Investor Sentiment Falls But Fear & Greed Index Remains In 'Greed' Zone

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed a decline in overall market sentiment, but the index remained in the "Greed" zone on Friday.

The Dow Jones index closed higher on Friday, with all three major indices recording gains for the seventh straight week.

On the economic data front, the NY Empire State Manufacturing Index fell to -14.5 in December, recording the weakest reading in four months. U.S. industrial production increased by 0.2% from the prior month in November, following a revised 0.9% decline in October.

Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation COST surged to an all-time high on Friday after the company reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a negative note, with utilities and real estate stocks recording the biggest losses on Friday. However, information technology and consumer discretionary stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session higher.

The Dow Jones closed higher by around 57 points to 37,305.16 on Friday. The S&P 500 fell 0.01% at 4,719.19, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.35% at 14,813.92 during Friday’s session.

As of Friday, the Dow is higher by around 3.8% for the month, while the S&P 500 has added 3.3% during the period.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from HEICO Corporation HEI, GEE Group Inc. JOB and Quipt Home Medical Corp. QIPT today.

At a current reading of 66.9, the index remained in the "Greed" zone on Friday, versus a prior reading of 67.7.

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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