U.S. stocks higher at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.26%

Investing.com – U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Thursday, as gains in the Telecoms, Industrials and Healthcare sectors led shares higher.

At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.26% to hit a new 6-months high, while the S&P 500 index added 1.22%, and the NASDAQ Composite index climbed 1.15%.

The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), which rose 3.19% or 10.76 points to trade at 348.10 at the close. Meanwhile, Amgen Inc (NASDAQ:AMGN) added 2.77% or 6.16 points to end at 228.44 and Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE:VZ) was up 2.00% or 0.71 points to 36.45 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE), which fell 0.39% or 0.44 points to trade at 112.42 at the close. American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) declined 0.37% or 0.64 points to end at 173.83 and Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) was up 0.43% or 1.46 points to 339.88.

The top performers on the S&P 500 were Domino’s Pizza Inc (NYSE:DPZ) which rose 6.47% to 325.49, Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) which was up 4.39% to settle at 119.79 and CVS Health Corp (NYSE:CVS) which gained 4.28% to close at 69.50.

The worst performers were Warner Bros Discovery Inc (NASDAQ:WBD) which was down 3.95% to 13.13 in late trade, Monolithic Power Systems Inc (NASDAQ:MPWR) which lost 3.34% to settle at 519.28 and Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) which was down 3.31% to 163.49 at the close.

The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were EdtechX Holdings Acquisition Corp II (NASDAQ:EDTX) which rose 202.13% to 33.99, Scworx Corp (NASDAQ:WORX) which was up 70.70% to settle at 0.38 and Jeffs Brands Ltd Unit (NASDAQ:JFBR) which gained 40.45% to close at 1.09.

The worst performers were Top KingWin Ltd (NASDAQ:TCJH) which was down 75.27% to 2.30 in late trade, Mersana Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:MRSN) which lost 59.27% to settle at 3.89 and Bone Biologics Corp (NASDAQ:BBLG) which was down 58.27% to 1.64 at the close.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 2246 to 721 and 85 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 2266 rose and 1281 declined, while 144 ended unchanged.

Shares in Lennar Corporation (NYSE:LEN) rose to all time highs; rising 4.39% or 5.04 to 119.79. Shares in Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) rose to all time highs; up 3.19% or 10.76 to 348.10. Shares in EdtechX Holdings Acquisition Corp II (NASDAQ:EDTX) rose to all time highs; up 202.13% or 22.74 to 33.99. Shares in Top KingWin Ltd (NASDAQ:TCJH) fell to all time lows; down 75.27% or 7.00 to 2.30. Shares in Bone Biologics Corp (NASDAQ:BBLG) fell to all time lows; down 58.27% or 2.29 to 1.64.

The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was up 4.47% to 14.50.

Gold Futures for August delivery was up 0.07% or 1.45 to $1,970.35 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in July rose 3.38% or 2.31 to hit $70.58 a barrel, while the August Brent oil contract rose 3.36% or 2.46 to trade at $75.66 a barrel.

EUR/USD was up 1.06% to 1.09, while USD/JPY rose 0.14% to 140.28.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.77% at 101.74.