U.S. stocks higher at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.33%

Investing.com – U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Consumer Services, Basic Materials and Technology sectors led shares higher.

At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.33% to hit a new 1-month high, while the S&P 500 index climbed 0.40%, and the NASDAQ Composite index gained 0.71%.

The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were JPMorgan Chase&Co (NYSE:JPM), which rose 2.47% or 3.45 points to trade at 142.94 at the close. Meanwhile, Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) added 1.36% or 3.46 points to end at 258.53 and Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) was up 1.00% or 1.33 points to 134.74 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH), which fell 1.25% or 6.18 points to trade at 489.49 at the close. Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) declined 0.59% or 0.18 points to end at 30.11 and Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) was down 0.40% or 0.40 points to 99.42.

The top performers on the S&P 500 were Illumina Inc (NASDAQ:ILMN) which rose 3.80% to 201.11, Wells Fargo &Company (NYSE:WFC) which was up 3.25% to settle at 44.22 and Stanley Black&Decker Inc (NYSE:SWK) which gained 3.06% to close at 88.91.

The worst performers were Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) which was down 5.42% to 461.55 in late trade, Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) which lost 5.29% to settle at 12.72 and General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) which was down 4.77% to 36.50 at the close.

The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were iPower Inc (NASDAQ:IPW) which rose 51.45% to 0.76, Moxian Inc (NASDAQ:MOXC) which was up 47.52% to settle at 1.49 and SmileDirectClub Inc (NASDAQ:SDC) which gained 46.77% to close at 0.70.

The worst performers were Catalyst Biosciences Inc (NASDAQ:CBIO) which was down 32.69% to 0.26 in late trade, Bed Bath&Beyond Inc (NASDAQ:BBBY) which lost 30.15% to settle at 3.66 and AGBA Acquisition Ltd (NASDAQ:AGBA) which was down 21.52% to 4.12 at the close.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 1828 to 1167 and 103 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 2351 rose and 1326 declined, while 148 ended unchanged.

Shares in Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) rose to all time highs; up 1.36% or 3.46 to 258.53. Shares in Catalyst Biosciences Inc (NASDAQ:CBIO) fell to 5-year lows; falling 32.69% or 0.13 to 0.26.

The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 2.55% to 18.35 a new 52-week low.

Gold Futures for February delivery was up 1.25% or 23.70 to $1,922.50 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in February rose 2.03% or 1.59 to hit $79.98 a barrel, while the March Brent oil contract rose 1.64% or 1.38 to trade at $85.41 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.12% to 1.08, while USD/JPY fell 1.06% to 127.85.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.10% at 101.90.