U.S. stocks higher at close of trade; Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.63%

Investing.com – U.S. stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Consumer Goods, Utilities and Financials sectors led shares higher.

At the close in NYSE, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.63% to hit a new all time high, while the S&P 500 index added 0.38%, and the NASDAQ Composite index gained 0.02%.

The best performers of the session on the Dow Jones Industrial Average were Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM), which rose 3.31% or 10.28 points to trade at 321.06 at the close. Meanwhile, Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) added 2.40% or 3.92 points to end at 167.33 and Merck & Company Inc (NYSE:MRK) was up 1.80% or 1.83 points to 103.00 in late trade.

The worst performers of the session were Dow Inc (NYSE:DOW), which fell 4.59% or 2.25 points to trade at 46.66 at the close. Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) declined 3.42% or 13.95 points to end at 394.26 and Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) was down 0.88% or 1.85 points to 208.20.

The top performers on the S&P 500 were Axon Enterprise Inc (NASDAQ:AXON) which rose 26.61% to 593.48, Insulet Corporation (NASDAQ:PODD) which was up 10.84% to settle at 271.53 and Fortinet Inc (NASDAQ:FTNT) which gained 9.43% to close at 91.58.

The worst performers were Akamai Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:AKAM) which was down 13.34% to 90.47 in late trade, Airbnb Inc (NASDAQ:ABNB) which lost 8.76% to settle at 134.46 and Arista Networks (NYSE:ANET) which was down 7.57% to 398.38 at the close.

The top performers on the NASDAQ Composite were Innodata Inc (NASDAQ:INOD) which rose 76.95% to 43.07, Sezzle Inc (NASDAQ:SEZL) which was up 67.68% to settle at 420.00 and Sonder Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:SOND) which gained 66.41% to close at 4.51.

The worst performers were ProPhase Labs Inc (NASDAQ:PRPH) which was down 48.25% to 0.74 in late trade, Earlyworks Co Ltd ADR (NASDAQ:ELWS) which lost 44.00% to settle at 3.78 and Maravai Lifesciences Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:MRVI) which was down 37.05% to 4.93 at the close.

Rising stocks outnumbered declining ones on the New York Stock Exchange by 1614 to 1186 and 42 ended unchanged; on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, 1653 rose and 1612 declined, while 82 ended unchanged.

Shares in Axon Enterprise Inc (NASDAQ:AXON) rose to all time highs; gaining 26.61% or 124.73 to 593.48. Shares in Insulet Corporation (NASDAQ:PODD) rose to 52-week highs; gaining 10.84% or 26.55 to 271.53. Shares in Fortinet Inc (NASDAQ:FTNT) rose to all time highs; gaining 9.43% or 7.90 to 91.58. Shares in Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM) rose to all time highs; gaining 3.31% or 10.28 to 321.06. Shares in Dow Inc (NYSE:DOW) fell to 52-week lows; falling 4.59% or 2.25 to 46.66. Shares in Innodata Inc (NASDAQ:INOD) rose to all time highs; rising 76.95% or 18.73 to 43.07. Shares in ProPhase Labs Inc (NASDAQ:PRPH) fell to 5-year lows; down 48.25% or 0.69 to 0.74. Shares in Sezzle Inc (NASDAQ:SEZL) rose to 3-years highs; rising 67.68% or 169.53 to 420.00.

The CBOE Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of S&P 500 options, was down 0.13% to 15.18 a new 1-month low.

Gold Futures for December delivery was down 0.38% or 10.40 to $2,695.40 a troy ounce. Elsewhere in commodities trading, Crude oil for delivery in December fell 2.54% or 1.84 to hit $70.52 a barrel, while the January Brent oil contract fell 2.10% or 1.59 to trade at $74.04 a barrel.

EUR/USD was down 0.83% to 1.07, while USD/JPY fell 0.20% to 152.62.

The US Dollar Index Futures was up 0.49% at 104.88.