By Anora Mahmudova, MarketWatch
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- U.S. stocks ended Monday's thinly
traded session higher with small-cap and tech companies leading the
gains. Trading volumes on Wall Street were the third-lowest this
year, and analysts noted the absence of 'bad news' sent stocks
higher.
Gains were muted in light of mixed deal news. AT&T agreed to
buy DirecTV, but AstraZeneca rejected Pfizer Inc.'s final bid.
The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) closed 35.23 points, or 0.9%, higher
at 4,125.82. The biggest component on the index, Apple Inc. (AAPL),
gained 1.2% to $604.59. The S&P 500 index (SPX) added 7.22
points, or 0.4%, to 1,885.08. The Dow Jones Industrial Average
(DJI) rose 20.55 points, or 0.1%, to 16,511.86.
The Russell 2000 (RUT) index of small stocks added 11.52 points,
or 1%, to 1,114.43.
Read the recap of MarketWatch's live blog of today's
stock-market action.
"There is a news vacuum today, so markets are edging higher as
there is nothing to hold them back," says Channing Smith, managing
director at Capital Advisors.
"Traders will be watching key technical levels at this point and
the 10-year Treasury yields. If the 10-year note yields fall below
the 2.46% level, then we might see weakness in equities," he
added.
In the absence of economic news, investors turned their
attention to two Fed speakers on Monday.
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President John Williams
said it will likely be more than a year before the central bank
begins raising interest rates. Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher
lamented the performance of Congress, which he said was acting like
a brake on growth that the Fed cannot overcome with its aggressive
stimulus policies. Recap of the live blog of Fed talk with Fisher,
Williams and Bernanke.
In corporate news, Urban Outfitters, Inc. (URBN) shares fell 4%
in extended-hours trading after the retailer narrowly missed
estimates for its first-quarter earnings.
Campbell Soup (CPB) shares stumbled 2.4% as weak soup sales led
to the company cutting its full-year forecast.
Shares of AT&T (T) fell 1% after the telecom giant agreed to
buy satellite-television provider DirecTV (TICKER:DTV) in a
stock-and-cash deal worth $67.1 billion, including debt. DirecTV
shares also fell 1.8%.
Google Inc.'s (GOOG) YouTube unit has reached a deal to buy
Twitch, a privately held video-streaming service for gamers, for
more than $1 billion, according to a report Sunday in Variety,
which cited "sources familiar with the pact." Shares in Google rose
1.6%.
Apple Inc. (AAPL) shares rose 1.2% to $604.59 as Apple and
Google agreed to dismiss all outstanding patent disputes although
there is no cross-licensing agreement as part of the deal.
U.S.-listed shares of AstraZeneca (AZN) dropped 12% after the
drug maker again rebuffed Pfizer's "final" offer of GBP55 a share
($89.96) saying it undervalues the company. The offer values
AstraZeneca at about $120 billion, while the previous offer of
GBP50-a-share put the deal at about $106 billion. Pfizer (PFE)
shares were up 0.6%.
Who can afford AstraZeneca's asking price? Not many
Asian market fall, gold recaptures the $1,300 level
Asian shares fell, with Shanghai stocks hit following a report
that China's property prices are showing further signs of a
slowdown amid government curbs. In Europe, the Stoxx Europe 600
closed lower.
Among commodities, gold futures pared earlier gains (GCM4) and
fell back below the $1,300-an-ounce level. Crude oil futures (CLM4)
extended their gains from last week. The dollar was stuck in tight
ranges against major rivals on Monday as investors struggled to get
a better sense of how the Fed views the current pace of economic
growth
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