Day Traders Diary

11/9/20

The major averages soared to start the week on news drug maker Pfizer and BioNTech indicating their Covid-19 vaccine is more than 90% effective. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 834 points or 2.95% after trading up 1,600 points or 5.7%, hitting all-time highs shortly after the open. The S&P 500 also reached a record high, popping 41 points or 1.17%. The small-cap Russell 2000 index gained 73 points or 4.48%. The Nasdaq Composite was the lone underperformer, finishing down 181 points or 1.5%.

The 90% effective rate from Pfizer and Germany's BioNTech was better than what the market was expecting. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has said that a vaccine that was 50% to 60% effective would be acceptable.

Travel, restaurant and hospitality companies that saw their equities swoon in the spring as Covid surged had some of the strongest rallies on Monday following Pfizer's announcement. Shares of cruise-operator Carnival Corp. rocketed higher by 33.6%, Southwest Airlines jumped 12.2% and the Walt Disney Company popped 12.6% as investors bet a vaccine may allow more vacationers to attend its many amusement parks.

Bank stocks also rallied. JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Citigroup all rose more than 11%. Wells Fargo traded 11.5% higher.

The so-called stay-at-home trade struggled. Zoom Video traded 14.8% lower and Amazon slid 3.1%. Netflix dipped 6.9%. Teladoc Health dropped 12.3%.

Monday also marked the first trading day after NBC News projected that former Vice President Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election against incumbent President Donald Trump. The call came four days after Election Day and amid close counts in several battleground states.

The 2-yr yield increased two basis points to 0.18%, while the 10-yr yield increased 11 basis points to 0.96%. The U.S. Dollar Index advanced 0.6% to 92.82.