Investing.com -- U.S. stocks rebounded on Friday from a Fed-inspired sell-off over the previous two sessions, capping a volatile week when equities on Wall Street recoiled after the U.S. central bank sent strong indications that it is ready to lift interest rates again, as soon as next month.
Although the Dow Jones Industrial Average held onto gains late on Friday to halt a two-day losing streak, it still closed fractionally lower for the week to finish with its fourth consecutive weekly decline. The current skid represents the longest losing streak for the Dow since October, 2014, as large-cap stocks struggle to remain in positive territory for the calendar year. In Friday's session, the Dow gained 65.54 or 0.38% to 17,500.94, gaining as much as 136 points at session-highs.
The NASDAQ Composite index added 57.03 or 1.21% to 4,769.56, while the S&P 500 Composite index rose by 12.28 or 0.60% to 2,052.32, as both indices ticked up for the week. On the S&P 500, nine of 10 sectors closed in the green, as stocks in the Technology, Industrials and Health Care industries led. Stocks in the Consumer Goods sector lagged, falling mildly on the day.
Stocks on Wall Street also received a boost from the expiration of a host of option contracts at the end of Friday's session. Meanwhile, the yield curve on U.S. Treasuries stabilized on Friday days after reaching its flattest level in nine years.
The top performer on the Dow was EI du Pont de Nemours and Company (NYSE:DD), which gained 1.34 or 2.08% to 65.75. DuPont finished just above American Express Company (NYSE:AXP), which added 1.18 or 1.88% to 63.92. Earlier this week, analysts from Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) reaffirmed the credit card giant's buy rating, while suggesting that American Express shares maintain a 10% upside from their current level. While American Express officially sold its Costco (NASDAQ:COST) brand portfolio to Citigraoup in March, the deal is expected to be completed next month. The worst performer was McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD), which lost 2.73 or 2.18% to 122.56. Earlier this week, shares in McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) were up by more than 40% from their 52-week low, prompting some analysts to question whether the fast food giant has hit its peak.
The biggest gainer on the NASDAQ was Applied Materials Inc (NASDAQ:AMAT), which surged 2.76 or 13.86% to 22.67 after the Santa Clara, California-based semiconductor equipment maker reported on Thursday night that new orders last quarter surged to its highest level in 15 years. It came amid increasing demand for Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT)' organic light-emitting diode, or OLED screens, as displays for a number of smartphone and HDTV screens continue to become outdated. The worst performer was Ross Stores Inc (NASDAQ:ROST), which plunged 3.03 or 5.46% to 52.49, one day after missing earnings and revenues forecasts during its previous quarter. The Dublin-California department store chain extended losses from Thursday's after-hours session when it plunged as much as 6%. The subdued earnings from Ross Stores (NASDAQ:ROST) mimicked a horrendous quarter for a plethora of top retail stores, which continue to struggles as consumers abandon brick-and-mortar shops for top e-commerce sites such as AMZN.
Applied Materials was also the top performer on the S&P 500, just ahead of Micron Technology Inc (NASDAQ:MU), which gained 0.70 or 6.90 to 10.77. For the session, the SPDR XSD Semiconductor ETF surged 2.71%, rallying from the previous session's broad sell-off. The worst performer was Campbell Soup Company (NYSE:CPB), which plunged 4.11 or 6.42% to 59.87 after the multinational canned soup giant failed to meet analysts' revenue expectations in the previous quarter.
On the New York Stock Exchange, advancing issues outnumbered declining ones by a 2,456-598 margin.