Dow Moves Deeper Into Record Territory
Stocks crept higher Wednesday, overcoming some mild profit-taking on the previous day’s rally and boosting the Dow Jones industrial average to its second straight record after a six-month drought.
The Dow never strayed more than 20 points in either direction all day, finally drifting higher near the close to finish at 8,314.55, a gain of just 18.94, but enough for its first close above 8,300.
The broad market was mixed, with advancing issues outnumbering decliners by a small margin and several leading indexes edging to new highs after meandering through the sleepy session. The Standard & Poor’s 500 and the New York Stock Exchange composite index closed at record highs for the sixth time in eight sessions.
Analysts said it was encouraging that investors have refrained from locking in their hefty profits from the past three weeks, a sign that people are less worried about a sudden downdraft than the risk of missing out on new gains.
“After such an enthusiastic, unexpected rally yesterday, for the market to stabilize is a good sign. It bodes well for a resumption of the rally tomorrow or the next day,” said Robert Stovall, market analyst at Stovall/Twenty-First Advisers.
Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 9-to-8 margin on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume totaled 599.30 million shares, down from Tuesday’s tally of 647.65 million.
Some of the stocks that moved substantially or traded heavily Wednesday:
NYSE
Computer Associates International, down 7-5/16 at 50-3/4.
Computer Sciences, up 11-11/16 at 103-7/8.
Computer Associates, the world’s biggest maker of business software, offered $108 a share in cash, or $9 billion, to acquire the computer services concern.
America Online, up 5-1/2 at 114-1/2.
The nation’s biggest online service posted a better-than-expected profit of $20.8 million for the final three months of 1997.
DeKalb Genetics class B, up 20-7/8 at 54.
Monsanto said it was considering an offer for the remaining shares of the agricultural technology company. DeKalb had expressed interest in a deal earlier in the day.
Illinois Central, up 2-11/16 at 38-3/8.
Canadian National Railway of Montreal said late Tuesday it has agreed to purchase the Chicago-based railroad for $2.4 billion in cash, stock and assumed debt.
NASDAQ
Applied Materials, down 1/16 at 35-15/16.
The leading manufacturer of equipment used to make semiconductors reported a better-than-expected profit for its first quarter ended Jan. 25, but cautioned that the economic crisis in Asia will mean fewer new orders than anticipated at the start of fiscal 1998.