Fundamental analysis
29 January, 2021
U.S. stocks closed higher on Thursday, bouncing from sharp losses in the prior session, thanks to a broad rally as earnings season got off to a strong start and fears lessened around hedge funds selling long positions to cover shorts. Heavyweights, including Microsoft Corp, Amazon.com and Alphabet Inc, were among the biggest boosts to the S&P 500, a day after the three major U.S. indexes suffered their biggest daily percentage drop in three months. Apple reported holiday-quarter sales and profit that beat Wall Street expectations. However, shares of the iPhone maker fell 3.50% after climbing about 7% to start the year. With quarterly earnings season in full swing, market participants have looked to whether companies could justify high valuations, with the forward price-to-earnings ratio on the benchmark S&P index near 20-year highs. Fourth Quarter GDP in the United States came in at 4.0%, as expected. Initial Jobless Claims for the past week were 847,000, below the analysts’ forecast of 875,000.
