Investor Optimism Improves Ahead Of Inflation Data

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed some improvement in overall sentiment among U.S. investors on Monday.

U.S. stocks closed mixed on Monday ahead to inflation data this week. The CPI report for April is scheduled for release on Wednesday, while the producer price index will be released on Thursday.

PacWest Bancorp PACW shares gained around 3.7% on Monday after the company declared a quarterly cash dividend of 1 cent per share, payable on May 31 to stockholders of record on May 15. The bank also declared a dividend of $0.4845 per depositary share on its preferred stock, payable June 1 to stockholders on record as of May 15.

The Dow Jones closed lower by around 55 points to 33,618.69 on Monday. The S&P 500 rose 0.05% at 4,138.12, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.18% to settle at 12,256.92 during the session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from Fox Corporation FOX, Under Armour, Inc. UA and Electronic Arts Inc. EA today.

At a current reading of 60.0, the index remained in the "Greed" zone, versus a previous reading of 59.0

What is CNN Business Fear & Greed Index?

The Fear & Greed Index is a measure of the current market sentiment. It is based on the premise that higher fear exerts pressure on stock prices, while higher greed has the opposite effect. The index is calculated based on seven equal-weighted indicators. The index ranges from 0 to 100, where 0 represents maximum fear and 100 signals maximum greediness.

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