Investor Optimism Improves Following PCE Report; Nasdaq Surges To Record High

The CNN Money Fear and Greed index showed an improvement in the overall market sentiment, while the index remained in the "Extreme Greed" zone on Thursday.

U.S. stocks closed higher on Thursday, with the Nasdaq Composite surging to its first closing record since Nov. 2021. The tech-heavy Nasdaq gained around 6.12%, while the S&P 500 added 5.17% in February. Meanwhile, the Dow rose 2.22%, recording gains for four straight months.

Shares of Hayward Holdings, Inc. HAYW surged around 13% on Thursday after the company reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter results. Snowflake Inc. SNOW shares fell around 18% after the company reported fourth-quarter financial results, issued guidance and announced a CEO transition.

On the economic data front, the annual PCE inflation rate eased slightly from 2.6% in December 2023 to 2.4% in January 2024. Excluding energy and food, the core PCE index saw a year-on-year surge of 2.8%, down from the 2.9% rate seen in December and in line with the expected decrease to 2.8%. U.S. initial jobless claims rose by 13,000 to 215,000 in the week ending Feb. 24.

Most sectors on the S&P 500 closed on a positive note, with communication services, information technology, and consumer discretionary stocks recording the biggest gains on Thursday. However, healthcare and consumer staples stocks bucked the overall market trend, closing the session lower.

The Dow Jones closed higher by around 47 points to 38,996.39 on Thursday. The S&P 500 rose 0.52% at 5,096.27, while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.90% at 16,091.92 during Thursday’s session.

Investors are awaiting earnings results from Plug Power Inc. PLUG, EchoStar Corporation SATS and fuboTV Inc. FUBO today.

At a current reading of 79.1, the index remained in the "Extreme Greed" zone on Thursday, versus a prior reading of 78.1.

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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