U.S. stocks higher at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 1.76%

Investing.com – U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Technology, Consumer Services and Industrials sectors led shares higher.

At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.76%, while the S&P 500 index gained 2.47%, and the NASDAQ Composite index added 3.33%.

The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL), which rose 4.08% or 5.86 points to trade at 149.64 at the close. Meanwhile, Boeing Co (NYSE:BA) added 3.52% or 4.50 points to end at 132.23 and Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) was up 3.51% or 3.71 points to 109.32 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Coca-Cola Co (NYSE:KO), which rose 0.59% or 0.38 points to trade at 64.68 at the close. Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE:VZ) added 0.80% or 0.41 points to end at 51.40 and Merck & Company Inc (NYSE:MRK) was up 0.83% or 0.77 points to 93.08.

The top performers on the S&P 500 were Ulta Beauty Inc (NASDAQ:ULTA) which rose 12.47% to 425.08, Autodesk Inc (NASDAQ:ADSK) which was up 10.31% to settle at 211.38 and Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA) which gained 8.73% to close at 147.66.

The worst performers were Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE:BMY) which was down 1.87% to 76.14 in late trade, CF Industries Holdings Inc (NYSE:CF) which lost 1.02% to settle at 95.72 and Philip Morris International Inc (NYSE:PM) which was down 1.02% to 106.97 at the close.

The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Avadel Pharmaceuticals PLC (NASDAQ:AVDL) which rose 133.64% to 2.50, Oncternal Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:ONCT) which was up 88.08% to settle at 1.54 and SIGA Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:SIGA) which gained 41.91% to close at 13.68.

The worst performers were Performance Shipping Inc (NASDAQ:PSHG) which was down 63.56% to 0.66 in late trade, Iovance Biotherapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:IOVA) which lost 53.57% to settle at 7.02 and SpringWorks Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SWTX) which was down 40.45% to 18.36 at the close.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 2756 to 435 and 74 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 3074 rose and 694 declined, while 169 ended unchanged.

Shares in Performance Shipping Inc (NASDAQ:PSHG) fell to 5-year lows; falling 63.56% or 1.16 to 0.66. Shares in Iovance Biotherapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:IOVA) fell to 3-years lows; losing 53.57% or 8.10 to 7.02. Shares in SIGA Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:SIGA) rose to 5-year highs; rising 41.91% or 4.04 to 13.68. Shares in SpringWorks Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SWTX) fell to 52-week lows; losing 40.45% or 12.47 to 18.36.

The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 6.47% to 25.72.

Gold Futures for June delivery was up 0.20% or 3.77 to $1,851.37 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in July rose 0.90% or 1.03 to hit $115.12 a barrel, while the August Brent oil contract rose 1.20% or 1.37 to trade at $115.54 a barrel.

EUR/USD was unchanged 0.05% to 1.07, while USD/JPY fell 0.02% to 127.11.

The US Dollar Index Futures was down 0.16% at 101.69.