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Today's trading session maintained a positive tone from start to finish, gaining momentum in the afternoon. The Dow Jones Industrial Average saw an increase of 0.9%, while the S&P 500 also rose by 0.9%. The Nasdaq Composite experienced a more significant boost, climbing 1.5%, and the Russell 2000 outperformed with a 1.8% increase. Fed Chair Powell's remarks contributed to the day's optimistic sentiment, as he indicated that further rate hikes are unlikely. However, he did not provide clarity on when rates might be lowered, adding to the uncertainty surrounding the rate cut timeline. This uncertainty persists as the market anticipates the April Employment report due tomorrow at 8:30 ET, which could influence future Fed policy decisions. Major gains were noted in specific sectors and stocks. The Vanguard Mega Cap Growth ETF (MGK, Financial) advanced by 1.2%, and the PHLX Semiconductor Index (SOX, Financial) saw a significant rise of 2.2%, partly fueled by Qualcomm's (QCOM, Financial) impressive earnings-related surge of 9.7%. Late afternoon saw a decrease in Treasury yields, with the 10-year note dropping by two basis points to 4.57% and the 2-year note decreasing by six basis points to 4.88%. Within the S&P 500, the information technology and consumer discretionary sectors led gains, each up by 1.6%. Conversely, the materials and health care sectors experienced declines, closing down by 0.5% and 0.1%, respectively. In international markets, Europe saw mixed results with the DAX down 0.2% and the FTSE up 0.6%, while the CAC fell by 0.9%. In Asia, the Nikkei slightly declined by 0.1%, but the Hang Seng increased by 2.5%. The commodities market showed minor fluctuations with crude oil slightly down, natural gas up, and modest gains in gold and silver. First Pacific Advisors has made the following transactions: Yacktman Asset Management has made the following transactions: Warren Buffett has made the following transactions: Coinbase (COIN, Financial) reported a robust Q1 with GAAP EPS of $4.40, surpassing expectations by $3.33, and revenue reaching $1.64 billion, a significant 112.3% increase year-over-year. The impressive performance was largely driven by a 36% quarter-over-quarter increase in subscription and services revenue, which benefited from heightened crypto asset prices and an expanded USDC market capitalization. Block (SQ, Financial) also exceeded Q1 forecasts, posting Non-GAAP EPS of $0.85, which beat estimates by $0.12, and a revenue of $5.96 billion, marking a 19.4% rise year-over-year. The company highlighted a 23% increase in subscription and services-based revenue and processed $54.43 billion in GPV, up 6% from the previous year. Booking Holdings (BKNG, Financial) emerged as another strong performer with a Q1 Non-GAAP EPS of $20.39, exceeding predictions by $6.25, and revenue of $4.42 billion, up 16.9% year-over-year. The company reported $43.5 billion in gross travel bookings, a 10% increase from the previous year. Amgen (AMGN, Financial) announced a Q1 Non-GAAP EPS of $3.96, slightly above expectations by $0.05, with revenue of $7.45 billion, aligning with forecasts. The company's performance was bolstered by a 22.1% year-over-year revenue increase. DraftKings (DKNG, Financial) presented a positive outlook, with Q1 Non-GAAP EPS of $0.03, surpassing estimates by $0.14, and revenue of $1.18 billion, up 53.2% year-over-year. The company raised its fiscal 2024 revenue guidance to $4.9 billion, citing strong customer acquisition and engagement. Expedia (EXPE, Financial) reported a Q1 Non-GAAP EPS of $0.26, beating the expected -$0.16, with revenue up 8.2% year-over-year at $2.89 billion. However, the company adjusted its full-year guidance due to slower than expected acceleration in its B2C business. Monster Beverage (MNST, Financial) saw its revenue increase by 11.8% to $1.9 billion in Q1, driven by strong sales in its energy drinks segment. Despite this, the company's GAAP EPS of $0.42 missed expectations by $0.02. MercadoLibre (MELI, Financial) outperformed with a Q1 GAAP EPS of $6.78, beating by $0.83, and revenue growth of 35.7% year-over-year to $4.33 billion, attributed to strong sales across its diverse market platforms. Opendoor Technologies (OPEN, Financial) posted a Q1 GAAP EPS of -$0.16, beating estimates by $0.05, with revenue declining 61.3% year-over-year to $1.2 billion, yet surpassing expectations by $110 million. Uranium miners experienced a rally following U.S. Senate approval to ban enriched uranium imports from Russia, with notable movements in stocks like Uranium Royalty (UROY, Financial) and Centrus Energy (LEU, Financial). Janux Therapeutics (JANX, Financial) saw a 7% increase amid renewed takeover speculation, with Merck (MRK) rumored to be involved in strategic review discussions for the cancer drugmaker. TD Bank (TD, Financial) faced scrutiny as the U.S. Justice Department probed its internal controls related to laundering money from U.S. fentanyl proceeds, impacting the bank's regulatory compliance reputation. I/We may personally own shares in some of the companies mentioned above. However, those positions are not material to either the company or to my/our portfolios. Market Overview
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