Market Wrap: Dow, S&P 500 At Record Highs on Greek Debt Deal

NEW YORK — The Dow and S&P 500 ended at record highs Friday while the Nasdaq notched an eighth straight day of gains after Greek and eurozone finance ministers reached a deal to extend heavily indebted Greece’s financial rescue by four months.

The agreement removes the immediate risk of Greece running out of money next month and possibly being forced out of the single currency area.

The Nasdaq matched an eight-session winning streak from a year ago and inched closer to its 5,132.52 March 2000 all-time intraday high, reached just before the dot-com bubble burst. The S&P 500 ended slightly higher for the week as well, its third straight week of gains.

The Greek accord will allow investors to concentrate on the fundamentals that should be driving the market, said Ben Pace, chief investment officer at HPM Partners in New York.

“You’re seeing a little bit better U.S. economic statistics than you’ve been seeing over the past three or four weeks. The European statistics have gotten a lot better, too,” Pace said. “So maybe a relief rally today, because the markets were down as there was a lot of consternation going around.”

Shares of the Global X FTSE Greece 20 exchange-traded fund jumped 10.1 percent, while U.S.-listed shares of the National Bank of Greece surged 21.7 percent to $1.96.

The Dow Jones industrial average (^DJI) rose 154.67 points, or 0.86 percent, to 18,140.44, the Standard & Poor’s 500 index (^GSPC) gained 12.85 points, or 0.61 percent, to 2,110.3 and the Nasdaq composite (^IXIC) added 31.27 points, or 0.63 percent, to 4,955.97.

For the week, the Dow was 0.7 percent, the S&P 500 was up 0.6 percent and the Nasdaq was up 1.3 percent.

Intuit (INTU) was among the Nasdaq’s biggest positives, rising 6.2 percent to $96.72 a day after reporting a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss.

Shares of Mohawk Industries (MHK) were up 6.7 percent at $184.26, the biggest percentage gainer in the S&P 500, following results.

About 6.2 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges, below the 7 billion average for the month to date, according to BATS Global Markets.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE 2,085 to 990, for a 2.11-to-1 ratio; on the Nasdaq, 1,449 issues rose and 1,266 fell, a 1.14-to-1 ratio favoring advancers.

The S&P 500 posted 82 new 52-week highs and two new lows; the Nasdaq composite recorded 107 new highs and 23 new lows.

What to watch Monday:

• The National Association of Realtors releases existing home sales for January at 10 a.m. Eastern time.
• The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas releases its February survey of manufacturing conditions in Texas at 10:30 a.m.

Earnings Calendar
These selected companies are scheduled to release quarterly financial results:

• Alliant Energy (LNT)
• Dish Network (DISH)
• Express Scripts (ESRX)
• HSBC (HSBC)
• Tenet Healthcare (THC)

[source : dailyfinance.com]