Market Wrap: Stocks Heat Up

U.S. stocks started May on a positive note, closing at least 1% higher across the board Friday. At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained just over 1%, the S&P 500 moved 1.1% higher and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.3%. Materials, consumer discretionary, technology and health care names led the way upward. Elsewhere, the yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note added 7.6 basis points, to 2.108%.

Altera (ALTR) was the big winner of the session, gaining nearly 10%, on speculation of a takeover bid from Intel (INTC). On the other hand, LinkedIn (LNKD) had its worst showing as a public company, falling more than 18% Friday, after posting quarterly results overnight.

For the week, the Dow and S&P 500 posted fractional losses, while the Nasdaq fell 1.8%. Looking ahead to next week, the pace of earnings reports will slow, but there will still be plenty of key reports to digest. Comcast (CMCSA) is scheduled to announce earnings Monday, followed by Kellogg (K) and Disney (DIS) on Tuesday. Tesla (TSLA) and Whole Foods (WFM) are on the calendar for Wednesday, followed by Priceline.com (PCLN) on Thursday.

On the economic front, we'll get a look at the April jobs data on Friday. Economists are looking for the addition of 225,000 nonfarm payrolls and for the unemployment rate to tick down to 5.4%.

David Peltier is the portfolio manager for Stocks Under $10 and Dividend Stock Advisor. Test drive with a free trial.