What a long week. Investors watched risk sentiment shift, tech stocks recover and the major indices hit new highs. They also saw $1.9 trillion hit the economy. So what did the stock market do today to end the week? Dive in with InvestorPlace below.
Importantly, the S&P 500 closed higher by 0.1% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed higher by 0.9%. The Nasdaq Composite, which has been under pressure, dipped to close lower by 0.59%.
So what else did the stock market do today? Here are some of the top stories.
What Did the Stock Market Do Today? Get Vaccinated.
OK, maybe the entire stock market did not receive Covid-19 vaccines today.
However, the latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that 35 million people in the United States are now fully vaccinated. This accounts for just over 13% of the adult population, and comes as more than 100 million doses have been administered. Right now, at least 65.9 million people have received at least one shot of two-shot regiments.
This is a reason for hope, especially as President Joe Biden eyes July 4 for a more normal United States. It also continues to create a bullish case for key players like Pfizer (NYSE:PFE), Moderna (NASDAQ:MRNA) and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ). Now, investors just need to wait and see how their big bets on Ocugen (NASDAQ:OCGN) and Novavax (NASDAQ:NVAX) will play out.
EV Stocks Stall Out
A shift in risk sentiment was just starting to give electric vehicle stocks a boost.
Now, that rebound rally could be in jeopardy, as Esha Dey wrote for Bloomberg. A bunch of bad news from leading electric vehicle names could be enough to shake confidence, at least temporarily, in the entire group. So what happened?
Perhaps the biggest blow fell on Lordstown Motors (NASDAQ:RIDE) today. The EV startup has been promising to bring its all-electric pickup Endurance to the markets. This truck stands to electrify commercial and municipal fleets, and RIDE stock has truly been riding that enthusiasm. Hindenburg Research is not so sure about Lordstown. In its latest short report, the firm claimed that Lordstown has faced production delays over its preorder model. Hindenburg also says that the company has misled investors about its overall capabilities. Workhorse (NASDAQ:WKHS), which has a stake in Lordstown, also closed down.
Other bad news hit ChargePoint (NYSE:CHPT), the popular EV charging play. The company shared its fourth-quarter results and investors were not thrilled. Q4 revenue was $42.4 million, down slightly year over year. Full-year revenue of $146.5 million represented slight growth from $144.5 million in the prior year.
What should investors do with these once high-flying names? Is it time to panic and sell out of EV stocks? No. In fact, experts seem to agree that electric vehicles will take over our roads and transportation as we know it. Right now we are just in the first innings of that transformation, and Wall Street is looking for the winners.
Winners, Losers, Honorable Mentions
Winners: President Joe Biden was a big winner in the stock market this week. He signed the American Rescue Plan into law and outlined bold plans to juice the Covid-19 vaccine rollout. As a result of the stimulus bill and the economic boost it will bring, we saw the equity selloff ease. While inflation concerns are far from gone, hopefully the start of the new week will be bright. Other winners? IPOs Roblox (NYSE:RBLX) and Coupang (NYSE:CPNG) that shot higher this week.
Losers: Losers this week include gun stocks like AMMO (NASDAQ:POWW), as lawmakers in the House of Representatives passed two bills focused on gun control.
Honorable mention: Taco Bell takes home the honorable mention this week. The brand rushed into the non-fungible token craze this week with taco-themed gifs and images. Although it did not compete with a $69 million sale from Beeple, it showed the NFT potential for brands. It also reminded me that my cravings for cheap tacos did not go away after college. You can read more about the Taco Bell NFTs here, and more about the frenzy in general with our ultimate guide.
On the date of publication, Sarah Smith did not have (either directly or indirectly) any positions in the securities mentioned in this article.
Sarah Smith is a Web Content Producer with InvestorPlace.com.
