U.S. stocks higher at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.40%

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

At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.40% to hit a new all time high, while the S&P 500 index gained 0.82%, and the NASDAQ Composite index gained 0.95%.

The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), which rose 2.11% or 8.56 points to trade at 414.05 at the close. Meanwhile, Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) added 1.82% or 6.49 points to end at 362.75 and UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) was up 1.72% or 8.80 points to 519.47 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Amgen Inc (NASDAQ:AMGN), which fell 6.39% or 20.20 points to trade at 295.87 at the close. Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE:VZ) declined 1.64% or 0.68 points to end at 40.42 and Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (NASDAQ:WBA) was down 1.30% or 0.30 points to 22.81.

The top performers on the S&P 500 were Enphase Energy Inc (NASDAQ:ENPH) which rose 16.91% to 117.51, Emerson Electric Company (NYSE:EMR) which was up 10.45% to settle at 104.11 and Generac Holdings Inc (NYSE:GNRC) which gained 7.20% to close at 125.80.

The worst performers were VF Corporation (NYSE:VFC) which was down 9.71% to 15.30 in late trade, Paramount Global Class B (NASDAQ:PARA) which lost 8.15% to settle at 12.85 and Fox Corp Class A (NASDAQ:FOXA) which was down 6.80% to 29.47 at the close.

The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were MicroCloud Hologram Inc (NASDAQ:HOLO) which rose 1,000.00% to 18.00, SMX Security Matters Ord Shs Class A (NASDAQ:SMX) which was up 72.34% to settle at 0.40 and Hitek Global (NASDAQ:HKIT) which gained 60.59% to close at 1.14.

The worst performers were NanoString Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:NSTG) which was down 41.98% to 0.05 in late trade, Phoenix Biotech Acquisition Corp (NASDAQ:PBAX) which lost 41.61% to settle at 7.03 and Sunworks Inc (NASDAQ:SUNW) which was down 35.63% to 0.06 at the close.

Falling stocks outnumbered advancing ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 1447 to 1412 and 69 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 2089 fell and 1352 advanced, while 104 ended unchanged.

Shares in Emerson Electric Company (NYSE:EMR) rose to 52-week highs; up 10.45% or 9.85 to 104.11. Shares in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) rose to all time highs; up 2.11% or 8.56 to 414.05. Shares in Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) rose to 52-week highs; rising 1.82% or 6.49 to 362.75. Shares in NanoString Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:NSTG) fell to all time lows; falling 41.98% or 0.04 to 0.05. Shares in Phoenix Biotech Acquisition Corp (NASDAQ:PBAX) fell to all time lows; falling 41.61% or 5.01 to 7.03. Shares in Sunworks Inc (NASDAQ:SUNW) fell to all time lows; down 35.63% or 0.03 to 0.06.

The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 1.76% to 12.83.

Gold Futures for April delivery was down 0.09% or 1.75 to $2,049.65 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in March rose 1.02% or 0.75 to hit $74.06 a barrel, while the April Brent oil contract rose 0.97% or 0.76 to trade at $79.35 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.17% to 1.08, while USD/JPY rose 0.17% to 148.19.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.15% at 103.92.