Stocks End Higher after Mixed Jobs Report
The U.S. equity market finished higher for a second consecutive day. All three major indexes ended the day in green. Stocks finished higher, despite a mixed jobs report for the month of January. The January jobs report released by the Labor Department showed that the U.S. economy added only 36,000 jobs in the month of January, which was lower than economists’ forecast. However, the unemployment rate dropped unexpectedly from 9.4% in December to 9% in January.
The Dow Jones ended the day 0.25% higher at 12,092.15, the S&P 500 ended the day 0.29% higher at 1,310.87, and the Nasdaq ended the day 0.56% higher at 2,769.30.
The gains in the equity market were led by Technology stocks, which ended the day 0.64% higher, followed by Consumer Cyclical stocks, which ended the day 0.55% higher. Energy stocks were the worst performers in the S&P 500 today, finishing the day 0.61% lower.
JDS Uniphase Corp. (NASDAQ: JDSU) shares soared after the company announced its second-quarter financial results. The Milpitas, California-based company swung to profit in the second quarter. Shares of JDS Uniphase ended the day 26.92% higher at $22.76, after touching a 52-week high of $22.88.
Aetna Inc. (NYSE: AET) shares also soared after the company announced its fourth-quarter financial results. Shares of the Hartford, Connecticut-based company ended the day 12.47% higher at $37.42. The stock touched a 52-week high of $38.10 today.
Tyson Foods Inc. (NYSE: TSN) shares also rallied after the company announced its first-quarter financial results. Shares of the Springdale, Arizona-based company ended the day 5.69% higher at $18.56.
Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE: LVS) shares plunged in trading after the company announced weaker than expected fourth-quarter revenue. Las Vegas Sands reported fourth-quarter revenue of $2.02 billion, which is a significant increase over the same period in 2009. However, the company’s fourth-quarter revenue fell below analysts’ estimate of $2.07 billion, pushing the stock lower. Shares of the casino operator ended the day 8.45% lower at $46.03.
Power-One Inc. (NASDAQ: PWER) shares also plunged in trading today after company provided weaker than expected first-quarter revenue guidance. The company also announced its fourth-quarter financial results. Shares of Power-One ended the day 21.19% lower $9.26.
