Stock Market Today: Stocks Close Higher Ahead of Inflation Week

Stocks opened higher Friday and continued to climb into the close, putting the lid on another strong week for the U.S. equities market. Today's upside came even as data showed consumer sentiment fell as inflation expectations climbed.

Shortly after the open, the University of Michigan said its consumer sentiment index fell for a fourth straight month in November, slipping to 60.4 from October's reading of 63.8.

"While current and expected personal finances both improved modestly this month, the long-run economic outlook slid 12%, in part due to growing concerns about the negative effects of high interest rates," the report stated. Both year-ahead and long-term inflation expectations rose in November too.  

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Inflation was top of mind during Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech on Thursday, where he said the central bank is "not confident" interest rates are high enough to bring inflation down to its 2% target. This sent stocks tumbling and had the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite snapping their longest daily win streaks in two years.

Stocks rebounded today, though. At the close, the S&P 500 was up 1.6% at 4,415, the Nasdaq was 2.1% higher at 13,798, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average had gained 1.2% to 34,283. All three indexes closed higher on the week, as well.

Plug Power spirals amid "unprecedented supply challenges"

The Nasdaq outperformed even as several tech stocks tumbled after earnings. Plug Power (PLUG), for one, plunged 40.5% after the fuel-cell maker reported a wider-than-expected third-quarter loss. Revenue of $199 million also fell short. In addition, Plug Power pulled its full-year guidance, citing "unprecedented supply challenges" in the North American hydrogen network.

"After 13 consecutive quarterly misses on adjusted earnings per share, we are struggling to find a positive catalyst, given the excessive cash burn rate and the importance of raising capital (in a challenging capital market environment) to fund its growth prospects," says CFRA Research analyst Matthew Miller, who downgraded PLUG to Sell from Hold. 

Trade Desk (TTD) was another big post-earnings loser, slumping 16.7% after its results. While the digital ad company reported third-quarter earnings of 33 cents per share on $493 million in revenue – both figures higher than analysts were expecting – fourth-quarter guidance came in well below estimates.

The company told CNBC that the "transitory cautiousness from advertisers in certain verticals, such as U.S. auto and media/entertainment due to the strikes" was the reason for the weak outlook.

Cisco earnings, CPI, PPI on deck

Next week, Cisco Systems (CSCO, +1.1%) is the most notable tech name on the earnings calendar, with the networking equipment specialist set to report after Wednesday's close.

As for economic news, all eyes will be on next week's inflation data. The October Consumer Price Index (CPI) report will be released Tuesday morning, while the Producer Price Index (PPI) is due out Wednesday. 

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