What a busy, infrastructure-focused day in the stock market today. President Joe Biden made waves, a few penny stocks skyrocketed and investors are readying themselves for a trading holiday. So what else did the stock market do today? Dive in with InvestorPlace below.
To start, the major indices ended the day split. The S&P 500 gained 0.36%, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 1.54%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was not so lucky, shedding 0.26% on the day.
So what else did the stock market do today? Here are the top three stories.
What Did the Stock Market Do Today? Complain About Potholes.
Infrastructure really stole the show today.
President Joe Biden finally introduced his $2 trillion American Jobs Plan, and investors were paying very close attention. What would the bill fund? How will the country pay for it? And what stocks will benefit from the infrastructure plan?
Importantly, Biden goes beyond traditional infrastructure proposals, easing some concerns that emerged earlier this week. He lays out a plan to invest $174 billion in electric vehicles, with the end goal of making the United States an international leader in the space. This includes building a national charging network of 500,000 stations by 2030 and rolling out tax incentives to boost adoption. Biden also touches on solar and hydrogen power, with an emphasis on funding R&D.
Moving forward, we will still almost certainly see concerns of inflation and tax hikes rock the stock market. However, it is important that investors look ahead for opportunities to profit. As you digest the American Jobs Plan, these are 21 stocks you can keep on your watch list to benefit.
Wall Street Is Ready to Get Green
Wall Street wants to go green, and it appears lawmakers are finally getting on board.
On Wednesday, cannabis stocks were responding to several positive catalysts. First, investors learned that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer was getting ready to push for cannabis legalization in the Senate. Then, we learned that New York legalized recreational use, becoming the 15th state to do so.
Names like Sundial Growers (NASDAQ:SNDL), Tilray (NASDAQ:TLRY) and GrowGeneration (NASDAQ:GRWG) gained on the news.
So what should investors know about the news? It seems that cannabis stocks are stuck in limbo, waiting for more meaningful change at the federal level. News like that out of New York certainly helps — gradually spreading recreational use across the United States. However, many cannabis stocks rest on the idea of full legalization in the country. With Schumer and other senators leading the way, it seems investors are hopeful once again for a cannabis stocks boom.
Keep this news on your radar, and wait for more deals on the upcoming legislation.
Archegos Capital Meets r/WallStreetBets
Investors learned today that the Archegos Capital Management story is far from over.
After the investment firm defaulted on margin calls and forced its brokers to exit their positions via massive block sales, so-called Archegos Capital Management stocks have been in the spotlight. One reason is fairly simple. Late last week when news of the block sales first hit Wall Street, investors assumed the worst. Archegos held huge positions in Chinese tech firms like Baidu (NASDAQ:BIDU), as well as media plays like ViacomCBS (NASDAQ:VIAC). In the wake of delisting threats and worsening U.S.-China trade tensions, it seemed that the end was near for some of these equities.
Then, investors put together what happened, and everything calmed down. Bank stocks like Credit Suisse (NYSE:CS) were left to pick up the pieces and BIDU, Tencent Music Entertainment (NYSE:TME) and other stocks started to rebound.
Today, we saw that rebound to an extreme with Discovery (NASDAQ:DISCA, NASDAQ:DISCB). However, there was a twist. Archegos held Class A shares of Discovery stock. Those shares were basically flat on Wednesday, with Class B shares gaining more than 80%. So why the discrepancy?
As InvestorPlace contributor Chris MacDonald wrote, citing Zero Hedge, it appears that we are watching a new sort of short squeeze. Backed by the folks on r/WallStreetBets, retail traders rallied behind DISCB stock. It seems that after the Archegos drama, the Class B shares were just a better target for a short squeeze rally, and everyone wanted in.
While MacDonald encouraged investors to stay on the sidelines, some are hungry. Can Discovery really become the next GameStop (NYSE:GME)? Only time — and interest on r/WallStreetBets — will tell.
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.
