Stock Market Today: Stocks Are Positively Mixed to Open December

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Stocks closed mixed on Cyber Monday, though two of the three main equity indexes established new all-time highs in the first trading session of December. Multiple stocks moved on major corporate leadership changes as investors look forward to a big piece of employment data ahead of the next Federal Open Market Committee meeting later this month.

Communications services, tech stocks and consumer discretionary names led to the upside, with Amazon.com (AMZN) adding 1.4% on what is the biggest online shopping day of the year.

But Microsoft (MSFT) was the top-performing Dow Jones stock, rising 1.8% during an otherwise down day for that price-weighted index. Meta Platforms (META), meanwhile, surged 3.2%, and another Magnificent 7 stock, Alphabet (GOOGL), was up 1.5%.

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"U.S. e-commerce exhibited strength during Thanksgiving and Black Friday, with tallies from both Adobe and Salesforce suggesting year-over-year accelerations on Thanksgiving," writes Oppenheimer analyst Rick Schafer in a recap of recent consumer activity.

"We view these holiday shopping figures as bullish for AMZN and digital advertising overall, particularly for META, GOOG, TTD & PINS." The Trade Desk (TTD) was up 5.1% on Monday, and Pinterest (PINS) added 0.4% to open December.

The Nasdaq Composite was up 1% to 19,403, while the S&P 500 added 0.2% to 6,047. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.3% to 44,782.

Jobs data in focus

"The minutes to the November FOMC meeting were consistent with Chair Powell's press conference, which noted that downside risks to the economy had diminished and that the Committee is not in a rush to cut rates back to neutral," writes economist Amy Yang in a December 2 entry in Deutsche Bank's Fed Watcher series.

"In particular, 'many' participants saw somewhat diminished risk of an excessive cooling in the labor market relative to the September meeting. Moreover, as subsequent Fedspeak has highlighted, there is a growing contingent that supports a 'gradual' process of policy normalization," Yang observes.

With investors continuing to adjust their expectations for interest rates, the Bureau of Labor Statistics will release data on the employment situation in November on Friday at 8:30 am Eastern time. Economists forecast the addition of approximately 200,000 jobs in November, up from 12,000 in October when hiring was impacted by hurricanes. The unemployment rate is forecast to be 4.2%, up from 4.1% in October.

The next Fed meeting is scheduled for December 17-18.

Stocks move on C-suite changes

Super Micro Computer (SMCI) was up 28.7% after the company announced that a special committee of its board of directors found "no evidence of misconduct" at the management or board level related to the artificial intelligence server maker's financial reporting.

"The evidence reviewed by the Special Committee did not raise any substantial concerns about the integrity of Supermicro's senior management or Audit Committee, or their commitment to ensuring that the Company's financial statements are materially accurate," Super Micro said in a press release.

The company also announced that its board, acting on recommendations of the special committee, will appoint a new chief accounting officer and will replace its chief financial officer. A volatile stock lately, SMCI is up 47.7% year to date.

Intel (INTC) was down 0.5% after the chipmaker announced that CEO Pat Gelsinger retired effective December 1, leaving his chief executive role as well as his position on the company's board of directors.

INTC has named David Zinsner and Michelle Johnston Holthaus interim co-CEOs and Frank Yeary, Intel's longest-tenured board member, interim executive chair.

Yeary said Intel "will continue to act with urgency" to simplify and strengthen its product portfolio and advance its manufacturing and foundry capabilities and to optimize operating and capital expenses. "We are working to create a leaner, simpler, more agile Intel." INTC is down 52.4% so far in 2024.

Stellantis (STLA) was down 6.4% following the resignation of CEO Carlos Tavares. The world's No. 4 automaker by sales issued a profit warning in September and then reported a 27% year-over-year decline in revenue in October.

Noting in a press release announcing the move that "Stellantis' success since its creation has been rooted in a perfect alignment between" shareholders, the company's board and its CEO, independent director Henri de Castries cited the recent emergence of "different views" that resulted in the board and the CEO parting ways.

Board chair John Elkann will lead an interim executive committee until the automaker identifies its next CEO. The process "is well underway… and will be concluded within the first half of 2025." STLA is down 46.9% year to date.

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David Dittman is the former managing editor and chief investment strategist of Utility Forecaster, which was named one of "10 investment newsletters to read besides Buffett's" in 2015. A graduate of the University of California, San Diego, and the Villanova University School of Law, and a former stockbroker, David has been working in financial media for more than 20 years.