Stock Market Today: Disney Earnings Keep Dow Above Water
Thursday delivered another upbeat reading on inflation, which helped boost investor sentiment early on.
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Newsletter sign up Newsletter

Stocks jumped out of the gate Thursday, building on Wednesday's inflation-fueled gains. However, unlike yesterday where markets rallied hard into the close, today's upside action stalled out as the session wore on, as momentum in tech stocks faded.
Today's positive start came courtesy of a number of headlines, including a strong earnings report from Walt Disney (DIS (opens in new tab)). The entertainment and media conglomerate last night reported higher-than-expected earnings and revenue for its fiscal third quarter. Disney also added 14.4 million subscribers to its Disney Plus streaming service over the three-month period, more than the 10 million analysts were expecting. DIS jumped 4.7% after earnings, easily making it the top-performing Dow Jones stock today.
On the economic front, the Bureau of Labor Statistics this morning said U.S. producer prices were up 9.8% annually in July – well below June's 11.3% rise and the lowest year-over-year increase since October 2021. Month-over-month, the producer price index was down 0.5%.

Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
"Inflationary pressures are clearly easing, but a lot of that decline is dependent if oil prices continue to grind lower," says Edward Moya, senior market strategist at currency data provider OANDA. "The risk of higher oil prices going into year end are elevated, so this moderation in inflationary pressures might not last."
Oil prices also were higher today, with U.S. crude futures gaining 2.6% to settle at $94.34 per barrel. This fueled a major rally in the energy sector (+3.5%), while healthcare stocks (-0.7%) lagged.
As for the broader indexes, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1% to 33,336 thanks to a Disney-related boost. However, the S&P 500 Index (-0.1% to 4,207) and the Nasdaq Composite (-0.6% at 12,779) ended with modest losses. All three indexes had been up more than 1% earlier in the session.
Other news in the stock market today:
- The small-cap Russell 2000 added 0.3% to 1,975.
- Gold futures fell 0.4% to finish at $1,807.20 an ounce.
- Bitcoin jumped 2.3% to $24,208.82. (Bitcoin trades 24 hours a day; prices reported here are as of 4 p.m.)
- Six Flags (SIX (opens in new tab)) plunged 18.2% after the theme park operator reported earnings. In its second quarter, earnings per share fell 35% year-over-year to 53 cents, while revenue was down 5% to $435 million. Analysts, by comparison, were expecting earnings of $1.01 per share on $519 million in revenue. "We would sit on the sidelines until SIX can prove it can grow its top and bottom line with its new premium strategy especially as the consumer slows spending on discretionary services as inflation boost consumer debt and lowers savings," says CFRA Research analyst Zachary Warring, who lowered his rating on SIX to Hold from Buy.
- Several energy stocks jumped alongside oil prices today. Devon Energy (DVN (opens in new tab), +7.3), Marathon Oil (MRO (opens in new tab), +7.0%) and Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD (opens in new tab), +4.9%) were just a few of the day's big winners.
The Best Stocks Since the Bear-Market Bottom
Have stocks bottomed? That's a popular question circling Wall Street these days, with the S&P 500 fresh off its best July since FDR was president and the Nasdaq up roughly 20% from its late June lows.
"We are not 100% in that camp," says Victoria Fernandez, chief market strategist at investment management firm Crossmark Global Investments. "Bear-market rallies and the start of new bull markets look similar but we need to see the broad-based momentum to believe this is more than a shorter-term rally."
Still, given the Nasdaq's impressive run in recent weeks, many in the financial media are proclaiming the start of a new bull market for the tech-heavy index (although the bull won't be confirmed until the index takes out its previous all-time high of 16,057 set on Nov. 19, 2021).
No matter which side you're on, after months and months of extreme stock market volatility, "there's no harm in prematurely celebrating the beginning of a new bull market," says Kiplinger's Dan Burrows. And to mark the moment, we uncovered the S&P 500's top-performing stocks since the bear-market bottom on June 16. Take a look.
With over a decade of experience writing about the stock market, Karee Venema is an investing editor and options expert at Kiplinger.com. She joined the publication in April 2021 after 10 years of working as an investing writer and columnist at Schaeffer's Investment Research. In her previous role, Karee focused primarily on options trading, as well as technical, fundamental and sentiment analysis.
-
-
Why You Need Renters' Insurance
Renters' insurance is surprisingly affordable, and it can save you a lot of money if you need to make a claim.
By Emma Patch • Published
-
A Financial Review in Early 2023 Can Optimize Your Strategy
Look to build savings, reduce risk, minimize taxes and ensure a successful retirement by reviewing your budget, contributions, allocations and beneficiaries.
By Ken Nuss • Published
-
Stock Market Today: Microsoft Earnings Weigh on Stocks
While Microsoft reported top- and bottom-line beats in its fiscal Q2, shares declined on disappointing guidance.
By Karee Venema • Published
-
The S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Are Getting 3 New Members
Dividend Aristocrats The index of stocks that have upped their dividends for at least 25 straight years is about to get longer.
By Dan Burrows • Published
-
Stock Market Today: Dow Gains After Busy Day of Blue-Chip Earnings
Travelers and 3M were two Dow components that reported earnings today.
By Karee Venema • Published
-
Stock Market Today: Stocks Climb After Spotify Job Cuts
Spotify became the latest company to announce layoffs, while Salesforce climbed on activist investor news.
By Karee Venema • Published
-
Stock Market Today: Netflix, Alphabet Lead Rally in Tech Stocks
Netflix reported much higher-than-expected subscriber growth, while Wall Street cheered Alphabet's layoff announcement.
By Karee Venema • Published
-
Kiplinger's Weekly Earnings Calendar (Jan. 23-27)
stocks Check out our earnings calendar for the upcoming week, as well as our previews of the more noteworthy reports.
By Karee Venema • Published
-
Stock Market Today: Stocks End Lower on Economic Data, Earnings
Today's economic reports showed the labor market remains hot, while housing continues to cool.
By Karee Venema • Published
-
Stock Market Today: Dow Drops 613 Points After Hawkish Fed Talk
Stocks initially opened higher, but swung into negative territory around lunchtime.
By Karee Venema • Published