The market was quiet as investors’ kickoff the summer with the 3-day Memorial Day weekend. The S&P 500 was off less than one point and the Dow was slightly higher. European equities were lower overnight to finish with one of their worst weekly efforts in quite some time. European stocks were lower by close to 2% for the week.
Financials were mixed on the day. Large money center banks/investment banks were higher and REIT’s traded lower. REIT’s saw profit taking this week on the fear of higher interest rates coming in the future. REIT’s also began the week near all-time highs, so profit taking was not a surprise in this volatile week of trading.
Large Cap standards, Microsoft and Apple, traded higher today to bolster the tech sector. The sector has been led this year by semiconductors. This week semi’s sold off on the lack of news associated with the area and profit taking. Software name Salesforce.com sold off sharply after earnings failed to exceed expectations. Other software names sold off in sympathy.
Aerospace/defense names continued to be the strongest area of the industrial sector. There were several positive analyst comments on the space this week. There continues to be heavy spending on defense and aerospace related projects globally.
Durable goods orders for April came in at 3.3% after declining 5.9% in in March. The consensus estimate was for an increase of 1.6%. Transportation was the strongest area in the monthly data. Transportation spending increased 8.1% for the month.
Source: PFS Group
