Nasdaq Rises 1.2% as Energy Sector Struggles
Relief rally discounting de-escalation in the Middle East continued on Wednesday, with investors sending the Nasdaq Composite up 1.2% and S&P 500 up 0.7 in the first trading day of the new quarter. Materials was once again among the best performing sectors on the benchmark, with State Street Materials Select Sector SPDR ETFnow up over 3% from Friday's lows following three sessions of gains. Energy, meanwhile, entered the new quarter as the worst performing sector on the day as WTI Crude Oil prices continued to fall, sliding back below $100 per barrel on diminishing geopolitical premium.Ahead of this evening's address by President Trump updating the nation on the cabinet's plans for Iran, equity futures are little changed, with S&P e-minis at 6,617 and Nasdaq 100 contract around 24,190. May WTI Crude Oil has also resumed quotation to the downside and below $99 while precious metals are advancing for the 5th consecutive session - Gold is above $4,820 and Silver is just shy of the $76 per ounce mark.Check out this evening's top movers from around Wall Street, compiled by The Fly.HIGHER AFTER EARNINGS -Franklin Coveyup 11.4%Penguin Solutionsup 10.7%ALSO HIGHER -Globalstarup 15.3% after FT reports Amazon.com is in talks to acquire companyWingstopup 1.8% after valuation-driven Piper Sandler upgrade to OverweightDOWN AFTER EARNINGS -Bassett Furniture Industriesdown 3.8%ALSO LOWER -Celldex Therapeuticsdown 5.3% after equity offeringAlto Neurosciencedown 3.0% after announcing ALTO-101 did not achieve statistical significance
