Stock Market Extends Year-End Rally As S&P 500 Marks Record Closing High; Nvidia Jumps

The Nasdaq composite and S&P 500 extended their winning streaks to four sessions in the stock market Tuesday. Nvidia (NVDA) made a bullish technical move, while mining and metal stocks did much of the heavy lifting in the MarketSurge Growth 250.

The Nasdaq composite led the way, rising 0.6%, and the S&P 500 wasn’t far behind with a gain of 0.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged higher by nearly 0.2%, but small caps sat out the rally, with the Russell down 0.7%.

Volume rose slightly on the Nasdaq and fell on the NYSE. Breadth was nothing to write home about, with declining stocks beating advancers on both exchanges by less than 2 to 1.

Stock Market Today: Nvidia Strengthens

Nvidia (NVDA) was a top gainer in the Nasdaq-100 index, up 3%. Nvidia moved decisively above its 50-day moving average, as well as its recent high of 188. The AI chip leader is still building a base, but Tuesday’s strength raises the probability of a run back toward the 200 level and ultimately, its all-time high of 212.19.

Leaderboard stock Alphabet (GOOGL) and Amazon.com (AMZN) also outperformed in the Nasdaq-100, with gains of around 1.5%.

Before the open, a government shutdown-delayed reading on third-quarter GDP came in much stronger than expected at 4.3%. That was much higher than the consensus estimate of 3.2%. Consumer spending increased 3.5% in the third quarter, up from 2.5% in the second quarter. Inflation picked up slightly in the third quarter, with core personal consumption expenditures up 2.9% vs. 2.6% in the second quarter.

As the year winds down, the major stock indexes have recovered well from the Dec. 17 distribution day that sent the S&P 500 sharply below its 50-day line.

The Nasdaq currently shows five distribution days, but only two of those days had the feel of true institutional selling: One was on Dec. 12, when the index fell 1.7% in higher volume; the other was on Dec. 17, when the index swooned 1.8% in higher volume.

Meanwhile, the Nov. 17 distribution day for the S&P 500 fell off the count today because enough time has passed – 25 days – to reduce its relevance.

Copper producer Freeport-McMoRan (FCX) was a top gainer in the S&P 500, up around 2.5%. The stock is on track for its fifth straight weekly price gain after soaring more than 23% in the prior four weeks.

Freeport was a top gainer in IBD’s Mining-Metal Ores industry group, along with Teck Resources (TECK), which jumped 3.5%. Teck shares are in the early stages of breaking out over a 46.46 buy point.

Nutex Lags, Alphatec Leads

After a three-session rally, the Innovator IBD 50 exchange-traded fund (FFTY) moved in a tight range but still lagged major indexes with its 0.9% decline. The ETF was weighed down by a sharp drop for thinly traded hospital operator Nutex Health (NUTX). Shares slumped nearly 7%, but the stock’s uptrend remains intact, with the stock holding above the 21-day line.

As usual, though, the IBD 50 offered up plenty of bright spots. Comfort Systems (FIX) rallied more than 1.5%. While price action has been a bit wide and loose in recent weeks, the stock showed bullish support last week when options expired. The company sells cooling systems for data centers.

Alphatec (ATEC) also outperformed in the IBD 50, up more than 1%. The company is an innovator in spine surgery, developing implants and instruments for spinal disorders. After a breakout from a cup base in late October, fueled by a strong earnings report, Alphatec is currently finding support at its 10-week line for the first time.

IBD’s growth screens continue to yield some decent prospects, but also a fair number of stocks that have already moved a lot. As always, avoid the pitfall of chasing extended names, or ones that have moved a lot already. Instead, focus on stocks that are just coming out of bases with relative strength lines that are near highs.

IBD’s solar group was one of the weakest performers, down more than 4%, primarily due to a 5% drop in First Solar (FSLR). First Solar’s weakness comes one day after the stock broke out from a flat base in heavy volume.

View General Market Indicators chart page here.

Follow Ken Shreve on X @IBD_KShreve for more stock market analysis and insight.

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