Wendy’s stocks leap 26% as markets mostly rise

U.S. stock indexes meandered to another uneven finish Tuesday after spending much of the day swaying between small gains and losses.

The S&P 500 inched up less than 0.1% after earlier veering between a loss of 0.4% and a gain of 0.2%. The benchmark index has barely moved the last two days after notching two straight weekly gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.1%, while the Nasdaq mustered a 0.3% gain. Smaller company stocks once again outpaced the broader market.

The S&P 500 remains close to its May 7 all-time high, but has not been able to climb higher.

The S&P 500 added 0.74 points to 4,227.26. The Dow slipped 30.42 points to 34,599.82. The Nasdaq gained 43.19 points to 13,924.91. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 24.58 points, or 1.1%, to 2,343.76.

A variety of companies that rely on direct consumer spending made solid gains. Domino’s Pizza rose 1.2% and Gap gained 2.9%. Industrial stocks also ticked higher. Energy companies rose along with the price of crude oil.

Those gains were kept in check by falling health care and communication stocks. Banks fell, weighed down as bond yields slipped. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 1.54% from 1.57% late Monday.

Elsewhere in the market, Wendy’s jumped 25.9% as it seemingly joined a list of companies that have gained the attention of individual investors taking their cues from social media forums. Clover Health Investments soared 85.8%. Other companies that have seen their stock values soar and fall sporadically include AMC Entertainment, Blackberry and GameStop.

Cryptocurrency traders appeared to be in a selling mood. Bitcoin and other popular digital currencies, including Ethereum and Dogecoin, all fell sharply, according to Coindesk. Bitcoin, which climbed above $60,000 early this year, slid 7% to $32,690.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 1.54% from 1.57% late Monday.