Today’s Market Wrap Up and a Glimpse Into Tuesday

The S&P 500 notched another all-time high today as stocks extended Friday’s gains. Tesla was a big winner as CEO Elon Musk took the spotlight. Investors are also optimistic about the second-quarter earnings season, which will feature a couple of big banks on Tuesday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average tacked on more than 100 points in the session, closing just below the 35,000 threshold, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq was fractionally higher.

Stocks to Watch

Financial stocks JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs will both report their quarterly results on Tuesday before the bell. Investors sent both stocks higher on Monday, with JPMorgan and Goldman up more than 1% and 2%, respectively. Banks have been flexing their strong balance sheets this year and the second quarter is unlikely to be any different.

Disney was a big gainer on the day, advancing by 4%. Investors cheered the fact that the company will raise the price for ESPN+ monthly subscriptions by USD 1 to USD 6.99, effective in August. The price increase bolsters the annual subscription rate to USD 69.99 while the price for the bundle that includes ESPN+, Disney + and Hulu will stay the same. Disney’s ESPN+ boasts nearly 14 million subscribers.

Tesla similarly gained more than 4% in the trading session. Elon Musk was in court to stick up for the electric vehicle company’s decision to scoop up SolarCity in a USD 2.6 billion deal half-a-decade ago. Shareholders allege in a lawsuit that the deal was a bailout of the solar company, which Musk vehemently denies. If things don’t go Musk’s way in court, he could be on the hook for USD 2 billion.

Virgin Galactic on Sunday had a successful spaceflight with founder Richard Branson on board, but the stock took it on the chin today. The company revealed its plans to issue as much as USD 500 million in stock, which sent shares tumbling more than 17% to barely holding onto USD 40.

Look Ahead

If anything can cause the stock market rally to stumble, it could be further signs of inflation. That’s why investors will be paying close attention to the Consumer Price Index data for June that will be released on Tuesday morning. Wells Fargo is predicting a 0.6% increase.

On the earnings front, in addition to financial stocks, consumer staple company PepsiCo will also be reporting second-quarter earnings on Tuesday.