In what is becoming a bit of a theme, both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 once again broke through to record highs on Tuesday, and the former crossed the 15000 threshold for the first time in the index’s history.
The Dow rose 0.58% to close at 15056.20, the S&P 500 extended its rally with a 0.52% improvement to close at 1625.96, and the Nasdaq rose 0.11% to finish at 3396.63.
Software giant Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) saw its recent momentum come to a halt, shedding more than 1% after announcing it will work on a redesign of its Windows 8 operating system to make it easier to use. The software update is code named “Blue” and is expected to be ready for use by year end. MSFT had gained 26% year-to-date prior to Monday’s pullback.
On the earnings front, fashion accessory dealer Fossil (NASDAQ:FOSL, +9%) led the retail sector ahead after posting better-than-expected first quarter revenue and earnings. Other retailers headed higher Tuesday included Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF, +6.3%), Chico’s (NYSE:CHS, +5.4%) and Urban Outfitters (NASDAQ:URBN, +4.8%.
Shares of DirecTV (NASDAQ:DTV) rose more than 6% after reporting better-than-expected first-quarter revenues and earnings.
Headed the other way was solar power panel manufacturer First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR), which sank nearly 9% after missing Q1 earnings estimates, though it did report stronger revenues.
OfficeMax (NYSE:OMX) dropped just under 2% after it missed badly on its first-quarter earnings and guided analysts down on revenue and earnings for the year. The company also announced a special dividend of $1.50 per share payable on July 2.
Finally, entertainment giant Disney (NYSE:DIS) closed a deal with game software maker Electronic Arts (NASDAQ:EA) to co-develop Star Wars video games. Disney traded ahead just under 2% while EA moved up fractionally on the news.
AOL (NYSE:AOL), Groupon (NASDAQ:GRPN) and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (NASDAQ:GMCR) are among companies reporting Wednesday.
Three Up
- Arena Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:ARNA): Up 10.9% (82 cents) to $8.34.
- Himaz Technologies (NASDAQ:HIMX): Up 9.2% (55 cents) to $6.55.
- Zillow (NASDAQ:Z): Up 3.2% ($1.93) to $62.94.
Three Down
- Aruba Networks (NASDAQ:ARUN): Down 22.8% ($5.03) to $17.02.
- Tesla Motors (NASDAQ:TSLA): Down 6.7% ($3.99) to $55.51.
- BlackBerry (NASDAQ:BBRY): Down 4.8% (74 cents) to $14.83.
Marc Bastow is an Assistant Editor at InvestorPlace.com. As of this writing, he was long MSFT.