Executive Mosaic’s GovCon Index settled slightly lower at $5,616.01 (-0.03%) to start a new trading week. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average (-0.80%) and broader S&P 500 Index (-0.18%) retreated from Friday’s record highs and snapped their runs, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (+0.27%) ended in positive territory.
Only 30% of Nasdaq constituents advanced, although most tech titans posted gains. NVIDIA (NVDA) rose 4.14% to $143.71, a fresh high for the AI king. Cigna (NYSE: CI) resumed exploratory merger talks with industry rival Humana (NYSE: HUM), but both insurance stocks fell. Some analysts said the adverse reaction could be due to antitrust concerns.
On the GovCon Index, decliners outnumbered gainers. Boeing (NYSE: BA) bested seven advancers following a positive development in labor contract negotiations with striking union members. Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR) and Maximus (NYSE: MMS) topped 22 decliners, with -2.07% and -1.99%, respectively.
Boeing was also the top Dow Jones performer on Monday with +3.11%. Published reports say the plane maker has reached a tentative deal with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. The proposed four-year contract is subject to approval by the union members and ratification on Wednesday, the same day Boeing releases its latest quarterly results.
Also, on Monday, the U.S. Air Force awarded Boeing a $277 million cost, cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for Starfire Electro-Optics, Laser Lab Advancement. The contract will develop Electro-Optics and Directed Energy technologies in support of the Air Force Research Laboratory.
Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) finished 0.46% higher at $614.61 after hitting a new 52-week high of $618.95 in intraday trading. The American defense and aerospace manufacturer is scheduled to present its Q3 2024 earnings result before the market opens on Tuesday.
The week ahead is light in economic or inflation-related data but heavy on earnings releases by S&P 500 companies. San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly said in her Wall Street Journal interview the central bank should continue cutting interest rates to avoid restraining the economy and hurting the labor market. She added that a 3% policy rate would be neither tight nor loose or neutral to some analysts.
