US close: Investors keep their cards close to their chest

US markets finished modestly higher on Wednesday as Americans headed to the polls, while investors tentatively awaited the new tenant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 0.40% or 73.14 points to 18,332.74 points, the S&P 500 edged higher by 0.38% to 2,139.56 points and the Nasdaq was up by 0.53% or 27.32 points to 5,193.49 points.

Oil prices retreated as OPEC said if the Paris climate agreement’s targets are enforced, demand for oil could peak within 13 years.

West Texas Intermediate finished the day up by one cent at $44.98.

Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at Think Markets, said: “Gold is again flirting with the 200-day moving average and traders cannot decide which way it will move. The chances of this moving towards the upside are higher if Donald Trump wins the election.

“However, if Hillary Clinton wins the election, the downward move may not be that harsh as the next question will be what the Federal Reserve will do with respect to their interest rate? The market is pricing in that there is an over 80% chance that a rate hike will take place if Clinton wins the election and in our opinion that is already baked in the price. Hence the downside is limited.”

According to the RealClearPolitics average of polls, Clinton currently has a three-point lead over rival Donald Trump.

Connor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex, said: “The day only really got duller as it went on, the US open bringing little to the party bar a bit more election anxiety. Falling around 40 points after the bell the Dow Jones understandably couldn’t build on yesterday’s explosive growth, not yet at least. The US index is still sitting above 18200, a fairly regular perch for the Dow across the last 2 months, and looks unlikely to do much until the first exit polls start to dribble out this evening.

“And what of the JOLTS job openings I hear you cry? Well, they came in at a lower than expected, but higher than last month, 5.49m, securing the attention of pretty much no-one.”

The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) revealed there were 5.486m job openings in September, below expectations of 5.508m. The share of layoffs and discharges of total employment fell to 1.1%, the lowest level since 2001.

The quit rate, the number of people who had resigned from their job divided by the number of employees, remained flat at 2.1%

In corporate news, shares plunged 22% in Canada-based Valeant Pharmaceuticals after it slashed its outlook for revenues and earnings for the year, as it struggles in nearly all parts of its business.

The drug maker reported third quarter adjusted earnings per share of $1.55, compared to $2.41 last year and below expectations of $1.76.

Pharmacy owner CVS Health's shares plummeted 12% after it also cut its earnings guidance, due to slow prescription growth, as it reported third quarter revenue of $44.6bn, below the forecast of $45.3bn.

Hertz Global Holdings’ shares tanked 23% as the rental car giant missed third quarter expectations with $1.50 earnings per share, below estimates of $2.73. Revenue also fell to $2.54bn against an expected of $2.59bn.

Dow Jones - Risers

Travelers Company Inc. (TRV) $108.01 2.52%
McDonald's Corp. (MCD) $114.11 1.14%
Caterpillar Inc. (CAT) $84.68 1.11%
Coca-Cola Co. (KO) $42.88 0.99%
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) $87.41 0.98%
Merck & Co. Inc. (MRK) $60.51 0.77%
3M Co. (MMM) $171.03 0.76%
Unitedhealth Group Inc. (UNH) $142.90 0.68%
Apple Inc. (AAPL) $111.06 0.59%
Home Depot Inc. (HD) $124.32 0.46%

Dow Jones - Fallers

Pfizer Inc. (PFE) $30.05 -1.09%
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM) $154.81 -0.58%
Boeing Co. (BA) $142.20 -0.58%
E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co. (DD) $69.26 -0.36%
Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) $85.26 -0.22%
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT) $69.74 -0.06%
Walt Disney Co. (DIS) $94.38 -0.05%
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) $60.47 0.08%
American Express Co. (AXP) $67.07 0.10%
Intel Corp. (INTC) $34.74 0.14%

S&P 500 - Risers

Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX) $12.09 7.09%
Priceline Group Inc (PCLN) $1,578.13 6.61%
Johnson Controls International plc (JCI) $43.94 5.70%
Alcoa Corporation (AA) $26.40 5.26%
CF Industries Holdings Inc. (CF) $24.34 4.51%
Mosaic Company (MOS) $26.18 4.26%
Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) $46.01 4.05%
CenturyLink Inc. (CTL) $24.16 3.60%
Level 3 Communications, Inc. (LVLT) $53.64 3.29%
Campbell Soup Co. (CPB) $55.61 3.27%

S&P 500 - Fallers

CVS Health Corp (CVS) $73.53 -11.82%
Endo International Plc (ENDP) $14.51 -7.46%
Southwestern Energy Co. (SWN) $9.39 -6.94%
Carmax Inc. (KMX) $48.68 -5.49%
D. R. Horton Inc. (DHI) $27.77 -5.45%
Range Resources Corp. (RRC) $31.84 -5.29%
News Corp Class A (NWSA) $11.65 -4.66%
Amerisource Bergen Corp. (ABC) $69.03 -4.03%
Perrigo Company plc (PRGO) $80.65 -3.94%
International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (IFF) $126.25 -3.71%

Nasdaq 100 - Risers

Liberty Interactive Corporation QVC Group (QVCA) $19.63 7.27%
Priceline Group Inc (PCLN) $1,578.13 6.61%
Mondelez International Inc. (MDLZ) $46.01 4.05%
Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. - Ordinary Shares (NCLH) $39.13 3.44%
Liberty Global plc Series A (LBTYA) $33.14 3.14%
Liberty Global plc Series C (LBTYK) $32.24 3.00%
Microchip Technology Inc. (MCHP) $63.96 2.78%
Marriott International - Class A (MAR) $73.02 2.70%
Kraft Heinz Co. (KHC) $88.34 2.69%
Charter Communications Inc. (CHTR) $262.26 1.98%

Nasdaq 100 - Fallers

Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (WBA) $80.09 -1.67%
Twenty-First Century Fox Inc Class A (FOXA) $27.09 -1.10%
NetEase Inc. Ads (NTES) $248.96 -0.88%
Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. (CHKP) $83.40 -0.86%
Express Scripts Holding Co (ESRX) $69.85 -0.75%
eBay Inc. (EBAY) $28.03 -0.74%
Western Digital Corp. (WDC) $57.26 -0.71%
Alexion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (ALXN) $119.35 -0.58%
Shire Plc Ads (SHPG) $167.71 -0.56%
Viacom Inc. Class B (VIAB) $37.35 -0.56%