Nasdaq soars to all-time high; energy rallies
Stocks closed higher on Wall Street Monday, pushing the Nasdaq composite to an all-time high and helping the S&P 500 more than make up for its losses last week.
The Nasdaq gained 227.99 points, or 1.5%, to 14,942.65, eclipsing its last alltime high set early this month.
The S&P 500 rose 0.9%, after spending much of the day within striking distance of its own record high.
Technology, communication and financial stocks helped lift the S&P 500. Companies that rely on consumer spending also rose. Energy stocks rallied as the price of U.S. crude oil jumped 5.3%, recovering some of the ground it lost last week. Only utilities, household goods makers and real estate companies fell. Treasury yields were mixed.
Pfizer rose 2.5% after the Food & Drug Administration gave full approval to its COVID-19 vaccine. The vaccine had been under an emergency use authorization since December.
BioNTech, a German drug manufacturer which developed the vaccine with Pfizer, jumped 9.6% on the news. Moderna, which developed a vaccine that uses the same technology, vaulted 7.5%.
The prospects of more vaccinations and signs of some easing in the growth rate of coronavirus cases, helped put investors in a buying mood, said Sameer Samana, senior global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute.
Hopefully, the FDA approval “increases the uptake of the vaccine,” said Samana. The market’s gains “shouldn’t be viewed as anything other than a vaccine rally.”