Stock market today: Dow rises as banks, tech shine, but telecoms stifle gains

Investing.com -- The Dow closed higher Monday, led by tech and financials as investors looked ahead to more quarterly results from Wall Street banks and other major corporations later this week, though broader market gains were kept in check by a stumble in telecoms.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2%, or 76 points, the Nasdaq was up 0.9%, and the S&P 500 rose 0.3%.

Financials rally ahead of earnings from Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs

Financials rallied more than 1% as investors anticipate further signs of the strength in banks ahead of quarterly results from Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) and Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) due Tuesday and Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) due Wednesday.

Sentiment on major banks was boosted last week following better-than-expected quarterly results from JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) and Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC), though Citi was the odd one after its earnings fell short of analyst expectations.

UBS, however, warned against extrapolating the better-than-expected results to other banks, and expects “tougher results from regional banks.”

PNC Financial Services Group Inc (NYSE:PNC) and Western Alliance Bancorporation (NYSE:WAL), which are down sharply year-to-date, are slated to report earnings on Friday.

Apple, chips lead tech higher

A rise in Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) and semiconductor stocks including NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) pushed the broader tech sector more than 1% higher as AI-driven optimism ahead of tech earnings persists.

“We believe overall the tech sector will be up another 12%-15% in the second half of this year led by software and the chip sector with Big Tech remaining the "torch bearer" for this tech rally continuing to heat up,” Wedbush said in a note.

Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), meanwhile, traded just above the flatline even as its pending $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc (NASDAQ:ATVI) inched closer after the Federal Trade Commission lost its appeal to pause the deal.

Tesla gets Cybertruck production underway; Ford falters on price cut

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) was up more than 3% after starting production of its Cybertruck in Texas, with the EV maker expected to ship around 2,000 units this year, Deutsche Bank estimated.

The gains come just ahead of Tesla’s quarterly results due Wednesday, in which margins are likely to dominate attention following recent price cuts.

“The big focus on this print will be Auto GM (ex credits) to gauge the impact of the price cuts and what this means for margins going forward,” Wedbush said in a note.

Ford Motor (NYSE:F), meanwhile, fell more than 5% after cutting prices of its F-150 Lightning by up to $10,000 amid increased competition from Rivian Automotive Inc (NASDAQ:RIVN) and Tesla’s Cybertruck.

Paramount stumbles as latest 'Mission: Impossible' blockbuster falls short at box office; AT&T Gets Downgrade Call

Paramount Global's (NASDAQ:PARA) "Mission: Impossible” movie underperformed expectations at the box office, sending the entertainment company’s share more than 3% lower.

The latest installment in the Mission Impossible franchise racked in $56.2 million domestically over the weekend, below expectations of at least $60 million or more, which would have marked a new franchise record.

Telecoms giant AT&T (NYSE:T) fell 6% after Citi downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy on concerns that the firm and others face significant costs removing legacy copper cables - used for telephony and other related-purposes - that reportedly may pose a risk environment. AT&T, which some estimate may face costs of up to $59 million, was also downgraded to neutral from overweight by JPMorgan.

As the network of cables covered in toxic lead degrades, it "is ending up in places where Americans live, work and play," the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday, citing tests of samples from nearly 130 underwater-cable sites, conducted by several independent laboratories. Verizon (NYSE:VZ), Frontier Communications (NASDAQ:FYBR) and Lumen Technologies (NYSE:LUMN), which were all also mentioned in the report, were down heavily.