By Yasin Ebrahim
Investing.com – The Dow ended lower Wednesday, as weakness in value stocks offset strength in technology amid signs of further restrictions in parts of the U.S. to curb the spread of Covid-19.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.08%, or 23 points. The S&P 500 was up 0.78%, while the Nasdaq Composite added 2.01%.
Weakness in value stocks weighed on the broader market as the recent wave of positive vaccine news faded on further signs of coronavirus-led restrictions in the U.S. Gov. Andrew Cuomo in New York ordered bars and restaurants licensed by the State Liquor Authority to close their indoor areas at 10 PM, while gyms must also shut at 10 PM.
Industrials, materials, and financials were in the red as U.S. coronavirus hospitalizations surpassed 60,000 for the first time Tuesday, the COVID Tracking Project reported Wednesday.
But tech staged a rebound following a rout a day earlier as bargain-seeking investors swooped in to scoop up the Fab 5.
Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN), Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) rose, with the latter ending up 3%.
Apple announced three new Mac computers late-Tuesday, powered by its M1 chip instead of Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) processors, marking the end of its 15-year relationship with the chipmaker.
In other news, Chinese tech stocks including Alibaba (NYSE:BABA), JD.com (NASDAQ:JD) and Tencent (OTC:TCEHY) face scrutiny as the Chinese government looks to clampdown on the monopoly power of big tech.
Alibaba (NYSE:BABA), which ended 10% lower overnight Asia, pared gains after a positive start to the U.S. session on news that its sales event, known as Singles' Day, generated record sales of more than $74 billion.
Still, Wall Street continues to tout further gains for the broader market on hopes a rollout of a Covid-19 vaccine will likely add steel to the global economy, while a divided Congress would dim the odds of President-elect Joe Biden's unfriendly market policies such as tax hikes winning the backing of lawmakers.
Goldman Sachs raised its 2020 outlook for the S&P 500 index to 3,700 from a previous estimate of 3,600. Assuming a Republican-controlled Senate, there would be "little scope for major legislative changes," and the recent vaccine news is a "positive event that will allow society to gradually normalize during 2021," the bank said.
The prospect of a dividend Congress was boosted after Republican Senator Dan Sullivan won re-election in Alaska, extending the GOP lead to 50-48.
In other news, Insurance company Lemonade (NYSE:LMND) slumped 12% despite reporting third-quarter results that topped analysts' estimates. The move lower as the company's lock-up period - the amount of time insiders agree to hold their shares after a company goes public - is set to expire on Thursday.