S&P 500 Hits All-Time Highs On Christmas Eve, VIX Drops To One-Year Low: What's Moving Markets Wednesday?
Wall Street delivered the kind of Christmas present investors had been hoping for, as the S&P 500 set fresh records while a key measure of market anxiety fell to its lowest level in more than a year.
The S&P 500 climbed past 6,920 points in a shortened session ahead of the Christmas market closure, edging up 0.2% and lifting its year-to-date gains to 17%.
Other major large-cap indices also posted modest gains on a day typically marked by thin trading volumes. The move put Wall Street on track for a fifth straight session of gains as stocks head into the final week of the year, a period that has historically delivered positive seasonal performance.
The CBOE Volatility Index, or VIX, slid to 13.7, levels last seen in mid-December 2024.
Top S&P 500 gainers on Wednesday included Sandisk Corp. (NASDAQ:SNDK) and Nike Inc. (NYSE:NKE) , both up about 5%.
Nike shares benefited after Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) CEO Tim Cook disclosed the purchase of 50,000 shares at $58.97 each.
Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) added another 4%, extending its post-earnings rally to 27% over the past five sessions.
Elsewhere, Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) advanced for a sixth straight session, marking its sixteenth gain in the past seventeen sessions and reaching new record highs.
Other major Wall Street banks, including J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM), Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE:WFC) and Bank of America Corp. (NYSE:BAC), also climbed to record levels.
The relentless rally in precious metals paused.
Gold slipped 0.4% after hitting an intraday all-time high of $4,525 per ounce. Silver fell 0.8% after touching record highs at $72.69, while platinum sank 4.7% following 11 consecutive sessions of gains.
In crypto markets, sentiment remained subdued. Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) edged 0.9% lower to around $87,000. The world's largest cryptocurrency is down about 7% year to date and is on track for its worst year since 2022.
Wednesday’s Performance In Major US Indices, ETFs
| Major Indices | Price | % |
| Dow Jones | 48,699.28 | 0.5% |
| S&P 500 | 6,930.94 | 0.3% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 25,612.96 | 0.1% |
| Russell 2000 | 2,544.11 | 0.1% |
According to Benzinga Pro data:
- The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (NYSE:VOO) rose 0.2% to $633.80.
- The SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (NYSE:DIA) gained 0.4% to $486.07.
- The tech-heavy Invesco QQQ Trust Series (NASDAQ:QQQ) inched up 0.1% to $622.67.
- The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (NYSE:IWM) traded at $252.30, up 0.1%.
Russell 1000’s Top Gainers
| Company | Chg % |
|---|---|
| UiPath Inc. (NYSE:PATH) | +7.34% |
| NIKE, Inc | +4.72% |
| Sandisk Corporation | +4.49% |
| CAVA Group, Inc. (NYSE:CAVA) | +4.23% |
| Clarivate Plc (NYSE:CLVT) | +4.09% |
Russell 1000’s Top Losers
| Company | Chg % |
|---|---|
| AST SpaceMobile, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTS) | -3.31% |
| Datadog, Inc. (NASDAQ:DDOG) | -3.06% |
| Allegro MicroSystems, Inc. (NASDAQ:ALGM) | -2.82% |
| Fermi Inc. (NASDAQ:FERMI) | -2.73% |
| Avis Budget Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CAR) | -2.39% |
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