U.S. Stocks Close Little Changed Following Choppy Trading Day

(RTTNews) - Stocks fluctuated over the course of the trading session on Thursday before eventually ending the session little changed. The major averages finished the day near the unchanged line after failing to sustain an early rally.

The major averages closed on opposite sides of the unchanged line. While the Dow crept up 39.44 points or 0.2 percent to 23,515.26, the Nasdaq edged down 0.63 points or less than a tenth of a percent to 8,494.75 and the S&P 500 slipped 1.51 points or 0.1 percent to 2,797.80.

The choppy trading on Wall Street came as traders reacted to conflicting reports regarding Gilead Sciences' (GILD) potential coronavirus treatment remdesivir

Stocks came under pressure in mid-day trading after a report from the Financial Times said the drug "flopped" in its first randomized clinical trial.

Citing draft documents accidentally published by the World Health Organization, the FT said the Chinese trial showed remdesivir did not improve patients' condition or reduce the pathogen's presence in the bloodstream.

However, selling pressure waned after Gilead responded to the report with a statement claiming the study was unable to provide statistically meaningful conclusions due to low enrollment.

"As such, the study results are inconclusive, though trends in the data suggest a potential benefit for remdesivir, particularly among patients treated early in disease," Gilead said.

The roughly flat close on Wall Street also came following the release of the Labor Department's report on initial jobless claims in the week ended April 18th.

The report showed more than 4 million people filed first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits last week, although that reflects a continued decline from the nearly 7 million people that filed first-time claims in the last week of March.

The Labor Department said initial jobless claims dropped to 4.427 million, a decrease of 810,000 from the previous week's revised level of 5.237 million.

Economists had expected jobless claims to slump to 4.200 million from the 5.245 million originally reported for the previous week.

Jobless claims remain at a substantially elevated level due to the coronavirus-induced economic shutdown but have slid steadily since reaching a record high of 6.867 million in the week ended March 28th.

Sector News

Despite the nearly flat close by the broader markets, oil service stocks showed a substantial move to the upside on the day, driving the Philadelphia Oil Service Index up by 7.9 percent.

The oil by oil service stocks came amid a continued rebound by the price of crude oil, with crude for June delivery spiking $2.72 to $16.50 a barrel.

The jump in oil prices came after the front-month contract turned negative for the first time in history earlier this week.

Gold stocks also turned in a strong performance on the day, with the NYSE Arca Gold Bugs Index surging up by 2.6 percent to its best closing level in over three years. An increase by the price of gold contributed to the strength in the sector.

Natural gas, transportation and steel stocks also saw notable strength, while utilities, software and semiconductor stocks moved to the downside over the course of the session.

Other Markets

In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region turned in another mixed performance during trading on Thursday. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index surged up by 1.5 percent, while China's Shanghai Composite Index dipped by 0.2 percent.

Meanwhile, the major European markets all moved to the upside on the day. While the French CAC 40 Index advanced by 0.9 percent, the German DAX Index and the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index both jumped by 1 percent.

In the bond market, treasuries showed a lack of direction before ending the session nearly unchanged. As a result, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, edged down by less than a basis point to 0.613 percent.

Looking Ahead

Trading on Friday may be impacted by reaction to reports on durable goods orders and consumer sentiment, although news on the coronavirus front is likely to remain in the spotlight.

On the earnings front, Intel (INTC), Capital One (COF), and E*Trade (ETFC) are among the companies releasing their quarterly results after the close of today's trading.

American Airlines (AAL), American Express (AXP), and Verizon (VZ) are also among the companies due to report their results before the start of trading on Friday.