending equities into a bear market this year, and traders have continued to raise their estimates of where the Fed will stop.
“We really need a break from the Fed. Not so much that they would outright disavow future rate hikes, but that they would just say every meeting is live, and if the data goes our way, after the first half of ’23 we don’t have ‘I don’t need to do more,’ Barry Bannister, Stifel’s chief equity strategist, said in ‘Squawk on the Street’.
Even with Friday’s bond market reversal, the 10-year Treasury yield is still trading above 4.2%, a level last seen in 2008. Still, major stock averages rose more 4% over the week.
“I think at the end of last week the market was technically a bit oversold. And like we’ve seen so many times in the past, when things get negative enough, it becomes kind of an indicator against the grain of a rebound,” Randy said. Frederick, managing director of trading and derivatives at the Schwab Center for Financial Research.
“But like all the other rebounds we’ve had, it wasn’t very sustained. … A rebound today doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to continue next week. If so, I suspect that it won’t be for more than a day or two,” Frederick added.
Bank stocks were a bright spot on Friday, with Goldman Sachs gaining 4.5% and JPMorgan Chase adding 4.7%.
Profits yield limited gains for the market. Dow components American Express and Verizon fell 2.8% and 4.4%, respectively, after their quarterly reports. In technology, social media company Snap fell 31% after reporting quarterly revenue of $1.13 billion, below expectations.
