Stocks rose higher on Monday as market participants look ahead towards the Federal Open Market Committee's next and final policy decision of the year due out on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose over 150 points, while the S&P 500 Index and Nasdaq Composite added about 0.4% and 0.2%, respectively.
Here's how the market settled on Monday:
S&P 500 Index (SPY ): +0.39% or +18.07 points to 4,622.44
Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA ): +0.43% or +157.06 points to 36,404.93
Nasdaq Composite Index (QQQ ): +0.20% or +28.51 points to 14,432.49
Wall Street is coming off a winning week on Monday, with investors keeping an eye on recent economic data for clues on the Fed's next moves ahead of the new year. Market participants widely expect the central bank to hold the federal funds rate at its current range of 5.25% to 5.5%, according to CME Group's FedWatch tool.
On the economic front, expectations for inflation over the next year reached their lowest level in more than two and a half years, according to a New York Federal Reserve survey released on Monday. November's reading of the Survey of Consumer Expectations showed the one-year median outlook declined to 3.4%, ticking down a 0.2 percentage point from October and marking its lowest level since April 2021. Beneath the headline, median expectations for three- and five-year outlooks were 3% and 2.7%, respectively, in November.
In single-stock news, Macy's (M ) shares surged as much as 21% on Monday after the Wall Street Journal reported investor group Arkhouse Management and Brigade Capital recently submitted a $5.8 billion buyout bid for the retailer. Arkhouse, which primarily invests in real estate, and Brigade Capital, an asset management firm, would already be paying a premium for Macy's, according to CNBC, as the stock has struggled despite turnaround efforts.
Occidental Petroleum (OXY ) announced it has agreed to buy CrownRock (CCK ) for $12 billion on Monday. The privately-held producer in the Permian basin will add 170,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day tand 1,700 undeveloped locations to Occidental's operations. The oil giant is financing the transaction through $9.1 billion in debt and $1.7 billion in stock, and said it is raising its quarterly dividend to $0.22 a share from $0.18 starting in 2024.
Cigna (CI ) shares rose higher on Monday on news the health insurance company has ended plans to acquire rival Humana (HUM ), according to Reuters' sources familiar with the matter. Cigna also announced plans to buy back $10 billion worth of shares.
"We believe Cigna's shares are significantly undervalued and repurchases represent a value-enhancing deployment of capital as we work to support high-quality care, improved affordability, and better health outcomes," Cigna Chairman and Chief Executive Officer David Cordani said in a statement.
Boeing (BA ) named Stephanie Pope as the airline manufacturing company's new Chief Operating Officer on Monday, moving Pope from a lead position at Boeing Global Services. Current CEO David Calhoun is expected to serve in his position for a least one more year, according to the Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, with Pope now being a frontrunner to replace Calhoun once he steps down.
Shake Shack (SHAK ) also announced a C-Suite shake-up on Monday, with the burger chain's CEO Randy Garutti planned to retire from his position in 2024. The company has already begun its search for his successor, lead by the consulting firm Korn Ferry. Garutti will stay on at Shake Shack as an advisory role to aid in the transition.
