U.S. equities closed higher on Wednesday, with sector strength in Oil & Gas, Basic Materials and Technology underpinning gains across the major indexes.
At the New York Stock Exchange close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.26%. The broader S&P 500 increased 0.56%, while the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.78% by the end of the session.
Notable movers on the Dow
On the Dow Jones Industrial Average, Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) was the top performer, rising 1.93% - an increase of 17.69 points - to finish at 933.73. Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM) added 1.88% or 3.46 points to close at 187.75. Chevron Corp (NYSE:CVX) also contributed to the index's gains, moving up 1.82% or 3.29 points to end the day at 183.84.
Not every Dow component participated in the rally. Boeing Co (NYSE:BA) slipped 2.09% - down 5.11 points - to 238.93 at the close. 3M Company (NYSE:MMM) retreated 2.06% or 3.45 points to 164.17, and Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE:VZ) fell 1.81% or 0.89 points to finish at 48.05.
Sizable gains and declines in the S&P 500
Within the S&P 500, a number of individual stocks recorded large moves. Global Payments Inc (NYSE:GPN) led gainers, rising 16.47% to 81.26. Caesars Entertainment Corporation (NASDAQ:CZR) climbed 13.03% to settle at 21.42, and Garmin Ltd (NYSE:GRMN) added 9.44% to close at 237.46.
On the downside, Palo Alto Networks Inc (NASDAQ:PANW) fell 6.82% to 152.35 in late trade. Crown Castle International Corp (NYSE:CCI) lost 4.82% to finish at 87.43, and Genuine Parts Co (NYSE:GPC) declined 3.84% to 120.91 at the close.
Extremes on the Nasdaq Composite
The Nasdaq saw some extraordinary single-stock percentage moves. Rackspace Technology Inc (NASDAQ:RXT) surged 226.97% to 1.37. Sensei Biotherapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SNSE) rose 187.51% to settle at 26.25, while Cardio Diagnostics Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:CDIO) gained 78.99% to close at 2.13.
Conversely, several small-cap names recorded steep declines. JIA DA CORP (NASDAQ:JDZG) plunged 67.53% to 0.23 in late trade, STRATA Skin Sciences Inc (NASDAQ:SSKN) dropped 39.99% to 0.19, and OLB Group Inc (NASDAQ:OLB) lost 37.63% to finish at 0.92.
Market breadth and technical markers
On the NYSE, advancing issues outnumbered decliners, 1567 to 1173, with 81 stocks unchanged. On the Nasdaq, 1865 issues rose, 1459 fell and 214 ended unchanged.
Several stocks hit notable price thresholds during the session. Palo Alto Networks Inc (NASDAQ:PANW) fell to 52-week lows, losing 6.82% or 11.15 to close at 152.35. JIA DA CORP (NASDAQ:JDZG) moved to all-time lows, down 67.53% or 0.49 to 0.23. Sensei Biotherapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SNSE) reached a 52-week high after rising 187.51% or 17.12 to 26.25. STRATA Skin Sciences Inc (NASDAQ:SSKN) fell to all-time lows, down 39.99% or 0.13 to 0.19.
Volatility, commodities and currencies
The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, declined 3.30% to 19.62.
In commodities trading, Gold Futures for April delivery rose 1.95% or 95.79 to $5,001.69 a troy ounce. Crude oil for April delivery advanced 4.14% or 2.58 to $64.84 a barrel, while the April Brent oil contract increased 3.98% or 2.68 to trade at $70.10 a barrel.
In currency markets, EUR/USD fell 0.57% to 1.18 and USD/JPY climbed 0.93% to 154.82. The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.58% at 97.63.
Investment product note included in the session commentary
The session commentary also included a promotional note about an AI-driven stock selection product, stating that Investing.com's ProPicks AI features multiple global portfolios and highlighting year-to-date performance metrics for those strategies as presented in the session materials. The note described the Tech Titans strategy's historical outperformance relative to the S&P 500 and listed specific past winners as examples within that product description.
What this session shows
The market closed broadly higher with leadership from energy, basic materials and technology, while individual names across the S&P 500 and Nasdaq produced sharp gains and losses. Breadth favored advancers on both major exchanges, and volatility as measured by the VIX eased. Commodities and the dollar also moved notably during the trading day.