S&P 500, Nasdaq end up with Nvidia; Walmart jumps after forecast

By Caroline Valetkevitch

NEW YORK (Reuters) -The Nasdaq and S&P 500 ended higher on Tuesday, led by a jump in technology shares as investors eagerly awaited results this week from Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA ), while Walmart (NYSE:WMT ) shares climbed after the retailer raised its annual forecasts.

The Dow edged lower.

All three major indexes started the day lower, with the benchmark index dropping as much as 0.64% after Russian President Vladimir Putin lowered the threshold for a nuclear strike in response to a broader range of conventional attacks earlier in the day, and Moscow said Ukraine had struck deep inside Russia with U.S.-made long-range missiles.

Stocks pared losses as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow will do everything possible to prevent a nuclear war.

Nvidia, which will report quarterly results after the bell on Wednesday, climbed and was the biggest positive on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. Technology led gains among S&P 500 sectors.

Other megacap stocks also rose, including Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN ).

"The biggest takeaway today is caution around what's going on in Ukraine. Largely investors are hiding out in some of the megacap names, which is a little bit surprising ahead of Nvidia earnings, but they are highly liquid," said Timothy Chubb (NYSE:CB ), chief investment officer at Girard, a Univest Wealth Division.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 120.66 points, or 0.28%, to 43,268.94, the S&P 500 gained 23.35 points, or 0.40%, to 5,916.97 and the Nasdaq Composite added 195.66 points, or 1.04%, to 18,987.47.

Walmart shares hit a record intraday high after the retailer raised its annual sales and profit forecasts for the third consecutive time.

"Walmart came in and delivered optimistic guidance," said Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist, LPL Financial (NASDAQ:LPLA ) in Charlotte, North Carolina.

"One of the components that was important for the market was that it said more of their customers are going in and purchasing items in the higher margin categories, which is something that has been watched."

Super Micro Computer (NASDAQ:SMCI ) jumped after the artificial intelligence server maker named BDO USA as its auditor and said it has submitted a plan to the Nasdaq to avoid delisting.

Shares of Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX ) also rose after the streaming media company said 108 million people watched a boxing match between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson.

Adding to optimism, Goldman Sachs strategists forecast the S&P 500 would reach 6,500 by the end of 2025.



Investors are also awaiting key cabinet appointments for President-elect Donald Trump's administration.

Trump said on Tuesday he will nominate Wall Street CEO Howard Lutnick to serve as commerce secretary.

Source: Investing.com