S&P, Nasdaq rally to records ahead of Tesla earnings

Nasdaq books first record-high close since February

Stocks climbed to record highs Monday as investors prepared for Tesla's quarterly earnings report and the results from other mega-cap tech companies. 

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
I:DJI DOW JONES AVERAGES 52330.18 +147.44 +0.28%
SP500 S&P 500 7498.75 +58.32 +0.78%
I:COMP NASDAQ COMPOSITE INDEX 26190.532983 +370.39 +1.43%

The benchmark S&P 500 gained 0.18% and the Nasdaq Composite rallied 0.87% as both indexes finished at all-time highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, meanwhile, slipped 61 points, or 0.18%. 

While the S&P finished at record highs as early as last week, it was the Nasdaq's first record since February. 

The major averages received a lift after the Census Bureau said durable goods orders rose 0.5% in March, rebounding from a decline in the prior month. Excluding transportation, orders increased 1.6%, in line with forecasts. 

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
AAPL APPLE INC. 281.74 -2.04 -0.72%
AMZN AMAZON.COM INC. 240.14 +7.45 +3.20%
FB PROSHARES TRUST S&P 500 DYNAMIC BUFFER ETF 44.42 +0.51 +1.17%
GOOGL ALPHABET INC. 353.65 +16.26 +4.82%
MSFT MICROSOFT CORP. 368.57 -4.40 -1.18%

In stocks, tech giants Apple Inc., Amazon Inc., Facebook Inc. Alphabet Inc. and Microsoft Corp. will all release their quarterly results this week. But first, Tesla was expected to report a record quarterly profit after Monday's closing bell.

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
TSLA TESLA INC. 411.84 +32.13 +8.46%

A pause on Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine was lifted late Friday after U.S. regulators concluded the benefits outweigh the risks. The vaccine was paused earlier this month after six women out of more than 7 million who received the inoculation developed blot clots. 

Elsewhere, Moderna Inc.’s COVID-19 vaccine will be reviewed by World Health Organization experts on April 30 for possible emergency-use listing, Reuters reported, citing a WHO official. 

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
JNJ JOHNSON & JOHNSON 258.51 +3.85 +1.51%
MRNA MODERNA INC. 69.70 +2.43 +3.61%

Good news on COVID-19 helped lift travel-related names including American Airlines Group Inc., Carnival Corp. and Hilton Hotels Corp. 

Ticker Security Last Change Change %
AAL AMERICAN AIRLINES GROUP INC. 17.92 +0.05 +0.28%
CCL CARNIVAL CORP. LTD. 29.19 +0.12 +0.41%
HLT HILTON WORLDWIDE HOLDINGS INC. 332.54 -0.32 -0.10%

In commodities, West Texas Intermediate crude oil lost 23 cents to $61.91 per barrel and gold edged up $2.20 to $1,779.20 an ounce.  

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Overseas markets were mixed. 

European markets reversed early losses with Britain’s FTSE 100 rallying 0.35%, France’s CAC 40 rising 0.28% and Germany's DAX 30 ticking up 0.11%. 

In Asia, China’s Shanghai Composite fell 0.95%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index slid 0.43% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 advanced 0.36%.