Stocks Fall as Gold Retreats From Record; Bitcoin Tops $41K

Equity Indexes Wrap: Tech Mega Caps Weigh on S&P 500, Nasdaq; Cruise, Consumer Stocks Advance

1 hr 8 min ago

The Dow

Shares of 3M (MMM) rose 3.6% following an upgrade from analysts at Barclay’s. 

Health stock outperformed the broader market today, rising 0.2% as a sector. Merck & Co (MRK) gained 1.6%, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) climbed 0.3%, and UnitedHealth Group (UNH) rose 0.2%.

Nike (NKE) rose 1.5%, continuing to rebound after falling to a nearly 1-year low in late September. 

Salesforce (CRM), which gained nearly 16% last week, slipped 3.6% to lead the Dow lower. It was followed by tech peers Intel (INTC), down 3.2%, and Microsoft (MSFT), down 1.4%.

The S&P 500

Bath & Body Works (BBWI) led the S&P 500, gaining 8.9% as investors upped their bets for a strong holiday shopping season. Several other small- and mid-cap consumer stocks outperformed Monday, including Estée Lauder (EL), which rose 5.3%, and VF Corp (VFC), up 3.9%. Ulta Beauty (ULTA) rose 3.1%, adding to last week’s gains on its earnings report. 

Cruise stocks got a boost from a report suggesting cruise lines could see record bookings next year as consumers continue to splurge on travel. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH) rose 6.6%, Carnival Corp. (CCL) gained 3.7%, and Royal Caribbean (RCL) climbed 3.2%.

Alaska Air Group (ALK) sank 14.2% after it said it would buy Hawaiian Airlines (HA) for $1.9 billion. It was also removed from the S&P 500, booted by Uber (UBER), which gained 2.2%.

Albermarle (ALB), the world’s largest lithium miner, fell 4.9%. Shares have fallen 44% this year amid slumping lithium prices. 

Ansys (ANSS) shares fell 2.7% after the software company said its chief financial officer Nicole Anasenes would depart next year. 

The Nasdaq 100

Shares of IDEXX Laboratories (IDXX) gained 7.1% to lead the index. 

Comcast (CMCSA) gained 2% after it said its Peacock streaming service hit 30 million subscribers, and it received $8.6 billion from Disney in exchange for its 33% stake in Hulu. 

Tech mega caps led the index lower. Nvidia (NVDA) fell 2.7%, Alphabet (GOOGL) sank 2%, Amazon (AMZN) lost 1.5%, and Meta (META) slipped 1.5%.

Chip stocks also lagged the market—Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) fell 2.3%, GlobalFoundries (GFS) slipped 2.2%, and Micron (MU) lost 2.1%.

Uber Shares Rise Ahead of S&P 500 Addition

2 hr 36 min ago

Shares of Uber Technologies Inc. (UBER) gained Monday after it was selected to enter the S&P 500. 

Uber will join the index on Dec. 18 alongside Jabil Inc. (JBL), an electronics manufacturer, and Builders FirstSource (BLDR), the homebuilder supplier. The three companies will replace Sealed Air Corp. (SEE), Alaska Air Group (ALK), and SolarEdge Technologies (SEDG), which will all be moved to the S&P SmallCap 600. 

Uber shares were up more than 3% Monday afternoon, while Jabil and Builders lost about 1% each. 

Stocks often advance when they’re added to a major index like the S&P 500—an outcome sometimes known as the S&P Phenomenon—in part because any fund that tracks the index needs to buy the added company’s shares. The stock could also benefit from greater name recognition or the legitimacy that being included in the S&P 500 may confer. 

Virgin Galactic Shares Crater After Richard Branson Tells Company To Fly Solo

2 hr 57 min ago

Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. (SPCE) shares took a nosedive Monday, falling more than 15% after founder Richard Branson said in an interview that he wouldn’t be investing more money in the space-flight company.

“Virgin Galactic has got $1 billion, or nearly,” Branson told the Financial Times in a story published Saturday. “It should, I believe, have sufficient funds to do its job on its own.”

Although Virgin Galactic has said it has sufficient cash on hand to carry the company to 2026, some analysts anticipate the need for a cash infusion by mid-2025, the Financial Times said.

-Vivian Medithi

Spotify Shares Surge as It Cuts 17% of Its Workforce to Contain Costs

3 hr 59 min ago

Spotify Technology (SPOT) shares soared over 7% Monday as the streaming music service slashed its workforce in its latest effort to cut costs.

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek wrote in a letter to employees that the cuts would reduce headcount by about 17%, or roughly 1,500 employees. Ek explained that the move was needed because economic growth ”has slowed dramatically and capital has become more expensive.”

This is the third layoff for the company this year. Spotify eliminated some 600 workers in January, and approximately 200 in June.

The news sent shares of Spotify Technology to their highest level in almost two years.

-Bill McColl

Midday Movers

4 hr 46 min ago

GameStop Corp. (GME): Shares of the video game retailer jumped about 10% ahead of its quarterly earnings report on Wednesday. Other meme stocks traded higher Monday, including Carvana (CVNA)—up 13%—and AMC Entertainment (AMC)—up 4%.

Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC): Shares of the IT services company rose 9% to an all-time high after reporting better-than-expected third-quarter earnings and raising its full-year forecast. 

Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings (NCLH): Shares rose 5% following a report suggesting cruise lines could see record bookings next year. Other cruise operators like Carnival Corp. (CCL) and Royal Caribbean Group (RCL) also gained. 

3M Co. (MMM): Shares of the industrial conglomerate rose more than 2% after analysts at Barclay’s upgraded the stock to equal weight from underweight, citing improving margins and electronics demand. 

Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. (SPCE): Shares of the space tourism company fell nearly 15% after founder Richard Branson said he had no plans to invest more of his own money in the company, saying it had sufficient funds of its own. 

Bitcoin Jumps Above $41,000 as Crypto Winter Thaws

5 hr 27 min ago

Bitcoin rose more than 4% Monday to trade at its highest level since the onset of last year’s crypto winter.

Bitcoin traded above $41,000 for the first time since April 2022, right before the TerraUSD algorithmic stablecoin became unpegged from the U.S. dollar, shaking investor faith in the fledgling crypto market and sending asset values tumbling. Between mid-April and mid-May, Bitcoin fell from around $42,000 to about $28,500. By November of last year, when the market bottomed, Bitcoin had lost more than three-quarters of its peak value and traded around $15,500. 

Bitcoin has steadily ticked up since then, boosted by anticipation of a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF). Bitcoin first got a boost in March when Grayscale fought the Securities and Exchange Commission in court over its rejected proposal to convert its Bitcoin trust into an ETF. Then in June, BlackRock gave crypto markets a jolt when it applied for its own Bitcoin ETF. In the last two months, Bitcoin has soared as investors have ramped up bets that the SEC is all but guaranteed to approve an ETF in the coming months.

Alaska Airlines Shares Drop, Hawaiian Airlines Soars on $1.9B Merger

6 hr 15 min ago

Alaska Air Group (ALK) shares fell 15% while shares of Hawaiian Holdings (HA) nearly tripled Monday after Alaska Air Group said it would buy Hawaiian Holdings for $1.9 billion.

At $18 per share, Alaska Air is paying almost four times Hawaiian’s closing price on Friday. Facing the impact of the Maui wildfires, soaring fuel costs, and jet engine recall issues, the embattled Hawaiian airline’s stock price has lost over half its value this year.

According to Alaska Airlines, the merger is expected to generate at least $235 million in “run-rate synergies,” leading to enhanced earnings within the next two years.

The deal is expected to be finalized within 12 to 18 months, contingent upon approval from regulators and Hawaiian’s shareholders. However, the deal could face resistance from U.S. antitrust regulators in a sector that is witnessing its second major merger in less than two years.

-Fatima Attarwala

Gold Jumps to Record High Amid Central Bank Buying, Search for Safe Havens, and Bets on Rate Cuts

7 hr 9 min ago

Gold futures jumped to a record high of nearly $2,150 when markets opened Sunday evening before pulling back slightly Monday morning. 

Despite Monday’s decline, gold remained comfortably above $2,000 an ounce, a price rarely seen before this year. Part of the reason for the record prices: central banks are stocking up. Central banks bought more gold in the first nine months of 2023 than they did in all but one full year since 2010. That puts them on pace to break the record set last year when banks accumulated more than 1,080 tonnes.

The precious metal has risen steadily since early October when Hamas attacked Israel, sending investors in search of safe-haven assets amid concerns about a regional conflict. 

On top of geopolitical risks, prices have also been buoyed by expectations of interest rate cuts next year. High interest rates can temper demand for gold, which is seen as a reliable store of value but, unlike U.S. Treasury bonds, does not pay interest.

Gold, which is priced in U.S. dollars, has also been supported by a weakening dollar. A weak dollar makes gold less expensive for international buyers. 

Stocks Making the Biggest Moves Premarket

8 hr 9 min ago

Gains:

• Coinbase Global (COIN): Shares of the cryptocurrency exchange jumped about 9% as the price of Bitcoin surged above $41,000 for the first time in nearly 2 years. 
• Spotify Technology S.A. (SPOT): Shares of the music streaming service rose more than 6% after it said it would cut 17% of jobs in its third round of layoffs this year.
• Uber Technologies Inc. (UBER): Shares rose 4% after it was announced late last week that the ride-hailing company would join the S&P 500 effective Dec. 18. 

Losses:

• Alaska Air Group Inc. (ALK): Shares of the airline fell 13% after it said…