US close: Late rally pushes stocks higher, but gains limited
By Benjamin Chiou
Date: Friday 21 Mar 2025
(Sharecast News) - A late-afternoon rally sent US stock indices into positive territory by the close on Friday, though gains were limited after a tumultuous few weeks with markets still trading close to six-month lows.
The Dow and S&P 500 both finished just 0.1% higher, while the Nasdaq rose 0.5%, helped by gains from heavyweights Tesla, Apple and Meta.
The S&P 500 in particular managed to eke out a 0.1% gain for the week after four straight weeks of losses.
Despite Friday's gains, investor risk appetite remained capped by ongoing uncertainty regarding the economy and unpredictable trade policy moves coming from Washington.
"As has been seen over the last two and a half years, dip buying has been a highly profitable strategy, particularly when markets have been as oversold as they are now," said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation.
"But concerns over the Trump administration's tariffs, the chaos of DOGE's slashing of government spending and the fraught geopolitical situation on many different fronts has seen investors hold back from adding long side exposure. It feels as if market participants are waiting to hear something positive to trigger a fresh round of buying. As things stand, it's difficult to know where that could come from."
In a similar vein, New York Fed president John Williams said in a speech on Friday that the US economy started 2025 on a "firm footing" but "uncertainty is high". He said that recent economic indicators have sent "mixed signals" as he warned of slowing growth this year.
Market movers
Tech stocks were among the day's best performers, including the likes of Apple, Nvidia, Tesla, Intel, Microsoft and Salesforce.
Nike was down 5% after the sporting goods behemoth underwhelmed with forecast-beating third-quarter results. While Nike comfortably topped estimates, sales still fell 9% year-on-year, while the company pointed to a further revenue slide in the fourth quarter and lower margins than last year.
Micron Technology tanked 8% despite the data storage outfit beating second-quarter estimates for both revenues and profits and providing stronger-than-expected guidance for the current quarter. The company did forecast margin improvements that underwhelmed investors.
Meanwhile, FedEx shares were down 6% after the shipping and logistics giant cut its annual guidance and posted adjusted EPS of $4.51 for its third quarter, lower than the $4.54 expected by the market.
Airline stocks including Delta and JetBlue and were also lower after Heathrow, the world's second-busiest airport, was forced to cancel flights and temporarily shut its doors following a power outage.
Dow Jones - Risers
Boeing Co. (BA) $178.11 3.06%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $218.27 1.95%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $24.26 1.25%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $391.26 1.14%
JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JPM) $241.63 1.10%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $516.85 1.09%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $99.46 0.61%
Salesforce.Com Inc. (CRM) $280.62 0.57%
Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) $43.99 0.55%
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) $564.89 0.44%
Dow Jones - Fallers
Nike Inc. (NKE) $67.94 -5.46%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $93.11 -1.71%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $68.67 -1.49%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $351.15 -1.23%
Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) $36.24 -1.20%
Visa Inc. (V) $335.66 -1.13%
Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $256.51 -1.09%
3M Co. (MMM) $150.32 -0.60%
Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) $60.30 -0.53%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $166.69 -0.51%
S&P 500 - Risers
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $87.66 3.38%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $66.75 3.34%
Boeing Co. (BA) $178.11 3.06%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $350.57 2.84%
Gartner Inc. (IT) $428.32 2.77%
Dollar General Corp (DG) $83.66 2.44%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $61.92 2.21%
Southwest Airlines Co. (LUV) $34.88 1.99%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $218.27 1.95%
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $213.47 1.83%
S&P 500 - Fallers
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $94.72 -8.04%
FedEx Corp. (FDX) $230.25 -6.45%
Lockheed Martin Corp. (LMT) $439.70 -5.79%
Nucor Corp. (NUE) $122.01 -5.78%
Nike Inc. (NKE) $67.94 -5.46%
Dxc Technology Company (DXC) $16.48 -4.20%
Lennar Corp. Class A (LEN) $115.22 -4.04%
MGM Resorts International (MGM) $31.43 -3.41%
ProLogis (PLD) $108.42 -3.26%
Weyerhaeuser Co. (WY) $29.17 -3.09%
Nasdaq 100 - Risers
Qvc Group Inc Series A (QVCGA) $0.20 14.66%
Tesla Inc (TSLA) $248.71 5.27%
Illumina Inc. (ILMN) $87.66 3.38%
Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR) $66.75 3.34%
Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance Inc. (ULTA) $350.57 2.84%
Incyte Corp. (INCY) $61.92 2.21%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $218.27 1.95%
Sirius XM Holdings Inc (SIRI) $23.47 1.87%
Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. (TTWO) $213.47 1.83%
Meta Platforms Inc. (META) $596.25 1.75%
Nasdaq 100 - Fallers
Micron Technology Inc. (MU) $94.72 -8.04%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $237.49 -3.00%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $97.05 -2.92%
Asml Holdings N.V. (ASML) $716.22 -2.43%
Starbucks Corp. (SBUX) $97.07 -2.23%
Lam Research Corp. (LRCX) $75.84 -2.21%
Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $11.67 -2.10%
Liberty Global plc Series C (LBTYK) $12.15 -2.10%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $43.66 -1.91%
JD.com, Inc. (JD) $42.24 -1.72%
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